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my-one-love-is-music · 6 years

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Be My Player 2? Ch. 22

I meant to have this chapter up last week, but I was on break and being lazy.

Also on AO3!

Keith yawned as he pushed through the back door of his work. He swung around to the employee lockers and sluggishly put in his combo before pulling the metallic door open and throwing his jacket and wallet inside. He sighed and let it fall shut before running a hand through his hair and slipping down the hall past the door to the kitchen. He punched his number into the time clock and headed out to the floor.

The sounds of dishes and silverware tapping against each other and the soft murmurs of conversation blended together in the background with the soft classical music playing over the speakers. He could see George hard at work making drinks, lips turned down in concentration and he made it behind the counter before he took notice of him.

“Need help?” Keith asked, crossing his arms and leaning his hip against the counter.

George’s head snapped up after he dumped a tumbler of liquor into the glass he was prepping. A wide grin stretched across his face.

“Heyyyyy, look who’s back!” He quickly finished up the drink and set it on the tray with the drink receipt. “How was your week of vacation?” he asked, draping his hand towel over his shoulder.

Keith glanced to the side as the corner of his lips ticked up at the memory of Shiro. “It was great,” he murmured.

“Oh?”

Keith looked up to find George had moved closer and was eyeing him.

“What’s that look for?” he asked.

Keith shrugged and felt his face heat up. “Nothing.” He cleared his throat and skirted around George. “We should get these drink orders taken care of.”

“Not so fast,” George said, taking the next drink order after Keith. “You look like you got the best Christmas present. You never look like that.”

“Well…” Keith said as he turned to grab the bottle of whisky behind them.

George gasped and when he turned around found him with a hand over his chest. Keith rolled his eyes at his dramatics and pulled a small glass from the rack underneath the counter.

“What’s that look for?” he asked.

“What Christmas present did you get?” he asked, leaning forward.

Keith shoved him away. “Don’t just stand there. We have a pile of drinks to get through.”

George raised an eyebrow and made a show of pulling out the glass and alcohol he needed. “I am clearly working. Now continue. I want to know about this present you got. What was it?”

“Not so much an it as a who,” Keith offered.

“You didn’t get a mail order bride did you?”

Keith spluttered and nearly spilled the bottle of whisky he was holding. He breathed a sigh of relief when he got the lid back on. It was one of the more expensive brands and he wasn’t sure Linda would let him off easy for spilling it and he wasn’t prepared to pay her back for it. Not when he needed to save up for spring break.

“What the hell, George?” Keith asked, holding the bottle of whisky close to his chest. “Why would you ask something like that?”

He shrugged and put the finishing touches on his drink, setting it on one of the trays before picking up the next slip in the pile. “Hey, you never know. And you haven’t exactly been in the most sharing mood. If you don’t tell me anything I’m going to assume the worst.”

Keith grumbled and stuck the whisky under the counter. He set the drink on a tray and looked around to make sure none of the other wait staff were nearby. He was already the concern of a lot of the employees since he was living on his own and paying for school. The last thing he needed was for them to be worried he was dating a serial killer.

“You promise to keep this quiet?” he asked.

George leveled him with a look. “You seriously can’t trust me with this?”

“I just don’t want it getting around when it doesn’t need to.”

George’s disbelief and exasperation morphed into determination. “Of course, man. I’ve got your back.”

Keith let out a breath. “Okay,” he said, fiddling with the bottles of alcohol. “My…boyfriend came to visit last week.”

He was expecting to hear glass shattering in the kind of dramatic fashion George embodied, but when he turned to look, George was staring at him, mouth wide open, and tequila held firmly in his hand.

“When the hell did you,” he started too loud. Checking himself, he added, “Get a boyfriend?”

Keith scratched the back of his head and measured out the first alcohol for his next drink. “A few months ago I think? It’s been long distance and I haven’t really told anyone besides Pidge and Hunk.”

“Wait, wait, wait…long distance. So you met this guy online?”

Keith raised an eyebrow and nodded. “Yeah, I did. Just like all the people who use dating sites do.”

George opened his mouth to say something, but paused and nodded. “Keith Kogane did you use a dating site?”

Keith scoffed. “Of course not.”

“Then how did you two meet?” he asked, finally turning back to his work and completing the drink orders in earnest.

“We ended up teaming up one night while playing Voltron. We kind of became regulars at that and a few weeks went by and we got closer before getting together.”

“Aww,” George crooned. “You’re both nerds.”

“Shut up,” Keith said, elbowing him in the side even as he grinned. “Shiro’s a bigger nerd than I am.”

“So his name’s Shiro huh?” George asked.

Keith flushed and turned away.

“Nah, it’s nice,” he continued. “I’m glad that you found someone. Honestly, I didn’t even think you were interested in dating, but you seem happy with him. Next time he’s in town you should bring him around and let me meet him. I’ll fix him up a nice drink on the house.”

Keith’s lips ticked up. “Thanks, George. I really appreciate it.”

The two of them fell back into work next to each other, a companionable silence hanging over their heads as they filled the remainder of the rush orders that had piled up before Keith had made it in.

As Keith swung past Linda’s office on his way out she spoke up inside and stopped him.

“Wait, Keith!”

He backtracked and stuck his head around the door, finding her already halfway out of her desk chair.

“What’s up?” he asked.

“I’ve got the open slots for the next few weeks that you’re on break. I’m giving you first pick of the extra shifts that you want. I’ll let you take up to three extra shifts each week, but you’re already pretty booked here so don’t overdo it and there are plenty of other people who would be more than willing to take the extra shifts, too.”

Keith took the spreadsheet from her hands and looked over the list, sitting in one of the armchairs in front of her desk as he looked things over. Since he didn’t have obligations with school at the moment, he had more than enough time to take on three extra shifts without having to worry about losing sleep and he could probably find time to spend with Shiro outside of that since his schedule would no doubt be flexible too.

“Do you have a pen so I can mark these?” he asked.

Linda held out a blue fountain pen and he took it, bracing the sheets of paper on his legs as he marked off the extra shifts he wanted to take.

“The changes will be uploaded to the employee scheduling system, right?” he asked, passing the papers and pens across the table.

She nodded. “I’m going to update your schedule right now and I’ll post the extra shifts for everyone else to pick and choose as they please. When you can get it to me, I’m going to need a copy of your schedule and updated availability for next semester so I know when I’m going to be able to schedule your hours.”

Keith nodded. “Do you want a physical copy or is email okay?”

“Either’s fine. Just make sure it’s as a timetable.”

“Sure thing,” he said, pushing out of his chair and turning to leave.

“One last thing,” she said, stopping him.

He raised an eyebrow and turned back around.

“Don’t give me that look, it’s nothing bad. I just wanted to know how your break last week was. You’re normally so focused on school and work that you don’t give yourself much time off.”

Keith smiled. “It was nice. I actually managed to enjoy the week and having the chance to spend time with my friends without struggling to work it around everything else.”

Linda smiled and nodded. “That’s good. And you’re always welcome to take more time if you need it.”

“I know, but that probably won’t happen until spring break. I’m hoping to go somewhere so I’m going to need the extra shifts to save up for it.”

“That’s wonderful! I’m glad you’re taking the chance to enjoy some time for yourself. I’ll keep you in mind for extra shifts as always and let me know if there’s anything else you need from me. Enjoy the rest of your night.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Keith said with a smile before he slipped out of her office and headed towards the employee lockers. He pulled his jacket and wallet free, slipping his arms through the sleeves of his coat. He pulled out his phone as he headed towards the back door and smiled at the message he had from Shiro.

Shiro: It’s so lonely without you, babyyyyyy

Keith’s smile turned to a grimace as he pushed the back door open and was met with a gust of chilling wind that ruffled his hair. He ducked his head against it and pulled his jacket tighter around him, wishing he had a hat or a scarf to keep him warm. Or even a car that he could blast the heat in as he drove back to his apartment.

He grit his teeth as he hit the sidewalk and kept his head down, typing out a quick message to Shiro as he fought against the cutting wind.

Keith: I think it got colder now that you’re gone.

Keith: Why did you have to take all the warmth with you?

He clutched his phone tightly in his hand and crossed his arms to try and keep some semblance of warmth trapped in his body. He was definitely going to jump into bed as soon as he got back and wrap himself in a thousand blankets to keep warm.

His phone buzzed in his hand but he waited until he was safely around the corner to his street and out of the direct force of the wind to check it.

Shiro: It’s not my fault you decided to live where it’s cold.

Keith: I didn’t ‘decide’ to live here. This is where I grew up. Not like I could do much else when I was applying for colleges and couldn’t legally move anywhere yet.

Shiro: Well now that you can move anywhere you like you can move somewhere warmer so you don’t have to deal with the cold.

Keith shook his head and pulled his keys from his pocket, fumbling them in the lock to his building before he managed to shove the door open and step into the warmth. He sighed as the door fell shut behind him and blocked out the cold, making him shiver at the sudden temperature change.

Keith: After I graduate.

Keith: There’s no use transferring for my last semester of school

Shiro: You disappoint me

Keith rolled his eyes as he stepped off the landing to his floor.

Keith: Whatever, Shiro. Are you busy tonight? I just got off work and don’t have to go in again until tomorrow afternoon. I have all kinds of free time without having to worry about classes.

His phone vibrated as he shoved his keys into his apartment door and pushed it open, letting it fall shut behind him as he toed off his boots.

Shiro: I’m always free for you. Movie or gaming?

Keith: Are Lance and Allura free too? We could do one of the harder missions and get that done.

Shiro: Let me text them and I’ll let you know.

Keith slipped into his bedroom and tossed his phone onto his bed as he undid the buttons on his work shirt, exchanging it for something more comfortable and his pants for a pair of sweats. He settled down against the headboard and opened his laptop.

He felt his phone vibrate and reached across the comforter for it.

Shiro: Both of them are free and ready to game. Apparently they’re mad the four of us haven’t gotten together more often.

Keith: Cool. I’m about to log into my account so I’ll meet you in there.

Keith pulled his headphones from the bedside table and plugged them into his computer before slipping them on his head. He adjusted the mic in front of his mouth and logged into his Voltron account. He watched as he appeared in the middle of the Castle and he took the chance to scroll through the available missions for a four-player team while he waited for Shiro and the others to get online.

He grinned at the sound of a notification and opened the call.

“Hey, baby,” Shiro said making Keith roll his eyes.

“Hey, Shiro. Your friends on yet?”

“Nope, but they’ll be on soon. Both of them weren’t exactly ready to start right away.��

“Sorry.”

“Not your fault,” he said easily. “You have any ideas for what mission you want to do?”

“Yeah, I was actually looking through them and I think I found one that might be pretty interesting.”

“Oh? What did you find?”

“It’s the one on the sand planet or whatever. Takes four players and it looks like we have to retrieve something for the king or the royal family.”

Shiro hummed and Keith could hear him clicking over to it. “Yeah, that one looks good. I think it’ll prove to be a challenge for us.”

“Shiiirooooooo!”

Keith blinked at the new voice sounding through his headphones.

“Finally joining us, Lance,” Shiro said.

“Hey, I’m not last. Allura’s still getting set up.”

“I know. We were just looking at missions and found one to do.”

“Which one?”

“The one on the sand planet,” Keith said, breaking in. “It’s a four-player. Should be cool.”

“Sup, Keith?” Lance said, brightening. “How was it having Shiro up there with you? Shiro’s been keeping pretty tight-lipped so I’m not getting any of the-“

“Lance,” Allura said, breaking in. “Leave them alone.”

“Ooooh,” he shot back. “Look who finally decided to join us.”

“Careful,” Allura warned, “or the next time I see you, you’re going to get a nice slap across your cheek.”

“You’re no fun,” he whined.

“You only say that because Allura’s got better scores than you,” Keith said, clicking on their mission to calibrate it with their group.

The line when dead silent and Keith froze, thinking he’d overstepped his boundaries. But then Shiro’s booming laughter filled the silence and Allura started to giggle. He could hear Lance mutter something, but it didn’t come through the line clearly.

“He’s got a point,” Shiro said, making Keith grin.

“You only say that because he’s your boyfriend,” Lance muttered.

“You do have good attack accuracy, though,” Keith conceded, feeling a little guilty over having singled him out.

“Damn right, I do,” Lance scoffed. “Someone has to have all of your backs when your attacks fall short half the time.”

“It’s not that bad,” Shiro said as their screens switched over to the video before their new mission.

“It kind of is. You and Keith are lucky that you’ve specialized your characters in hand-to-hand because there’s less room for error when you’re going directly against one of the enemy fighters and only have to worry about dodging their counterattacks. Throwing objects or using guns would decrease your accuracy by a lot,” Lance rattled off.

“But…” Shiro tried.

“I mean,” Keith said, “he’s got a point. I always preferred going hand-to-hand or using a sword and dagger with my fights because I always felt guns were too bulky and didn’t offer the fast turnaround I wanted. So if you threw a gun or blaster at me for a mission I wouldn’t halfway know what to do with it, let alone be able to aim and neutralize our opponents easily.”

There was silence for a moment and Keith looked down at his screen, making sure he was still connected thinking it had dropped, but all four of them were blinking strongly.

“Did I say something wrong?”

“You agreed with me,” Lance said, sounding confused more than anything.

Keith frowned. “Yeah? Is that a problem?”

“No?”

“Well now that we’ve got that settled,” Keith muttered with a role of his eyes. “How about we actually get to this mission? I think there might be some good rewards and an opportunity to level up. After all this talk, I want to gain more experience and increase my attack points.”

Everyone else made sounds of agreement and Keith smiled, watching as their characters appeared on the planet their mission was on. As much as he was already missing having Shiro around, it was nice having the chance to relax without worrying about everything else.

If you enjoy my work, please reblog or consider buying me a ko-fi!

#sheith #voltron #molim writes #fic: player 2?

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theeeveetamer · 7 years

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This Game is an Embarrassment

I was really excited for this game. I really was. But now I just have to rant about it. This game is fucking embarrassing. I’m about 11 maps in and its flaws are REALLY starting to become obvious. This is kind of a semi-coherent rant/review so bear with me.

1) THE CLONES

It didn’t hit me until the final Nohrian stage. I decided to play Leo, and my friend wanted to play Elise. We were just getting started, I was really pumped because Leo is one of my absolute favorite characters of all time. A few minutes into the battle I did this really sweet combo. You know? That really cool one with the black spikes rising out of the ground?

And then I looked down. He had just done the exact same combo.

I. Flipped. The. Fuck. Out.

They cloned Leo. FUCKING LEO. You know? The cool Nohrian Prince that can control GRAVITY AND GROW FUCKING TREES AND SHIT? Well scrap that shit, he’s exactly the same as Elise.

They literally stripped him of something awesome and unique and made him boring. They had an awesome, amazing move set for him HANDED TO THEM on a silver platter, and they fucked it up. Make trees grow, make him drag fliers to the ground, MAKE HIM DO ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE SAME. FUCKING. SHIT. AS. ELISE.

That’s not even starting on the other clones. I was expecting clones. But this fucking many of them? This better get fucking fixed because this is just pathetic. They did so well with Hyrule Warriors! Every character is awesome and unique and FUN.

2) The maps

I don’t even mind the maps but they repeat SO FREQUENTLY. The first eleven chapters have six maps that were not unique. SIX. That’s over half of the maps. In the first few hours of the game. This isn’t as big of a problem as the clones. I could easily overlook this, but this in addition to the clones is just lazy. They barely even change the maps between chapters.

3) The plot

Okay it’s basically every Fire Emblem plot ever. Kill the evil dragon, got it. But why are so many of their damn conflicts based on FUCKING MISUNDERSTANDINGS?

The Fates maps are LITERALLY EXACTLY THE SAME SHIT. LITERALLY. Map 1: “Oh you kidnapped Elise/Sakura! Now I Camilla/Hinoka will kill you!”

Map 2: “You kidnapped my sisters! I, Leo/Takumi will now kill you!”

I only did the first two Birthright maps, but I’m assuming the third will be a “Find Xander/Ryoma and then take bases!” deal.

4) The fanservice

Don’t get me wrong, I love fanservice. It’s a fanservice game, I get it. I really do. But seriously, it’s ALL FANSERVICE and NO SUBSTANCE. I’m pretty sure the writers didn’t even have to expend brain cells thinking of scenes because they just ripped the most iconic and memorable scenes from the other games and dropped their brain dead protagonists in.

It’s all about the framing. In the context of everything else I’ve mentioned it just looks lazy.

5) Little continuity errors

Shit that’s really obvious. Like, Leo not recognizing his retainer. So far there hasn’t even been a nod to it. Or every single character being allowed to used dragon veins (previously only Nohrian/Hoshidan royals could use them because they had dragon blood)

6) The music

I love the music... But it repeats. A lot. On the five Fates maps ALL of them had the same heavy rock version of “You are the Ocean’s Gray Waves”

Just... Just why.

It’s a fun game. Before I started noticing all of this shit it was REALLY fun. Like, I was practically frothing at the mouth. I absolutely ADORE Dynasty Warriors in spite of its many MANY flaws. I had literally hundreds of hours into Hyrule Warriors. I thought this was going to be a slam dunk, and it’s not. It’s not one thing, its SO MANY THINGS.

It’s lazy. This game is the epitome of pure and utter fucking laziness and the fact that I paid 60 dollars for it absolutely sickens me. FIX. THIS. SHIT.

5/10. The only reason it doesn’t get lower is because of the amazing art direction, the half decent voice acting, and the fun as fuck gameplay (when you’re not playing endless clones)

If you got rid of the clones alone it would shoot up to like an 8/10. I’m considering a classic run where I just kill all of the clones and pretend like they don’t exist.

#fe warriors #fire emblem #spoilers #leo #review #rant #clones #not worth my money #not worth my time

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the-nervous-systemm · 5 years

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Ocean Eyes

A quick one-shot I did, SeroxChidori, my OC. Sorry its long, I don't think theres a way to add a read more on mobile. .

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Chidori was bored. Weekends in the UA dorms weren't all that exciting, especially right after tests and in between lesson segments where Aizawa was surprisingly lenient with homework, and since she had finished hers the day before, it left her with not much to do. Surprisingly, the rest of her friend group, which the rest of the class lovingly dubbed the 'Bakusquad,' weren't getting themselves into any shenanigans that Saturday, nor was anyone else in the mood to do any training with her; she had asked anyone who she normally sparred with, but they were either taking the day off to chill or spending the day with their significant others.

Except her.

But was Sero actually her significant other? Neither of them were sure just yet. Yeah, they had gone on two dates and began spending more time together without the rest of their group, but nothing was official. They hadn't even gotten to confessing any sort of feelings for each other. Maybe that was because they started as close friends, and Chidori had almost gotten herself stuck in what Darcy called the 'bro zone' with him.

She sighed, pulling her mess of peach-hued goo she called hair off of her shoulder as she laid on her stomach on her bed, blanket pushed sloppily on her floor and fan running on high in her window. The summer months were coming in at a steady pace, and with her room being on the fifth floor, it felt like August instead of the spring weather it was supposed to be. While her goo-hair being constantly on the cooler side did help with the heat, especially with it covering her body as she never removed any of it, it still wasn't cool enough to stop the humidity. The best she could do without stripping completely was a loose tank and shorts, sans a bra of course.

Since she didn't have much to do, she decided to catch up on the movie list her brother had given her. He was two years older than her, a film student, and a movie junkie, and she had promised him that while she was at UA, she would get through his list of classics so they could talk about them when she came home to visit. This was movie number four since she started that afternoon, and was surprisingly good, though it wasn't quite up her alley. A romance between two childhood friends grown up, it was normally a film she would categorize as too sappy for her taste. Maybe it was her current predicament in her own love life, or the weather melting her mind, but she really was enjoying it. The current scene was near the end, the two lovers had decided to be adventurous and snuck away to a lake in the middle of the night to skinny dip, the soft moonlight illuminating their bare figures.

Chidori paused her attention as a dangerous thought came to the surface.

She could be adventurous, too.

Looking at her phone, she noticed the time - almost midnight. There was no way that their teachers would be awake right now, right? And the last time anyone snuck out and got caught was last year, but that was Midorya and Bakugou getting into a loud fight. If they were quiet, everything would be fine. Chidori was sneaky. There was no way they'd get caught.

Throwing her hair-goo back into a lazy ponytail and putting on a pair of flip-flops, she set out, past her doorway and around the corner to the boys side of the floor, and to her crush's door. Hesitating for a moment, knowing he was probably asleep by now, she knocked, accidentally a little too hard with her nerves in the way.

A moment passed before a groan and a "Yeah?" sleepily came from the other side.

Clutching her chest, her heart beating hard, she replied, "It's Chidori. Can I come in?"

"U-uh, hold on a sec!" was heard along with frantic rustling, a thud, and a low, almost inaudible and pained, "fuck". The door then swung open and a frazzled, messy-haired Sero stood in the doorway, face a shade of pink. His pajamas were shorts and a loose fitting t-shirt, lazily draped over his somewhat lanky figure, and his hair was seemingly stuck in all directions, his normally shaggy look messed up by his pillow no doubt. He clearly wasn't expecting company, but despite all of this, he was still an adorable mess anyway.

"I was wondering," she began, pulling the front of her shirt anxiously. He was also one for adventure and doing something stupid, but she wasn't sure if this was something he'd even consider doing. "Since it's hot out, and no one else will be there, did you want to go swimming? In the pool, I mean." She waited, anticipating a 'no that'd be stupid' from the mom friend of their group.

Without any hesitation, he answered. "Yeah, sure." Wait, what? That wasn't the answer she anticipated. "Just let me grab my bathing suit," he continued, turning to his dresser.

"Wait," she started, taking his wrist before he got too far. Her eyes darted to the ground as her face began to burn. Her voice became soft as the grip on his wrist hardened with nerves. "I-I mean… without that." Her eyes rose again to meet his figure in the darkness of his bedroom.

"Oh." He hadn't turned back to her yet. "I-I mean, it is really hot out," he began to reason, finally meeting her gaze. "It may be uncomfortable for our suits to be clinging to us."

Oh my god. Chidori's stomach twisted in both joy and fear. Fear of what? Getting caught? Ruining what they already had by making it awkward? Knowing that she'd have only water between them while they were out there? A little bit of all of them, she concluded. It was still processing that he even agreed to it in the first place.

There was an almost uncomfortable air lingering around them before either of them spoke or made a move to leave. When one of them finally did, it was Sero, slipping on a pair of shoes and grabbing his keys. "Ready?"

She nodded. "Yeah." That was only half true.

The trek out to the school's outdoor pool was silent, save for some small talk about how their day was going, though they both knew that the idea of what was about to happen was all either could think about. How far were they going to go tonight? If Chidori was to be honest, she wasn't going to shut down any possibilities, even if her rational mind told her to take it slow.

Once they reached the locked gate, both easily scaled it, landing on the other side. The pool was almost serene, still in the moonlight. The air was surprisingly cool, nipping gently at their skin and making their burning faces a little more tolerable. Neither wanted to be the first to strip, but both were anxious at their cores.

In an attempt to ease the tension, Chidori took her shoes off and lowered herself to the edge of the pool, dangling her feet into the tepid water. "The water's not so bad," she spoke, breaking the silence and kicking herself for the cheesy line. Glancing back at Sero, she patted the cement next to her, motioning for him to take a seat beside her. He sat close enough for their arms to touch just enough to give them shivers, and took her hand, entangling their fingers. They stayed like that for a while, just enjoying each other's company.

Biting her lip, Chidori made the first move, taking her hand from his and hesitantly peeling her tank up and over her head, tossing it to the side and making Sero look away in reflex, his face becoming more red than it already was. Revealing her body, especially out in the open like that, was thrilling, sparks of excitement dancing across her now bare skin. She took advantage of his gaze being fixed on the other direction, ridding herself of the rest of her clothing and sinking into the cool water, her toes just barely touching the bottom. Her nerves seemed to wash away knowing that she had done what she was stalling. Leaning on the edge of the concrete, she attempted to get his attention again. "Hey, you just gonna sit there or are you gonna to join a pretty girl in the pool?"

Without a word, Sero quickly stripped as well, almost too fast for Chidori to sneak a peek at him, and jumped into the pool beside her, making a splash. She was still wrapping her head around the idea that they were out there alone, breaking the rules, and nude. At this point, there was no use in regretting now, so they may as well start enjoying themselves.

It felt like they were in a movie, one of those cringy romcoms her brother liked so much. At first, neither could think of much to talk about, but once they stopped trying so hard to not embarrass themselves, they began to have fun, playing around, splashing, talking about anything that came to mind - bad kaiju ideas, disgusting food combos they've tried (and some they liked), and stupid things they did as kids.

They had been out there for at least an hour before Chidori decided to change the subject on a whim. Just before Sero was about to send another wave of water her way, she spat out, "I really like you!"

He halted.

She squeezed her eyes shut, arms crossed over her chest. "Like, really like you. Like, it feels so cheesy confessing like this, but I like you so much that my heart feels like it'll escape if I get too close to you. Like all I want to do is talk about you but I know if I do, I'll just embarrass myself doing it. Like despite my heart aching like it does, I just want to spend as much time with you as possible." She opened her eyes, her gaze following the water up to his, a crooked smile gracing his lips, showing the adorable gap between his two front teeth.

He approached her, closing the space between them, gently placing his hands on her shoulders, and stroking her soft skin underneath his thumbs. "I know," he started, planting a pack on her forehead. "It's not hard to tell."

What? She thought she had done such a good job hiding the full extent of her feelings up until then. Maybe she was easier to read than she thought she was. "O-oh." She nodded, keeping her gaze to his; damn his midnight blue eyes looked gorgeous in the moonlight, and that big, goofy smile of his just made it better. A shiver ran down her spine at his next words.

"Can I kiss you?"

She swore she could feel her heart pound against her ribcage as she nodded, unable to find the words to just say yes. Time seemed to freeze as he held her face oh so softly, pressing his lips to hers, their bodies seeming to melt into one another, skin against skin. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she held him close, caressing her fingertips along his back, tracing the slick muscles, still wet from the pool water.

Chidori didn't know how long they had been there, wrapped into each other before they finally parted, the taste of his lips and chlorine still lingering on her tongue. A sigh escaped her as she laid her head on his chest, closing her eyes for just a moment or two as he brought his arms around her to hold her closer. Sero broke the silence, softly asking, "Did… did you maybe want to be my girlfriend? Make this official or something?"

"Mmmm," she sighed again against him. "That sounds like a good idea."

"Hey, how long have we been out here?"

How long had they been there? She honestly wasn't sure, but it was probably much longer than what they intended. "We should probably head back. shouldn't we?"

The journey back to the dorms was much less awkward as the trip there, with their anxieties left behind them in the water. They continued their carefree conversations from before, this time hand in hand. Boyfriend. It was something she started the day without, but came back with. Boyfriend was new, different. In her past, she hadn't wooed boys, but she somehow managed to wrangle one anyway.

As they saw the dorms come into view, they both couldn't believe that they had gotten away with what they did without notifying a teacher, especially Aizawa, since he seemed to have senses like a hawk.

"Where were you two?"

Their stomachs dropped. Maybe they spoke too soon.

#bnha #mha #mha sero #mha oc #bnha oc #sero hanta #hanta sero

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brookeap3 · 7 years

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Post-its and Paperclips Valentine’s Day

A/N: For my lovely, dear, wonderful friend @repellomuggletum15... Happy Valentine's Day from your OQ Secret Admirer as well as a Happy Early Birthday! I hope you enjoy this little snippet into Robin and Regina's lives in this verse as you celebrate. Mwah! Also, thank you to Lisa and Hollie for the beta! #LoveFromOQ @oqcelebration

{ ffn } { ao3 }

She’s not really one to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Quite honestly, Regina has always found the holiday to be a little lackluster, obnoxious. All those people with their sappy, manufactured love and romance for one day out of three hundred and sixty five a year. It’s not something she’s really bothered with, for the most part, just another day like any other. Perhaps she relaxes in the evening with a glass of wine, maybe she invites Mal over when the blonde doesn’t have a hot date of her own. There’s even been a year or two where she’s booked herself a nice spa day with a bit of self pampering.

This year is different, however. Because this year she has Robin. And as cliché as it may or may not be, Regina finds herself wanting to do something nice for him. In the two months they’ve been dating he’s shown her an endless number of romantic gestures, a multitude of little ways that he appreciates her and she wants to do the same for him. Particularly when she knows he has something planned up his sleeve. The man’s been anything but subtle for the last several days.

One of the many things she loves about him.

No. Not loves. Likes. One of the many qualities she likes about him. Because it’s only been two months and it’s entirely too early to be having those types of thoughts, even subconsciously. However much truth may lie within them. Regina’s not quite ready to admit the depth of the feelings she’s rapidly discovered for this man.

So she buys red and white candles, several quality and expensive bottles of wine, and the fixings for one of Robin’s favorite meals. One that she happens to be most skilled at making. Hadn’t that been a nice discovery the first time she’d cooked for him?

Regina even takes a quick pit stop while out on her errands to swing through the lingerie department at Nordstrom's, picking out a rather risque and sexy set that she can’t wait to have Robin take off her.

On her way home, despite not being one to make a fuss over the holiday, Regina finds herself looking forward to this Valentine’s Day.

. . .

Regina dresses with care come the morning of Valentine’s, choosing a red, flattering blouse that she’s certain Robin will appreciate, taking a bit more time with her make up and finishing off the look with a bold red lip.

When she gets to work, however, she’s immediately pulled into a meeting and doesn’t get a chance to show off for Robin.

After an hour and a half in Jefferson’s office going over their latest account for West Guard Global, brainstorming and creating a few mock up ads they can refine for the presentation next week. When she gets back to her own office, Regina’s jaw drops for several long seconds as she comes to a halt in the doorway, staring at the far wall where there’s a tack board set up.

There’s a heart outline created from light pink post-it notes, scribbles over each of them, and a single iris in a slender silver vase sitting on her desk beside her monitor.

Once Regina’s gotten over the initial surprise of the little display, a slow smile spreads over her face, warmth rising up within her belly as she takes a few steps toward the board. Robin must have snuck in here and put all this up while she’d been otherwise occupied. She should have expected it of him, especially when she knows his fondness for decorating her office with the little squares, but she’s still startled by her own reaction to sweet gesture.

Stopping a step away, Regina leans forward to read what he’s written on the notes today and her pulse begins to quicken, heart swelling with affection. Her eyes race over a few of the notes, catching several words here and there before they land on the one at the top, the bottom point of the two symmetrical arches. My favorite things about you…

Regina takes more care to read each and every one of them after that, her eyes roaming from one to the next following the path of the post-its around the heart. Your smile. The way you laugh with my son. Threading my fingers through your hair. That spiced apple scent of your shampoo. How you tuck your nose into my shoulder. Waking up with you.

They go on and on. Compliments and observations that he’s gathered and hoarded over the time they’ve been a couple. It overwhelms her for a moment, as she realizes how much thought and care Robin had put into making this. Clearly it’s something he’s been planning for a while now.

Turning to her desk, Regina reaches out to feel the petals of the flower between her fingers, soft and smooth and the smile on her face grows even wider. They’re her favorite; unique and so much better than the generic roses one usually receives for Valentine’s Day. The fact Robin both knows and embraces that tiny detail of her personality, cares enough to give her something special, only strengthens the feelings growing within her. She bends her head to sniff at the bloom, letting the familiar scent fill her nostrils.

Immediately turning on her heel, Regina quickly marches back out into the hallway, past Leroy and Ruby’s desks straight into Robin’s office. He’s on the phone, but smiles at her and holds up an index finger as she nods and silently shuts the door behind her. She waits there while he finishes up with the person on the other end of the line, her hands grasped on the door handle at her back, leaning against it as she watches him.

“Yes, I will have the designs sent over to you this afternoon, Mr. Xavier.” Robin scribbles something on the notepad beside his keyboard, nodding along with whatever the man is saying. “Of course. I think you’re really going to love them.” Nodding, Robin’s eyes move from ink and paper to land on Regina again, roaming up and down the length of her body admiringly.

She’s wearing a silky red blouse that dips into a v down her chest, perfectly modest enough for work, but showing a nice amount of skin as well. The black pencil skirt she’s paired with it molding to her curves and hugging her hips, her stiletto heels showcasing her toned calves. It’s festive enough without being overkill and the desire that whips through Robin’s clear blue eyes when they meet hers after his perusal is enough to have heat spreading through her. It was a solid choice this morning.

“The same to you. Have a great day, sir.” Robin states, his eyes never leaving Regina’s as he lays the phone back in it’s cradle and grins at her. “Good morning, lovely.”

Without saying a word, Regina releases her hold on the door and strides over and around Robin’s desk as he spins in his chair to face her. Leaning down over him, she crashes her lips to his in a heated kiss. Her arms wrap around his neck, resting on his shoulders as one of her hands inches up into his hair at the back of his head. Robin lets out a quiet moan in the back of his throat that Regina swallows into her own mouth with an answering one of her own.

Tilting her head slightly to the side, nose brushing over his cheek she deepens the kiss for another minute, molding her mouth to his and allowing her tongue to peek out and play with his. Coffee and peppermint mixing in an odd, but appealing combo. When she pulls away, she nudges his nose gently with hers, affectionately, grinning when Robin chuckles and a burst of hot air gushes over her lips. “Well, hello to you too. What was that for?”

“For being the wonderful, kind man that you are.” Regina answers, shifting until she can sit on his lap, her arms still entwined around his neck. She doesn’t even care if it’s an unprofessional and silly move, not when Robin’s arms circle around her waist in response.

He smiles up at her warmly, one hand reaching up to toy with the ends of her hair, brushing over her shoulders. “I take it you saw my display then.” At Regina’s nod, Robin’s smile brightens several notches and that hand slides deliciously down her spine to rest on her hip once more. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

“You romantic sap.” She chuckles, though still deeply moved by the words that he’d written about her. And those three pesky little words that fill her heart, but aren’t quite ready to be set free yet, bubble up on the tip of her tongue as she alters them a degree and whispers to him, “I loved it, Robin. Thank you.” In fact, Regina is so pleased with the entire gesture and Robin, that there is barely even a twinge of the embarrassment she thinks perhaps she ought to feel at him so openly demonstrating their relationship. He had done it at work after all and nothing about it or what they are doing is at all professional. They aren’t breaking any policies, and every damn person in the office has figured out that the two of them are together by now, but it’s still not entirely appropriate. She doesn’t care though. Couldn’t bring herself to take it down even if she wanted to, not yet.

“Good.” Robin replies, beaming. “Mission accomplished.” And then leans forward to buss his lips against hers again, lighter, less passionate than the one she’d given him, but with no less feeling. When he withdraws, Regina chuckles at the smudge of deep red lipstick that’s stained the skin around his mouth and licks her thumb before rubbing it over his lips and chin in an attempt to wipe it away.

“You know Ruby is going to tease you mercily for it though.”

Shrugging a shoulder, finger tips drawing lazy, random patterns over her back, Robin states, “I can take it in order to see that smile on your face.” They both laugh and then Regina leans in to kiss him again, slower this time, savoring every second.

Slowly extracting himself from Regina’s intoxicating mouth, Robin smiles at her. “Since you’re here… do you have any plans this evening? I’d like to take you out if you’re up for it. I made us reservations at that bistro you like, thought perhaps we could have a fancy dinner out.”

“Actually,” Regina draws, stroking her thumb on the side of his neck, just below his ear, “I was thinking I might make you dinner instead.” Regina slips a hand down to lie on his chest, playing with the knot of the blue silk tie he’s wearing today, noting how the shade matches his eyes quite handsomely. Her voice is a bit hesitant as she admits, “I would kind of like it to just be the two of us tonight. Alone. Rather than at an overcrowded restaurant,” she blushes, “ I’d like to do something special for you for a change.”

Robin shakes his head jocularly, assuring her, “You do that every day. I don’t need anything else.”

“All the same,” Regina laughs, “I want to plan something for you rather than the other way around.” Angling her neck to brush her lips over the shell of his ear, she whispers into it, “I might even have a few surprises in store for you.”

“Well that sounds quite a lovely way to spend the evening.” Robin answers, desire stabs sharply in his gut as her breath tickles his ear and her breasts press against his chest. He wants this woman with a fiery passion and if it weren’t the middle of their work day, coworkers milling about outside of the too thin walls of his office, he might indulge them both in a little mid morning romp. Instead, he teases them both, one of his hands kneading over the curve of her ass in his lap while the other trails a fingertip down the neckline of her blouse, over her exposed skin to hook lazily over the top button just between her breasts. “There’s just one minor hiccup, however.”

Her confused expression meets his, a little crinkle caved between her brows, “Hiccup?”

“Roland.” Robin answers with an amused twitch of his lips, explaining to her, “He asked to see you this morning before I dropped him at preschool. Apparently, he’s been working on a present for you in class.”

Regina’s heart melts, murmuring, “Really?” almost too quietly for Robin to hear.

“Yes. He’s quite excited about it as well.” He answers. Though Robin hasn’t a clue what his child has concocted to give his girlfriend, the thought behind the gesture, that he’d chosen Regina to create something for, both amuses and delights him.

Considering for a moment, Regina tilts her head to the side, her dark locks falling over her shoulder again, before she offers, “What if I went with you to pick him up today? I could see him and then you could come over around seven? That should give me enough time to put everything together.”

“That,” Robin says, placing a quick peck to her lips, “is an excellent plan. Roland will love that.”

Regina grins. “Great.” Then another thought occurs to her and she frowns a tad and asks, “Do you have someone to watch him tonight if you come over?” Granted, he’d already been planning to take her out and Robin is a responsible father so surely he’s lined up some form of babysitting for the evening, but Regina can’t help but make sure.

He nods, then smirks at her with a touch of playfulness to his expression. “Yes. John has graciously offered to look after him.” Wiggling his eyebrows at her, Robin adds a suggestive, “All night, should the need arise, I was told.”

One dark, thin eyebrow lifts as she studies him, “Planning to get lucky are you?”

Robin’s rich and deep laughter is too much for Regina to maintain the straight face she’d been attempting when he replies, “Those were John’s words not mine.” lifting both hands in surrender before winking at her and adding, “It is always my hope though, I will admit.”

It’s obvious that he’s merely teasing, having a bit of fun with her, and the open, light-hearted reaction it draws from her is only another reason that Regina finds herself falling for this man. “Well you’re off to a good start.” She tells him honestly, thinking to the post-its decorating her office now.

A knock on the door breaks them out of their little cocoon, dragging them back to the reality of work and responsibilities. Robin calls out for whoever is on the other side to wait one moment as Regina reluctantly climbs off his lap, smoothing out a few wrinkles on her skirt as she smiles down at him. “I’ll meet you up front at four?”

He nods, reaching out to grip one of her hands in his for a moment, bringing her knuckles to his lips and placing a light kiss to the soft skin there. Regina is positive there’s likely an adolescent, love-sick look on her face at the moment, but she doesn’t mind, not when Robin brings her this much happiness.

When she draws her hand from his grasp and turns to stride back to the door, twisting the knob and swinging it open, Ruby glances between her and Robin, an impish expression on her face that Regina chooses to ignore as she slips past them and heads back to her office.

. . .

It’s unseasonably warm today, and the sun is shining, the last vestiges of bright, shining rays of light before it dims into the beginnings of twilight. So she waits by the car while Robin runs inside to retrieve Roland. They’d agreed that it would be more fun for her to surprise him that way, rather than her walking in with his father. Her hands are tucked into the pockets of her pea coat as she leans against the side of Robin’s Audi, her own Mercedes parked right beside him. For a few minutes she daydreams a bit, staring up at the fluffy white clouds and clear blue sky until an enthusiastic squeal of her name draws her attention to the little boy sprinting across the sidewalk to her.

“R’ginaaaaaaa! You’re here!” Roland takes a running leap toward her and she just barely manages to extract her hands from her pockets to open her arms to catch the brunt of his weight as he collides with her. It makes her laugh, burying her face against his neck for a moment before he’s stepping back and bouncing eagerly. “What are you doing here?!”

“I heard you wanted to see me.”

His dimples pucker in this cheeks as a grin spreads across his face. “Yes! I made you something!”

“Did you?” She gasps in mock surprise, smirking up at Robin as he finally joins them, standing just beside Roland on the sidewalk as he frantically squirms out of his backpack and drops it to the ground, kneeling to dig inside of it, searching for something.

He pulls out a handful of crumpled papers that Robin sighs at as he watches his son squeeze them, further wrinkling them before dropping them to the side walk. Then it’s a fistful of candy and paper valentines that Regina is positive will have Roland bouncing off the walls before bedtime tonight. Good luck with that one, John, she thinks to herself before the boy finally lets out a whoop of glee, brandishing a large pink piece of paper.

Popping back up on his feet, Roland opens the construction paper, holding it out to her with both hands proudly. It’s been cut into the shape of a heart, with different red and blue colored paper stips woven into it to form a sort of quilted patchwork. There’s a smaller heart cut out in the very center, a carefully written note in thick black marker.

Valentines, valentines,

Pink, red and blue,

I've made a pretty one

Just for you!

“Will you be my valentine, R’gina?” Roland asks her seriously, tilting his head and biting this lip the same way that Robin does, and her heart completely shatters and bursts with love for this little boy. It’s possibly one of the sweetest things anyone has ever made or done for her, both the simple children’s craft and his charming offer. Thinking of the pink post-its adorning her tackboard, Regina can see where Roland gets it.

Dropping down to one knee so she’s at Roland’s level, Regina gingerly takes the paper heart from him, holding it between her fingers and admiring it. Her gaze lifts to his, a sunny smile lighting up her face as she tells him, “Of course I’ll be your valentine, Roland! I would be honored.” She looks back down to the valentine, asking him, “Did you write all this yourself?”

“Uh-huh. Well, Miss Belle helped. I did all the strips by myself though!”

Drilling a finger in his belly to tickle and make him laugh, Regina grins. “Well, you did a wonderful job. I love it. Thank you very much.”

Robin is smiling down at them, eyes filled with love and affection as he watches the two of them interact. Roland’s never really had this before. A mother figure. A woman that he can look up to, who cares for him. He’d been only a year old when Marian had gotten sick. Not enough time for either one of them. So while he’s heard the stories of his mother, loves her as much as a toddler who’s never really known her can, he hasn’t had this sort of female attention and affection. It would seem that now he does though.

It's only been two months of being together, of getting to know one another on a deeper level and there’s still so much to learn and discover. But Robin thinks he just might be falling in love with this woman. Perhaps he might have even started the descent long before that night they'd spent stuck in their office.

Brought back from his musings, Robin blinks at his son, stutters a confused, “What?” at the twin stares of indulgence from them both. Roland giggles and Regina smirks knowingly at him. Caught. A light blush tinges his cheeks as he listens when Roland repeats his question asking if Regina can come over and play with him. As much as it saddens him to deny him, Robin shakes his head. “Unfortunately not, I’m afraid. We need to let Regina get home.”

Pouting slightly, Roland looks between his father and Regina, his lower lip welling up. Before he has a chance to protest, however, Regina grabs his attention and promises, “We can have a play date this weekend. How does that sound?” Looking quickly to Robin for permission, to which he nods his agreement.

Roland thinks for a few seconds, internally debating whether that is a sufficient compromise before he nods, curls bouncing. “Okay!”

Her clear laughter rings through the late afternoon and then she’s telling him, “Come here. Valentines get kisses.” Regina informs him matter of factly, both arms sneaking out to grab him about the waist and tug him closer to her, so she can pepper noisy kisses all over his face, smacking her lips dramatically, causing Roland to chuckle and squeeze his eyes shut.

“Alright. Time to go.” Robin says, as reluctant as he is to break the two of them up.

Regina watches at Robin maneuvers Roland into the car, helping him into his booster seat and strapping him in, tossing in his backpack to land on the seat beside him. When he shuts the door and turns to her, she slants her head to the side and smiles, letting him reach for her hand, jerking her so their bodies are flush against one another.

“I’ll see you at seven?” She asks, leaning her body into his and tilting her chin up for a kiss.

Robin bends his neck so his mouth meets hers in a quick kiss and replies, “Definitely.” They part ways, Robin opening the driver's door as Regina blows Roland a kiss as he rapidly waves his hand at her from his booster in the back seat.

. . .

Everything is perfect. Exactly as she’d imagined it.

Not that she’s been imagining this evening a great deal. Well, not much anyway. But Regina’s put a good amount of thought and care into creating a romantic setting for herself and Robin for the night, and she’s rather proud of the end results. Especially when she knows Robin is the type to appreciate the work that went into everything.

The table is set with a ruby red cloth, two tall white taper candles placed on silver candlestick holders in the center, a fragrant bouquet nestled between them. She’s set out her good china because why shouldn’t she use it every now and again? That’s what it’s for right? There are other candles scattered around the room, short fat ones, taller, thicker ones, that create a flickering glow that is both cozy and flattering. A playlist she may have spent more time creating than she would willingly admit to plays softly from the speaker in the living room, bleeding into the kitchen and dining area.

Turning to check on the lasagna dish in the oven, she slips the door open a crack as a gush of hot air flies up into her face. A quick glance shows the lightly bubbling layer of cheese on the top and Regina nods in satisfaction as she shuts the door again and turns the oven off. The dish should stay warm enough trapped within the confines of the oven until they’re ready for it. Robin should be here any minute as it is. Regina’s already opened a bottle of red wine, letting it breath on the counter as she turns to double check her appearance in the reflection of the microwave, fluffing her hair a tad, soft curls falling around her face. She rubs her hands down the sides of the tight black dress she’s wearing. The sleeveless one that boasts a deep neckline and a slit that runs from the hem just above her knees upward, stopping just a few inches short of her hip. She hasn’t worn this one for him yet, has been saving it for a special occasion and Regina can’t wait to see what his reaction to it will be.

She hopes it knocks his socks off.

The doorbell chimes, ringing merrily and echoing through the house as Regina grins in anticipation, just a touch shy of over eagerly making her way to the front door. When she swings it open to reveal Robin standing on her porch, she allows herself a moment to take in his appearance. Despite the low-key aspects to a dinner at home, he’s dressed up for her. Wearing that blue suit that’s somewhere between the realm of royal and navy blue, a crisp white shirt, and thin black tie to complete the ensemble. Lord, he looks sexy. Heat pools in Regina’s belly at the mere sight of him and the fleeting thought that perhaps they could skip dinner altogether and she could just take him up to her bedroom fickers along the outskirts of her mind for a moment.

He’s smirking at her, his own eyes raking over the form fitting dress she’s donned for the evening, heat flaring through and darkening those blue eyes she adores. “Good evening, milady.” Robin greets, flourishing a bouquet of purple irises for her enjoyment, the same as the one he’d given her earlier today.

Regina chuckles, reaching out for the arrangement and burying her nose amidst the blooms for a minute, fluttering her eyelashes flirtatiously at him as she responds, “Thank you.” and gestures for him to come inside.

As soon as he does, Robin sneaks an arm out to hook around her waist, drawing her body flush against his, crushing her flowers between their chests, but when she catches the look in his eyes, Regina doesn’t really mind. Then his mouth swoops down on hers and every thought she has flies straight out of her head, brain emptying like a lemonade pitcher on a hot summer day, only to be filled with the taste and sensation of his lips against hers. Teeth scrape and nibble along her bottom lip, eliciting a low, arousing moan from Regina.

By the time Robin swipes his tongue one final time through her mouth, teasing her before pulling away, her head is spinning. A few loose blooms fall slowly to the floor between them as Regina struggles to regain her sensibilities.

“You look absolutely stunning. Thought I would get that out of the way so we can focus on dinner.” Robin tells her cheekily. And Regina scoffs, as if she’s not going to be thinking of that kiss, of everything they could be doing to each other all through their salad and pasta. Though, if Robin’s not-so-coy expression is any indication, that had been his plan all along, despite his attempts to say otherwise. At least she knows the dress is a hit.

Raising an eyebrow at him, she jokingly retorts, “That was one hell of a greeting.”

Robin chuckles, shrugs his shoulders and lifts his palms innocently, something she knows him to be anything but. “You’re a hard woman to resist, Regina Mills.” Is all he says as way of an explanation. As far as they go though, Regina thinks that is a fair one to be made.

The two of them stand there grinning at each other like fools for another thirty seconds before Regina lifts the bouquet in her hands. “I should put these in water.” She heads for the kitchen, certain Robin will follow. Sure enough, as she turns to look back over her shoulder to inform him, “Dinner is almost ready. I just have to toss the salad together.” and just like that, he’s trailing after her.

He sniffs at the air curiously and Regina chuckles again, but is quite pleased when recognition comes into his eyes. “Is that your lasagna I smell?” He asks hopefully, not quite able to mask the reverence from his voice.

“Indeed it is.” Regina replies, heading straight for the cabinet to the far left to retrieve one of her crystal vases. Robin’s murmured Bless you, causes her lips to tip up as she turns to the right L of the counter and holds the vase beneath the faucet. “Feel free to pour that wine if you’d like.”

Moving further into the kitchen, he brushes a hand across the small of her back lightly, absent-mindedly on his way to the cabinet to her left, grabbing two glasses from the shelf and turning to round the counter on the other side of the sink to face her once more. Regina arranges the irises into the vase and then sets it to the side, moving to pull out the makings for their salad. Lettuce, tomatoes, olives, some shredded carrots and mozzarella cheese. Laying it all out in front of her as Robin pours them each a generous helping of wine and watches her work.

“How was Roland when you left? On a sugar high from all his Valentine’s candy from school by the time John got there?” Regina asks as she works, looking up to meet Robin’s light blue gaze when he makes a slight sound of uncertainty.

“A tad upset I’m afraid.”

Regina frowns as she drops tomatoes into the large bowl she’s tossing all the ingredients into. “Why?”

“He didn’t realize I was seeing you again tonight when we parted this afternoon. Was a bit surly over the fact I get to have a playdate with you before he does.” Robin says it in as serious of a tone as he can manage, but there’s a gleam in his eyes, a silent play on words that neither one of them can keep from laughing at.

A playdate indeed. Regina thinks as her lips twitch and she struggles to contain her amusement. “Well perhaps I’ll have to come over sooner than this weekend to appease him.” She answers.

Robin grins, sipping from his wine before replying, “I think that is an excellent idea. You’re welcome. Any time you’d like, Regina. Roland and I would both love to see you more.”

Eyeing him from beneath her lashes, sprinkling the last of the cheese over the other veggies, she comments, “You see me every day.” They work together. She and Robin have some sort of interaction on a daily basis. Granted that doesn’t extend to Roland all the time necessarily, but Robin is not deprived of seeing her.

“That’s at the office.” He says, setting his glass on the counter and stepping around it once more now that she’s finished. Weaving his arms around her waist, Robin interlocks his fingers together at the base of Regina’s spine as her arms wrap around his neck. “It’s not the same. We’re busy and in meetings. There are always people around. It’s hard for me to do this whenever I want to.” He mutters quietly, lowering his mouth to hers, pressing their lips together firmly. Robin’s tongue runs slowly along the seam of her lips, urging them open and then lightly massaging into her mouth when she grants him access. His embrace tightens, squeezing her body marginally closer to his, so that they are pressed together entirely, before he breaks the kiss to tell her, “I can’t get enough of you, Regina. I always want more time.”

It’s ridiculous the way her heart flutters and picks up speed. A combination of his heady, addicting kisses and his sweet, genuine words. She wants that also, to feel like this forever. Cherished and appreciated. Wanted. In more ways than one.

Eventually, she regains her voice enough to tell him softly, “I would like that.”

“Perhaps we can arrange it then.”

Nodding, swallowing the sudden lump of emotion lodged in her throat, Regina clears it, smiles and then steps out of his arms. “I’m sure we could.” Glancing down to the bowl of lettuce to her left and then back to him, she says, “Let’s eat.”

Robin helps her set the remainder of the table while she pulls the lasagna out of the oven, transferring two squares of it to their plates before they take their seats. Side by side, Robin on the end while Regina takes the seat on the adjacent corner rather than the one across from him. They’re closer this way, it’s easier for them to have a conversation, and for Robin to toy with her fingers in between bites, stroking his thumb over the top of her hand, hooking his fingers around hers. He keeps it up until halfway through their meal when he threads their fingers together, curling his around her hand, palm to palm and smiles at her.

“Tell me a story from your childhood.”

“What?” Regina asks, puzzled. It’s an abrupt change of topic from the latest Alessia Cara music they had been discussing and how Regina has listened to it a countless number of times. “I want to know you better, Regina.” Robin answers, smirking at her, pleased to have thrown her off course it would seem. “To learn something new about who you are, what made you who you are today. How you became this fascinating woman I am absolutely smitten with.”

Well she can’t very well argue with that, can she? Her heart beats a quick rhythm in her chest and Regina picks up her wine glass, taking a long sip before asking, “What do you want to know?”

“Anything. Whatever you’re willing to share with me.” His voice is quiet, patient. There’s no pressure. And if she decided that she didn’t want to tell him anything, Regina knows he wouldn’t push her. But she wants the same thing, for him to know her on a deeper level. Regina trusts herself to be open with him. And, truthfully, she’s just as smitten as he is.

But they’re having a pleasant evening, a wonderful dinner, in fact, and she doesn’t want to ruin the mood. So she won’t share any of the painful parts of her past. The uncomfortable and hurtful spats with her mother, the loneliness she struggled with as a child. No, she’ll save those for another day. Oddly enough, Regina doesn’t think that she would be ashamed to share that part of herself with him though. She hasn’t had that feeling or inherent certainty that she’s safe to be vulnerable with anyone for a very, very long time.

Settling on a memory that never fails to make her smile, Regina begins with, “I loved astronomy as a child. Went through a phase when I was about… oh, probably, ten or so, when it was my absolute favorite thing. I was totally obsessed and my father loved to indulge me, particularly when I showed such a keen interest in something.”

Robin’s eyes are focused on her, his hand still joined with hers, thumb stroking along the outer edge of her palm. “Astronomy, huh? I never would have guessed.”

Laughing, Regina grins at him. “Yes, well I eventually grew out of it. Took up horseback riding instead and that ending up being my main focus. Although, I still enjoy learning about the stars and space. The galaxy is a fascinating place.” She takes another quick bite, as Robin follows suit and does the same before continuing. “Daddy took me to visit The Natural History Museum one weekend. We spent the whole day there in the Hayden Planetarium. I couldn’t get enough. Begged him to stay until they kicked us out.”

Regina smiles at the memory, the excitement and wonder that she had felt that day, sharing it with her father. It had truly been a perfect day. The familiar ache of missing him flashes through her for a short moment. It only lasts for a minute, thankfully, but Robin must see it on her face because he brings their joined hands to his mouth, pressing his lips to her skin softly. “He sounds like a wonderful man. I wish I could have met him.”

“So do I.” Regina tells him. Daddy would have loved Robin. Particularly, how happy he makes his daughter. She can picture the two of them, sitting together in front of a football game on a Sunday afternoon, laughing and bonding, Roland helping her in the kitchen, trying to talk her into one more cookie. It’s a lovely image. And a pang of longing shoots through her before she shoves it down.

Clearing her throat, Regina withdraws her hand from his and takes another drink of her wine, tilting her head at him as she asks, “What about you? What were you like as a kid?”

A mischievous smirk slips across Robin’s features as he says, “Oh I was a rather delinquent child.”

Regina arches her eyebrow, “A troublemaker were you?”

“Oh most definitely.” Robin laughs, making her grin and shake her head at him as she takes another bite of meat and cheese and pasta, scooping it up onto her fork and popping the delicious combination into her mouth. “I had something of a ragtag gang in my youth. John and I used to like to steal trinkets from our parents’ rich friends and then sell them for cash.”

That surprises her, it’s not something she would have expected from him. Robin is generous and kind, doesn’t seem the type for criminal activity. But Regina responds with her initial question first, “John? I didn’t realize you two had known each other for that long.”

“Oh yes. He’s been my best mate since we were five. Met on the playground our first day of kindergarten and have been inseparable ever since.”

She smiles at that, happy for him that he has someone who knows him like that, who grew up with him. The oldest friend Regina has is Mal and she’s only been in her life for the last thirteen years, let alone nearly three decades. It’s sweet though.

“So what did you two do with the cash after you hocked what you stole?”

“We donated the money to local food banks.” Ah, and that sounds more like the Robin that she knows. The one with a huge heart. Still, it surprises her some to hear that’s what he’d chosen to do with large amounts of cash as a teenager. Many would not have.

Leaning forward, resting one of her forearms on the table, Regina tells him, “You are a very special man, Robin Locksley.”

He grins at her, mirroring her pose and replies, “So are you, Regina Mills.”

They spend the remainder of their meal all smiles, laughing and changing the subject to other lighter topics. What they might do this weekend. Regina thinks it would be fun to take Roland to the new children’s movie that’s playing, and Robin cheerfully agrees.

When Robin scoops the last bite of his lasagna into his mouth, with a satisfied hum as Regina watches him, sipping on her wine, she asks, “Would you like any more?”

Wiping his napkin at the corners of his mouth as he chews, Robin shakes his head. “I’m quite full. It was spectacular as always, milady. And as you know my favorite. Thank you for making it.”

“You’re welcome. There are brownies for dessert.”

There’s a naughty glint in Robin’s eyes as a slow chesire cat like grin forms on his face. His hand finds hers once more, teasingly running the tips of his fingers over the back of her hand as he tells her, “I had something else in mind for dessert, actually.”

Oh. Well then.

Heat settles in the pit of her stomach, moving even lower at Robin’s words. “There’s a fire going in the living room. Would you like to move this in there?” Regina asks, her elbow resting on the table as she leans toward him again, wine glass in one hand as she tilts her head at him before taking a sip. Dinner has been lovely and she’s feeling loose and happy. Two things she’s never really experienced before on Valentine’s Day. Well, once. That year that she’d had Daniel in her life. But never again since that one day.

That dopey, adorable, kissable grin that has Robin’s dimples winking out smiles back at her and Regina’s stomach flips. She wants to do that. Kiss that smile off his face until she’s driven him wild. “That sounds lovely.” Robin answers her, standing to hold out a hand for her own. They’ll do the dishes later, she decides and places her palm within Robin’s open one.

They bring their wine glasses with them, and the bottle, topping off the raspberry colored liquid as they settle in on the couch, but it isn’t long before they are long forgotten in favor of focusing all their attention on one another. Robin’s hand rests on one of the thighs Regina has tucked beneath her, slowly and teasingly rubbing his thumb back and forth over her bare skin, inciting goosebumps across her flesh, as he kisses down her jaw, along her neck.

Regina hums, angling her head to grant him more access to her sensitive skin when he starts to suck lightly at her throat. Shifting closer to him, her hand grasps onto his hair, steadying herself.

“You are so bloody beautiful.” Robin breathes after a few minutes, his eyes roaming all over her body, settling on her face as his hand on her thigh ventures upward some to cup her hip and pull her closer to him.

It’s not enough though. She wants to feel him, more of him than she presently can at least. So she smirks at him and then tosses her leg over his hip, adjusting until she can straddle his waist. The hem of her dress rises dangerously high, that slit expanding and exposing even more of her leg to him, the edge of her red lace panties just barely visible over her hip. “You may have mentioned it.” She teases, rubbing her hands up and down his chest as he groans at their new position.

His palms slide up and down her thighs, heating her skin as Regina rocks subtly against his growing arousal. Fusing his mouth to hers again, Robin lets himself drown in the warm, delicious flavor of her mouth, tasting the bitterness of the wine they’ve been drinking and something that is completely Regina. He’s addicted to it and her.

Their mouths mold against one another, tongues swirling against each other, and Robin feels himself getting harder with every grind of her hips on top of his. He needs her desperately. A little tipsy himself, his movements are slightly fumbled as he rakes his hands over her body. Thankfully, Regina doesn’t seem to notice or mind much. One palm rubs over her thigh as the other inches its way up her torso until he can cup one of her breasts in his hand, squeezing gently and loving the tiny moan the action wrenches from her.

When she breaks away from his mouth so they can both gulp air into their burning lungs, Robin makes a disgruntled sound. Before he can kiss her again though, Regina drops her forehead to his, panting heavily as she asks quietly, “Are you staying tonight?”

He supposes they never had come to a final conclusion about that, had they? Had teased each other, been subtly implying it throughout the day and evening, but had never firmly decided. Robin had been planning on it, if Regina wanted him to, unable to bear the thought of not being in her bed tonight. And he’d packed a bag just in case, had left it in the car upon his arrival. “Do you want me to?” Robin asks.

Regina’s breathless snort and teasing, “Is that not obvious?” accompanied with another roll of her hips over his, makes Robin chuckle and groan simultaneously.

“Then I would like that very much, milady.” He answers, gripping his hands beneath her thighs and standing quickly, much to Regina’s surprise as she instinctively wraps her legs around his hips. The move aligns his erection with her aching center more directly and they both moan quietly as Robin begins walking in the direction of the stairs.

He gets distracted at the bottom step, however, Regina’s lips on his throat driving him crazy, and he has to take a minute to press her against the wall, bucking his hips against her as he brings his mouth back to hers. Regina’s ankles are locked around his hips, just below his ass and she uses her grip to push her hips against his in response. Their kiss is a bit sloppy, decidedly needy, but neither one of them can bother to give a damn when white hot desire is coursing through their veins.

“I want you so much, Robin.” Regina moans into his mouth, licking at his bottom lips. There’s hot, liquid fire pooling between her thighs with each passing minute.

Briefly, Robin considers taking her right here. Fucking her against this wall before taking her upstairs to ravish her for a second round. But that’s not what he wants this evening to be about, as much as it would probably please them both. He wants to have her in her soft, comfortable bed, to worship her body. Still, he reaches a hand between their bodies, rubbing lightly over her clit through her panties, the bottom of her dress now bunched around her hips, and Regina’s head falls back against the wall as she gasps, her mouth dropping open.

Robin’s teasing is affecting him just as much as Regina, and he’s painfully hard in his slacks now. He wants her out of this dress. Now. So he readjusts his grip on her and plants his lips on her neck, biting lightly once before he’s taking the stairs as fast as he can manage without killing either one of them.

By now he’s familiar enough with the layout of her house that it is quick and easy to find his way down the hall to her bedroom, nudging the door open with his foot and letting it swing back all while Regina swirls her tongue along the outer edge of his ear and tortures him just a bit with images of her using that tongue other places.

It seems Regina has similar ideas because as soon as he stumbles to the bed, falling down on it with her, she’s switching positions with him, straddling his waist again as she kisses him. Her teeth scrape along his jaw, over his chin, then bite into that tempting lower lip of his as she whispers seductively against his mouth. “I’m going to have my wicked way with you.”

Thank god.

Robin thinks, his mind going blissfully blank except for the feel of her body atop his as she starts to pepper kisses down his throat, using her tongue and teeth to drive him wild. Though a part of him is torn between wanting to enjoy whatever it is she is about to do to him and the strong desire to do the same to her.

He at least wants her naked. All that creamy, olive skin on display for him. So he grips the hem of her dress, dragging it upward before she can wiggle out of his reach in her descent. Regina laughs, aiding him in its removal. She sits up fully then, sitting on her feet and calves between his legs as his eyes rake over the red lace bra that does wonders for her tits, piling them high and spilling over the edges. Rosy nipples strained and visible through the material. Those blue irises darkening to a deep navy shade with desire.

She lets him look for a minute, smirking at him and tossing her hair a bit flirtatiously as she asks, “Do you like it?” He hasn’t seen this particular piece. It’s new. Purchased specifically for this moment. But if the way he’s looking at her is any sort of gauge, Regina’s little stint into the lingerie department the other day had been well worth the trip.

Robin sits up then, closing the distance between them once more until his face is a mere few inches from her own, his voice rough and aroused as he tells her, “I love it. Looks fantastic on you.” One finger trails a path along the edge of her bra, starting at her shoulder and down the strap, across one breast and then the other before he cups them in his palms and thumbs at her nipples through the thin fabric.

It creates a delightful bit of friction that Regina groans at. But she has other plans and will not let Robin distract her for long. Shoving at his shoulders, he flops back down to the bed, and she laughs when he raises an eyebrow at her and gives her a wry expression.

“I’m having my way with you, remember. No touching.” Robin nearly pouts at that and Regina snorts as she pulls the hem of his dress shirt free, suit jacket long forgotten on the living room couch, and begins to deftly slip the buttons. Inch by inch, his toned abdomen comes into her view. Golden skin and the smattering of light blonde hair that starts just below his bellybutton and continues downward.

God, he’s attractive, Regina thinks to herself when she’s released the last button and pushed his shirt off his shoulders, observing as Robin wiggles out of the sleeves and let’s it drop off the side of the bed. Running her hands over his arms and biceps, Regina admires the firmness of the muscles, the ripple of them when she makes a sweeping gesture and slides them down his chest and over his stomach. How on earth she managed to resist and deny her attraction to this man for so long she will never know. Not now that she knows what she had been been missing.

Her attention shifts to the button of his slacks, releasing it and teasingly sliding his zipper down, lightly brushing over the bulge in his pants. She strokes a fingertip over it, smirking when Robin tries to bite back a moan. Regina enjoys this, teasing him. He so often does the same to her, she’s learned it’s one of his favorite activities in fact. To tease and arouse her, slowly, drawing out her pleasure.

With a bit of help from Robin and a brief maneuvering in their positions, they rid him of his slacks and boxer briefs together. His erection springing free. Reaching for him, Regina strokes up and down the hard, solid length. His skin soft beneath her palm, veins pulsing. Her gaze lifts to meet his where he’s watching her through heavy-lidded eyes.

A wicked gleam flashes through her own a moment before she lowers her mouth to his cock. Swirling her tongue around the head before taking him deeper into her mouth. Robin groans, a guttural sound that echoes her own arousal, wetness gathering between her thighs. She enjoys doing this to him, having him at her mercy, bringing him the type of pleasure he so thrills in bestowing upon her.

And Regina had wanted to do something special for him tonight, to show him a bit of extra attention. This seems a fitting way to achieve that goal.

She scrapes her teeth lightly over his skin, a mix between something salty and male filling her mouth when she wraps her lips around him again. Her nails scratch lightly over his thighs, adding to the stimulation she’s giving him. Quiet moans rise up out of his throat, growing louder and clearer with each up and down motion of her mouth on his cock.

When she adds one of her hands, gripping it around the base of his shaft and begins to twist up and down while sucking him harder, hollowing her cheeks, Robin nearly loses his mind.

It feels incredible. Warm and wet. Liquid heat that engulfs him, so reminiscent of how it feels to have her wrapped around him, their bodies joined. Her tongue is unbelievable, drawing indecipherable patterns along his shaft, sliding down to lick at his balls as she strokes him up and down, squeezing gently around him.

Engulfing her mouth around him once more, Regina sucks firmly, focusing on her task with renewed vigor. Her tongue runs along the underside of his cock as she bobs her head up and down, faster and faster, harder and all of a sudden it’s too much, Robin can’t hold back any longer, gut tightening, his reign on control a thin tether that is a second away from snapping. “Fuck, love. Feels so good. You need to stop. Please. I’m... Regina— “

She releases him with a wet pop, smirking at him knowingly from where she kneels between his thighs. His head is thrown back, chest rising and falling rapidly with the effort it takes for him to keep himself in check, hands fisted into her sheets. Satisfaction whips through her, mounting when he tips his chin down and opens those intense eyes to find hers.

Lifting himself off the bed enough to circle his thumb and index finger around her wrists resting on his thighs Robin pulls her to him for a fierce kiss. Stealing the breath from Regina’s lungs. “You’re going to be the death of me.” Robin pants when their lips separate, hot air ghosting over her mouth while they catch their breath. Her laughter is breathless an amused as he quickly rolls them across the bed, her legs wrapped around his waist as they end up with Robin on top of her.

He devours her mouth then. Hotly, passionately. Robin could happily drown in the taste of this woman and he wants all of her all at once, hands stroking quickly over her bared skin, sliding beneath her back to skillfully unclip the hook of her bra, releasing it with quiet pop. One of his hands rests beside her head, bracing his body over hers as the other pulls the material from her body and tosses it across the room, continuing to kiss her. His hand palms her breasts, pinching her nipples and tugging at the hardened peaks. The way Regina arches her spine into his touch, gasps into his mouth, it’s just as painfully arousing as her mouth around him had been.

Moving to suck and lick at her pulse point, Robin rocks his hips against hers, his cock rubbing over her clit through her panties. And that’s something that needs to go. Slipping a hand between their bodies, he rubs over the lace between her thighs. She’s soaked. Her panties damp and ruined as he hooks his index fingers around the material and drags them down her hips and legs, tossing them aside.

Then he runs his index fingers between her folds, her hips bucking up into his touch as Regina moans, hands gripping at his shoulders, moving up and down his biceps. “Mmmmm… yes. That feels good.” She cries when Robin circles her clit with his thumb, slipping two fingers inside her.

Pumping lazily, Robin crooks his fingers, thumping against that spot that he knows drives her crazy, a mewling sound of pleasure breaking free as she moves her hips against his hand, seeking more friction. “That’s it, love. Just enjoy it.” Robin doesn’t disappoint when he adds a third finger, stretching her, warming her body up for what’s to come.

“Robin—“ Regina pleads, desperate for release.

Christ, she’s beautiful like this. Hair messily scattered across her pillow, eyes screwed shut as she absorbs the pleasure he’s giving her. He’s not given her near enough attention so far. Something he vows to rectify immediately.

Robin starts to return the oral favor, the overwhelming urge to taste her nearly impossible to deny himself of, particularly after the way she’d toyed with him. He wants to make her scream, to hear her pant and moan while he licks and sucks at her warm cunt. Pulling his fingers out of her, Robin slides down to rest between her open thighs. But Regina’s needy whine of, “No, no. I want you. Now. Please, Robin. I want you inside me.” stops him in his tracks.

Torn, Robin hesitates. She’s gasping, chest heaving as she stares down her body at him, a light flush over her skin. He wants that too, but he can see how wet she is, glistening in front of his face and he’s desperate to run his tongue over her. More than anything and he knows she’d been getting close, it likely won’t take long for either one of them once he does that. So he tells her, “I want to taste you. Let me make you come this way, darling. Then I will fuck you silly.”

Oh god. The phrase repeats itself several times in her head as Regina struggles to string coherent thoughts together. Her body is aching, pulsing, throbbing with a deep need and all she wants is Robin, to have him thrusting inside her while he brings her to those heights of pleasure. But how is she supposed to resist an offer like that? She would have to be a complete fool and the last thing Regina Mills would ever be described as is foolish.

So she nods, only twice before Robin’s lips wrap around her clit and suck forcefully. She moans, frantically grabbing at the wrinkled sheets around her, just as Robin had earlier as a futile attempt to ground herself. It feels amazing. He’s so damn good at this. Hands splay over her thighs, opening her to his attentions more as he switches from sucking to flicking his tongue over the sensitive nub. And she’s close. So very close.

Robin’s tongue drifts down, dips inside her and thrusts into her a few times, the sensation of which sends shivers through her entire body, reverberating from where his mouth is on her sex to the tips of her fingers and toes. “Oh— Robin, mmmmmm.” Her thoughts are a jumbled mess as he licks at her, unable to focus on anything other than how he’s making her feel.

When his fingers find their way back inside her, driving into her as he circles his tongue around and around her clit licking over it with the flat of his tongue in a way that produces mouthwatering sensations, Regina nearly loses it. Another minute of that, the dual stimulation and she feels herself tipping over, walls fluttering around his fingers as her thighs tighten around his head instinctively, trapping him between her thighs. She comes with another cry of his name, while Robin continues licking at her, letting her ride out her orgasm and lapping up the new burst of wetness that gathers.

Lord, she’s sexy. A goddess. Perfection. Everything that he could ever have asked for and more and Robin has no idea what the hell he’d done to be so lucky to be here with her. For her to be his.

He pulls away from her, panting lightly and peppering kisses to the soft, heated skin of her inner thigh as he catches his breath. Painfully, hard now, he takes a minute to muster up some control before he kisses his way up her body and fuses his mouth to hers.

Regina can taste herself on him, an arousal in and of itself, and she groans, clamps her arms around his neck and holds him close to her. Hooking a leg over his hip, she gyrates her hips against his, reveling in the way his cock is nestled between her folds, sliding against her clit.

Burying his face into the crook of her neck, Robin moans. There are three words on the tip of his tongue that want to escape, but neither of them are ready for that quite yet. Now is not the time for that little revelation. It’s too soon. But they are there all the same.

Instead, he whispers into her ear, “You are incredible.” Bites her earlobe and then makes good on his promise, reaching a hand between their sweaty and slick bodies to grip his cock, angling it at her entrance. Taunting her for a minute by pushing in an inch and then withdrawing, doing it a few more times before Regina’s whiny moan of his name makes him chuckle and Robin thrusts deep and hard inside her.

When their bodies are joined, they both let out matching groans. It’s perfect. Exactly right. Every time they come together like this it’s better than the last, produces a feeling inside each of them that this is exactly where they belong. Robin begins to move, a few shallow thrusts at first, letting Regina adjust to him before he draws farther back and then in again.

Each delicious pass of his cock inside her feels amazing, a wet slide that has desire gathering deep inside her again. Sparking from where their bodies are joined and filtering out. Through her belly, her breasts, her thighs, heating her skin. She’s just come, but already Regina feels herself getting closer and closer to that peak once more.

Her nails scrape over Robin’s hip, digging into the skin there as he enters her over and over again. He’s keeping his pace even and steady at the moment, something Regina enjoys, even as she craves something a bit harder, a touch harsher. Wants more, more of him, of the razor edge of pleasure they are teetering on. One of his hands strokes through her dampened hair, pushing it away from her face as he looks down at her, such affection and care in his gaze that it revs their love making up a notch.

Bending his head down, he kisses her, tongue sweeping into her mouth, echoing the movement of his cock inside her and Regina surrenders to the sensations building within her body. She rubs her own tongue over his, tasting him as he moves inside her over and over again. Their chests and torsos are pressed together, the coarse hair on his chest tickling her aching nipples as they brush over the hard points.

She wraps her legs around his hips, changing the angle at which he’s driving into her, and the shift has him dragging over her clit with each thrust, causing a deep moan to fall from Regina’s lips as she breaks the kiss.

Robin’s mouth immediately moves to her neck, sucking at her skin that tastes of salt and just a bit like the perfume she’d been wearing earlier in the evening, less prominent now with their activities. “You feel so good, Regina. Magnificent. Spectacular. Fantastic.” Praise sputters from Robin as he pounds into her faster, he’s getting close, wants to make her come again, around his cock this time so he can feel every jaw-dropping second of her walls constricting around him rather than his fingers.

His voice drives her crazy, particularly when he’s spilling compliments at her, when he’s thrusting deep and hard inside her and Regina groans, her fingers tugging a touch violently at the hair at the base of his skull to anchor herself to him.

“So do you.” She tells him, voice deep and raspy, which only serves to make Robin growl, biting into her skin. “I love the way you make me feel, how you feel inside me.” His hand squeezes her breast, slips lower to rub at her clit as Robin’s mouth kisses down her body to take one of her nipples into his mouth. It moves them from this gratifying drive of pleasure into overdrive. “Oh god, yes, yes, Robin. Mmmm...harder, faster, please. I’m so close.”

Doing exactly as she says, Robin pounds into her harder and faster, her passage nearly dripping as he slides easily and effortlessly in and out of her. He sucks at her nipple, circling his tongue around it and biting lightly, flicking his tongue over the nub. Between that, his thumb rubbing over her clit and the feel of his cock inside her Regina is completely helpless to the onslaught of sensations assaulting her body. It only takes a few more thrusts and then she’s crying out and clenching tightly around him as she comes.

Robin’s hips continue moving inside her, rubbing at her as he helps her ride out her orgasm, forehead pressed between her breasts, struggling to hold himself back as her walls flutter around him. It’s a lost cause though, particularly when Regina uses her grip on his hair to pull his mouth to hers for an intense kiss and then Robin is following right behind her, coming with a low, desperate growl into her mouth as he spills inside her. The two of them riding the last waves of release in sync.

Collapsing on top of her, they lay there for a few minutes, trying to regain their breath after the intensity of what they’d just done, Robin softening inside her. His head rests on her neck as she lazily strokes her fingers up and down the toned muscles of his back. She feels phenomenal. Like her entire body is liquid and golden.

Mind-blowing sex will have that effect.

Eventually, Robin musters up enough energy to roll off her, settling back on the sheets beside her and reaching for her. Regina happily turns back into his arms, resting her head on his chest as his arms wrap around her.

“Wow.” Robin’s voice mutters quietly into the night around them. They hadn’t bothered with the light when they’d come in, too preoccupied with each other to care or think about such things. The room is dark, only the silver of the moonlight illuminating it.

Regina smirks against his skin. Wow is right. She’s warm and sated in his embrace and it’s been a wonderful day. The best Valentine’s that she’s had in her entire life. “Mmmhmmm.” She hums sleepily, slumber dragging her under as they lay there.

Laughing, Robin presses a kiss to the crown of Regina’s hair, the subtle apple scent of her shampoo still lingering, and he smiles. “Happy Valentines Day, lovely.” As he pulls the sheets back up over them, Regina snuggles closer, adjusting to the most comfortable sleeping position and tossing a leg over one of his, her arm draped over his chest. Then echoes the words back to him.

“Happy Valentines Day, Robin.”

#outlaw queen #oq ff #brookeap3 writing #post-it's and paperclips #post-it verse #oq fan fiction #oq fan fics #regina and robin #regina and robin hood #Regina Mills #robin locksley #lovefromoq

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flatsuke · 7 years

Text

KBTBB Cell Phone Headcanons

a/n: these memelords, i swear

@maidofstars @bolt8826 @tsundere-eevee @themysticaldaydreamer @alolan-lillie lolol

Eisuke:

You betcha this guy owns the most expensive phone in the market. Practicality aside, he prioritizes prestige when it comes to using cell phones.

Uses this as a phone case. It’s luxurious, yet classy at the same time and hella pricey, too, this rich twat

He has MC on speed dial. On average, he probably calls her about 15 times a day. He claims to do it because he wants to give her errands, but, really, he just wants to hear her voice. Not that he’ll ever admit it out loud, this weenie.

His most used app is probably Gmail or some email app. This guy gets thousands of emails, and he has to skim through all of them in a day.

He has way too much paid apps. He’s the guy that buys his way through a game. 200,000 gold coins cost $59.99? No problem. He’ll buy 10 sets of those.

He never buys bootleg chargers or phone accessories. Why settle for the shitty ones when you can afford the original ones?

Because he’s a predictable weenie, his phone passcode is 0101.

His phone lock screen is a picture of some fancy wine he drank on a business trip, but his home screen is a picture he took of the coffee MC made for him.

He takes an unholy amount of selfies when he thinks no one is looking.

The photos on his phone are password-protected because he doesn’t want anyone to see the album full of secretly-taken candid shots of MC. They’re only for his viewing pleasure.

Soryu:

He doesn’t really care much for the price or popularity of the phone model. Durability and functionality are what matter to him.

Has this as a phone case. Since his job involves a lot of physical activity and occasional violence, his phone case has to be shock-proof, drop-proof—everything-proof, basically.

He has a ton of ebooks saved on his phone, but he still prefers reading physical copies of the book.

He always accidentally drops his phone on his face because of how bulky his phone is. Ouch.

He blocked Baba and Mamoru as contacts. Baba kept spamming him with memes, and Mamoru’s name alone just pissed Soryu off.

He doesn’t really take pictures, but his phone album contains a few. Namely, a few pics of the Ice Dragons lined up, the penthouse crew messing around, and MC making omelettes, of course.

He has virtually no social media apps on his phone except the app for the bidders group chat which he can’t seem to delete no matter how much he tries. Looks like someone hacked into it lol

He has Inui and Samejima on speed dial. Samejima’s always quick to answer his calls, but Inui has this annoying ass voice mail that Soryu hates listening to.

He mostly uses the generic settings of his phone. Generic wallpaper, ringtone, brightness, etc. One time, Ota snagged Soryu’s phone and messed with the settings. His wallpaper was a picture of Ota dabbing, and his ringtone was a recording of Mamoru’s sneezing. Soryu was pissed.

There was this one time MC wore a cheongsam, and Baba (before Soryu blocked him) sent him a pic of her wearing it. Needless to say, it was his phone home screen for weeks.

Baba:

He’s not picky with his phones, so long as they have a decent amount of memory. He saves a ton of pics, videos, apps, etc.

Chose this phone case. He saw it at the mall and thought it looked really cool, so he bought it on a whim. Plus, it moves!

He definitely has almost every dating app on his phone. Tinder, OkCupid, Match.com—no wonder he’s always “busy.”

His photo album is full of juicy blackmail material of the other bidders (except MC, of course). No one tries to piss Baba off because only god knows what kind of secrets lie in his phone...

He has contact photos and names for everybody!

Everyone hates hearing his voice mail because he always adds a kissy sound effect at the end.

He’s extremely active on social media! He’s the guy who comments/likes the posts of all the other bidders. Too bad some of them blocked him lolol

No one can figure out what the hell his phone passcode is. The other bidders tried every conceivable combination that made sense, but they still haven’t figured it out yet. Baba can only shrug at them. Hint: it’s the day MC first met the bidders lol

His phone lock screen is a corny love quote, while his home screen is an even cornier love quote.

His phone rings every 0.001 seconds because of the obscene amount of notifications he gets.

Ota:

He usually has the latest model of whatever phone is on the market. Gotta stay young and fresh, right?

Has this phone case, which he designed himself. Of course, most of Ota’s accessories are DIY.

His most used app is Instagram! He posts pictures of doggos, art, and MC. According to him, she’s aesthetic.

He always has to delete apps every now and then to make space in his phone because he always has too much pics saved. He probably has more than 10,000 photos saved.

He always spams the group chat with memes. He has a folder just for memes and reaction photos.

His phone lock screen is a puppy, while his home screen is a picture of the blue bird painting he made.

He has a ton of songs saved on his phone for inspiration. Since doesn’t take care of his earphones, they always do the thing where one ear has music, while the other doesn’t. Ota freaks out when that happens.

He has a drawing app for sudden strikes of inspiration.

He always runs out of battery because he uses his phone too much, so he usually mooches off the other bidders’ chargers and portable batteries.

His ring tone is a nightcore version of Numa Numa. He purposely set it that way to annoy the others.

Mamoru:

He uses a relatively older model smartphone because he’s too lazy to buy a new one.

He’s dropped his phone so many times that the screen has cracks and scratches all over the place. He put tape on his phone in an attempt to fix it. It’s a miracle his phone still works.

He doesn’t own a phone case. Too much of a hassle to buy.

He doesn’t organize his apps, so they’re all mixed up. He probably has about five pages of unsorted apps, 98% of which he barely uses anymore.

He has waaaay too many unread messages, emails, missed calls, and notifications. He ignores people he doesn’t want to talk to.

He forgets to delete the spam texts, so whenever he checks his messages, it’s full of “YOU HAVE WON 1,000,000!!!”

He uses bootleg chargers, so he always has to replace them after a month or so, depending on how shitty the charger is. “Get a legit charger, dummy.” “Nah.”

He sets five alarms every day, but he never wakes up to any of them.

His phone lock screen is the generic preset wallpaper, but his home screen is a picture of him and Minami celebrating after they first cracked a case together.

He doesn’t usually call people, but when he does, he always hangs up first.

Shuichi:

He originally had the same phone model as Eisuke, so when Shuichi found out about it, he immediately changed his phone out of spite.

Uses this phone case. It’s simple, not too flashy, and nice to look at.

All his apps are organized painstakingly, each in their own specific folders. Hell, he even has a ‘delete later’ folder for apps he doesn’t like.

He hates it when people try to look through his phone, so he never leaves it lying around. He doesn’t want anyone seeing pictures of him as Shu. Only Hikaru and MC have the privilege of looking through his phone.

He uses the touch ID/fingerprint ID as a phone lock, so no idiot can invade his privacy.

His phone has been in vibrate mode for as long as he can remember.

He’s always stressed, so he loves using those calming, stress-relief apps. One of those apps is a punching bag app where you get to put a pic of a person on a punching bag and hit it repeatedly. Shuichi put Eisuke’s face on it, and since then, his stress levels have reduced significantly.

His phone lock screen is a pic of a tranquil landscape, while his home screen his a pic of the cactus he’s taking care of.

He made a separate group chat just for himself, Hikaru, and MC. The chat’s name is called “vent”, and they mostly trash-talk a certain brunette CEO.

He has a chess app on his phone that he uses all the time. He plays with other players around the world, but he has yet to lose to any of them.

Luke:

He really doesn’t care about phones or owning one, but because of Eisuke’s insistence, he had to get a smartphone.

He’s not used to texting with a touchscreen, so most of his texts are full of typos. No one dares to make fun of him for it because MC will chew them out if they do.

He doesn’t use much apps, but he immensely enjoys Neko Atsume

He has never used social media until the other bidders forced him to.

His only contacts are the bidders, but even then, he still blocked them all (except for Eisuke and MC).

His phone is on airplane mode 90% of the time.

He originally didn’t want a phone case, but when MC gave him a cat phone case for his birthday, he loved it. Since then, he has never taken the case off.

He sets an everyday alarm for his precious tea time. God forbid he miss it.

His phone lock screen is a pic of a kitty he found, while his home screen is a pic of MC (with her collarbones showing, of course) cuddling that same kitten.

He doesn’t really reply to people when they text him. Even Eisuke has a hard time reaching Luke. The only time Luke replies fast is when MC texts him.

Hikaru:

This guy jailbroke, cracked, and modded his phone and all the apps in it. He messed with it so much that the interface doesn’t even look the same anymore.

He’s the prick that can get all the in-app purchases for free. The only reason he gets high scores in most of the apps is because he cheats lmao.

He has the loudest, most obnoxious-sounding ringtone so that when he loses his phone, he’ll be able to hear it right away when he calls it.

He purposely uses an unusual phone case so people will be less inclined to steal his phone.

His lock screen is pitch black, but his home screen is a pic of himself, Shuichi, and MC hanging out together.

He screencaps some moments from the group chat to use as receipts later on.

His passcode is 6969 just because.

He always tries to distract MC by flooding her with memes and badly-edited photos of the other guys.

He prefers texting to calling because he hates having to use his fake voice even on the phone.

Whenever he calls MC, they always argue about who should hang up first.

Bonus - MC:

She prefers using a smaller smartphone because of its portability and practicality.

She uses this phone case. There was something about the Alice in Wonderland design that attracted her to it...

Her phone is usually burning hot because the bidders spam her and the group chat with notifications all the damn time.

She tried blocking them all, but Hikaru hacked into her phone, and now she’s forever stuck with those pricks. She’s currently saving for a new phone.

She uses to-do list apps all the time. Most of the things on her list are strange requests from the other guys.

She purposely answers Eisuke’s calls after five rings just to piss him off.

Her lock screen is a picture of money to motivate herself to keep going to the penthouse. Her home screen is a group selfie she took during her birthday with the other bidders.

None of the bidders are aware, but she has a folder full of blackmail material, too.

She has dating sims on her phone to relieve her stress, much to the others’ jealousy.

Just like Baba, she has personalized contact names for the others. She even set personalized ringtones for them:

Eisuke: The Imperial March

Soryu: Guile’s Theme (SNES)

Baba: Careless Whisper

Ota: Dogsong

Mamoru: Mii Channel Music

Shuichi: Ironside (Kill Bill Sirens)

Luke: Spooky Scary Skeletons

Hikaru: Windows Gourmet Race

#spade writes #voltage inc #kbtbb #kissed by the baddest bidder #voltage headcanon #eisuke ichinomiya #soryu oh #mitsunari baba #ota kisaki #mamoru kishi #shuichi hishikura #luke foster #hikaru aihara #what am i doing with my life #as you can see i'm pretty biased with ios lol

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notjustanotherdancestudio · 4 years

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Creating Your Own Choreo- Choreo Contest Tips!

Still working out the choreography for our choreo contest? Did you hear the winners get to teach their own dance routine to the teachers? Remember entries must be submitted by Saturday, 30th at 8:00pm to qualify for voting. All contest details are at the bottom of this post!

So if you need some tips to make it all come together some of our teachers had some advice!

1. Getting started

This one will look different for everyone. Think about what puts you into the creative process and do what works for you.

“Listen to the music...a lot! I like to put the music on repeat to get in the mood to choreograph. See how the music makes you feel. Just start moving to the music and see what feels good to you and goes with the music”- Miss Amanda

“I like to start my choreography with a base. I teach the entire group a section of choreography, from there add layers” - Miss Sydney

2. Put thought into your movements

Think about the space you are in, think about the reason the dancer might be making that movement, what’s the emotion of the song, where is it taking place in the space around the dancer?

“Try to have intention behind every movement. Ask questions about your choreo. For example “WHY are we raising our right arm? What muscle, movement, or breath style is initiating this movement””- Miss Sydney

“Think about the space, travel along diagonals and circles” - Miss Jussara

“Make the dance in groups of 8 times” (think of your counts)- Miss Jussara

3. Film yourself doing the Routine This is a great way to see how your dance works altogether and what it might look like when your students perform it. It allows you an opportunity to revise it and helps to remember your steps!

“Film the routine and watch it over, make notes about things you want to change so you remember the [changes]” - Miss Sydney

“Record yourself so you can go back to the video and see what you liked (and to help with memory, since nothing is worse than creating something cool and then not be able to remember what it was!) - Miss Amanda

“Film and watch it back to see if you are doing too much or not enough” -Mr. Chris

4. Allow yourself revisions

It doesn’t have to be be set in stone the first time. Try it out a few times a few different ways until you get something you like. Then be prepared to need to change it when you teach it to your students. It’s okay to need changes!

“Revise, revise, revise. Never set anything in stone...Maybe you might hear something in the music you didn’t register the first time or see how the choreography would work with a different piece of music.” - Mr. Chris

“Often, the vision in my head looks very different than on stage. Sometimes better, sometimes not at al what I thought. Doesn’t mean I’m a bad choreographer or that my students are bad dancers it just looks different and that’s okay. That’s why we have rehearsals to fix and revise.” - Miss Natalie

“Set choreography, watch it over, change it, modify it, things are not stuck once the group has learned it.” - Miss Sydney

5. Don’t rely on marking

The term marking might be a bit confusing for some of the little ones but basically what this means is often times when we try out our ideas we do a “rough draft”. Our toes might not be pointed, high kicks might be low lazy kicks. It’s important to watch yourself perform it full out as if it’s a final draft or final performance to make sure it really does look how we envisioned it. It is also important to make sure we don’t allow ourselves to get sloppy and find it works it’s way into the performance.

“My best tip on remembering choreography is to always practice FULL OUT, don’t mark it unless it’s to understand the musicality” - Miss Natalie

“Try things full out before you teach the students, sometime things make sense when marking or in our brains but when it’s done full out in the studio it’s not possible or it feels/looks horrible” - Miss Sydney “ I always do the full movements” - Miss Jussara

6. You don’t want to bore your audience but you don’t want to overload them either.

You might not want to make your dance too simple because you don’t want it to be boring. Making it too complex or having too much happening though can overload your audience. Find an in-between.

“Find that happy medium to not overload the audience or have artists doing too much unnecessary movements” -Mr. Chris

“Find a balance between simplicity and complexity” - Miss Sydney

7. Challenge yourself and your ideas

You might have your favourite song and a dance that you made up for it but you have a group you get to work with that could take it to the next level how could you take it up a notch? When you are working with your group how can you make that combo look even better?

“Challenge yourself to explore outside of the box, example: instead of just running a new formation how can we think of something more visually attractive or complex”- Miss Sydney

“Always try new things and experiment.It took me a few times of trial and error to realize whatever I choreographed would look opposite to the audience” - Miss Natalie

8. Work with your dancers differences. Some dancers may be stronger in some skills than others. Find ways to showcase the various strengths or allow for them to use the side that is strongest in a certain skill perhaps by having the enter opposite sides of the stage (or camera in this case) etc.. But don’t have too many different things happening at once! In this case you have teachers who teach different dance styles so they will have different strengths and different weaknesses! Not all our instructors are doing aerials and TikTok handstand challenges!

“Be aware that not all dancers have the same dominant leg as yourself, know who you’re choreographing for or be prepared to alter it.” - Miss Sydney

“Not everyone needs to be doing the same thing at the same time in the same direction but on the flip side, make sure there is not too much going on.” - Miss Sydney

We can’t wait to see what you come up with! Entrants must be students of Not Just Another Dance Studio. Entries can be submitted until Saturday night, May 30th at 8:00pm. Submissions can be sent to [email protected]. If file sizes are too big for email you can upload it to WeTransfer.com for free and you can email us directly from there or copy the link it provides! You can also send it in a private message via Facebook.

Entries will then be posted on our Facebook page for voting Monday June 1st and voting closes Saturday June 6th at midnight. The winner will be announced Monday June 8th and they will get to teach their lesson through zoom to instructors on Thursday, June 11th at 6:00pm.

Good luck and most of all have fun!

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itsworn · 6 years

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HOT ROD Rescue: Missing 25-cent Oil Plug Ruins Engine

The Combo

After Tevete “T” Usumalii gained title to a 1988 Ford Bronco 4×4 that had been sitting derelict in an old buddy’s driveway since 2008, he soon realized its tired 302 motor needed some major help. As T puts it, “I wanted a weekend fun truck, off-road-capable that I could take to the mountains, desert, or beach. It had to have good performance under load. When I put my foot to the floor, does it do what I want?”

“T” Usumalii wanted a fun yet powerful off-road truck, but the 6,000-pound 1988 Ford Bronco’s tired 302 was a snoozer.

What “T” wanted was a 349ci stroker (4.040-inch bore by 3.40-inch stroke), with a high-performance RV cam and free-flowing Air Flow Research (AFR) aluminum cylinder heads. “Two different guys had their hands in this project and they turned out to be real shady,” T says. When the engine was finally finished and installed, it was transported to Westech Performance in Mira Loma, California, to tune-in its aftermarket MegaSquirt EFI system.

Usumalii had a 349ci stroker Ford built by what he thought was a reputable shop, then had another shop install the motor in the Bronco.

The Initial Diagnosis

Running on Westech’s SuperFlow chassis dyno, right from the start (err—no start?) the Bronco had a crank/no-fire condition. Turns out, the engine wasn’t getting any spark because the motor’s new aftermarket coil had burned up. The bad coil was temporarily replaced with an OE coil, and the truck then started right up—but now the motor wouldn’t shut off. It turned out the ignition circuit was incorrectly wired. There was a feed-back to the ignition switch key, so the system never de-energized. The electronic control unit (ECU), relays, and coil received constant power all the time (at least until the battery died). This overheated the coil, causing the failure.

The Get-it-Running Fix

Nearby ace Ford tuner Mark Sanchez (Advanced Engineering West) was called in for a consultation. “I went to check the engine at Westech,” Sanchez says. “The lifters were making noise, so before looking at the wiring, I checked the oil. There was no dipstick tube in the motor. The dipstick tube hole had been sloppily filled with silicone. We drained the pan to find if there was any oil in the engine. There were 5 quarts in the pan. It was already dirty, so we threw it out and put in another 5 quarts of clean oil.

“I got the engine to shut down on its own without disconnecting the main battery ground by hooking up a late-1980s factory Mustang ECU using my Ford service 60-pin breakout box—think of an old-school switchboard deal—and bypassing all the crappy wiring. Once we knew the no-start had nothing to do with the motor, I partially reworked the butchered harness so it would start with the MegaSquirt. Westech then attempted to tune the ECU, but the engine had a constant miss. Every lifter on the driver side was noisy. Westech aborted the tune; they were worried about the noisy lifters.”

Westech Performance is a tuner shop and doesn’t usually get involved in long-term internal engine repair, so Sanchez and HOT ROD decided to ride to the “rescue.” The Bronco was transported to nearby AEW for hard-core diagnostics.

The Main Problem

Getting unplugged: The driver-side valvetrain was noisy. When adjusting the valves had no effect, Sanchez suspected a lifter problem and began tearing apart the top-end. Looking down the distributor hole in the block, he noticed a missing oil-galley plug (A). Later, after disassembly, the AWOL plug is clearly “invisible” (02 and 03).

AFR heads have a fully adjustable, stud-mounted valvetrain. When Sanchez received the car, he hooked up an external oil pressure gauge to the standard pressure-gauge port above the oil filter and removed the spark plugs, disconnected the ECU (which turns off the electric fuel pump), and cranked the engine over to fully pump up the lifters. “During cranking, the oil pressure gauge read 65 pounds,” Sanchez explains. “I tried to adjust the heads’ Scorpion roller rockers, starting at the No. 1 cylinder and working my way through the firing order. When I got over to the driver side, I noticed the rockers on cylinder Nos. 5 and 6 (the first two driver-side cylinders on a Ford) weren’t getting any oil out from the pushrods. At that point, I thought there must be something wrong in the lifter area.

“The Bronco had a two-piece Edelbrock EFI intake. To check the lifters, you must remove the upper plenum half, pull out the distributor, and then remove the lower half. After I removed the distributor, I saw it had a cast-iron distributor gear, typical for a 1988 that would have originally come with a non-roller cam. Looking more carefully down the distributor hole in the block with a flashlight, I observed the motor had a hydraulic-roller cam, which requires a different distributor gear. Suddenly, I saw there was no plug for the passenger-side oil galley (which is the only one you can see through the hole—I got lucky). Unfortunately, the motor had already run for about 15 minutes.”

“For want of a nail”: Left out during assembly, this little 25¢ part—the driver-side front oil galley plug—cost Usumalii his cylinder block.

The Main Diagnosis

D’oh! The engine now required a complete stem-to-stern damage inspection. Although the top half could be checked in the vehicle, the easiest way to check the condition of the cam and bottom-end bearings was, according to Sanchez, “To just go ahead and pull the motor. Only a lazy man works twice.”

With the motor on an engine stand, Sanchez noticed the oil pan’s rear lip seal had slipped into the oil pan when it was being assembled: “It was leaking big time. Some idiot had put silicone sealant through the top, bottom, and edges of everything.”

Deep scratches were also observed on the main (shown), rod, and cam bearings. Fortunately, the crank, rods, and cam themselves were basically intact and reusable.

Sanchez removed the pan, then the No. 3 main cap. “That’s the thrust bearing on a Ford, so it usually receives the most abuse. The thrust end turned out to be OK, but the bearing’s crank-journal surface had serious scratches and wear for an engine that had almost no running time on it.” Further teardown revealed additional cam, rod, and main-bearing damage; scuffed piston skirts; and deep vertical cylinder-wall scratches.

Corresponding scratches marred the piston skirts, but L&R was able to save them by careful sanding using a green Scotch-Brite pad.

Nevertheless, the pistons and crank journals appeared salvageable, while the cam was fortunately undamaged.

Not even 15 minutes of running time: Lack of oil and perhaps failure to thoroughly clean the block before final assembly deeply gouged the cylinder walls beyond the point the block could be saved.

The Fix: Short- Block

A 1985-and-later roller-cam block was needed to support the Bronco’s OE-style hydraulic roller lifters retained by a spider and dogbones. Roller-cam blocks have taller lifter bores and spider retention-bolt bosses in the lifter valley (A). Some, but not all, are embossed “XXX” or “YYY” (B).

Already 0.040-over, the bores were as big as one dares go on a small-block Ford. “If you go 0.060-over, it’ll run hot on the street,” Sanchez explains. “Luckily, I had plenty of blocks lying around, including some 1985-and-later roller-cam versions. A good used block is cheaper than buying a new set of forged pistons.” A&A Midwest is one major nationwide source of pristine rebuildable cylinder-block cores for most engine makes.

Externally, ID a roller-cam block by its casting numbers at the rear near the starter pad on the passenger side or near the bellhousing flange on the driver side.

FORD 5.0L ROLLER-CAM BLOCK CASTING NOS. Year Casting No. Main Webs 1985 E5AE-HA Standard 1985-1993 E6SE-DC Heavier 1986-1995 E7TE-CA or -PA Heavier 1991-2001 F1SE-BB Heavier

L&R Engines, owned by three generations of Ranneys, built a replacement short-block. From left, Derek Jr., Grandpa Larkin, and Derek Sr.

L&R micropolished the aftermarket crank’s minimally hurt, standard-size journals and avoided the need to turn them under-size. The rods didn’t need rebuilding, but L&R did discover and correct a slight unbalance in the rotating assembly.

To clear the 3.40-inch stroker crank, the block must be clearance-ground at the bottom of each cylinder (arrows).

Machining and short-block assembly using Mahle, Clevite, and ARP parts was handled by L&R Engine—a Santa Fe Springs, California–based, third-generation, family-owned business that builds everything from Mom’s grocery-getter to full-race mills. The replacement block was first cleaned, magnetic-particle-inspected, and sonic-checked. The latter is a critical qualifier before boring a thin-wall casting like the small-block Ford more than 0.030-inch oversize. The sonic checker uses sound waves to measure cylinder-wall thickness. For reasonable strength and adequate heat transfer on street-driven engines, L&R says 0.187 inch is the minimum safe wall thickness post-overbore. In this case, there was plenty of material left after subtracting half the projected 0.040-inch overbore:

0.740 – (0.040 ÷ 2) = 0.720

Block deck-surfacing achieves several goals: restoring a smooth surface, squaring the block so all four corners are parallel and at the same height relative to the main bearing journals’ centerline, and developing the desired piston deck clearance.

In this motor’s case, the desired piston deck height was “zero.” With a zero piston deck height, a typical 0.039-inch-thick head gasket, Probe’s flat-top forged pistons, and the AFR heads’ 72cc chambers, static compression came in around 9.3:1.

The team at L&R fully machined a used block, boring it 0.040-over so they could salvage and reuse the old pistons.

Going 0.040-over permitted reusing the existing pistons. L&R was able to salvage both the pistons (saving at least $600), as well as the crank with only minimal polishing on their scratched surfaces. L&R also align-honed the main journals, squared and zero-decked the head mounting surfaces, and tapped the oil-galley holes for screw-in plugs.

Establishing crank bearing bore diameter and bearing clearance: No two micrometers are exactly the same, so to minimize tolerance drift, experienced engine machinists use a common baseline. After measuring the crank journal with an outside mike, that dimension is transferred to an inside dial-bore gauge.

This allows the bore gauge to be “zeroed” based on that value obtained with the outside mic.

Using the bore gauge, the main bore’s inside diameter is measured with bearings installed and main caps torqued. The difference off zero is the bearing clearance: 0.0025 inch on this build.

Mahle’s Clevite division supplied NASCAR-level trimetal H-Series bearings. H-series shells feature medium eccentricity, a high crush factor, and hardened steel backs with thin overlays. Forty percent of bearing wear is caused by poor lubrication; Lucas assembly lube on the bearings offers first dry-start protection until oil starts flowing.

Clevite Type HN rod bearings (right, compared to standard replacement, left) have all the attributes of the H-series main bearings, plus they’re narrower with a larger chamfer on one edge to clear the bigger fillet radii used by many custom cranks. In this case, the holes aren’t for doweled aluminum rods but provide added cylinder wall lubrication, as per some factory Ford con-rods.

ARP supplied its High-Performance Series main cap bolts and just about every other fastener. Going from OE to high-strength main cap bolts changes the clamping force and tolerances. Ensure the bearing bores are round and properly sized after bolt installation. Align-hone if necessary with the same fasteners, lubricant, and preload that will be used on final assembly.

A premium Mahle Original (formerly Perfect Circle) plasma-moly cast-iron replacement piston ring set (PN 40564CP.040) was used. Its ⁵⁄₁₆-⁵⁄₁₆-³⁄₁₆-inch-od ring grooves match the existing Probe forged pistons’ grooves. The compression rings are gapped at 0.016 inch. Note that many 1985-and-later 5.0L-H.O. Ford OE pistons from require metric rings.

After lightly polishing out the skirt scratches, L&R reinstalled the piston/rod assemblies in the motor using the new Mahle piston rings compressed by ARP’s trick billet ring compressor.

The Results (So Far)

L&R did what the original two engine builders failed to do: meticulous machining, inspection, and attention to detail during assembly. It was able to save everything but the original block, bearings, and piston rings, which keeps costs under control. Short-block assembly complete, L&R turned it back over to Sanchez for upper-half assembly and reinstallation into the Bronco. Unfortunately, additional problems would pop up during that phase, to include both engine top-end assembly component miscues and slipshod chassis integration. Next month we’ll deal with these pesky issues and hopefully put the Bronco back on the Westech chassis dyno for a final test-and-tune session.

The short-block went back to AEW for top-end assembly and installation. Stay with us next time as we expose more sloppy workmanship.

Lessons Learned

“25 cents cost him a whole engine!” — Mark Sanchez, AEW

Just because there’s good oil pressure at the standard pressure checking point doesn’t necessarily mean all areas of the engine are getting oil. Pre-prime a new motor before installing the intake. That way you can see that oil is going where it should go, not where it shouldn’t. Over-looking one small thing could cost you an entire motor, so don’t rush through an engine build—check everything! If farming out the build, choose a reputable, legitimate shop with a quality reputation. You may pay a little more up front, but end up saving a bundle in the long run.

The post HOT ROD Rescue: Missing 25-cent Oil Plug Ruins Engine appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

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realsimplegood · 6 years

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We love a creamy, dairy-free sauce, and we’ve really been loving adding salmon to our weekly meal plan for the good fats and other health benefits. And of course, we love bowl meals, so we created these Paleo and Whole30 creamy salmon sweet potato noodle bowls. They are dairy-free, gluten-free, grain-free and have no added sugar. You will love the creamy sauce with the bacon and salmon, all on top of a bed of spinach and spiralized sweet potato noodles.

**Disclosure: Fish Fixe sent us product to use in this recipe. All opinions are our own.**

The Creamy Sauce

Are you wondering how we make a creamy sauce without the dairy? Well, it’s not too complicated really. We use full fat coconut milk to get that extra creamy goodness, and then we mask the coconut flavor with lots of onion and garlic. Paired with the salty bacon, it is a really tasty combo! Here’s a look at just the creamy noodles. Like a dream, right?

The Easiest Baked Salmon Ever

While a nice seared salmon is great, the truth is that I love to bake salmon because I prep and stick it in the oven and then don’t have to worry about it. I can go about finishing up the rest of dinner without having to really watch the salmon and get it just right. I really am a bit of a lazy cook, so the way we bake our salmon is my favorite because it tastes like I spent way more energy on it than I really did. Isn’t that the best anyway – eat like you slaved over it, but really it only took under 30 minutes?!

So here’s what I do – place salmon on a parchment lined baking sheet then season it with sea salt, garlic powder, smoked paprika and pepper. Transfer to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. That’s it. Really! It comes out looking perfectly seared and tastes wonderful!

Seriously Start Eating More Fish

Originally, we wanted to add more fish to our lifestyle for the health benefits. Fish is a great source of omega 3’s, vitamins and minerals. And it’s all packed into one protein, which makes it easy to get a lot of essential things in a single meal. But really, what we’ve realized is that it is also SO EASY to make! It’s been such a time saver on busy weeknights.

Our Favorite Fish Partner

We LOVE the fish delivery company Fish Fixe and have decided to partner with them to help you reel in the health benefits of more fish in your diet. We’ve found that having our freezer filled with perfectly portioned seafood has made adding it in every week a no-brainer. Our friends over at Fish Fixe have kept our freezer stocked and inspired us to get creative and have fun with fish! We love Fish Fixe for many reasons, but mostly because they deliver seafood that has No Antibiotics, No GMO’s, No Chemicals, and is Sustainably Sourced. And to top it all off, they have really amazing customer service! They’re just good people, like the kind you’d want to be friends with and invite to your own table!

More About Fish Fixe

Fish Fixe is a family owned fish delivery service that delivers perfectly portioned, premium seafood proteins that your family can thrive on. It’s a great way to aid in your meal prep and add more nutrient dense foods to your weekly routine. Fish Fixe hand-selects premium, nutrient dense proteins, portions them to make meal-prep easy, blast freezes the portions to seal in the “off the boat” freshness and deliver them to your door. All of our fish has been quick to thaw, easy to prepare and high quality. Seafood can be tricky, but we love relying on the quality of Fish Fixe.

We’ve partnered with Fish Fixe to bring you a special discount – use the discount code REALSIMPLEGOOD at checkout to receive $10 off your first box! You can get their regular box filled with an assortment of seafood, or you can also customize your box to contain exactly what you prefer! If you’re looking to up your intake of healthy fats and seafood like us this year, make sure you check out Fish Fixe! And we’ll have you covered with lots of fish recipes to make it fun and easy!

Some Of Our Favorite Seafood Recipes

EASY PALEO SALMON SALAD BOWL

PALEO CAULIFLOWER RICE BOWLS W/SHRIMP

PALEO FISH TACOS AND COLESLAW

PALEO FISH TACO BOWLS

HONEY GINGER SALMON BOWLS

VERACRUZ STYLE FISH SKILLET

CHOPPED THAI SHRIMP SALAD

ROASTED SALMON + ASPARAGUS

SPRING ROLL SHRIMP ZOODLE BOWL

Your Turn To Try Our Creamy Salmon Sweet Potato Noodle Bowls

Start adding more fish to your diet and enjoy the health benefits and how easy it can be! Make these creamy salmon sweet potato noodle bowls, and let us know what you think by leaving a comment below. Also, take a photo and tag us on Instagram @realsimplegood, so we can check it out!

LIKE THIS RECIPE? PIN IT AND TRY IT LATER!

Creamy Salmon Sweet Potato Noodle Bowls (Paleo + Whole30)

4 salmon fillets ((of about even size))

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

Pinch of sea salt and pepper

6 pieces bacon, diced

2 sweet potatoes, spiralized into noodles

3 cups spinach

For the creamy sauce:

1/2 onion, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced ((about 1 tbsp))

1 cup full fat coconut milk

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Then, dice bacon and spiralize sweet potatoes.

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook diced bacon until crispy. Once crispy, place on a paper towel lined plate and set aside.

While bacon is cooking, place salmon fillets on baking sheet and season with the smoked paprika, garlic powder and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Place in the oven to bake for 15-20 until flaky with a fork. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of your fillets.

While the bacon is cooking, prep onion and garlic as noted above.

Once bacon is done and on a plate, make the creamy sauce. Place onions in the same skillet you cooked the bacon in over medium heat. Cook until softened, about 4-5 minutes.

Add coconut milk, minced garlic, salt and pepper. Stir to combine everything. Turn heat to low and simmer until the salmon has about 5 minutes left.

Heat back to medium, and add sweet potato noodles to the creamy sauce, cover and cook until they soften. Add spinach, and cook until it wilts. Add bacon and mix well.

Once salmon is done, remove from oven and serve over the sweet potato mixture and spoon extra sauce over everything. Enjoy!

Creamy Salmon Sweet Potato Noodle Bowls (Paleo + Whole30) We love a creamy, dairy-free sauce, and we've really been loving adding salmon to our weekly meal plan for the good fats and other health benefits.

#clean #clean eating #dairy-free #gluten free #grain free #health #healthy fats #paleo #salmon #wellness #whole30

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the-warmest-hands · 7 years

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Weekend, week

Saturday: biked out to get spices because I’ve been craving indian food, and the places around me are questionable, and I don’t have money to gamble on mediocre food. Biked back after picking up stuff from Jai Ho Indian Grocery (Fillmore), stopped by Schubert’s to try their prinsesstårta and opera cake, then went to botanical garden to eat cake and watercolor. It was a very nice day, so there were a lot of people at the garden. Unfortunately for me, this meant a lot of people watching me paint a subpar painting. At one point I begrudgingly let some midwestern woman take a photo of me with my terrible and unfinished (it was gonna be terrible no matter what I suppose) painting. Biked home after a few shitty sketches because my butt hurt from sitting still for so long. Also I was excited to get started with spices! Followed a kachori recipe on youtube but somehow didn’t realize that I had to cook my lentil filling beforehand (the english subtitles said “soak for two hours” but it looked very cooked, in retrospect). I also figured they’d be mashable so I could forego grinding. Nope. I added spices and whatnot and cooked them in oil for a bit but they remained unsquishable and were pretty solid. I decided I’d dump everything in the food processor and grind it that way. Still nope. Food processor was unable to break up the solid lentils. So I adapted by throwing everything into a pot and cooking it for a while. I did try frying two kachori with the whole lentils (they weren’t hard, just whole) and that was okay! Then I tried frying one with the cooked-down lentils, but foolishly forgot that there was hella liquid in that, which meant that when I retrieved the fully-cooked kachori, the inside was soggy! This is why you cannot put wet stuff into flaky pastry. Anyway. Cooked down the lentils even more, until they were a dry paste, filled the rest of the dough, and fried them all for tomorrow. I ate three in total and was super full. I was actually full after just one (they are small! maybe 3/4 the size of my very small palm). Conclusion: need to adjust my spices (this combo didn’t *wow* me), and remember to cook the filling next time. Also, cilantro is fuckin everything. CILANTRO FOREVER. FOREVER CILANTRO.

Sunday: wait i don’t even remember lmao

oh yeah i talked to misha for a thousand hours

well, that’s every day HAHHAHAHA

oh i also fixed my website (or started fixing it?), and tried to figure out why my gifs weren’t looping infinitely in the browser, and then googled around, and discovered the magic of *hex editors* and that if you edit an image you can do *glitch art*! I always just thought it would straight up destroy the file if you did that. Anyway, tried to use hex editor to edit the gif to make it infinitely loop, but it did not work for most of my gifs. Weirdly, some gifs infinitely looped without any fiddling, and I am really not sure why. But now my website is updated with a bunch of garbage on it, some of which are gifs that loop and others not. Kool.

Monday: laps, tried to make dal puri and failed because I didn’t follow the instructions and my dough was wrong (fail).

Tuesday: laps, made some samosa filling to use up the dough. They were quite good. I ate all, of course. Also did a few pages from Form i Fokus övningsbok, and decided I need to learn more vocab, so I made myself a really dumb Chrome extension (lol welcome to 2007) that would allow me to set a word-of-the-day and then quiz me on it whenever I opened a new tab (I open a lot of new tabs). Could use a lot of upgrades but I’m done for today.

Wednesday: couldn’t fall asleep for a while last night (my feet were too cold), woke up very groggy, but got up anyway because I had to bake breakfast and lunch for later. I made scones. We will see how they are.

Edit: They were ok. Just returned from volunteering, which was dope, as usual. I repotted a jillion seedlings. Also checked on my seedlings from weeks prior and they are all flourishing! HURRAY! Also some fellow volunteers said I was super fast at repotting so now my goal is to be even faster. I am going to be the fastest repotter of all seedlings, and I am going to have a survival rate of 99.999999%. Fuck yeah. Watch me, bitches.

Anyway stayed late at nursery and totally missed the empty-gym time, so I just headed home. I’ll go tomorrow and try to get that sweet 2pm-3pm window.

Thursday: woke up annoyingly late (around 10), was annoyed, ate some scones I was saving for gym, then made more food, then hauled ass to the gym (it was an ok time/day, but I think I prefer Wednesdays), and just got back.

I have come to the realization that I despise biking home from the gym. Normally I love to bike home from anywhere, because I love going home. But biking after the gym is the worst. I’ve just exhausted my body, and I still have to bike. For a normal person, this might be okay. cuz. a normal person would just bike at a relaxed, 10-13mph pace (especially on uphills). I always try to do this. I’m always like, fuck everything imma take it madddd easy. But right after I get over the hills (which I allow myself to catch all the lights for because lazy (but also I practice trackstanding at every light... so does it really count as taking a break (yes, because trackstanding is not hard))), I’m like, OK TIME TO BIKE AS FAST AS POSSIBLE GOING HOME BECAUSE I LOVE GOING HOME, and by the time I get to the hill that my building is on, I’m racing up that hill (seriously I have to admit I love racing up this hill. It is my second favorite hill, after the one on 27th from Cabrillo to Balboa). Anyway then I’m at my doorstep and I just want to lie on the floor. Also I’m so disgustingly sweaty that I feel like I’m disrespecting anyone whose eyes come in contact with me.

Anyway now I am going to piddle away the remaining four hours of the day and maybe fix my chrome extension a bit

Edit: nope just piddled away the day (also made biscuits, but I think I overworked the dough again so they are not very soft. ugh! I just want to get back to what I had last year, when I was churning out biscuits and they were all amazing) Edit: ok now i’ve also fixed the chrome extension a bit

Friday: volunteering, then creating horrifying watercolors kool beans

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itsworn · 6 years

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HOT ROD Rescue: Dodge Ram Combustion-Chamber Meltdown Fix

Owner Brian Ferguson says, “I use my 1997 5.9L Dodge Ram truck as an off-road toy and to tow a trailer with my dirt bikes. I wanted more low-end power—and reliability.”

The Combo When the 5.9L (360ci) Magnum EFI engine in Brian Ferguson’s 1997 Dodge Ram 1500 Sport 4×4 truck reached the end of its tether at 130,000 miles, it was completely rebuilt. The upper end was enhanced with Hughes Engine parts, including its EQ iron Ram HD Magnum heads with bronze guides, a hydraulic-roller RV cam (0.523/0.533-inch valve lift with 1.6:1 rockers, 208/214 degrees duration at 0.050, 114-degree lobe-separation angle), and a single-plane EFI intake manifold. “I wanted more power without sacrificing 100,000-mile reliability,” Ferguson says. “It’s a toy, used to play off-road and tow my dirt bikes.”

There’s a motor in there somewhere. This photo depicts the new, fresh 410 Brandes-built motor in its post-rescue configuration, nearly ready to head out to California, Ferguson’s new home base.

The Problem “I had about 2,000 miles on the new engine,” Ferguson continues. “When I lost compression on cylinder No. 1, I took the heads over to Hughes for inspection. The valveguides were blown out. I hadn’t even towed anything yet. The engine had never run hot on the gauge or boiled over.”

The Diagnosis “They didn’t hear any detonation, so they figured everything was OK!” — Norm Brandes

The ECU went “lean,” melting down the valveguides. Norm Brandes (shown), Dave Hughes, and Dale Matthews sleuthed out the problems.

Longtime Mopar specialist Dave Hughes had never seen such a failure in such a short time on an engine with such low miles. No one wanted a repeat, so HOT ROD and Westech Automotive—our go-to Chicago-area rescue shop—got involved to science-out the root causes of the perplexing problem.

The wrong speedo gear messed up the ECU: It thought the truck was traveling much faster than it was. It responded by leaning out the fuel curve and advancing the spark. This caused heat buildup in the combustion chamber, melting the valveguides. Hughes replaced the guides gratis (normally a $150–$200 job).

As Brandes tells it, “Hughes told me the valveguides had literally melted, oblonged, and lost valve control. Hughes repaired the heads, but making sure it wouldn’t happen again was my bailiwick. We’d never seen so much heat in the head. We looked at the exhaust (the header flanges were blued), the cooling, fuel and ignition curves, and so on.

The stock long-runner “keg”-style intake on Ferguson’s original engine works best in the 1,800–2,000-rpm range—but then runs out of breath.

Ferguson had replaced it with a Hughes F1 single-plane, whose under-plenum air gap is said to cool the charge as much as 30 degrees. It also has revised injector angles that aim the spray closer to the back of the intake valve for better fuel atomization. But with runner lengths just half that of the keg, Brandes says, at least on Ferguson’s 360, it traded off low-end torque for midrange and top-end gains.

“We found the two air temp sensors were flaky and replaced them with new ones. The speedometer was reading high, which we traced to a wrong speedometer gear. At 40 mph, the ECU [electronic control unit] thought we were really doing 50. This caused the ECU to prematurely lock up the A518 overdrive automatic’s torque converter at only 1,400 rpm. Ferguson had swapped out the original long-runner Dodge factory ‘keg’ EFI intake for a short-runner single-plane. He was driving the truck in town at 35 to 40 mph. Combined with the early converter lockup, around town Ferguson was constantly lugging the engine. He was still running the original factory computer programming, so the confused ECU also leaned out the fuel mixture.

Direct cause of the failure-chain: The 30-tooth speedo driven gear wasn’t right for the 4.56:1 axle ratio and 35-inch tires, confusing the ECU.

“It gets worse. The factory-style oval-dish pistons were about 0.060-inch down in the hole at TDC. The high-swirl factory Magnum heads couldn’t generate good mixture motion with such a low piston deck height. At only about 8.7:1, the static compression ratio was way too low anyway. Brian’s single-plane intake may have compounded the problem because it trades off low-end performance for midrange and high-rpm gains.

“Put all this together and we had a lazy, slow-burning air/fuel charge that caused the chamber to retain too much heat. We might have been able to bandage the combo with some careful tuning and just changing the speedo gear, but we decided to really make this combo all it should be with a piston swap to raise the compression ratio as well as generate some mixture motion.”

ECU tuning plus a speedo gear swap were only a partial answer. The full big-torque fix ultimately involved building a 4-inch stroker motor.

The Fix: Short-Block A piston change meant boring the already 0.030-inch over block another 0.010-inch (0.040-over an original 360’s 4.0-inch bore size). On his own, Ferguson decided since the engine needed pistons anyway, why not step up to a 4-inch Scat cast stroker crank for 410.2 cubes? With less than 2,000 miles on the previous build, Brandes could even reuse the existing, undamaged main and rod bearings.

Scat’s affordable ($382 at Amazon) cast 4-inch stroke crank plus a 4.040-inch bore yields 410.2 ci—plus massive torque potential. The crank can be neutral-balanced (it may take some Mallory), but Brandes elected to balance it for the stock unbalanced harmonic damper and torque converter. Amazon.com

Stroker crank in hand, Brandes selected a matching piston. He went with a UEM KB Pistons hypereutectic step-dish KB416 profile. “The step-dish gives you essentially a quench area on the open-chamber Magnum cylinder head,” he explains. “It forces the air/fuel charge toward the valve and spark plug. This generates mixture motion and speeds up the burn. It made up for the fact the piston was still 0.050-inch down in the hole. The static compression ratio went up to 9.4:1.”

The stock flat-top pistons (left) make for a lazy, slow burn that kept too much heat in the open-chamber Magnum heads. The KB416 piston for 4-inch stroker cranks and Magnum heads (right) has a step dish that creates quench by pushing the air/fuel charge toward the valves. A similar quench-head piston (KB356) generates mixture motion in older LA small-block heads. Marlan Davis

Brandes special-ordered the hypereutectic pistons with KB’s new Line2Line abradable skirt coating that reduces piston rock as well as friction. It wear-mates to the cylinder, safely achieving zero piston-to-wall clearance. But with a hypereutectic’s already-tight 0.0010–0.0015 piston-to-wall clearance spec, KB recommends carefully inserting the piston into the cylinder and gently twisting the piston back and forth.

A slight force increase will reveal the location of any Line2Line coating high spots. Carefully Scotch-Brite those small areas before final installation.

The pistons were ordered as a piston-and-ring kit that includes iron moly compression rings. Also ordered was an optional add-on to the basic piston: KB’s newly available Line2Line abradable skirt coating. It’s sprayed onto the piston skirt, adding thickness to develop zero piston-to-wall clearance for reduced piston rock and quieter operation. While it benefits even tight clearance hypereutectic pistons, the coating really comes into its own with forged pistons (like UEM’s Icon piston line) that require higher initial skirt clearances. During initial engine run-in, the coating wear-mates to the cylinder, developing microscopic high/low spots that actually retain additional oil for reduced friction.

The stock Magnum rod’s small end must be ground to clear the bottom of KB’s stroker piston. To find out how much to shave off the rod, insert two pins (one through each piston pin-hole) until they nearly touch, leaving just enough gap for a dial-indicator stem (A). Measure from the bottom of the piston pin to the piston underside (B).Slide the caliper and pins back and forth as needed to find the lowest value (0.4705-inch, C). Subtract that number from the sum of the piston pin OD (0.9892 inch) and rod pin hole’s outer material thickness (0.4085, D), then add about a 0.050-inch safety margin: 0.9892 + 0.4085 − 0.4705 + 0.050 = 0.9772, the amount to remove. The values vary slightly, so be sure to check each piston/rod pair.

Next, it’s over to the grinding wheel to carefully clearance the rods’ pin ends.

Most material was removed from the formerly square pin-end corners.

The Fix: Distributor Gear Walk Before buttoning up the motor, Brandes added Hughes’ $5 adjustable slip collar to prevent the distributor from walking up and down in the block as it meshes with the helical cam drive gear. Gear-walk causes timing variations and can degrade sequential injector timing.

Adjust collar-to-gear clearance to 0.020-inch while pushing down on the distributor

Finally, tighten the set screw.

The Fix: VSS Error

Chrysler speedo-driven gears come in both long- and short-stem versions. Both styles fit in the same-size trans-case hole. The long stem configuration has a 3-inch shaft length and fits cable-driven speedos. The short stem’s 1.5-inch shaft is for late-models like the Ram truck that require a VSS.

The speedometer and the ECU in late-model vehicles rely on electrical pulses from a vehicle speed sensor (VSS). In the 1997 Dakota, the VSS is a hybrid device that mounts into the side of the trans like an old-school speedo cable, but instead of connecting to a cable, the gear outputs to the VSS. Ferguson’s nonstock, 35-inch-tall, off-road tires and 4.56:1 rear gears had totally confused the speedo and ECU—easily corrected by installing a driven gear with additional teeth.

The short-stem version is designed to mate with a slip-in VSS and its electrical connector (arrow).

Replacing the Ram’s existing yellow 30-tooth short-stem gear with a 37-tooth short-stem white gear corrected Ferguson’s “fast” speedo and cleared up the perplexed ECU’s vehicle-speed confusion.

The Fix: ECU With mechanical issues cured, the ECU was reprogrammed to work with the single-plane intake, higher compression, and added displacement. Chrysler “Jetronic” computers require a separate flash programmer for serious recalibration. SCT’s X3 DCX Power Flash unit (PN 3200) is the preferred solution. It plugs into the vehicle’s diagnostic port to transfer custom tunes. The device can store up to three separate custom tunes, retain the original factory tune in case it’s ever needed, read and clear trouble codes, and even data-log during a test drive. Although the X3 DCX isn’t prominently featured on SCT’s website, it’s still available new, targeted to hard-core custom tuner shops. As of early 2018, Summit Racing has them in stock.

SCT’s X3 DCX Power Flash programmer was used to dial-in the Ram’s 410ci engine. Geared toward hard-core tuners, it comes with no preloaded tunes, but there are lots of predefined tunes you can download—or construct or modify any tune on a PC, transfer it to the X3, then use the X3 to reflash the ECU via the vehicle diagnostic plug.

Chrysler tuner Dale Matthews was brought in to work his magic on the X3. According to Matthews, “I raised the idle speed from 600 to 720 rpm, then advanced the base timing to 16 degrees BTDC to hold a smoother and better burning cylinder at idle. To adjust for the added cubic inches, in the main spark table, I added from 3 to 7 degrees of timing to certain areas of the map, mostly in the higher rpm/load range. I set the max advance at WOT [wide-open throttle] to 36 degrees. The added cubic inches require more fuel. The oxygen sensor controls the air/fuel ratio in closed loop below 3,000 rpm; once that threshold has been crossed, the Speed Density–based system defines the air/fuel ratio from the table. Targeting the WOT A/F ratio to 12.5–12.8:1, I ended up adding an additional 15-percent fuel over the stock table.” Flowing 21.1 lb/hr at 43.5 psi, the Ram’s existing fuel injectors proved up to the task.

The Results

After final tweaks on Westech’s chassis dyno, Ferguson immediately drove the truck from Illinois to California across the Rocky Mountains.

Last Thanksgiving, literally seconds after some final tweaks on Westech’s chassis dyno, Ferguson hopped in the truck, left southern Wisconsin, and drove cross-country to his new home in San Bruno, California—about a 2,300-mile drive. He went through Denver and the Rockies on I-70, climbing as high as 10,000 feet. Did we mention he was towing a 500-pound trailer—and running 87-octane gas? “I’m super happy!” Ferguson says. “It’s just got so much more effective power everywhere. I’ve had no major problems since.”

Lessons Learned

A good ECU program and the right speedo gear weren’t enough! Ferguson’s original goal was more downstairs torque. But the engine’s top-end mods helped mainly midrange and higher rpm performance, so Brandes turned the 360 into a 410. Fel-Pro standard replacement gaskets and torque-to-yield head and intake manifold bolts helped button up the motor.

You could say the wrong speedo/VSS driven gear was the straw that broke the camel’s back, but without higher compression and good mixture motion, the existing truck would still have remained lazy on the bottom end. This points out the need for totally matching your desired end goals and usage when planning your rebuilt engine combination.

Need Junk Fixed? If your car has a gremlin that just won’t quit, you could be chosen for Hot Rod to the Rescue. Email us at [email protected] and put “Rescue” in the subject line. Include a description of your problem, a photo, your location, and a daytime phone number.

The post HOT ROD Rescue: Dodge Ram Combustion-Chamber Meltdown Fix appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

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itsworn · 7 years

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HOT ROD Rescue: The Rat Rod, Fixed at Last (Yes, it Does Burnouts!)

August, 2017’s North American full solar eclipse came early for J.B. Bracken, as his finally perfected 1935 Ford rat rod truck totally blocks out the Sun. (Photo: James Gustin/figMEDIA)

Smoke you want, smoke you got! I think we blocked out the Sun!” — J.B. Bracken

The Rescue So Far

The rat rod is based on a 1935 Ford truck cab set on a custom frame. Motive force is now via an 8-71-huffed, 401ci, small-block Chevy.

When Norm Brandes at Westech Automotive received J.B Bracken’s 1935 Ford Rat Rod truck (HRM, July 2017), it couldn’t do a burnout and had poor driveability—despite an 8-71-blown 383 small-block Chevy engine. The 4,000-pound truck’s huge Dana 70 dualie rearend didn’t have enough low-end inertia to spin the tires. Initial fixes included a cam change, overdriving the blower, and proper tuning—only to suffer a broken piston and Brand-X head stud failure. Gluttons for punishment, we came back in the Aug. 2017 issue with a 4.125-inch bore Dart block, turning the 383 into a 401. Brandes stuffed it with stout 2618 aluminum-alloy JE blower pistons, bolted its aluminum heads on with real ARP head studs, and did some additional tuning to seemingly bulletproof the combo. But after Bracken drove the truck for 1,500 flawless miles with no issues, he blew a head gasket while performing a massive burnout in preparation for a HOT ROD photoshoot scheduled for the following day.

The latest issue: A head gasket blew at the rear of the No. 8 cylinder across to the water jacket (circle). The primary cause would turn out to be a lazy thermostat.

The Diagnosis

The blowout occurred at the rear of the No. 8 cylinder across to the water jacket. After eliminating several other possibilities—including “soft” cylinder heads and possible gasket “crush” issues—the main “perp” turned out to be a lazy thermostat.

Was there an issue with Bracken’s “off-shore” aluminum heads? In consultation with retired Fel-Pro Performance gasket engineer Greg West, the aluminum heads were sent out to Letsch Manufacturing for Rockwell hardness (shown here), as well as surface flatness and profile checks. All were in spec.

Gasket crush height using BB-shot (pointer) was per blueprint for Fel-Pro’s MLS head gasket, using both ARP’s specified installation torque as well as with an alternative retorque method.

The alternative method involves first tightening the cylinder heads to spec per the normal pattern. The engine is then permitted to sit overnight. The next morning, each head stud nut is individually loosened and immediately retorqued. The white paint shows the added nut rotation after the second retorque, indicating there was some relaxation of tension.

In spring 2017, Bracken had brought the truck out of winter hibernation and changed the thermostat and coolant. Sudden thermal shock load and temperature spike during the burnout from the not yet thoroughly warmed-up motor and it was “goodbye, head gasket.”

The third time around, we weren’t taking any chances, delivering the engine to Dan Timm’s Advanced Engine Concepts (AEC) to evaluate coolant circulation, plus some engine-dyno torture. To the extent possible, the engine was set up on the dyno just as it would be in the rat rod.

Advance Engine Concepts’ Dan Timm evaluated the engine’s cooling system, fuel curve, and ignition timing and efficiency on his dyno.

The Fix: Thermostat

The bad thermostat was a cheapie, generic, pellet-style, 180-degree F part. On the dyno, a thermal heat gun confirmed it didn’t open until 200 to 210 degrees—way too slow for a suddenly stressed cool engine. (It didn’t help Dart’s race block lacks an internal coolant bypass passage.) The solution: a balanced-flow, Robertshaw-type, high-flow thermostat that’s less restrictive compared to pellet-type designs. Stewart Components’ iteration goes one step further, adding three ³⁄₁₆-inch holes in the unit’s body for a quick, functional, bypass that equalizes temperatures on both sides of the thermo, minimizing thermal shock, as well as steam pocket formation during initial coolant fill. On the dyno, Stewart’s 180-degree thermostat opened consistently at 182 degrees. Coolant temperatures and pressures were more uniform throughout the motor as a whole—critical, as the head’s rear corner where the gasket blew is the farthest area in the coolant-circulation chain.

A Stewart-modded Robertshaw-type 180-degree thermostat replaced the cheapie unit. Brandes and Timm found the Stewart thermo opened consistently at 182 degrees—a real lifesaver for Bracken’s highly stressed blown motor.

The Fix: Tune-up

Premium MSD ignition parts resolved the ignition issues. Clockwise, from upper left: 6AL-2 programmable controller, Blaster HVC II coil, Pro-Billet small-diameter distributor with adjustable slip-collar, small-diameter cap, two-piece adjustable rotor, 3-Bar MAP sensor for enabling boost retard, and (not shown) a universal set of 8.5mm Super Conductor, spiral-core, spark-plug wires.

The engine experienced ignition break-up on the dyno. To maintain an outwardly old-school appearance, Bracken had been running a standalone (no separate ignition box) MSD medium-cap (“points-style”) distributor with a generic round coil. It wasn’t up to the job under high boost, plus the large distributor couldn’t be rotated more than 10 to 15 degrees when adjusting the timing without hitting the blower’s rear cover. Pulling the distributor entirely required removing the supercharger rear cover to obtain sufficient clearance.

At ⅜-inch narrower and almost 1-inch shorter than a standard Chevy points-style distributor, MSD’s Pro-Billet Small Diameter design (PN 8570) solves clearance issues caused by firewall interference, tunnel-rams, or (as on the rat rod) a big blower. An adjustable slip collar (arrow) permits compensating for a machined block, heads, or intake.

Brandes replaced the standalone unit with a posse of new MSD parts, including a small-diameter Pro-Billet distributor, a programmable MSD 6AL-2 digital ignition, a high-output HVC II Blaster coil, and 8.5mm Super Conductor spark-plug wires. He also tightened up the plug gap from 0.040 inch to 0.020 to make it easier to ionize the rich, high-boost air/fuel mixture.

The Programmable 6AL-2 ignition (PN 6530) incorporates a two-step rev limiter, and puts out 535 primary volts and 135 mJ of spark energy. It’s mounted in the driver compartment to preserve the rod’s old-school engine-bay ambience. Use a PC to program custom advance curves. Boost-retard, timing delays, or other switched functions can easily be incorporated.

When used with the programmable 6AL-2, lock-out the distributor’s centrifugal advance. Verify real-time phasing under boost-retard by drilling a hole in the distributor cap in line with the No. 1 terminal and checking with a timing light.

Use the adjustable two-piece rotor (PN 84211) to optimize rotor phasing; also be sure to check rotor tang-height with MSD’s supplied gauge.

With the ignition sorted, under boost the engine was relatively insensitive to timing changes, producing nearly the same power with 25 to 28 degrees of lead as it did with 34. The timing was “locked” on the dyno between those numbers, with the higher number tested with 110-octane Rockett leaded racing gas; the lower number was with 91-octane pump gas. Later, in the truck, Brandes found the engine was happy at 37 degrees total advance (unboosted), retarding 8-degrees whenever blower-boost hit 16 psi.

The 6AL-2 was programmed for 37 degrees total advance (at the crank), retarding 8 degrees at 16 psi of boost (rpm-independent, but around 3,300 rpm at full throttle). This delivers more part-throttle cruise response, but provides a safety margin for high-boost banzai runs. The 6AL-2 sees boost via the same MAP sensor Auto Meter supplies with its boost/vacuum gauge.

Charge-air temp is a problem on 8-71 blowers running on gas; with an otherwise decent tune-up, it becomes a major detonation-sensitivity wild card. To help Bracken keep a lid on the motor, Brandes installed Auto Meter vacuum/pressure and charge-air temperature gauges. The pressure gauge gets its readings from a manifold air pressure (MAP) sensor boxed with the gauge. It’s identical to MSD’s MAP needed to enable boost retard on the 6AL-2, but you’d have to buy the MSD part separately. In this case, Auto Meter’s MAP just does double duty.

No more “oops!” Bright, high contrast, Auto Meter 2 ⅟₁₆-inch Phantom gauges help Bracken monitor critical under-blower charge-air temperatures (PN 5758, left) and (through a packaged 3-Bar MAP sensor) vacuum or boost levels (PN 5777, right).

The air-temp gauge sensors install in the lower blower manifold and can be optionally wired through a relay to the programmable 6AL-2 so it can retard timing if air temps get too high. At present, that function isn’t enabled—but it’s nice to know it’s available if ever needed.

Brandes’ existing tune-up proved pretty close, with the twin Quick Fuel carbs needing only slightly richer secondary jets on the dyno. Later, back in the truck, Brandes ended up leaning the primary jets three numbers, which slightly lowered the under-blower charge-air temperature and improved part-throttle cruise response. “When we leaned out the engine at part-throttle cruise, 60-mph charge-air temps at cruise dropped from 230 to 240 degrees to 215 to 200 degrees.”

The Dyno Results

The engine was set up on the dyno with Bracken’s restrictive headers. The exhaust pipes and mufflers closely emulated the on-truck setup’s restrictive right-angle turns.

The rat rod’s 401ci small-block was set up on the dyno to emulate as closely as possible its in-truck configuration. The rat rod’s old-time headers with their restrictive right-angle turns into the exhaust pipes and mufflers cost power, but may have helped low-end torque.

AEC’s pet set of stepped short oval-track headers, still hooked to the restrictive exhaust, yielded about a 5-percent power and torque-number improvement—around 525 hp and 540 lb-ft, according to Timm.

On 91-octane unleaded pump gas with around 21.5-psi peak boost, the dyno recorded 475 hp at 5,500 rpm, with (critical for tire-spinnin’ Bracken) 499.5 lb-ft of torque at 3,200. Average numbers over the full curve were 477 lb-ft and 384.5 hp. AEC also tested with Rockett 100-octane unleaded and 110-octane leaded race gas. 100-octane made the most peak power (498 hp); 110 made the most peak torque (519 lb-ft). Overall, 110 octane produced the fattest curve, with an average 23.3 hp and 29 lb-ft gain over 91 octane.

At 21.5-psi of peak boost on 91-octane pump gas, the 8-71-blown, 401 made 499.5 lb-ft of torque and 475.2 hp. The numbers improved slightly with Rockett 100-octane unleaded: 511.3 lb-ft and 498 hp. On Rockett 110-octane leaded race gas, the engine made 519.2 lb-ft of torque and 491.6 hp. However, running on 110-octane offers the most area under the curve. Dyno-locked timing varied from 25 to 28 degrees on these tests.

Rockett Brand Racing Fuel supplied the 100-octane unleaded and 110-octane leaded racing fuel. The 91-octane unleaded fuel was from a local gas station. On the street, Bracken runs a 50/50 mix of 91-octane and leaded racing gas.

Bracken is totally satisfied with the results. He wanted the engine to make massive, low-end torque and that’s just what it does.

The PCV valve grommet smoked slightly. Bracken had already installed a baffle inside the vintage Mickey Thompson covers. Brandes reworked the baffle and grommet hole to accept a larger, taller NAPA baffle that raised the existing right-angle valve higher (arrow). Also note MSD’s blue Blaster HVC II (PN 8253), the most powerful coil designed for sustained use with a 6AL-2 ignition. The fully-potted unit features a U-Core design and 85:1 windings ratio for high output, quick rise time, and longer spark duration. Originally mounted in the driver compartment, its 44,000-volt output generated so much EMI it interfered with programming the 6AL-2—hence this final firewall mounting position.

Inside the rocker-cover PCV valve baffle plate, Brandes stuffed PowerHouse household copper-mesh dish-scrubber to serve as a filter.

Claying Comp Cams Pro Magnum rockers shows there’s nearly ⁷⁄₁₆-inch clearance to the bottom of the baffle—more than sufficient.

Lessons Learned

As hot rodders, we would’ve liked better top-end numbers. At the macro level, cam size matters. There’s probably 50+ hp in there if Bracken went to real tuned-length headers and a hotter (but still blower-centric) cam in the high-230s/low-240s with about a 114-degree LSA. Timm says a water/alcohol injection system’s cooling effects would permit more ignition advance under boost. “I’ve seen 50 hp from alcohol injection on an engine like this one.”

At the micro level, thermostats matter. “I’ve never seen a thermostat as accurate as the Stewart-modified Robertshaw high-flow,” Brandes contends. “Spending a little more on this premium unit can save your engine!

“A blown engine really does like more timing if you want to maximize low-end torque, but be sure to add a boost retard to avoid top-end detonation. If you can afford it, race gas is good insurance. Besides, it smells good, too!”

J.B. Bracken lives life in the fast lane: burnouts by night in his rat rod; LSR racing by day in his 140 mph, 2015 Production Class, Indian Scout motorcycle.

When not burning rubber, Bracken’s rat rod serves as a return tow truck for his LSR bikes, including a Harley V-Rod that runs 191 mph with a turbo on nitrous oxide (Photo: James Gustin)

Mission accomplished!

Contacts

Advanced Engine Concepts (AEC); Green Lake, WI; 920.294.0474

Amazon.com Inc.; Seattle, WA; 866.216.1072; Amazon.com

Auto Meter Products; Sycamore, IL; 866.248.6357 (tech support), 866.248.6356 (customer service), or 815.895.8141 (international); Autometer.com

Letsch Manufacturing; Racine WI; 262.554.6900

MSD Performance (A Holley Brand); El Paso, TX; 888.258.3835 (toll-free), 915.857.5200 (general); or 915.855.7123 (tech); MSDperformance.com

NAPA/Antioch Auto Parts; Antioch, IL; 847.395.3660; NAPAonline.com/en/IL/Antioch/store/26721

National Automotive Parts Association (NAPA); Atlanta, GA; 800.LET.NAPA; NAPAonline.com

Personal Care Products Inc.; Troy, MI; 248.971.7600; PersonalCareProducts.org

Quick Fuel Technology; Bowling Green, KY; 270.793.0900; QuickFuelTechnology.com

Rockett Brand Racing Fuel; Mt. Prospect, IL; 800.345.0076 (tech) or 847.795.8400 (sales); Rockettbrand.com

Stewart Components; Escanaba, MI; 906.789.2816; StewartComponents.com

Summit Racing Equipment; Akron, OH; 800.230.3030 (orders) or 330.630.0240 (tech); SummitRacing.com

Westech Automotive; Silver Lake, WI; 262.889.4346; WestechAuto.com

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