#but its still a work in progress 😮‍💨

[aidenwaites]

It's different now that I work there of course but pre-library job I had a conversation with a coworker at the Horse Place where we discovered we both shared the experience of being made very anxious simply by stepping foot into a library (or any kind of store or whatever, really, but it's like, particularly ridiculous to experience that kind of anxiety in a library)

[greensagephase]

Alondra, I loved the Thanksgiving Nonviolent Communication Drabble!! This was just so sweet to read, especially with seeing Miguel and readers' friendship really show now that they’re starting to feel more comfortable being with one another. The fact they have dinner every Saturday now!! 🥹 and when Miguel can’t help but smile when he sees reader working with him 😭 and when he blushes a bit when reader compliments him and his cooking! its just too cute!! I can't help but say thank you every time you include the coffee cup detail, I just smile so much when I read it! The whole interaction of them trying to ask each other to have dinner with one another for Thanksgiving??!! I was giggling so much reading that, too cute! and Lyla just absolutely helping with the conversation 😂 I love how their conversations have also gotten more causal, in the way that they banter more, Miguel smiling more!! I also just love their friendship!!

The messages with the gang was so cute too, and omg this line “The whole government name...” from Hobie when Miguel finally responds 🤣 but the fact Miguel was actually open to invite everyone over for dinner too 🥹 I love how we're seeing him open up a bit more now that he's really trying to change for the better, and its just so nice seeing it come into fruition slowly. I’m so happy that Miguel is making so many new wonderful memories in his penthouse!! I keep mentioning this but I smile so much every time they say “always” to each other, I’ll never get over it! ❤️

The conversation with Peter B- first I love the way you write him too, you capture his personality really well! and just- he knows that this friendship between you and Miguel is special 🥹 and I know he's rooting for them too!! ok and the reference to Lyla's secret stash of photos 😂 of course they're appropriate photos only, right? (I love how you write Lyla too! her little quips with Miguel is always funny!!) The ending of this was really sweet too, despite Miguel holding back still with physical touch, the day that one of them comforts the other physically- I'm going to freak out (in a good way) but I still love the slowburn of it all!! I can't wait to read more and see their friendship evolve!!! I hope this doesn’t sound too cheesy but I’m thankful for coming across your story on here and just- thank you everything, and for continuing to write Nonviolent Communication, especially with how busy it can be this time of year!! Thank you, Alondra!!! ❤️✨

I couldn't help but sketch these out from this part right away!! no seriously I loved all these moments, and Miguel in the apron 👀

Hi @sunsetdoodler !! I'm so happy you loved the drabble!! I had a lot of fun writing this for different reasons, one being I just wanted a sweet and comforting moment for Thanksgiving with Miguel. Then it was also fun because it's very lighthearted compared to what I've been writing for part 11. On top of that, it was fun thinking about what their friendship looked like at this point of the year when part 11 takes place 4+ months before. Lowkey feel sad I didn't get part 11 out before then because now we'll have to jump back in time 😮‍💨 but AHH I loved the progress in their friendship and as you said, how much more casual their conversations are on top of the fact they have dinner every Saturday (I just love it so much!!). Also, Miguel throughout this entire drabble was SUCH A TREAT. I loved writing him looking at reader behind his shoulder and smiling; blushing when reader compliments him; and him cooking all of dinner (I also loved including that he had already bought everything 😭). And omg, the coffee cup detail!! I will include it as many times as I can because I love it even though it's such a small thing but so important!! Haha, the part with them talking in unison to ask each other about dinner and Lyla knowing what's going and just taking the opportunity to tease them- I had to!! I don't include Lyla a lot in the main parts but I wanted to for this and it was so much fun adding her teasing to the drabble (especially her clapping at the end for them and Miguel telling her to shut up!!

Also, the messages from the gang! I had so much fun with those! You can tell because I even went in and color coded them as much as I could with the colors Tumblr has to their assigned colors; my favorite one to do was Hobie's for the inconsistency! 🤣 The "full government name" line - the way I knew I needed to include that and have Hobie say it! Definitely one of my favorite things about this drabble, not gonna lie! I also love that Miguel found it amusing! Regarding Miguel being open to inviting them, SAME! Once again, it was fun to think of where Miguel is at months in advance (seriously, I'm upset I didn't put part 11 out sooner) and have him being open to inviting them to his home and making a new memory in his penthouse (I just want this man to feel happy in his own home, I swear 😭)! And their little "Always"! I've been feeling like maybe I'm including it too much but I love it so much because it's theirs, just for each other, so I'll just continue using it.

I'm so happy you liked Peter B's conversation and the way I wrote him! I was actually nervous about it because I haven't included much dialogue for the other spider members and I always like to keep it as close as possible to how I think they'd actually speak. So, I was literally writing that part yesterday and playing around with the structure of his statement to see what made sense while hearing Jake Johnson's voice in my head (I didn't mind it one bit because I love him but it was kind of funny I was sitting there writing this in between breaks while cooking with my family lol)! But yes, he knows it's a special friendship and he's definitely rooting for them (so is Mayday, hehe 😌)! As to Lyla's secret stash of photos - we can only hope but we're not too sure right now. Miguel has tried to look for the file but can't find it so I guess only time will tell 😂 but omg, no, writing Lyla for this drabble was so much fun, I swear! I wish I could include her more in the main series but most times reader and Miguel are having serious conversations and so it just doesn't feel right to include her sassiness but maybe now that reader and Miguel are more casual with each other, that might change! And thank you, it seriously makes me so happy that you like the way I wrote her and Peter B.!

Omg, Miguel thinking about physical touch and that whole little part just made me wish we were there already but we must remain strong! It's coming soon but not yet. I already have that part planned out and just thinking about it makes me want to scream in a good way because before we get to that good screaming part there's gonna be sad screaming and that's all I'm going to say about that but just know - reader and Miguel having intentional and full on physical contact is coming soon!!!

And @sunsetdoodler 🥺🥺 I'm thankful this story found you because you're seriously one of my fav moots! I genuinely love interacting with you whenever we get the chance to! And no need to thank me 😭but I will try my best! I wish I could've posted part 11 sooner but I've been busy decorating the exterior of my home for Christmas, which I'm not even done with lol! But thank you so much for the lovely and kind words as always!!

AND NOW LET ME TALK ABOUT THESE SKETCHES!!!! The ones with them facing each other and the visibly height difference on top of the EYE CONTACT JHDGLK (God knows I couldn't handle that but for Miguel O'Hara I will certainly try my best 🫡) - DEAD!! The way Miguel's face is so soft and he just has this look of adoration for her and just AHHH HE'S SOFT FOR READER with his raised eyebrows but then the way his face changes with Lyla when he tells her to shut up!!! SO CUTE OMG!! Then Miguel's somewhat amused expression as he reads Hobie's message (I didn't mention this earlier but I couldn't stop thinking about their interaction in ATSV when Miguel meets Miles and he's getting on to Gwen and Hobie and he tells Hobie, "I'm just gonna try and ignore you - I just can't - I can't even-" pretty sure he says "I can't even look at you"(?) at the end and Hobie's response! I like to think they still keep this kind of interaction but it's more friendly now especially with reader being what ties them together lol)! AND THEN MIGUEL IN AN APRON!!!! No because why does Miguel wearing an apron sound so comforting to me???? AND HIM DRYING HIS HANDS - I swear I'm delusional for going mad over the most basic things ever but AHHHH!! Thank you for drawing these sketches and showing them to me!!!! I LOVE EACH ONE SO MUCH 😭❤️ Also, I love Lyla at the top just watching this unfold hehe, I swear I need to include her more in the main parts but THANK YOU SO MUCH @sunsetdoodler !!!!! Also, I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you found the time to relax a bit this week despite having so many projects! Thankfully the semester will be over soon and you can truly relax!!! Sending you a warm virtual hug and wishing you the best as you enter the last few weeks of the semester! You got this!!! ✨❤️✨

-Alondra

[jerriemofos]

Since its the January transfer window, i'll be talking about players that i would love to see at Arsenal!

Obviously, with the registered players being at the max, it's not realistic for new signings to come in this window. So these are players that i think will massively improve our squad in the summer especially if we do want to make it far in the uwcl and win the wsl!

Also, i would like to make another post about players that i will not be opposed to leaving in the summer to get better players in 🤔 but idt yall are ready for that conversation yet

1) Maëlle Lakrar

Amazing young defender, very attacking minded, fits in the playstyle of how jonas wants our defenders to be

Hard worker, loves to get interceptions in, 1v1 duels to win the ball back (i love defenders like this)

Tactically intelligent, able to get into good positions to intercept players and loves to progress the ball forward to quickly transition into attack

At 170cm, she handles aerial duels well and can be used as a threat in set pieces

Quite pacey and can handle speedy forwards when in transition

A lot of big clubs have already started enquiring about her as her contract ends in 2024, would be a shame if Arsenal lose her to a big rival.

2) Sakina Karchaoui

One of the best left-footed fullbacks in the world right now, very attacking minded defender, which again is how jonas loves our defenders to be

Only 160cm but what she lacks in height, she makes up for in work ethic, loves to be higher up the pitch to get involved in attacks but tracks back well to defend when caught in transition

Loves to get interceptions in, 1v1 duels to win the ball back, often both having a high rate of success

Same as Maëlle, her contract ends in 2024 and the opportunity to get a worldclass fullback on a free should not be missed. She will be a massive upgrade on Arsenal's left-back position.

3) Chiamaka Nnadozie

Goalkeepers are a harder one to judge because you cannot rely on stats, so this analysis is based on eye tests

At 23 years old, one of the best young goalkeepers in the world right now

180cm, an excellent height for a gk

Had an amazing WWC23 run as a starter for Nigeria

Currently, also having an amazing uwcl run with Paris FC

Very impressive aerial abilities for a young keeper (imo can be considered worldclass)

Great outside the box, able to play out from the back effectively

Although at times her decision making can be better, but with the right coaching, she's on her way to be a worldclass gk

Amazing gk for both Paric FC and Nigeria at only 23 years old, why not snatch her up? (if you can't beat her, buy her)

4) Angel Mukasa

21 years old, still needs more experience but at her age, shes phenomenal

No data on her height but from eye tests, probably around 170-180cm

Excellent shot-stopping

Great positioning, never caught out of focus

Her distribution is a stand out trait, amazing at her age

Great composure, doesn't make rash decisions in stress

In the uwcl against barca femení, if it weren't for her, FC Rosengård would've conceded more than 7 goals, she was phenomenal in that game

Not my choice for a starting keeper but would be an excellent 2nd keeper until she gains enough experience to be 1st choice

5) Kerolin Nicoli

NWSL MVP 2023, NWSL Best XI First Team 2023, Runner up for NWSL Golden Boot 2023 (what more can i say 🤷🏽‍♀️ she's a baller)

Lethal in the attacking third, loves 1v1 duels, excellent dribbling

Unselfish player, will pass to a teammate if needed but also loves taking shots at goal too

Right-footed player but is excellent at the left

Versatile player, can play on the left and right (as a winger or midfielder), up top but also as a CM

Not much else to say except that she will be lethal in Arsenal's left hand side. Just imagine Karchaoui, McCabe and Kerolin on our left 😮‍💨

Other players that i will love at Arsenal but too unrealistic:

Naomi Girma

Merle Frohms

Misa Rodriguez

Stina Johannes

Antônia Silva

Jule Brand

Morgan Weaver

Ary Borges

Anyways, if you've actually read the whole thing, thanks! I'm quite disappointed with the lack of movements in this window so i've decided to write it here.

Do you agree with this list? Any other players that you will like to see at Arsenal as well? Lemme know i would love to here you thoughts! (pls refrain from hateful words, if you don't like this list at all. criticism is fine but keep it civil)

[stepfordgoth]

In this thread: bitching and whining. Poor me!!!

I am actually so angry about my fucking knee hurting. What do you mean I have a fucking MCL injury. What do you mean the most common cause of this injury is a forceful blow to the lateral (outer) side of the knee???? That didn't even happen to me. I was carrying my laptop up a flight of steps yesterday and my knee just started fucking hurting, sudden sharp pain in the medial collateral ligament (inner side of knee cap) and it hasn't stopped hurting for almost 24 hours now. You're telling me that just HAPPENS? WITH NO PROVOCATION????? And it can take MONTHS to heal up????????

I think I'm especially mad because I was JUST getting my gym confidence back after having my fucked up hip tendon from October to January. I was JUST starting to feel like Im making progress at gym again, and not just there to remediate my hip. And for the first two weeks in February, I was sick as a dog and I didn't get back into the gym until this past week. And now I've got this fucked up knee ligament and I have to start all the fuck over finding what works for me at the gym, AGAIN, because of my stupid shitty lower body joint parts. I'm almost positive I didn't hurt my knee at the gym yesterday either, other than some time on the elliptical (WHICH IS SUPPOSED TO BE GENTLE ON YOUR JOINTS, THATS THE WHOLE REASON I USE IT FOR CARDIO INSTEAD OF THE TREADMILL THAT I LOVE) I didn't do any lower body work. And my knee didn't start hurting until several hours after the gym too.

This is probably the emotions talking but I'm kinda starting to wonder if the gym is actually helping me at all because it seems like I have spent more time sick and/or injured since starting the gym in August than I ever was before I started. I think I posted about this last night but I turned 30 in November and I think I have maybe had a total of 3-4 (nonconsecutive) weeks since then where I haven't been suffering through an injury or a cold or a fucking flare up of my chronic issues*. And goddammit! I gained a pound in the last month! It's not fucking fair!!!!!! (To be fair, I am still down two pounds from my Heaviest Ever Weight that I saw back in September. But its such slow progress and it's extremely frustrating. In late October I was down almost 10 pounds from that Heaviest Ever and I know winter weight is a Real Thing but come the fuck on!!!!! I'm doing my best! I'm doing all the stuff I should be doing!!!!!) Also I'm aware that since starting birth control my tits have literally, honest to God, gotten a little bit bigger but I strongly hesitate to believe that I gained EIGHT FUCKING POUNDS OF TITTY. That can't be true. They definitely haven't grown that much.

*on this note, I have now been on birth control for over a month in attempt to control my chronic issues and I am very excited to report that it's been AWESOME. knocking on wood, I have had zero problems with my chronic issues since starting birth control. And obviously I just said I've gained a little bit of weight but actually I feel like I'm the skinniest I've looked since probably 2021! I can't believe how much bloat my body was holding all the time for so long. My tummy is flat again (albeit with stretch marks now, from being so bloated all the time for so long 😮‍💨) and my face and arms even look slimmer I think. Thank god for that at least. This is why I'm so hopeful that my recent weight gain is just winter weight and it will melt off easily once spring hits and I'm outside a lot again. That usually what happens for me, or it did when I was in my mid-20s (pre chronic illness) anyway.

Keeping my fingers crossed that once again spring will heal me.

[jackalopc]

whelp, i finally have my hearing prep with DAV today. my pre-determination hearing is at the end of january (a few days before my birthday, of course). 😮‍💨 if all goes well, i'll maintain my 100% disability rating that I've literally less than 1 year; so I won't have to do another series of claims and pray I can get into 100% again...

cw: just me bitching about the VA tbh, dental, anxiety financial

I got 100% in the last week of january this year, and it kicked in, in february. then bc of some bs, by April they were like had finally finished up a small part of my last claim & they wanted to drop my individual rating for my feet down, and it's big enough that it would drop me out of a grand total of 100%...

I had 100% less than 2 months before it was threatened.

mind you I desperately need this 100% for various reasons ofc but the two main being:

i literally can't work (you know because I'm fucking disabled), & everything is so expensive (i could pay rent but not most od my other bills, & I was struggling to buy food even if I neglected bills)

dental. my teeth were so bad, they were literally just 100% rotten through. I was struggling to physically eat. since getting my 100% I've finally gotten dental work I've needed done for over a decade now... I'm healing from full mouth extractions w/ only 8 original teeth left. i'm close to having my final set of dentures here in a few months... i can't pay for any of this out of pocket its just too fucking expensive...

fun fact they do *not* tell you beforehand that 100% "permanent and total" doesn't actually mean "permanent and total" for the first 20 fucking years of having it... sooo, yeah.

I'm so exhausted. It took sooo long to get this hearing scheduled which ultimately was good bc its made it so I can get my dental work done. but it's made my anxiety so fucking bad again all year that I went from finally having my GAD+ADHD panic attacks under control & very infrequent to having just so many this year.

I wad just in limbo for soo long with no fucking answers as to when i'll potentially loose my literal lifeline; didn't get an answer until like. I think it was October? so now it's just more waiting til end of january.

I love how the universe always decides to just fucking jump me and beat me up with a fucking baseball bat days before my birthday. it's lovely, actually, i love being constantly traumatized thru no fault of my own around the like one fucking day of the year that's most important to you.

i know having the panic attacks & intense anxiety again doesn't erase my progress with dealing w/ my mental health, but of course It still hurts, and it just feels like all the progress I made just like doesn't mean much...

but yeah, today's apt is just for DAV to help walk me thru whatever I need to know for my hearing etc.

[cloveroctobers]

My thoughts for S3 of the Bear after my first watch 😮‍💨 *CONTAINS SPOILERS!*

I think I get what they were trying to do with this season although I still said, “what the hell was that?” After I finished the finale last night. Binged tf out of it and it’s Saturday! I picked it up when they mentioned, “subtract,” in that one episode. I’ll have to give it a rewatch and WILL once I start writing for this season. This season was heavily past focused and how that led all these characters to their current states. That works in some senses when it comes to the kitchen and the drive to be the best of the best.

However it did fall short in some moments where characters should have had more of a story or say in situations (thankful we got to see how Tina got to the bear, which is a great episode! Relatable even.) and it feels like the progression they made in season 2 feels diminished almost. Idk if they changed writers this season or not but I don’t like how they made Sydney feel small to Carmy’s false promises in S2.

I guess that was their way of creating a parallel to Carmy’s experience coming up in high end restaurants but it completely erases what they worked for. A partnership. Don’t get me wrong, Carmy is clearly not well (who is?) but I wouldn’t be mad if Syd dipped again atp—yet I’m sure that’s what some want anyway. Although S2 ofc ended rough and had to bleed into S3 it still left a frustrating view for the audience. You can argue this or that but clearly things are missing.

Carmy doesn’t even mention or acknowledge that he now has a niece? Sugar’s pregnancy symbolizes new life, new beginnings which was what S2’s message was mixed with purpose. I didn’t expect S3 to be all sunshine’s and rainbows considering its title but damn! No pictures sent to him either? Guess that was just a moment for Sugar and Donna—which is fine! We get to hear how each sibling came into this world and how that’s a metaphor for how they live(d). We got to see Donna attempting to actually be a mother, listening to her child and stating that she’s trying to be better even though it’s hard and that Sugar won’t be like her towards her own nameless daughter. But not even a phone call to his sister? Nothing. Perhaps that was deliberate because Carmy’s “focus,” is always on the kitchen instead of his own empathy when it’s time for service. It makes him dissociated, mean, and only his decisions/voice matters.

It was powerful to actually see Carmy shed a tear. It’s evident that the man is going through pain, he’s grieving for everything, not just his upbringing and Mikey, but for who he once was; someone who has the talent and is willing to learn how to be the best but even better than that. He’s got that trauma that’s going to last forever, just like Donna said, Carmy took forever to come into this world and by then the Berzatto’s were already damaged.

Carmy knows he can create and put that into his cooking. He’s been trained to put his all into his craft but I don’t think it’s anything he’s passionate or even joyous about anymore. He’s doing what he thought everybody thought he couldn’t do—at least that’s what he says in S1? In reference to Mikey. He initially wanted to do this with Mikey but then we learn that Mikey isn’t into it really. He just took over because their old man was a deadbeat and left it to be their problem. That’s typical oldest sibling energy, taking on the role to be who everyone looks up to and has all the answers but they take on the load of everyone’s shit as well. It all became too much for Mikey in the end. Which is significant to the Berzatto’s, its problems on problems without anybody knowing how to effectively communicate as a family. They’re used to being loud and that’s how Carmy moved through his time at that New York restaurant— was that the one named, “The French Laundry?” There’s a lot to unpack so I forget some details sorry. Chef Asshole was basically a trigger to how Carmy was raised and apparently that made Carmy “better,” and he should be thankful that chef asshole basically beat the shit out of him physically, mentally, and emotionally but that just added another fucked up scar to him.

So Carmy subtracts.

Subtracts from the fact that he apologizes to Richie over voicemail once they’re back face to face but clearly Richie isn’t ready to forgive. They’re just coworkers at this time, that love is buried in that freezer. Richie doesn’t care about any personal shit that Carmy has going on (Cl*re), he subtracts from his own version of love he tries to give to Carmy. He sets Carmy off with anything he disagrees with and it’s pettiness because he also doesn’t know how to talk to Carmy which again gets erased once we get to the end of S2. Richie also once told Carmy that he’s all he has. It’s automatically an attack when Richie has no problem being vocal and Carmy constantly explodes and Richie is the easiest target since the way they normally communicate is screaming at each other.

Carmy has a chance to connect with Marcus and he does during the “legacy,” episode and Carmy takes his words about taking the bear to great heights as a way to honor Marcus’ mother in a previous episode. They all show up at the memorial more than a funeral because a black funeral isn’t like this tbh! That’s another conversation though! Yet once it’s time to call it to start service, Carmy turns it all off and begins screaming at Marcus again when he’s running expo.

He does this to Tina too, ready to stand over her when she’s making the pasta dish but thankfully Sydney takes over because we know he would have turned into chef asshole 2.0 if Sydney let that slide. And we don’t even need to get started on how he’s treated Sydney so poorly this season since he’s going through shit and doesn’t know how to handle it.

Sure it’s a bit of an excuse but I loved Sydney telling him that she’s not his babysitter. He needed to hear that. They also erased them having more one on one time and made it more subtle which hasn’t gone unnoticed 🍅!!! But we love that Carmy’s dish was Syd’s best meal imo!

The conversation with Chef Andrea Terry about her telling him what she would have told the younger version of herself, that it’s okay to not know WTF you’re doing but that also makes you invincible is probably a set up for season 4 but that can also send everyone further spiraling as well depending on how the writers decide to spin it.

Then we end with the review being up. It’s anything but good based on Carmy’s reaction, at first I thought it was Syd’s decline of the contract but it’s been the review they’ve all been dreading. Mostly Carmy and actually Uncle Jimmy, since he’s also not communicating or being honest that the bear might actually be over too.

So that does leave the debate of: does everything that you’ve worked extremely hard for have to be lost in the end because you’re simply lost yourself in this world but at least you’ve tried? Like Chef Terry once said.

Carmy constantly feels like what he’s doing lately is a waste of time (throwing out dishes that visually look nice, not reaching out to cl*ire—although personally I’m not a fan of that ship but he fucked up regardless because you don’t treat people like that, not staying in budget, the break down of the boxes, all these things he’s set up on his own and his team that are trying to follow his lead but it’s not turning out the way he wants it to, etc) even with everything he’s given to be such an excellent chef. Is he finding cooking to be a waste of time to true or is that just everyone being in his head? Yet again. Can things always be figured out or is subtracting ultimately the solution?

Guess we’ll have to see.

[sugarcherriess]

Congrats for the 1k! Can I req?

1. Sunwoo - enemies to lovers (fluff+smut)

2. Chanhee - strangers to lovers (fluff)

Thank you friend! I covered the Chanhee request here because this post wouldn’t work properly beyond Sunwoo’s hc’s 🥲

Enemies to Lovers with Sunwoo:

cw - fluff, smut, body worship, Sunwoo’s like a middle schooler, i do NAWT support the “if he bullies you he prob likes you” thing people try to say sometimes but for the sake of the plot lets just consider it a healthy opinion to have 😮‍💨, Sunwoo is bad w feelings </3

I 100 percent believe that if Sunwoo has any type of animosity with someone then this dude just goes quiet

Like he’s not going to verbally annoy or attack you

Mans is just gonna pretend you don’t exist

And he doesn’t even explain why he doesn’t like you to anybody

None of the boys know and you don’t either

But his constant avoidance of you made you hate him too

Like who does he think he is?

You and the guys often have dinner together at one of your’s apartments just to catch up for the week

Or weeks if its been too long

And Sunwoo always manages to sit where you can’t even exist in his peripheral vision

This time it’s Younghoon’s apartment you’ve gathered at

And he’s ordered pizza

But the pizza you want is on Sunwoo’s side of the coffee table

And you roll your eyes

You’ve had an ass day as it is

Getting late in the morning, missing an important deadline, burning your favourite shirt, the coffee running out on you

Anything that could go wrong today went wrong

And talking to Sunwoo was the last think you were looking forward to

But you still try to be civil

“Sunwoo can you please pass me the slice,”

And yet he pretends not to listen.

“Sunwoo?”

His face turns slightly in your direction

“Pass me the pizza,”

He already has a slice in his hands

But he maintains eye contact while he grabs the slice you asked for

(the very last one)

And and then eats it in record time

You’re stunned and annoyed but you can’t really do much besides huff and sit back

Haknyeon offers you his slice though

At which Sunwoo rolls his eyes

And get knee’d in the thigh by Eric

The night progresses and you guys start a spontaneous karaoke session

And it’s you and Changmin up in front of the TV going all out on After Like

The dive jumped out of the depths of both your souls

Coincidentally, Sunwoo’s sitting on the couch right behind you

His eyes on your ass but he’s not going to be confessing to that accusation in the event that anybody catches him

When you and your temporary dance partner finish with a bow to your makeshift audience

The boys go all out on the applause

While Sunwoo’s sat there looking like the grim reaper

“You look like you’re rotting from the inside out,”

That’s your first mistake.

Your second mistake is thinking Sunwoo wouldn’t say anything back

“Kind of happens when I have to look at you flail around like a dying crab for five minutes,”

Any other day you would’ve rolled your eyes and let it go

But again. You’ve had a terrible day and you’re too irritated to let him treat you like shit

“What the fuck is your problem with me?”

“Your existence is a curse on me,”

It’s supposed to be a joke

A shit joke but a joke nonetheless

And Sunwoo thinks you’ll take it like one

You know. Like he intended.

You don’t

You pick up the cushion nearest to you and throw it at his face

“You’re a horrible person,”

The others watch in horror as the situation escalates quicker than they can control it

Just as Sunwoo realises that he hit a nerve and that those are tears in your eyes

You burst out the door

You run out the building without any concern for the rain that’s pounding outside

And the fact that you’re wearing sweats and a tshirt that won’t save you from the cold

Sunwoo figures out that he’s actually crossed a limit and runs after you

“Why won’t you leave me alone?! Stop following me!”

You would manage to scream at him through your tears and the clouds pouring down

“It was supposed to be a joke I promise!”

“Fuck you!”

Let me remind you that this is you two on the side walk while everyone else rushes to get under shelter

Sunwoo would run a little faster and catch up to you

A true kdrama moment happens when he grabs your arm and turns you around– the torque making you spin right into his arms

“I didn’t mean it,”

Both of you are breathless with you still hiccuping through your sobs

“You always treat me like shit! I don’t even know what I did!”

You’d try to push him away but he’d only pull you back harder.

“I know. I know and I’m– I’m sorry,”

You’d try to wipe your face and look at him with all the seriousness you could muster

“Why do you hate me so much,”

“I don’t hate you,” he’d laugh, annoying you even more.

“Then why are you such a dick to me?”

“Because I–“

He says something but you can’t hear because thunder strikes at the very moment.

“What?”

Sunwoo would say it again but the thunder would overpower his voice once more

“I can’t understand a word-“

“I said I love you!”

He screamed because he thought that the thunder would cut him off again BUT!!! IT DOESNT!!! SO BOTH OF YOU AND A FEW BYSTANDERS STARE IN SHOCK!!!!

But Sunwoo would sigh and start explaining himself

“I’m just. Bad with feelings okay. I didn’t know how to be nice to you without exposing my feelings so I just. Did whatever I had to do to make you run away from me– I’m. Sorry,”

He’d cup your face with both hands,

“I really am,”

Kissing a dude you considered your mortal enemy under the rain was not in your 2022 bucket list but would you look at how the earth moves

Kissing him even harder in the comfort of your room was an even more far fetched thought

But you know what you did think about a lot?

Kim Sunwoo taking his time undressing you

Him being the epitome of patience as he kisses down your neck, your chest, scatters them on your belly,

All the way down to the “hidden treasure” between your thighs > his words not mine

He sits on his knees before your alter and worships your body for hours upon end

All the way into the morning when the sky stops pouring outside and the sun peaks out

The way his head has been peaking out between your thighs all night

He would kiss and nip all the dips and curves your body shows him

His thick warm lips wrap around your nipples and his slick tongue plays with them until they turn sore

He toys with them until your body aches for his cock

And then he would turn you onto your front

Palm laying flat at the middle of your back and pushing you down on the mattress

Just for him to slide inside and give you what you begged him for

His hands would busy themselves soothing out any stiff muscles he can find

While his dick pushes your insides open to fit his girth

He’d change like a billion positions to find the spot that makes you crumble in his arms again and again

And it would just be the start of his apologies for treating you horribly because of his terrible emotion handling skills

Making love to you like a devoted husband?

Fucking you like his personal whore?

He would do it all just to prove that he can please you however you want

You just have to say yes

Which you do eventually

While riding him in the early morning to give his back a break 🫶🏼

[neewtmas]

*cracks knuckles* okay let's do this

First of all you’re insane for using that first pic✋🏻😮‍💨

She’d been there three months already, but she still wasn’t used to the hours kept by her colleagues. They could eat breakfast at 3am or 11, sometimes had breakfast for dinner or the other way around.

They have the same fucked up eating schedule I have hallelujah

The only noises came from George’s cooking. They would soon be replaced by uninterrupted chatter, the scraping of chairs against the floor and the kettle that was kept on most of the time.

The cosy vibes are off the charts ☕️☕️☕️

However, she had made the mistake of smiling at him which instantly turned him mute once again before exiting the room without finishing whatever thought he had started.

He is just social anxiety in person omg

She turned around to see George rearranging her table setting, visibly sighing as he placed attentively the forks on the left face up and the knives on the right blades in. He once again avoided her gaze and went back to his dish still cooking on the stove.

Dude wtf is wrong with u😒

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Lucy said as soon as she entered the kitchen.

Good question lucy! I was asking the same thing

She didn’t want to say anything yet, but she had a hunch.

Meddling lucy truly is the best Lucy🤩

George looked back at her, a knot forming in his stomach. Having all his mistakes lined up this way made him realize how badly he had handled the situation

George stared at the closed door with round eyes. He wasn’t mad about the files anymore. This was worse. So much worse. How was he supposed to get anything done while she was around?

🦋🦋🦋

Aww no poor baby🫂

Whatever trick this might be, it was working. He couldn’t resist correcting anyone about his filing system.

He’s such a fucking nerd I love him

“Are you okay?” George asked, worried, as he crashed back into his room. Desperately trying to get away from the cold wet blanket, she pulled herself up, only managing to hurt herself more.

God now I am the idiot🤡

She looked back down and noticed what George had draped over her. His own sweater, the one he wore in October when the days started getting colder, sat gently on her shoulders, smelling faintly of cedarwood.

Alksjdgjgsalaeh

She just took a seat at the kitchen table and smiled at him. He had been talking to her for five uninterrupted minutes with eye contact and everything. Technically it was to yell at her, but still. progress was progress. He gave up when noticing her smile wouldn’t budge.

He can just go and yell at me whenever he wants🥰

She scoffed and threw the orange in her hand, aiming for his head. He caught it just in time before it made contact with his cheek. He stared back at her with round eyes.

“What the hell was that?” he asked with an edge in his voice. Did she just imagine his voice getting deeper? The slightest grin formed at the corner of his mouth, giving her chills.

HUH🫠🫠🫠

The fruit’s sweet perfume filled the air as George dropped the peel on the table in one piece. While she studied his hands attentively, he proceeded to tear the orange apart, setting its pieces on the table in front of her.

Not the orange peeling ahhhh

“Like spending time with you could ever be wasted time” he wanted to say. Instead, he simply shook his head and started his explanation over, shaking off the thought.

🥹🥹🥹

She didn’t really expect him to, so it really came as a surprise when he reached for her hand without taking his eyes off his notes.

He held his hand out high for her to high five him back. She did, her touch electric against his. She didn’t let go and wrapped her fingers around his, lingering there for another second. He stared at their tangled fingers, oddly captivated. His eyes traveled down her arm and up her face to find her already staring. His breath caught. Suddenly he couldn’t care less about the case they had been working on. Nothing mattered except for the way the warm light of the kitchen lit up her eyes. Her lips parted, catching his eye before he could stop it

My guyyyyy

He got closer each time and she took each opportunity to raise the blanket higher over him. He needed to sleep and he would, even if she had to sneak up on him

Not tricking him into falling asleep lmao

When he noticed her dosing off, he spoke lower and lower before pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

AHHHHHHHHHH

What she hadn’t expected was George laying down closer against her with his arms draped around her waist. She froze. His hands traced their way down her arms and his hands locked around hers, gently trying to nudge his glasses out of her hands. She held them tighter, unable to keep herself from smiling. He had his head in the crook of her neck and she felt a smile forming on his lips too.

I am GAGGED✋🏻✋🏻✋🏻

“Is that why you’re staying up so late?” He didn’t say anything back. She rolled back to face him, his hands now resting on her lower back.

SPEECHLESS; CLAWING AT THE WALL

The KISS

Alice you absolute legend

we're not gonna be friends

one shot

Warnings: none

Content: not ennemies, more like annoyed at each other, to lovers, f!reader x George

Word count: 6.8k

Summary: George and y/n can't stand each other, but Lucy can see through their annoyance. Maybe she should help them out a little bit.

Comment: it took me an embarrassingly long time to write this but i'm so happy it's finally here! It was inspired by the song We're not gonna be friends by PJ Frantz which is attached to this

@neewtmas ; @maraschinomerry ; @oblivious-idiot ; @bella-rose29 ; @bobbys-not-that-small ; @lewkwoodnco ; @clarabowmp3 ; @demigoddess-of-ghosts

The kitchen was silent like it often was before breakfast. Or was it lunchtime already? Despite the number of clocks in the house, y/n couldn’t keep track of the day. Unlike Tendy’s where every agent had to keep a tight schedule, Lockwood&Co taught her to be more spontaneous with her day. She’d been there three months already, but she still wasn’t used to the hours kept by her colleagues. They could eat breakfast at 3am or 11, sometimes had breakfast for dinner or the other way around. The only thing she knew by heart was the quietness before a shared meal. The only noises came from George’s cooking. They would soon be replaced by uninterrupted chatter, the scraping of chairs against the floor and the kettle that was kept on most of the time.

She tried to appreciate the peace before the storm but it was tainted with the heavy stillness of the room. With his back turned to her, George couldn’t see her disappointment at the lack of conversation between them. Despite her best efforts, she hadn’t managed to find any sort of anchor with him. She had tried her best to be friendly, helpful, grateful for everything he did around the house but nothing had worked. Even the best conversation starters she could find about the Problem would get shut down in two sentences or less. Once, she mentioned the conversation she had overheard between two of her ex-colleagues, theories on the best ways to stop the Problem. His eyes had lit up, eager to respond and keep the debate going. He had only taken part of the conversation to contradict whatever the agents had said, but she was glad of the progress she made. However, she had made the mistake of smiling at him which instantly turned him mute once again before exiting the room without finishing whatever thought he had started.

She had grown frustrated of the situation. Frankly, if it hadn’t been for Lockwood and Lucy, she would have given up entirely. But they kept insisting that they could be the best of friends and if she was honest with herself she felt insecure about wrecking the harmony between the three roommates. She already felt guilty enough for making Lucy share her room, no matter how much she insisted that she liked having her here. So, she attempted a new approach: instead of talking to him, she would try to help him out, be of service.

She waited patiently for him to finish whatever step he was on in his recipe to get the plates from behind him. When he rested the spoon he had in hand on the side of the pan, she stood up and went for the plates. He got there first and turned around carrying the four plates. Instead of handing them to her, he avoided her eyes and set them down himself, practically walking through her. She didn’t let his rudeness stop her from helping and opened the cupboard where sat the glasses. He was faster once more and slid his fingers inside the glasses to grab two with each hand. Refusing to back down, she took the forks and knives out and set one of each next to the plates. She went next for the napkins but was stopped in her tracks by the sound of metal hitting plates. She turned around to see George rearranging her table setting, visibly sighing as he placed attentively the forks on the left face up and the knives on the right blades in. He once again avoided her gaze and went back to his dish still cooking on the stove.

“Should I bring the napkins or do you have preferences for that too?” She tried to say on a light tone but her annoyance bled through.

“However you want is fine.”

“Apparently not…” she mumbled.

“They’re just napkins, y/n.”

“They were just forks.”

“That’s differ-“

She slammed the door behind her before he could finish. She wasn’t sure if she was hungry anymore. The front door opened and she came face to face with Lockwood who was coming back from whatever errand he and Lucy had run in the morning.

“Hey,” he said as she passed by him. “Aren’t we about to eat?” he asked, but she was already climbing up the stairs.

He and Lucy exchanged a look before the girl decided to go after her. Even though y/n hadn’t said anything, Lucy was pretty sure George had to be involved. She couldn’t really blame her. She and George had had a difficult start too. But it hadn’t taken this long for the researcher to warm up to her. And y/n was much more polite than she had been. Something was off and he had some explaining to do. She would ask him about it after she made sure y/n was okay. She climbed the stairs up to the attic and found y/n angrily fluffing the pillows on her bed. She didn’t have to ask to know whose face she was picturing while violently adjusting the stuffing of a forest green throw pillow.

“So…” she started carefully, “how was your morning?”

“He is the most obnoxious and condescending jerk I’ve ever met.”

“What happened now?” she asked cautiously, but she couldn’t help the smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

“I have tried so hard to be pleasant and helpful. I talk about subjects he is interested in, I help out on chores he does, I do everything to be nice and a good roommate and he still won’t talk to me for more than thirty seconds and he won’t under any circumstances let me help out.”

She threw the innocent pillow on her bed to punctuate her annoyance.

Lucy felt torn by the situation. On the one hand she felt bad for her. Getting used to living with George hadn’t been easy for her either, but compared to how he was treating y/n, she had had it easy. He had been irritable lately and he snapped at the slightest inconvenience. On the other hand, she might have an idea of what was really going on.

“Why don’t we go back downstairs and eat something, it’ll make you feel better.”

“And deal with him? No thanks.”

She resolutely sat on her bed, crossing her arms to mark her words.

“I’ll bring up a plate for you.” Lucy said as she made her way back down the stairs.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Lucy said as soon as she entered the kitchen.

“Where should I start?” The skull countered in that invasive way he had of barging in on her conversations.

She ignored him and tapped George on the shoulder, making him look away from his cooking.

“Please, Lucy, we’re about to eat.”

“Yeah, well y/n’s not coming down because of you.”

“She’s not?” Lockwood chimed in.

“Our dear friend George annoyed her away.”

Lockwood smiled somewhat fondly. This was classic George.

“I didn’t do anything.” He said flatly.

“You didn’t let her help, you keep leaving her out!”

George took a deep breath before affirming decidedly

“I don’t like the way she sets the forks and knives.”

She and Lockwood exchanged a look. He couldn’t be serious.

“George, please,” Lockwood started, sensing Lucy’s annoyance.

“She doesn’t check if they match and she sets them haphazardly because she can’t be bothered to place them on each side of the plate, it drives me nuts!”

She looked across the table to see Lockwood smiling at her, silently acknowledging his friend’s quirks.

“George,” he started, “I can’t have two team members unable to work together over forks and knives. I’m gonna need you to make an effort, try and be friends.” He punctuated his words with one of his charming smiles.

George stood up and grabbed his plate.

“I can’t be friends with her.” He declared before going in his room.

Lockwood sighed in defeat.

“Don’t worry about it too much.” Lucy told him.

“How can I not? They’re this close to being at each other’s throat.”

Oh I don’t know about throats but something else surely. She didn’t want to say anything yet, but she had a hunch. George was rude, more so than he had ever been to her. He claimed he couldn’t stand y/n, yet he somehow always managed to be in the same room as her. If he truly couldn’t spend a minute in her company, why did she find him researching a case in the library on several occasions with y/n reading nearby instead of going in his room? And why would he spend twice as much time cleaning if not maybe to see her coming in? He may have his preferences when it came to cleaning, but her instincts told her there was something else at play here.

“Maybe we could make them collaborate more…” She told Lockwood with a grin.

They shared a complicit look.

George was halfway through an article when Lockwood called him down. He wondered what could be more important than being prepared for a case but with Lockwood it could be anything. Without looking up from the newspaper he was reading he went downstairs, only to be greeted with Lucy’s insistent stare. She had that look on her face. It instantly filled him with dread. Whatever they did, it obviously meant more work for him.

“What did you do?” he asked.

“Nothing!” Lucy answered too quickly. “We just…”

He left the article on the nearest table to cross his arms. He looked back at Lockwood.

“We knocked over a few boxes while training.”

“So? Just clean it up.”

“They’re yours. It’s your records and research on the Problem…”

George stormed downstairs. Dealing with Lockwood’s recklessness in the field was already a lot, but carelessness in the house they all lived in, that’s where he drew the line.

“I’m sorry George,” Lockwood chased after him, “I want to help but I don’t know your system.”

“You’d mess it up anyway. It’s fine, I’ll take care of it.” He sighed.

“At least let me get you some help,” Lucy said, already halfway back into the hall.

Before he could protest, she called “y/n! We need your help!”

The girl arrived shortly after, visibly unhappy about the situation.

“We have errands to run, but have fun you two!” Lucy said cheerfully, quickly exiting through the front door before anyone of them could protest.

George stared at the closed door with round eyes. He wasn’t mad about the files anymore. This was worse. So much worse. How was he supposed to get anything done while she was around?

“What do you need help with?” y/n asked flatly.

Without sparing her another glance he rushed back downstairs to evaluate how much damage had been done. He didn’t want to try and explain his system. Frankly, he wasn’t sure he could. He was aware of his quirks and weird habits, and he was aware that it didn’t make sense to most people. Lockwood had made that clear. And even though Lucy made efforts, his filing system was where she drew the line. He didn’t want to hear the same thing from y/n.

Papers were scattered across the office floor. The filing box labelled ‘Problem’ was upside down, balanced between two chairs and on the verge of joining its content below it. The tabs he had placed inside to keep everything organized hadn’t survived the attack. This would take hours.

“So, you’re not even going to talk to me now?” y/n’s voice resonated from the kitchen.

His heart started to beat faster. With wild eyes, he started to pick up the papers mechanically while his mind reeled. What was he supposed to say? Her footsteps resonated louder as she stepped further down into the basement. The air grew thicker with tension as she did so. He wished he would break through the window and run away from this awkward situation.

“George?” she started, crossing her arms as she reached the last step.

Reluctantly, he lifted his eyes towards her, silently cursing himself for screwing up their relationship this badly. He blinked, unable to form a coherent sentence.

“Fine.” she let out, slightly louder.

The look on her face made him ache. She looked terrifying when she was angry. He froze halfway through collecting the papers at his feet. She frowned at him, probably wondering what was wrong with him. She bent down and picked the papers up for him, organizing them in neat piles on the one desk that Lockwood and Lucy had spared.

“You know,” she started, “you’re probably the most confusing person I’ve ever met.”

He still stood in the middle of the room, paralyzed by the coldness of her voice. He stared blankly as she angrily collected the papers and forcefully sorted them, creasing some of them in the process.

“I tried to help around the house, but you never let me. I clean, you clean again after me. I initiate conversation and you find any excuse to leave the room.”

She looked down at the last papers she picked up. They were newspaper cuttings about the most relevant outbreaks of the Problem. She smiled as she read the titles and it sent a chill down his spine. Whatever was coming next was not going to be good.

“I spent hours reading all I could find about the origin of the Problem. Lucy said that was how she got you to open up. I thought we could finally have something to talk about. Instead, you walked out after two minutes.”

George looked back at her, a knot forming in his stomach. Having all his mistakes lined up this way made him realize how badly he had handled the situation.

“Am I really that hard to live with?” she asked. There was a crack in her voice.

He couldn’t stay silent. Not this time. But no matter how much he wanted to find the right thing to say, he came up short.

“I’m sorry!” he blurted out.

She looked up, surprised.

“What was that?” she said, eager to make him apologize again.

“You heard me…” he mumbled.

“No, I don’t think I did,” she smiled. “George Karim apologizing? That’s more unlikely than seeing a ghost hula hooping.”

He smiled back. They stared at each other for a few seconds, long enough to make the air feel warmer in the basement. The first crumb of complicity gave him enough courage to try to make up for his rudeness. He added the papers in his hand to the pile on the desk in front of him before continuing.

“I never wanted to make you feel unwelcome.” He looked down, ashamed to admit he had badly misread the situation. “I’m just used to Lucy pushing back and when you didn’t, I thought… that maybe you were faking it? That you were talking about the Problem just to make fun, and you helped out just to annoy me and slow me down-”

“Oh, being nice is annoying now?”

“I don’t know! I’m a jerk, I see that now.”

“At least we can agree on that.”

He looked back up expecting to see her frowning.

“Why are you smiling?”

“You’re finally honest with me. I take that as a victory,” she said decidedly as she reached for the upturned cardboard box.

“So I’m guessing you have a system to organize your files?”

The question caught him off-guard. Was she really moving on from three months of feud that easily? It felt like a trick. She stared at him expectantly.

“Just… chronological.” He said cautiously.

“I don’t think you’d use that many tabs if it was just chronological. You must have subcategories, right? Like at least geographical and then maybe by source…”

Whatever trick this might be, it was working. He couldn’t resist correcting anyone about his filing system.

“I always start with the chronological order and then I file everything according to geography. For each year, I like to organize the records by city then order them by region and finally-”

“Alphabetically?”

“No,” he said with a smile. “I take the region most located South then move back up East, then North and finish West.”

“Why?”

“It’s easier to visualize on a map.”

She laughed. “I wouldn’t expect any less from you.”

When she and Lockwood came back from their errand, which really consisted of going to the coffeeshop closest to the house to let George and y/n have it out, Lucy was shocked to discover that her plan had actually worked. Well, not that shocked. She knew there was something there. They just needed a little push.

They had to climb down the stairs to the basement to finally find them because none of them answered their calls from the hallway. They were deep in conversation about the Problem. The files and boxes had been entirely cleaned up, everything was back on the shelves and… Wait, did George just laugh at something y/n said? How long had they been gone?

Lockwood had a confused look on her face, matching hers. It didn’t leave him the entire way to the client’s house that evening. There was no more tense silence, awkward avoidance or strange atmosphere in the group. The change was radical. Had she known it would have been this effective, she would have locked them up in the basement three months ago. She had been worried they would have ripped each other’s eyes out in such close quarters. In this moment though, they stared intently at each other more than they looked murderous. She smiled to herself, only making Lockwood more confused. She threw him a look. They are so gone for each other. He looked at her sideways, seemingly in disbelief. She raised her eyebrows. I swear! You’ll see. He seemed unconvinced, but she knew. “I can’t be friends with her” George had said. Yes, quite literally, she thought.

The cab came to a halt in front of their workplace for the night. 11 Hall Road. Lucy would have loved to have an exciting new case that she could add to her journal, but the truth was that most cases were plain. An old person dies, the inheritors need to clear the house before living there or selling it. Those who had become apathetical to the Problem said it was just another expense to plan alongside the funeral. She wasn’t in the mood for apathetical. Not when she had two idiotic friends practically holding hands after being at each other’s throat for the past three months. It comforted her to see them remain focused on their tasks without breaking conversation, and she almost didn’t want to tell them to stop to allow her to use her talent. A job was still a job though.

When silence hit them, so did the cold realization of all the sorrow surrounding them. Wailing filled Lucy’s ears and soon the faint outline of the phantasm haunting the place appeared in the corner of her eye. She couldn’t perceive it very well, but its screams made it hard for her to think. Lockwood stepped in front of her, rapier drawn and ready for a fight, while George tried to yell over the disembodied screams what the source could be. y/n was running through the house following his directions but to no avail. His last idea was a miniature car in the bedroom at the end of the hall.

“Found it!” y/n called from upstairs.

But Lucy was the one with the silver nets. She drew her own rapier, aiming for the stairs. The phantasm was faster. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the figure floating upstairs, so fast she doubted her mind for a second. y/n’s scream confirmed she hadn’t been dreaming. Lucy saw the girl running past her in the opposite direction, only stopped by the chest of drawers stationed on the landing. She hit her side with a definite thump, bringing her down and leaving her paralyzed on the floor of the corridor. Lucy hurried up the stairs and came to stand between y/n and the ghost, drawing intricate patterns she had practiced with Lockwood. When she heard the boys climbing the stairs, she used her other hand to take the silver nets out of her pocket. They got caught in her belt and the second she looked away was enough for the visitor to float closer to y/n, still lying a few feet behind her. Using her remaining strength, y/n threw a salt bomb, winning enough time for Lockwood to join Lucy’s side, covering George while he took care of the source.

None of them really spoke on their way back, still shaken from the close call they avoided. Y/n didn’t suffer major injuries, just a few bad bruises, which was a relief. It was enough for Lockwood to tell her to stay home for the next few days. She hadn’t protested, probably because she was exhausted from the night and the drive had rocked her to sleep. When they arrived in front of Portland Row, George didn’t let Lucy wake her up. Instead he carried her inside and despite the night they’d had, she smiled.

The rays of light shining on her face hurt her closed eyes, but not as much as the bruises in her side that decided to wake up as soon as she emerged from her heavy sleep. She was sore, thirsty and only managed to groan when trying to move in what was definitely not her bed. She reached over, eyes still closed, and encountered something cold. Her reflexes kicked in, knocking the glass over and effectively pouring its content on her. She jerked up and immediately screamed at the pain stabbing her side.

“Are you okay?” George asked, worried, as he crashed back into his room.

Desperately trying to get away from the cold wet blanket, she pulled herself up, only managing to hurt herself more.

“No, no, no, slow down. You’re only going to hurt yourself more if you do that.”

He gently nudged her back down, elevating her head with a pillow and removing the blanket to toss it on the floor. She shivered.

“How did you sleep?” he asked as he casually laid something else on her.

“Terrible,” she simply said as she managed to open an eye.

“Do you remember last night?” he continued while helping her sit.

“Yes… I think.” She looked around with half-opened eyes. “Why am I in your room?”

“Lockwood almost passed out after the first flight of stairs.”

She opened her second eye and stared at him dubitatively.

“Fine I wasn’t doing great either.”

She laughed lightly but it only triggered her injury again.

“Here, drink this,” he handed her a cup of tea, “and today you’re on bed rest. No work, no chores, nothing. Not even laughing.”

“I should keep you around then,” she said, before taking a sip.

He threw her a look, but even with eyes half open she could see the shadow of a smile on his face.

He went back downstairs, leaving her to savor her tea, its warmth welcome after having been awakened in such a brutal way. She looked back down and noticed what George had draped over her. His own sweater, the one he wore in October when the days started getting colder, sat gently on her shoulders, smelling faintly of cedarwood. She hadn’t realized how soft it was, having only touched it with her eyes. The night after the case was a blur, but she could have sworn that only one person had carried her upstairs. She smiled to herself as she looked around his room. Papers were left scattered on his desk, some fallen on the floor. Trinkets were gathered on every shelf that wasn’t already full of books. It was messy, disorganized, but comforting in its own way. She wondered how someone who kept such meticulous files on the Problem could live in a room like this. If she tried to make sense of it, she would probably spend the day here, and she simply refused that. Staying still was out of the question. She carefully sat back up before she tried to get onto her feet. The whole ordeal took about ten minutes. This might not be the brightest idea, she thought to herself, but she was finally making progress with George, they had a semblance of connection and she certainly wouldn’t let one wound stand in the way of her friendship with him.

One painful shower and a whole hour later, y/n made her way downstairs and joined George in the kitchen. She hadn’t even made it through the door that she could already hear him telling her off for getting out of bed. He chastised her about the dangers of disregarding health and how irresponsible it was of her to push her body to its limit. She just took a seat at the kitchen table and smiled at him. He had been talking to her for five uninterrupted minutes with eye contact and everything. Technically it was to yell at her, but still. progress was progress. He gave up when noticing her smile wouldn’t budge.

“Why did you come down anyway?”

“I was hungry,” she said while grabbing an orange from the fruit bowl in front of her.

“You could’ve just told me I would have brought something for you.”

“Actually, since I’m on house arrest and you’re finally speaking to me, why don’t you let me help you out today? You know like cleaning, cooking… everything you do all the time for everyone and never let me help with?”

“No. You’re injured. You shouldn’t move that much.”

“How about research then? That’s just reading.”

“No,” he said decisively, punctuating his rejection with a pointed look.

“Stubborn idiot.”

“Well, I am not the idiot who tripped and almost shattered my hip on a dresser.”

She scoffed and threw the orange in her hand, aiming for his head. He caught it just in time before it made contact with his cheek. He stared back at her with round eyes.

“What the hell was that?” he asked with an edge in his voice. Did she just imagine his voice getting deeper? The slightest grin formed at the corner of his mouth, giving her chills. “You’re insufferable.”

“You’re just jealous because even injured I have better aim than you.” She blurted out, hoping the redness of her face wasn’t obvious.

When he didn’t respond, an idea popped into her head.

“And you probably don’t want me to help because you’re scared I’ll be better at research than you are too.”

He smiled, set the orange down on the table and turned back to the dishes he had started before she got there.

“You really think I’d fall for that? Who do you think I am? Lockwood?”

She took back the fruit and slumped into her chair.

“Can you at least let me help? I can’t stay still for so long, I’ll go mad”

She fidgeted with the orange in her hands, planting her short nails into its skin the best she could. She only managed to pull off small pieces each time.

“You’ll slow me down, and I can’t allow myself to miss a single element. I don’t want last night to happen again.”

She looked up to find him already staring.

“I managed to keep up with your files on the Problem, why would that be any different?”

He didn’t have anything to say back. She smiled triumphantly.

“You have no more arguments, I win the argument! Where should I start?”

He sighed, dried the glass he was holding and sat next to her.

“By learning how to peel an orange properly.” He retorted, snatching the fruit from her hand.

Methodically, he sunk his finger under the peel, tearing it confidently. The fruit’s sweet perfume filled the air as George dropped the peel on the table in one piece. While she studied his hands attentively, he proceeded to tear the orange apart, setting its pieces on the table in front of her.

“I can do that myself you know.”

“Can you?”

“Jerk.” She laughed. Being friends with him wasn’t exactly what she had thought it would be, but she had to admit that she liked it.

He got up and snatched a piece from her hand.

“Hey, what was that for?”

“Compensation for my efforts.” He smirked.

He disappeared into the living room and came back with piles of materials in his arms. He did a second trip to bring books and case files, then a third to get notebooks from his room. When he got back into the kitchen, he sat next to her and wrote the name of the client on the thinking cloth. He pushed back his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

“Let’s get to work.”

George knew that y/n was too stubborn to rest despite her injury, and she was too clever to be tricked into it. To be fair, he hadn’t tried that hard. He really was glad of the company. He gave her some context for their upcoming case and described his usual research methods. He realized he might have been explaining things too fast when he noticed her staring at him with round eyes.

“I lost you, didn’t I?”

“Sort of…” she answered, embarrassed. “Am I wasting your time?”

“Like spending time with you could ever be wasted time” he wanted to say. Instead, he simply shook his head and started his explanation over, shaking off the thought.

He was right, though. Not only was he greatly enjoying himself, she was also a quick learner. By the second hour spent gathering material, they had already uncovered crucial elements about the history of the place and they had started narrowing in on the type of object that could be a potential source. They made a good team.

The day had gone by without any of them leaving the kitchen. They were enthralled in their work with a comfortable silence between them. They sat side by side, sharing documents and exchanging notes on the Thinking Cloth with an appeasing familiarity. Deep down, George felt guilty that they missed out on moments like these in the past because he was too focused on keeping his new colleague at arm’s length. Their knees bumped every once in a while, each moment making his heart skip a beat. Out of surprise, that is, not that he paid it any mind.

In just a day he had learned to read her smile. The soft polite one was how she asked if he wanted more tea. The shy one meant she needed his help but didn’t want to ask. His favorite one was her triumphant smile when she finally figured out what the source must be. He held his hand out high for her to high five him back. She did, her touch electric against his. She didn’t let go and wrapped her fingers around his, lingering there for another second. He stared at their tangled fingers, oddly captivated. His eyes traveled down her arm and up her face to find her already staring. His breath caught. Suddenly he couldn’t care less about the case they had been working on. Nothing mattered except for the way the warm light of the kitchen lit up her eyes. Her lips parted, catching his eye before he could stop it.

“It’s late, I should probably get some sleep,” she quickly said when their eyes met.

“Yeah,” he let go of her hand, “good idea.”

She used his shoulder to stand up and flinched. He didn’t know if it was from the contact or the effort.

“Good night,” he said gently, trying to shake off some of the awkwardness he was feeling.

“Good night. Don’t stay up too late.”

“I can’t promise anything,” he mumbled as he watched her close the door behind her.

He found it ironic that she was giving him advice when she had been blatantly ignoring everything he said about her health all day long. He returned to the newspaper he was reading, every word on the page escaping his attention. What smile had she used when she left the room? He took a pen to keep his eyes from skipping five words at a time. She had touched his shoulder on purpose earlier, hadn’t she? This was useless. He gathered up the rest of the papers he hadn’t read yet and headed back to his room, conceding defeat to the butterflies settling in his stomach.

y/n woke up around 2 am, her aching body forcing her awake demanding a glass of water. Everything was dark around her, but she could hear Lucy’s steady breathing on the opposite side of the room. She did her best to get to her feet silently, ignoring the pain still twisting her side. The steps creaked lightly underneath her bare feet, the sound resonating loudly in the silent house. She reached the first landing discreetly with the hope that she wouldn’t wake anyone up. Instead, she was surprised to see a ray of light coming from under George’s door. It was ajar, so she pushed it lightly to see him hunched over his desk, still reading the newspapers she had left on the table a few hours earlier.

“You’re really stubborn you know?”

He didn’t seem surprised to hear her behind him.

“You’re one to talk,” he retorted.

She knew there was no point in arguing, especially at this hour.

“I’m getting some water, do you want anything?”

“Tea would be fine, thanks.” He turned around. His hair was visibly disheveled. Even though he didn’t put that much effort into it at regular hours, it was obvious that he was tired.

When she came back a few moments later, he was still absorbed by whatever article he was reading. He hardly paid attention when she set the steaming cup next to him. She didn’t really expect him to, so it really came as a surprise when he reached for her hand without taking his eyes off his notes. The contact of his hand on the bare skin of her arm almost made her spill her water.

“Take a look,” he simply said. He pointed at an annotation he had written in the margin of a newspaper article he was reading.

She sat on the stool next to him to inspect his findings. His scribbling was already hard to read in the daylight, but in the dead hours of the night it was almost impossible. He saw her squint and read aloud. The words evaded her. She blamed the lack of sleep and not the fact that his hand was still resting on her arm, gently swaying back and forth. She stared at it, its slow movements calming her down. It made her feel peaceful, appeased. She wondered however why her heart was beating faster if she was feeling so calm.

“y/n?”

“Hmm?” She looked up and was caught off guard by the gentleness in his eyes.

“You should go back to bed.”

“No, no, tell me. I’m listening.”

She could see the cogs turning in his head, weighing his options, whether forcing her to rest would be worth the effort or pointless from the start. He sighed.

“I found another death related to the client’s house. I’m trying to see if the haunting is caused by what we found earlier or if it’s something else entirely.”

“That’s way too much work to do by yourself in one night.”

“Someone has to do it. You should rest, I’ll tell you what I found in the morning.”

She got up, but she knew fully well she wasn’t letting him work all night alone. She took all the papers she could gather in her arms, ignoring his hushed protests, and made herself comfortable in his bed. He looked at her incredulously. She tapped the spot next to her, a large smile lighting up her face.

He sounded defeated when he said “why are you like this?”

“You look out for me, I look out for you.”

It shut him up on the spot. She got under the covers and organized the documents in piles around her while he stared silently, his mouth slightly agape.

“What? If we’re here all night we might as well get comfortable.”

His eyes were so round she thought it must hurt him. “We?”

She tapped the spot next to her again.

“Come on. You can’t tell me to rest if you’re not doing it either.”

Reluctantly, he joined her, looking like he was intruding in the sheets of a total stranger. At first, he pushed the cover aside. It was as if he was allergic to comfort. He kept his distance and even hesitated to reach over to grab a newspaper. They read in silence, the only sound coming occasionally from the turning of pages. He seemed to quickly forget about his awkwardness though, as he leaned in whenever he found something. He got closer each time and she took each opportunity to raise the blanket higher over him. He needed to sleep and he would, even if she had to sneak up on him. By the time he finished his mug, they were shoulder to shoulder, speaking in low voices in each other’s ear. Even in hushed tones, she could sense how enthusiastic he was about what he discovered one newspaper after the other. She could have listened to him talk for hours… if she wasn’t so exhausted. No matter how hard she tried to keep her eyes open, her head was drawing impossibly close to George’s shoulder. She was too comfortable to resist. When he noticed her dosing off, he spoke lower and lower before pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

She sunk into a deeper slumber, George’s even breathing rocking her to sleep, until the turning of pages disturbed her ears. He wasn’t going to sleep unless she made him. With her eyes still closed, she traced her fingers up his torso to find his neck, his chin, and finally his glasses. She took them off before turning her back on him.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“Forcing you to get some sleep,” she mumbled.

“Give me back my glasses.”

“Come get them yourself.”

She was certain he would concede defeat after this. What she hadn’t expected was George laying down closer against her with his arms draped around her waist. She froze. His hands traced their way down her arms and his hands locked around hers, gently trying to nudge his glasses out of her hands. She held them tighter, unable to keep herself from smiling. He had his head in the crook of her neck and she felt a smile forming on his lips too.

“You’re impossible. You’re stubborn, insufferable-”

“You used that one earlier already.”

He laughed. “You’re just proving my point.”

A light laugh escaped her too, only it made her bruises act up again. She flinched.

George let go of her hand, his fingers traveling lightly over her side.

“Does it still hurt?”

“A little bit.”

He sighed in her neck, making her shiver.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t figure out sooner what the source was. I could have saved you the injury.”

Something clicked in her mind, clearing all desire to sleep for a moment.

“Is that why you’re staying up so late?”

He didn’t say anything back. She rolled back to face him, his hands now resting on her lower back.

“George, you’re not the reason why I couldn’t avoid running into a dresser.”

He laughed, but he avoided her eyes.

“It wasn’t your fault. Now please get some sleep.”

He looked back at her with intensity. His eyes looked dark in the dim light, almost black.

“On one condition.”

Before she could ask what he needed from her, he took it. His lips crashed against hers with a hunger she didn’t know he had. She was still in shock when he drew back, looking back at her hesitantly. He didn’t seem to know that she loved this unsuspected bold side of him. She tangled her fingers in his hair to pull him back in. He seemed surprised at first, but his hands quickly ran up her back to draw her nearer. She could have expected to feel anything from kissing George. Awkwardness, shyness, a few days ago she would have completely rejected the idea. She certainly wouldn’t have expected it to feel so right. His hands seemed to fit the small of her back like puzzle pieces locking perfectly in place. She was surprised at how quickly she had come to wanting more. She needed him, all of him, impossibly closer. She circled his hips with her leg while her hands roamed down his back. He smiled into each kiss, leaving her lips every now and then to trail her cheeks and down her neck. She looked back at him with sparkling eyes.

“So, one condition?”

“Don’t leave. Please.”

Her smile grew bigger.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

[lilbitofmac]

// question for you, dear mac, if you're up for it. i've been thinking about getting back into drawing. it's been *years*, and i was curious if you had any advice for wading back in, especially as it comes to warm up exercises and just getting started? i know that there's a degree of 'you just have to do it'; it's always what i tell writers. but i've been so stuck on how to do some of this on *easy mode* so i don't overwhelm myself. if you're up for sharing your thoughts with all of us! ^_^ love you bunches!

Oh man, I honestly might not be the best to ask for advice LMAO but I can certainly try to help!

More often than not what stirs me to draw is whatever is at the forefront of my attention span. Any hyperfixation I latch onto is the driving force behind not only my ability to draw, but my motivation to do so. So, genuinely, just draw what you’re most passionate about at any given time! It’s perfectly okay if you want to do studies with different aspects of art like anatomy, color theory, etc. but if you’re just dusting off the old drawing tools, I’d recommend centering it around something that gets your hand itching to create. Probably bad advice recommending skipping the basics, but it usually discourages me from creating art, so I hate recommending that as a first step.

Creating is a lot easier said than done when jumping back into drawing, though. So, seriously, I recommend finding some of your favorite art pieces and tracing over them to get back in the groove. People always always look down on tracing, but it’s seriously so helpful as an exercise as long as you’re not posting it and claiming it as your own. That’s what I did when I was a kid, and it helped me find my own style and art process. Tracing can also be beneficial in helping you find the specific look you want for your art. Try different pens, colors, shading to find what you’re comfortable with without having to worry about WHAT you’re creating. That’s where a lot of people get hung up on.

That advice is mostly targeted at digital art, so if you’re working with traditional media, start practicing finding ✨shapes✨ in those art pieces you love. If you need a visual for what I mean, just ask and I can either make something or find some links for you— I know that’s kind of vague =w=;; Anyway, pull the art up on your phone or computer and try and copy it down onto paper. Focus on visualizing the shapes that make up a piece to make it easier to mimic. I always fall back onto traditional art when I’m trying to adjust my style since digital art has its own pressures that get in the way for me.

After you get a bit more comfortable, start finding some references for ideas that are rattling around in your head! Start simple since you don’t want to burn yourself out too much. Do you like drawing character’s faces? Expressions? Environment? Clothing? Hands? Feet??? Little sus but who am I to judge… Tackle your favorites first and slowly start branching out into more complicated pieces! If things aren’t looking right to you, watch some speedpaints or tutorials for your specific hang ups. Also, START COLLECTING ART!!! My phone storage is 99% of art that makes me go “OH WOW.” Figure out WHY a specific art piece calls to you and practice implementing it into your own pieces!

Mainly, don’t stress about your work and just have fun with it! It’s very very easy to start comparing your work to others, but if you’re wanting to create, focus on that feeling: of that joy from putting an idea onto paper and bringing it to life!! If you’re still facing hang ups, more than likely you just have to power through it until you reach a break through. That’s where the “practice makes progress” comes in, sadly 😮‍💨

[bryan360]

Here’s my note before I’ll get started….

(DON’T YOU EVER COPY FROM MINE OR MY FRIEND’S WORK, CHARACTERS, AND STUFF IF ONE OF YOU ARE IMPOSTERS WHO HAD HABITS OF PLAGIARISM! I WILL BLOCK YOU FROM MY BLOG IF I SEE YOUR POST WITH MINE OR MY FRIEND’S ORIGINAL WORK BEING EDITED ALL OVER! I’LL EVEN SHARE IT ONTO MY BLOG SO IF EVERYONE WILL SEE THAT YOU TRYING TO COPY MINE OR MY FRIEND’S THINGS FOR NO GOOD REASON WHATSOEVER! That will be all….I mean it.)

🎃Inktober of 2022 - Day 23: 🔍 Mystery

🇵🇷Me: Hey everyone. Sorry again that I’m trying get this Inktober post done before midnight. Just so what happens is that I’m still doing my progress for my secret art trade to my P-Pal’s request. As of now, at least I’m in digital coloring stage to complete while doing some edits later when its done. Though at the same time is making some drafts for my Inktober stuff that I had few days to go before Halloween. If only I would’ve have time much more rather than doing this during a month of October. Regardless, it was still a lesson that I needed to learn for next year’s October. Just saying, but….

🇵🇷Me: Anyways, though I would leave any Scooby-Doo related to include, aren’t I? Since now during it was also the month of “Scoobtober”, it was a reasonable choose to have a cosplay with Joey and Katie as Mystery Kids. Even if Katie finally get to stick with Joey for some alone time, but that doesn’t mean when getting their mystery job any easier. Sorry if this Inktober post looks a bit rush with the background, though. 😮‍💨

Joey (as Fred) and Katie (as Velma) created by me; BryanVelasquez87 (Bryan360)

Previous Inktober Posts of 2022:

Day 1: ⚫️⚪️Cartoons - Link Here

Day 2: 🎃Pumpkins - Link Here

Day 3: 👨‍⚕️Doctor - Link Here

Day 4: 💀Death - Link Here

Day 5: 🐱Cat - Link Here

Day 6: 🦇Bats - Link Here

Day 7: 😈Devil - Link Here

Day 8: 🌳Forest - Link Here

Day 9: 🧙‍♀️Witch - Link Here

Day 10: 🔪Murder - Link Here

Day 11: 🔴🐻Red - Link Here

Day 12: 🧸🪆Playtime - Link Here

Day 13: 🥚Eggs - Link Here

Day 14: 👻 Ghosts - Link Here

Day 15: 🖼 Painting - Link Here

Day 16: 🛸 Invasion - Link Here

Day 17: 🍁Leaves - Link Here

Day 18: 👨‍💼Father - Link Here

Day 19: ⬛️Dark - Link Here

Day 20: 🧙‍♂️Wizard - Link Here

Day 21: 😵‍💫Possessed - Link Here

Day 22: 🌄Dawn - Link Here

Tagged: @murumokirby360 @carmenramcat @alexander1301

[frforlosers]

Hey guys, only fair I keep everyone updated on my situation. Oklahoma had a massive storm last Saturday with 90-100mph winds, so we got to experience a typhoon equivalent here in our land-locked state. Which- I mean we get tornadoes all the time, but tornados are isolated, and this was basically if a tornado the size of a city decided to track its way across our state.

Most of my city, and many other cities in the path of the storm, lost power, and we have been without electricity since Saturday. Of course, Oklahoma is an incredibly impoverished state, so many of us have lost all of our food, (and had to waste money on fast food because no one could cook anything) many places ran out of gasoline, and with 90° weather and no AC, we've all been stuck cooking in our own homes. :)))

The good news is, power has been coming back in chunks, and I finally have electricity as of 3 hours ago. My mom also had power restored Tuesday morning, so I'd been able to stay with her. The bad news is, this has put a delay on my art commission progress.

(Additionally- on top of the natural disaster, I have a new roommate moving in mid-July, and had to disassemble my PC and relocate it in preparation, and lost power before I could sit down and put things back together, so my PC is uh- in pieces on my bedroom floor rn.)

Obviously I also have an IRL job on top of all this, but it also lost power, and the power won't be back until Saturday. 🫠 So I'm missing a weeks paycheck because of this storm, and couldn't even use the time off to work on art because we've been living in the dark. So I'm super sorry.

Good news is!! As I said!! My power just came back on, but I have a lot of things I need to do before even starting to put my PC back together. My fridge is full of rotted food, my cats have been fed, but their litterboxes have been put on hold, and I've got to deal with those responsibilities first. I also volunteered to work at a different location tomorrow to try and salvage this paycheck, but I don't think Chipotle plans to compensate any of us for a loss of work due to this natural disaster. 😮‍💨

Basically, it could be another week before I'll be able to touch art again, and I realized I needed to give everyone an update on my situation.

Thank you, and I'm so sorry for the continued delay. 😭

(I took videos of the storm and I might post some highlights on here! It was so fucking cool to witness in person!! I was really lucky that my apartment was in a safe secure place. I barely made it home before the storm moved in tho that was scary. 🙈)

@moons-rising @pumpkin-bread tagging you guys because this affects you both the most, and I wanna make sure you see it! Again, I'm sorry! I knew progress would be slow but I'm still embarrassed by *how* slow. Thank you for your patience with me! 😭

[clatterbane]

Have I had food yet? Nope.

But, more progress on the other front! Turned out the continuing issue was that the WebUSB bootloader unlock/install process was just not communicating with the phone properly.

So, I finally said "Fuck that noise! We're going manual."

Now I am taking another break while it finishes doing its flashing magic. And very much hoping that I didn't just brick the fucker.

But yeah, Totodile is on the job in there. And I really should eat something once I go back and check the results. 😮‍💨

Assuming it actually works, I am planning to leave well enough alone and not even fuck around with Magisk tonight. Probably going to leave the bootloader unlocked for the moment, though.

If it doesn't but will still let me at the bootloader, we may just fall back to stock Android for now.

Only this time, WITH sudo access, and that LED strip thankfully left somewhat on. Because it's dark as hell back in his lair at night otherwise.

Back in business for Operation Graphene!

The green light is probably coincidental, but we have the green light! 😅 (That strip is actually multicolored programmable, running off a Raspberry Pi. And I am still not sure how to control it. Wanted more illumination last night.)

Good thing that I did ask to be added to the sudo group earlier. Because it looks like next up, we're doing this, which I almost forgot about until "Oops, I guess it doesn't know how to talk to the phone yet!":

Looking like a relatively quick and easy option.

Once again, I just want to unlock my bootloader. 🫤

At least this shit is relatively easy dealing with the Pixels. Which is one of the reasons I opted for one this time.

[meowzfordayz]

I’m so happy to hear you and everyone else had an amazing time!! Rock climbing seems so cool but also terrifying. 😅 Even the indoor ones still manage to be unnerving so I commend you LMAO. Anything else fun that happened?? Utah looks so beautiful (but also hot so I hope you stayed hydrated)!

Ahh I totally get being tired even during the first week of school lmaoo, but that’s great it’s going well for you!! Mine started a few weeks ago and it was exhausting! I was hoping that once I started getting used to my classes it would become easier, but tbh it’s gotten harder. 😓 I‘ve had to create a very fixed schedule for myself with balancing my homework loads, classes (since my school has a block schedule where we rotate the classes every day), and outside activities at specific times which has left very little room for relaxation or being too tired to do my work and putting it off. 😮‍💨 This past week I was trying to power through all my assignments/studying from the time I got home until the AM hours so I could try and have some free time, but unfortunately, stuff kept getting added to the pile. 😞😒 But‼️On Friday I was able to get almost all of my remaining work done and now I finally have time to relax and enjoy my weekend and grind on genshin impact. I forgot how great it feels to sleep in LMAOO 🧎🏻‍♀️🧎🏻‍♀️

And awww haha, I hope you don’t feel too pressured or anything to get everything done (Ik I can’t rly talk but oh well 💀)- aka pls don’t burn yourself out with writing!! That being said I also hope you can healthily get enough done to where you’ll feel like you’ve made progress!! 💕 key word: 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗹𝘆)

- 💜

P.s. Thanks so much for being understanding about the whole anon thing! I’m glad that everything worked out!

Hihi !! (finally have a moment/the energy to answer you heh 😅)

I don't remember what exactly I told you, but we also nearly missed our return flight. 🤭 We literally sprinted down the mountain, almost ran over a snake (it was crossing the trail, so we only saw its body, bUT IT WAS TERRIFYING), and then while we were on the highway found out our flight was delayed (like, got the text while in the car on our way). 💀 In other words, luck was on our side. By the time we made it through security, our flight <had it not been delayed> would've just started boarding, aka: if our flight was on time and we hadn't hurried our asses, then we would've missed our flight. 😂

I hope you got to enjoy your weekend and grind Genshin? 🥺☀️ Balancing ~the stuff of life is difficult. 😖 My partner and I woke up early this AM to visit a local bakery, so now I'm very sleepy. 😆☺️

[harleyshahas]

You know, I'm 30 years old, I have a house, a kid, I pay taxes, and I'm engaged. I work full time overnight 3-4 days a week for 12 hour shifts. My fiance is the same. We each work opposite ends of the week so one of us can be home with our son. By the end of either of our work weeks we are exhausted, mentally and physically. Two days out of our week we each get maybe 5 hours of sleep when one gets home from work so that they may be able to take over watching the tot for the start of the weekend. We clean when we can.

I don't have a bad relationship with my parents. My stepmom is pretty patient and understanding and I have a pretty good relationship with her, I can talk to her about things easy enough. My mom... while we get along and I love her, I feel our relationship is a little more strained. She has a tendency to raise her voice as she speaks without realizing and she gets progressively more short as a conversation goes on. She has to be taken in stride. She is by no means a bad mom.

However, she has a tendency to nag.

"Oh your feeding [my kid] chicken nuggets? You need to cook more, you can't always feed him that."

"You need to clean out your car. You need to vacuum/sweep/mop. You need to clean the bathroom. Do the dishes. Wipe down the cabinets. Clean the windows. Your mirrors are disgusting. How much laundry do you have?Your yard is starting to look a little rough." Its like I'm still living with them. 😮‍💨

I have a 1 year old toddler, a dog, a cat, and two step kids. I work 12 hours overnight. I get very little sleep already from from depression, undiagnosed BP, and insomnia. We've only been in our new house for a year, and my fiance have been slowly rebuilding our lives from previous financial drains before we managed to get where we are. And where we are is pretty good now.

Every now and again I hear an "I'm proud of you" from my mom but those feel so few and far between. Even my stepmom dishes out praise pretty sparingly. Normally I can ignore the nagging, take a deep breath, and let it roll off me. It's something I'm used to. But lately it feels like it's too much. Every time I see them or talk to her on the phone it's always something. "Have you taken care of this thing yet?"

She called not too long ago and it happened again. I mentioned that my back hurt and I was exhausted because I've been up since 6am (it's almost 9pm now) with the baby and instead of napping like I would have normally when I laid him down for his nap, I decided 'Hey, I feel like cleaning. There's a pile of laundry that needs to be folded on the kitchen table, there's more in one of our six baskets, I have three more loads I gotta do. The floor is sticky from Damian's grubby little hands and needs to be swept anyway. And I might as well vacuum, my parents are coming over tomorrow and the dog's been shedding like crazy. Might as well.' So I opened the windows and got to work. I was feeling pretty accomplished.

So I mentioned I was hurting and tired, and I have to give Damian a bath as soon as I'm done typing this, and I still have even more laundry to go thru, which I'm gonna put off now cuz I'm not in the mood. So I told my mother I gave the house a good deep clean cuz it needed it, spring cleaning and all that. And she says.

"Good, your house needed it."

I... I know? I just said that?

"What you really need to do is clean your baseboards. The ones in your bathroom are looking rough."

I... what?

"Did you notice I cleaned your cabinets last time I was over? They needed a good wipe down."

No. No I didn't. You know why? Because I have a dog, a cat, and a 1 year old who all like to put their grubby little mitts all over everything and those cabinets you wiped down with a wet cloth got dirty again the next day. I don't care about the fucking cabinets.

Is it so wrong to fish for a little praise? My house is very well kept, the worse it gets is baby toys all over the living room and we do our best to pick those up when they get to be too much. There's miscellaneous nicknacks on the kitchen table and counters we're still trying to figure out where to put them. We keep a very nice house and I'm proud of it. We've come a long way.

Every now and then my parents tell me their proud. But a majority of the time it's nagging and this time it just hit a little harder than normal, probably because mother's day is coming up. It'll be my second one for myself and I have two moms to think about. Maybe I want to be excited for it.

Kinda hard to do that when I'm fucking annoyed.

Part of why I cleaned so much today is because I know they're coming over tomorrow and I'm trying to limit the amount of nagging I'm gonna hear. But I shouldn't have to do that. And it pisses me off that I feel I have to. Because I know they're just gonna find something to nag about anyway. Like, I'm sorry my house isn't as big and nice as my sister's?