#you’ve probably had enough of this dude already but they’re rotating in my mind at the moment;

[cactuscely]

Standing on those network cubes as one does (but really small ones).

[talkfastromance4]

Poolside part 3-- It all started in Cabo (c.h)

Copyright talkfastromance4 © All works is intellectual property of the author. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction or any part or all contents in any form is prohibited. You may not, without written expression and consent from the author, distribute works amongst other social media platforms

a/n: welp, here it is! This is a prequel to how it all started. Thank you all for your messages about parts 1 and 2 and for being patient while I write this one! Catch up on the others below

Part One || Part Two

Word count: 7.3k (honestly didn’t want to stop writing)

Warnings: casual drinking, an unwarranted attempt at being picked up by a random guy, minor blood (from a scrape), slight voyeurism if you squint, and I think that’s it.

donate to my ko-fi here :)

Masterlist

Enjoy! :)

• • • •

You and your best friend, Morgan decided to go on a two-week vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. You’ve heard numerous times how the beaches are beautiful, and the nightlife is always exciting. After a stressful last few month of work, so many changes happening all at once, you were itching to go on your two-week getaway.

With enough saved up you and Morgan were able to rent out a beautiful villa just a little bit off the resort. The amenities included four bedrooms and two baths, a private pool and a small portion of the beach was secluded in the back. To celebrate, you both had a glass of champagne on the flight then slept the rest of the flight so you would have enough energy to go out for dinner and maybe a drink or two.

The taxi arrives at the villa and it’s gorgeous, high ceilings and wide windows with the pool half enclosed and half open to the natural weather. Vibrant green plants were placed around the whole house and you could already smell the fresh salty ocean air.

“This is incredible,” Morgan gushes meeting you back in the kitchen after you explored the area. “Let’s pick our rooms, shower, and head to the resort for some margaritas.”

“Sounds like a great plan to me,” you grin rolling your luggage to a room on the right. It had a large window with a great view of the pool and the ocean beyond, but you paused when you already saw an open suitcase. “Hey, Morgan, did you pick this room already?”

“No? Why, does it seem more like me?” she asks skipping up next to you then she spots the open suitcase. “What--?”

“Who are you?”

An extremely tall man with gold curls and eyes the color of the ocean appears from the bathroom of the room causing you and Morgan to scream at his sudden appearance.

“What are you doing in our villa?!” you exclaim, eyes wide.

“Your villa? This is our villa,” ocean eyes says in confusion.

“Nice, are you maid service? We need extra towels in the bathroom,” another voice says behind you, this one is much deeper.

You and Morgan spin around slowly meeting the eyes of the new unwarranted guest in your vacation home. He’s shirtless with a baseball cap on over dark hair and your eyes glide over the muscles and tattoos on his chest. In the midst of your bewilderment, his words finally register with you and you’re filled with a bitterness.

“We aren’t your maids; this is our villa. I think there’s been a mistake,” you answer him, fingers tightening on the handle of your suitcase.

“Oh, well, we booked this months ago,” the tattoo guy says.

“So, did we. Now get out.”

“I don’t think so,” he grins, “we’ve been waiting for this trip and this was the best villa on the resort. You ladies must have gone to wrong one.”

Scowling, you glare at him for a moment longer before pushing past him into the kitchen. There’s a phone hanging on the wall with a list of numbers for the resort next to it, the front desk was the first one listed.

“What are you doing?” Tattoo man asks standing on the other side of the counter.

“Calling the front desk so they can tell you that this is our villa. You boys must have gone to the wrong one,” you retort, and he smirks while you dial the numbers for the front desk. When the lady picks up you explain the situation quickly and he’s still smirking at you as you listen to her explanation.

Apparently another villa was under repairs and this was the only one that held four bedrooms and could be split between two parties. You were supposed to get an email explaining the situation and offering one of the better suites in the hotel but the deadline for that was a week ago. Unfortunately, you didn’t get such email and there are no other rooms available, but she offered to look at nearby resorts.

“No…no, that’s um, all right. Thank you for clearing that up,” you say dejected. When you hang up the phone, Morgan and ocean eyes joined the rude tattoo guy.

“What’s the verdict?” Morgan asks eying up the tall strangers.

You explain the situation to them with a hint of bitterness.

“So, it seems like we’re going to have to share,” you huff crossing your arms. You were looking forward to having this place to yourself and now you have to worry about two strange men? You’ll need a vacation from this vacation.

“Fine by me,” tattoo guy grins. “I’m Calum, and this is Luke.”

“Y/N,” you respond and point to Morgan, “and she’s Morgan. I don’t really want to share with two guys we don’t know. What if you’re killers and you’ve escaped here on the run from the cops?”

Calum grins cockily, and for some reason his attitude really irritates you.

“We aren’t killers, we’re just two dudes who want a nice trip. We probably won’t be around here much, sweetheart, so you girls can enjoy the amenities. We’ll be out clubbing.” He knocks his knuckles on the countertop then turns to his room.

Morgan gives you a look as you share the same thought.

“Rule number one don’t bring random girls back here,” you follow him into the room next to Luke’s.

“Rules? You can’t tell us what to do, sweetheart,” he shakes his head and pulls on a tank top on from his open suitcase.

“I can if I don’t want strange girls here. I don’t want to see them running around naked while I’m trying to relax. And stop calling me sweetheart,” you add.

“We weren’t even planning on bringing girls back here, don’t worry,” Luke says shooting Calum a look. “We promise to stay on our side of the villa while you’re here and won’t bother you.”

You glance between him and Calum who is now on his phone texting away at someone. You let out a sigh. “Fine, I guess that will work. We’ll do the same.”

“Awesome. Now that’s sorted, we’ve got dinner reservations,” Calum announces to Luke and they head to the front door. You follow him out, ready to rant and rave with Morgan as soon as they’re gone when Calum turns around. “Oh, you should google us, and you’ll see why we wanted this hidden villa in the first place,” he smacks the doorframe then shoots you a wink, “See you later, sweetheart.”

“Google them? What are they, princes or something?” you scoff and find Morgan already pulling out her phone.

“Calum seems to like you,” she gives you a sly smile as she types in their names. You roll your eyes in response and then she gasps. “No way.”

“What? Who are they?”

“They’re famous, like super famous. Look,” she holds her phone up to you and you see they’re in a band.

“And they don’t want to bring girls back? That’s…”

“Kind of sweet.”

“I mean…yeah. But Calum needs to fix his attitude.”

***

The first few days the four of you made sure to steer clear out of each other’s way. The guys would get up early and be out the door before you or Morgan woke up and did your own thing of sunbathing and going into the ocean of your secluded beach.

On the third night, you and Morgan decided to check out the resort party bar where booming music could be heard faintly every night. You decided to put on a blush pink satin halter top with white shorts and silver sandals. Before heading out the two of you took a shot to get your blood flowing.

The party bar was crowded with people dancing, mingling and right off the bat you noticed Calum and Luke off to the side with drinks in their hands. Calum met your gaze smirking as he lifted his glass then took a sip from the straw. His cocky attitude rubbed you the wrong way and you needed another drink pronto.

“Hey! There’s Luke and Calum, we should say hi,” Morgan says pointing but you grab her elbow and lead her away from them.

“We said we’d keep our distance, remember?”

“Yeah, at the villa,” Morgan giggles as you sidle up to the bar. “Calum’s looking at you.”

“I don’t care,” you shake your head but suddenly become very self-conscious of every move you do. The bartender takes your order, making the drinks quickly and the music is exotic mixed with the perfect tempo for dancing.

You and Morgan have two drinks while still at the bar, talking about the excursion you have planned tomorrow of going on a hike in the jungle. A familiar song came on and Morgan was yanking you onto the dancefloor so you can dance. Feeling warm and electric from the alcohol, it’s easy to dance along with everyone else. Calum is completely out of your mind now as you and Morgan twirl around each other. For the first time you’re feeling free and relaxed after such a long time of stress hanging over you. You made a mental note to set up a massage.

Bailando by Enrique Iglesias comes on and you’re really feeling the groove of the music, trying to rotate your hips with the beat when you feel hands on your waist helping to guide you. Looking behind you, you’re met with an attractive guy who smiles at you and you’re feeling yourself, so you let him dance with you. Morgan tells you she’s going to use the restroom and you nod absently knowing she’ll return as soon as she’s finished.

Once you get the hang of it, you’re the one leading his hips with the song, his fingers hook into the loops of your shorts and your arms are in the air letting go. You continue dancing until your throat feels parched and you need a drink.

As you start to walk away, you’re yanked back right against the guy you were dancing with, his other hand slipping over your ass in a possessive way you weren’t a fan of.

“Where’re you goin’ baby?” his voice is slurred, and you can smell the overwhelming amount of tequila in his breath. It was so potent it made your own stomach spin.

“To get a drink,” you try to pull away while also trying to remove his hand from your butt. “Thanks for the dance.”

“C’mon, you can’t dance with me like that and just leave. Let’s go somewhere more private.”

“No.”

Then he has the nerve to try and kiss you but you’re still leaning as far back as you can without falling over—his grip on your wrist is tight. You feel his lips nudge yours before he’s forcefully shoved away, and you stumble with the motion.

“I think it’s time for you to leave,” a familiar voice says.

“Calum—”

“Who the hell are you?”

“Doesn’t matter, get out of here,” Calum says then turns to you. Concern is in his dark brown eyes and you’re taken aback. “Are you all right?”

“Hey man, I was dancing with her first. She’s mine.”

“Excuse me? I’m—”

“She’s not your property,” Calum squares his shoulders and uses his height to his advantage. The guy takes a wavering step back. “Now leave or I’ll make you.”

He ends up walking away and Calum turns back to you. In your drunken state you’re embarrassed of the situation and irritated that Calum had to save you from a creep like that. The irritation wins over in emotions.

“Are you okay?” Calum asks.

“I’m fine. Thanks,” you mutter and leave the dancefloor to try and find Morgan. She’s talking with Luke and it looks like they’re having a great time. Not wanting to ruin your best friend’s moment, you avert your course to the trail leading back to your villa.

“Where are you going?” Calum follows you and your irritation grows.

“Back to the villa. You don’t have to come with.”

“Why do you seem pissed?”

“Look, I appreciate you yanking that asshole off me, but I can speak up for myself as well,” you mumble. The more you walk the more you realize how drunk you are, and you’re reminded of how dry your throat is. You need water immediately.

“Are you seriously mad at me for helping you? Who knows what he could have done if I didn’t step in?”

“I just said thank you!” you throw your arms up in the air and your body decides to move with them. The concrete of the pathway swirls in your vision but warm arms wrap around you.

“You can barely walk,” Calum sighs trying to get you standing straight.

“I’m fine,” you grumble trying to shove him off you, but his grip is strong. It doesn’t feel weird like with the guy from the dancefloor, it actually feels really nice.

“Let me help you back, please,” he huffs then adjusts himself, so he only has one arm around your waist. “I don’t need you breaking an ankle.”

You turn your head up to glare at him and groan when the stars are moving in circles. You clutch your head, closing your eyes but that somehow makes it worse.

“That’s what I thought.”

“Shut up,” you grumble.

The more you walk the more your stomach starts to feel uncomfortable and you know this feeling all too well. Through your heavy lids you can see the villa not too far off and you’re filled with relief at being able to go into the bathroom on your own so you can get sick. You will not throw up on Calum’s shoes. Glancing down you see he’s got sandals on and it makes you laugh at the thought of getting puke on his toes.

“You’re an interesting drunk. Angry one minute and now you’re giggling,” Calum sighs but you can hear the humor in his voice.

“Thinking it’d be funny if I puked on your toes,” you giggle.

“Shit, you’re gonna be sick?”

“No. Bathroom first, please, but don’t bring your toes. Does that rhyme? Please, toes…” you laugh some more.

Once you’re finally inside, you stagger your way to the bathroom falling to your knees just in time. You hold the porcelain of the toilet as the alcohol exits your system and someone is rubbing your back.

“Go—”

“I’m not leaving you in here while you’re sick. I’m not a dick,” Calum interrupts you.

When your stomach is empty and you feel a little less drunk, Calum helps you stand up and brush your teeth. He mentions to get water before he leaves, and you stare yourself down in the mirror. Your eyes are bloodshot and there’s a flushed look to your cheeks. What a night this has turned out to be. You wash your face the best you can, making sure to get as much make-up off when Calum returns with a water bottle.

Not knowing your status, he helps you hobble back to your bedroom where you crawl happily onto the bed.

“Anything else you need?”

“Help me change?” you ask, and his eyes go wide, his mouth opening in shock. You snicker at his response and wave him off. “I’m kidding. I got it.”

“You’re unbelievable,” he shakes his head moving to the door.

“Hey Calum,” you call, and he turns around, “Thank you. For everything.”

“You’re welcome. Now get some sleep, sweetheart. You’re a hot mess.”

You shake your head at his jab and pull off your clothes slipping under the covers. The night replays in your mind and then continues in your dream where Calum appears. His hot, sturdy hands grip your waist and you fall into a perfect rotation with his hips. You link your fingers with his then his lips move to your neck, singing softly to you with whatever song is playing.

You fall into a deep sleep then wake up still feeling the pressure of Calum’s firm but gentle grasp on you.

***

The next day after a long morning of waking up and recovering from a night of drinking, you and Morgan head out for your hike through the jungle. The two of you instantly regretted your decision of drinking last night while trekking through the humid forest. Beads of sweat trickled down your arms and the middle of your back but the view at the top of the hill was well worth it.

From this vantage point you could see the arched formations of El Arco, the ocean water as blue as the sky. You’ll have to find a way to get to the natural rock formation. The descent was much easier, and you and Morgan took plenty of photos while laughing at how unruly your hair was and the dirt that covered your arms and legs in patches.

The thought of the pool at your villa sounded heavenly and you couldn’t wait to take a dip.

Unfortunately, when you returned to the villa, Calum was already in the pool with a can of beer. Despite his helpfulness last night, you felt embarrassed that he had to do all that in the first place, his cocky grin still set your irritation off. Your head was throbbing from the hike and all you wanted to do was jump into the pool.

“Oh, hey,” Luke greets with a smile from the kitchen. “I just made some lunch if you guys want something to eat.”

“I’m starving. Climbing a mountain is hard work,” Morgan says making a bee line to the counter.

“It was a hill and we didn’t climb it,” you giggle but she waves you off already in quiet chatter with Luke.

Sighing, you step down into the pool area, Calum notices making his way to you in the water.

“You look worse than last night, sweetheart,” he grins taking a long pull from his drink.

You roll your eyes with a sigh and cross your arms. “Are you going to be in there long?”

“Maybe,” he shrugs leaning on the ledge with his arms. “It’s big enough for the both of us, great for getting off sweat from…” his eyes linger down your body, “strenuous activities.”

“I’ll just wait until you’re done.”

“Oh, come on, get in here,” he chortles. “I promise I’ll behave. The water’s really nice for a hot day like this. There’s some drinks in the fridge, help yourself.”

Taken aback by his offer of beverages, you’re left frazzled for a moment. The water does look tempting and Calum’s biceps are all too alluring reminding you of the dream you had about him last night. Your cheeks instantly heat up at the recollection.

But you won’t give in no matter how hard you want to. You tell yourself it’s the principle of the thing, an agreement between the four of you that you’d stay out of each other’s way.

“I’ll say yes to the drink,” you smile, “enjoy the pool.”

With that, you turned on your heel and went to take a cool shower instead. Maybe the pool will be open later tonight and you could take a dip.

***

“Good morning ladies,” Calum announces while you and Morgan are having breakfast on your sixth day of vacation. “I hope you don’t have plans today because you’re coming with us to El Arco by the sea cliffs.”

“Really?”

“Well…you and Calum are,” Luke says pouring himself a cup of coffee. “Morgan and I are going to look at all the shops and try the different restaurants.”

You look from Luke to Calum and Morgan who is very interested in the oatmeal in her bowl, avoiding eye contact with you completely. This was all obviously orchestrated but why?

“Are you sure?” you ask Calum who is wearing a black tank top and black swim trunks. He looks

“Yeah I’m sure. Morgan said you were ogling them on your hike, but she thinks they looked scary,” Calum explains.

“I wasn’t ogling them,” you sniff but secretly you’re excited to see them up close. There’s also a beach you heard about near the archway, total seclusion and relaxation. “But I appreciate the invite, when do we leave?”

“As soon as you’re done with breakfast,” Calum grins. “I rented a boat that will be waiting for us at the marina.”

Anticipating a boat full of other people, you were surprised to see it would just be you and Calum on the boat. You were filled with nerves at being alone with him and at the thought of possible getting lost at sea. How did he know where you were going? Does he frequent trips to the cliffs a lot?

Wordlessly, you hand him the two coolers of food and drink then bags of towels and small chairs to stick in the sand. You were the last thing to get into the boat and Calum held out his hand to you. Hesitantly, you took his hand (your dream resurfacing) and he helps you into the boat.

“So…it’s just us, then?” you ask resting your hands on your waist.

“Yup,” he rubs his hands together before untying the ropes of the boat from the dock. He pushes away from the pier, inserts the key and the boat rumbles to life.

“And you know where you’re going?”

“Yes, sweetheart, now sit back and relax. You’re safe with me,” he winks and turns the boat around in the water. You have no choice but to heed his words by sitting down.

You choose to sit at the front of the boat where you can feel the sea spray on your face and let your hand glide through the waves from the movement of the boat in the water. The sun is high and beating down on you in the best way. Calum banks to the right and then you see the cliffs appear, they’re much larger in the water than up on the hill and you’re awestruck at the foundation.

A few other boats are anchored around the small little island, some of the patrons are seated on the beach. Thinking you’ll be anchoring by them; you sit up a little straighter then furrow your brows in confusion when Calum continues on past them.

“Where are you going?” you ask turning around to face him. The wind is blowing his dark curls and his cheeks are a little tinted pink from the sun.

“Somewhere where there isn’t a lot of people. Don’t worry, you’ll like it.”

Continuing to arch around the cliffs, you catch sight of an even more secluded portion of a beach that is completely void of other people. The sand is white and blinding under the sun with some rocks along the shore. It’s the perfect spot and you’re actually really grateful that Calum chose this secluded area; you didn’t want to be around other people that much either.

Calum brings the boat as close to the shore as he can before dropping anchor. Peering down you can see the water will come up to your knees when you exit so it will be easy to transfer your belongings from the boat to the beach. He hops out of the boat effortlessly then holds out his hands.

“I’ll bring everything onto the beach if you want to hand it to me.”

“I can help too,” you say defiantly but ultimately hand him the heaviest cooler first.

As he’s setting up the chairs, you want to prove yourself to him so you grab the last cooler, setting it on the back of the boat so you can get out safely. You misjudge a step in the ladder making you bump against the boat with your shin. You feel something scrape against your skin and you cry out at the searing pain of the sharp cut and the salt water.

“Are you okay?” Calum asks.

You grab the cooler without responding, pushing through the water to the edge of the beach. At the fresh air hitting your scrape, you let out a hiss in relief and then the following throb after. You drop the cooler next to the other one so you can examine your leg. Sure enough, there is a scrape with fresh blood trickling down onto your foot.

“Damn it,” you mutter.

“Shit. What did you do?”

“Missed a step on the ladder and cut myself on something from the boat.” You grab onto the outer part of the cut trying to see how long it is, but more blood oozes out.

“Sit down, there’s a first aid in the boat,” Calum sighs splashing back into the water.

Again, you sit down in one of the chairs he set up trying to keep your leg in the air so the blood can stop flowing to that spot. He kneels in front of you when he returns, a small white box next to him. He rifles through it until he finds alcohol swabs.

“This is going to sting,” he glances up at you as he rips the paper open.

“I know, I can handle it,” you nod bravely.

He smiles quickly then takes your calf in his large hand, resting your foot on his thigh swiping the alcohol swab down your leg. It stings and pricks at your skin while he cleans the saltwater and sand away from the open cut. When the blood is clear, except for the small bead still rising to the surface, he puckers his lips and blows delicately on your leg.

You watch him as he continues to grab Neosporin and a large bandage. He squirts the clear gel on the band-aid then presses it onto your shin. His fingers press on the adhesive making sure it’s sticking properly. Calum rubs his thumbs on your leg softly. Having him touch you gives you goosebumps and the dream you had of him resurfaces once more.

“Thanks.”

“I told you I’d get everything off the boat,” he snaps the kit shut.

“This isn’t from the cooler,” you scoff, “I missed a step.”

“I knew I’d need this, you’re so clumsy Y/N.” His tone is mocking but the smile he gives you is kind and you can’t help but smile back.

“You aren’t wrong,” you laugh, “I trip over everything.”

“I can carry you back into the boat when we leave so you don’t get any more saltwater on it.”

“I’m still going swimming I hope you know.”

Calum sighs then sits in the chair next to you. “You’re something else.”

“Back at ya,” you sigh.

When the sun became too hot you decided it was time to head into the water. It was calm and so blue as it kissed the shore; you just had to experience it yourself. Standing from your chair, you remove your shorts and tank top stepping through the hot sand and sighing as the water rolls over your feet.

“Be careful,” Calum calls but you wave him off dismissively and venture further. The water is warm as it hits against you and you dunk yourself into the ocean, ignoring the dull throb in your shin because it’s so worth it to be in the water.

“You’re a little adventurer, aren’t you?” Calum’s deep voice startles you when you rise up from the water.

Not expecting him to be so close to you, you let out a small scream tripping on your feet before you steady yourself. You spit out the saltwater you slurped up.

“You don’t creep up on someone like that when they’re underwater!” you scold splashing water at him. You try to keep your gaze on his face rather than on his tattooed muscular chest.

“I thought you saw me,” he laughs then grabs hold of your elbows pulling you with him as he backs up. “You make me nervous out here.”

“Why?”

“A shark could smell your blood and I don’t really feel like fighting a shark today.”

“I’m not even bleeding anymore thanks to your nurse skills. Are these shark infested waters?” you follow him closer to the shore until the water is just below your chest.

“No but knowing your luck one will find you.”

You shake your head at his ridiculousness but are also very flattered that he’s nervous about your safety. His constant mood swings towards you are giving you whiplash.

“Thanks for your concern,” you answer drily walking around him.

The two of you swim silently for about an hour then head back to shore. You’re relaxing in the sunshine, popping grapes into your mouth complimentary of Calum’s snack preparation. The sound of the waves crashing against the rocks and the wind gusting through the overhang of the cliffs has you in a complete state of bliss.

“How’s your leg?” Calum asks, his voice equally as calming as your surroundings.

“Fine,” you shrug opening your eyes to see him already looking at you. They shine a lighter brown in the sun. “It barely hurts Calum.”

“I’m sorry about the way I’ve been acting. I went through a not so good breakup before this trip. It was supposed to be me and her instead of Luke. I guess I was still a little bitter about it and placed that bitterness on the first pretty girl I saw.”

You stare at him in shock, mind reeling at his apology and his pretty comment.

“I’m sorry you went through a bad break-up; those are really tough. I was pretty bitter too but from work. Guess I took it out on the first handsome guy I saw.”

He gives a shy smile then chortles softly holding up his can of White Claw. “Truce?”

“Truce,” you nod knocking your own can of Truly against his. You each take a drink then he sighs.

“Honestly, this little trip of ours to this beach helped calm me. It’s so quite and peaceful out here.”

You finish off the rest of your drink, the bubbly alcohol already taking effect and you feel lighter than air. “You know,” you sigh standing up from your chair. You peer down at him with your hands on your hips, “There are other ways to take out your bitterness.”

“Oh yeah? Like what?” his eyes are playful taking you in.

“Other strenuous activities,” you smirk and make your way back into the water. It’s refreshing to the touch after sitting in the sun. You splash some water on your face then Calum is joining you.

“Care to share these types of strenuous activities?” he quirks his eyebrows up as he swims closer to you. His muscles rippling in the best way.

“You’re a smart guy, I think you can figure at least one of them out.” You lower yourself into the water walking backwards as he circles around you. It’s like a dance, he moves forward, and you fall back, circling with the motion of the waves.

“I might need a little bit of help,” he smirks pushing forward.

As you fall back your foot touches something slimy and rubbery at the same time. It catches you off guard and you scream lurching forward right into Calum’s arms. His arms are strong around you holding you up in the water.

“Something touched my leg!” you shriek trying to push him away from where your foot was. He laughs at your reaction, your legs getting tangled together. “It’s not funny! Weren’t you just talking about sharks?”

“I don’t think a shark would come this close to the shore, sweetheart.”

You feel the rumble of his voice against your cheek, his skin warm against yours and you’re reminded of the dream again. When you remove your cheek from his chest, his arms loosen their grip but still circle your body against his. Your eyes meet his and something shifts between you.

He cups your cheek, water droplets glide down your neck and he traces your lips with his thumb inching his face lower and closer to yours. You incline your head to his, eyes falling shut when his lips ghost over yours and he stops. Your heart races.

“Want to help me get rid of my bitterness?” he mumbles, lips brushing against yours.

“Yes,” you exhale.

He captures your top lip between his, he tastes of saltwater and the spiky lime of his beverage making you crave more of him. You let out a huff, opening your lips already meeting his tongue with yours and you wrap your arms around his neck. If you would have known kissing him felt this good you would have done it the first chance you got.

His fingers tickle your lower back before he grips you tighter against him, your bodies are flush against one another as you continue to kiss in this small oasis. Unfortunately, you feel the band-aid on your shin start to peel off from the water and you lift your leg.

Calum hooks his hand under your knee hoisting you upwards with a small grunt. You giggle against his lips, loving where his mind is going but for the wrong reason.

“My band-aid is coming off,” you whisper in between a kiss.

“Yeah it—oh, shit,” he looks down and sees the strip peeling off your leg. “Okay, let’s get out of here.”

His lips are on yours once more as he pushes through the water to the shore. You kiss him back eagerly, never wanting to stop until he sets you down on the large towel next to your chairs.

“Sit down, I’ll get the kit,” he says. His hands roam over your back and down your ass, giving you a gentle squeeze then steps away from you.

You fall back onto the towel easily, his kiss made your knees weak and you watch him gather the supplies he needs from the white box. You scoot back a little so he can kneel on the towel. He takes your foot in his hand resting it against his thigh like before and gently peels the bandage off. The cut doesn’t bleed so that’s a good sign, maybe the saltwater helped a little.

“We’ll have to properly clean it when we get back,” he murmurs dabbing at it with the edge of the towel. He opens another band-aid placing the strip over your wound. His thumbs rub the adhesive just like before then to your surprise presses his lips to the bandage. “All better.”

Your breathing becomes shallow as his lips kiss a line up to your knee, your heart jolts as he kisses the knee cap. You wonder if he’ll keep going, you silently beg that he will. Calum shifts on the towel so he’s climbing over you and you lay back easily as he hovers over you. The water falls off his body in cool droplets, his chest pressing against yours.

This time, you drag his lips to yours with your hand on the back of his neck chasing for that saltwater and lime taste of his kiss. Very gently, he lowers his body down until you’re touching every inch. You feel him smile before slipping his tongue in your mouth and you can’t help the moan you make. Your hips lift against his and he grips your knee in his hand hooking it onto his waist.

Your back arches so you’re closer, fingers tangling in his curls and you thrust your hips once more.

“Someone’s eager,” he mumbles then kisses your jaw.

“Can you blame me?” you sigh tilting your head so he can kiss your neck. With his lips and the sun beating down on you, you’re warm all over.

“No,” he smiles against you, his thumb rubs the side of your knee. “I’ve dreamt of doing this since that first day you arrived.”

“Funny, I dreamt of you too.”

“First day?”

“No, third day,” you giggle, and he pinches your waist making you giggle. He leans on his elbow, his leg still poised between yours with his hand running up and down the side of your thigh. When his fingers skim under you’re your suit you grab his wrist stilling his movements.

“I’m sorry. I can—”

“No, I want to but…” you glance around you, “I don’t want to get sand in places it shouldn’t be.”

“Fair enough,” he laughs and gives you a quick kiss. “Want to head back?”

“No,” your hands glide down his shoulders and arms, “let’s stay here a while longer.”

You ended up staying until dusk exchanging more kisses. You catch the glorious colors of blazing oranges, bright pinks and flaming reds of the sunset on your boat ride back. Calum carried you to the boat so you wouldn’t get your injured leg in the water again or tripping on something while you carried the coolers or chairs back.

You stood behind him with your arm wrapped across his chest so you could lean down and kiss his cheek or his temple. His skin is hot from laying outside all day and he smells like fresh saltwater and sunscreen.

You’re both quick to bring in everything from the car and find that Luke and Morgan are nowhere in sight. Not having reception on your little beach, you check your phones to see they went out for dinner and dancing and won’t be back until later.

Calum gives you a boyish grin then bites his lower lip as he pulls you against his chest, his fingers lacing with yours.

“We have this whole place to ourselves.”

“I know,” you smile, “what should we do?”

“Wanna go for a dip in the pool? Get all this ocean water off us?”

You’re quick to agree letting him lead you to the pool area. The pool lights cast a cerulean glow from the water and shimmers on yours and Calum’s skin. The water is cool as you descend the steps, fingers still held loosely in Calum’s. It continues to cool your skin, finally feeling the effects from being in the sun all day and you probably got a sunburn but with the way Calum turns around and looks at you? You don’t care.

“You’re so beautiful,” he murmurs cupping your cheek then gives you a deep kiss.

You’re filled with an inescapable desire for him, needing to be closer, needing to feel him on every part of your body. You brush your fingers over his stomach then tug on the waistband of his swim trunks.

“I’m sick of being in this suit, aren’t you?” you ask, fingernails tickling below his waistband. His breath hitches as he watches you untie the top part of your suit. The strings fall over your shoulders and you unclip the fastening against your back then you ball up your top tossing it next to you on the ledge.

Feeling smug about the way Calum’s eyes are practically devouring you, you take the situation in your own hands and press yourself against him nibbling on his lower lip. He groans on your mouth, his hands wandering down to your bottoms. Lips still connected; you help him by stepping out of the bottoms which he tosses next to your abandoned top.

His hands glide up your body cupping your breasts, his thumbs brushing over your nipples and you moan at the touch. He moves his lips from yours to your jaw and he starts to suck lightly on your neck, it sends shivers down your body. Wanting to pleasure him as well, you yank down his trunks and take him in your hand. You stroke him lazily, the moan he leaves against your skin has you smiling in his hair.

“Can I play with you, too?” he whispers kissing your shoulder and you nod. With one hand still cupping your breast he latches his mouth to your nipple, tongue swirling in tantalizing motions and his other hand cups your sex.

You’re moaning against each other, your strokes faltering when he slips a finger into your pussy and his teeth scrape against your hardened bud.

“Fuck, Cal,” you exhale circling your thumb over his slit.

“Wanna feel you,” he sighs lifting his head. He tries to kiss you, but the motions of your hands only make you nudge against one another.

“Please,” you nod.

He takes his finger out then lifts you onto his hips, your back presses against the wall. Your foreheads knock together as he directs himself to your entrance, his tip clips your clit as he inserts himself. Your mouth opens from the stretch the further he pushes; each one ripples a newfound pleasure within you. He tightens his fingers on your hips thrusting all the way in and you groan at finally being filled.

“You feel fuckin’ amazing,” he pants pulling his hips back and then pushes forward.

You meet his thrusts easily and the vigorous motion creates waves within the pool water. Calum leaves sucking kisses all along your chest as you tilt your head back on the ledge in ecstasy. The dull rub of the wooden floor on the back of your head doesn’t compare to how Calum’s making you feel as he fucks into you at a rapid pace.

“Yes! Right there!” you gasp when he hits a certain spot. Calum’s hands grip the edge of the pool as he drills into you, your orgasm is rising, rising, rising until it topples all over you. You swear you see stars and through your eyelids, you can see the moon shining as well. He’s making you feel so good that galaxies are being formed.

Calum’s low grunts and moans spur you on for an even longer orgasm until his body tightens, his thighs clench beneath yours as he fills you with a new type of warmth. He sighs your name on your skin and you can’t help the dazed smile that forms on your lips.

When his body settles against yours you lift your head the same time he does, your fingers stroke his cheek. You’re dazed and blissed out in the best way possible.

“I’m glad we got thrown together in this villa,” he tells you, eyes staring into yours.

“Me too,” you smile fondling with his dark wet curls.

“I don’t…when we get back home…can I take you out?”

“Do you have a secret beach back in LA?”

“No.”

“Hm, well, then I don’t know…” you tease, and he kisses away your giggle. You melt against him, it’s so easy to get lost in his lips and the way he makes you feel. “I guess I’ll make an exception.”

“You’re too kind, sweetheart.”

He pulls out of you slowly, both of you hissing from the loss and then the skin on your arms and shoulders pinches. Your sunburn is starting to appear more.

“I think we should get out, I got sunburnt,” you scrunch your nose at him.

“Of course, you did,” he shakes his head at you adoringly. He pecks your lips. “Come on, we’ll take a shower and I’ll rub some aloe all over you.”

“How sexy,” you laugh.

In the shower, he massages his fingers into your scalp as he washes your hair and you do the same. When you’re both finished you can see how sunburnt you actually are, and Calum lays you on his bed. His hands and fingers are gentle as he rubs aloe and then lotion onto your skin trying to hydrate it. Afterwards, you fall asleep easily, exhausted from the day’s adventures.

Calum’s fingers trail up and down your bare back, calming you. This trip wasn’t what you expected, it was way more, and you couldn’t wait to spend the rest of your vacation with Calum.

“My paradise just got better because of you, sweetheart,” he whispers in your ear. You turn your head on his pillow to press your lips to his, a silent agreement.

• • • •

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[george-mackay-macfine]

Dear Diary. pt3

Requested

Word Count: 3, 188

A/N I have more written, let me know if you want it. 

September 14th 2011,

Dear Diary, 

What are your thoughts on parties? Not just any parties University parties. In my head, I didn’t think they’d be much different from High School parties, much different from the parties the people at school threw every year. 

How wrong was I, 

Harry had come home from his first introduction class with the news we’d all be invited to a huge start of year party at one of his classmate's houses when he’d said we’d all been invited I was sure it was actually just Harry who was invited. 

Harry, on the other hand, was adamant that Dean and I had in fact been invited, and he wasn’t just feeling sorry for Dean and me who were already being inundated with course work. 

“George will be there,” Dean smirked as he watched me pour myself a glass of juice. “Won’t he Harry?”

 “Yeah, He was in the intro class, the invitation was extended to everyone and he said he’d go.” Harry shrugged. 

“See Y/N,”

“Wow, thanks, Dean. It sounds so much more tempting now.” My eyes rolled as I picked up my juice. 

“C’mon Y/N. We’ve both already got a mountain of course work, and it’s only going to get bigger. So why don’t we use this time of minimal work to have some fun? You know… Flatmate bonding.” Dean walked over to our ‘liquor table’ (it was really just a small table we’d found on gumtree) “Let me add some vodka to that juice and you’ll be ready to party before you know it.” He swiped a nearby bottle of vodka, twisting the lid off as he walked towards me. 

“Don’t even think about it.” I put my hand over the top of my cup. “Apple juice is the only source of happiness for me right now, I don’t need it plagued with bad memories.” 

“That’s just sad,” Harry shook his head as a knock sounded from the door. “That’ll be George.”

“Why’s he here?” I looked at the door.  

“I figured we’d need help convincing you to come.” He stood up and walked towards the door leaving Dean and I, 

“Whose party is it again?” I pulled the juice towards me, afraid he’d pour some of the heartburn inducing liquor into it. 

To be honest, I wouldn’t mind some vodka, I was just worried that vodka-soaked Y/N would chase George down all night and end up like one of those girls you see crying in the gutter at two in the morning, or worse end up like Sarah. 

“I think Harry said his name was Harry?” Dean took a swig of the vodka from the bottle. “That’ll put some steam in your tank.” 

“Do I have to go?” I whined as Harry walked back, George following behind him. “Can’t you three go without me? Parties aren’t really my thing, I can just skip it.”

“Can’t let you do that, Dean says we need you.” Harry wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “Remind me again why she needs to come?” Harry laughed as Dean went about pulling my bottle of juice over to him. 

“Don’t you dare Dean.” I reached back out pulling it back to me. “Apple juice is an innocent drink. Do not taint it.”

“We need Y/N because as soon as girls see us walking in with her they’ll see we’re good guys, and they’ll trust us easier,” Dean smirked. “Perfect plan.” 

“So you’re going to pretend that you don't want to get in with these girls, but really you do?” He nodded. “I still don’t wanna go,” I whined.

“Please Y/N,” Dean begged. “I need to meet someone to add to my roster.”

“You have a roster?”

“A rotating one,” He smirked. “But at the moment I’m missing a girl….” He looked over to George shrugging. “One got too clingy.”

“Wow, you’re such a good dude Dean.” I rolled my eyes. “Fine, I’ll go.” I pulled away from Harry and dragged my feet to my bedroom for good measure. 

“Has she been drinking?” I heard George whisper to Dean. 

“Only apple juice,” He whispered back. “She wouldn’t let me spike it.” I opened my door and slammed it closed behind me, pushing my back up against it for good measure. 

“One question,” I called through the door. 

“What is it?” Dean called back. 

“What do I wear?” 

“Let us in, we’ll help you pick something,” George spoke this time, the door handle turning. I pushed against it. “Y/N, you’ve gotta open the door.” I could hear Dean chuckle from the other side. I pulled open my door. The three men filed in, George sprawling across my bed, Harry sitting on the chair at my desk and Dean going to my wardrobe. I walked towards George, preparing to sit on the edge of the bed while Dean went through my clothes. 

“Try this one.” Dean threw something white at my head, I caught it holding it out. It was my white dress. I’d worn it on my first date with Julian. 

“I don’t know about this.” I pulled at the fabric. “It’s a bit tight around my boobs.” 

“Then it’s perfect.” Dean pulled me up, pushing me out the door. “Change.” The door shut behind me, I knew I had no choice but to change into the dress. Pulling my sweat pants down quickly, and my shirt off I threw on the dress. Pulling at the hemline trying to will it to go down my legs a little more. Even I had to admit my chest size had grown since I last wore this dress, and it was no longer hitting lower thigh. 

“Great you’re done.” I was heaved back into my room by Dean who stood me still again. “Boys?”

“Need’s a jacket.” Harry supplied. “Boobs look good though.” I crossed my arms over my chest trying to shield them. “That just pushes them up more.” I uncrossed my arms quickly. 

“Try the leather one.” Dean threw my jacket at me, tugging it over my shoulders. “There you go.” 

“Looks good.” George smiled, still laying on my bed, I know it was an off-handed compliment and he was probably trying to make me feel better about going, but it was enough to make my cheeks flush... “I’m getting a drink, anyone want anything?” He looked over at Dean and Harry who nodded, “Vodka for you Y/N?” 

“Uh, sure.” I walked over to my shoe rack, picking up a pair of black Doc Martins, should I wear these or my red heels? “I don’t really mind.” 

“I’ll help you.” Dean followed George out of the room. “Did you see the final goal of the game the other day…” 

“So Harry, Have you decided on what type of girl you’re going to try and get with tonight?” I made small conversation. If I was going to be in the flat when he brought girls home I could at least make sure that they were nice to me when they were leaving in the morning. 

“There are types?”

“Sure. You know there’s the one who thinks she can dance, but she’s not that great at it. The one who's looking for a rebound, The one who's always drinking…”

“They don’t sound half bad to me.”

“They’re always lovely girls, but every party has types.” I picked up a pair of my heels. “So what type?”

“Not sure, I’m not really looking right now.” I heard the chair move as he stood up. “What about you? You gonna find someone to take the plates?” 

“My virginity you mean?” 

“Yeah, That,”

“Harry, I’d sooner to lose my virginity to you than someone I’ll meet at this party.” I turned to face him. He was standing close to me, closer than I thought he’d be. 

“That can be arranged if you’d really like.” 

“Harry,” He smiled innocently. “If we’re going to live together, you’re going to have to stop flirting with me,” Harry smirked.

“And you’re going to have to stop being so easy to flirt with.” He countered. 

“Harry, I mean it. Haven’t you seen the movies or even read the books about the guy and the girl who live together, and they, uh….” I stumbled.

“Bone.” He suggested. I glared at him, shaking my head which only caused him to laugh and nodded his head. “Okay Y/N. Consider yourself officially in the friend-zone.”

“Thank you, I appreciate it.” I turned back around, focusing on the shoes I wanted to wear tonight.

Did I really want to torture myself and wear heels all night, or should I settle for my docs?

“But if you do ever change your mind, you just let me know.” I could feel Harry’s chest pressed against my shoulder. “Relax Y/N. I can practically see your brain overheating.” His chest bumped against my shoulder as he let out a deep chuckle. “But remember, all you have to do is ask.”

I didn’t turn to look at Harry as he walked away, I couldn’t. I was afraid I’d melt into a puddle of mush. 

Jesus, Christ Almighty, 

Between George and Harry, I was going to be flirted with to death. 

Here lies, Y/N Y/L/N. 

Cause of death, Heart attack, caused by the flirtatious comments made by roommates and friend. R.I.P

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          1994 - 2011.

“Ready?” George stuck his head around the doorjamb. “You look good.” He smiled looking me up and down as I struggled to get my Doc’s on my feet quickly. 

“Are you sure? It’s not too much? Not enough?” I spun around. “I was never good at these things, Sarah always picked out what I’d wear to parties.” 

“Dean and Sarah look alike if you squint… kinda.” I couldn’t help but laugh. Even when I was feeling super anxious George had still managed to make me laugh. “C’mon Y/N. We’ll have a good time. We’ll drink and we’ll dance.”

“And what do I do when you pick up a girl like the rest of them?” 

“I’m not going too.” 

“You’re not going to pick up a girl?” 

“Don’t need to when I’ve got the best one right in front of me.” He winked. 

“You need to cut that out, someone might think you have a crush on me.” But if you really want too continue, don’t let me stop you. 

“I’m just saying, these clothes would look nice on my bedroom floor.” He crossed his arms over his chest as he looked over me again. “But one thing,” He took three long steps towards me. His hands running up my arms. “You should always leave your hair out.” He pulled the hair tie from my hair, letting it fall down over my shoulders. “It looks best when its like this.” 

Note to self; burn all hair ties. 

“You two done in here?” George looked over his shoulder, his lips falling into a straight line as he looked at Harry who stood in the door, glass in his hand, his face a mirror image of George’s. “Or should we put a tie on the door handle.” 

“No need, Virgin remember.” I growled as I walked past George and pushed past Harry out to the kitchen where Dean sat three full glasses in front of him. “What are these?” I fumed quietly, annoyed that Harry had interrupted whatever moment George and I were having. 

“Vodka and apple juice.” He passed one over to me with a devious smirk. “Couldn’t help myself. One for all of us, really get the party started.” 

“Ready boys?” I handed my glass off to George, picking up the final one. “Salute.” I tipped the glass back practically throwing the drink down my throat. “Another one,” 

“You’re using up all your apple juice Gracie.” Dean laughed.

“Look’s like we’ll have to buy more than won’t we Blakie.” I chimed back, slamming another one down. “Should we go?”

“You really get into the party mood quickly don’t you?” Dean laughed, grabbing my hand and dragging me out towards our front door. “George, you guys still catching a taxi?” 

“Yeah, mate. The boys ordered it for around now,” George pushed in front of Dean and I looking down at his watch. “I’ll stop in, make sure they’re ready.” 

“We’ll meet you out the front,” Dean looped an arm around my shoulder. “C’mon Y/N, Harry. Let’s leave the boy to gather the cavalry, and let’s all enjoy this minor buzz I’m feeling.” I looked over at George who’d stopped at his front door. I smiled. 

“See you down there?” He nodded his head. 

“Course, be down in a few.” He pushed open the door and fell into the flat, loud music poured out for a few seconds before the door shut behind him. 

“C’mon Y/N, you’ll see him in a few minutes, let’s go. I’m dying for a fag.” I turned hitting him across the stomach. “What the fuck was that for,”

“Don’t use that word.” 

“What fag?” Harry asked in place of Dean, as he pressed the elevator button. 

“Yes, that one! Don’t use it.” 

“Why not?” Dean rubbed his stomach as we stepped into the confinement of the elevator. 

“Because it’s ignorant.” I looked at both boys, neither of them were really getting it. “I know you think it’s just slang for cigarettes, and I’m sure neither of you actually have a problem with gay people, but the negative connotations that have been put on the word by stupid idiots really outweighs your necessity of the word.” Dean stands for a minute, thinking before he nods his head. 

“Alright, if it upsets you that much Y/N, I promise not to use the word again.” 

“Thank you, Dean. I appreciate that.” The two of us turned to Harry. He was leaning up against the elevator wall, hands shoved into his jean pockets. “Well?” Harry looked down from the ceiling, eyes meeting mine. 

“What was going on with you and MacKay in your room earlier?” I could see Dean turn to face me out of the corner of my eyes. “Was he hitting on you?” 

“No more than you had been, now what’s your answer.”

“You like him don’t you?”

“George is my friend, and that’s it, Harry.” I turned facing the doors, waiting for them to open. “Why does it even matter to you?” 

“Doesn’t, just wanna gauge how much he’ll be hanging around.”

“Thought you two were football friends?” Harry shrugs his shoulders indifferently at the question. 

“Doesn’t mean I want him hanging around the flat all the time.” 

“God, does it seem this elevator is taking a lot longer than most do?” Dean groaned. “Or is it just all this sexual tension.”

“There is no tension.” Harry and I snapped at the same time. I looked over from Dean to Harry who was slumped against the wall, arms crossed over his chest. His biceps bulging underneath his white button-down. God, he looked good tonight. Maybe there is sexual tension. 

THERE IS NO SEXUAL TENSION HERE,

“Thank fuck.” Dean praised when the doors slid open. We walked out and into the cold air of Scotland. 

“Took you guys long enough.” I looked up to see George and two other guys sitting on the steps of the building. “Haven’t you guys learnt yet that the elevator takes nearly three times as long as taking the stairs?” George stood brushing dirt off his jeans. “Y/N, Dean, Harry these are my flatmates Henry and Jordan.” 

“Hi.” I waved awkwardly. “No taxi?”

“Should be rolling up any minute now.” One of them, Henry looked off down the road. He was Scottish, with dark red hair and brown eyes. “Taxi’s in this country never run on time.” He laughed again. 

“The one time we need it too.” George sat back down on the steps. He looked up at me expectantly before tapping the concrete beside him. I walked over tucking the short material of my dress underneath me before sitting beside him. He moved in closer our sides flush against one and other. “You cold?” He pointed at my legs where goosebumps had arisen. They weren’t from the cold. 

“A little,” 

“Here,” He wrapped an arm around me and pulled me into him, he ran the arm wrapped around my shoulder up and down my arm vigorously. “Better?” 

“Thanks.” I nodded my head. But by all means, you don’t have to stop. 

“Look at these two.” Dean lit up a cigarette. “The girls are going to be falling at our feet lads when they see Gracie with us.” 

“Yeah,” Jordan snorted. “George told us about the master plan,” He looked over George and I. “Nice of you to play along Y/N,” Dean offered the cigarette to him. He took it popping it between his own lips. “Not many girls cool enough to help their friends get laid.” He kicked George gently with his foot. “Right MacKay.”

Alright Jordan, how about you go fuck yourself…  I’d almost forgot I was just being used as a pawn to help these guys get laid. 

“If you keep talking to her like that mate, she might not help you out,” Harry smirked sitting on the step on the other side of me. “Y/N only promised to help out the nice guys.” Jordan held his hands up in defence. 

“I am nice I promise.” He chuckled. “Y/N, if you wanna see how nice I can be...” 

“Don’t finish that sentence, Davis.” George glared. “She’s too good for you.” 

“Taxis here,” Henry called, “Time to go.” He pulled open the sliding door and motioned for me to hop in first. “Ladies first,” He smiled sweetly. 

“Thank you, Henry.” I smiled standing up from the concrete step and walking towards him. I tucked the skirt underneath me as I stood up into the van. “Hello.” I smiled at the driver, scooting across the seat to the window. George jumped in next to me and Harry sat in the very back seat with Dean. “Are you having a good night?” I asked the driver who smiled in the rear mirror. 

“I am Missy, yourself.” I nodded my head. 

“Can’t complain.” I smiled again. 

“That’s everyone,” Jordan declared when he jumped into the front seat. I looked out the window as Jordan rattled off the address to the driver. 

God, how was I going to last at this party? I know they said they wouldn’t leave me but they’re totally going to leave me first chance they get. I know how persuasive boobs and a vagina can be to a horny boy. Sarah fucking Olsen 

“You all good?” George’s voice whispered in my ear. I turned he was leaning down, lips right next to me. I nodded my head. “Don’t worry Gracie, I won’t leave you at all tonight.”

“But what if you find a girl?” I countered. 

“I told you, don’t need one when I’ve got the best one right in front of me.” He grabbed onto my balled fist. “I’m not gonna leave you all night.” 

[huntsman-ash]

LiveThoughts: RWBY V8E6

Second attempt at this since last time Chrome just DIED for no reason...

Im going to put literally the entire thing with Cinder under one note; Called it.

Its a great set of stuff, sure, but it doesnt relaly tell us anything we didnt already know about Cinder, and I personally feel it doesnt really explain why she turned out the way she did. I feel like we’ve had another weird twist of the situation again...M+K? Coronas fault? Who knows. Either way, this section isnt great by my taste and I kinda skipped most of it. 

Few things to note though; Apperently in Mistral scrubbing by hand is still more viable floor cleaning tech than using Dust.

The wind vane on the roof has the Rooster Teeth symbols rooster on it. 

The hotel Cinder is bought by is named the Glass Unicorn, fittingly enough for...several reasons. 

The coffees behind the stepsisters when we first see them are the animated versions of the real life stuff RT put out just before this season went live. 

No one seems to notice the fact cinder has orange eyes. I wonder if weird eye colors are just a THING in Remnant?

The control collar/shock thing is incredibly inefficient in design, since it doesnt actually hold on to her very well. A more effective brace/choker design would have worked better.

The song that goes on during all of this is...kind of obvious and a little bland? Fitting for younger Cinder I guess. 

Mmm. Random greasy huntsman. 

I guess in Atlas its fine to laugh at struggling teenagers?

Im going to assume there’s a 3+ year gap here where she gets older, cause she stops being smol and gets closer to how we see her now.

Also even here, in Atlas...really? The most effective way to clean these carpeted floors is to have a TEENAGER SCRUB THEM BY HAND?

How do you scrub...I assume its carpet anyway?

And how you tell civilians are lame in Atlas; they are impressed...by a sword.  Just a sword. A boring, half-cut sword. Losers.

I assume this would be Cinder’s semblance manifesting. Also note on the desk; “we do not serve faunus”. Well THAT doesnt surprise me.

HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHHEHEHEHEHEHEHE. Get fucked Cinder. HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE

I dont even feel pity for her, this is funny to me.  Also the fact that this kind of shit aCTUALLY EXISTS is...amusing to me. Like, really? So I guess indentured servitude is a thing in Remnant too. 

And this is why Cinder likes to use swords. Really. Wow. LAMEO.

Huh. Dual maces. Interesting. Thats a prety cool weapon.  Looks like they open up too. Bet he could bash some skulls with that.

“Hurting them isnt going to make your life any better”. Um, excuse me? I think hurting them is the very best thing to do in this situation. At least, for the moment anyway. 

Huh. So she’s ten at this point? Even as a child, shes older than she looks. 

And training montage. Huh. Or at least I assume it is. I get the feeling being able to go where you want too and do what you want too is the main reason Hunters exist. There must be crazy tight immigration laws...or, maybe, its just that traveling between kingdoms is stupid dangerous cause of Grimm. I think the latter is most likely considering every form of public transit extra-kingdom we’ve seen (even between cities, see Argus Limited) has some kind of defensive weaponry. Limited and ineffective, for th emost part oddly.

So you can take the exam at 18. Okay cool. Pre-that must be prep school. Wonder what happens if you wash out? Also I like how this dude is just “yeah, 7 years of training, we got this.”

I think this is the first time we’ve seen the other side of the moon. Or at least, the proper other side...bloody hell I STILL dont know how all those piesces are still held in place, the thing looks like it should start yeeting bolides at Remnant. 

Better still we see it MOVE, rotate in time to the passing of years. So it literally does rotate on its own axis, and more importantly, unlike OUR moon, its NOT tidally locked. We only ever see the same side of our moon. REmnants rotates MUCH faster. Also it doesnt seem to have phases like ours does. I’ll check on why that is. 

Well at least we have an explanation for why Cinders so damn good at fighting people. Trained by an Atlas Huntsman.

Also as a note the device is quite literally just an electrical Dust crystal attached to a necklace. Things the most inefficent torture device Ive ever fucking seen. 

Wonder how often they have to change the crystal.

And there goes the moon rotating again.

I like how NO ONE comment on the blade going missing and that guy never came back for it. I guess he must have just bought a new one.

I get the very distinct feeling they wont just let her go honestly, permission or not. 

AWWW WE DONT EVEN GET TO SEE CINDER MURDER THE SISTERS. Also no blood. Odd.  Good kill on the  stepmother though. Oh, that NECK CRACK.  I like how all the bitch can do is try and shock Cinder, like, uh...adrenaline up? SHE HAS A SWORD? MAYBE FIGHT BACK?

Hah. Weak ass fuckin Atlas people.  Also the clock going off in the back ground twelve times. How fitting. Welcome to midnight. 

Also shes kind of glowing here cause the room is dark, and I find it amusing this is probably the last time she wears white.

And THERES the Cinder we know

Sick ass music, cool. Also THAT is an interesting semblance...I guess he turns himself to metal? Also DAMN his aura broke after THAT? Hes a Huntsman...ah who cares. Again probably in Cinders memory more than anything. Which at this point is probably about as reliable as a coked up hookers.

SHANKED. Sucker. You shoulda seen THAT one coming.

And thats all it took to get the shock collar off. Lol. 

So what happened to the hotel? Did they just...write it off? I mean four people got murdered in there...

And now we’re back on the whale. HOW THE SCREAMING FUCK DID CINDER JUST...

Wow. She just got up after eating that blast. Fucking plot armor.

Merc making the hard calls honestly.  Im actually gonna watch all of this now which is nice because I want to know whats happening in the real world. PITY MORE THAN HALF THE EPISODE WAS THIS FUCKING FILLER.

I like how Cinder just...goes quiet the moment she realizes shes lost Mercury. Not that he was USEFUL mind you but if I had to guess she liked being the boss. But now shes...basically back where she started. 

So the whale is basically a ship. It has a bridge. Probably Salems throne room.

Man, Oscars literally just RTs punching bag this season isnt he? Literally in this case. 

His clothes are still scortched too which I find interesting.  The black eyes also staying. Auras not back up then? Aura repair and regen seems...werid half the time. Like RT does what they want with it.

Ah so someone finally says it...but at the same time what exactly does Salem have to fear? If she cant fight the whole world...what could they do? Maybe overwhelming her? It...Im having a hard time putting the “she cant be stopped” with “shes afraid of fighting all of Remnant”. 

Somethings missing here. I know it.

The sound of the “door” opening reminds me of the Flood doors in High Charity in Halo 3s Cortana. Fleshy twisting.

Mention from Hazel, but AGAIN...no details. I guess if you nail down how she can do stuff its harder to write? 

Glad someone made a comment on the futility of the Hunter academies. 

I really hate how Salems giving us creepy mommy shades. 

Hmm. So yeah the bridge IS the throne room/command deck. I like how Neo doesnt give a fuck is just casually kneeling. 

Ah okay THATS why he grabbed the scroll. 

Heh. Interesting. How exactly does this work I wonder. 

...Why does Salem have a ring. Has she always had that ring?

Neo looking at the Hound like “oh, I could ride this thing”. 

Oh cool the Ace Ops. And they’re arguing, shocker. Sounds like Elm doesnt trust tech either. No shock there.  Idiot.

Atlas elite. Yeah, right.

Huh, is this a Manta with landing gear? I guess they do have them...seems kind of silly to have them so high up though. I guess thats what the thing under the door is for, so they can deploy a ramp. Man, I really dont like Atlas’s airship design.

Hare needs some fuckin suppresants. 

Annnnddd...here we go, things go straight to hell. I was warned of this. I am going to try and not be mad...but from what Ive heard the incomptence of the military in this particular section is astronomical.

Huh. So...Grimm can be convirted into a rock-punching liquid? Interesting. Has that always been a thing or... Also why the fuck are you jsut standing there in awe, go kill the fucking thing! Fucking Specialists.

...that is all it took to get through Atlas’s shield? THAT?

I also love how no one does anything. Ironwoods like “wait what the fuck”. Come on bro. 

And...thats the Atlas navy. Everyone. Two lasers. One of which missed. Remind me again what exactly these things are used to shoot?

Wait, no, that took down part of it, and then the rest is, surprise, hitting the soft rock on the outside. 

THERE goes the shield. 

Hang on a second, how long have those giant squid things been there?

And...what. The whale just approaches, nothing happens? You’ve got 12 fucking ships there, shoot the fucking thing.

Again, WHY IS NO ONE DOING ANYTHING?

Oh, it just beach-headed. Okay fine, whatever. 

Im not really worried.

Lets see how RT makes this WORSE though...

And thats this weeks episode.

[gooddadstan]

The first story in my Batman Bingo 2020 writing! For the card above, Red is completed, and blue is requested. Another huge thanks to @batmanbingo2020 for making it! Feel free to ask for a prompt!

 1.Sleep Deprivation 

Arkham breakouts were bad. Rogue level breakouts were really bad. Gotham knew it, the bats knew it, even the Justice League knew it, if just from the strict instructions to not call on any bat within three days of returning all escapees to their cells. With a necessary exception of world ending circumstances, no matter how much everyone hated it. 

Unfortunately, these were world ending circumstances. 

According to the clock on the Batcomputer, it hadn’t even been an hour since they started the Do Not Call countdown in the Watchtower’s systems. Far too early for the emergency transmission to send alarms blaring through every bat-associated device the house.

Clicking the button for the video call to patch through, they’re met with a disheveled looking Flash with a grim expression on his face, no other leaguers in sight. 

“What.” The growl had been forming during the small loading period, but the Flash didn’t waver in his stance. 

When he speaks just a second later, it’s sped up as much as he trusts the bats to understand. “Batman, the League needs your help. Send all available backup, you’ll meet Justice League Dark at the site..” He rattles off a set of coordinates and is gone again, the trail of his image heading off in the direction of the Zetas. 

Batman scans over his children, the wounds both new and days old being nursed in the medbay and the bodies flopped onto any surface they deemed comfortable enough to sleep on. More than half of them were just lying down on the floor, which, okay, but they’re children of a billionaire, they’re supposed to have standards. Apparently these standards don’t involve not sleeping on the floor in full vigilante gear. 

Tim, looking up from his designated spot on the next chair over, makes very pointed eye contact with Bruce. A simple nod is all that meets him. Already mourning the loss of a relaxing afternoon filled with cartoons, sleep, and lots of food, he pulls up the League’s initial reports on the issue. The burning behind his eyes was a later Tim problem. There’s not much there, but he sets to work as Bruce rises to call the others to action. 

~^~^~

Maybe Dick going on this world-saving escapade was a bad idea. Yeah, he kicked some ass, and yeah, he was the one to actually get his hands on the device that let the world-enders of the week wreak their havoc, but he kinda feels like his legs are going to drop out from under him and it may or may not have been four days since he last slept. Sue him, it was a rogue-level Arkham breakout. Measures had to be taken. Caffeine pill measures. 

And if those measures ended up with him more spaced out than present during the after-victory conversation with the Titans, well, it’s not like he hasn’t done worse to himself in the past. 

And no, bad Dick, that’s neither a healthy nor productive way of thinking. He forces himself to focus back in on what Wally was saying, only to see that the entire circle he was in was looking at him with various concerned expressions. Wally had placed a hand on his shoulder. Huh. Dick didn’t remember that happening. 

“Dude, are you okay? We’ve been calling your name for at least a minute and a half.” He doesn’t even bother hiding the concern in his voice, which, fine, it is Wally, but Dick’s torn between wanting to yell at him for putting himself in unnecessary danger during the fight, and just wanting to go eat enough carbs to kill an elephant. “How long have you even been awake?” Oh, he must have given up on reality for another second there, because Wally decided it was time to talk again. This time, Dick was pretty sure he was collected within himself enough to answer. Maybe. 

Pulling one hand up to rub at his face and almost, almost hitting his own nose in the process, Dick finally opens his mouth. “Since the breakout started. So… a hundred n’ twenty-six hours? Somethin’ like that.” 

Wally closes his eyes extremely pointedly, and opens them to make direct eye contact with both hands on Dick’s shoulders. “Dick. You are going to go home, and you are going to sleep. Do you need someone to be there for you?” The caring is familiar, but it still sends warmth through his chest after all these years.  

“Yeah. To the manor?” 

“To the manor.” In less than a second, Wally’s arms are around him in a familiar hold, and he’s being hoisted up into the air. By the time Wally sets him down on his bed in the manor, he’s asleep. 

~^~^~

“Tim.” Kon takes one look at Tim after they finish the battle, and immediately goes from grinning manically as he punches villains into the ground to hovering in front of Tim and calling Cassie and Bart. 

“Yes, Kon?” He ignores the fact that he can feel the concern and disappointment in Kon’s gaze, and focuses on the wrist computer projection of the rapidly lowering energy readings in the area. 

“Tim.” And oh, this was going to be an Actual Conversation now. Tim looks up from his projection, unsurprised that Cassie and Bart are both already there. When Kon’s satisfied by the level of eye contact, he speaks again. “Tim, did you sleep at all during that breakout?” 

Tim spends less than a second debating with himself before shrugging. “I got knocked out at one point. Killer Croc doesn’t exactly pull his punches.” Watching the looks going his way grow slightly darker wasn’t foreign, at this point, but the curl of uncomfortability in his gut could probably be blamed on exhaustion at this point. 

“Tim. Buddy. That started four days ago. Were you checked for a concussion?” It’s Bart that speaks this time, having appeared behind Tim’s back to place one hand down and try to guide him towards some rubble that looks vaguely chair-height. Tim doesn’t move. 

A small sigh escaping his lips, Tim shakes his head and stands his ground. “Yes, it did start four days ago, and no, I’m not concussed. World ending circumstances override our protocol. I’m fine.” 

Tim’s pretty sure if any of Young Justice had a say in it, he’d be at home asleep already, because even he could admit (to himself) that maybe he’s not entirely fine. Unfortunately for them, and fortunately for Tim, he thinks, Tim is technically their leader so they can’t kick him out. Probably. He notes to check if they can kick him out for lack of self care and moves on. 

The next thing he knows, he’s yelping and scrambling for handholds as the ground disappears beneath him. “What the shit, Kon?” From his awkward half-dangling place, he can see Cassie fly up to meet them, Bart in her arms. 

He’s shifted to a slightly more secure hold, but it’s painfully clear that if he makes a move to leave Kon’s arms or if Kon drops him, he would be in for a decidedly Not Fun Time. So they’re trying to coerce him. Threaten him? Maybe both. 

“Dude, you’re even glitching. Take a nap or something.” Bart shouts at him from maybe five feet away, which is unnecessary, but Tim appreciates the effort to account for possible wind. If only there was any more than none. 

“Seriously, you’re spacey and clearly exhausted. You didn’t note anything from those readings until the third rotation, you’re not exactly keeping up with the field work. I could even take you over to the farm or your apartment or something if you don’t want to go back to the cave. But find somewhere to go pass out.” And okay, fine, Kon might be right about the readings. But he can’t just leave- 

“Nobody’ll fault you for leaving dude.” Tim immediately curses Bart and his uncanny ability to understand Tim’s anxieties. 

“And if anyone does, then we’ll make sure to have a little chat.” He can almost hear the sound of Cassie’s fist hitting her palm, and as much as he wants to accept… 

“Thanks guys, really, but I need to keep up on my own responsibilities.” His tone his regretful, and he really can’t leave the rest of his family without warning. 

“Tim, you’re our responsibility, so go home and take a nap.” And Kon is not allowed to make sense when Tim’s this tired anymore. But, ever the adamant one, Tim opens his mouth to speak again. “I-“ 

“Tim, go home.” It’s simultaneous, and manages to effectively shut Tim up.

Heaving one last exasperated sigh, Tim accepts. “Fine, just drop me off at the nearest Zeta.” 

Kon gets that manic grin on his face again, and Tim’s internal monologue consists entirely of ‘oh no’. “I can do you one better.” Tim is going to get murdered. “Gotham, here we come!” 

~^~^~

Bruce was still fighting as his GPS reported family leaving the area. He felt like his limbs were moving like slugs, his eyes were burning with every blink, and every little noise sent waves of rage through his very soul, but he was still fighting. The last of today’s havoc wreakers were still raring to go, and where evil stands, the Justice League rises to meet them. 

As one final punch sends his last opponent to the containment area, Bruce lets his shoulders slump. The past few days have been unbearably long, and he just wants to sleep for a week wherever he can find a horizontal surface. His kids might have the right idea about the floor, at this point. His wounds are throbbing, he can feel his mind succumbing to exhaustion, and he just wants to rest. For once. He should extend the protocol before the next breakout. 

Clark touches down next to him, and he immediately braces for a complaint about something, even though this is Clark, and he’s pretty sure Clark hasn’t complained about a thing in his life. Or maybe he just really needs to sleep. Despite all his training, it’s hard to tell. 

“Batman. I think it’s time you took a rest. You’ve had some long days.” There’s a kind pressing in his voice. 

Bruce suppresses a growl, though he’s sure Clark can hear what escapes from his throat. “I can continue.” 

“But you don’t need to. Batman, the kids you brought are already gone, you’re the only one here. Hood and Robin are home with broken bones, you’re needed there more than here.” He smiles, and lowers his voice. “Go home, Bruce, rest up. We’ll see you for the meeting next week.” He takes off, nothing but a gust of wind that aggravates the burning sensation in his eyes. 

An hour later, Bruce is pulling himself out of the Batmobile and shedding his suit. As he turns the corner to the main area of the cave, he’s met with his children, huddled together asleep and surrounded by blankets and pillows. A small smile creeps onto his face, the warmth of seeing each of his children here, safe, and soon to be better rested. He moves to go past them, move up to the master bedroom and get some rest himself. 

A hand catches at his wrist, pulling down. He glances to the source, and can’t help but worry when he’s met with Jason, eyes still closed and broken leg elevated on a stack of floor pillows. “Br’ce.” 

“Yeah, Jaylad?” The nickname wouldn’t fly most times, but his own exhaustion made it slip by. 

“Stay, w’ll you?” He tugs again, harder this time, and Bruce lets himself be pulled down to sit on his heels. Dick almost immediately shimmies over to throw himself over Bruce’s legs, and he supposes that’s that. He lightly lifts Dick to lay his legs down flat. Cass’ arm to pull his shoulders down onto the blanket nest isn’t unexpected, and it’s not a surprise when the rest of his children stir enough to drape themselves over one body part of his or another. 

As Alfred stands on the foot of the stairs, a dish towel drying his hands, he can’t help but smile. Maybe this way his wards would actually rest for once.

[ohprettyweeper-moved]

A Summer Story

Age 28

Pairing: Tyler x Kansas Word Count:  Warnings: None?  Challenge: Kansas’s YouAU Writing Challenge Tags: @takenvysleep @breadbinishigh @svintsandghosts@xtina2191 A/N: I’m still learning things about storm chasing, so if some of this is vague and/or incorrect, forgive me :) Also, I do use my real name in this, but let’s not make a habit of it, eh?

When the thing between Tyler and the Nashville girl faded out, I had already started something with the head of the lab my storm chasing team worked out of. Not that Tyler mentioned anything to me about starting something once he was single again; at that point, I convinced myself that he had been right about the nostalgia part of things and left well enough alone. We were friends, and that was that.

The thing with the lab director lasted a few years, before it fizzled out. Looking back on it now, that relationship was more of a way to fill time than anything. Don’t get me wrong; I loved Ross, but he and I weren’t meant to be.

“Probably because you already know who you’re meant to be with, Kansas,” Red sighed when I mentioned this to her. “You’re both just too stubborn. There was the Nashville girl, then Ross, then Tyler’s other girlfriends. None of them have been serious, and you were never serious about Ross.”

I threw my head back. “Shit, I really wish it would storm. It’s been dry for way too long, and my patience on this subject is drying out, too.”

Red only laughed. She was used to my sass and attitude by now. “Girl, what are we gonna do with you?”

“I don’t even know,” I chuckled. “Have me committed, maybe. Or be prepared to have a room for me in your house when I get old.”

“That’s fine, but I’ll be old, too,” Red reminded me.

We decided to go to lunch after that, and the subject of my friendship with Tyler was put on hold.

.&.

“So listen,” Freddie started the conversation next time she called, a few days after my conversation with Red, “I know this guy that would be perfect for you. I’ve already talked to Red about it, and she agreed that he’s your type.”

“Oh, Freddie. Not that guy from your wedding? You’ve got to tell Brendon to pick better friends.”

Freddie chuckled. “No, Brendon hasn’t even talked to that guy in the few years since the wedding. Anyway, this guy is single, you’re single, and he wants to take you out. He’s already got some elaborate date planned.”

I sighed. “I don’t know, Freds. This is right in the middle of storm season and I can’t really take off out of town right now. I’m not saying no, I’m just saying not right now. Ya know?”

“I get that,” Freddie assured. “But what if he came there? He doesn’t mind, and you guys can figure out the distance part later if it works out, you know? I mean -- okay, he may or may not be aware of your love of sunflowers, and he already found a sunflower field to take you to. I won’t tell you the rest, but he said he’ll meet you there.”

“A sunflower field. You want me to meet some dude I don’t know in a sunflower field and go on a date by ourselves? That doesn’t sound like the beginning of my death at all. Not one bit.”

“Oh my God, dude,” she laughed, “would you stop with the serial killer shit already? I can’t have my kid have an aunt-slash-godmother who thinks everyone is out to kill everyone else.”

“True,” I agreed -- then my eyes grew. “Wait! Your kid?”

Freddie’s grin was ear to ear as she waved Brendon over to the video call. “Yeah. We actually just found out this morning, but I couldn’t wait to tell you.”

I listened intently while Ashley told me what had started her suspecting she was pregnant, and how excited she had been when the test almost immediately showed positive.

“But she still made me wait the three minutes or whatever to make sure it stayed that way before I could get too excited,” Brendon commented. “I just wanna go buy stuff like, right now.”

“Slow down there, turbo,” Freddie teased, kissing his cheek. “So, how about this blind date, dude? You gonna go with it or not?”

I sighed. “All right, fine. You won me over with the baby. Send me the details and I’ll be there -- barring any crazy storms.”

Freddie held up her hands. “Fair enough. I’ll send you the details.”

.&.

The day of my blind date dawned cloudy and grey. I looked out to the horizon and checked the forecast, as well as the radar from the equipment I kept at home. Making a quick decision in the early afternoon, I decided to go into the lab to get more detailed data.

“Just real fast,” I told myself, grabbing my keys and heading out the door. “I’ll be back in plenty of time to get ready and meet this guy.”

Of course, my ‘real fast’ trip to the lab turned into watching the storm progress for several hours. Finally, Ross stuck his head into my cubicle and informed me I’d have to take a team out to the developing storm.

I frowned. “I thought we already had a team out?”

“Nah, they’re heading East to Missouri to monitor a storm there.”

“It’s just that I --”

Ross interrupted. “Kansas -- you live to do this. You’re really gonna pass up a good one?”

I licked my lips. Freddie was going to kill me -- and she told me as much when I called her from the truck as my team and I drove toward the storm system.

“I think it’s going to die out,” I sighed while I waited for her to answer.

“Check out those clouds,” Rabbit, the team member out with me that day, pointed out. “This storm’s not going anywhere I don’t think it’s gonna produce anything rotation-wise, but we’re going to see some good weather out of this.”

“Kansas, hey! Getting ready for your date?” Freddie greeted cheerfully.

I swallowed hard. “Uh, no, actually. Listen, Fred, there was this big storm system and I’ve got to go after it. In my defense though, I did warn you I was right in the middle of storm season.”

“That you did.” She was quiet for a few seconds, then asked, “Wait, where are you? Can you send me a location?”

“Why?”

“I’m sending him to you. Send me the location. I’ll tell you if he’s not coming.”

This was too weird, but I didn’t have the time to argue with her. “All right, I’ll turn on my finder app. Good?”

“Great,” Freddie answered.

Shaking me head, I disconnected the call and focused on the road and the storm. I highly doubted this guy was going to drive out to the middle of a storm for a girl he’d never met before, but if Freddie and her pregnancy brain wanted to believe it was going to happen, I’d give it the opportunity.

.&.

“No rotation, huh, Rabbit?” I teased, pointing to the clouds swirling above us.

Rabbit scoffed, steadying himself against the storm’s winds. “Hey, you thought it was gonna die out -- you don’t get to gloat.”

“Fair enough,” I laughed, climbing back in the van that held all of our radar and data equipment. I frowned at the screen, then looked back out over the nearby wheat field. “Should be a good wall of rain coming at us here soon. See anything across that field?”

Rabbit looked out over the field. “Yeah, I see the rain. Clouds. Lightning. All the good stuff!”

Since it was just the two of us, I grabbed the camera and headed out towards the field. The opportunity for some great shots wasn’t one I wanted to miss. These were my favorite moments, out in the middle of nowhere, watching a storm roll over wheat fields. They didn’t call me Kansas for no reason.

“All right, Rabbit, let’s pack it up and move closer, yeah?” I suggested, winding up wires and tossing them in the back of the van. I closed the doors and tossed Rabbit the keys. He pointed to the car approaching us, pulling to the shoulder.

Rolling my eyes, I told Rabbit to go ahead. “I’ll let them know that we’re fine. They’re probably pulling over to see if we need help. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

Rabbit got in the front seat of the van and pulled away, waving out the window. I sighed and walked back toward the car that had pulled over -- then abruptly stopped in my tracks.

“Tyler?”

He jogged to where I was; lightning flashed and thunder rumbled. The light and sound were almost right on top of each other. The storm was closing in.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, putting the hood up on my jacket as the rain started to fall, soft and easy. That wasn’t going to last long.

Tyler shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. “You stood me up. What’s that storm got that I don’t?”

Several seconds passed before I caught his meaning. “You? The sunflower field blind date was you?”

“Yeah, it’s me. We’ve been doing this roundabout since we were twelve years old,” Tyler started. “I screwed it up in LA, but I’m not gonna screw it up anymore. But, I was afraid you’d tell me I was crazy and wouldn’t even give me a chance, so I got Freddie in on it.”

I didn’t know what to say. We’d been back and forth so many times, it seemed, and I couldn’t take another disappointment where Tyler was involved.

“We’ve been caught in the middle for so long,” I yelled over the rain. “Not yes, not no. Whatever was between you and me, it never started, but it never stopped, either. I can’t stay in the middle anymore, Tyler.”

He took the few long strides necessary to be toe to toe with me. He wiped the rain away from face, although there wasn’t really a point. We were both soaked by then.

“I don’t wanna be in the middle anymore, either. I love you, Nicole.”

Maybe it was Tyler’s use of my real name that convinced me he was serious. Maybe what convinced me was when he kissed me, right in the middle of that storm, and it still felt like the first time he had kissed me, almost half a lifetime ago. In the end, I guess the reason didn’t really matter. Pulling away with a smile, I took a deep breath.

“I love you, too, you know?”

Tyler smirked. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

I laughed into the next kiss he planted on my lips. “I love that our story is ending in the middle of a storm -- a storm I’ve got to go chase, by the way.”

“I’ll come with you,” Tyler assured, “and excuse my cheesy line, but our story doesn’t end here. We’ve got a long way to go.”

There was a storm waiting for me, but another kiss from Tyler couldn’t wait.

[smokescreen24]

Get to know me Questions

1. What is your full name? Jessica. I only hear my full first name when I’m in trouble. 

2. What is your nickname? Jess to family, Jazz to @sabotage-prowl, since she’s the one who gave me that nickname. 

3. What is your zodiac sign?  Taurus/Gemini cusp, but I have more Taurean traits, so I just say Taurus for simplicity’s sake. 

4. What is your favorite book series?  Oof, that’s tough. Probably either the Nightside series or the Secret Histories series. They’re both by Simon R Green. I’m actually reading the last book in the Secret Histories, and I’m ready to cry.

5. Do you believe in aliens or ghosts? Aliens? Not so much. Ghosts, yeah, a little. Hard not to when you’ve actually seen spooks in real life and in real time. 

6. Who is your favorite author? Simon R Green. Seriously. I love his writing. 

7. What is your favorite radio station? I don’t have one - I don’t listen to the radio that much. Why listen to mostly commercials and some music when I can pay Spotify 10 bucks and listen to just music?

8. What is your favorite flavor of anything? Vanilla. I drink and eat a lot of vanilla flavored stuff. 

9. What word would you use often to describe something great or wonderful? My instinct would be to use the word awesome. I use that one a lot, to be brutally honest.

10. What is your current favorite song? Currently? Probably either Legend by The Score, or Superpower by X Ambassadors. 

11. What is your favorite word? Fuck. I say it A LOT. 

12. What was the last song you listened to? Miss Jackson by Panic! At the Disco. It’s damn catchy, and thus is stuck in my head. I’m humming it now, tbh. 

13. What TV show would you recommend for everybody to watch? Huh. That’s tough. I watch a lot of shows, so I don’t think I could recommend just one. 

14. What is your favorite movie to watch when you’re feeling down? The Man From Uncle. That movie is hilarious, and Napoleon Solo gives me life. 

15. Do you play video games? Uh, yeah. Fairly frequently. I’m a FO4 fan, and I also play a lot of Diablo 3. 

16. What is your biggest fear? Spiders. This girl will nope the hell out of the room. Then make my guy go kill it. 

17. What is your best quality, in your opinion? I’m not too sure, actually. My reliability? 

18. What is your worst quality, in your opinion? Oh, this one I know, though. One of them is my inability to communicate. I’m bad at it - I miss calls, I miss texts, or alternatively,  I get the calls, or get the texts, then forget to call or text back. For like, days. Then wonder why everyone’s mad at me. I’m trying to work on it, but it’s a work in progress. 

19. Do you like cats or dogs better?  I really do like both, but I like cats that little bit better. 

20. What is your favorite season? Summer. Otherwise known as Monsoon Season here in Central Florida. 

21. Are you in a relationship? Yup! I’ve been married for about 7 months now, but we’ve been together for a lot longer than that. 

22. What is something you miss from your childhood? Naptime. I’m so serious. 

23. Who is your best friend? @sabotage-prowl!! This chick! She’s my ride or die, she’s got my six, and she’s the Prowler to my Jazz. 

24. What is your eye color? Uh, right now? They’re silver-blue. I’m wearing a light blue shirt. 

25. What is your hair color? Brunette/Purple. I’m letting my hair grow back out, so the ends are a light purple. 

26. Who is someone you love? My other half. He’s in the shower right now, humming to himself, even if he thinks I can’t hear it. 

27. Who is someone you trust? Again, my husband and my bestie. I trust those two with everything. 

28. Who is someone you think about often? My Dad, interestingly enough. I have a lot of his things in my apartment. 

29. Are you currently excited about/for something? Not particularly? Today’s Monday. Who gets excited for Monday??

30. What is your biggest obsession? My obsessions come and go, tbh. 

31. What was your favorite TV show as a child? Oh my Lord, that’s tough. I watched a LOT of TV as a kid. 

32. Who of the opposite gender can you tell anything to, if anyone? I married the dude, if that tells ya anything. 

33. Are you superstitious? Yeah. The only superstition I don’t believe in is the black cats. I’ll cross a black cat’s path, just so I can pet it. 

34. Do you have any unusual phobias? No, they’re pretty usual. Spiders, heights. 

35. Do you prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it? Behind it, but every now and then, I get my picture taken anyway. I don’t mind it. 

36. What is your favorite hobby? I read. My other hobbies come and go. 

37. What was the last book you read? I’m currently reading Night Fall, by Simon R Green, which combines the Nightside and Secret Histories. Someone’s gonna die, and I’m gonna be sad, I know it. 

38. What was the last movie you watched? Who Framed Roger Rabbit? God, that film is not for kids, and the villain STILL creeps me the hell out. 

39. What musical instruments do you play, if any? None - though I have been known to torture a guitar from time to time.

40. What is your favorite animal? Cats. Big cats, small cats, I DON’T CARE. GIVE ME ALL THE CATS.

41. What are your top 5 favorite Tumblr blogs that you follow? @argentlune, @sabotage-prowl, @m-is-for-mungo, @leggylance, and last but certainly not least, @shiroismydadson

42. What superpower do you wish you had? Teleportation. Do you know how much easier my life would be? 

43. When and where do you feel most at peace? I’m such a homebody, so home and late at night, usually. 

44. What makes you smile? It doesn’t take much to make me smile. I’m pretty cheerful as a rule. 

45. What sports do you play, if any? Paintball, and some backyard football, if the appropriate people are there. 

46. What is your favorite drink? Coffee. I’ll drink coffee all damn day if you let me. 

47. When was the last time you wrote a hand-written letter or note to somebody? Man, years ago, back when my babe was doing his hospital rotations. We passed a journal back and forth for about six months.   

48. Are you afraid of heights? OH YES. The last time I was on a roller coaster, I passed out. 

49. What is your biggest pet peeve? This stems from my time in retail - if you have exact change, GIVE IT TO ME BEFORE I OPEN THE TILL. DO NOT HAND IT TO ME AFTER I’VE OPENED THE TILL - I HATE THAT. I’M NOT GOOD AT MATH, AND NOW I HAVE TO BALANCE IT IN MY HEAD.

50. Have you ever been to a concert?  No, not to my knowledge. 

51. Are you vegan/vegetarian? Not at all. I did not claw my way to the top of the food chain to eat leaves. 

52. When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up? An astronaut. Oh, little me, so full of hope. Then I discovered I didn’t like heights. 

53. What fictional world would you like to live in? The Transformers universe. G1, though. It has to be G1. 

54. What is something you worry about? I’m an adult, so bills, usually. 

55. Are you scared of the dark? Nope. I like the dark. 

56. Do you like to sing? Yes. Can I sing? Not really. 

57. Have you ever skipped school? Once, and it wasn’t even for fun - I had to clean the house to make sure that my mom’s ex wouldn’t ground me for the next eternity. Never mind that the house was already stupid clean. 

58. What is your favorite place on the planet? Um. I don’t know? 

59. Where would you like to live? London. I’d love to live in London. 

60. Do you have any pets? Yes. My cat, Cleopatra. She’s fat, old, and spoiled. 

61. Are you more of an early bird or a night owl? Night owl, for sure. 

62. Do you like sunrises or sunsets better? Sunsets. If I’m up early enough to see the sunrise, something’s wrong. 

63. Do you know how to drive? In theory. I can drive if I absolutely have to, but it stresses me out so much. I do better on two wheels. 

64. Do you prefer earbuds or headphones? Earbuds. I wear glasses, so headphones actually press the stems into my skull, and that hurts. 

65. Have you ever had braces? Nope! 

66. What is your favorite genre of music? Pop, with rock thrown in. 

67. Who is your hero? My Mom. She’s done so much, with so little, it’s honestly amazing. 

68. Do you read comic books? Yes - I loved the Spidey/Transformers crossover! 

69. What makes you the most angry? I’m super defensive of my family and friends. Mess with any of them, and get ready to catch these hands. 

70. Do you prefer to read on an electronic device or with a real book? It’s a pretty even split. It depends largely on where I am. 

71. What is your favorite subject in school? English. Can’t you tell? 

72. Do you have any siblings? Yes! Two brothers and a sister!

73. What was the last thing you bought? Groceries, unfortunately. Because I’m a grownup. 

74. How tall are you? 5′2″. I’m tiny. 

75. Can you cook? A little? I’m not great at it, but I don’t set things on fire, either. 

76. What are three things that you love? My friends and family, music, and books. 

77. What are three things that you hate? Boredom, blood, and spiders.

78. Do you have more female friends or more male friends? More guy friends - I get along better with dudes

79. What is your sexual orientation? Heterosexual! 

80. Where do you currently live? Central Florida. 

81. Who was the last person you texted? @sabotage-prowl! She was giving me shit because she can. 

82. When was the last time you cried? A while ago. It’s been a while. 

83. Who is your favorite YouTuber?  I don’t really watch enough Youtube to have one. If pressed, I’d say either Markiplier or Tobuscus. 

84. Do you like to take selfies? Sometimes - I’m not super into selfies, I tend to take more pictures of my friends and family. 

85. What is your favorite app? Uh, Tumblr. I spend waaayyy too much time on here. 

86. What is your relationship with your parent(s) like? My ma and I get on like a house on fire! She’s an extremely tolerant woman. 

87. What is your favorite foreign accent? An English accent. Take your pick of region - I love them all. 

88. What is a place that you’ve never been to, but you want to visit? *points to above answer* Take a wild guess. 

89. What is your favorite number? I don’t have one, as such. 

90. Can you juggle? Not at all - my hand eye coordination is AWFUL. 

91. Are you religious? Yes. 

92. Do you find outer space of the deep ocean to be more interesting? “Kick ass, go to space, represent the human race!” applies here. 

93. Do you consider yourself to be a daredevil? A little - there’s not much I won’t try. 

94. Are you allergic to anything? Penicillin and Codeine. I’m allergic to one of the most common antibiotics on the planet. 

95. Can you curl your tongue? Yup! Into a very tight curl if I try. 

96. Can you wiggle your ears? Yup! It feels weird when I’m wearing my glasses, though. 

97. How often do you admit that you were wrong about something? Um, fairly often - my hubby is more right than I am, usually. I hate admitting that, though. 

98. Do you prefer the forest or the beach? BEACH, BEACH, BEACH!!!!

99. What is your favorite piece of advice that anyone has ever given you? “You have to take the leap. Because if you land on the other side, you’ve reached your goal, but if you fall short, you have tried, and are wiser for the attempt.” - My Uncle Steve said that to me years ago. 

100. Are you a good liar? Not really. I’m a bad liar. 

101. What is your Hogwarts House? Slytherin! 

102. Do you talk to yourself? All the time. I get asked to repeat myself a lot by folks who hear me mutter, and think I’m talking to them. 

103. Are you an introvert or an extrovert? Ambivert. A little from column A and a little from column B.

104. Do you keep a journal/diary? Nah - I’m bad at keeping up with the entries. I don’t write often enough to justify it.

105. Do you believe in second chances? Depends very strongly on what happened to make the first one go away. 

106. If you found a wallet full of money on the ground, what would you do? Try to find the owner. I’m not a complete monster - I’m a broke millennial, I know that something like that could fuck your week or month up.  

107. Do you believe that people are capable of change? Yes. My youngest brother is a good example of that. 

108. Are you ticklish? INCREDIBLY TICKLISH. TICKLE ME AND PAY THE PRICE. 

109. Have you ever been on a plane? Yep! It was fun! 

110. Do you have any piercings? My ears! I wanna get my nose pierced, but it’ll have to wait till allergy season is over. 

111. What fictional character do you wish was real? That’s tough! I have several I’d like to meet! 

112. Do you have any tattoos? Two! My family’s zodiac on my right wrist, and the Spartan II’s insignia from Halo on my left clavicle. 

113. What is the best decision that you’ve made in your life so far? Tough to say. Lemme get back to you on that.

114. Do you believe in karma? I believe that it’s a bitch, and the wheel turns for all of us. 

115. Do you wear glasses or contacts? Glasses! 

116. Do you want children? Eventually. I’m not ready for them yet - I’m too broke. 

117. Who is the smartest person you know? @sabotage-prowl

118. What is your most embarrassing memory? So not telling you that! 

119. Have you ever pulled an all-nighter? From time to time. It’s not fun. 

120. What color are most of you clothes? Blue, black, or red, primarily. But I’ve got other colors in there. 

121. Do you like adventures? Heck yes! I’m ALWAYS down for adventure! 

122. Have you ever been on TV? Nope. I’m not important enough. 

123. How old are you? 30. Yeesh, I’m old. 

124. What is your favorite quote? “So, you’ve got a plan?” “Oh, yes.” “Am I going to like it?” “Almost certainly not.” “If I weren’t already dead, I’d think I’d be very depressed.”  

125. Do you prefer sweet or savory foods? Both. Both is good.

[junker-town]

The NBA’s 10 best games of the 2010s

Ray Allen’s greatest moment.

From the Cavs’ incredible Game 7 win over the Warriors to Ray Allen’s championship-clinching shot for the Heat, these are the NBA’s best games of the last decade.

As a follow up to last week’s article about the top 10 most entertaining games from the 2019-20 season — as ranked with an algorithm created by Thuuz Sports — here’s a look at the 10 most entertaining games of the entire decade. Enjoy.

10) Houston Rockets 98, Portland Trail Blazers 99: May 1, 2014

Any game that forever freezes you to where you were when you watched it is special. Few can do it. Most leave a hazy aftertaste, where you think you remember where you were, who you were with, what you were eating, and whether it was raining outside. But in reality it’s just fog.

For those who witnessed it live, Damian Lillard’s series-ending moon shot against the Houston Rockets was the rare sporting event that obliterated all five senses and momentarily stopped time.

It’s a fun series to reminisce about. At the time, I was recapping games for ESPN’s TrueHoop blog, Red94, and vividly remember the immortal release point on LaMarcus Aldridge’s baseline turnaround that made Dwight Howard and Omer Asik (remember him?) look so helpless, as well as how confident and smooth Chandler Parsons, Jeremy Lin, and Wesley Matthews moved around the court before injuries ruined them.

Anyway, Lillard didn’t want to put the end of Game 6 in his hands — he needed to. In his mind, no other options ever existed. Before the play begins, Lillard is a panther in tall grass. The second Nicolas Batum gets handed the ball on the opposite sideline, he cannonballs up, claps his hands with enough force to let everyone in the building know “this is not a drill” (the play was originally designed for LaMarcus Aldridge), catches the pass, rotates his shoulders, then drops the curtain.

9) Memphis Grizzlies 117, San Antonio Spurs 116: Dec. 17, 2014

This game went into triple overtime, but the end of regulation is the best part. A flurry of game-tying threes in the last seven seconds, capped off by Marc Gasol stepping through Manu Ginobili’s blanket coverage to bank in a prayer as the buzzer sounded. It was the most improbable big shot of the decade ... until Tim Duncan one-upped him at the end of the second overtime with a one-dribble fadeaway over Gasol’s fingertips that ricocheted off the backboard, twirling around the rim, and somehow dropped in.

8) Oklahoma City Thunder 119, Toronto Raptors 118: Mar. 20, 2014

This was the only game on this list that was unrecognizable solely from the date and two teams. But when viewed through the prism of Kevin Durant, at or near his lanky overlord peak, it becomes a recovered artifact.

Let’s start at the end. The Thunder were down by eight with 48 seconds left in double overtime when Durant wiggled free for an open three.

About 45 seconds later he stuck another one, this time from the left wing, drifting towards the sideline with a hand in his face to give the Thunder a one-point lead. By his side? Jeremy Lamb, Reggie Jackson, and Derek Fisher.

This was Durant at his most lethal, near the end of a 41-game streak in which he never scored fewer than 25 points (the third-longest in NBA history). If he were a character in a novel, the editor would ask the writer to turn down the volume. Durant is too absurd for real life, let alone someone’s imagination.

7) Oklahoma City Thunder 133, Memphis Grizzlies 123: May 9, 2011

A few months ago my wife and I were eating dinner at a restaurant that had a massive projector screen behind the bar. On it, for no discernable reason, was this game. When I asked our waiter why it was on, he looked at me like I had two eyes. “Dude, that game was incredible.”

He’s not wrong. It was a pivotal Game 4 that went into triple overtime. What a blessing.

6) Cleveland Cavaliers 93, Golden State Warriors 89: June 19, 2016

Pretty much since it happened, the last few minutes of this game have rattled around my head like a flawed, inescapable pop song. I’ve watched, discussed and thought about them thousands of times. Over and over. They’re some of basketball’s most historic moments, clustered together in one messy crescendo that then led to Draymond Green’s parking lot phone call which sent a wrecking ball through competitive balance’s front window.

The weeks that followed this game felt like a fever dream. Live, the immense weight of it all just sort of sat on your chest. It’s impossible to process consequential sports history in real time; simply watching it yields indescribable emotions. Breathing is not easy. If my phone rang I didn’t hear it.

Very few games, if any before it, have ever prompted the number of nicknames this one did: The Block, The Stop, The Shot. There’s no shorthand for greatness, and most of these moments elude language. But context isn’t even necessary for another NBA fan to know what you’re talking about when one gets mentioned. All were epic feats of athletic dynamism — or tragic misadventures, depending on your perspective — that will live on forever.

(Sidebar: The most underrated sequence came right after Love somehow hung on for dear life in front of Curry at the top of the key, when Kyrie Irving channeled his inner Icarus. With 30 seconds left and a three-point lead, Irving raced the length of the court and nearly dribbled the ball out of bounds. The obvious play was to sit tight and burn clock. Was he bored? Did he want to be the hero, after already hitting the heroic shot? Did he completely forget that it was Game 7 of the NBA Finals? Has anyone ever asked Irving about that play?)

There is a whiff of “I mean, somebody had to win” syndrome when you re-watch the end of this game. The players were exhausted. The offense was stilted and formulaic. Both teams knew each other too well. Grace was gone. All that might be true, but sports aren’t scripted. It’s what makes them so compelling. And even after beauty gets stripped from the play-by-play, there’s no denying this game’s pantheon position.

5) Golden State Warriors 121, Oklahoma City Thunder 118: Feb. 27, 2016

This game was an asteroid colliding with Earth. When Curry hit the biggest shot of his career — an overtime game-winner from about 32 feet — it opened so many eyes to a revolution in real time. Everyone who watched it remembers where they were. (What they probably don’t remember is that OKC had the led for 51 minutes.)

This game was important. And if judged solely on excitement, it’s an all-timer.

4) Denver Nuggets 116, Portland Trail Blazers 112: May 5, 2019

By my calculations, every single shot in this fourth quarter went in, which is pretty good. It was Game 4, a must-win for the Nuggets, and the peak of Jamal Murray’s career.

Murry finished with 34 points and went 11-for-11 at the free-throw line, about 48 hours after he played 55 minutes in Game 3.

3) San Antonio Spurs 129, Golden State Warriors 127: May 6, 2013

The Spurs won this game and this series — Manu forever! — but this was the Warriors’ point of origin, a double-overtime adrenaline rush that reset expectations for Curry and Klay Thompson. (At the time, Draymond was still coming off the bench.)

It’s hard not to call this one of the most pivotal games of the century. It changed everything.

2) Cleveland Cavaliers 109, Golden State Warriors 108: Dec. 25, 2016

This game featured the second-most-impressive shot of Irving’s career, an operatic mid-post turnaround over Thompson’s near-perfect contest that gave Cleveland a one-point lead with three seconds to go.

The basketball in this one was objectively more thrilling than what we saw in Game 7 the previous season, but it’s still kind of weird to see it this high.

1) Miami Heat 103, San Antonio Spurs 100: June 18, 2013

I mean, were you expecting anything else?

Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals had it all. And by “it all” I mean one of the most cinematic climaxes in basketball history. Few plays are deserving of their own oral history. This was, from Gregg Popovich’s decision to pull Tim Duncan off the floor to Chris Bosh and Ray Allen having the split-second wherewithal to grab, twirl, and hopscotch behind the three-point line for a shot that changed the course of history.

If you’ve seen it once you’ve seen it one thousand times. It was pure shell shock, a picturesque work of art that perhaps no other player could have pulled off.

Spurs fans would rather chug vinegar than watch that final minute ever again. But low moments make the highs taste that much sweeter. There is no progress without struggle, etc. And you didn’t need to care about the teams in the game to drown in your own flop sweat as it neared conclusion.

Only a few games are powerful enough to make your body react involuntarily. This one did.

[blindingechoes]

SIM QUESTIONS TAG

I wasn’t tagged by anyone lol, I rarely am, I don’t know why. Am I scary guys? I swear I don’t bite, I mean, unless you ask and even then only if you’re legal ;P Anyway, I’ve seen this around for a while and on my dash a couple dozen times so I decided to do it anyway XD

1. What’s your favorite sims death? In Sims 2 - Flies & Satellite. In Sims 3 - Meteor, Thirst (Vampires) & Jelly Beans. In Sims 4 - Any emotional death &  poorly made Pufferfish Nigiri death.

2. Alpha CC or Maxis Match? Maxis Match

3. Do you cheat when your sims gain weight? Not really, but I don’t really make heavy set Sims usually. My ass is big enough in real life, allow me to live my escapism my way.

4. Do you use move objects? Yes, constantly.

5. Favorite mod? Probably MC Command Center, I doubt I could play without that at this point. It’s kind of like all of Twallan’s mods for Sims 3, they’re just needed to make the game playable.

6. First expansion/game/stuff pack you got? I think the first Pack I ever got was Late Night for Sims 3.

7. Do you pronounce “live mode” like aLIVE or LIVing? Live as in aLIVE, which is apparently weird. It’s like going ‘live’ on television, you know ‘3, 2, 1 and we’re live!’ and have no idea where people are getting this LIV thing from. But then again, that could just be because I’m in the older range of Simmers, because there’s a lot of grammar that is apparently considered normal by today’s standards that just boggles my mind.

8. Who’s your favorite sim that you’ve made? That’s easy, Tessa, duh. And probably Maggie as well, but only in Sims 3 since I’ve yet to make a decent Maggie in Sims 4 and I have basically given up on it.

9. Have you made a simself? Yes, although I haven’t updated her in forever and hate her and should probably lock her in a gated swimming pool >_<

10. What sim traits do you give yourself? Loner, Geek.... and I don’t freaking remember the last one, that’s how much I care about my Simself.

11. Which is your favorite EA hair color? Orange red, dark brown & black.

12. Favorite EA hair? Probably the shoulder length loose hair that came with Romantic Garden Stuff.

13. Favorite life stage? In Sims 2 - Toddler, Young Adult & Adult. In Sims 3 - Child, Teenager & Young Adult. In Sims 4 - Toddler, Teenager, Young Adult.

14. Are you a builder or are you in it for the gameplay? I certainly enjoy building, but in no way am I a builder. But at the same time, I have the attention span of a gnat with a hyperactivity disorder, so the gameplay doesn’t hold me for very long either. Essentially what I’m saying is that I’m shit at both.

15. Are you a CC creator? I’m wouldn’t call myself a creator so much as a ‘throw things at the wall and see what sticks...or’ and not a very good one at that.

16. Do you have any simblr friends/a sim squad? I most certainly don’t have a ‘squad’ because I’m over the age of 21, but there are a couple people that I’m fond enough to talk too and could call friends if we were comfortable enough with that moniker.

17. What’s your favorite game? (1, 2, 3, or 4) I don’t have a favorite, they all are fun to me for different reasons and in different ways. I play them all (okay not The Sims because I can’t find my base game disk!) at different times depending on my moods. I also love the Sims Medieval and the Sims Stories series.

18. Do you have any sims merch? No.

19. Do you have a YouTube for sims? I did for a hot second back like five year ago for The Sims 3, but I didn’t have any of the equipment needed to record properly or a decent enough computer to run the game without hiccups so I just gave up and allowed it to die.

20. How has your “sim style” changed throughout your years of playing? A lot, back in the early days of Sims 3 I never turned aging on and I would play in a rotational sort of way, jumping between many households in the world. I’d have entire families intertwined and married off, I made sure everything and everyone was exactly under my thumb, autonomy was almost always turned off. Now the quicker they age up and die the better, the less I have the care for them the better. Basically I went from a strict yet caring God to a malevolent God with zero fucks to give in a matter of six years.

21. What’s your Origin ID? BlindingEchoes, what a concept, I know.

22. Who’s your favorite CC creator? Come on now, that’s just a loaded fucking question.

23. How long have you had a simblr? Est. 10/31/2011

24. How do you edit your pictures? In Photoshop CS6

25. What expansion/game/stuff pack do you want next? Like one that’s already out or one that I’d like to see next? Because the only one I don’t have it Luxury Stuff and pfft to that one, the furniture is ugly, I have the BGC clothing, hair, shoes & accessories already and the dumb chocolate/drink fountain isn’t worth ten bucks. I guess I’ll see about getting the Fitness stuff because I do like making deadweight gym bro dudes, so that’ll help with making those kinds of Sims. I’d really like to see a Stuff Pack just for toddlers, kind of like Kids Room Stuff was focused on just kids. I’d like a Stuff Pack for just toddlers and one for just teenagers.

26. What expansion/game/stuff pack is your favorite so far? For Expansions, I guess Get to Work, although to be honest, all of the Sims 4 Expansions have been major letdowns for me so meh. For Game Packs, I really like Parenthood, Dine Out, Vampires and Spa Day. As for Stuff Packs, I like Kids Room Stuff and Perfect Patio.

[sheilacwall]

hip hop isn’t dead.: Ice Cube

Somehow War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) is only the sixth solo album from rapper-slash-actor-slash-professional basketball league founder O’Shea “Ice Cube” Jackson. It feels like we’ve been discussing this motherfucker forever, or at least since 2007, right? Obviously the man has been doing a lot since his entrance into our chosen genre via N.W.A.: aside from his whole actor/writer/director side gig, he’s released compilations, been a part of multiple soundtrack releases, and even found time to create an entirely separate group, Westside Connection (alongside his protégée Mack 10 and his friend WC). But the man hasn’t ever truly stepped away from his solo career, which is part of the reason we’re talking about today’s subject.

War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Album) is the second half of a project that Cube conceived way back in the previous century (read: 1998). War & Peace, curiously named after the soft drink and not the Tolstoy doorstop, served as our host’s excuse to deliver the gangsta rap and social commentary he was best known for post-Jerry Heller, along with some attempts to construct a much broader audience through radio airplay, club bangers, cautionary tales, and skinny-dipping in the waters of different musical genres. Although for some reason I’m remembering this being announced as a double-disc effort, Ice Cube released the first volume, subtitled The War Disc, close to the Thanksgiving holiday in 1998, with The Peace Disc scheduled to follow soon after, as they were recorded and compiled at the same time.

The War Disc was met with mixed reviews, as Cube rested on his laurels a bit too much: there’s one song that is a direct sequel to one of his classic tracks, “Once Upon a Time In The Projects 2”; he leaned heavily on a younger artist signed to his label, Mr. Short Khop (who, interestingly enough, doesn’t appear on The Peace Disc at all); there’s a collaboration with motherfucking Korn called “Fuck Dying”. (Cube also appeared on Korn’s 1998 album Follow the Leader: both songs helped cue up the inaugural Family Values tour, which they were both headliners on.) But aside from a couple of tracks that played into his storytelling skills, The War Disc quietly vanished from rotation, leaving our host to retool the planned follow-up in an effort to course-correct.

War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc), the final album released under Cube’s deal with Priority Records, is definitely not what was already completed when The War Disc was released. For one, the very first track, “Hello”, is a collaboration with former N.W.A. bandmates MC Ren and Dr. Dre, a move which wouldn’t have happened in 1998, but made more sense in 2000 after N.W.A. officially reunited for a song off of the soundtrack for Cube’s Next Friday (and also after Dre released 2001, a blockbuster project that put him back on the map). In addition, the first single, “You Can Do It”, came from that same soundtrack and was Cube’s most popular radio hit since 1997’s “We Be Clubbin’”. So I get why he’d want to retool the project to capitalize on those strengths.

The Peace Disc vanished seemingly quicker than its predecessor, possibly due to the chart dominance of his friend Dr. Dre and Dre’s artist Eminem at the time. It did manage to sell over five hundred thousand units in the United States, but find me somebody who proudly has this one displayed in their collection. I dare you. I double dog dare you, motherfucker. Nobody gives a fuck about War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc), and I include Ice Cube in that description. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that the album is entirely bad, so let’s peek under the hood and review this sucker.

1. HELLO (FEAT. DR. DRE & MC REN)

O’Shea hits the ground running, commissioning an N.W.A. reunion that is much more successful than their official comeback on the Next Friday soundtrack (“Chin Check”, for those of you keeping score). A simplistic Dr. Dre. prescription, which bangs, lays the groundwork for Dre, MC Ren, and our host Ice Cube to… complain about the current (as of 2000, anyway) state of hip hop like the elder statesmen they are: they have a specific grievance regarding not being credited for “start[ing] this gangsta shit” (which absolutely isn’t true, but regardless of who you think kicked off the sub-genre, the various members of N.W.A. are cited as influences all. The. Goddamn. Time. Maybe not Yella). As far as old dudes talking shit as though evolution in language and culture hadn’t ever occurred, Ren comes across as alright (his comment about lesbians not exactly homophobic but still iffy nevertheless), while Andre sticks with his “I’m rich, I don’t have to do shit” mentality. Thankfully, O’Shea tears through his verse with a ferocity he hasn’t displayed since Westside Connection’s Bow Down, and I say that even though the phase of his career where he insisted on nicknaming himself the “Don Dada” is still represented on here. So yeah, this was a success overall. Thank God, right? I mean, can you imagine two subpar late-period N.W.A. reunion tracks in a row?

2. PIMP HOMEO (SKIT)

I know Cube’s trying to be funny here, but this was bad. At least it wasn’t homophobic, though, as the title may have implied. Absolutely misogynistic, though.

3. YOU AIN’T GOTTA LIE (TA KICK IT) (FEAT. CHRIS ROCK)

Fairly confusing, as “You Ain’t Gotta Lie (Ta Kick It”) isn’t really the love rap sort-of promised by the preceding skit. O’Shea spits his boasts-n-bullshit, which, interestingly enough, include proclamations of being a great father, while guest Chris Rock threatens to undermine the entire operation with his contributions to the hook. The concept isn’t set up well enough for this three-man production (this was credited to former Bad Boy Hitman Chucky Thompson along with Rich Nice and Loren Hill) to make any fucking sense, as Cube isn’t really hitting on anyone as much as he’s offering up facts about himself as though he recorded his bars while standing behind a podium, while Rock tries to come up with the most ridiculous lies during the hook. Dude is kind of amusing toward the end, but overall this shit was a misfire. It was good while it lasted, though.

4. THE GUTTER SHIT (FEAT. JAYO FELONY, GANGSTA, & SQUEAK RU)

LOL there’s a rapper named Gangsta? Have we officially used up all of the words? Anywhoozle, our host envisioned “The Gutter Shit” as a collaboration with like-minded West Coast artists, but could only convince Jayo Felony and two other no-names to commit, and my Lord does this Cube- and T-Bone-produced aural interpretation of a sad face emoji suuuuuuuuuck. The two artists on here that you’ve never heard of before or since seem excited enough for the opportunity but flounder when called upon, while Jayo is terrible as always. But the true loser here is our host, who somehow found the time to contribute two awful verses that wouldn’t even be stocked in the same type of store as the gutter shit he was once capable of. And what the fuck is with that reference to the previous track?

5. SUPREME HUSTLE

There is no planet within our galaxy where Ice Cube could have honestly believed that “Supreme Hustle” was a song good enough to make War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc). My guess is that the production trio from “You Ain’t Gotta Lie (Ta Kick It)” had called in a collective Make-A-Wish, as this elementary excursion into simplistic rap boasting is embarrassing as shit to listen to. At least our host sticks with his theme: each of the three verses places emphasis on “I”, “you”, and “we”, respectively. But there is no hustle to be found on here, and O’Shea’s hand-waving about what he considers to be the cause of domestic violence was puzzling as hell. I cannot stress enough how fucking godawful this shit was.

6. MENTAL WARFARE (SKIT)

…

7. 24 MO’ HOURS

When critics mention older rappers struggling to sound relevant with their newer songs, “24 Mo’ Hours” is what they’re referring to. If War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) were released today, the Battlecat instrumental, which both sucks and doesn’t fit our host’s general aesthetic, which is a strange critique given Battlecat’s history of producing Cali-based bangers, would almost certainly be swapped out for something from the likes of Metro Boomin’ or Zaytoven, and it would still sound terrible. Ugh.

8. UNTIL WE RICH (FEAT. KRAYZIE BONE)

I heard “Until We Rich” on the radio once probably in 2000 or so, and then have apparently never thought of it again until right now, which I believe is an accurate representation of how forgettable this Chucky & the Thompsons production was. Guest star Krayzie Bone, still riding a Bone Thugs-N-Harmony career wave at the time, circles and underlines Slick Rick’s “Hey Young World” with his performance, which is dull, while O’Shea tries his darnedest to give listeners an optimistic, motivational speech, even going so far as to censor his own cursing, so as to reach as wide an audience as possible. Sure, “Until We Rich” fits the ‘peace’ requirement of this project, but at what cost?

9. YOU CAN DO IT (FEAT. MACK 10 & MS. TOI)

You two already know this song, which first appeared on the soundtrack for Next Friday in 1999 but was popular enough to justify Priority Records placing it on as many projects as possible, I suppose. For the handful of readers who somehow missed this footnote in popular culture, “You Can Do It”, a spiritual follow-up to “We Be Clubbin’”, the hit single from our host’s directorial debut The Players Club, finds Cube, Ms. Toi, and his boy Mack 10 putting their asses into a One Eye-produced club effort that is slight on lyrics, but is rather catchy otherwise. It sounds so fucking absurd today that it somehow shifts from “corny” to “entertainingly corny” during Cube’s opening verse and never once budges again. At least our host sounded engaged on here, unlike most everything else on War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) thus far, and having Mack 1-0 perform over a fast-paced beat forces him to match that energy or die trying. Inessential, but it brings the pretty girls at the club out onto the floor, in case that helps you in any way.

10. MACKIN’ & DRIVING (SKIT)

Playing War & Peace Vol. 1 (The War Disc)’s first single, “Pushin’ Weight”, in the background of this interlude only reminded me of rapper Mr. Short Khop, whose career was abruptly halted after Cube stopped giving a shit about his young charge. I mean, why else would he not have been a good enough performer to make it to the second volume? Good call by the way, O’Shea.

11. GOTTA BE INSANITY

Curious, but not entirely out of left field when you remember “You Can Do It” was a hit, so why wouldn’t O’Shea go back to that well? The funky-ish guitar loop on this Mario Winans (!) production reminded me of Jermaine Dupri’s “Going Home With Me”, except I like that song and found this one to be middling at best, as Cube panders to the lowest common denominator while trying to get back inside the club. I can’t be sure who our host thought his audience was when he recorded “Gotta Be Insanity”, but he’s done enough good work and has earned the ability to record and release whatever he wants. Still doesn’t mean we’re all required to listen to any of it, however.

12. ROLL ALL DAY

As we all know and agree with every third Wednesday at our meetings, the best storytelling raps are the ones where you don’t realize the artist is even telling a story until the third verse. That’s what happens on “Roll All Day”, anyway. Over a One Eye beat that doesn’t entirely gel but has its moments, Ice Cube boasts about having purchased a full tank of gas (a fact repeated throughout, with a humorous callback toward the end) and offering to cruise around with a woman he just met in exchange for sexual intercourse. You know, standard-issue rap-type shit, but it begs the question: why is she so interested in the car? Has the woman in question never been inside an automobile before? Cube could have probably rolled up on a pedal bike and worked out a similar proposition just because he’s Ice Cube, but I suppose there’s no vehicle for a story there (pun intended). Regardless, he never gets that far, as by the third verse she’s [SPOILER ALERT FOR A NINETEEN-YEAR-OLD SONG] broken the car’s windows and, later, stolen it outright. His flow is strictly boasts-n-bullshit until the ending, where he reveals some of that sense of humor he tapped into while writing Friday. “Roll All Day” is meh, but the effort was appreciated, at least.

13. CAN YOU BOUNCE?

This was fucking terrible, and that’s without O’Shea making a Pokemon reference, which he absolutely does on here. So that happened. (Also, Younglord apparently produced the beat. Was War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) designed as Ice Cube’s covert demo reel to hopefully snag a label deal with Bad Boy Records? Because the gambit hasn’t paid off yet.)

14. DINNER WITH THE CEO (SKIT)

…

15. RECORD COMPANY PIMPIN’

The flip side of EPMD’s “Please Listen To My Demo”, down to the same Faze-O “Riding High” sample being used, as Ice Cube and producer Bud’da urge the youth not to get involved in the rap game without learning the business side of the industry first. Advice such as this can only come from someone who was famously jerked around by their label in the past, as Cube was during his short stint with Ruthless Records, but while the man clearly knows of what he speaks, that doesn’t mean “Record Company Pimpin’” (a topic many artists have tackled before and since O’Shea put pen to paper) is an entertaining song to actually listen to. Our host should have taken these ideas and given a TED Talk instead. That’s not a joke: imagine how many people he could help in the process. But you can skip this track outright.

16. WAITIN’ TA HATE

So it turns out that War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) is a stealth EPMD tribute album filtered through a Puff Daddy lens. That’s a lie, obviously, but “Waitin’ Ta Hate” is the second song in a row to pay homage to Erick and Parish specifically, although this time around producers One Eye and DJ Joe Rodriguez (that name gets to the point, can’t be mad at that) get lazy by choosing to just sample “So Wat Cha Sayin’” directly. For his part, O’Shea sounds downright angry on here, which informs an entertaining performance that isn’t reminiscent of his finest work, but let’s be real, it’s the best we’ll get at this point. The production doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from the EPMD standard, but maybe, this time around, it isn’t such a bad thing. (Side note to E-Double: you should give Cube a shout for a future collaboration, as the man is clearly a fan.)

17. N—A OF THE CENTURY

Accompanied by someone that could be that Pain In Da Ass dude whose entire shtick was aping flicks such as Scarface and Goodfellas to open up early Roc-A-Fella Records projects but likely isn’t, which means there were two of these guys in our chosen genre at some point, which seems wasteful somehow, our host caps off the evening lobbying for an award that doesn’t exist. Charley Chap’s production is too dull to properly reward Ice Cube as a winner of any competition, and O’Shea’s own bars aren’t worth wasting a paragraph on. At least we’re done here.

FINAL THOUGHTS: War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) approaches self-parody at points, as Ice Cube genuinely seems to not understand just what it was about his work that listeners connected with back in the early 1990s. It certainly wasn’t this shit: nobody ever wanted to hear what it would have sounded like had Cube signed with Bad Boy Records twelve years after his prime. The O’Shea Jackson found on this project is a man who is content with his station in life: the only time he ever really comes across as passionate about anything is when he’s schooling younger artists on the inner workings of the music industry, a topic that obviously resonates with him. Even his generic threats on “Hello”, a song I fucking liked his performance on, sound more like amiable suggestions than anything. When Cube gets in his storytelling bag, he seems to at least be having some fun with this shit (not that it always translates for the listener), but when he’s simply talking shit, the momentum on War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc), or whatever little momentum exists, halts immediately. Twenty years removed from his debut solo project, this album proved that Ice Cube was no longer vital to the ongoing health of the local hip hop concern. He has all of his other ventures to fall back on, and of course he’ll always be welcomed at the barbecues, but unless he’s laser-focused on targets (we’ll always have the first Westside Connection effort), he loses the plot very quickly, and one can only coast on charm and the acclaim derived from your prior work for so long.  I won’t go so far as to say that War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) is a “peace” of shit, because that pun is beneath me, but it’s plenty awful.

BUY OR BURN? Neither. If you absolutely must, stream the tracks listed below, but, you know, life is short.

BEST TRACKS: “Hello”; “Waitin’ Ta Hate”

-Max

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[cashcounts]

SMOK Alien 220 W kit review | Still the best mod on the market? [Guide]

SMOK Alien 220 W kit intro

I needed a dual battery mod. Although a bit late to the party, I said “f*ck it” and went with the Alien. (I considered the Sigelei Kaos Spectrum, but the yellow and black paint splatter edition Alien 220 W won me over.) It’s been months since my purchase, and I still use it as one of my go-to devices.

Recently we reviewed the ProColor 225 W, the latest device from SMOK. It gave me a bit of déjà vu. It’s been a year since its predecessor the Alien was released, and not much has changed. Sure, they did improve the user interface quite a bit. Plus, they added fancy LED lights to compete with mods like the Sigelei Kaos Spectrum. But in terms of performance, they’re almost too close for comfort…

Price: $59.95 from Direct Vapor (Includes the Baby Beast tank)

Note: If you already own an Alien and would like to upgrade or restore it, scroll down to learn how…

SMOK Alien 220 W kit Gallery

SMOK Alien 220 W kit Specs and Features

Kit Content

1 x SMOK Alien 220 Mod

1 x SMOK TFV8 Baby Beast Tank

1 x 0.4ohm V8 Baby-Q2 Coil Head

1 x 0.15ohm V8 Baby-T8 Coil Head

1 x Micro-USB Cable

1 x Replacement Glass Tube

Instruction Manual

Specifications

Dimensions: 44 * 30 * 85 mm

Wattage range: 6 – 220 W

Temperature range: 200 – 600° F / 100 – 315°C

Voltage range: 0.35 – 8 V

Resistance range:

3.0Ω (VW Mode)

0.06 – 3.0Ω (TC Modes)

Compatible TC Wires: Ni200| Titanium| Stainless Steel

Large OLED display

Individual battery level display

Micro USB port (Charging & Upgrading)

Ergonomic design

Lateral fire trigger

Spring-loaded 510 Pin

Requires (2) 18650 Batteries (Batteries sold separately)

Sliding battery door

Firmware upgradeable

Notable Remarks

Good ol’ Alien

Ah, the Alien. Ever heard of it? If you haven’t, then what planet have you been vaping on, dude? The mod made big waves in the vape scene since its landing in September of last year. Although not the first SMOK mod to utilize a lateral firing bar, the Alien was one of the first to make it a new standard.

But there’s more to this device than just the firing bar. The user interface is what landed this mod a spot in my daily rotation. Once you use it, you won’t ever want use anything else. SMOK clearly put thought into developing the user experience, which is where it shines. Let’s have a look, shall we?

Note: The kit comes with the Big Baby atomizer, so you can chuck some clouds straight off the rip.

Form factor

How did this mod become so popular overnight? A lot of it is due to its form factor. For a mod that packs two 18650s, it’s rather compact. Holding the Alien in your hand just feels right, like it was just meant to be. Although it’s sturdy, I wouldn’t want to drop it on a hard surface anytime soon.

The battery door looks like it could easily pop off if you applied enough pressure. Other than that, this mod is just a brick of pure power. The lateral firing bar works like a charm. You press it, and it fires. Every time. I haven’t had any misfire or auto-firing issues. It’s a mod that I can truly depend on.

Overall, the ergonomics were well-thought out on the SMOK Alien. For its size and weight, it’s easy to pocket and carry around. Once you become accustomed to that firing bar, you probably won’t ever go back to using those little buttons again. Solid construction with an intelligent design, for the win.

The display and its infromation

One of the best parts about the Alien is its big, bright display. The main screen shows your Watts, Ohms, Amps, Volts, Mode, Puffs and duration of each puff – laid out a clear and digestible manner. You even get real-time monitoring of your internal PCB board. What more can you possibly ask for?

Three quick clicks of the firing bar will bring you into the selection screen where you choose between Mode, Puffs, Setting and Power. Simply hard-press the fire button to access each additional menu.

Note: Navigating through each screen can be done by using the left and right adjustment buttons or by quickly tapping the fire button.

Mode – Allows you to toggle between Wattage, Temperature and Memory modes. (You can quickly access this screen by pressing the fire bar and left control button simultaneously.)

Wattage mode – Gives you the choice between three preheat settings. Soft, Normal and Hard. (Pressing the fire bar and right control button will allow you to quickly access the Preheat menu.)

Soft mode is perfect for breaking in a fresh coil head, or conserving power. Hard is like a turbo booster for your lower-Ohm, bigger coil builds. Normal gives you the standard wattage output.

Temperature control mode – First you will first be prompted to choose your coil material (Nickel, Titanium or Stainless Steel). Instead of a Preheat menu, you can dial in your maximum Watts. Once you’ve done that, an additional screen will pop up which allows you to customize your TCR.

Puffs – In this screen, you can see how many pulls you have taken. You also could also limit the amount of puffs, although I’m not sure why anybody would want to do that. But, it is an option.

Setting – The setting menu gives you the option to engage Stealth mode, or adjust how long the screen stays on. You can also turn on Auto-lock, which locks your device when it isn’t in use. Lastly, you can adjust your screen Contrast, or manually adjust the Initial Ohms, according to your atomizer.

Power – This last screen gives you the option of powering down the mod. Just select Off, and hold the fire button. If you want to return to the main screen, just hard-press the fire button for a second.

The design

The carbon fiber and diagonal inlays are what really give the Alien mod that signature look. It’s hard to talk about the mod without referencing its wavy design. At the time it was released, there weren’t any mods that looked quite like it. Just one year later and that’s a whole different story…

We now have mods like the Vaporesso Revenger, Wismec Predator and Sigelei Kaos Spectrum. All of which take noticeable design cues from the mod that started it all. Props to SMOK for innovation.

If you like nice, clicky buttons, then you’re gonna love the Alien. The fire bar has just the right balance between firmness and responsiveness. The left and right adjustment buttons are super clicky too. The USB port is located right at the bottom of the screen, which is the perfect location for it.

I even love the way its 6 battery venting holes look on each side of the mod, giving you 12 in total. Atomizers up to 24 mm in diameter will sit flush. You can go with an even bigger one if you don’t mind a bit of overhang. That’s what she said… (Sorry, couldn’t help myself.)

Performance

In contrast to its pocketable nature, the Alien puts out 220 Watts. That should be more than enough power for just about any vaping style. For me, 80-100 Watts does the trick when using bigger coils. I usually end up swapping out the batteries only once during the day, or twice if I’m really going HAM.

The wattage output is accurate, compared to other mods I’ve tested. The battery efficiency is decent, especially considering how bright the LED display is. Having each individual battery’s life monitored on your screen is yet another feature that has now become a standard on most dual-18650 mods.

Using the mod is simple. Just hold it in the palm of your hand, with the screen facing toward you and squeeze. If you are accustomed to having a fire button, you can press down with your finger on the top part of the firing bar. The higher up on the bar you go, the less pressure it takes to fire it up.

3, 2, 1… Charge!

When possible, it’s always ideal to use an external charger for your cells. However, as a backup, the Alien does a fine job at charging your batteries evenly and efficiently. I’ve never experienced any issues using the onboard charging system. If you look closely you’ll notice that the battery door has an additional contact, which promotes balanced charging. It’s about time they’ve come up with that.

From the dead

Despite its massive popularity and cult-following, there have been some unsatisfied Alien owners. The most common concern was the paint falling right off, especially on the first-generation of Aliens. Although SMOK did address this, many people including myself still experienced chipping issues.

I haven’t dropped it (yet), but just from placing it down on my desk, the wear and tear is evident. Some people have reported that their screen stopped working, which makes the mod useless, since you have no idea what setting you’re on. Others have experienced the entire mod die on them. If this is you, keep on reading. There might be a chance to revive that old paperweight, believe it or not…

Update or nah?

If you’re happy with the performance of your device, there’s no real need to update the firmware. Especially if you’re not using it in temp control mode, since that’s the main purpose of upgrading. If you’re not happy with the new firmware, you can always roll back to the previous version anytime.

One of the most notable improvements is that the Alien will now prompt you for a new coil, when it detects one. However, be aware that sometimes it won’t always catch your new resistance, if you slip on an atomizer when it’s not active. You’ll have to unscrew it, hit the fire button, and try again. That’s the most annoying part about using this device. Just be careful when switching atomizers.

Warning: If by some chance you’ve already updated your Alien with the wrong firmware and “bricked” your mod, it may still be possible to restore it. Follow these instructions below and your mod should be back in a jiffy.

How to upgrade your Alien | A quick and dirty guide

There are a bunch of great videos on YouTube that will show you how to do it. The best ones are over an hour long. They even have a guide on SMOK’s official website, but it isn’t laid out so well. If you’re like me, you probably ain’t got time for all that, so here’s the quick and dirty way.

Note: According to SMOK, you should hold the fire button the entire time during the update, but I have done it over three times without doing so. No problemo. Leave a comment if it worked for you.

Note: This will only work on a Windows PC. If you own a Mac, you will unfortunately need to do your upgrade on another computer.

The first thing you’ll need to determine is whether your Alien is a Version A or a Version B. This will be displayed when you turn the mod on or off. If it says V1.x.x, then it’s Version A. If it says VB1.x.x, then you’ll need the firmware upgrade for Version B.

Now, you’ll need to download the appropriate version. Since it’s a compressed file, you must extract the files into a folder. Double-click on the file and choose the folder where you want the files to go. Select Desktop, so you don’t have to go searching for them afterwards.

Version A

Version B

Run the executable file called “NuMicro ISP Programming Tool”.

Remove your batteries from the Alien. Attach the mod to your computer using the Micro USB data-transfer cable, preferably the same one that came with your device.

Once the device is connected, click on the Connect button in the upper right-hand side of the software. It should now say Connected in green.

Make sure it says 00013000 in the box labeled Config 1: 0x. If it doesn’t, you’ll need to download the software again and re-install it, according to SMOK. Don’t give up, try again!

On the bottom, just above the status bar, select Erase All under the Program menu. Click Start. This will completely delete the previous firmware version on your mod. When it’s complete, you will see the word PASS in green letters at the bottom of the window.

Click on the APROM button under Load file. Make sure the folder where you extracted the software is selected. Click on Bin Files (*.bin) in the lower right-hand side, and choose Intel Hex Files (*.hex) from the drop-down menu. Click on the hex file and select Open.

Under the Program menu, just above the status bar, select APROM and hit the Start button.

If it says PASS in green, then you’re good to go! Enjoy your updated Alien.

Caution: After updating the firmware, your Alien will be automatically set to 220 Watts. Be sure to adjust the wattage back down before having a vape, so you don’t accidentally burn your coil out.

Likes

Comfortable to hold

Compact for a dual-18650 mod

220 Watts of power

Balanced charging

Intuitive user interface

Ergonomic firing bar

Available in a wide range of colors

Firmware upgradeable

Well-constructed

Dislikes

Doesn’t always detect a new atomizer right away

Battery door can snap off under pressure

Finish will start to chip away over time

Verdict

There is not much left to say about the Alien. Very rarely do we decide to review a product that was released a year ago, let alone a few months. (Not to mention we already reviewed it back then.) In vape years, 365 days can feel like an eternity. However, in this case, it made perfect sense to do.

Here we are, one year later. The SMOK Alien is still going strong. Is it still the best mod on the market? I’m not going to give you a straight yes or no answer. It’s just not that simple. However, I will say that it is still one of the best dual-18650 mods available on the market right now, especially for the price.

I’m not going to even compare it to three, four or five-battery mods, because that would be unfair. To make a long story short, if you’re new to vaping, or even if you’ve been vaping a while, you really can’t go wrong with an Alien. I don’t get to say this often, but I personally bought one with my own money from a local shop in Brooklyn (7onevape) and I’m still thoroughly satisfied with my purchase.

Buy Now

[sheilacwall]

hip hop isn’t dead.: Ice Cube

Somehow War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) is only the sixth solo album from rapper-slash-actor-slash-professional basketball league founder O’Shea “Ice Cube” Jackson. It feels like we’ve been discussing this motherfucker forever, or at least since 2007, right? Obviously the man has been doing a lot since his entrance into our chosen genre via N.W.A.: aside from his whole actor/writer/director side gig, he’s released compilations, been a part of multiple soundtrack releases, and even found time to create an entirely separate group, Westside Connection (alongside his protégée Mack 10 and his friend WC). But the man hasn’t ever truly stepped away from his solo career, which is part of the reason we’re talking about today’s subject.

War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Album) is the second half of a project that Cube conceived way back in the previous century (read: 1998). War & Peace, curiously named after the soft drink and not the Tolstoy doorstop, served as our host’s excuse to deliver the gangsta rap and social commentary he was best known for post-Jerry Heller, along with some attempts to construct a much broader audience through radio airplay, club bangers, cautionary tales, and skinny-dipping in the waters of different musical genres. Although for some reason I’m remembering this being announced as a double-disc effort, Ice Cube released the first volume, subtitled The War Disc, close to the Thanksgiving holiday in 1998, with The Peace Disc scheduled to follow soon after, as they were recorded and compiled at the same time.

The War Disc was met with mixed reviews, as Cube rested on his laurels a bit too much: there’s one song that is a direct sequel to one of his classic tracks, “Once Upon a Time In The Projects 2”; he leaned heavily on a younger artist signed to his label, Mr. Short Khop (who, interestingly enough, doesn’t appear on The Peace Disc at all); there’s a collaboration with motherfucking Korn called “Fuck Dying”. (Cube also appeared on Korn’s 1998 album Follow the Leader: both songs helped cue up the inaugural Family Values tour, which they were both headliners on.) But aside from a couple of tracks that played into his storytelling skills, The War Disc quietly vanished from rotation, leaving our host to retool the planned follow-up in an effort to course-correct.

War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc), the final album released under Cube’s deal with Priority Records, is definitely not what was already completed when The War Disc was released. For one, the very first track, “Hello”, is a collaboration with former N.W.A. bandmates MC Ren and Dr. Dre, a move which wouldn’t have happened in 1998, but made more sense in 2000 after N.W.A. officially reunited for a song off of the soundtrack for Cube’s Next Friday (and also after Dre released 2001, a blockbuster project that put him back on the map). In addition, the first single, “You Can Do It”, came from that same soundtrack and was Cube’s most popular radio hit since 1997’s “We Be Clubbin’”. So I get why he’d want to retool the project to capitalize on those strengths.

The Peace Disc vanished seemingly quicker than its predecessor, possibly due to the chart dominance of his friend Dr. Dre and Dre’s artist Eminem at the time. It did manage to sell over five hundred thousand units in the United States, but find me somebody who proudly has this one displayed in their collection. I dare you. I double dog dare you, motherfucker. Nobody gives a fuck about War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc), and I include Ice Cube in that description. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that the album is entirely bad, so let’s peek under the hood and review this sucker.

1. HELLO (FEAT. DR. DRE & MC REN)

O’Shea hits the ground running, commissioning an N.W.A. reunion that is much more successful than their official comeback on the Next Friday soundtrack (“Chin Check”, for those of you keeping score). A simplistic Dr. Dre. prescription, which bangs, lays the groundwork for Dre, MC Ren, and our host Ice Cube to… complain about the current (as of 2000, anyway) state of hip hop like the elder statesmen they are: they have a specific grievance regarding not being credited for “start[ing] this gangsta shit” (which absolutely isn’t true, but regardless of who you think kicked off the sub-genre, the various members of N.W.A. are cited as influences all. The. Goddamn. Time. Maybe not Yella). As far as old dudes talking shit as though evolution in language and culture hadn’t ever occurred, Ren comes across as alright (his comment about lesbians not exactly homophobic but still iffy nevertheless), while Andre sticks with his “I’m rich, I don’t have to do shit” mentality. Thankfully, O’Shea tears through his verse with a ferocity he hasn’t displayed since Westside Connection’s Bow Down, and I say that even though the phase of his career where he insisted on nicknaming himself the “Don Dada” is still represented on here. So yeah, this was a success overall. Thank God, right? I mean, can you imagine two subpar late-period N.W.A. reunion tracks in a row?

2. PIMP HOMEO (SKIT)

I know Cube’s trying to be funny here, but this was bad. At least it wasn’t homophobic, though, as the title may have implied. Absolutely misogynistic, though.

3. YOU AIN’T GOTTA LIE (TA KICK IT) (FEAT. CHRIS ROCK)

Fairly confusing, as “You Ain’t Gotta Lie (Ta Kick It”) isn’t really the love rap sort-of promised by the preceding skit. O’Shea spits his boasts-n-bullshit, which, interestingly enough, include proclamations of being a great father, while guest Chris Rock threatens to undermine the entire operation with his contributions to the hook. The concept isn’t set up well enough for this three-man production (this was credited to former Bad Boy Hitman Chucky Thompson along with Rich Nice and Loren Hill) to make any fucking sense, as Cube isn’t really hitting on anyone as much as he’s offering up facts about himself as though he recorded his bars while standing behind a podium, while Rock tries to come up with the most ridiculous lies during the hook. Dude is kind of amusing toward the end, but overall this shit was a misfire. It was good while it lasted, though.

4. THE GUTTER SHIT (FEAT. JAYO FELONY, GANGSTA, & SQUEAK RU)

LOL there’s a rapper named Gangsta? Have we officially used up all of the words? Anywhoozle, our host envisioned “The Gutter Shit” as a collaboration with like-minded West Coast artists, but could only convince Jayo Felony and two other no-names to commit, and my Lord does this Cube- and T-Bone-produced aural interpretation of a sad face emoji suuuuuuuuuck. The two artists on here that you’ve never heard of before or since seem excited enough for the opportunity but flounder when called upon, while Jayo is terrible as always. But the true loser here is our host, who somehow found the time to contribute two awful verses that wouldn’t even be stocked in the same type of store as the gutter shit he was once capable of. And what the fuck is with that reference to the previous track?

5. SUPREME HUSTLE

There is no planet within our galaxy where Ice Cube could have honestly believed that “Supreme Hustle” was a song good enough to make War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc). My guess is that the production trio from “You Ain’t Gotta Lie (Ta Kick It)” had called in a collective Make-A-Wish, as this elementary excursion into simplistic rap boasting is embarrassing as shit to listen to. At least our host sticks with his theme: each of the three verses places emphasis on “I”, “you”, and “we”, respectively. But there is no hustle to be found on here, and O’Shea’s hand-waving about what he considers to be the cause of domestic violence was puzzling as hell. I cannot stress enough how fucking godawful this shit was.

6. MENTAL WARFARE (SKIT)

…

7. 24 MO’ HOURS

When critics mention older rappers struggling to sound relevant with their newer songs, “24 Mo’ Hours” is what they’re referring to. If War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) were released today, the Battlecat instrumental, which both sucks and doesn’t fit our host’s general aesthetic, which is a strange critique given Battlecat’s history of producing Cali-based bangers, would almost certainly be swapped out for something from the likes of Metro Boomin’ or Zaytoven, and it would still sound terrible. Ugh.

8. UNTIL WE RICH (FEAT. KRAYZIE BONE)

I heard “Until We Rich” on the radio once probably in 2000 or so, and then have apparently never thought of it again until right now, which I believe is an accurate representation of how forgettable this Chucky & the Thompsons production was. Guest star Krayzie Bone, still riding a Bone Thugs-N-Harmony career wave at the time, circles and underlines Slick Rick’s “Hey Young World” with his performance, which is dull, while O’Shea tries his darnedest to give listeners an optimistic, motivational speech, even going so far as to censor his own cursing, so as to reach as wide an audience as possible. Sure, “Until We Rich” fits the ‘peace’ requirement of this project, but at what cost?

9. YOU CAN DO IT (FEAT. MACK 10 & MS. TOI)

You two already know this song, which first appeared on the soundtrack for Next Friday in 1999 but was popular enough to justify Priority Records placing it on as many projects as possible, I suppose. For the handful of readers who somehow missed this footnote in popular culture, “You Can Do It”, a spiritual follow-up to “We Be Clubbin’”, the hit single from our host’s directorial debut The Players Club, finds Cube, Ms. Toi, and his boy Mack 10 putting their asses into a One Eye-produced club effort that is slight on lyrics, but is rather catchy otherwise. It sounds so fucking absurd today that it somehow shifts from “corny” to “entertainingly corny” during Cube’s opening verse and never once budges again. At least our host sounded engaged on here, unlike most everything else on War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) thus far, and having Mack 1-0 perform over a fast-paced beat forces him to match that energy or die trying. Inessential, but it brings the pretty girls at the club out onto the floor, in case that helps you in any way.

10. MACKIN’ & DRIVING (SKIT)

Playing War & Peace Vol. 1 (The War Disc)’s first single, “Pushin’ Weight”, in the background of this interlude only reminded me of rapper Mr. Short Khop, whose career was abruptly halted after Cube stopped giving a shit about his young charge. I mean, why else would he not have been a good enough performer to make it to the second volume? Good call by the way, O’Shea.

11. GOTTA BE INSANITY

Curious, but not entirely out of left field when you remember “You Can Do It” was a hit, so why wouldn’t O’Shea go back to that well? The funky-ish guitar loop on this Mario Winans (!) production reminded me of Jermaine Dupri’s “Going Home With Me”, except I like that song and found this one to be middling at best, as Cube panders to the lowest common denominator while trying to get back inside the club. I can’t be sure who our host thought his audience was when he recorded “Gotta Be Insanity”, but he’s done enough good work and has earned the ability to record and release whatever he wants. Still doesn’t mean we’re all required to listen to any of it, however.

12. ROLL ALL DAY

As we all know and agree with every third Wednesday at our meetings, the best storytelling raps are the ones where you don’t realize the artist is even telling a story until the third verse. That’s what happens on “Roll All Day”, anyway. Over a One Eye beat that doesn’t entirely gel but has its moments, Ice Cube boasts about having purchased a full tank of gas (a fact repeated throughout, with a humorous callback toward the end) and offering to cruise around with a woman he just met in exchange for sexual intercourse. You know, standard-issue rap-type shit, but it begs the question: why is she so interested in the car? Has the woman in question never been inside an automobile before? Cube could have probably rolled up on a pedal bike and worked out a similar proposition just because he’s Ice Cube, but I suppose there’s no vehicle for a story there (pun intended). Regardless, he never gets that far, as by the third verse she’s [SPOILER ALERT FOR A NINETEEN-YEAR-OLD SONG] broken the car’s windows and, later, stolen it outright. His flow is strictly boasts-n-bullshit until the ending, where he reveals some of that sense of humor he tapped into while writing Friday. “Roll All Day” is meh, but the effort was appreciated, at least.

13. CAN YOU BOUNCE?

This was fucking terrible, and that’s without O’Shea making a Pokemon reference, which he absolutely does on here. So that happened. (Also, Younglord apparently produced the beat. Was War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) designed as Ice Cube’s covert demo reel to hopefully snag a label deal with Bad Boy Records? Because the gambit hasn’t paid off yet.)

14. DINNER WITH THE CEO (SKIT)

…

15. RECORD COMPANY PIMPIN’

The flip side of EPMD’s “Please Listen To My Demo”, down to the same Faze-O “Riding High” sample being used, as Ice Cube and producer Bud’da urge the youth not to get involved in the rap game without learning the business side of the industry first. Advice such as this can only come from someone who was famously jerked around by their label in the past, as Cube was during his short stint with Ruthless Records, but while the man clearly knows of what he speaks, that doesn’t mean “Record Company Pimpin’” (a topic many artists have tackled before and since O’Shea put pen to paper) is an entertaining song to actually listen to. Our host should have taken these ideas and given a TED Talk instead. That’s not a joke: imagine how many people he could help in the process. But you can skip this track outright.

16. WAITIN’ TA HATE

So it turns out that War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) is a stealth EPMD tribute album filtered through a Puff Daddy lens. That’s a lie, obviously, but “Waitin’ Ta Hate” is the second song in a row to pay homage to Erick and Parish specifically, although this time around producers One Eye and DJ Joe Rodriguez (that name gets to the point, can’t be mad at that) get lazy by choosing to just sample “So Wat Cha Sayin’” directly. For his part, O’Shea sounds downright angry on here, which informs an entertaining performance that isn’t reminiscent of his finest work, but let’s be real, it’s the best we’ll get at this point. The production doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from the EPMD standard, but maybe, this time around, it isn’t such a bad thing. (Side note to E-Double: you should give Cube a shout for a future collaboration, as the man is clearly a fan.)

17. N—A OF THE CENTURY

Accompanied by someone that could be that Pain In Da Ass dude whose entire shtick was aping flicks such as Scarface and Goodfellas to open up early Roc-A-Fella Records projects but likely isn’t, which means there were two of these guys in our chosen genre at some point, which seems wasteful somehow, our host caps off the evening lobbying for an award that doesn’t exist. Charley Chap’s production is too dull to properly reward Ice Cube as a winner of any competition, and O’Shea’s own bars aren’t worth wasting a paragraph on. At least we’re done here.

FINAL THOUGHTS: War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) approaches self-parody at points, as Ice Cube genuinely seems to not understand just what it was about his work that listeners connected with back in the early 1990s. It certainly wasn’t this shit: nobody ever wanted to hear what it would have sounded like had Cube signed with Bad Boy Records twelve years after his prime. The O’Shea Jackson found on this project is a man who is content with his station in life: the only time he ever really comes across as passionate about anything is when he’s schooling younger artists on the inner workings of the music industry, a topic that obviously resonates with him. Even his generic threats on “Hello”, a song I fucking liked his performance on, sound more like amiable suggestions than anything. When Cube gets in his storytelling bag, he seems to at least be having some fun with this shit (not that it always translates for the listener), but when he’s simply talking shit, the momentum on War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc), or whatever little momentum exists, halts immediately. Twenty years removed from his debut solo project, this album proved that Ice Cube was no longer vital to the ongoing health of the local hip hop concern. He has all of his other ventures to fall back on, and of course he’ll always be welcomed at the barbecues, but unless he’s laser-focused on targets (we’ll always have the first Westside Connection effort), he loses the plot very quickly, and one can only coast on charm and the acclaim derived from your prior work for so long.  I won’t go so far as to say that War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) is a “peace” of shit, because that pun is beneath me, but it’s plenty awful.

BUY OR BURN? Neither. If you absolutely must, stream the tracks listed below, but, you know, life is short.

BEST TRACKS: “Hello”; “Waitin’ Ta Hate”

-Max

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