#$1 Hosting 1 Dollar Hosting Cheap Hosting

[maximkischin-e]

got a bunch of shitty cheap new sketchbooks! it seems like a few CV artists are doing it lately, so if anyone has any requests let me know + i'll try to get to them inbetween other stuff :]

(might not do all of them and quality will.. vary LOL)

[cheaphosterglobal]

Linux Cheap Hosting or Windows Web Hosting — What to Opt and Why?

When it comes to launching a website on a tight budget, many people get confused between Linux cheap hosting and Windows web hosting. Both have their own strengths, but the right choice depends on your specific website needs, technology requirements, and budget. Let’s break down the differences to help you choose wisely.

What is Linux Cheap Web Hosting?

Linux cheap hosting is one of the most popular and budget-friendly web hosting options available. It uses the open-source Linux operating system, which allows hosting providers to offer affordable plans without licensing costs.

Key Features:

Supports PHP, MySQL, Python, Perl

Works well with WordPress, Joomla, Magento

Comes with cPanel for easy management

Known for high performance and security

Why Choose Linux $1 Hosting?

Affordable: No licensing fees mean lower prices.

Reliable: Strong stability and uptime.

Compatible: Supports most open-source platforms.

User-Friendly: Control panels like cPanel make management easy.

What is Windows Web Hosting?

Windows web hosting runs on Microsoft’s Windows Server operating system and is mainly used when your website requires Microsoft technologies like ASP.NET, .NET Core, or MSSQL.

Key Features:

Supports ASP.NET, .NET Core, MS SQL

Ideal for Microsoft-based applications

Uses Plesk for hosting management

Good for enterprise-level Microsoft solutions

Why Choose Windows Hosting?

Essential if your website or app is built using Microsoft tools.

Easy Integration with Microsoft Office, SharePoint, or Access.

Developer-Friendly for .NET or Visual Basic applications.

✅ What Should You Opt For?

Choose Linux $1 web Hosting If:

You are on a tight budget.

You plan to use WordPress, Joomla, Magento, or other open-source platforms.

Your site uses PHP and MySQL.

You want an easy-to-manage, low-cost, and reliable hosting environment.

Choose Windows Hosting If:

Your website is built with ASP.NET, .NET Core, or MSSQL.

You need integration with Microsoft products.

You are developing with Visual Studio or other Microsoft tools.

Final Thoughts

For most small to medium websites, blogs, and online stores, Linux 1 dollar hosting is the smarter and more affordable option. It is flexible, secure, and supports a wide range of applications.

Opt for Windows web hosting only if your project specifically requires Microsoft technologies. Otherwise, save money and enjoy greater flexibility with Linux hosting.

[lalo0]

UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT CH. 1 ┃ Damsel in distress

Sana x male reader (smut)

word count: 12k

The thing about these events is that no one actually wants to be here.

Not me, not them, not even the poor souls pretending to be fans screaming from behind the barriers. It’s just part of the deal: put on a suit, smile, act like you’re honored to attend another rigged award show where the winners are decided weeks before anyone even pretends to vote.

I flash a practiced grin at the cameras. Just enough teeth to seem charming, not enough to seem desperate. They eat it up. They always do.

Inside, it’s colder than necessary, not for comfort, but to make sure no one starts sweating through their designer suits before the main event. I recognize the usual layout: round tables close together, champagne that’s all label and no taste, plastic smiles stretched across faces polished within an inch of human.

I find my table. Karina’s already there, glued to her phone like she’s solving world hunger. My manager, Karina Yoo. Full-time job: Making sure I don’t publicly crash and burn.

“You’re late,” she says, not even looking up.

“I’m fashionable,” I correct, sliding into the seat beside her. “Try to keep up.”

She hums under her breath, something between disapproval and exhaustion, and taps at her screen a few more times before glancing at me. “You’re third. Stick to the script and smile.”

“I always smile.” I flash my teeth at her. “You think I’m out here winging it?”

Karina just gives me that look. The one that says she doesn’t get paid enough to argue. I lean back in my chair, scanning the room. Same faces, slightly different brands of fake.

And then there’s Sana.

Of course.

If South Korea had a national treasure, it would look awfully much like her. She’s draped in a dress that cost more than some idols’ entire discography budgets, shimmering under the lights with an ease that looks accidental and isn’t. Perfect smile, perfect hair, legs crossed in a way that suggests she doesn’t have to try, she just exists. She’s laughing at something, head tilted, hand brushing through her hair like it’s all just a natural accident. I know better.

And because the universe is nothing if not predictable, a few tables down sits Kang Jihoon.

Perfect skin, perfect smile, perfect product of fifteen million dollars in marketing campaigns and enough plastic surgery to qualify as a construction site. The kind of rival whose existence is an insult. Our eyes meet. He nods, that tight little smile that says, Congratulations on your award. Hope you trip and break your teeth on the way to the stage.

I smile back, all teeth.

Karina nudges me under the table. “Don’t start anything.”

“I never start anything,” I say, sipping from a champagne flute that tastes like someone bottled hand soap and chilled it.

Jihoon’s laughing too hard at something one of the producers said. Probably another joke at my expense. He’s not subtle.

The lights dim and the host starts his opening bit. I tune it out. Same script as last year, just different names plugged in. When they call my name, it’s with all the fanfare you’d expect for someone already halfway to an EGOT.

“Leon — Male Solo Artist of the Year.”

I stand, smoothing the front of my jacket with a deliberate, oh, this old thing? kind of air, and make my way up to the stage. Flashbulbs pop like fireworks, but I pretend not to notice. The trophy’s lighter than it looks. Cheap, like the ceremony. I step up to the mic and smile, not too big, not too smug, just the right angle to keep the fan edits flattering.

“Thank you,” I say. “I’ll keep this brief. Thank you to my fans, my team, and to everyone who made this possible.”

I bow. They applaud. Pavlov would be proud.

On the way back to my seat, I catch Sana looking. She raises her glass in a slow, deliberate toast. The corner of her mouth curves into something that isn’t quite a smile. I raise mine back, then hold her gaze for a few more seconds.

—

By the time I make it into the afterparty, an overpriced lounge in Gangnam with too much glass and too little oxygen, half the eyes are already on me. A few heads tilt together, a few girls whisper behind raised hands. All that wasted effort, as if I can’t already feel it in the way the air sharpens around me.

Sana's also here. Of course she is.

I spot her immediately, curled into a corner booth like she’s the headliner that doesn’t to be introduced. There’s a drink in her hand, something clear, expensive-looking. She’s laughing at something one of her friends said, one of those bright, polished laughs that sounds so effortless you almost forget how practiced it probably is.

Sana’s good at playing innocent. Better at making sure you know she isn’t.

She’s exactly the kind of person you learn to spot early in this business. The kind who doesn't just walk into a room, but recalibrates it around herself. A professional manipulator, disguised as a professional sweetheart.

I don’t blame her, I respect it.

Still, I don’t head toward her right away. That’d be too obvious. Too eager.

Instead, I weave my way past a few clusters of people, industry kids mostly, managers, producers, B-list actors desperate to be mistaken for A-list. The kind who try too hard to look like they belong here. I smile at a few of them, nod once or twice, let them think I’m being polite. The truth is, I don’t remember half their names. the other half aren’t worth remembering.

It doesn’t take long for Karina to catch up to me. She’s dressed for business even when she’s pretending not to be, black blazer, sharp lines, sensible heels. She looks more like she’s here to close a deal than babysit a soloist with too much media training and not enough patience.

“You’re late,” she says under her breath, flashing a smile that’s for everyone else’s benefit.

“You’re welcome,” I reply, offering mine right back. “I wasn’t sure if I should come.”

Karina sighs, just audible enough for me to hear it.

“This isn’t optional,” she reminds me. “Show face, shake hands, act grateful. You know the drill.”

“Relax. I’ve been doing this for longer than I can remember.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.”

She’s right, technically. I’ve been in this business long enough to know exactly what tonight is: a networking event dressed up as a party. A chance for people with too much money and too little shame to decide who gets to be famous next. It’s not about talent, it’s never about talent. It’s about leverage, perception, the right smiles, at the right moments, aimed at the right people.

Speaking of which, Sana’s eyes catch mine from across the room. It’s not obvious, just a flicker, a slight tilt of her head, but it’s enough. I don't smile right away. I make her wait for it, let her wonder if I’ll bother. Then, slow, deliberate, I offer the faintest nod, barely a movement. But she sees it. And more importantly, she understands it.

I let Karina wander off to do whatever it is managers do at these things, probably networking, maybe praying. It doesn’t matter, she’s not the one I’m here for.

I grab a drink from a passing waiter without asking what it is. It could be champagne or window cleaner for all I care. It’s not about the drink. It’s about having something in my hand, looking just casual enough to pretend I’m not watching her.

But of course I am.

Sana doesn’t make me wait long. She slides off the leather booth with a grace so natural it has to be practiced, leaving behind two of her group members who immediately start whispering the second her heels click away.

I don’t move. I don’t smile. I just let her come to me.

Up close, she smells expensive. Something sweet and sharp, something no stylist could’ve picked. It’s the kind of thing that clings to your clothes if you let her too close, the kind you’d notice hours after she’s already gone.

"Leon," she says, all polite sweetness, tilting her head like she’s genuinely surprised to see me. As if this wasn’t planned. "Didn’t think I’d run into you here."

"Sana," I reply, letting her name sit on my tongue a second too long. "Small world."

She laughs, soft and airy, a sound designed to make people lean in closer. I don’t. I stand my ground, sipping whatever poison’s in my glass.

"You look good," she says, and it feels like a test.

"You look expensive," I answer, because she does. Every inch of her, hair, skin, makeup, is curated to perfection, not a single thing out of place. It's the kind of polish you can’t fake. It costs money, time and blood.

Her mouth twitches like she’s trying not to smile. "Same old Leon," she says. "Still charming as ever."

"Still lying through your teeth," I shoot back, and this time she does smile. A real one, sharp at the edges, not the kind she gives the cameras.

"You’re not gonna be nice to me? I thought you had an image to maintain."

"I’m off the clock," I say. "Besides, you don’t want nice. You want me."

She laughs again, softer this time. She’s enjoying this. Of course she is. Girls like Sana don’t chase boys, they chase puzzles, and I’m not about to make it easy for her.

She shifts her weight, leaning in just a fraction. "So what’s it gonna be tonight?" she asks. "Leon the idol or Leon the asshole?"

I shrug, taking another sip. The drink’s starting to taste less like paint thinner now. “Whatever gets you wetter.”

Her eyes flick in surprise, blink-and-miss-it sharp. Like she’s checking how deep the water is before she dives. She taps her glass against mine. Little clink. Too sweet to trust. “Surprise me.”

I let a smile tug at the corner of my mouth. “Careful,” I tell her. “I might.”

Sana takes another slow sip from her drink, eyes never leaving mine. “You know, I forgot how much I hated you.”

I grin into my glass. “Come on, we both know you’re obsessed with me.”

“Obsessed is a strong word,” she says, but there’s that curl of her mouth again, like she’s chewing on something she’s not ready to spit out yet.

“You’re the one who came over,” I remind her.

“Pity,” she says, tossing it out like it was obvious. “You looked lonely.”

“You’re confusing lonely with selective.”

She hums under her breath, amused, like she’s seen this movie before. “Selective, huh. Funny way to describe standing alone with your drink going flat.”

“Funny way to describe stalking me.”

“You wish,” she shoots back, but her hand grazes mine when she reaches for her glass, and she doesn’t move it right away. The corner of her lip glistens when she speaks again, too casual to be innocent. “Anyway. I figured someone should save you from dying of boredom.”

I laugh, not bothering to hide how dry it sounds. “If I was dying of boredom, talking to you would only speed things up.”

Sana leans in a touch, just enough to really make sure I smell her perfume. “That’s rich coming from you, Leon. Aren’t you supposed to be the life of the party?”

“Off duty.” I swirl the drink in my hand, let the ice clink against the glass. “Besides, you don’t want the real me. You want the version you can brag about to your friends.”

She looks at me then, really looks, head tilted like she’s deciding whether to really say it. “Maybe I want both.”

“You don’t know what you’re asking for.”

The way her mouth curls tells me she doesn’t care. Or worse, she does. “Try me,” she says.

I toss the rest of my drink back, the burn sharp down my throat, and I feel it catch, slow and deliberate, when she leans closer and drops her voice to a murmur. “Come on. Be interesting.”

I don’t answer right away. I let it hang there, just a second longer than is polite, and smile like I’m thinking about it, like it’s some big favor. “Maybe later,” I say, setting the empty glass down on the bar. “When you’re drunk enough to forget.”

Her fingers trail the rim of her glass, slow, absentminded. “And what if I don’t want to forget?”

I shrug. “Not my problem.”

Sana laughs under her breath, low and dry, then tosses her drink back too, straight-faced, like it’s water. Her hand brushes mine again, deliberate this time, knuckles grazing. And maybe it’s the burn of the liquor or the glint in her eye, but for a second, it feels easy to forget the part where I’m supposed to be working.

I check my phone instead. Flash a smile she doesn’t buy.

“Midnight already?” I say, slipping it back into my pocket. “Guess I’m getting old.”

Sana just watches me, eyes a little too knowing. “Leaving already?”

“Big day tomorrow,” I lie.

“Shame.” She taps her glass against mine, gentle little clink, like she’s toasting something only she knows about. “I was starting to have fun.”

“Yeah,” I say, pushing off the bar. “You should get out of here too. Never know what kind of creeps hang around these places after dark.”

—

Her laugh follows me as I walk off.

The sidewalk’s quieter than it should be. I don’t rush. The trick is never looking like you have somewhere to be. I hear the door swing behind me. Heels again, faster this time.

“You forgot your manners,” she calls out.

I don’t turn. Just slow down a little. “I said goodbye.”

“You said ‘you should get out of here too,’” she says, catching up. “That’s not the same thing.”

I glance over. She’s got her arms folded, jacket barely draped over her shoulders, heels digging into the concrete like she’s got something to prove. I sigh and keep walking, but she matches my pace like it’s a challenge. We’re two blocks out when the tension hits me. Background noise shifts, too quiet on one side, too fast on the other. I look ahead. There’s a guy leaning against a wall, hood up, trying too hard to look casual.

Sana notices.

“Leon?” Sana’s voice rises.

I don’t answer, just stare at the guy. He tilts his head. No mask, no warning, just lunges a punch that grazes my jaw. Instinct sharpens everything. I shift under his arm, grab his wrist, then slam him into the wall. Hard enough to echo, but not enough to stop him. He surges forward, elbow into my ribs. Winded. Pain flowers across my side.

He then pounces forward and tries to grab Sana “Move!” I bark to her, stepping between her and him. He’s circling me now. All of a sudden, three more guys show up, their hands grabbing at my arms. I snap a swift elbow back, crack against one’s jaw. He stumbles. Two of them close in, fists clenched, going for my throat. I swallow past the soreness in my chest. Drop low, grab one by the shirt, whip him into the other two. A crash of limbs and grunts, bodies sliding on asphalt. I’m not winning this with finesse. Not tonight. I land a knee, hear a crack, and then I’m up, fists short and sharp.

But there’s another. He strikes from behind. My vision blurs, and for a second the world goes gray.

“Leon!” Sana screams. I hear her, but can’t answer. I duck another punch, blood spitting where I snap back with an uppercut. I taste metal—blood—fuck I hate that taste.

I catch a glint—a knife now. He’s reaching. I lurch, scoop my jacket off my shoulders and wrap it around my arm. He swings. The cold blade bites the leather, nothing more. I sidestep, stomp my boot into his foot and grind it there. He hisses and drops the blade, but not fast enough. I grab him, twist hard, and drop him against the pavement.

And then—silence, broken only by distant screams.

Sana is behind me, frozen. I spin around, chest heaving and hands bloody. She stares—eyes blown wide, the color drained out of her face. “Oh… my god.” She sways forward, collapses against my ribs. Knuckles white on my arm. I hold her, feel her tremor through my side.

A siren wails, closer now. The city knows, they saw. I wipe my hands on the pavement without thinking. “You okay?" I ask, voice rough. Too rough.

Sana’s grip tightens like she’s grabbing onto a lifeline. My jaw throbs, ribs ache. I’m shaking—partly from the adrenaline, partly from how her body sags against mine. I press a hand to her back, steady. Witnesses come closer, murmurs rising.

And the next moment, I realize, every eye in the street is watching us.

Phones up. Lights flashing. Murmurs thick in the air. Half of them didn’t see the fight, just caught the aftermath—blood, scared girl, bodies on the concrete like someone forgot how gravity works. And me, standing over it, like we were filming a movie.

Sana hasn’t moved, still curled in on herself like her skin’s not fitting right, arms locked around herself. Her heels are uneven on the sidewalk, and it’s not because they’re cheap, but because one of them seems be cracked. Security splits the crowd. One of them goes straight for one the guys on the ground, checks if he’s breathing. He is. Unfortunately. Another glances at me, hesitation loaded in his posture. His eyes do the math—celebrities, blood, cameras, and he decides not to ask questions.

“Is she hurt?” someone barks behind me. Not police.

I don’t answer.

She still hasn’t looked at me. Not really. But she’s closer now. Just slightly. Her shoulder brushes mine when another guy tries to come up and someone yells at him to back off. Flashing lights again, blue and red this time, police. They show up just in time to make it look like they were involved. Reporters circle like flies. A few of them already have the headline drafted. Top Artist Defends Fellow Star from Late-Night Assault. Or maybe something dumber. Hero or Hype? Leon’s Street Fight Goes Viral.

I hear my name in a dozen voices, some shocked, some excited. No one’s checking if I’m okay though. No one cares, and I don’t blame them, not when Sana’s here, shaking so subtly it barely shows unless you’re looking.

I am looking.

One officer steps in, clipboard out, tone all business. “What happened here?”

I tilt my head toward the guys on the ground. “They did.”

He gives me a look that tells me it’s not enough, that he wants more. But I’m already giving the cameras a different angle, just enough profile to look sharp, not smug. Another officer crouches beside Sana, softer voice. She doesn’t answer him either. I shift closer, just enough that the gesture reads on camera. Protection, familiarity, maybe something more. She finally moves closer, her shoulder brushes mine again, this time staying there. And that’s all they need. Flash, flash. I hear someone mutter my name like it’s holy, and for a second, everybody was focused on me.

—

The cameras follow us all the way to a barricade the police made in order to secure the scene. Some idiot shoves a mic past the line and it almost clips Sana in the face. I block it with my hand and shoot them a look. They already got what they came for. Girl clinging to my side, blood on my shirt, four bodies on the ground. It’ll go viral before I even make it home.

A cop waves us through like he knows who we are, maybe he does, maybe he just saw enough to not want to slow us down. I nod once and keep Sana close. She’s quiet now, not still terrified quiet, more like all the words got sucked out of her lungs and haven’t come back yet. Her heel catches on a curb and I catch her before she falls. She doesn’t even look up, just mutters something that might be thanks. They pull us aside behind one of the cars and another cop shows up with a pad, asking questions. I give the short version, four guys, I didn’t like the way one of them looked at us, they swung first. He scribbles without looking up, nodding like it checks out. The bodies get loaded into an ambulance.

Sana hasn’t moved from my side, she hasn’t let go either. Her hand’s curled around my jacket like it’s the only thing she can use to balance herself in a world that just shifted under her heels. The officer glances at her. “Miss, did you see what happened?”

She doesn’t answer. Her mouth opens, but nothing comes out, just this low sound like she forgot how to breathe right. He tries again, gentler, still nothing. I watch her face, it’s not blank, it’s too much, everything still happening inside. You can see it behind her eyes, the split-second replay on loop.

“We’ll talk later,” I say. The cop shrugs, maybe he knows better than to push.

Reporters are getting closer and someone’s yelling my name again. A girl tries to push through the line, phone in hand, red light blinking. I turn slightly and block Sana from the angle. She doesn’t notice, or maybe she does and doesn’t care, hard to tell. A few more suits show up, one of them’s definitely management. Not mine. He spots us and jogs over like he’s actually worried. His face does that thing where he tries to look concerned and not furious. Fails.

“Sana. Are you okay?”

She blinks. Doesn’t answer. He tries again, crouches a little to meet her eye. “Can you walk? We have a car waiting.”

Still nothing.

He glances at me. Then at her hand still on my jacket. His jaw tightens. “Leon, thank you for stepping in. We’ll handle it from here.”

Sana flinches. Just barely, but it’s there, and it’s enough. I don’t move.

“She’ll tell me when she wants me to go,” I say. My tone doesn’t change, it doesn’t have to.

The guy hesitates, then backs off. Probably running through all the possible headlines in his head.

Another officer approaches. He looks at me, then at Sana, then at the blood drying on my knuckles. “We’ll need you both to come down to the station tomorrow. Just statements. Routine.”

I nod. “Yeah. Sure.”

He gives a tight smile and leaves, but we’re still not alone. Phones up, flashes still going off behind the line, one guy’s livestreaming. I can hear him narrating. “...she’s not saying anything, but she looks freaked. That’s Sana, right? Holy shit...”

—

I guide her away from the light, the noise. She follows, doesn’t speak, doesn’t stumble either, just walks like the world’s too bright and her body doesn’t know where to hide.

When we hit the corner, out of view, she stops, finally her hand loosens from my jacket. She leans against the wall like her legs gave out, but she’s pretending it’s a choice. I stay close, don’t say anything.

She doesn’t look at me, but she finally speaks up. “Can you...” Her throat works around the words. “Can you stay? Just for a bit?”

I nod. “Yeah.”

She exhales like she’s been holding it in the whole time. Doesn’t say thanks, but she doesn’t need to. I slide down the wall next to her, feeling the cold concrete under me. Sirens still in the distance, phones still out somewhere nearby. Sana stays silent again for a while. She’s staring ahead, breathing a little too shallow, like she’s trying not to fall apart on camera even though there’s none left. I let the silence hang, she’ll talk when she’s ready.

Her voice cracks first. “That was… insane.”

“Yeah.” I wipe my lip again, still bleeding, or maybe I just keep reopening it. “Not quite the night I had in mind.”

She finally looks over, eyes a little less wide now, less glassy. “You’re bleeding.”

“No shit.”

She almost smiles, but it dies before it fully gets there. “You could’ve gotten killed.”

“Sorry to disappoint you.”

That earns me a small chuckle, but air catches in her throat like she doesn’t know if she’s allowed to find anything funny yet. Then she looks down at her hands like they’re not attached to her, nails dug into her palms so tight I’m surprised she’s not bleeding too.

“I really thought I was gonna—” She cuts herself off. Swallows. “You know.”

I don’t reply to that one. No need. She knows. I know.

The sirens have mostly stopped, just distant flashes now, the crowd moved on to whatever version of the story their friends will find the most interesting. Someone’s already writing their thread, I can feel it.

She wipes under her eyes, quick, like she doesn’t want me to see it, still shaking, just less. Her voice drops again. “You were... really fast back there.”

I shrug. “Adrenaline’s a hell of a drug.”

She stares at me for a second, then she leans her head back against the wall, finally letting herself breathe. “I mean it. You saved my life.”

I glance over. “Don’t make it weird.���

That gets a real laugh out of her. She closes her eyes for a second, just sitting there, like her body’s finally caught up to the fact that she’s safe.

When she opens them again, her voice is lighter, not fully back to normal, but getting there. “You’re kind of an asshole, you know that?”

“Old news.”

She turns her head, rests it against the wall so she’s looking at me sideways. “Still, thanks. Most people would’ve run.”

“Yeah.” I glance at her. “But then I wouldn’t get all the attention.”

She huffs out something and snorts. “You’re unbelievable.”

I flash a smile. “I try.”

The cold air bites a little more now that the adrenaline’s burning out, my ribs are gonna be a problem in the morning. She watches me shift against the wall, her eyes narrow for a second like she’s inspecting something.

“You're in more pain than you're showing.”

“No cameras here,” I say. “I can afford to wince.”

Her expression softens. “Still, you should rest.”

I stay quiet for a while. “What,” I mutter. “You gonna take me home and patch me up? Make me soup or something?”

She doesn’t even blink. “Yeah.”

I stare at her. Waiting for a punchline, a smirk, anything that would tell me she’s joking. There’s nothing.

“You’re serious.”

“Dead serious.”

I stare at her. “You just got jumped by four guys and your first instinct is to invite me over?”

“You’re the one who saved me.”

I exhale through my nose, leaning back against the wall. “You always make decisions this fast or is this just a post-trauma thing?”

She sits up and shifts her weight onto her good heel, the other one’s still cracked from earlier, tilted at a weird angle like it's given up completely. “I don’t really want to be alone right now. That a crime?”

I glance down at her hands, she’s clutching the hem of her jacket, there are little tremors in her fingers she probably thinks I don’t notice. I sigh, finally standing, my ribs immediately reminding me why sitting had been the better option. “Alright. Lead the way.”

—

The streets are quieter now, not empty but less people. Most of the crowd’s dissipated, police are still wrapping up, reporters shoving mics in the faces of whoever looks available. My name’s still getting thrown around in hushed conversations like I just cured cancer or shot someone live on air. Phones keep popping up every few feet we walk, people think they’re being subtle. They’re not.

Her apartment’s not far. A tall building that screams money yet tries to pretend it doesn’t. The kind of place where the lobby smells like fresh flowers even though nobody ever sees them change. The doorman barely raises an eyebrow when he spots us, just nods, like seeing a half-beat-up guy with a girl clinging to him is the most normal thing he’ll witness all week.

Elevator’s empty, thankfully. The second the doors close, she exhales, like she can finally breathe again. I lean against the mirrored wall, watching the numbers climb, and we finally get off the elevator and into her apartment.

“You sure about this?” I ask, keeping my voice low.

She glances over at me, hair falling across her face as she tilts her head. “You’re bleeding on my floor, feels a little late to kick you out now.”

I huff a quiet laugh, more air than sound. “Fair point.”

Her apartment’s exactly what you’d expect from someone like her, minimalist, expensive, but somehow not lived in. Everything’s perfect, neutral colors, oversized windows, some abstract painting on the wall that probably cost more than my last three endorsement checks combined. It’s the kind of place that looks ready for a photoshoot, but not for people.

“Sit,” she says, pointing toward the couch like she’s scolding a dog. “You’re ruining my carpet.”

I drop down onto the edge of the massive sectional, ribs protesting the movement. She disappears into one of the rooms and returns a minute later with a sleek little white box that she tosses onto the coffee table.

A first aid kit.

“Don’t expect a miracle,” she mutters, popping it open and pulling out some antiseptic wipes. “I’m not a nurse.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

She drops to her knees in front of me, carefully inspecting my face like she’s about to grade an art project. “Jesus, Leon.”

“I know. Gorgeous, aren’t I?”

She doesn’t take the bait, just starts cleaning the cut on my lip. The antiseptic burns worse than the punch. I grit my teeth.

“Don’t be a baby,” she says softly, dabbing around the edges. She’s close enough now that I catch the scent of her perfume again. Her fingers are steadier than I expected, but I can feel how tight her shoulders are, still tense from earlier, still running on whatever leftover adrenaline she’s got.

“You’re quiet,” I say after a bit.

She presses her lips together, focused on my knuckles now. “Trying to concentrate.”

“Didn’t realize dabbing a wipe took this much concentration.”

Her eyes flick up. “Do you ever shut up?”

“Not really.”

She huffs something close to a laugh. “Unbelievable.”

She keeps working in silence for a bit. The scrape across my cheekbone, the split at my eyebrow, the raw skin on my knuckles, every time her fingers brush my skin, she slows down like she’s checking if she’s hurting me.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” she says finally, barely above a whisper.

“What, punched them? I thought it was pretty effective.”

“You know what I mean.”

I glance at her, but she’s still focused on my hands, not meeting my eyes. “Would you rather I let them hurt you?”

“That’s not—” she cuts herself off, exhaling hard. “I just… you didn’t have to get hurt for me.”

I let that hang for a beat. “Didn’t exactly think about it.”

She finally looks up, eyes softer now. “Yeah…”

I don’t say anything. There’s nothing to say.

Her hands are still resting lightly on mine, bandage half-finished, but she doesn’t move. Just stays there, kneeling on the floor, like she doesn’t want to break whatever weird moment this is.

I clear my throat. “You done playing doctor yet?”

She smiles. “Almost.”

She pulls the last bandage tight, smooths it down with her thumb. Her hand lingers on mine a second too long. She notices. So do I. Neither of us moves.

“You’re kind of an idiot, you know that?” she says softly.

“Old news.”

She exhales again, finally standing. “Come on. You’re staying here tonight.”

I arch a brow. “What, you need a security blanket?”

“No.” She crosses her arms, but her voice stays light. “I need you where I can keep an eye on you. In case your macho hero thing makes you pass out.”

I smirk. “You just don’t want me walking out and making another scene.”

“That too.”

She walks off toward the hallway, tossing the first aid kit onto the kitchen counter on her way. “Wait here, I’ll get you something to wear.”

I lean back into the couch, watching her disappear down the hallway, and let out a slow breath. My ribs still hurt, my lip still stings, but for the first time tonight, everything feels a little less loud.

She comes back with a shirt and sweatpants that don’t look like they’ve ever been worn. Tags still dangling. Probably bought for a boyfriend that never existed or some stylist’s emergency backup. She tosses them next to me.

“Bathroom’s down the hall, second door.”

I push off the couch, slower than I want to be, my ribs reminding me I’m not as indestructible as I thought. The hallway’s quiet, same soft lighting, same expensive everything. Even the towels folded on the rack look like no one’s ever touched them. When I catch my reflection in the mirror, I barely recognize it for a second. Split lip, cuts along my cheekbone, blood dried into the edge of my hairline. I turn my head, jaw tight, flex my shoulder. Bruises already starting to bloom across my ribs. Nice.

I strip out of my ruined clothes and clean up as best I can. Cold water helps a little, mostly just makes me more aware of how bad everything aches once the adrenaline’s fully gone. I swap into the fresh clothes she gave me — they hang a little loose, but they’re soft, comfortable. Smell like fabric softener and hotel rooms.

When I step back out, she’s already fixed the living room. Coffee table cleared, lights dimmed low, two glasses of water sitting out like she’s trying to pretend we’re normal people winding down after a normal night.

She glances over from the couch and nods once. “Better?”

“It almost doesn’t feel like I got jumped in an alley.”

I sit back down, careful this time. The couch is stupidly soft. The second I lean back into it, my body wants to sink and stay. Sana’s sitting cross-legged across from me now. Barefoot, jacket folded next to her. Her hair’s a little messy, like she finally stopped caring about fixing it. She then watches me for a second, like she’s studying my face all over again.

“You heal fast,” she says.

I shrug. “Occupational hazard.”

She smiles, faint but genuine. “You do this often?”

“Getting beat? Not really.”

She picks up one of the glasses, takes a sip, then stares at it like she forgot it was even there. The silence stretches again, but it’s not heavy this time. It’s tired. Shared.

“You want something stronger?” she asks after a while. “I’ve got wine. Or whiskey.”

“Water’s fine.”

“Lame.”

“Responsibly lame.”

She snorts under her breath. “Suit yourself.”

The quiet comes back, but we both kind of sink into it now. Less tension, more like neither of us really knows what to do next. The adrenaline’s fully burned out, all that’s left is sore muscles and weird feeling humming under the surface. She shifts again, pulling her knees up, arms wrapping around them loosely. The oversized sweater she threw on while I was gone swallows half of her. She looks smaller like that. Not fragile, just… smaller.

Her voice breaks the quiet again. “You ever think about it?”

“About what?”

“Why you do this. All of it.”

I glance at her. She’s not looking at me, just staring across the room like she’s asking the air.

“Be more specific.”

“The career. The cameras. The image. The fact that people are already turning tonight into a headline while we’re sitting here pretending we’re okay.”

I lean my head back against the couch. “Sometimes.”

“And?”

“I have my reasons.”

That gets a little smile out of her, almost bitter. “Same.”

We sit with that for a while. Both of us quietly admitting we’re a little fucked up without having to actually say the words. After a minute, she stretches her legs out across the couch, one foot bumping into my thigh lightly. She doesn’t pull it back. Just leaves it there like it’s normal.

“You’re weirdly good at this,” she says.

“At what?”

“Not making it weird.”

I laugh under my breath. “That’s because it’s already weird.”

“Touché.”

She finally shifts enough to meet my eyes again. There’s still something behind them, something a little cracked from earlier, but it’s fading. She’s finding her footing again.

Another beat passes. “Thanks, by the way.”

I glance at her. “You already said that.”

“I know.” She pauses. “I just mean it.”

I don’t answer. Don’t need to. She already knows.

Her foot taps against my leg once before she shifts back into her little cocoon of oversized sweater and expensive throw pillows. “You tired?” she asks.

“Not really.”

She looks away. “Me neither.”

We both stare ahead for a while longer, the weight of the night settling in around us. Not heavy. Just there. Her eyes drift over me again, slower this time. No more shaky breathing, just that steady hum underneath. Like her nerves have been replaced with something else now.

“You’re staring,” I say.

She shrugs, small. “So?”

I watch her for a second. She’s still tucked into that oversized sweater, hair messy, cheeks a little pink from the heat inside or from everything building up between us, probably both. Her legs shift a little more, stretching out, toes brushing against me again, not subtle this time.

“You flirting with anyone who saves your life?” I ask.

She gives me a small grin. “No. You’re special.”

“Lucky me.”

Her eyes drop down to my mouth for half a second. She catches herself, but not really, just letting it sit there like she wants me to notice.

“You could kiss me, you know,” she says, voice lighter now. Casual. Like it’s something obvious.

I don’t say anything. Just let my hand drift up, settling on her knee. Skin warm under my palm. She doesn’t move. Lets me touch her like she’s been waiting for it.

“You sure?” I say, voice low.

Her eyes stay locked on mine. “Don’t make me say it twice.”

I don’t.

I lean in slow, watching her breathe. She meets me halfway. Soft at first. Warmer than I expected. She tastes like wine and mint and something even sweeter. Her hands slide up to my shoulders, pulling me in like she’s afraid I’ll stop.

I kiss her again, deeper this time. She opens her mouth under mine swiftly, like she’s been waiting all night. My hand moves higher up her thigh, fingertips tracing bare skin under the edge of the sweater. She shifts, hips angling toward me like she’s trying to get closer without making it obvious. I pull back for half a second, catch my breath. She’s already watching me again, breathing a little harder now.

“You good?” I murmur.

She nods quickly. “Yeah.”

I go back in. This time she’s hungrier. Her hands slide up into my hair, nails scratching lightly against my scalp, pulling me in deeper. Her breath hitches when my hand slips under the hem fully now, palm resting on her hip.

She moves into me without thinking, pressing her body up against mine. Her knee brushes higher against my leg, grinding against me once. Just enough to let me know she’s there. She breathes against my mouth, voice softer now. “You feel good.”

“So do you,” I mutter back, fingers moving up her side, finding bare skin under the sweater. No bra. Of fucking course. My thumb brushes under the curve of her breast, testing the softness, and her breath catches again. Her head drops back a little as I slide my palm up, cupping her breast fully now. Warm, soft, perfect in my hand. Her nipple’s already hard under my thumb, and she shivers when I roll it gently.

“Fuck—” she whispers, breath shaky.

I press my lips to her neck, kissing along her skin, feeling her pulse under my mouth. She tilts her head. Gives me more room. My hand slides down again, lower this time. I feel her body tense, not nervous, just expecting. Fingers slip under the band of her shorts now. Skin hot, smooth. I move slower here, letting her feel every inch of my hand moving lower until my fingers find the heat between her legs.

She’s already wet. Really fucking wet.

My breath catches against her throat. “Jesus, Sana.”

Her voice breaks. “Been like that.”

I press against her slowly, fingers moving in small, steady circles over her clit through the soaked fabric of her panties. Her hips twitch at the first touch. Her hands clench in my shirt, pulling tighter.

“Fuck,” she gasps, rocking her hips up into my hand, chasing the pressure.

I don’t rush. Just keep it steady, slow circles while she breathes harder against me. Her face presses into my neck, little whimpers slipping out with every shift of my fingers.

“You’re not even trying to pretend you don’t want this,” I whisper against her ear.

“Why would I?” she breathes, voice breaking. “Just don’t fucking stop.”

Her hips grind harder against my hand now, chasing the friction. I slide my fingers inside the soaked fabric finally, skin on skin, feeling how warm and wet she is. She gasps loud against my neck, her body twitching under my touch.

“Fuck, you’re soaked,” I groan into her hair.

She nods fast, too breathless to speak. My fingers rub slow, spreading her open, feeling every slick inch of her. She’s grinding up against my hand now, little desperate sounds slipping from her mouth with every slow circle I draw.

Her voice breaks against my neck. “I’ve been thinking about this all night.”

“Yeah?” My voice is rough now. “You wanted me to touch you like this?”

She nods again, gasping. “Yes. Please—”

I press my thumb harder against her clit, my fingers dipping inside, curling gently. She lets out a sharp gasp, her hips bucking up to meet me. “God, Leon—” she chokes out.

I kiss her again, swallowing her moan while my hand keeps moving. Her whole body’s shaking now, her thighs trembling around my wrist.

Her breath catches. “Fuck— don’t stop, don’t stop—”

“Not stoping,” I whisper against her lips, fingers still working her, feeling her tighten around me as her body starts to get hotter and wetter. Her legs are shaking like crazy now, thighs twitching every time my fingers hit the spot. She’s got one hand in my hair, the other gripping the couch cushion like she’s holding on for dear life. Breath’s all chopped up, mouth open, but the words barely come out right.

“Fuck—Leon—”

She’s close. Stupidly close. You can feel it in how tight she’s clenching around my fingers, how her hips keep jerking up, trying to grind harder against my hand like she’s chasing it.

I pull my hand back. Just enough.

Her head snaps up, eyes wild. “Don’t you fucking dare.”

I blink, like I don’t know what she’s talking about. “Don’t what?”

Her chest heaves. “You know.”

I smirk a little. “Relax.”

She glares at me, but it’s useless — she’s a wreck. Hair all messed up, sweater falling off one shoulder, legs spread wide open, all dripping and shaky and desperate. She looks so goddamn hot like this. I shift down without saying anything, both hands sliding under her thighs, dragging her hips closer to the edge of the couch. She makes this tiny breathy noise when I lower my head between her legs, like she’s already breaking before I even touch her.

“Leon—” soft, high, breathy.

“Shh.”

I start slow. Kiss her inner thigh first. Then again, closer. She lets out this shaky exhale, hips twitching. By the time my mouth hits her, she lets out a small gasp, like her whole body short-circuits for a second. I lick up slow, teasing, barely pressing at first. She squirms, fingers tightening in my hair. The second time, I press harder, tongue flicking over her clit, and her whole body jolts.

“Fuck—oh my god—” it comes out all broken, high-pitched.

I pin her hips down, keep her still, my tongue working slow circles now, steady, just enough pressure to have her breathing all messed up again. She’s shaking under me, little gasps turning into full-on moans.

“Leon, don’t stop,” she whispers, voice cracking.

I keep at it, pushing my tongue flat against her, sucking lightly, then switching it up, licking faster, deeper. She’s fucking dripping now. I slide two fingers back inside her while my mouth stays locked on her clit. She lets out a loud cry, hips jerking hard.

Her thighs try to close around my head but I shove them back open. “Keep them open,” I mutter into her, voice low and vibrating right against where she’s falling apart.

She moans again, louder this time. “Fuck, I—Leon—”

Her whole body tightens up. I feel it hit before she even makes a sound — muscles locking, her breath catching in her throat like she forgot how to breathe. Then it breaks loose. She lets out this raw, fucked up cry, back arching off the couch as she comes hard, legs shaking, fingers pulling at my hair like she’s trying to ground herself.

I don’t stop. I keep my mouth on her, working her through it while she gasps and whimpers, hips twitching with every aftershock. She’s trembling all over, voice breaking into little shaky noises she probably doesn’t even realize she’s making. When I finally pull back, my chin’s wet, and she’s completely wrecked. Sweater bunched up, hair sticking to her face, chest still rising and falling like she ran a marathon.

I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand and look up at her. “You alive?”

She lets out this breathless, fucked little laugh. “Barely.”

Her voice is somehow soft and rough at the same time, but she’s smiling now. I move back up, hovering over her. My hand cups her jaw, thumb brushing across her lip.

“You still want more?” My voice comes out lower than I mean it to.

She doesn’t answer right away. Just stares up at me, breathing all shaky, pupils blown wide. Then she nods. Her fingers hook into my shirt, tugging me closer until our faces are inches apart. Her voice is soft, but there’s that little spark behind it again. “Let me take care of you.”

I blink, watching her. “You sure?”

She bites her lip, eyes never leaving mine. “Yeah.”

Her hand moves down, tracing over my chest, stomach, slower than she needs to. She’s buying time, steadying herself. When she reaches the waistband of my sweatpants, her fingers slip under. Light, barely there. I suck in a breath, feeling my cock already straining against the fabric.

“Sit back,” she murmurs.

I shift off her, leaning into the couch, legs spread a little wider. She sits up slowly, still kind of unsteady from earlier, but focused now. Focused on me. Her fingers tug the sweatpants down, slow and careful. She exhales when she frees me, lip caught between her teeth. The second she sees how hard I am for her, her face flushes a little darker.

“Fuck…” she whispers. “You’ve been like this this whole time?”

I grin, voice rough. “Hard not to be.”

She lets out this breathy little laugh, slowly kneeling between my legs, hair falling into her face a bit, hands bracing herself on my thighs. She leans in, mouth hovering just above me, breath ghosting across my skin. Her hand wraps around the base, squeezing gently, thumb rubbing along the vein.

Her eyes flick up to mine — teasing. “Still feeling okay?”

I huff. “Sana.”

She smirks, satisfied, then lowers her head, tongue flicking out for the first slow lick, base to tip. My whole body tenses instantly. The sound that comes out of me is closer to a growl.

“Jesus—”

She hums against me, like she’s proud of herself, before wrapping her lips around the head, tongue circling, wet and warm and perfect. She keeps her eyes locked on me as she does it. That part’s deliberate. She knows exactly how much it drives me insane when she looks up like that. Her mouth slides lower, slow at first, taking more of me in with each movement. I feel her tongue working underneath, swirling around the shaft as she moves. The wet sounds echo a little too loud in the quiet apartment, her soft breathing mixing with the slick slide of her mouth. I exhale hard, one hand sliding into her hair automatically. She doesn’t fight it, just lets me guide her, pace picking up as she gets more comfortable.

Her other hand joins in, stroking the part she can’t fit, perfectly syncing with the rhythm of her mouth. Every few strokes, she pulls back just far enough to swirl her tongue around the head again, licking up the precum before sliding back down.

I groan, hips twitching. “Fuck, Sana…”

She smiles around me, like she enjoys hearing that, then pushes down deeper, throat tightening slightly as she takes me further in. My fingers tighten in her hair, not pulling, just holding. Her breathing grows heavier, little hums vibrating through me as she works. She starts bobbing her head faster now, messier, spit gathering at the corners of her mouth, stringing thin lines whenever she pulls back. Her hand never stops moving on me, stroking in time with each motion.

“Shit—” My voice breaks a little. “You’re gonna make me—”

She pulls back suddenly, letting me slip out with a wet pop, a thin line of saliva still connecting us. Her chest is rising fast, lips swollen, chin slick.

Her voice comes out breathless, teasing. “Not yet.”

I let out a sharp laugh, biting back a groan. “You’re fucking evil.”

“Mm.” She grins, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. “Just a little bit.”

She leans back in again, this time slower, licking along my length like she’s savoring it, like she’s not in a rush. Her eyes half-lidded now, looking up at me like she knows she owns me in this moment. My whole body’s wired tight, stomach clenching every time she goes back down, taking me in deeper. Her tongue works in slow circles again, lips sealing tight, cheeks hollowing just enough. I let my head fall back for a second, breathing hard, fingers still buried in her hair, guiding her as she keeps the rhythm steady. She moans softly around me, sending vibrations straight up my spine. I can feel myself getting closer again, and I know she feels it too — the way my hips jerk slightly, how my breath keeps stuttering.

She pulls off again, this time panting a little herself, eyes glazed but locked on mine.

“You close?” she asks, voice low, rough.

I nod, throat too dry to say much.

She smiles. “Good. Because I’m not stopping this time.”

And then she’s back down on me, faster now, more desperate, both hands gripping my thighs to keep steady as she bobs her head, sucking hard, messy and wet and fucking perfect. My hand tightens, and I feel it building sharp and fast this time. My whole body locking up as the pressure snaps.

“Fuck, Sana—” I groan, spilling deep into her mouth as she takes it all, swallowing without hesitation, hands gripping tighter like she’s holding me in place until I finish. She doesn’t pull back until I’m completely spent, breathing hard, chest rising fast. She finally releases me with another soft pop, wiping her mouth again, eyes a little dazed, lips shiny and swollen.

She sits back on her heels, staring up at me with that smug little smile, voice still breathy. “Told you I’d take care of you.”

I let out a shaky laugh, chest still heaving. “Yeah. You fucking did.”

She crawls up, still shaky, but cocky enough to pretend she’s not. Hands slide up my chest, nails grazing just a little. That look’s back in her eye, like she’s proud of herself and she wants me to know it. “You good?” she whispers.

I laugh under my breath, voice still fucked. “Yeah. You?”

She shrugs as if her legs aren’t trembling. “Obviously.”

Then she swings a leg over, straddling me, settling right on top of my lap like she’s been waiting all night for this. Probably has. The sweater rides up high on her thighs, and the panties? Already soaking wet. She’s not even trying to hide it. She knows I’m looking and she wants me to.

“You sure you’re up for more?” she says, but she’s already grinding.

“Yeah. Don’t play dumb.”

She grins, biting her lip, rolling her hips once, dragging herself right over me. I grab her waist, squeezing tight to make her stop. Not because I don’t like how it feels — because if she keeps doing that I won’t last.

“You keep grinding like that, you’re not gonna get round two.”

“That a threat?” She says it soft, but her voice is all breath, like she’s barely keeping it together.

I pull her down, lips crashing again, messy, tongues fighting for space. It’s hot, wet, desperate. Her hips roll once more and I groan into her mouth. I can feel her grinning against my lips, smug little shit. I pull back just enough to breathe. “Lose the panties.”

She’s already halfway there before I finish the sentence. Hips up, fingers hooked in, dragging them down her thighs and slinging them. They hit the floor behind her, then she drops back onto me, no barriers now. The heat of her pussy is right against me, shivering a little, and it’s not because she’s cold. “Fuck,” she whispers.

“Yeah.” My hand slides between us, guiding myself against her, the tip sliding along her folds, slick and warm and ready. She twitches under me, already desperate for it.

“You ready?” I murmur.

Her voice breaks. “I’ve been ready.”

I push in slow, feeling every inch disappear into her. She gasps, hands gripping my shoulders, nails digging in. She sinks all the way down, seating herself fully on my lap, breath catching. “Jesus,” she whispers.

My hands slide up under the sweater, gripping her back. “Look at you.” She rolls her hips, just slightly and I’m already breathing heavy. “You feel fucking perfect.”

Her pace starts slow, hips grinding in tight circles, drawing herself up a little and dropping back down. Every time she sinks back down it knocks the breath out of me. She’s biting her lip, trying to play it cool, but her thighs are already shaking. “Fuck—you’re deep,” she gasps.

I huff, voice rough. “You wanted it.”

She leans in closer, forehead pressed to mine. “Shut up.”

Her hips pick up, faster now, slamming down harder, slapping sounds filling the room. Skin on skin, wet and filthy. She’s moaning under her breath with every drop, breaths becoming quicker, losing her rhythm a little. Her voice starts breaking. “Leon—oh my god—fuck—I’m close—”

I slam my hips up into her, one good thrust, and her whole body jolts, almost folds right into me.

She gasps. “Shit—Leon, I—”

I catch her hips and freeze her in place. She whines. An actual, desperate, fucking whine.

“Not yet,” I growl.

She’s breathing so fast now, her hands push at my chest, but not to get away — she just wants to move, but I don’t let her. Her voice is wrecked. “Leon—please—just—”

I shift under her, breathing heavy into her ear. “Turn around. On your stomach.”

For a second she doesn’t move. Just stares at me like she can’t believe I’m making her wait. Then she exhales hard, eyes glazed over, and does it. Climbs off with shaky legs, drops onto the couch face down, ass up. She spreads her legs like she knows exactly what I’ll do next. I stay sitting for a second, just staring at her. Sweater bunched up, hair a mess, her ass high, pussy dripping for me. I drag my hand down her back, over her ass, thumb brushing the slickness between her thighs.

“Look at you,” I murmur.

Her breath shudders. “Just fuck me already.”

Now we’re getting somewhere. I shift up behind her, one hand gripping her hip, the other pressing between her shoulder blades, easing her down into the cushions. Ass high, legs spread, face buried. The view's fucking unreal. She looks back at me, breathless but still wearing that little smirk like she’s running this. "Don’t take too long or I might get bored."

Mouthy even now.

I grin, voice low. "Yeah?"

I drag the tip through her folds, slow, lazy, letting it glide through the slick mess she’s made. She tries to push back, hips wiggling, but I hold her firm, making her wait, making her feel it. The second I press in, she lets out this sharp little breath, head dropping, hair falling across her face as I start filling her slow, inch by inch. Her pussy is tight, hot, squeezing like her body’s starving for it.

"You’re fucking soaked," I breathe as I bottom out, buried to the hilt. She gasps, knuckles whitening on the cushions, voice shaky but still trying to stay sharp. “You should take some credit for that.”

I pull back and slam into her hard, the slap of skin loud in the room. She jerks forward with a choked moan, biting her lip like that’ll help. My hand fists in her hair, yanking her head back just enough to arch her for me, breath stuttering out with every brutal thrust. "Where’s that smart mouth now, huh?" I growl, driving into her rough, setting a rhythm that makes her body jolt under me.

Her breath catches, but the mouth keeps running. "Still here," she pants. "You’re just making it… harder to use."

Her voice cracks on the last word when I hit that perfect spot that makes her legs twitch. My grip on her hips tightens, fingers digging in, holding her steady as I keep slamming into her, wet sounds filling the air with every thrust. She’s trying to hold it in, but I feel her clenching tighter, her body shaking, already starting to fall apart.

"Leon—fuck—" she gasps, her voice breaking when I drive in deep again. "I—I’m—"

I can feel it, the way she’s locking up around me, the desperate little cries slipping out of her with every thrust. I keep hammering into her, forcing her to take it, her orgasm ripping through her sharp and messy, thighs trembling, breath hitching, whole body seizing up under me as she cums hard. Her moans turn sloppy, breathless, breaking apart with every slam of my hips. I don’t stop. I ride her through it, fucking her straight through the shaking, through the aftershocks, keeping my pace brutal as her body twitches around me.

"That’s it," I growl, voice rough. "Take it all."

She’s wrecked now, voice reduced to breathy little whimpers, hands clutching at the cushions like she’s trying to ground herself. Her whole body’s shaking under me, legs barely holding her up. The pressure’s boiling in me too, fuck she’s tight. I yank her hair again, making her arch harder. She’s flushed, chest heaving, hair a mess sticking to her sweaty face, I’m right fucking there, but I’m not done yet, not like this.

I pull out, fast. She lets out a desperate, broken whine, clenching around nothing, body twitching as I leave her empty.

“W-Why’d you stop—” she manages, voice wrecked.

I flip her onto her back before she can finish, pinning her under me. She looks so fucking hot—flushed, breathing hard, hair all over the place—but still has that spark in her eyes. That fire’s still there, even like this. I grab her jaw, thumb pressing her lower lip down as I hover over her. "You still want more?"

She grins through the haze, biting lightly at my thumb. "If you’re not too busy being dramatic, yeah."

I drag my cock across her lips, still slick from her pussy, then I tap it against her mouth. “Open.”

Her lips part right away, tongue out, waiting, filthy and eager like she’s been craving this part. She wraps her lips around the tip instantly, sucking hard like she’s starving for it, tongue swirling, cheeks hollowing around me. Spit’s already pooling at the corners of her mouth, dripping down her chin. She moans around me, sending vibrations straight up my spine as I sink deeper into her throat.

She takes me like she wants it messy, sloppy sounds echoing in the room as she works her mouth around me. My fist clenches in her hair, guiding her, setting the rhythm as I start thrusting into her mouth, fucking into her throat slow at first, then faster, making her eyes flutter. Gagging, drooling, but not stopping. Her breath stutters through her nose, but she takes every inch like it’s her last meal. Her hands come up, clutching at my thighs for balance as I fuck her mouth deeper, rougher. Her spit’s everywhere now, glistening on her chin, down her throat, strings of it connecting us when I pull back slightly.

She gasps for breath, voice ragged but still cocky. “You’re making a mess.”

I shove back in, cutting her off, voice sharp. "That’s the point."

Her throat works to take me, gagging again as I push past her limits, fucking into her like her mouth owes me something. She moans again, those desperate little sounds spilling out between gags, eyes glassy but locked on mine like she’s daring me to push harder. When I finally pull out, she gasps for air, spit glistening everywhere, chest heaving like she’s barely holding it together. She wipes her mouth with the back of her hand but keeps the smirk. “Get back inside me,” she breathes, voice wrecked but sharp. “Finish what you started.”

I don’t make her ask twice. I flip her back over, dragging her hips up again, and slam into her in one brutal thrust that knocks the air from both of us. Her cry rips out raw, and I don’t hold back. My hips slam into her, driving deep and rough right from the start, setting a punishing rhythm that leaves both of us breathless.

Her voice is breaking, nothing but broken moans now, breathy and high, hips jerking against me, thighs trembling. “Leon—fuck—yes—don’t stop—”

I’m right there, breath catching, every thrust getting sloppier, heavier, my groans rough in my throat as I chase that edge. Her body tightens up under me again, spasming, clenching like she’s ready to lose it all over again.

"Gonna fill you up, baby," I growl through gritted teeth, slamming deep. "Fuck—"

Her head throws back, voice wrecked. "Do it—please—just fucking do it—"

That’s it. My whole body locks up, slamming deep one last time as I cum hard, cock pulsing inside her, spilling deep. My groan breaks out rough, shaking through me as I hold her hips tight, grinding into her as I ride out every last spasm. She shakes beneath me, twitching, breathless, completely fucking ruined. I collapse over her, both of us panting, skin sticky with sweat, her body still twitching around me as I stay buried inside.

—

The room's quiet except for our breathing, both of us wrecked, tangled together in the mess we made. We stay like that for a while, her head resting against my stomach, one arm lazily draped across my thigh, breathing starting to slow but still not all the way down. My chest’s rising too fast, legs feel shot, one hand drifting through her hair, not even thinking about it, just moving.

Her lips are parted a little, swollen, wet where she’s still catching her breath. Her cheeks flushed all the way up, that pretty post-fuck glow fits her so well. There’s that small grin playing at the corner of her mouth, like she’s pleased with herself. She should be. She drained me, fully and completely, and she knows it. She shifts a bit, curling in closer, her cheek pressing against my thigh now. “You alive?” she mumbles, voice rough, half muffled into my skin.

I exhale something close to a laugh, fingers still combing slow through her hair. “Barely.”

“Good.” Her voice stays soft, but I can hear the smug underneath it. “You deserved it.”

I let the silence answer that one, not even pretending to argue. My brain’s still fuzzy, everything warm and heavy, like my body’s floating but too heavy to move. She finally lifts her head, blinking up at me, hair sticking in random directions, eyes glassy but sharp under the mess. “You look like hell.”

I glance down at her, mouth twitching. “You don’t look so put together yourself.”

She grins wider. “Please. I’m glowing.”

Her hand slides up slowly, resting flat against my stomach, fingers drawing lazy circles over my skin like she’s not even aware she’s doing it. I feel my abs twitch under her touch but don’t stop her. She keeps tracing slow patterns, like she’s grounding herself with every little circle.

“You good?” she asks, her voice dipping just slightly, not all teasing this time.

I tilt my head back, eyes half-lidding. “Yeah. You?”

She doesn’t answer right away, but the way she shifts even closer kind of says it for her. Her body molding into mine like we fit like this, warm skin pressed everywhere, breathing synced up again. For a while, neither of us says anything. Just the quiet hum of the room, the faint noise of the city outside, distant cars, maybe a siren somewhere blocks down. But here it’s calm, cozy even. She fits perfectly tucked under my arm like this.

“You know tomorrow’s gonna be a circus, right?” she says after a bit, voice muffled into my chest.

I sigh, hand drifting over her back, slow. “It already is.”

“They probably posted a hundred clips of tonight already.”

“Thousands.”

She groans softly. “I’m gonna have to listen to my manager’s meltdown for a full week.”

I smirk, thumb brushing her spine. “Tell him to get in line.”

Her body shakes a little as she laughs into my skin. “They’re gonna turn me into some fragile girl.”

I snort. “Right. The poor Sana, completely helpless.”

She pinches my side lightly. “Shut up.”

“Just saying.”

Her voice drops softer again. “I hate that shit. Like I’m some victim that needs to be saved.”

“Then stop clinging to me like one.”

She smacks me gently without even pulling her head up. “Asshole.”

I grin. “Love you too.”

Her breathing slows again. She’s fighting sleep now, but her body’s too comfortable to move. Her leg’s still draped over mine, fingers still tracing absent little shapes across my stomach.

Another beat of silence.

“You’re staying,” she says, quiet now.

I run my hand through her hair again, fingers sliding through the mess, catching the strands gently. “You already said that.”

“Just making sure.”

Her eyes are closed now. I feel her lips brush lightly against my skin once before she fully settles, curling into me like we’ve done this a hundred times before. The weight of the night sinks in fully. The blood, the fight, the adrenaline crash. The weird, unexpected calm afterward. All of it sitting somewhere in the air between us. But even then, it felt weirdly peaceful. And for the first time all night, it’s actually quiet.

—

She’s out cold.

Didn’t even flinch when I shifted off the bed. Just breathing softly, mouth a little open, hair half stuck to her cheek like she’d melted into the pillow the second her body let go. I stand there for a bit, watching her chest rise and fall. She looks small like this, safe. Like none of what happened tonight even affected her. Like there wasn’t four guys in a fucking alley two hours ago trying to tear her apart.

I grab my phone off the nightstand, screen lighting up in the dark. Two texts waiting. One from Karina—work shit, nothing that can’t wait. The other’s from him.

‘Did you really have to go that far?’

I sit down on the edge of the bed again, thumb hovering for a second. The apartment’s dead silent except for the hum of city traffic leaking in through the glass. Sirens in the distance, maybe leftovers from earlier, probably reporters still sniffing around. This one’s gonna be everywhere tomorrow, I can already hear the headlines spinning.

The phone buzzes again.

‘Four of my guys got picked up.’

I let the air leave slow through my teeth. My ribs pinch when I lean forward, the adrenaline from the sex gone now. Elbows on my knees, fingers dragging down my face like that’ll scrub any of this off. I stare at the screen for a while. Not angry, not anything really, just tired.

I finally type:

‘You knew what the job was.’

I barely finish sending the message before the dots start dancing again.

‘They weren’t supposed to end up in cuffs. It was just a scare, you didn’t have to lay into them like that.’

My eyes flick toward Sana again. She hasn’t moved, still curled up under that stupidly expensive throw blanket. Knuckles twitch a little in her sleep like she’s dreaming something light, like tonight wasn’t real. I stare at her for a long second, then type:

‘They weren’t supposed to touch her.’

He takes longer this time. The dots blink, disappear. Then:

‘This one’s gonna cost you.’

I lean back against the headboard, let my head tip back and close my eyes. Everything fucking hurts. My thumb floats for a second longer before I finally send:

‘I know.’

[icesapphireserpent]

Ford’s POV here

My parents love survivor so over Father’s Day we were watching it. Now all I can think is how stupid good Stanley would be at it?

Just modern Stanley watching reality tv when motels have it available. Endurer is his favorite. He loves the drama and calling out liars while he’s chugging cheap beer. He likes the host David and that he doesn’t put up with bullshit. The episodes where the loved ones show up are… he usually changes the channel if it’s that one. Unless he’s already hammered. Then he blubs like a baby. It’s one of those nights he sends an application to the show. He’s a little too honest about why he needs a million dollars. Figured a sob story like getting back to family might help. It’s not like they’d ever pick him with his records. But he gets a call three weeks later.

Stan is ecstatic. A warm beach? Constant swimming in the sea? Paradise. Sure there’s not a lot of food, but when is there ever? Changes pretty quickly when they win fishing line. Finally gets to put those sailor skills from high school to use. And Stanley is used to being chummy with people who have it out for him.

It’s not easy. Stanley tries to stay unseen both not too good or too bad. But Stan’s a big personality and on a tribe specifically picked out of the ruthless contestants. Yeah.. he should have been less charismatic in the interviews leading up to this. Should have held off on going so hard on the social aspects of the game but it’s so damn easy! Plus that one guy was pretty hot Stan had to kiss him before the alliance voted him off.

Might be why he was on the chopping block the next time. But Stan couldn’t help flaunting a little. He’s never been good at anything, much less a game (without cheating or card counting). It really was dumb luck he saw the immunity idol in Rick’s bag. Can’t believe that idiot didn’t even plan to bring it to the tribal council.

So Stan makes it to the merger. He makes it to the final five. He can taste that $1 million. And sure Pa wanted millions plural but it should be enough to get Ford as many Master’s and Doctorates at that stupid fancy school he always wanted. But all that hope dries up the next morning.

He’s first awake but Bianca is the one who finds the note for the Endurers. She makes him go wake everybody up so she can read dramatically to the group.

“For weeks you’ve called this island your home

Now we’ll make it so you are not alone~!”

She gasps and Stan’s heart sinks. Fuck. He’s not gonna have anybody.

“Todays challenge comes in pairs

So someone comes to make it fair!”

Who writes this crap anyway?

And despite everything the group picks up on Stan’s mood change. He tells the group he’s fine he tells the camera in an aside he had fun while this lasted.

They make it to the challenge area and one by one everyone gets some body. A parent, a kid, hell Bianca was family-less but her girlfriend showed!

Stanley’s alone.

To rub salt in the wound David walks over to him. “Now Stan you said that you didn’t have anybody.”

“Yeah. You gonna be my pity partner?” It doesn’t get the laugh he wants.

“As much as I’d love to I don’t think your brother would appreciate that.”

Holy shit Shermie? He has a bunch of kids to look after.

But it’s not. It’s FORD. Ford is walking across the sand. Stan doesn’t even realize he’s running until he full body tackles Ford.

“I’m still fucking pissed at you.” Ford hissed.

“Well you can be pissed once I get you that million dollars.” Stan promised.

“…what?”

It’s then that David confirms that the loved ones are here to stay.

Ford as buff as he is now is not good at lying. Ford has also never seen the show.

The rest of the show is Stan and Ford fighting and hijinks-ing their way through the game.

[bujnik]

8:57am

This house we’re staying in with our in laws is a multigenerational family home with common areas. Other family members live in the house directly next door and behind. Our bedroom, bathroom, and a little hallway are our private area and it’s honestly perfect.

Our hosts are an eccentric uncle who restores classic boats. But staying for the summer are a bunch of retired relatives like Mike’s parents. Everyone is nice but again, only speaking in Swedish.

The house is grand with dated, hodge podge renovated rooms and very 70s style fireplaces. The layout is crazy, like a house in your dreams that’s vaguely familiar but you keep finding new doors and rooms.

I got lost looking for the laundry room, was told it was “through the office” but it turned out I was supposed to go back to the outside through the office and then downstairs to the basement. Instead I opened the only other door and found a fucking pool? Like a massively deep inside pool with foreboding dark tiles and a sitting area covered in sheets. The family only goes down there to use the sauna but they rent out the pool for people on the island to do physical therapy and test diving equipment?! I have been strongly hinting I would like to go swim and everyone just seems confused as to why. I can’t exactly say “because this pool is creepy af and the vibes are immaculate”.

So far we have gone out to eat, antiquing, and to a historical site. Drove through another, smaller island that the people of this island like to make fun of. Went to a mall which was very fancy! But to them that’s the standard. The bathroom was nicer than the fanciest hotel I’ve ever stayed at in. I seriously took a picture.

Everything is cheap as hell. A very nice meal is $15, I got a lovely vase at a Pier 1 type store and it was $6, a nice sheet set was $22. Groceries! The groceries are prices like I remember in the 90s. $1.50 for milk, a loaf of bread for .90! It’s unbelievable. The exchange rate is $1 for every 10 Swedish dollars so it’s easy enough to see something that’s 39kr and know that’s $3.90.

[chososwifey24-7]

Hey everyone! Here's another story that I thought of. I also just thought I'd let everyone know that I will try to upload a story or cute little oneshot daily. Feel free to ask for a oneshot if you have suggestions!

Dare...

Frat boy suguru x f!reader

Also, just for this alternate universe, there is no jujustu sorcery, and all of the boys fall under the same age ish. This would obviously also be a college au.

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT!

Synopsis: At yet another one of the silly parties, saturo gojo hosts, suguru was found stuck in a game of truth or dare. The dare? Make you fall in love with him and bed you by the end of the night.

Cw: NSFW, MDNI, smut, pv penetration, consensual sex, praise, missionary, slight size difference, fem! Reader, fingering, tit sucking, cum, protection, angst to fluff, pet names (pretty girl).

Let me know if I missed anything. Besides that, enjoy!

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The music was loud, too loud. The beer, weed, and other kinds of drugs and alcohol really made the place smell like shit.

Suguru was slightly buzzed from the weed. He wouldn't even try to touch the beer. It tasted cheap and disgusting.

Satoru was beaming and chatting it up with everyone he knew, the life of the party indeed. That was Gojo.

Nanami sat in the corner and didn't really talk with anybody. To be honest, he only joined the frat to get Gojo to leave him alone.

Toji had been betting with people that he could beat them in arm wrestling competitions and who could chug a beer the quickest. He was making bank, but knowing him, he'd go and blow all the next day.

Then there was Sukuna and Choso. They conversed between each other. Suguru couldn't quite remember at the moment how they knew each other so well. Distant relatives, or something like that.

Suguru laid his head back on the couch, wanting nothing more than this party to be over. He had a pounding headache and was absolutely exhausted. He looked at the clock on the wall. 10:30 p.m. this party was just getting started.

Knowing Gojo, he'd keep it going to midnight or to 1 in the morning, and if the cops showed up, no big deal! He knew how to talk himself out of any situation. Suguru just didn't want to deal with the officers, again.

Sugure felt the cushion next to him dip a little as the frat boys began to all sit in a circle with him. It was then that Satoru slung his arm around Suguru.

"Let's spice things up a bit between us, shall we? I've had enough chit chatting. Let's play some truth or dare."

Gojo suggested with a playful tone as he observed the reactions of the boys around them. To his surprise, everyone agreed. Even Suguru.

The game went back and forth, Suguru ended up having to drink, and Nanami was forced to remove his glasses and let Gojo wear them. Nanami wasn't very happy about that one.

Until finally Sukuna smirked and looked at Suguru.

"Truth or dare?"

He asked. His voice came out in a low rumble. Almost antagonizingly so.

"Dare. You should know this by now, Sukuna."

Sukuna let out a low chuckle at his response. He thought for a moment as he looked around the room. Sukuna's eyes met your timid form, next to your supposed best friend, who now just walked away with her boy toy of the night.

He smirked and looked back at Suguru.

"I dare you to fuck her by the end of the night, and make her fall for you by the next day, if you don't, you owe all of us 20 dollars. Deal?"

Suguru seemed appalled at sukuna's suggestion, but he'd already chickened out of one dare before that. He couldn't chicken out again, and he didn't necessarily want to pay all of them 20 dollars each.

He sighed and flipped Sukuna off, which Sukuna just shrugged and chuckled at. Suguru really didn't want to play with anyone's feelings, even yours, but a dare was a dare.

Suguru stood and began to make his way over to your timid form. The party almost looked like it overwhelmed you, you poor thing. As he got closer, he gently put a hand on your shoulder and looked you in the eyes with a smile.

"Hey, I'm Suguru Geto, and who might you be?"

His voice was soft and reassuring in the crowd of raving college students. You raised your voice a bit so that Suguru could hear you.

"I'm y/n. It's nice to meet you Suguru."

Suguru chuckled at the slight raise in her voice and tried to usher her out of the corner she was in to take her into the less crowded back yard.

"Sorry, it's a little loud in here. Let's go somewhere we can talk better."

You nodded and followed Suguru. You had heard all about him. The tall, dark-haired, sexy, kind man who joined the fraternity for his best friend. He seemed nice enough to be around. He seemed that way.

"It's nice to meet you too y/n, sorry it's quite the ruckus in their. Satoru really knows how to throw a party."

He chuckled and eyed you up and down. The little black dress that your friend had picked out for you rode up your thighs each time you took a step, and with each step, you tried to shimy it back down.

"He sure does."

You laughed back, then silence overcame the two of you. You weren't entirely extroverted. You only truly liked talking to those you knew. Suguru was about the same way, that's why he had Datoru around to do all the talking.

"So, I saw you were in my calculus class. Been pretty interested in you for a while."

He said and watched your face to see your reaction. That's what Suguru knew how to do best. Watch reactions. He was an observer, not a talker.

"Oh yeah! I've seen you in the back with Satoru. The teacher doesn't seem to like you two too much."

You giggled. You completely skipped over his previous statement. Was he interested in you? You must've heard wrong. So glazing over it was the best idea.

Suguru noticed your attempt to ignore his previous statement, so jntead he just goes along with what your talking about.

"Huh? No way, it's definitely Satoru he doesn't like that much. All he does is chatter. I can't control him, he's like a tornado."

You laugh at Suguru placing a good chunk of the blame on Satoru before you look up into his eyes. Those sweet purple eyes, hus hair pulled so nicely into a bun, one strand of hair just dangling on the side of his face.

You have an urge to brush it to the side of his face, but ignore it.

That's what leads you to his lips. They have a slight hint of pink to them. They were slightly parted in a way that felt inviting. You wanted to kiss him after all this was a party, you didn't have to catch feelings, right?

Suguru cleared his throat as he noticed your gaze on him, observing him. He felt himself blush a bit. Slightly embarrassed at you observing him.

You look up at him again and give him an awkward smile.

"Sorry, you're just so... handsome."

Your face flushes. You meant to call him handsome, but hearing yourself say it out loud was different than how you had thought you'd say it in your mind.

He chuckles at your flushed features and slowly reaches out, brushing a straightened hair out of your face. His hand cupped your cheek longer, and he looked into your eyes.

"And you're so gorgeous, pretty girl."

He said in a low tone as his gaze obviously dropped to your lips. You couldn't help but lean into him a little more.

His touch was warm and inviting. You just couldn't help yourself, and as your lips collided with his, you couldn't help that either.

Both of his hands go your waist and pull you closer to him. Your arms wrap around his neck and you close your eyes enjoying the heat of the moment.

Neither of you wanted to stop. It was too euphoric for the both of you. Only pulling away for seconds of air.

Soon, the heated kiss turned into a heated make-out. His tongue swiped your bottom lip, asking to enter.

You let out a low moan and open your mouth for him, and the kiss becomes tongue and teeth. Heated. Each of you wanting more.

That's when you feel it. The bulge in Suguru' pants. You push away from him a little as he tries to chase your lips, instead settling for your neck.

"Suguru, maybe we should take this somewhere more private."

Suguru just groans into your neck and nods. He gently pulled away from you as he blushed gently at the raging boner he had. Just from kissing you, too.

He silently leads you through the house, the party still going. The time, 12 a.m. Suguru had 30 minutes to get you into the bed and fuck you before he lost the dare.

Sukuna and the other boys were still sitting on the couches in a circle. As Suguru walked past them with you, he made sure Sukuna saw you both headed for the stairs. He wouldn't lose this dare.

You both made it to Suguru's room, and as soon as the door was shut and locked, he pounced on you again. Kissing your neck and biting on your collar bone gently. He fumbled with your shurt to get it over your head.

You worked on his shirt and tried to get the buttons undone while not getting distracted by the feeling of his lips on your hot skin.

You succeeded in getting his shirt off, but suguru was already trying to shimy your pants down your hips. You did tour best to help him get them off of you, and you worked on the button of his pants.

He gently slapped your hand away before wrapping his hands under your thighs and carrying you to the bed and gently laying you down.

He towered over you and looked tou in the eyes, his hair a little more disheveled, his eyes filled with lust.

"I need you to tell me you want this pretty girl. I need to tell me that this is okay."

He said as he ran a gentle hand up your side.

"And if you don't want this, I need you to say that right now."

He ran his hand all the way up and gently cupped the side of your face again. He didn't want you to feel forced, but he needed to beat Sukuna's dare.

You nodded as you looked into his eyes, and with a reassuring smile.

"Yes, I want this Suguru. I'm yours tonight."

That's all Suguru needed to hear before he reached behind you and uncapped your bra, and slid your panties down and off of you.

Your body was gorgeous to him. He ran his hands all over your curves and kissed your neck again.

"You're so perfect, angel. So pretty, just for me."

His praises hit your ears like a soft melody on a piano. Just right.

You groaned a bit and bucked your hips up into his. He took his hand and gently pressed your hips back down.

"Patience, pretty girl, I have to get you prepares to take this cock."

He whispered in your ear. He dragged his fingers up and down your folds collecting your slick before gently pushing two inside of you.

You grabbed his shoulders and closed your eyes, letting out a wanton moan. His fingers felt amazing. They reached all of the right places. You couldn't imagine what his cock would feel like.

He began to slowly move his fingers in and out if you while leaning down and taking one of your tips into his mouth and sucking gently.

You moaned again and arched your back into him, almost offering up yourself for him to have. To take.

Your fingers found their way to his hair, and you began to take out his bun. After you ran your fingers through his long, silky hair.

"Oh, Suguru."

You moaned his name so prettily. He increased the speed of his fingers inside of you, and his eyes looked up at you to watch you.

Your eyes were closed, back arched, and your delicate hands were placed in his hair. This was almost heavenly. Suguru could fall for you.

You began to rock your hips into his fingers and moan louder and louder. That familiar knot in your stomach beginning to come undone.

You began to whimper and moan more.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, suguru, I'm cuming!"

He leaned in and began to whisper soft praises in your ear to talk you through it.

"It's alright, pretty girl, let go for me, cum on my fingers."

With that, you did. You came all over Suguru's fingers. Throwing your head back, you were in bliss. You trembled as you came down from your high, and Suguru cooed at you and helped you come down.

"You did so amazing, pretty girl. You think youre ready for my cock?"

He asked as he shimmeid himself out of his pants and boxers, and what you saw made your jaw drop.

He looked like he was close to 8 and a half inches. He was huge. And his swollen tip leaked with pre-cum. He pumped himself a few times as you continued to gawk at his size.

"Don't worry, pretty girl, you can take it."

He reached over to the nightstand and opened up the drawer before grabbing a condom and opening up the package. He rolled the rubber onto himself before finally lining himself up with you.

He reached over and laced his fingers with yours his eyes found yours and with a gentle gaze he leaned down and kissed you just as gently.

"Just tell me to stop and I will. I promise."

He began to slowly slide himself in, and he groaned at how tight you were around him.

"Fuck, pretty girl, you feel so damn good."

You squirmed a little at the slight pinch you felt as he began to sink deeper and deeper into you. This wasn't the first time you've had sex, but he was so damn big, you could've forgotten about all of the previous times.

He finally bottomed out and groaned at the feeling as he leaned his head into the crook of your neck.

As soon as he got used to the feeling of you around him, he began to slowly rock his hips into you. It felt orgasmic just as it was.

Your mouth opened into an o-shape as moans slipped out involuntarily. Your hands gripping his as he continued to rock into you.

"Fuck you're so perfect. Don't wanna let you go, don't wanna stop."

He mumbles into you as he picks up his pace, he was already feeling so close, and you were already feeling overstimulated from your previous orgasm. So when he begins to mumble he's about to cum you're already ahead of him, your vision going white as you came around him again.

He came into the condom and stilled. He grunted and kissed your neck a bit more before he finally pulled out of you. He tied off the condom and threw it into the garbage can next to his bed.

He gently rubbed his hands down your body before getting up and grabbing a warm rag to clean you up.

He almost wished thisbwasnt just a dare.

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That night, you had left with your best friend and went back to your shared apartment, and you couldn't get Suguru out of your mind.

Even you had told yourself no strings attached, but you couldn't help but find yourself trying to call him and text him after he gave you his number.

He never did answer so you decided to try to corner him after calculus.

"Suguru,"

You called out to him before he was about to leave, and Suguru guiltily turned around to face you.

"Can we talk?"

He looked at the ground nervous but nodded, telling a snickering Satoru to go on ahead.

"Look, I know that it was just supposed to be a one night stand or whatever, but I can't help but feel something was actually there."

You explain as you looked into his violet irises. The only gaze you're met with is a guilty one, though.

"Y/n... I didn't want to have to tell you, but it was a dare from Sukuna... he told me to sleep with you and make you fall for me."

Your heart had stopped. A dare? You couldn't believe the audacity, but then again, could you even be mad? It was supposed to be a one night stand.

He tried to reassure you and reached out for your hands. You take a step back from him and even he feels hurt.

"But y/n. I feel like there is something here, too. I don't want you to think that because of some stupid dare, there is nothing here because there is something."

"How do I know you're not lying to me?"

You asked, and you looked up at him with watery eyes. You didn't want to be hurt. You honestly enjoyed what was between you two that night. It felt honest, it felt real, it felt like love.

"Let me prove it to you. I saw there was a new movie coming to theaters tonight. If you'll accompany me, I'd like to make it a date."

He said and stepped towards you again and reached for your hands. This time, you let him take your hands in his. When you looked up to meet his gaze, all you could see was sincerity, honesty, love.

So you nod.

"I'll go, but this better not be another one of these stupid dares."

Suguru chuckled as he wiped a few stray tears you hadn't even noticed roll down your cheeks.

"Never, never again, pretty girl. I love you too much to waste what we have on a dare."

[kristak-throwaway]

krisgoat = tiktak masterpost

CONTENT WARNING: tiktak requests no minors interact with her content. it is not a crime to have a nsfw account unrelated to your sfw community. don't be an asshole, and don't seek out or interact with her content if you are a minor.

THIS IS NOT A CALL TO HARASS KRISGOAT/TIKTAK.

21kkn/zoro, a former mod of goatlings, has recently spoken up about their time spent working for krisgoat. i would heavily recommend reading their own posts on the topic to learn about their experience working as a site artist. in one of these posts, zoro includes the following video, which has dropped a massive bombshell.

part 1: the video

21kkn has stated kris has since deleted her side of the conversation, but honestly, i think it's still damning even without any response that 100% proves it. there was clearly a conversation here. kris clearly had to have replied without denying the account was hers.

21kkn also pulls up krisgoat's account for proof, which does indeed share a joindate and unique @ with kris's actual discord.

part 2: the art

the next piece of evidence that points to krisgoat being tiktakvt is in tiktak's art. you used to be able to find tiktak's art on multiple accounts under the same name, including toyhouse, but she has since privated a lot of her art.

here are some examples that have been backed up:

compared to some goats drawn by kris:

part 3: the timing

tiktakvt also has had a few suspiciously-timed tweets that coincide with events on goatlings.

most notably, this recent one (from september 29th, 2024: before monster masquerade preparations began) that was deleted.

and then this one, which is still available to view as of october 10th, 2024:

citing "overtime at work" in between the giving tree update (april 6th, 2024) and the start of the jestling event (april 12th, 2024).

there is also this tweet announcing a birthday stream hosted on april 1st...

...while krisgoat's birthday, according to her deviantart, appears to be march 31st.

what does this mean?

well, on its own, having a sidegig as a vtuber (and making suggestive/adult content) is not a crime. this post wasn't made to say that krisgoat is a horrible person for having a hobby and spending money from her job on said hobby. kris is an adult who can do what she wants.

what it means for kris to be tiktak, though, is that there are serious questions to ask about just why kris has ignored requests time and time again for transparency on where money for the site is going.

we don't have money for a palestine fundraiser, we need money for the programmer (despite the only recent change, to my knowledge, being the addition of tabs), and we need a fundraiser at the end of the year to compensate the mod team, but tiktak had enough money to buy a full-body rig, which was bought from stardustgummy 3 years ago.

from there, it's easy to find stardustgummy's commission rates.

full-body rigs don't come cheap.

let's return to goatlings staff and 21kkn. while krisgoat seems to have been paying upwards of $800 for her full rig, her staff was initially being paid in virtual currency for their work.

the most commonly accepted conversion rate between diamond dust and US dollars is 100dd = 1usd. which means her art staff was being paid the equivalent of $15-20 per fully rendered fullbody piece for her site.

not to mention, from the mod behind mascot livechats' dev log post:

staff has a lot on their plate, and there is simply not enough staff onboard to cover everything.

(statement from 21kkn's post, linked above)

while staff is trying to juggle many different responsibilities all at once, kris has shown no interest in hiring more staff/volunteers. while i can understand wanting a more close-knit group of trusted people for your site, i strongly feel this preference should be reconsidered when staff is being given this much to do.

and while staff is juggling with site duties, kris has apparently been streaming roblox, doing personal commissions, and recording tiktok dances as tiktakvt.

we don't know for sure that kris is neglecting her goatlings duties/that she's underpaying her staff

that's true, and that leads into the final point: we don't know for sure because there is no transparency at all from kris herself regarding goatlings. if we had been given any hint in the past of where money spent on diamond dust is going, perhaps it would be easier to chalk this up as an innocent hobby on the side.

it is simply because kris has not been fully transparent about how things work behind the scenes, after months of users asking for it on "the state of goatlings" thread and beyond, that makes tiktakvt (and her actions) questionable.

what's the bottom line?

we want transparency. that's it. things haven't meaningfully changed onsite for years, we're backed up on updates that have been promised for who knows how long, the only statement we have about how kris pays her staff points to very suspicious business practices and use of funds, even if kris began paying her staff in real-world currency later on.

and again: don't harass krisgoat or tiktakvt over this. don't try to "out" her or do anything stupid like that. you are not helping, you do not look cool, you look like an asshole.

closing notes

mentioning this information onsite or in the discord may lead to the termination of your goatlings account. be very cautious.

consider donating to a family found on gazafunds.com.

if you have any information/screenshots on kris's poor handling of resources for palestine as it relates to tiktak's streaming gig, please contact me. thank you.

[northwest-cryptid]

It might just be me but I've never enjoyed videos where youtubers are like "I spent $4,000 on this useless junk and it's all going in the trash because it's soooooooooo bad lolololol" like dude do you have any idea how life changing that money would be to me? It's one thing for them to spend it on shit they actually like or use, it's another thing when they intentionally spend it on junk for the sake of humor and then just throw everything away or whatever. I don't know man it just kinda makes me think about how much that could actually help people.

This might just be a me thing, but I've already cared a lot more about youtubers who actually do give back to their audiences, even if it's small. I got annoyed seeing how staged a giveaway was where a youtuber was basically hosting a contest to give away a couple thousand dollars and of course who wins it all but the 1 other content creator who was super popular and really didn't need it. None of the people who were like broke college kids or whatever but the one dude who literally has more money than he knows what to do with.

Like again I know I probably just have a weird opinion on this because I'm not talking about obvious fakes like mr.beast or whatever; I'm talking about folks who are big enough to have a surplus of cash but choose to just spend it on junk for content rather than even considering giving it to their audience. Because every time people talk about shit like mutual aid I think about how a lot of people just can't help each other, since the people who actually tend to understand mutual aid are folks who don't have money, we get it because we likely survive thanks to mutual aid from those who are more fortunate. The people who don't actually understand how life changing that could be are people who have money. We look at billionaires and go "wow they could fix everyone's problems" and like sure they absolutely could but they won't. There are youtubers out there, who aren't even like aggressively massive, and have shown their earnings publicly; and let me tell you doing the math they could easily give a couple thousand to every single one of their active audience members, still have (and I'm not exaggerating) hundreds of thousands left over; and help a lot of their audience get through college or pay off their debts or just put food on the table or afford medical care.

Like I'm not saying it should fall to their shoulders to carry that burden or anything, I'm just saying I think it's insane that they're willing to just drop thousands on junk they don't care about when they could be very directly helping the people who give them money. Though I suppose if we're being entirely real most of their audience members are likely wealthy enough to give them money regularly without even having to worry about it. Which is almost worse to me because that means they're not having to worry about giving EVERYONE thousands of dollars, if they even focused on helping the poorest 10% of their audience they could very directly impact the lives of those people without even so much as putting a dent in their wallet.

I just think about this sort of shit because if I were to ever make it big I assure you this is the sorta shit I would care about. Not even to like make a show of it, that's not the point. You don't go out and film it for content; but you do it because these people enable you to keep food on the table and live a healthy life without having to work in fucking retail. Stop throwing away thousands of dollars for "humor" of buying cheap junk you're never going to use and that's just going to go in the trash, what's the point man. I don't care about how you spend 12,000 dollars on horrible games you don't even enjoy for an outdated system; I don't have money for medical surgery that would realistically determine whether or not I get a fatal disease and it would cost you almost nothing to fix that.

Which is stupid to think about because like, some people are absolutely going to say that's parasocial, let it be known I don't think these people even know I exist so no it's not parasocial, it's just that I've been raised in a poor family and I know how much just a couple thousand could help someone in similar situations. I've been able to be fortunate in the past and done my best to assist others through mutual aid; I've also received help through mutual aid. Like; it's not that I think these people need to give ME money, it's the idea that I happen to fit the demographic of people that I'd rather they be helping when they're willing to throw away money for no reason other than "content" anyways.

[physalian]

Reminder that IngramSpark is terrible

Even if you're one of the lucky authors who've never had any issues with this platform, that they have a chokehold on expanded distribution for indie authors is my problem. Ingram will nickle and dime you with a user interface that pales in comparison in efficency to KDP. Cannot comment on any other print-on-demand company but even little Kobo took me like, 40 minutes to go from making my account to having my ebook live on their website.

Fuck IngramSpark.

You want to/need to make any changes to your manuscript whatsoever after 60 days (even if you have had zero orders and/or have none being processed)? $25 a pop, oh and you get de-listed while the changes are being processed, which can take at least 72 hours. If you do have orders in the middle of being processed, your possibly critical changes won't go into effect until the last order during that time frame has been processed, leaving those readers with the older, worse version of your book.

Are you allowed to preview those changes to make sure it'll process correctly before paying that ridiculous fee? Nope! Not if you're uploading PDFs and not using their in-house formatting programs.

I've said it before: Amazon is shady as fuck. I'm not going to pretend they aren't.

But they know their shit and they do it with maximum efficiency. Lower print costs mean higher royalties and Amazon is one of the largest marketplaces you could hope to host your book on. The massive caveat being that Amazon will only sell on Amazon, unless you sign up for their expanded distribution which is... eh.

It will never not bother me that I had to price my book a whole dollar higher using Ingram, charging my readers more money, because to price Eternal Night what I have on Amazon ($17.99) would have had me owing Ingram money.

Books are expensive enough already, and you don't really buy direct from Ingram. It's more expensive to print with them (on shittier paper to boot), which means they charge the vendor more to buy it so they can profit, which means the vendor (the bookstore you're buying from) can charge you more at the register so they can profit. You want my paperback for cheap? I would rather send you a copy from my own home, footing the bill on both ends for shipping costs, than use Ingram, if only to keep these bastards from taking their cut and giving me my $0.16.

I am not in this business to make money. I want people to enjoy my book and if that means losing a couple dollars of profit not pricing a 111k word fantasy novel at $22, I'd rather someone be able to afford it and like it than give it a pass because it's too expensive.

Ingram thinks they're the best, because they're still the standard for any brick and mortar store you want to shelve your book, and have zero incentive to change and better themselves.

I wouldn't have to pay the $25 in the first place if they didn't fuck up the color matching on my cover, and that's why I haven't pushed my book with Ingram at all. My debut novel is available technically through any vendor you could hope to buy from, because Ingram works with nearly all of them. Their version of my book is just awful, and trying to get the paper quality fixed all this time has gotten me nowhere, so I gave up and switched focus to the cover, and here we are.

I would rather pay to ship my books myself from KDP and hand deliver them to any brick and mortar store than use Ingram.

Amazon will print what you give them exactly as it looks on your digital screen, regardless of the color mode. Ingram will not, will not tell you this, and will not let you see if there is problem before you pay an arm and a leg for an author copy + shipping to see the damages.

If nothing else, it's a massive waste of paper to have an author copy I can't do anything with, with an issue any other platform would have let me prevent. I have one, 1, author copy from KDP, and it has a big fat watermark on the cover, but it's the only personal copy I need for my own use and reference. At the very least, I could have given my Ingram author copy away to somebody, but the color matching on the cover is atrocious and I'm embarrassed to look at it. Same exact files to both platforms.

Nor is anything with Ingram instantaneous. Everything requires a manual check. Which is great, thanks, human eyes on something is awesome, but maybe don't charge me the $25 change fee until that change has been approved? Now I have to fix a bleed issue, after updating the color mode on an identical file I already gave them that had no issues, after a 48 hour delay, and hope that this time, the color matching is correct, because they still won't tell me. If it's not? Another $25.

I don't want Amazon to expand their monopoly, but I desperately need Ingram to fix their shit and get off their high horse so they can be a fair and proper competitor of value. There should be zero fees to fix things if the book hasn't even sold a single copy on your platform. I know it can be automated and work flawlessly, negating the need for that fee. KDP has done it, and imo, on paper quality alone, KDP has Ingram beat anyway.

Ingram, allegedly, works great if you have no issues. If you do have an issue, it's never a small, simple fix.

Sorry for the rant and sorry to anyone who has used Ingram and doesn't know what the fuck I'm ranting about. It has been a struggle with them and their website since day one.

Do better.

[heaven-s-black-box]

4th of July- ensemble & oc insert

Return to File- Event Masterlist

Recovery date: July 4th, 2020

Description: 4th of July get together

Notes: An entry from my 2020 research project into the universe of Ace Attorney. You can find the next entry here. This is an entry involving a descendant of a traveler, following the death of her mother it was determined Sky would be better off staying with Miles Edgeworth. This is an OC insert, the fantastical technobabble is just for looks

Click for related entry series

Word count: 1 500

Back to directory

“Can we get fireworks?” Sky asked as she looked over at her dad.

The Edgeworth’s were currently at the dollar store picking up chips and snacks for this evening. They were hosting a fourth of July barbeque and pool party for all their friends. Since there were so many people, they figured dollar store snacks were the best option. Cheap and decent quality. Sky was leaning on the cart while she watched her dad pick between different kinds of cheetos and cheeses.

“No, they are illegal,” he said, not really paying attention to her. She huffed.

“Here, get these ones,” she grabbed a page of spicy and regular cheetos, “there. Now can we at least get sparklers?”

“I do believe Wright said he’d bring some,” he looked into their cart, “I believe we have everything. What do you think?”

“Hm, snakoos.”

“I’m sure Ms. Skye will bring her own.” Miles started walking out of the aisle, and Sky followed, still leaning into the cart.

“She probably will, but they’ll only last five maybe ten minutes. Let’s just pick up a box, they’re nice and cheap here anyways.”

“Alright, I’ll meet you in line,” he said, taking the cart from her. She ran off to find the box of snakoos for Ema.

It was around three in the afternoon when they got home. Plenty of time to set everything up for six. Miles took the food inside to refrigerate it, while Sky ran to take the lawn chairs out back and open the pool. Their house wasn’t too big, it had two bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a home office. Plus the kitchen, living room, and dinning room. But they had a pretty big yard so pess could run around, so it was the best place for a party.

Miles watched his daughter through the window as she struggled to get the cover off the pool. However, just as she pulled it back and sat up in triumph, Pess ran over and jumped on her back knocking her in. He laughed as he headed to the linen closet to grab her a towel.

Phoenix and Trucy showed up around five forty so Phoenix could start the barbeque. He was charged with making burgers, hotdogs, and ribs. While he started that, the girls took to decorating while Miles set out the snacks in bowls. The girls could feel their father's eyes watching them. Trucy and Sky were currently trying to hang a banner in front of the door, but they couldn’t find two step ladders, so they were standing precariously on the edge of chairs.

“Careful you two.”

“Ah!” They screamed, wobbling slightly as a new voice warned them to be careful. Both fathers moved to catch their daughters, glaring at the new arrival.

“Whoops!” Athena called, sticking her tongue out, “My bad. Need any help?”

“We’re good!” They both called.

“Cykes-dono,” both girls jumped again.

“Nope, I’m done! Forget the streamers Truce,” Sky yelled as she scrambled down, Trucy did the same.

“My apologies, Wright-chan, Edgeworth-chan. We did not mean to startle you,” Simon said as he stepped out onto the porch with Athena.

“Where’s Polly? I thought you two were coming together?”

“We were, but then your mom didn’t have a ride so him and Klav went to pick them up. So I got a ride with Simon! They should be here soon,” Athena laughed before making a b-line for the snacks.

“Cykes-dono, you will spoil your appetite,” Simon sighed, following after her.

True to Athena’s words, Thalassa, Apollo, and Klavier showed up soon after along with the Skyes and Rayfa. Since Nahyuta had traveled the world plenty, and seen many celebrations, he’d asked Ema if Rayfa could accompany her to experience the celebration. Rayfa looked around a little awkwardly, she was in jean shorts with a little american flag and a t-shirt with an eagle outline. Apparently she had protested profusely, but Ema had insisted she wear anything but her usual outfit. To make her feel a little better, Ema and Lana had done similar themed outfits.

“So, goggle heads sister,” Rayfa poked Lana who was picking up a rack of ribs, “What are these fireworks that goggle head was talking about?”

“Oh, um… I don’t really know how to explain it. They’re like little rockets that explode into pretty colours in the sky, if you use them right, they aren’t too dangerous. But they’re technically illegal because they’re explosives.”

“So, we can’t see them?”

“Actually Fraulein,” Klavier cut in, he was behind Rayfa in the food line, “that’s not technically true. While they are illegal to the public, some places have licenses that let them use fireworks. Not to mention some people simply ignore the law all together.” Rayfa’s eyes lit up.

“So do we have some?!”

The three of them looked over to Miles and Phoenix who were standing under a tree.

“Herr Edgeworth! Do we have fireworks?” Miles frowned and Phoenix laughed.

“Sadly we couldn’t convince Miles to let us buy some-”

“Because they are illegal.”

“But we do have sparklers!”

“Oh those are fun, you’ll like those,” Lana said. “Now, let’s grab some food and find somewhere to sit.”

It was a surprisingly calm evening, at least by their standards. After eating,Trcuy and Sky started dragging people into the water. First it was Polly, who was shoved in by his sister, and Athena jumped in after him. Next, the girls decided Simon needed to get in the water, and that turned into an adventure as he was too big to push in. After a few minutes of fruitless pushing, Simon picked the girls up and threw them into the water. They resurfaced only to be shoved back under by the wave Simon created when he jumped in after them.

Apollo and Ema had eased into the shallow end with Rayfa to teach her how to swim. Khura’in wasn’t exactly warm enough to swim most of the year, but it was a good skill to have, especially if she was going to travel more. At first, she floundered around a lot, but eventually she figured out how to at least float. By the time they had to get out of the pool, the sun had started to set, she could tread water and float.

“Achtung baby! Who’s read for the sparklers!” Klavier laughed as him and Apollo stepped out of the house with sparklers.

“Here, everyone come grab one to start.” Apollo waved everyone over. “Here, these ones are coloured, and these crackle. These ones-” He was cut off by a loud, booming sound that made everyone jump.

They turned around to see fireworks being set off a little ways in the distance. Rayfa hid behind Ema, poking her head out when she realized no one was panicking. Ema leaned down a bit.

“You wanted to see fireworks?” She whispered, and Rayfa nodded. “There,” she pointed towards the bright explosions.

“Wow, I need to talk to braid head about bringing these to Khura’in…”

Apollo laughed, “Maybe start with sparklers. Come on! Let’s light them up.”

“Ya!” Trucy and Sky cheered, pumping their fists in the hair.

It was nearly midnight when the party was disbanded. Rayfa had a short list of things she needed to speak with her brother about once she returned, she was asleep on her feet though as they left. The same could be said for Athena, but not Apollo and Trucy who had fallen asleep, Sky was dozing off beside her dad as they waved goodbye to everyone. Klavier, Apollo, and Thalassa left first since they had to make two stops, and Simon decided he and Athena should leave too. Ema helped back up some of the extra food to take home, while Lana took Rayfa to the car, they left last.

Carefully, Phoenix carried Trucy up to Sky’s room, while Miles helped Sky up the stairs so she didn’t trip. Once the two girls were tucked in, they went back down to finish putting away the food.

“Y’know this is nice,” Phoenix hummed. “Being able to have everyone over, it’s a shame we can’t do it more often. I mean- everyone’s always busy. It would be nice if people could just drop by while we’re all in one place… And it’s nice seeing Trucy and Sky toget-”

“Wright,” Miles said, cutting him off.

“Ya?”

“Yes, I will marry you…” Phoenix’s eyes widened.

“Whaa?! What makes you thi-”

“You’ve been playing with something in your pocket all day, and Trucy can’t stop smiling when she looks at me. Not to mention her and Sky have been watching us and giggling since Trucy pulled her aside earlier. Mr. Justice and Ms. Cykes have also been looking at me strangely for weeks. It was the only logical conclusion,” he smiled.

“Fine,” Phoenix puffed his cheeks out. “But you have to pretend not to know until lunch tomorrow. Maya and Pearl wanted to be there when I asked you.” Miles laughed.

“I believe that’s doable.” 

[tarilaran]

Oh this one is easy:

1. Servers that can host the 255,556,550 daily pageloads per day (source) don't come cheap.

2. Servers that can host the 894 gb of bytediff that the wikimedia foundation (wmf. Parent project of wikipedia) has churned through in the last month (source) don't come cheap. (hell, storage solutions that can store the terabytes of data that the wmf hosts don't come cheap)

3. Lawyers that can protect the wmf, read copyright law, etc. don't come cheap.

Donations are ultimately the wmf's only source of funding. A managed stock portfolio capable of sustaining the wikimedia foundation (this is a thing, Harvard has one, for example) would be in the billions of dollars.

[perfectlytinyhideout]

Barn Weddings in NY: Where Love Meets Rustic Elegance

The Ultimate Barn Wedding Experience in New York

Dreaming of a barn wedding? You’re not alone.

Couples across New York are ditching traditional ballrooms for something with more charm, warmth, and character. Barn weddings blend rustic elegance with a natural, laid-back atmosphere. If you're searching for the perfect wedding venue in Middletown, NY, you’ve come to the right place.

Let’s dive into what makes barn weddings the go-to choice for modern couples.

Why Barn Weddings in NY Are Taking Over

Forget cookie-cutter wedding venues in NY. Here’s why barn weddings stand out:

Authenticity – Say your vows surrounded by the beauty of nature and timeless farm architecture.

Space & Flexibility – Whether you need a small wedding venue in NY or something grand, barns can accommodate any setup.

Picture-Perfect Settings – Hudson Valley wedding venues offer breathtaking backdrops for unforgettable wedding photos.

Budget-Friendly Options – Looking for a cheap farm wedding venue in NY? Barns provide an affordable alternative to traditional New York wedding venues.

Indoor & Outdoor Appeal – Weather won’t be an issue with covered spaces, making it one of the best indoor wedding venues around.

Barn Weddings: What to Expect

At Lotuswood Organic Wellness Farm, we offer a farm wedding venue in Middletown, NY that’s intimate, scenic, and packed with charm.

What Makes Our Barn Wedding Venue Special?

Rustic Meets Elegant – Vintage décor, fairy lights, and a stunning barn create a magical setting.

Customisable Spaces – From casual backyard vibes to high-end luxury, make your wedding unique.

Budget Options – Wondering about farm wedding venue NY prices? We offer flexible packages for every budget.

Full Experience – We don’t just do weddings. Host your wedding reception, birthday parties, and even pre-wedding events here.

FAQs About Barn Weddings in NY

1. How much does a barn wedding cost? The farm wedding venue NY cost varies. Some affordable farm wedding venues in NY start at a few thousand dollars, while premium setups go higher.

2. Can I have a winter barn wedding? Absolutely! Indoor wedding venues ensure comfort year-round. Barns with heating options keep guests cozy even in the colder months.

3. Are barn weddings only for small weddings? Nope! Whether you need a small farm wedding venue in NY or space for hundreds, there’s an option that fits your needs.

4. What’s included in a barn wedding package? Every venue is different, but expect options like catering, décor, lighting, and seating.

Key Takeaways

Barn weddings in NY combine rustic charm with elegance.

They offer both affordable and luxury options.

Hudson Valley wedding venues provide stunning landscapes.

Indoor and outdoor setups make them a year-round choice.

Final Thoughts: Your Dream Barn Wedding Awaits

If you're looking for wedding venues in New York that offer something unique, a barn wedding is a no-brainer.

At Lotuswood Organic Wellness Farm, we bring your dream farm wedding in NY to life.

Want a farm wedding venue in Middletown, NY that’s as special as your love story?

Call at (845) 523-8081 or visit lotuswoodfarm.com today.

[goatlingsvent]

i counted 2,450 items that either come from dd box sets or are dd boxes in user shops right now, i stopped counting once i hit early 2023. last dd set i counted back to was the botanist set.

2,450 x 200 dd each = 460,000 dd.  assuming everyone bought dd in 30 dollar bundles, 1 dollar = ~135 dd. that gets you ~3,400 dollars.

kris clearly isn't showing proof of her spending, but the lowest-tier web hosting subscriptions range from 3-20 dollars per month.

theoretically, high-end low tier hosting subscriptions can handle up to 500,000 monthly visits before hitting their limit. goatlings, according to traffic tracking sites like semrush and backlinko, is capable of hitting 100k monthly visits. however goatlings is a little more active and demanding of a site than a wordpress blog or geocities page like the cheap subscriptions are intended to be used for.

so i'll throw a bone and guess that instead of high-end low tier hosting, kris bought low-end high tier hosting. long story short, i'm assuming she's got goatlings on a VPS. google that if you want. all we really care about is that a VPS is more expensive.

because of how small goatlings is i'm going to take a guess and say the cost of hosting is probably 65 dollars per month. 65 x 12 = 780, double that for two years so it goes back to the same date i stopped counting at and you've got $1,560.

even if i added an extra 300 to the total for various fees related to domain names and SSL security and stuff, kris would still have the past 2 years of server hosting covered by what's in the user shops alone. even if i doubled the estimated hosting costs to $130 per month, she'd still be making a profit off of just the paid items in the user shops from only the past two years.

this isn't including trade center, the forums, auctions, what's been consumed, what's on HA buddies, what's been recycled, what's in galleries, etc.

this isn't including crown account, adoption ticket, tabs, and nametags either. same with the non retiring dd shop items.

this isn't including the other 7 years of dd boxes, monster masquerades, sweetheart events, etc.

this isn't including any money kris is pocketing that we don't know about like tip-a-mod.

this is also assuming every user bought in 30 dollar bundles, which i'm sure some didn't. my calculations are the minimum she could be making.

just to put it in perspective. if anyone with more experience in hosting sites than me wants to chime in and let me know if my estimates are too high or too low, feel free.

🏇

[aditi-lifestyle-26]

The Best Travel Apps to Help You Stay on Budget

Traveling on a budget doesn’t have to mean sacrificing comfort or missing out on amazing experiences. With the right tools, you can explore the world affordably and even save money while doing it. Here’s a comprehensive guide to the best travel apps designed to help you stay within budget and make the most of your trips.

1. Skyscanner: Find Cheap Flights, Hotels, and Car Rentals

One of the top-rated apps for budget travelers, Skyscanner simplifies the process of finding cheap flights. Its flexible search feature lets you compare prices across months, helping you choose the most affordable travel dates. Key Features:

"Everywhere" search for spontaneous and budget-friendly destinations.

Price alerts for tracking fare drops.

Filters to find budget hotels and car rentals.

Pro Tip: Use the “cheapest month” option to snag the best travel deals.

2. Hopper: Predict Flight and Hotel Prices

Hopper uses AI to predict the best times to book flights and hotels. This app provides recommendations on whether to book immediately or wait, saving you potentially hundreds of dollars. Key Features:

Price prediction for up to a year in advance.

Notifications for fare changes.

Flexible booking options for flights and hotels.

Pro Tip: Turn on notifications for your desired route to get real-time alerts.

3. Rome2Rio: Plan Affordable Multi-Modal Trips

Rome2Rio is perfect for budget travelers planning multi-city trips. It compares transport options like flights, buses, trains, and even ferries to find the cheapest way to reach your destination. Key Features:

Comprehensive transport comparisons across routes.

Local transit integration for first-mile and last-mile travel.

Clear cost breakdowns for each mode of transport.

Pro Tip: Combine buses and trains for a more affordable and scenic journey.

4. Trail Wallet: Track Your Travel Expenses

Budgeting while traveling can be challenging, but Trail Wallet makes it easy to monitor your spending in real-time. It’s an essential app for those who want to stick to a daily or overall budget. Key Features:

Categorize expenses (e.g., food, transport, accommodation).

Currency conversion for international travelers.

Visual expense summaries for quick reviews.

Pro Tip: Set daily spending limits to avoid overspending.

5. Couchsurfing: Free Accommodation and Local Experiences

For the ultimate budget-friendly accommodation, Couchsurfing connects you with locals offering free places to stay. Beyond saving money, it’s a fantastic way to experience local culture firsthand. Key Features:

Free lodging with vetted hosts.

"Hangouts" feature to meet other travelers.

Cultural exchange opportunities with locals.

Pro Tip: Always read reviews and communicate with your host beforehand for a safe experience.

6. Hostelworld: Affordable Stays for Solo and Group Travelers

If Couchsurfing isn’t your style, Hostelworld is another excellent option for budget accommodations. The app lists hostels, budget hotels, and shared accommodations worldwide. Key Features:

Detailed reviews and ratings by previous guests.

Filters for budget, amenities, and room types.

Easy booking process with flexible cancellation policies.

Pro Tip: Look for hostels with free breakfast or kitchen access to save on meals.

7. Splitwise: Simplify Expense Splitting

Traveling with friends or family? Splitting expenses can get tricky. Splitwise makes it easy to divide bills for meals, accommodations, and other shared costs. Key Features:

Simple cost-sharing interface.

Tracks IOUs and repayments.

Currency conversion for international trips.

Pro Tip: Settle expenses in bulk at the end of the trip to minimize transactions.

8. PackPoint: Pack Smart, Save Money

Overpacking or forgetting essentials can lead to unnecessary expenses during your trip. PackPoint helps you pack efficiently based on your destination, trip length, and planned activities. Key Features:

Customized packing lists.

Weather-based suggestions.

Activity-specific packing recommendations.

Pro Tip: Use PackPoint to avoid buying forgotten items at higher tourist prices.

9. Google Maps: Navigate Like a Local

Google Maps is an invaluable tool for finding free or low-cost attractions, affordable eateries, and navigating public transport. Key Features:

Offline maps for regions with no internet access.

Public transit directions and schedules.

Reviews and ratings for budget-friendly restaurants and attractions.

Pro Tip: Save maps offline for your destination to save on data costs.

10. XE Currency: Real-Time Currency Converter

Understanding currency conversions is essential for sticking to your budget in foreign countries. XE Currency offers accurate and up-to-date exchange rates. Key Features:

Offline currency conversion.

Track multiple currencies at once.

Easy rate comparisons for fair pricing.

Pro Tip: Use XE Currency to ensure you’re getting the best exchange rates when withdrawing money abroad.

11. HappyCow: Budget-Friendly Vegan and Vegetarian Options

Eating out can be costly, but HappyCow helps you find affordable vegan and vegetarian-friendly restaurants worldwide. It’s perfect for those looking to save money on meals while sticking to dietary preferences. Key Features:

Global restaurant listings with reviews.

Price range filters for budget-friendly dining.

Directions and contact info for eateries.

Pro Tip: Look for restaurants offering combo meals or buffets for extra savings.

12. Workaway: Travel and Volunteer on a Budget

Workaway connects travelers with hosts offering free accommodation in exchange for volunteering. It’s a great way to stretch your budget while gaining unique experiences. Key Features:

Opportunities for cultural exchange.

Filtered searches based on destination and type of work.

Verified host reviews.

Pro Tip: Use Workaway for long-term stays in countries with high accommodation costs.

13. Flush: Find Free Public Restrooms

Unexpected costs like paid restrooms can add up during a trip. Flush helps you locate free or affordable public restrooms nearby, saving you time and money. Key Features:

Offline restroom database.

GPS-based location search.

Details on accessibility and costs.

Pro Tip: Bookmark restrooms near major tourist spots to avoid pricey alternatives.

14. Uber or Lyft: Affordable Ride-Sharing Options

For destinations where public transport is limited, ride-sharing apps like Uber and Lyft can be cost-effective, especially for group travel. Key Features:

Transparent pricing estimates.

Carpooling options for lower fares.

Availability in multiple countries.

Pro Tip: Check for discount codes or promotions to save even more.

15. EatWith: Affordable Dining Experiences with Locals

EatWith connects you with locals hosting meals, offering authentic experiences often cheaper than restaurants. Key Features:

Affordable group dining options.

Opportunity to learn about local cuisine and culture.

Customizable filters for dietary needs.

Pro Tip: Choose group meals to maximize savings and meet other travelers.

conclusion

Budget travel is more accessible than ever, thanks to these incredible apps. Whether you’re tracking expenses, finding cheap flights, or locating free attractions, these tools make it easy to stay within your budget without sacrificing quality or experience.

Remember: Combining these apps can amplify your savings. For example, use Skyscanner for cheap flights, Couchsurfing for free accommodation, and Trail Wallet to manage your expenses. With a little planning and the right tech, the world is yours to explore—on a budget!

What are your favorite budget travel apps? Let us know here.

[businessinpanama]

Your Gateway to Doing Business in Panama

Panama is turning into an entry point for those who are entrepreneurs or investors looking for a new business in Latin America. Strategically located, having business-friendly policies and an economy on the rise make it the perfect foundation for global expansion. But whether you want to incorporate into Panama or seek entry points within its different industries, this guide will have the answer: why choose Panama?

Why Invest in Panama?

Here are the key reasons to invest in Panama:

1. Strategic Location

Panama is a global business center situated between North and South America. The great attraction of the Panama Canal is that it will connect the world's main shipping routes to be an international trade hub.

2. Business-Friendly Environment

Panama has easy and facilitative regulations for businesses. From company formation in Panama to tax encouragement, Panama has allowed hassle-free services for entrepreneurs.

3. Strong Economy

Panama is one of the best-growing economies in its region. Stability, assured by the dollar as a legal tender, attracts small startups and also multinational corporations.

Steps to Start a Business in Panama

Some major steps to start a business in Panama are:

1. Research the Market

Identify the industries that are booming in Panama, including logistics, tourism, real estate, and financial services. Market research can be done to seek out your competition and target audience.

2. Invest in Panama

Establishing a business in Panama is straightforward. Here are the essential steps:

Choose the Business Structure: Your preference is among a corporation, LLC, or sole proprietorship.

Register Your Company: You will first sign up with the Public Registry and attain an industrial license in the case of Panama company registration.

Obtain a Tax Identification Number: All businesses must register with the Panamanian tax authorities.

Open a Local Bank Account: This will be needed for any domestic financial transactions.

3. Compliance with the Law

Engage an attorney in the country to guide you through the law and regulations. This will ensure that your company is complying with all applicable obligations, such as labor laws and tax returns.

4. Networking

Links to local professionals, associations, and other organizations will create avenues into partnerships and business ventures. Trade fairs and business meetings are ideal venues for networking.

Benefits of Operating in Panama

Here are some benefits of operating in Panama:

1. Tax Benefits

Panama adopts a territorial system of taxation. This implies that the country will tax only those incomes made within its territorial borders. This excludes offshore transactions, which are by default non-taxable income. This makes even Panama company formation relatively well-inviting for global businesses.

2. Free Zones

Free zones, like the Colón Free Zone, offer and exempt even further as far as taxes go especially for import-export companies.

3. Skilled Workforce

Panama has an educated and bilingual workforce. Many professionals can speak both Spanish and English fluently. Thus, international businesses will have easy communication.

4. Robust Infrastructure

The country boasts modern ports, airports, and telecommunications networks. Such infrastructure supports a wide range of industries, such as logistics and digital businesses.

Highly Potential Industries in Panama

Some industries with high potential in Panama include:

1. Real Estate and Construction

Panama hosts an increasing urban population and a booming tourism industry, which it supports with demand for residential and commercial properties. Investment opportunities can be seen in luxury and cheap housing projects.

2. Logistics and Trade

Best business opportunities exist in logistics and trade with the Panama Canal and more than 50 free trade agreements.

3. Financial Services

Being one of the biggest banking centers in Latin America, Panama offers super funding possibilities in finance and fintech.

Challenges Await the Organization

Panama is a great business destination, but bureaucracy and language barriers are some challenges associated with it. Working with local experts can make those challenges much less problematic.

Conclusion

The thriving economy, encouraging tax policies, and strategic location of the nation have made Panama a hot destination for business expansion. Be it registering a company in Panama or logistic or real estate opportunities, it is a land that has much to offer in terms of expertise and facilitation. To get professional advice and support in establishing your business, rely on Business Panama Group.

[web-hosting-india]

How to Host a Website on a Budget: A Deep Dive into Cheap Web Hosting

In today's digital landscape, having a website is essential for businesses, entrepreneurs, and even individuals looking to share their passions with the world. However, hosting a website can often be seen as an expensive endeavor. Fortunately, there are numerous options available that make it possible to host a website without breaking the bank. This guide will delve into how you can host a website on a budget, focusing on the concept of cheap web hosting and the options available to ensure you get the best value for your money.

Understanding Web Hosting: The Basics

Before diving into how to find affordable web hosting, it’s important to understand what web hosting actually is. At its core, web hosting is a service that provides the necessary infrastructure for your website to be accessible on the internet. This infrastructure includes storage space for your website's files, bandwidth to handle traffic, and the server hardware that powers your site.

Types of Web Hosting

There are several types of web hosting, each with its own set of features and price points:

Shared Hosting: This is the most affordable and popular type of hosting. In shared hosting, multiple websites are hosted on a single server, sharing resources like CPU, memory, and storage. It’s ideal for small websites and beginners.

VPS Hosting: Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting is a step up from shared hosting. While still sharing a physical server with other users, your website gets its own dedicated portion of the server's resources. VPS hosting offers more control and better performance, making it suitable for growing websites.

Dedicated Hosting: With dedicated hosting, you rent an entire server exclusively for your website. This provides maximum performance, security, and control, but it comes at a higher cost. It’s usually chosen by large businesses with high traffic websites.

Cloud Hosting: Cloud hosting uses multiple servers to distribute the load, offering scalability and reliability. It’s flexible and can handle varying levels of traffic, but can be more expensive depending on usage.

Reseller Hosting: This allows you to purchase hosting resources in bulk and resell them to others. It’s a good option if you plan to start your own hosting business.

Why Choose Cheap Web Hosting?

When you’re just starting out or working with a tight budget, cheap web hosting can be an excellent choice. The key is to find a provider that offers a balance between affordability and quality. Cheap web hosting doesn’t have to mean poor service. In fact, many providers offer robust features and reliable performance at a fraction of the cost of premium services.

The Advantages of Cheap Web Hosting

Cost-Effective: The most obvious advantage is the cost savings. You can get your website online for as little as a few dollars a month.

Ease of Use: Cheap web hosting plans are typically designed with beginners in mind, offering easy-to-use control panels and one-click installations for popular content management systems like WordPress.

Sufficient Resources for Small Websites: If you’re running a small website or blog with low to moderate traffic, cheap hosting provides all the resources you need.

Scalability: Many cheap hosting plans offer the ability to upgrade as your website grows, so you can start small and scale up as needed.

How to Host a Website on a Budget

Hosting a website on a budget involves more than just choosing the cheapest plan available. It’s about finding the best value for your money by considering factors like performance, reliability, and customer support. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you host a website on a budget:

Step 1: Determine Your Website’s Needs

The first step is to assess your website's requirements. Consider the following:

Type of Website: Are you hosting a personal blog, an e-commerce store, or a corporate website?

Traffic Expectations: How much traffic do you expect? This will help determine the necessary bandwidth and server resources.

Storage Requirements: How much storage space do you need for your website's files, images, and databases?

Technical Expertise: Are you comfortable managing server settings, or do you need a hosting provider that offers user-friendly tools and support?

Step 2: Compare Web Hosting Providers

Once you know your requirements, it’s time to compare web hosting providers. Look for providers that offer affordable plans without compromising on essential features like uptime, speed, and security. One such provider is eWebGuru, which has established itself as a reliable and affordable web hosting provider in India.

Step 3: Consider eWebGuru for Cheap Web Hosting

eWebGuru is a prime example of a hosting provider that offers excellent value for money. Founded in 2007 by Ashok Arora, eWebGuru has grown rapidly due to its commitment to quality service and competitive pricing. The company serves around 10,000 customers, primarily in India, for their web hosting, application hosting, and cloud and dedicated server needs.

Key Features of eWebGuru:

Affordable Plans: eWebGuru offers a range of affordable web hosting plans that cater to different needs, from basic shared hosting to advanced VPS and dedicated hosting solutions.

High Uptime Guarantee: With a high uptime guarantee, eWebGuru ensures that your website remains accessible to visitors around the clock.

Fast Loading Speeds: eWebGuru uses robust servers and state-of-the-art technology to deliver fast loading speeds, which are crucial for user experience and SEO performance.

Security Features: The company offers SSL certificates, firewalls, and regular backups to protect your website from security threats.

24/7 Customer Support: eWebGuru provides round-the-clock customer support, so you can get help whenever you need it.

For those looking to host a website on a budget, eWebGuru’s cheap web hosting plans offer the perfect balance of affordability and quality.

Step 4: Choose the Right Hosting Plan

When choosing a hosting plan, consider your current needs and potential future growth. If you’re just starting out, a basic shared hosting plan might be sufficient. As your website grows, you can upgrade to a VPS or dedicated hosting plan. eWebGuru offers scalable solutions, allowing you to easily upgrade your plan as your needs evolve.

Step 5: Optimize Your Website for Performance

Even with a cheap web hosting plan, you can optimize your website to ensure it performs well. Here are some tips:

Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN): A CDN can improve your website’s loading speed by serving content from servers closer to the user’s location.

Optimize Images: Compress and resize images to reduce load times.

Minimize Plugins: Use only the necessary plugins to avoid slowing down your website.

Enable Caching: Caching can significantly improve loading times by storing a version of your website that is delivered to users quickly.

Conclusion

Hosting a website on a budget is entirely possible, especially when you choose a reliable provider like eWebGuru. By understanding your website’s needs, comparing providers, and selecting the right plan, you can get your site online without overspending. Cheap web hosting doesn’t have to mean poor service or slow performance. With the right approach, you can enjoy affordable hosting that meets your needs and allows your website to thrive.

Whether you’re launching a personal blog, a small business website, or an e-commerce platform, eWebGuru offers cheap web hosting plans that provide the best value for your money. Start your journey to a successful online presence today by choosing a hosting provider that prioritizes both quality and affordability.