#Sending Flowers to Liverpool

[zenasflower]

Send Flowers to Liverpool

Flowers are a wonderful way to show your loved ones how much you care. They are also a great gift for any occasion. There are many creative ways to present them, such as in a flower box or accompanied by a heartfelt card.

FloraQueen offers a variety of floral arrangements and gifts for every holiday. Their gifts include roses, tulips, daisies, and more. They also offer same-day delivery.

FloraQueen

Flowers are a beautiful way to show someone you Sending Flowers to Liverpool, especially when they are far away. FloraQueen makes it easy to send flowers to loved ones around the world. Simply choose a bouquet, enter payment details securely and track your order.

FloraQueen also offers a variety of different packaging options to match the occasion. This helps ensure that the gift arrives in pristine condition. They deliver to over 100 countries worldwide, including Liverpool. Their fast delivery services are guaranteed to make your loved ones smile.

Dove Dale Florist

Dove Dale Florist is a Liverpool florist that offers a wide variety of floral designs for all occasions. Its flowers evoke themes of peace, love, and faith. They are also affordable. They have an excellent customer service rating of 4.9 stars.

The shop is located on Booker Avenue and is open seven days a week. Its flower arrangements are a great choice for birthdays and other special occasions. They also have a variety of gifts, including plants and door bows.

Booker Flowers & Gifts

Rated best Liverpool Florist by ‘Three Best Rated’ and North West Regional Winner English Wedding Awards 2022 Booker Flowers & Gifts on Booker Avenue in Allerton specialise in luxury bespoke floral hand-tied bouquets and gifts. They offer same day flower delivery in the Liverpool area and UK wide through Interflora.

Everything is coming up roses at this flower shop on Booker Avenue in Allerton as they have just been accepted into the Good Florist Guide, the gold standard for floristry.

Lula Flower Shop

Lula Flower Shop is a highly-rated florist that creates stunning floral bouquets for Mother’s Day. Their bouquets are also ideal for gifting to loved ones, and they offer same-day delivery.

Local Expertise: Dedicated to crafting elegant arrangements for all occasions, this florist offers a convenient online ordering system and reliable delivery service in Liverpool. They also have a wide selection of gift bouquets, perfect for surprising loved ones. Their contemporary selection of flowers would look striking in this aesthetically modern Lyngby Vase by House Doctor.

Dutch Flower Shop

Whether you are celebrating a special occasion or sending heartfelt condolences, Dutch Flower Shop offers exceptional service. Their floral designs exceed expectations and last for days, ensuring your gift is well received.

Owner Loraine Whittle loves her job and enjoys the fact that no two days are the same. She is a mother of two and enjoys giving Floristry demonstrations. Oli has Asperger Syndrome and came to work at Booker Flowers as part of the Disability Confident Scheme.

Mary Mary

Mary Lou and her team prepare bold, beautiful and creative fresh flower bouquets for local delivery and subscription across Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle. They also host flower workshops for all ages.

Mary and her sisters grew up in church choirs and touring gospel shows and decided to pursue their music careers professionally. Their first album, Thankful (released in 2000) and 2002’s Incredible both reached the top of Billboard’s Urban Contemporary Gospel chart.

This duo is widely credited for broadening the gospel music fan base into mainstream audiences.

Fishlocks Flowers

Fishlocks Flowers is a renowned family-run florist in Sympathy flowers that offers bespoke floral bouquets and gifts. They have over a century of experience in crafting beautiful floral arrangements for all occasions. Their services range from wedding flowers to sympathy tributes. They also offer online ordering and delivery services across the city. This year, they have partnered with Liverpool Women’s Hospital to launch an exclusive Mother’s Day bouquet that supports charitable initiatives at the hospital. This heartwarming partnership is sure to bring joy and sentiment to mothers everywhere.

Suttons House of Flowers

Suttons House of Flowers is a local flower shop in Liverpool, specializing in weddings and events. Their floral designs are unique and beautiful, and they offer a range of gift options to suit any occasion.

The shop is run by Carly and Angel, two Michigan natives who came together with a wide variety of skill sets ranging from hospitality to design. They are able to bring a young, energetic approach to their shop and strive to showcase their passions through floral design.

[lethalchiralium]

Take My Breath Away | John Price x GN!Reader

a/n: hiiii. i love this man so much, happy v day!

warnings: allusions to sex

summary: It’s been a long day, you knew you were going to be alone on Valentine’s Day when your husband sent a bouquet of roses to your office. All you wanted to do was go home and watch a movie.

Work at the office was rough and long. Finally shutting off your light of your office on the flowers your husband sent for Valentine’s Day, you let out a sigh of relief. It was 7 in the evening, you didn’t even think of dinner on your way home, knowing that you would most likely be alone for the holiday again this year. Your husband was a busy man, but never too busy to send you flowers every chance he got - but always three dozen red and white roses on Valentine’s Day.

The drive home was quiet, work still on your mind as you drove through traffic in Liverpool. Your home was near the outskirts of town, which was perfect for you to unwind and your husband felt it safe enough. Classical music played in your little car, a folder of notes to look at over the weekend was in your passenger seat. You desperately wanted a weekend to take a breath, to leave work at its threshold and finally catch up on that series your friends keep bugging you about. Maybe even get to call John at a decent hour for him, albeit probably one in the morning for you.

You yawned, grabbing your phone from the center console before tapping John’s number. You put it on speaker, holding it up as you heard the beep. “Hi baby, I just got done at the office. Just wanted to call you and tell you Happy Valentine’s Day, thank you for the roses. They’re beautiful.” You stopped at a red light before continuing, “Maybe next year you’ll get to spend Valentine’s with me, but I’m just gonna stay in and order some takeout. I love you. Stay safe. Bye.”

The light turned green when you put your phone back into your console, lightly tapping your fingers on the steering wheel as you began to leave the city. You recognized the bus and tram stops, you were only a few minutes away from home, from your TV, from your bed. You could feel the relaxation flowing through your veins as you drove down your street, only to have your heart stop as you pulled up to your house.

The lights were on, you could see through your living room window, you would’ve thought you had forgot to turn them off but your husband was an important man - a dangerous, important man. You felt fear grip your chest, you parked your car in front of your lawn and turned it off. You got out, shutting door as quietly as you could before you stalked forwards. It wasn’t uncommon for him to not tell you that he’s home, but there would always be a sign-

Your front porch light was on, you had just noticed. The sign that he was home, you heart swelled. You walked briskly up your walkway and to your front door, unlocking it with your keys. You pushed open the door quietly, and almost gasped.

There were rose petals on the floor.

You stepped inside before you silently closed the front door. You could hear jazz playing from somewhere in the house and you smelled something cooking, it smelled exactly like your favorite food John makes for you when he comes home. Toeing your shoes off, you placed your keys into your coat before taking it off. Swiftly hanging it on the metal coat rack before moving towards the living room, ready to move across it to get to the kitchen. Yet, you found yourself stopping in the doorway, jaw dropping at the beautiful sight.

Every inch of your living room was covered with vases of red and white roses, the overwhelming scent of them almost made you step back. You knew this had to be an expensive bill of flowers, seeing that there were vases on your coffee table, breakfast bar, floor, and only one on your dining room table with candles next to it. A smile tugged at your lips as you watched your husband fix a couple vases so the best flowers showed towards the hallway from the front door. He was dressed in a white button down, black slacks, his boonie hat nowhere to be seen.

“Shit.” He chuckled, going to place his thumb in his mouth - presumably to wipe away blood that had drawn from pricking a thorn. He turned towards you, keeping his head down as he kept turning vases to face your doorway, thumb moved away from his mouth as he gently shifted a couple roses in one of the floor vases before standing up straight, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. He sighed, placing his hands on his hips before he looked up, making eye contact with you and eyes widened in surprise. “Shit.”

Your smile was so wide as you walked towards him, cautiously dodging the glass vases full of beautiful flowers before you reached him, one hand settling on your cheek while the other sat on your hip.

“Your thumb okay?”

He chuckled, “All this and you’re worried about me pricking myself?”

A laugh escaped your lips, your hands settling on his face, gently brushing your thumbs over his mustache. “You’re such a lover.”

He smiled at you, moving forwards to press his forehead to yours. “I couldn’t miss another Valentine’s, it would break my heart.” He whispered, closing his eyes as he gently spoke, “I just hope you like it, I made your favorite.”

“John Price, you’re worried that I don’t like it?” You almost laughed, his eyebrows furrowed as his eyes opened. “Baby, you could give me one rose and I would be over the moon. Not that this isn’t gorgeous,” Your hands moved to his jaw. “But all I need is you.”

He smiled brightly, “I’ll love you forever, my love.”

You leaned forwards and kissed him sweetly, his mustache tickling the top of your lip before you pulled away, gazing up to his eyes before saying, “We could eat or…”

“Or?” His eyes narrowed, a smirk on his lips.

“We could go upstairs.”

It didn’t take the Captain more than a second to pull you up into his arms, his hands holding the bottom of your thighs as you squealed, arms around his neck as his lips pressed into your neck.

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OH MY GOD IT DIDNT EVEN POST THE LAST PARAGRAPH WHEN IT WAS ORIGINALLY POSTED WTF

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Copyright © 2023 lethalchiralium. All rights reserved.

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Copyright © 2023 lethalchiralium. All rights reserved.

[caterpillarinacave]

Got any random Fairchild family headcanons, especially ones pertaining to Matthew and Henry?

Oh, I always have headcanons!

Also, sorry I took so long to answer, I am currently withering away to sawdust. 

Matthew was one of those “nicely disobedient kids”. Someone will be like “okay, keep your shoes on okay? It’s important not to take them off in here alright?” and he's like “yeah yeah yeah! I got it!” then tears his pants and shirt away and takes off running. 

Both Matthew and Charles were those kids who just hung off their parents 24/7. Actually, all the TID gangs kids are like that. Someone is always carrying at least one child. Henry’s lap is prime real estate. So are Will’s shoulders. What are adults if not your personal chauffeur?

Henry and Matthew actually do have very similar hair, although Matthew’s is straighter. Matthew can’t tell because, you know, he styles it, and Henry absolutely does not. 

Matthew’s concern about not looking like his father in GOTSM is distressing because its so unfounded. He looks a lot like both his parents, and frankly he’s the only one who's never noticed.

Christmas is soooo fun there. Mostly because they dont do any of it at their own house, they just go to all the christmas parties they get invited to and watch shit go down. Every shadowhunter party is a madhouse. Matthew and Charles get released into the crowd of children to play, and Henry and Charlotte just kind of sit to the side and watch everything dissolve into chaos. They’ll send Matthew and Charles home with an uncle or aunt, they're staying to watch 24 year old Micheal what's his name from some corner of Britain tries to fight his 64 year old uncle over the rise of livestock taxes in liverpool. Charlotte doesnt feel morally obligated to step until chairs become involved.

Other than the entertianment of christmas chaos, holidays are fun. They come with markets and present shopping. Matthew and Charles get paired off with whatever parent, then their basically free in a christmas market (provided they stay within five feet of said parent.) Matthew goes with Henry and has the time of his life. He comes home with pockets full of peppermint candies choclaty little fingers and a whole lot of happiness. Also, did you know theres fun holiday stuff in the shadowmarket? Whats better than sitting in your dads lap while he chats with a warlock in a demon language like forty people in the world speak, then going back to the cities for a chocolate croissant. Hey, it's safer than you think, Henry's not letting Matthew go anywhere in that market lol.

Of course, there a lots of bedtime stories and songs. Matthew is big on bedtime stories, though he has a few favorites. He's quite keen on Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, and he asks for it at least once a week. That was Henry's favorite as a child, and there are several copies to pick from which may be part of why Matthew likes it so much.

When Matthew gets a little older they move onto more interesting stuff. You know, the normal books for a nine year old; like The Travels of Marco Polo. Matthew is a well educated nine year old.

There's a lot of checkers and chess. Charlotte is decent at chess, and Henry's amazing at it, though Charles Buford and Matthew are more average. Matthew does, however, enjoy the aesthetic, and can play a mean game of checkers.

Tea time is important. World might be burning down but there will be tea on the Fairchild's table.

Matthew and Charles get sent flowers on special occasions. Doesn't really matter if they want flowers, or if they are "far to old for such frivolaty, I have things to do they'll simply die-" (coughcharlesbufordcough), they get them anyway. Henry and Charlotte have had the same ancient florist from Yorkshire doing it for decades, and considering she's been ninety since Henry was about six, and shows no signs of mortality, Charles and Matthew should prepare to have flowers forever.

One good rule for the kids in that house is to a) knock, and b) if that door is locked, do NOT open it. Really a rule all the TID gang kids know. If you decide to open, or try to open, or even hang out near, a locked door (or any thin walls) may the consequences be on your own head. Look, everyone in that group loves their partner very much, 

That’s why Charles Buford is so bitter btw. Didn’t know the rule, scarred for life. Pretty much like that vine. 

[yudgefudge]

footballers playing minecraft

I got the idea of “footballers playing x” from my friend @liverpool-enjoyer​, I LOVED hers and wanted to try my own.

reece james: plays the game like ur supposed to. Constantly has to rescue mason from wherever he finds himself. Second to beat enderdragon (after mbappe). after beating the game, he plays with mods.

mbappe: speedruns the game like a fucking legend. Beats enderdragon at a record speed then devotes the rest of his time ingame to building a life-size football field and a statue of himself

messi: made a little hut on the beach. fishes. has a tiny carrot farm and a pet pig named pochito. plays with ambient noises off.

mount: keeps getting lost and doesnt know how to send his coordinates so he has to (loudly) describe where he is to reece every time. Whenever reece finds him, he gives reece a flower he found.

martial: bullies sancho, blows up his house, steals ALL his stuff. but will not let ANYONE ELSE grief sancho. Has threatened people irl over this.

sancho: lets martial do whatever he wants. when asked why: “i can always replace it :)”.

rashford: got lost in a woodland forest and was never seen again. refuses to share his coordinates. every once in a while he posts saying “found a woodland mansion” but everyone knows its the same one.

[elisabeth515]

The Crew Shuffle (9th April)

Check this post for more background context!

Sorry that I have not been in the best state of my mental health so I have not been making a talking video on my tiktok today but I will be back tomorrow morning for a video version of this post and the stuff on sailing day!

111 years ago, it’s almost the day of the maiden voyage of RMS Titanic. Easter had just passed, yet a lot of work were still going on…

For Henry Wilde, today was the day when he was known that he was officially part of the crew for Titanic’s maiden voyage.

For the entire weekend, Wilde has been very occupied by work onboard the Titanic as the ship was very behind schedule [a], that the White Star Line did not organise a public inspection to the people in Southampton prior to her maiden voyage. The smell of the paint was very fresh that additional flowers were needed to be brought in to cover its smell for the sake of the passengers. His employer has not yet sent in an official confirmation that he was to sail on 10th. Nonetheless, he was constantly in a hurry to help everyone to get everything done.

At 2pm, 9th April, Wilde finally got the official telegraph from White Star Line’s Liverpool headquarters. From the letter written to his children’s nurse on this day, it seems like he has been buried himself into work:

“Just a few lines to let you know that I am sailing on the Titanic tomorrow for a few voyages. I have only just heard that I am going, had a telegram from Liverpool at 2pm this afternoon so I have to go. […]. I have been busy and unsettled… Give the little ones my best love and tell them I will come and see them as soon as I can.”

Letter to nurse, 9th April, 1912; Sincerely Harry by Mike Beatty

On the night of 9th April, the preparation is finally done. Titanic is sailing on schedule, and Harry is going to New York.

The assignment was temporary [b], but it was not the news that the other senior officers were happy to hear. Given the letters sent from David Blair and William Murdoch, the original 2nd Officer and Chief Officer of Titanic, they were already aware of it when Wilde was onboard to assist the fellow officers, nevertheless, they were all disappointed. Murdoch was bumped down to 1st Officer, never being able to get his Chief Officer run debut, and Blair was bumped out and accidentally took the key to the lookout binoculars with him. He was later being somehow blamed for the sinking even though in the circumstances of the night of 14th April, the lookouts would not have used binoculars as they restrict the peripheral view. As for Lightoller, the original 1st Officer, he was bumped down to 2nd Officer and later in his autobiography he wrote:

“Unfortunately, whilst in Southampton, we had a re-shuffle amongst the Senior Officers. Owing to the Olympic being laid up [c], the ruling lights of the White Star Line thought it would be a good plan to send the Chief Officer of the Olympic, just for the one voyage, as Chief Officer of the Titanic, to help, with his experience of her sister ship. This doubtful policy threw both Murdoch and me out of our stride; and, apart from the disappointment of having to step back in our rank, caused quite a little confusion.”

Titanic and Other Ships by Charles Lightoller

There were no clear signs of animosity among the officers on Wilde’s presence. However, given the above passage, and Lightoller’s acts during the evacuation [d], it has been a speculation by some (predominantly by biographers of William Murdoch) that there were some resentment between both men. Given that Wilde perished in the sinking, we could only speculate on his own perspective on the crew shuffle given the evidences we have.

The news of the crew shuffle came in less than 12 hours before Titanic’s maiden voyage. Given the amount of work to be done by Lightoller and Murdoch on the day, they did not have much time to alter their uniforms. In the photo below, we could see Lightoller wearing his 1st Officer uniform (2 stripes). While it is not seen, we assume that Murdoch was doing the same for his Chief Officer uniform (3 stripes). This would later cause confusion between Murdoch and Wilde during the evacuation given that both were wearing their Chief Officer uniforms.

Back to Wilde: what is also interesting to note in the excerpt from the letter to the nurse is that he was seemingly “unsettled”. This was perhaps because a huge load of work were still underway on Titanic and he has been working day and night to get everything done. Yet, given that Wilde has been looking depressed in his other letters written since the death of his wife and twin sons, was this an indication of his mental health state as well? Now he knew that he was to sail to New York on the ship was Chief Officer, still it looks like he was feeling a bit uneasy; not because of the ship herself as we tend to believe, he was probably worrying about whether she could set sail on schedule given that this wasn’t clear until the night. Nevertheless, it is clear that Titanic was about to set sail, with Henry Wilde as chief officer.

—

Notes:

[a]: “She is very far behind to sail on Wednesday.” - Letter to his nieces on 7th April, 1912

[b]: Both Murdoch and Lightoller have noted about this in their own accounts. Particularly in Murdoch’s letter to his sister Peg, he said that “when Wilde goes I am to go up again.” (Source)

[c]: It has to be noted that Lightoller was wrong about this: it was the Cymric, which was the ship that Wilde was to command, that was laid up due to coal strikes.

[d]: In the early hours of 15th April, Lightoller stepped over Wilde to ask the captain for the permission to start loading the lifeboats. Wilde was set to be in charge of all the lifeboats at the port (left) side (while Murdoch at the starboard (right) side), yet in the night, his position was seemingly taken over by Lightoller. This, together with the confusion of the ranks as the officers’ uniforms were not altered, contributed to the widespread myth of Wilde being sort of an enigma during the sinking, though it is clear that he has been very active in the night like all the other officers as well.

Sources used:

Sincerely Harry by Mike Beatty

On a Sea of Glass by Tad Fitch, J. Kent Leyton & Bill Wormstedt

[percervall]

what if I love you?

Player: Jordan henderson Words: 870 Warnings: Fluff Request: Receiving flowers - Maybe one where the Reader is a younger physio who doesn't think he notices her until he sends her flowers on Valentine's day? A/N: Asndsd i love this idea so much??? hope I did it justice!

title from Gatlin's What If I Love You?

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Seeing the vase on top of her desk made her stop in her tracks. She quickly looked around to see if the person who left them was still around, but the corridor leading to her office was empty. Dropping her keys and tablet onto her desk, she took in the bouquet. The majority of the flowers were in similar shades of pink, very close to her favourite hue, mixed with a few white and cream ones. She ran a finger over the petals of one of the peonies and felt her lips tug up in a smile. Turning the vase around she looked for a card, finding it tucked away between two roses.

“Someone’s got a secret admirer,” a voice came from the open door. She felt her cheeks heat up as her best friend and colleague Jess stood in the doorway.

“I’m sure it’s just someone being nice, I did just get my Masters in Sports Medicine,” she replied, not fully believing her own explanation. Jess hummed in a way as if to say yeah, sure. Even though they’d only been working together for six months, she and Jess had hit it off from the moment she became part of the medical staff at Liverpool. 

“I doubt Klopp would send you pink flowers to congratulate you, babe. What does the card say?” She had to admit Jess had a point there. Although the Liverpool manager sometimes acted like a dad for everyone he employed, she too doubted he’d send her this type of bouquet. She slid the envelope open and pulled out the thick cardstock. 

Happy Valentine’s Day! I didn’t know how to tell you in person without losing my nerve, but I’ve had a crush on you from the moment we met that day in the foyer of the AXA. Been trying to ask you out for months, but instead I’d end up making up some vague injury that needed looking at because the moment you look at me, I’m gone. So here goes: Can I take you out for dinner? Tonight maybe?

xJ

She read the card and then re-read it a second and third time, just to make sure it actually said what it said. She felt her cheeks heat up at the memory of the first time she met him. She had just joined the club and was still trying to find her way around the training grounds. Her arms had been full with supplies for the treatment room and she didn’t notice she still had one more step to go coming down the stairs. “Careful!” someone had said, as she collided against him with a tiny shriek. The boxes had fallen, but luckily he had caught her. 

“S-so sorry!” she had tried to apologise, momentarily forgetting what else she was going to say when she looked in those bright blue eyes. Jordan had chuckled, making sure she was okay as his hands lingered a little longer than perhaps necessary on her waist. When his fingers brushed against hers as he handed her the fallen boxes, she could’ve sworn she felt a spark of something pass between them. And this remained in the weeks and months that followed. They’d steal glances at one another when they thought the other wasn’t looking, hands would linger a little longer than needed when hugging or when she treated his injuries. She thought it had all been in her head, but now to see it written quite literally in black and white, it took her a while to let it sink in that all this time he had felt the same way. 

“You okay?” Jess asked, pulling her from her thoughts. She blinked, trying to clear the fog of memories.

“Y-yeah. Sorry, I have to go,” she mumbled and left her office, still clutching the note to her chest. She made her way down the corridor and saw the team was wrapping up training. Pulling on her puffer coat, she walked outside. Nervous butterflies settled in the hollow of her chest as she spotted the Liverpool captain. She swallowed hard and kept walking until she was almost in front of him.

“Hey,” she said, fidgeting with the note.

“Hey,” Jordan echoed, cheeks flushed. She wondered whether that was just because of the cold. 

“I-.. Thank you. F-for the flowers I mean. How did you know peonies are my favourite?” Jordan shrugged. “I might’ve overheard you mention it to Jess once,” he said quietly, not quite meeting her eyes now. She was quiet for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts. She had not thought this through when she left her office. 

“Also found your note,” she all but whispered, looking down at her hands that were fidgeting with the folded piece of cardstock. 

“You did?” She nodded, meeting his eyes.  He looked at her, eyes full of hope.

“To answer your question, yes. Yes, I’d like that very much.” The smile that tugged at his lips squeezed her heart. He brushed his lips against her cheek, making her stomach fill with butterflies. 

“Pick you up at 7?” he asked. She nodded, skin burning where his lips had touched.

“Great,” Jordan said, grinning now, “It’s a date.” 

She couldn’t wait. 

Tags @football-and-fanfics @kostasstsimikass @lfc21

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[liverpool-enjoyer]

hi max!

max appreciation day might’ve ended on the east coast but here on the west coast i’m still celebrating so i thought third’s would be the perfect time to tell you how much you mean to me!

i know self doubt is truly heinous but honestly you are a joy!! you make me laugh so hard you don’t even know, you truly know how to make me lose it with your tags. all your asks and comments on my posts and replies to my asks are always so thoughtful and i enjoy reading and replying to them each time because it is a joy to interact with you. more max is always appreciated!! i treasure your presence every day 🫂

you’re so supportive of my crazy hockey rants or my neymessi delulu i appreciate it so much. every time i see you spam liking my posts i feel very warm inside, you spark so much joy as marie kondo would say. i appreciate your support more than you’ll know.

i see you in every yellow flower i see, because you are a ray of sunshine. every time my silly little hockey podcast talks baseball i think of you, and any time i get liverpool tiktoks i think of you. you are constantly on my mind, and every time i think of you i send a little wish into the universe that your shoes stay ties, you see an abundance of little yellow flowers, and the food you’re craving is in your fridge.

ilysm max, please never doubt your importance here. you are incredible and idk where i’d be without your max moments

🫶 k

KAYYYYYYY (i realize thats not how you spell your name but i needed to elongate it to like,,, express how im feeling.)

what a lovely thing to wake up to 🥹 i wanna write you something equally as heartfelt but im truly at a loss for words. more than usual.

you have no idea how much this means, man. actually you probly do now that i think abt it youre smart lmao. i'll likely come back to read this whenever im dealing w those lovely feelings a being no ones favorite.

k, im bad w words n especially bad at being sincere, but i can only hope that i am as good a friend to you as you are to me, n to everyone else for that matter!! you have so much love to give, i wonder where you keep it all <3 i cant,,, word it well, but know that i love you too n am thinking a you always :)) you know, you KNOW, when those stanley cup playoffs come around im jus gonna be thinking "damn,,, hope k's having fun w this one" for the entire time that theyre happening 😭😭

yknow this time last year i was going through what was (hopefully) the loneliest time in my life. now when i pray to God i thank Him for giving me friends like you.

oh n i hope your shoes are tied too cause it would suck if you tripped tbh

[footnotesandendings]

as apology for the last post, here's a WIP Wednesday snippet from a Virgil/girl!Jordan fic I'm poking at.

(Jordan is the captain of the Liverpool women's side in this.)

Jordan texts him one day out of the blue, while he’s at home on his couch with his feet in an ice bath. <em>Come over tomorrow night to watch Donetsk-Roma?</em>

Virgil blinks at that, his thoughts spinning ahead fast. She’s inviting him over to her place—which could mean she’s interested in moving ahead faster than planned—but she’s inviting him over to watch Champions League—which almost certainly means she thinks of it as a work thing.

<em>I don’t know where you live</em>, he replies, which he recognizes immediately as stupid, but it’s too late to take it back.

<em>I’ll tell you that</em>. There’s a little pause, then, <em>I mean you don’t have to if you don’t want to.</em>

He would kick something, but it would send icewater all over the room. <em>I do want to. We’ve got Porto coming up so I need a quiet evening anyway</em>.

She sends back a thumbs-up, and then her address. <em>It’s a block of flats, so text me when you get here and I’ll buzz you in.</em>

He doesn’t recognize the street name, but that’s what GPS is for. <em>I’ll get there half an hour before kickoff? Should I bring anything?</em>

<em>Lol. I can feed you. See you then.</em>

He sends a thumbs-up of his own and tosses his phone aside, resting his head against the couch. He’s got to bring something or his mother will somehow know and call to yell at him. Not wine. Not flowers. Maybe a t-shirt from the team shop, honestly. Or socks. She would probably appreciate that more than the rest.

[eurovision-del]

Iceland are sending Diljá to Eurovision with Power! This is definitely a good choice - it's a good pop song, and I really enojyed Diljá's performance tonight, much more than I did in the semi actually! She's a great singer, and her performance tonight was energetic and engaging. The staging here was very simple, just a fog machine and some clips of flowers and fungi growing - I guess that's meant to represent her growing past this person she sings about. It's an ok concept but I'd be happy if they reworked it for Liverpool. I have no idea how this will fare in the contest, Iceland are in the second semi which feels quite open. I reckon if she performs like she did tonight she stands a decent chance of going through! Either way I wish her the best of luck!

[mariachastain]

COLE PALMER!!!!

Glory, Glory, Man Uni- SIKE!!! GLORY GLORY COLE PALMER!!

If Cole Palmer isn't showered with riches tonight in London then somebody needs to send that young lad my way. I will worship the ground he walks on and treat him to a night that he will never forget. I should send Man City a thank you card with flowers for letting him go.

I knew going into the game today (Chelsea vs. Man United) that I could be in for a joke of a match - and it did NOT disappoint! I knew it would be a game of who WAS trying harder to lose. Chelsea were winning that competition clearly. "Let's score two goals and get everyone's hopes up!" Credit to Garnacho though. His second goal with the Antony assist was lovely. To have Cole Palmer wipe all of Garnacho's hard work out in stoppage time with two goals in 81 seconds...wow. The second penalty, in my opinion, was definitely soft. And then, I thought for sure Chelsea had blown it in the end when they had a break away and they essentially had FIVE men on and someone (I can't remember who) made the wrong pass and they blew it. They lucked out with a quick corner and Cole Palmer got the sweetest of deflections (poor Scott McTominay). So, again, GLORY GLORY COLE PALMER!

Let's not forget that Liverpool kept their lead at the top of the Premier League table with a win over Sheffield United. It was a bit nervy there for a few moments when Sheffield tied it up through a Conor Bradley own goal (which is sad, yes, but he has been one of the breakout starts of this season for any teams in the league).

So today was a glorious day of footy. And to top it all off I had a snow day to boot!

And Stamford Bridge - quit it with the Mason Mount hate. There's no need to boo the man who was your best player over the last few seasons just because he went to a rival team. Give respect where respect is due.

[goalies]

reworking a LOT of my ocs i think aka. insane ramblings under the cut

Atticus

-i’m returning him to his base form i think. kinda.

-i’m gonna send him to america to either be an indycar or nascar driver. perhaps smth of a illot situation where he really shines getting away from europe. but. isn’t happy

-i kinda. want him to realize that the life he’s leading in motorsports sucks and that he CAN do better and basically becomes a florist in a little flower shop back in england or smth because he’s always yearned in some way for a quaint little quiet life

-his sister is also still around. she’s still a. marine biologist! she has a very close relationship with atticus and acted as a maternal figure for a lot of his early life and such…she loves being able to see his work at the flower shop really bring out the best of him

-still has his cat, petunia, but perhaps he even decides to become a foster parent of some sort? maybe him and noah fall in love and become a couple

Noah

-i think a lot about him stays the same, still a keeper for liverpool, still trans, but i think i want to have him actually be from ireland instead of from switzerland for no reason other than i think it fits better in my heart of hearts

-i also just don’t like the longer hair on him so i’m cutting it down to be, at max, a mullet length i fear

-for backstory i think he still has encouraging parents but perhaps also an older sister who he looks up to. she’s probably a #woman in stem

-noah is still into gardening and that’s probably how he and atticus would end up meeting bc noah starts to frequent and petunia really likes him and atticus has this subtle dry humor that noah just falls in love with

-probably had some sort of toxic relationship prior to them meeting and falling in love though. maybe. game theorizing.

Harpy

-kinda already wrote about this but i basically way overhauled him

-still gay. still in the military. still has a shitty dad but a loving brother but not in the navy his whole career anymore

-his dad is ex military and really wanted harpy and his brother to enlist, only harpy ends up enlisting as his brother moves out to go to college and probably becomes an educator or a children’s therapist i haven’t decided yet

-had a little sister who passed in a freak accident when he was little. fucked up everyone in his family n left harpy with some crazy survivors guilt at 15 (she was like 10)

-goes into the navy as a fighter pilot, meets his best friend Marley, they’re like a dynamic duo, eventually they’re pulled out by the secret service to utilize their abilities on a specialized task force of undercover operatives

-absolutely not accurate to the military but it’s MY lore and MY rules

Marley/Dia

-i don’t think much about her changes except her physical design where she absolutely dresses more pink and stuff. full on butch lesbian no holding back

-she’s sassy and casually bullies harpy like a ridiculous older sister and is one of the only people who harpy lets in to a touch outside thst he’s built around himself for a while

Gunner

-he plays for the giants. i’m no longer making him play for some rip off team. he plays for the GIANTS!

-he’s more of a fuckinf ASSHOLE. i watered down the personality i wanted to really give him and that wasn’t fair to him. go girl be a massive bitch!

-still a pitcher. but wears #13 rather than #18 bc it’s my favorite number

-his dad was still a pitcher for the mariners and passed away when he was young…probably about 60% of the reason he’s as much of an asshole as he is. he’s mad at the world for taking away one of the only people in the world who didn’t judge him for being so passionate about the sport

-his dad probably wore #13 as well and while he didn’t win more than maybe one world series, he was consistently very good with the team until his retirement and likely had his jersey retired either after his passing or his retirement. either way. his idol

-people judged him for the autism. it was the baseball spinterest

-he’s absolutely. a very large prick though, unavoidably, unabashedly, etc etc. he’s great with his own teammates but snappy with strangers and with a lot of other athletes on the other teams. (not with the mariners though. he’s secretly upset he’s not on that team as much as he loves the bay area)

-not sure what i want to do with him past this though…love this guy!

[zenasflower]

Sending Flowers to Liverpool

Flowers are a great way to express your feelings and celebrate special events. They can be given for birthdays, Valentine’s Day or anniversaries. To ensure your flowers stay fresh, keep water clean and add flower food every other day.

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Roses

One of the most popular Sending Flowers to Liverpool, roses are a symbol of love and can be sent to friends and family for many occasions. They are available in a variety of colors and styles. They are also a popular choice for weddings.

The flower symbolizes admiration and enthusiasm, which makes it a great gift for someone who has just been promoted or given a new job. They also make a lovely gift for anniversaries and other special occasions.

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Bouquets

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FloraQueen

Sending flowers is a simple yet thoughtful way to show someone that you care. The gesture can remind them of your love and affection, even when you’re far away. Choosing the right bouquet can be a bit of a challenge, though. You’ll need to consider your recipient’s preferences, budget, and delivery options. Fortunately, there are many options for you to choose from.

FloraQueen offers a variety of flower arrangements to suit any occasion. From classic roses to dainty daisies, they have everything you need to make your loved one smile. They also offer a selection of add-ons like chocolate boxes and gift cards that will give your bouquet a personal touch.

You can order online and have your flowers delivered within two days of ordering – perfect for last-minute surprises! If you need your flowers sooner, they also have an express delivery option that’s perfect for those urgent situations. They also ship internationally, so you can surprise someone from anywhere in the world!

Gift Baskets

Baskets are a popular gift for all kinds of Perfection flowers. They can be given as a thankyou, birthday present, or holiday greeting to friends and family. They can also be sent to co-workers or clients as a way of showing appreciation for their work. In many cultures, the basket represents abundance and shared prosperity.

Traditionally, gift baskets are filled with small gifts. These gifts can include food, candy, or other treats. They can also contain personal care items and other useful objects. The only limit is the giver’s imagination and budget.

Whether you are celebrating an occasion or expressing gratitude, our curated gift baskets and hampers will convey your sentiments with elegance and style. Choose from a wide range of unique and thoughtfully-curated food gifts and luxuriant pampering essentials. You can even find a selection of luxury baskets that are suitable for the home or office. From high-end Hickory Farms beef or turkey summer sausages to chocolate and wine, there’s something for everyone.

[ultra-maha-us]

How to Choose a Flower Delivery Shop

Flowers represent different kinds of feelings and emotions. Every type of flower has a special meaning that is conveyed to the receiver. Moreover, since flowers have a wide variety of colors and shades, certain emotions are associated to particular types of flowers. Thus, these are probably some of the reasons why flowers are used whenever one wants to send a message to another person. Consequently, sending flowers must be very effective because most people would rather have flowers than anything else.

There are many occasions in which flowers are very important. These can be joyful moments such as birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, and graduations; or these could be sad moments like death and funerals. Whatever the occasion may be, there are always specific types of flowers that could appropriately represent the emotion that a certain person is feeling.

While flowers have various meanings in different parts of the world, there are those which are used Flower delivery Liverpool universally to manifest blissfulness, sorrow, love, remorse, and victory. Although not very many people know about the particular meanings of flowers, just the sight of the flowers alone make these people feel that they are special, and that somebody out there is thinking about them.

Unfortunately though, not everyone has the time, or the skill to arrange flowers for special occasions. Aside from the fact that creating flower arrangements is not that easy at all; it requires special skills and the right attitude. Thus, in order to ensure that the flowers are perfectly arranged for specific occasions, it is most advisable to seek the services of florists and flower shops.

Flowers shops practically proliferate in most major cities, where many people reside, visit, and stay. One of the busiest and largest cities in England is Liverpool. Liverpool is a metropolitan district that caters to a population of more than 800, 000. With a city this big, flower shops are located in almost all corners, most especially that the English people are known to be expressive and romantic. Therefore, if you ever need flower arrangements for any type of occasion in Liverpool, you can always check out the flower shops that they have there.

However, choosing the perfect flower shop may be a little difficult with the wide variety of choices around. As such, it is important to solicit for the best services and the best price. Doing this literally may be very taxing since there are a lot of florists in Liverpool. However, if you search for florists online, the job can be convenient and easy.

A number of flower shops in Liverpool can be found online. Moreover, their collection of flowers and samples of previous flower arrangements are also found in their websites. With these, you can conveniently choose the perfect flower arrangement that you want and have this delivered in no time at all.

[arentyouadorable]

Bloody Postcards

for the Discord 1p4a “Travel”

The first postcard, at the top of the board, is a collection of four photos. Three of them are landmarks, a picture of the Port of Liverpool, the Royal Liver Building, the largest Anglican Cathedral in Europe and the last one, a famous statue of Liverpool's most famous band: The Beatles.

Rebecca unpins the postcard, flips it in her hands, finds her neat writing at the back.

Ted keeps staring at me so I gourds I have to write something. He wants to send this bloody postcard so that we find it when we get home. So here I am. 200 miles from home, I am writing something for us to find when we get home. Rebecca&Ted

She recalls Ted's laughter when they entered her home, their home, how he had turned the postcard in his fingers, tracing the single words, the way she had spelled his name right next to hers.

One week later he had showed up with a cork board and some colorful pins.

“For the postcards.” He had explained.

And Rebecca had sighed, knowing the postcard thing wasn't going to be a one time thing.

The second postcard, top right, is a picture of Union Station. Huge block yellow letters with a thick black outline spell Greetings From Kansas City in the center, covering half of the image. Rebecca remembers the text she had written on the backside by heart. She takes it anyway.

Another trip, another bloody postcard. In case it wasn't clear enough, we were in Kansas. Ted is pretending not to look at me, but I know you are, you little minx. I'm wasting so much time writing this, there'll be no time left for kisses. I'm furious. Rebecca&Ted

With a small smile, Rebecca puts the postcard back. Memories of their first trip to Kansas crowd her mind and there had, indeed, been time left for kisses.The thought makes her heart flutter.

The next postcard doesn't have a city name, just a self explanatory landmark: the Tour Eiffel. It had been their first Valentine's Day and Ted, romantic, sap Ted, had organized them a short trip in the city of love.

“I've never been.” He had explained when Rebecca had made a face at the insufferable cliche. “I thought, what better time to go than Valentine's Day?” He had kissed her nose, grabbed her hand. “And what better company than my soulmate?”

And how could Rebecca resist that? Behind the postcard, just some rushed words:

Kisses from Paris

Rebecca&Ted

The disappointed look on Ted's face when they had gotten home and found the postcard fills her with sadness even years later

Right beside the Paris postcard is one from another European capital. A collage of smaller pictures featuring the Brandenburger Gate, the Dome and random pieces of the Wall. Rebecca smiles at the memory of their time in Berlin, so gray and so rainy they spent most of the time tucked away in little bars and pubs.

Hello postcard, my old friend. Once again, I am putting a little bit more effort in this. Ted was so disappointed after Paris, he almost didn't want to send anything. So I'm really trying. Hi Ted. You are handsome, I love you. Rebecca (&Ted)

The smile on Ted's lips when the postman had delivered the postcard, how he had rushed into the kitchen, beaming, how tightly he had hugged her to his chest, lovingly.

“I love you too.” He had whispered. “Let's travel more in the summer.”

The colors of the next postcards are Rebecca's favourite. Pink flowers, white houses and blue sky. Rebecca turns it and looks at the childish handwriting, the little drawing of a cat in the top corner, next to the stamp.

Dad, Rebecca and I are in Greece and it is awesome. The whea weather is great and I don’t want to go home. Rebecca says she stinks like garlic all the time and Dad always kisses her. There is cats everywhere and I could pet one, today. Best vacation ever! Henry, Rebecca & Ted

Their time in Greece had been wonderful. The early mornings on the beach, the long dips in the crystalline waters, Henry's enthusiasm to try out all water sports. Years later, she can still hear Ted's laughter when she fell from the kite surf, remembers his screams when she pushed him down with her. She still feels his hands on her sun-kissed skin, still tastes the salt on his chin and smells the summer breeze in their hotel room.

Right next to it, a postcard from another island. When Ted had proposed, it had taken Keeley one week to organize the perfect hen do for Rebecca. That's how Rebecca had ended up in Fuerteventura with Keeley and Sassy, both her best friends pushing spanish men and colorful cocktails in her direction.

My dear love, I miss you terribly. Keeley keeps making me drink, says it's my last trip as a single woman and that I should enjoy it. I do, but I wish you were here with me. Which, I know, it's not the point of a hen bachelorette. Can't wait to marry you. R.

Reading over the text, Rebecca blushes slightly, incredibly embarrassed of how romantic and unbearable Ted has made her through the years.

The next postcard is a perfect representation of this. Rebecca moves aside the postcard from Greece, reminding herself she should hang it better so that it doesn't cover the others. Another day, maybe. She looks at the white sand, the blue sea, the clear sky. The letters in the middle spell Mexico, two palms in the background.

This is the first postcard as Mr. and Mrs. Welton-Lasso. I still hate them. There is no point, we are taking so many pictures. Mexico is dreamy. Perfect place for the perfect honeymoon. With the perfect man. Rebecca & Ted Welton-Lasso

Her gaze lingers on the names and on the address line, now featuring her second Surname. Welton-Lasso. It feels right.

Rebecca hangs the postcard back in place and finally takes the most recent one from the pile of mail on the counter. She looks at the Chureito Temple and Mount Fuji in the background, already missing Japan and its gorgeous nature, the busy cities, the tasty foods.

Coming up behind her, Ted hugs her waist and peeks over her shoulder.

When he sees the postcard, Ted widens his eyes. “What? It's here already? No way!”

“We've been gone for a while.” Rebecca argues, moving to take a free pin and hanging the postcard in the bottom corner of the cork board.

Before poking a whole through the light carton, though, she turns it around, showing Ted the text.

I guess postcards aren’t that stupid when trying to remember a language

愛してる (Ai shiteru) = I love you (deeply)

好きだ (Suki da) = I like you (not platonic)

大好きだ (Daisuki da) = I really like you (大 big)

Rebecca & Ted Welton-Lasso

She feels Ted smile and hears his approving hum.

“We will need to get a new board. This is full.” Rebecca points out, finally hanging the postcard.

Brushing his nose against her neck he squeezes her closer.

“I thought you hated them.”

“What can I say, Coach. You changed me.”

[loving-villanelle]

Turns out a fundraiser for Villanelle already exists, so to avoid confusion I think we should focus our efforts on one funding source. It appears they are going to use funds to send flowers to Liverpool and London! If you are in Liverpool or London, or will be visiting either location soon, they are looking for help with flower delivery! Whether dropping off in person or just helping them coordinate with local shops, I'm sure they would appreciate any help they can get. Please reach out to them (or me) if you can help in these efforts! Thank you!!

[artificialqueens]

Down with the Recipe, Bake from the Heart, 1/10 (Multi) - Juno

Summary: This year’s Great British Bake Off will see some baking for sure, but also a few surprises. Tayce goes into the Bake Off tent determined to bring the winning cake stand to Wales, along with a few Star Baker badges, but her attention may not be on baking for too long as she gets to know fellow baker Aurora, on the same row as her. And judging by the other contestants, Tayce might not be the only one focusing on something other than baking this season.

A/N: This is a DRUK2 group based on GBBO - there are a few ships! It’s also on AO3 with 12 chapters but I will post here with 10 for ease as the first two and last two will are being done together. No CWs for this chapter! I hope you enjoy.

PROLOGUE - October 2021

It had been Cheryl who had suggested a live react to the grand finale of this season of Bake Off, so the twelve finalists could all gather together, watch the finale, and then the winner’s reaction could be captured on film and put on the internet for the whole world to see. Cheryl hadn’t even been in the cast - she’d been on the previous season - but she said she’d become invested in the season and the bakers so much so that she hadn’t wanted to let them go yet.

And judging by the public’s reaction to her tweet about it, she wasn’t alone.

Pip had mentioned in their group chat that her sister had a big town house in the Wirral, and she’d offered to let them all use it as a base for their live watch. Channel 4 didn’t have anything purpose-built for them, and the filming location wasn’t available, so they’d all jumped at the chance. Plus, Liverpool served as a good mid-point for them all - it saved Joe having to go all the way to Dundee or Ellie having to go to Brighton.

Aurora had marvelled at the amount of space there was once they’d all arrived the previous day. The living room and dining area were one, with a dining table probably big enough to fit a couple of football teams at it; and the kitchen led into the room with an arched doorway. The kitchen itself was enormous too, in highly polished white surfaces that Aurora was terrified to touch with her probably-impure fingers

“Bit posh, isn’t it!” She’d muttered to Tayce.

Pip’s sister and her husband were staying away, and they had the place all to themselves - the twelve of them reunited, with just Blu and Cheryl for company, operating a handheld camera with the intention of sending the finale footage for Channel 4.

As three endings had been recorded back in June, with each of the finalists winning one of the takes, the actual winner’s reveal would be a surprise to all of them, including the three finalists, and ensure no slip ups from the production team.

That didn’t stop all twelve of them worrying. None of them had slept a wink, all of them keeping an eye on Prue’s twitter to make sure she hadn’t accidentally tweeted the winner again. But mostly they’d been together, reminiscing on some of the moments from the season that had made them laugh. All the funny moments, all the tense moments, and one or two viral moments loaded with innuendo.

Not to mention everything else that had blossomed in tandem with nature that springtime.

It had been quite a season. They’d started out as strangers, and now they were so tightly-knit that they hadn’t even entertained the thought that they would possibly be watching the finale without all of them in the same space.

Aurora swilled the glass of champagne that Joe had insisted on pouring for everyone, and watched all of the people she’d grown close to on the season, a peaceful atmosphere in the room as they waited for the finale to start.

Well, not all of them were peaceful. Lawrence and Ellie were being their usual loud selves, jousting with wooden spoons and shrieking as loudly as they ever did - but Bimini was utterly still for the first time since Aurora had met them, laid against Asttina’s chest as they both reclined on one of the sofas, while Asttina raked her fingers through their mullet; and Bimini’s eyes were closed, their lips in a sleepy smile.

Aurora felt familiar hands creep around her waist, a familiar chin rest on her shoulder from behind, and familiar lips at her cheek.

“I can’t believe it’s coming to an end now,” Aurora murmured, her thoughts escaping her unfiltered, as they sometimes did with Tayce at this close range.

“Well, it was never gonna be forever,” Tayce said into her ear. “But we’re all gonna be friends after this, aren’t we! The wonders of technology! Come into the twenty-first century, Rory. We have this thing called the internet, and group chats, and phones -”

“We’re not all just gonna be friends, though, are we?” Aurora replied.

“We’re all just besties, nothing more than that. Rory, I’m joking!” Tayce laughed at Aurora’s horrified expression. “All I’m saying is that this isn’t the end - just the beginning.”

“That’s so cheesy.”

“Yeah, but I’m right, you can’t deny that!”

Aurora let her eyes drift around everyone else in the room.

Tia and Veronica who had barely left their corner of the sofa, hands and legs wound tightly together, both with hearts in their eyes and bigger smiles than anyone else in the room as they chatted quietly, simply enjoying each others’ company.

Lawrence and Ellie, wooden spoons still in hand, making the most noise in the room in delighted laughter as they jousted with each other, almost knocking Pip over as she carried in another tray of snacks to lay on the dining table.

Bimini resting against Asttina’s chest as they reclined on the other sofa, Asttina still running her fingers through Bimini’s freshly-dyed mullet, both of them letting out a contented sigh in tandem.

“Yeah,” Aurora murmured, as Tayce held her tighter, “I guess so.”

——

WEEK 1: BISCUIT WEEK

April 2021

Tayce grinned at the cameras as they panned around everyone. She’d given the interviewer her spiel about how much she’d always dreamt of being in the gingham tent and how excited she was to bring the winning cake stand to Wales for the first time in Bake Off history; and a surprising calm settled in her chest, nerves dissipating, at the genuine warm aura from everyone and everything in the room.

At least Tayce wasn’t in full view of the judges right at the front. That privilege was reserved for two people from London, both of whom looked right at home in front of the cameras, although their names were a mystery for now.

It was all very familiar from seeing it on the telly the last eleven years. Immaculate worktops with varnish that shone like glass; the tent walls decorated with bunting and flowers, and the pastel shelves and adorned with china cups; the multi-coloured KitchenAids ready to whisk, fold and anything else - Tayce’s was pure white, while the woman from Nottingham on the bench opposite her had a turquoise one.

Tayce chanced another glance at her; the tight-lipped smile showed a single dimple, and her long blonde hair was tied off her face, but her fingers drummed nervously on the workbench, and she evidently wasn’t as poised as the veneer she displayed for the cameras.

Tayce smiled to herself. It’ll be fun winning this thing.

——

Signature: 24 Iced Biscuits

The best bit of the show when it was on the telly was the banter between Matt and Noel. Seeing them in person, even from a distance away, made Tayce’s stomach bubble with excitement, and she had to cling to the workbench a little tighter to stay upright.

“Well, bakers, welcome to the gingham tent! Back for another season of Prue-Paul’s Baking Race!”

Prue’s sweet smile was complemented by her brightly-coloured glasses and sharp, matching blazer, while Paul’s cool stare lingered on everyone in the room a split second longer than they all would have liked.

“For the signature today,” Matt said, “the judges would like you to make twenty-four iced biscuits. The biscuits can be any flavour -“

“ - but should tell the judges a little bit about yourselves or where you’re from.”

“Where are you from, Noel?”

“Oh, you know, the moon.”

Everyone was laughing, even Tayce; although it wasn’t that funny - but the whole room was dancing with nerves by now, starting to become contagious from the people around her.

“On your marks -“

“Get set -“

“BAKE!”

Once Matt Lucas and Noel Fielding had declared the immortal lines to the room, everyone was scrambling for ingredients from their bags and the fridges.

Tayce was still cringing a bit at the dragon-shaped cookie-cutter her mum had found in some gift shop near the castle in Cardiff. She didn’t understand why tourists would be making dragon-shaped biscuits inspired by their trip to Wales, but for once she was thankful for tourists. Her friend Cara had customised it a little when she’d seen her a couple of weeks ago, by melting the tail with her lighter, elongating it a little, and extending the jaw and ears to make it look a little more ferocious.

“Can’t have people thinking you’re not breathing fire,” she’d said, passing the cigarette back to Tayce, “otherwise they won’t think you’re competition.”

And Tayce had nodded, holding smoke in her lungs half a beat longer than usual, wondering if she cared whether anyone thought of her as competition. After all, it was Bake Off. The last sabotage attempt there had been a national scandal the following day.

The most unproblematic, drama-free show on the telly.

Nothing was going to happen here.

——

“The judges are coming for you next,” one of the cameramen nudged Tayce out of her thoughts, just as she was measuring out her flour, causing it to fly upwards in a cloud “Just a heads up. Oh, sorry love.”

“Right, right.” Tayce nodded, brushing flour from her face. “What do I say to them again?”

“Just … talk. It’s the first episode. Show them your personality.”

“Personality,” Tayce repeated, nodding. “I’ve got oodles of that.”

“Great stuff. And don’t forget to be doing something bake-ey while they’re coming over.”

The cameraman dodged out of the way to make room for the medical team, running to help the woman in front of Nottingham, who had managed to slice her finger on something already.

“Here they are,” Tayce muttered to herself, taking a deep breath and straightening as the judges, along with Matt and Noel, came over to her.

“Morning, Tayce!”

Paul Hollywood was shorter than he appeared to be, and Prue Leith was taller, but nothing prepared Tayce for meeting either of them. Tayce held her breath for a split second, smiling somewhat mechanically to try to mask the sudden heat in her face.

“Bore da, folks! I’ve brought the weather with me!” Tayce beamed, indicating the heaving downpour of rain that was falling outside the tent; and they all laughed politely.

Tayce momentarily stopped concentrating on the judges and noticed the woman opposite her, turning to watch Tayce interact with the judges. And every time she was describing the perfect quality that her dragon-shaped shortbread biscuits would turn out, she seemed to slow her actions, looking up over at them.

The conversation was light, but Tayce could feel the calm authority of both judges before her, making words freeze on her tongue. It only went on for a minute or two, but Tayce was left feeling as if she should have prepared more.

Oh well. What’s done is done.

The ingredients for her biscuits were mixing slowly in the KitchenAid, the gentle whirr of the blades almost lulling Tayce to sleep as she sipped her cup of tea, before she took out the ball of shortbread dough and rolled it out to cut into biscuits.

“Your accent is so nice.”

Tayce looked up from her biscuits, to see the woman from Nottingham had come over, tucking her hair behind her ear, leaving her hand resting at the back of her neck to play absently with the strings of her apron. Up close, the dimple in her cheek was emphasised as a shy smile twitched at the corners of her mouth.

“Thank you!” Tayce stood to her full height. “This place doesn’t look like Barry Island yet but give it some time!” She leaned against the workbench, tossing her hair away from her shoulders.

“My accent is … well, it’s just … northern,” she continued with a giggle. “I’m Aurora, by the way. I’m so bad at names, I’m sorry, you’ve probably already said yours!”

“Don’t worry, I am too. I’m Tayce. And if I forget your name, well - yeah, same.”

Aurora’s gaze lingered half a second too long as she tested the name on her tongue.

“Tayce.” Her smile widened. “Nice to meet you.”

——

Tayce was terrible at names. She had no idea how she was going to remember who all eleven of these other people were, especially as one of them would be going every week - the pool of people getting smaller and smaller until Tayce would be remaining with whoever else was any good out of these lot.

As the day went on, she started to pick them up.

She had to learn Asttina’s for one, because Asttina seemed to know everyone’s name from the word go. Asttina was one of the two Londoners at the front, and was the only one of the group who had made a deliberate effort to come round to all their workbenches to formally introduce herself during the bake itself, her demeanour confident but her handshake gentle and light as air.

“Nice to meet you, Tayce,” she’d said, with a cool smile that reminded Tayce of a Miss World competition. “Looking forward to tasting all your bakes!”

She knew Pip’s name too, on the bench just behind Asttina, as she’d turned up in the tent wearing elf ears, claiming they were for luck. Everyone had been staring at her workbench, where she’d positioned a tiny blue handbag with a red circle in the middle, saying she took it with her wherever she went.

“I had a sesh with a psychic,” Pip explained to them all as a group of them crowded round her. “She’s a bit of a local celeb in Liverpool, Psychic Sally they call her, but - anyway, she told me to look for a sign in blue and red, said it was from me great-grandpa - and the same day I walked past one of those handbag shops on Paradise Street and there it was, in the window, 70% off!”

“Definitely couldn’t have been a coincidence, Pippa,” Tayce grinned, and Pip shook her head in agreement, but she had a mischievous glint in her eye and Tayce wasn’t entirely sure how serious she was about the whole affair.

Ellie’s name too had become familiar, because of the amount of times the show’s medics would groan it when she managed to hurt herself on something that episode. Ellie herself had been quiet most of the day, seemingly a little shy and evidently the youngest in the room; but she’d bounced on the balls of her feet at meeting Matt Lucas, garbling something about her and her brother doing all the impersonations as kids.

The soft-spoken woman in front of Tayce was called Cherry, and Tayce had found that out because she’d pointed it out to everyone when she put cherry flavouring in her biscuits.

“Does that actually, y’know, work as a flavour?” Tia had asked her when she was explaining it to them.

Tia was another name that Tayce knew, mainly because the woman was so tall and striking. She looked like she’d come straight off a catwalk and wandered into the Bake Off tent by complete accident on her way to London Fashion Week, happening to become covered in flour in the process.

Cherry had huffed. “I don’t know, but you eat cherry-flavoured things all the time! What could go wrong with putting it in biscuits?”

Tia grimaced. “Wait. Have you … never put cherry flavouring in biscuits before? Didn’t you practise at home?”

Tayce couldn’t help but feel a twinge of mirth as she watched Cherry chew her tongue, her cheeks flushing, but her jaw set obstinately. “I know what I’m doing. I can do this.”

“You haven’t even practised this bake? Okay. So how late do the trains run from here to Newcastle?” Tayce had asked Cherry, and Aurora had doubled over in wheezing laughter as Cherry had folded her arms.

“Darlington. Darlington, not Newcastle. And there’s been trains there for nearly two hundred years, love.”

That had just made Aurora laugh harder, clutching her stomach and shaking in silent giggles, leaning on Tayce as Tayce had led her back to her workbench and let her wipe the tears from her eyes before continuing with her biscuit dough.

That was the most important thing Tayce had learned so far in the tent. The woman from Nottingham opposite her was Aurora, and Aurora lit up the whole bench.

When the judges had stood with her earlier, she’d cooed about how much she adored baking everything for all her family - making fairy cakes for charity bakes for work, birthday cakes for her family, tipsy cakes for her best friends for their birthdays, or anniversaries, or whenever they were just feeling crap.

From the smile that she couldn’t hold back, Tayce knew that Aurora was the only person in the room who meant it when she said that she loved baking.

——

“One hour break, folks, and then filming starts for Technical, okay?”

The first bake was over, and Tayce’s shortbread biscuits shaped like dragons had gone down pretty well with the judges. She wasn’t sure if she’d had the best feedback, her nerves kicking in and blocking out most of the other contestants’ comments; but she thought she’d done enough for this round at least.

One of the producers herded them like sheep - or maybe cats, judging by how Ginny had gone chasing after a squirrel they’d seen - back into Norton Hall where they were all staying for the weekends while filming was happening. It was a huge, Georgian manor mouse with ceilings touching the clouds, far more halls than were necessary, and so many excessive bedrooms that each contestant had a room each.

Tayce had half-expected four-poster regal luxury as she’d opened the door to her own, twice the size of her room in her flat; but no such luck - it was furnished sparingly, and all the beds were normal. A small double, she noted. Not that she was likely to get lucky with these master bakers, but a woman could dream.

The floorboards creaked as she crossed the room and flopped backwards onto the bed, gazing at the ceiling, the elation sending a shiver through her skin as she realised again that she had made it to Bake Off.

The Bake Off!

They weren’t meant to change clothes between takes unless they’d made a huge mess with the food, so Tayce just retouched her eyeliner and went back down to the communal room, where most of them had gathered back in the group, polite conversations carrying on amongst relative strangers as they sampled each others’ biscuits.

What a surreal scene.

A group of almost strangers, half of their names unfamiliar, and she was meant to discuss baking with them all.

“Alright, babs?” She heard someone pushing a plate in front of her. “My name’s Ginny, Ginny Lemon, and if you don’t like lemon, well - just skip my biccies, alright love?”

“No, lemon is great,” Tayce forced a smile, taking one of Ginny’s biscuits. “Thanks hun.”

“You’re welcome! Which ones did you make - wait, I remember, the Welsh dragons?”

“Now how did you guess that one?” Tayce raised an eyebrow at them. “My mum’s idea, she was like, do it for the Welsh! So of course she found a dragon-shaped cookie cutter from somewhere. One of the tourist shops in Cardiff. Tourists love dragon biscuits apparently.”

“Oh I know love, I know - speaking of weird biscuits, have you ever tried a Worcester sauce biscuit? I don’t recommend it if you haven’t, but have you?” Ginny shook their head, tutting. “Tastes like shit! Waste of biscuit. Waste of Worcester sauce too, though. Anyway, Pip’s looking lonely without me. Nice to see you!”

And Ginny fled from Tayce’s arm, scurrying back over to Pip. Tayce tasted the biscuit, bracing herself for Worcester sauce, blinking with surprise to find it was actually pretty good, the lemon flavour really tasty, and finding she wanted another.

Most of the rest of the biscuits were arranged on a bench at the back. Tayce picked up another of her own and went down the line, eager to see which had depleted the most.

Gravestone biscuits were the biggest shocker for her - two different sets of biscuits were there, iced to resemble gravestones, mostly untouched - but Tayce politely picked up the better-looking of the two and found a lovely chilli kick to it when she tasted. But gravestones weren’t the only common theme - two different rose patterns were there, one set iced in different shades of pink, and the other with a deep red icing. The pink roses were almost all gone, and Tayce took the second-to-last one, enjoying the raspberry flavour, and grabbing one of the other roses to go.

Tayce peered around the room at the other contestants from her vantage point at the table. Most of them had dropped into twos and threes - with twelve people it was bound to happen - chatting amongst themselves, quietly and politely for the most part, although the two Scottish women in one corner were laughing as if they’d known each other for years.

Eventually, she joined Aurora, who was talking to someone whose white-blonde hair and pencil-thin eyebrows looked very familiar …

“Joe Black,” she said, extending a heavily-tattooed hand to Tayce, whose stomach flipped upon hearing the name.

“You’re - on Instagram, that woman -“

“My internet infamy precedes me, but in that case I hope so too do my bakes, and of course my sense of fun.” Joe’s voice was theatrical, her gestures affected; but her smile was warm, and Cherry looked as enamoured with her as Tayce was feeling.

“And who wins the biscuit version of the wars of the roses?” Joe continued, pointing down at the two rose-shaped iced biscuits on Tayce’s plate. “Lawrence, or Veronica? I must say, the amount that Veronica worried about her own bake, that time probably could have been spent thinking up a better biscuit flavour than rosewater, don’t you agree?”

Tayce glanced at Veronica’s biscuit, then up at Aurora. “Does it taste that bad?”

But before Aurora could answer, they were interrupted by “Alright, babes! How’s it hanging?”

The woman joining them had rich violet hair scraped off her face into a bun at the crown of her head, and an intense green stare. Tayce took the hand that was extended to her, finding a firmer handshake than Asttina’s, trying to follow the stream of words from this woman’s mouth.

“I’m Lauren, but you might as well call me Lawrence, that’s all Ellie’s been calling me all day, thinks she’s fucking hilarious, and I’ve not really met any of you yet because, you know,” Lawrence paused for breath, waving her hands, “baking contest, ooh I’m not here to make friends, et cetera, but now that we’re all here and we’re not baking right now, I thought I’d better find out who everyone is! Are you the one who made the dragon biccies?”

“That’s me, baby!” Tayce grinned. “Bore da, bitches!”

“See, I knew you were Welsh, and there Ellie was trying to convince me the dragon biccies were by someone who just really liked Puff the Magic Dragon, she owes me a tenner now - and you’re - oh wait, I know you!” Lawrence wagged her finger at Joe, whose expression didn’t change apart from the slow blink. “That Instagram video!”

Joe fixed Lawrence with a stare. “Yes, that Instagram video; I know that precedes me, but I hope by the end of this competition that can be eclipsed by my culinary skills.” Her voice still kept the throaty drawl, but Tayce was starting to sense her irritation at the association.

Cherry had already offered her hand to shake, and Lawrence took it. “Alright, I remember your name, because you put it in your biccies as flavouring! Where’re you from, do they grow cherries there?”

“No - I’m from Darlington.”

Lawrence blinked, frowning. “Darlington, near Sweetie-shire is that?”

“No, it’s near -“

“I’m joking babes, I’m joking! I know it’s - hey, hey Ellie!” Lawrence stopped to shout to Ellie, who had evidently reappeared. “Els! It’s not Puff the Magic Dragon! Where’s my tenner? Hey!” And she was gone in an instant, Tayce turning to watch her chase Ellie as she scurried out.

“Anyway,” Joe continued, motioning to Tayce’s plate and one of the gravestone biscuits, “I’m so glad you’re enjoying mine! I know my sense of humour is a little … ah, morbid, but I didn’t count on being one of two people with this bake, let me tell you that!”

Joe glanced over to the left out the sides of her eyes; Tayce followed her gaze to Pip, oblivious, making herself a cup of tea.

“She didn’t - like, you don’t think she -“

“Oh, no, not in a month of Sundays! But it’s a strange little coincidence, isn’t it? The viewers will love the drama!”

Joe opened her mouth wide to let out a violent cackle, a sound that might have made a shiver glide down Tayce’s spine if she hadn’t been mid-biscuit.

——

Technical: 8 Wagon Wheels

The Technical challenge was the first time Tayce felt her nerves return in a rush.

Everyone had identical ingredients and an identical recipe, but nothing prepared any of them for whipping the gingham cloth from them all and flipping the instructions over. Tayce ran her pencil down them, her head spinning.

On the first read, she recalled nothing.

Focus.

She took one steadying breath, letting go of as many nerves as she could, and then ran her pencil back down the list, jotting down timings and a couple of notes. They only had an hour and a half; precision was key.

On her right, Aurora was fidgeting with her apron, twisting her hair around her finger, before grabbing as many bowls as she could from the drawers and setting them all down ready.

It almost felt like more pressure, rather than less, having no judges in the room - just Matt and Noel, and they couldn’t really interact with the bakers at this point, mostly just talking amongst each other and having to film occasional silly quips for the television interludes.

You’re not gonna get this finished if you keep looking at Matt and Noel!

So Tayce mentally blocked out everything and anything around her, not taking her eyes off her workbench. Instructions, ingredients, whisk, repeat. Oven, timers, filling, cooling, done.

She barely remembered anything else that happened in the room.

As she put the last wagon wheel on the tray to take to the front, she wiped her brow, took a swig of tea, and then heard the immortal lines.

“Bakers! You have one minute to go!”

Tayce looked around the room. Tia, three desks ahead, was looking flustered, covered in flour from head to toe - a difficult feat when you were six feet tall - and Veronica, just behind her, was rounding the corner to help her move the biscuits over to the tray one by one as she spread on the jam and marshmallow fluff. Bimini, who Tayce was sure had finished about ten minutes earlier than everyone else, was doing the same thing for Asttina, leaning over her workbench and talking soothingly to her as they both moved biscuits around.

On the other side, Ginny was rubbing Pip’s back, trying to help her load wagon wheels onto the tray but only succeeding in knocking the handbag to the ground. Ellie broke two of her wagon wheels by dropping a palette knife on them, her squeak causing Lawrence to turn from her bench and put her hands on her hips.

But Tayce felt an unexpected wave of relief when she saw Aurora finishing her own biscuits right on schedule, stepping back with a sigh, rolling her head and her eyes to the ceiling.

They had to bring the biscuits to the front table, and put them behind their respective photographs for blind judging. Looking at the other biscuits on the bench, Tayce nodded to herself in satisfaction. She definitely wasn’t the worst. The photos were all a blur, but there was definitely one disaster, chocolate and marshmallow oozing; Ellie’s broken biscuits; and another tray with a biscuit missing.

It was easy to breathe a sigh of relief for herself.

“Just get into any order,” the producer said, pointing to the stools that had been set in front of the table, “but don’t sit directly behind your photo. Otherwise it just looks obvious.”

Tayce’s biscuits were second from the right, so she bunched towards the left, and found herself between Aurora and Joe. Joe had pretended to trip over her feet while carrying her own biscuits up, cackling gleefully at Veronica’s pained expression as she watched. Veronica, mercifully, had sat as far from Joe as she could.

Aurora was breathing rapidly next to her, and Tayce gave her a nudge with her knee.

“Chill girl! Relax! It will be fine!”

Aurora nodded, but said nothing, focusing on trying to breathe at a normal rate once again. Tayce could practically hear her heart hammering. She nudged her again playfully, and Aurora nudged her back, taking a deep breath out and seeming to calm from then.

Once Prue and Paul were back, Tayce grew a little sleepy. The judging went on for much longer than on telly, and tent was hot from all the baking and warm bodies, plus Aurora’s knee jogging rhythmically was enough to make her feel a little drowsy. Her biscuits were second to last, and Tayce wasn’t really focusing on any of the other critiques as they went down the line, not even those of the two women on either side of her.

She hated tents. They reminded her of camping. This one wasn’t like any of the camping tents, propped by firm wooden walls and decorations but it still reminded her of trips to the Gower when she was at primary school. And thinking of the Gower made her think of day-tripping to Tenby, where the air was hazy with salt and fresh fish, and the sea was far too cold as they skimmed stones, watching them bounce once, twice, three times …

A nudge at her side from Aurora brought her down from her reverie; blinking, Tayce saw the judges had reached the biscuits behind her photo, looking up expectantly to see who would claim them.

Oh, yeah. It’s the Technical, and I’m here to be judged.

She raised her hand, realising that she’d been in a dream so long that she didn’t even know what place the judges had called her for.

“Tayce - good flavour, biscuits had a good crunch, and the chocolate has set well; it just wasn’t quite filled enough.”

Nodding and smiling, she waited for them to move on to the next person before she leaned over towards Aurora, muttering from the corner of her mouth “Where did they put me again?”

But before Aurora could answer, Paul spoke up. “And in second place, we have -“

“You came third, you bitch!” Aurora whispered, her mouth open in awe, and she looped her hand into Tayce’s and squeezed. “How do you do it? You always look so put-together! Not like - Miss Second-Place down there.”

Tayce glanced at Veronica, right at the end of the line of bakers on their stools, whose hand was raised to claim second place. She was nodding earnestly at the praise, but she still wasn’t smiling, her lips tight and her other hand still quivering a little in her lap.

“That means that first place goes to - Asttina!”

But Aurora hadn’t let go of Tayce’s hand, and Tayce was suddenly more aware of that contact than whoever the winner was, even as she slowly drew her hand away for the polite applause that followed.

“Where did you come?” Tayce asked her in a whisper.

“Seventh. Not great. I over-baked them a little bit,” Aurora shrugged. “I’m never gonna be good at technical.”

——

“Congrats on coming top of Technical!” Tia clapped Asttina on the back as they came back into Norton Hall, and Asttina responded with her winning smile.

“Thanks, babe. I thought you all deserved a taste of what I can do!”

There was a collective amused murmur around the other bakers at Asttina’s slightly smug tone. Tayce grinned, staying silent for now, wondering what the others would have to say to that.

“Oh, there’s more to come, is there?” Tia continued.

“I should hope so.” Asttina licked her lips. “From all of you lot as well.”

“There’s no need to be cocky,” Veronica said, the first time any of them had really heard her speak. Veronica was tiny, with blonde hair and a nasal voice that was louder than any of them had expected; most likely feeling the sting of coming second.

Asttina shook her hair back. “I’m not cocky, Veronica, I just know what I can do. Read the CV, it’s all there! If you want to win stuff, you need to know yourself. Do you want to win?”

“Does the Pope shit in the woods?” Veronica retorted.

It was Tia’s snort of laughter that started them all off, diffusing the vague tension creeping into the room. Asttina’s laugh was only drowned out by Veronica’s as she realised what she’d said.

“Is the Pope a Catholic, does a bear shit in the woods … I know, I know. I mean, yeah, I definitely do want to win.”

Asttina shrugged. “Then there’s no point being modest about what you can do. Let your bakes do the talking!”

One of the producers came in at that moment, motioning for them all to come round, and they all bunched together.

“Alright folks, the day’s filming is done, we’ll begin tomorrow at nine sharp for the Showstopper challenges. Until then you’re free to relax and have a nice time - please don’t go into any areas marked as Private, and no excessive drinking, but otherwise, have a good night!”

“Thank you!” They chorused, clapping for some unknown reason, as some of the staff rounded up the leftover biscuits and cleared them away.

“The filming crew get them,” Veronica explained to Tia, “I asked earlier what happened to them all because I knew we wouldn’t be able to eat them all.”

“You know what this means?” Cherry said, addressing them all from on top of one of the sofas. “This is the last evening we’ll all be together. Let’s all cheers to the cast of GBBO!”

She pulled a bottle of something from her bag, and the rest of them grabbed a mug each, sharing out the gin Cherry had brought, and bringing all their drinks together in cheers.

——

Showstopper: A gingerbread sculpture of a place that makes you nostalgic.

The Showstopper was about as broad as you could get. Everyone seemed to have something different in mind. Bimini and Asttina, on the two front benches, looked as poised and confident as they had all the previous day; and Asttina, buoyed by her Technical challenge win, puffed her chest in pride.

Tayce had practised her gingerbread over and over, but nothing prepared any of them for being in the tent, where the pastel colours and the novelty of the bright, friendly conversations started to switch to a competitive edge.

Especially after the Technical, where they had all been ranked. Having a number against your name now, combined with a vague grade against the Signature challenge, meant the Showstopper was the be-all and end-all for some of them.

That was it Tayce thought to herself, as she watched Aurora’s grim determination pass her face every second.

And she wasn’t the only one.

Cherry, on the workbench in front of her, had come sixth; but she’d been much quieter all morning, concentrating on reading and re-reading her instructions, tapping her pencil against her chin and growling frustratedly every now and then.

Ellie, wearing a pair or Pip’s elf ears, was doing even worse. Being ranked eleventh had done very little to ease the nerves she had displayed the day before, and her morning had already started with another blue plaster on yet another finger.

But Aurora was the only person Tayce was concentrating on. Something about the way she’d held her hand … and Tayce was far too quick to let her mind run away without her, thinking it meant anything, when obviously it probably didn’t.

“What are you doing?” Tayce called to Aurora over the chatter of everyone else around the room; but Aurora didn’t reply, her tongue running over her lips as she surveyed the mess that was the butter and sugar mix before her.

“Aurora?” She asked, making her way to stand by her behind the bench.

Aurora was still silent, but the noise from the bowls and KitchenAid she was using spoke volumes for her without her needing to say a word.

“D’you want a cup of tea?” Tayce asked her eventually, waiting for the curt nod from Aurora before sprinting to the tea station, in a tent outside.

When she got back, Aurora had moved up to Ellie’s workbench, and even though her back was to Tayce, she could see her shoulders shaking and Ellie’s hand rubbing her back, before offering her a can of the Monster she always had to have, the label covered in masking tape to escape product placement.

Tayce approached them both to comfort Aurora too, but as she did, cameras zoomed in on all three of them. Aurora pushed them both away and walked out of the tent, covering her face.

Ellie looked from the camera to Tayce and then back again, confused more than anything, and Lawrence, turning from her bench, looked back at them all with a frown.

“What’s going on here? Is she alright?” Lawrence pointed to Aurora, who was busy wiping her tears away in the far corner, with Matt Lucas at her side and a camera in her face.

“No,” Tayce muttered, “and she won’t be while there’s a lens on her.”

After that, Tayce kept half an eye on Aurora as she baked. She mostly ignored the cameramen as they hurried around the tent, taking stock footage of them cutting gingerbread shapes, using their ovens, and decorating, but Tayce purposely kept her mouth tightly closed, and her expression firmly neutral.

As Noel called for ten minutes remaining, Tayce was finishing the detailing of the roof of the stadium. The band were meant to be playing biscuit instruments and there was meant to be a crowd, but Tayce had settled for calling it a backstage pass moment, where VIPs could meet them, and just made models of herself and her friends.

“Time is up! Bakers, step away from your bakes!”

Noel called time, and Tayce took a step back to properly admire her finished product - and really, she was blown away by her own bake. The gingerbread houses she’d made in practise had gone alright, but this one, even in the pressure cooker environment of the tent, had gone almost perfectly, down to the timing of the bakes.

“Wow,” Tayce whispered to herself, “week one is done!”

She took a few seconds to admire everyone else’s in the tent. Some were much better than others. Joe’s looked a little strange - she’d meant to do a wedding scene with the gingerbread church, but the roof was crooked, and the gravestones falling over, not supported by the sticky sugar mixture they’d all used as adhesive. Cherry’s ambitious building was incomplete, and Tayce didn’t even know what it was meant to be.

But Asttina’s was incredible - a beautiful beach scene with a model of a beach hut and even a Ferris wheel. Ellie’s technical slip up was definitely repaired by the pub she’d built, adding fondant banners inside and making the dull gingerbread colours come alive with her imaginative take on the icing outside; while Lawrence had made a theatre, melting jelly babies to create beautiful stained glass in the windows, something Tayce kicked herself for not thinking of.

They all had a chance to leave the tent for a break, to sit outside in the shelter, and to have a breather before the actual judging of the bakes was done.

“I don’t envy the judges,” Joe said, her drawling voice awed, as she took in all of the gingerbread houses from their vantage point outside the tent. “They definitely have their work cut out for them, don’t they?”

“Everyone did amazing,” Aurora nodded, “it’s just a case of who did less amazing. D’you reckon they’ll just take this into account, or the whole weekend?”

Tayce didn’t know why she was worrying. Aurora had come middle of the pack in technical, but had been praised for her Signature, and her gingerbread house - modelled on her Nan’s, she had said - was so prim and dainty that Tayce knew the judges were going to eat it up, and not only literally.

“It won’t be you, chillax!” Tayce reached to rub her hand.

“Who d’you reckon it will be then?”

“Well, they tend to take into account the numbers assigned at the Technical challenge, and the Signature comments, to make the first analysis, at least,” Joe chuckled, “that’s what we see on the television. Who were the bottom three for Technical? I was tenth, Ellie was eleventh, who was twelfth again?”

“It’s - erm,” Aurora pointed, but the name escaped her for a second. “Tia. Tia was twelfth.”

“It’s probably between the three of us, then,” Joe said brightly, “unless something goes … horribly wrong to one of the Showstoppers. And how likely is that?”

As they looked through the panels of the tent, one of the gingerbread houses collapsed into pieces onto the tray it was set on.

Tayce glanced around the other eleven bakers to see whose it was.

One of the bakers had her head in her hands, shoulders tensed, while the two people on either side of her hugged her tightly.

——

“Seriously, Joe, how did you make that happen?” Aurora’s voice was hushed, tense, after the award for Star Baker and the first elimination had taken place.

Joe’s eyes widened as she shook her head. “I don’t quite know - maybe it was just something, spoken into the universe, made to happen.”

“Or maybe it was just gravity and shitty caramelised sugar sticking it all together,” Tayce added.

“Yes,” Joe replied, “or that too.”

Joe, Ellie and Tia had all survived their stint in the bottom at Technical - but Pip, who had come ninth in Technical, and whose Signature had received mediocre feedback, had laughed behind gritted teeth at presenting her collapsed gingerbread house - “More of an Ikea house,” Paul had commented cheerily - which had ultimately turned out to be too hard to bite into and had sealed her fate. Not even the lucky elf ears saved her from the first elimination.

“I was so sure I was going home this week,” Aurora sighed later that night, back at Norton Hall, where everyone had eaten so much of each others’ gingerbread houses that they all felt ill.

“You wouldn’t have, yours was good!” Tayce rubbed her arm. “Relax! It’s done now. Just focus on next week instead.”

“And I can’t believe Prue said she’d like to try a bit of carpet when they were looking at Ellie’s pub,” Aurora said, shaking her head. “Did anyone else catch that?”

“Yeah, I did!” Tayce sniggered. “They’re so innocent! This is just gonna be a load of innuendos all season, isn’t it? Imagine what they’re gonna say for next week too.”

“Oh, yeah. It’s cake week, isn’t it?” Aurora seemed to perk up. “That’s a bit more my comfort zone.”

Suddenly the door opened, and Asttina was led back inside the area by the cameraman and a producer. Everyone broke into applause - this time genuine, not the muted, polite sound that had echoed round the tent in the technical. Asttina had just given her winner’s interview and called her family, and now wore the Star Baker badge proudly on the lapel of her jacket, her grin wider than the Cheshire Cat’s.

“How did your mum react when you said you were Star Baker this week?” Bimini asked her.

Asttina smiled the warmest smile any of them had seen all weekend from her at the mention of her family. “They screamed so loud that you probably all heard it in here. My mum was falling off the sofa, my dad was waving a wooden spoon, my brother was banging on the floor with his feet - oh, it was great.”

“Well-deserved, babes,” Bimini nodded, and Asttina pulled them in for a hug.

Everyone else was clamouring around Asttina, congratulating her on her Star Baker win this week and admiring the badge she’d won - biscuit-shaped, or at least cookie-shaped - but Tayce hung back, exchanging a glance with Aurora, a glint in her eye; and both of them knew what the other was thinking.

Let’s not cross Joe Black. She might make our Showstoppers crumble.

——

ELEVEN BAKERS REMAIN