#and after two days noodles and soft veggies can be added which will be a bit easier

[marzipanandminutiae]

I'm almost looking forward to my gum graft later this week, just to have it over with

it's not the only one I'll need, but the others will be over the course of years. and I'll know what to expect after this

and in the shorter-term future...the dreading will be over, that's been in the back of my mind for months

[amelialincoln]

Stuck With You

“Hey, babe.” Link’s practically frostbitten cheeks burned against Amelia’s as he leant down to greet her with a kiss. “How are you feeling?” 

“Better,” Amelia smiled, rubbing her stomach in a small circular motion. “I wasn’t expecting the morning sickness to last this long.” Link couldn’t help but grin at his girlfriend who looked picture perfect in her oversized woolen sweater and newly formed bump. “What’s so funny?” She grinned back at him.

“Nothing, I’m just lucky,” he replied with a shrug.

“Yeah, I’m sure you were thinking the same thing this morning when you were holding my hair back to keep me from spewing chunks in it.” She shook her head. Link chuckled, tugging off his flurry filled jacket and sitting down beside her. “I doubt we’re going to make it to Meredith’s for New Years at this rate.”

“Most people were cancelling at work. Other than half the staff who live at her place,” he joked. “I doubt anyone is going to be having too much fun tonight.”

“Oh, cause you’re stuck with me instead of drinking with your boys?” She teased.

“Right, Amelia, because I’d rather start the New Year with anyone other than you.” That received a small giggle and he pulled her onto his lap gently. “You feeling hungry? I was craving some soup with it being so cold.”

“That sounds perfect.” She nodded.

“Alright, up you get then.” Amelia gave a moan of protest as he lifted her to a standing position before tugging her hand into the kitchen. Luckily they had vegetable stock in the fridge so the rest was simple. Amelia sat at the island chairs while Link chopped the veggies and chicken before adding them to the pot to cook.

“No pasta?” Amelia whined.

“Why don’t you come over and help me rather than complaining?” Link chuckled. Amelia shot him a look of exasperation before joining him in the kitchen. She searched through the cupboard before finding her favourite bow shaped noodles and adding them to the pot. Link wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin atop her head as she stirred. “Smells good,” he mused.

“Thanks, it was all me.” She received a poke in the side for that comment. The couple waited patiently for the soup to cook before spooning it into bowls and setting the rest in the fridge for leftovers.

“What do you want to watch?” Amelia asked from her place on his chest as she lifted a spoonful of veggies into her mouth.

“I don’t really care.” Link shrugged, absentmindedly wiping a drop of broth from her cheek with his sleeve. Amelia put on some random documentary as the true crime junkie she was and settled into his lap comfortably.

“Not while we’re eating,” Link complained as the narrator ran over some graphic evidence.

“You’re trying to tell me that you’ve got a queasy stomach,” she asked, “when you shove people’s bones back in place for a living?” Unapologetically, Link set his ceramic bowl on their coffee table and swallowed with distaste.

“You were the one throwing up all day,” he grumbled.

“And whose fault was that?” Amelia batted her lashes, never allowing Link to forget that it was his fault for impregnating her.

“Alright, then.” Link picked up the tv remote and clicked the off button before throwing the device far enough away on the couch that Amelia wouldn’t attempt to go after it. “I just want to talk to you, I feel like I haven’t seen you all day.” Amelia’s irritated expression washed away.

“Fine,” she grumbled before pulling out her phone. Link almost threw that across the couch too before realizing which app she was searching for. “Our baby is the size of a mango today,” she stated proudly. “I can feel him getting heavier.” She placed his hand on the underside of her belly and smiled as he acknowledged the new weight there. “His lungs are apparently developing,” she squinted at her phone, “and he might start kicking soon.”

“That’s exciting, babe.” Link rubbed her back tenderly and she relaxed into his touch.

“I didn’t get that with Christopher.” She frowned. “I mean there were phantom kicks...but I don’t know how they’re actually supposed to feel.” “Well we’ll find out soon, I guess,” he offered, not really sure what to say.

“Yeah, exactly,” she said more brightly than he knew she was feeling. “You finished your soup?” She asked, slowly standing up with the assistance from his hand on her back. He nodded as she stacked his bowl on top of her own and made her way back into the kitchen. He followed her cautiously, noticing that she was deep in thought and messaged her neck as she wordlessly did the dishes. Link knew she wasn’t supposed to start nesting until her third trimester but he’d noticed, with amusement, how much of a neat freak she had become over the last couple of weeks.

“You dry?” She finally asked, handing him the pot.

“Sure,” he replied, moving to stand beside her. They stood in silence for a couple of moments longer before he asked, “have you ever heard of a babymoon?”

“Huh?” she replied, her hands deep in soapy water.

“It’s like a honeymoon...kinda but not really.” He scratched the back of his neck. “It’s like a trip you take before the baby comes. Like to celebrate the last time you’ll be together, just the two of you.”

“Sounds kind of dreary when you put it that way,” Amelia chuckled lightly. “It’s not like our lives are ending.” 

“That’s not what I meant,” Link backpedaled. “It’s just to spend some time together before the baby comes.”

“Link, I’m teasing. That sounds really nice,” she assured him.

“Okay, cool.” He sighed with relief.

“I mean I think I deserve it if you can’t manage to give me an actual honeymoon.”

“What, I--”

“Link.” She rolled her eyes. “Teasing, again.”

“You suck,” he growled, flinging droplets of soapy water in her direction.

“Oh, really?” She taunted, spraying an enormous amount of water at him and soaking him from head to toe. “Shit.” She went to wipe suds from his cheekbone and slipped, landing embarrassingly on her ass.

“You okay?” The urgency in his voice immediately ended the joke.

“Link, I’m fine,” she winced.

“Are you sure? We could go to the hospital and--”

“I promise,” she confirmed. He breathed a sigh of relief, hovering over her and surveying her quickly. “Link, I mean it. You can get off of me.”

“Well, when you put it that way.” He grinned cheekily, pressing a lingering kiss to her lips before pulling away and leaving her wanting more.

“Okay, come back,” she whined, ignoring the fact that her clothes were soaked with dishwater.

“Nah, let’s get you in the shower. You’re all wet.” He smirked, pulling off her clothes shamelessly as he led her into their bathroom.

                                                     [][][]

Surprisingly, it was Amelia who convinced Link to stay up till twelve. Usually she was passed out at eleven tops with Link lying awake in bed for hours, deep with worries about parenting, the environment and everything else that he’d be bringing a baby into.

“It’s the baby’s first New Years,” she argued, pulling the fluffy white towel around her dripping body.

“The baby’s first New Years is a year from now,” he groaned from their bed. The hot shower and the amount of cardio he’d just performed had practically knocked him out and he wasn’t sure if he could keep his eyes open for the next half hour.

“Well it’s our first New Years.” She had him with that one. Link sighed before opening his arm to allow her to crawl in beside him. “Fine, I’ll stay up.” He didn’t. Link conked out about a minute later and their bedroom was filled with his soft snores almost immediately. Amelia sighed, running her hand through his hair and kissing his forehead lightly. She picked up a medical journal she’d been flipping through throughout the day and cuddled up beside him.

“Link,” Amelia shook her boyfriend awake.

“Huh?” His groggy voice responded before his eyes shot open. “Is the baby coming? Are you having contractions?”

“Uh, no.” She remarked. “You’re about four months too early.” Link nodded, swallowing nervously and she couldn’t help but wonder if that was what was keeping him up most nights. “It’s almost midnight.” 

“Oh,” he breathed. “Sorry for falling asleep.”

“It’s okay,” she assured him. “I just wanted my New Year’s kiss.” Link glanced at the clock and grinned before placing a gentle kiss on her lips.

“Was that what you were hoping for?” 

“Mhmm.” She bobbed her head. “Thank you.”

short cute domestic fic hope u enjoy! didn’t have time to edit so I probs will tmrw but I wanted to get it up for y’all.

[okk--maaan]

RONNIE??? WEEK???? BLESS YOU DEJA Anyways I’m thinkin’ Star Wars, so I would love to hear about surprising Ronnie with a cozy movie marathon at home after he’s had a difficult week at work. Much love to you xx

Hi E! Remember this?? Lmao I’m so sorry it took so long. But! I am way happier with this than the original version! So I hope you enjoy 😘

WC: ~1.3k

CW: lovin Ronnie hours, sensual food because it’s lovin Ronnie hours, lil bit of dirty talk

It is finally Friday night and Ronnie is so glad for it. Another long week of long hours in the books. He had spent more time at the station than anywhere else. Had been looking at paperwork more than anything else. More than your pretty face, which he very much preferred. But now he’s driving home - home to you, his favorite person in the world. Man he can’t wait to see you. Can’t wait to kiss and hug you. He knows you’re waiting up for him, probably watching TV or reading a book. He wonders what’s for dinner. Did you cook? Maybe you made cookies. You usually did that for him on Fridays, always knowing that he could use the pick-me-up. He can’t help but smile at the thought while the oldies country station plays on the radio in the background.

When he pulls into the driveway, he lets out a big content sigh, so ready to get out of his uniform, change into comfy PJs, and not leave the house for a couple days. The jingle of his keys in the front door is a warm welcomed sound for both him and you. You instantly perk up, a giddy sort of anticipation bubbling in your chest. You’re always just as excited to see him in the evenings. People always joke that you two are like little puppies when you haven’t seen each other for a while. All over each other with happy faces and waggly butts.

Relief washes over Ronnie when he finally opens the door and sees you there, right where he thought you would be. And yes, the house is full of the smell of something freshly baked. You bounce to your feet to greet him, waggly butt and all.

“Hi Pumpkin. I missed you,” he says as he holds your face between his massive hands, squishing your cheeks a bit. He plants a gentle kiss to your waiting lips, only releasing you once he feels he’s had his fill for the time being.

“How was your day?” you ask. His expression drops slightly at the mention of work.

He responds with, “Fine.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

How were you always so sweet? Always so concerned about him? But he really just wanted to forget about his hell of a week.

“No. I don’t want to talk about work. I’d much rather talk about you,” he smirks as he moves in for another smooch. This time he deepens it, draws it out, letting his tongue explore your lips, your tongue, your teeth. He steps in closer to press his body to you. And you know where he’s going with this.

You wriggle your way out of his grasp, push him at arm's length, “Hold on there big boy. None of that yet.” His hazy lust filled gaze instantly turns to a pout. You giggle and tuck some loose hair behind one of his cute ears, “I have plans for you first. Why don’t you go take a shower? Then I’ll meet you back down here on the couch?” Part of him wants to grumble and protest, but he knows whatever you have in mind will be great. Any and everything he gets to do with you is great. So he sets his shoulders and makes his way upstairs to do what you requested. But before he gets too far, you grab his wrist and pull him back for another quick kiss and a dismissive pat on the ass.

With Ronnie out of site, you get to work turning the living room into a cozy oasis. You pull out extra blankets and pillows and pile them on the couch. From the kitchen, you bring cartons of veggie lo mein and bags of eggrolls, and a plate stacked high with Ronnie’s favorite chocolate chip cookies.

Then, the real surprise.

You lug out the relics of the past you’ve had stashed away for the last week, exactly for this occasion -- a very heavy VCR and a pristine 1997 Star Wars Original Trilogy Special Edition Box Set. You’re really glad you just happened to stop by that closing thrift store.

Once the VCR is successfully set up -- red plug, yellow plug, white plug, does the white plug even do anything? -- and whirs to life, you arrange the food and the tapes nice and pretty on the coffee table. Just in time for Ronnie to come lumbering back down the stairs, of course in his Star Wars pajama pants. A big goofy smile spreads across his face and his eyes absolutely light up at the sight.

“Pumpkin, what is all this?”

“I told you I had plans for you,” you say with a wink.

You pop in the first movie, then fall back into the mound of cushions and covers, patting the spot next to you. He feels like he can’t get to you fast enough, can’t pull you close enough. His mouth is already watering at the thought of the food in front of him - and you. But as hungry as he is, he can’t believe you found this set, and he says as much.

“Luck, I guess,” you shrug.

He wraps both arms around your middle, covers your face and neck in adoring little kisses. “Thank you, Pumpkin. I love it. I love you,” he murmurs into your skin.

You giggle and card your fingers through his hair, “I love you too, Ronnie. Now, are we actually going to watch these movies? Or did I just set up that stupid machine for nothing?”

With a laugh of his own, he pulls away from where he’s made a home in the crook of your neck, adjusting his glasses in the process, allowing you to press play on the remote.

You’re not even ten minutes into A New Hope when he starts getting all handsy. His fingers skim the flesh of your thigh, inching closer to the apex. His other hand gropes at handfuls of your ass. You try to focus on the TV, but out of the corner of your eye, you can see his cock already starting to fill out beneath the soft flannel.

You tsk at him, “Ronnie, you haven’t even touched your dinner yet.”

He gives you a cheeky grin, “I’m touching my dinner right now.”

But you just roll your eyes and reach for an eggroll. “Here,” you whisper as you hold it up to his mouth. “Eat.”

Raising an eyebrow at you, he wraps his plump lips around the roll, takes a bite, never breaking your gaze. He hums in appreciation as he chews, before swallowing and taking the eggroll from your hand. He returns the favor, letting you taste the cabbage and carrots inside. You moan around the veggies, purely for his benefit. His cock twitches in response as more blood rushes to it.

You think he’s going to continue feeding you the eggroll, but instead he sets it back on the table and goes for a box of lo mein. He pulls the flaps open and reaches in with his thumb, forefinger, and middle finger. He offers you a few noodles, which you slurp from his hand, making sure to linger on his fat fingers.

“Fuck,” he breathes as you look up at him through your lashes, tongue swirling around his digits, lips sucking off the sauce.

A hand of your own snakes up to palm at his now fully hard dick. He groans at the new touch added to the sensation of you dragging the flat of your tongue across his fingers one last time before pulling off.

You lick your lips and husk, “Do you want me to suck your cock, Ronnie?”

“Oh fuck. Yes please, Pumpkin,” he nods quickly.

“Okay,” you smirk as you lower yourself towards his lap. “But only if it’s not gonna distract you from the movie.”

[tsukikento]

Too Fast For Your Own Good Part 3 (Finale)

Pairing: Takami Keigo (Hawks x Reader)

Words: 5656

Summary: Soulmate!AU - the first words your soulmate says to you is written on your body in ink.

Genre/Warnings: Some slight swear word usage. A little bit of kissing. Fluff and angst.

This part has some slight manga spoilers. Although I write it very vaguely, I still wanted to warn you guys! It happens basically right after where the anime ends, but I want you to know just in case. Please lmk if you have any questions about it, I would be really happy to answer your questions!

A/N: It is finally over! Only 3 parts, but I spent a lot of time on it so I really hope you guys like it, please let me know! Also, I forgot to tag people in part 2 and decided to just wait till I posted this one. Please select part 1 or 2 based on what you missed. So sorry!!

(part 1) (part 2)

Your trek to the local Korean restaurant was rather eventful. Not only did Keigo lead the conversation by talking about himself, which helped in calming your nerves, but you were both stopped repeatedly for photos. Although Hawks was much more famous than you, you were still asked to join the photos more often than not which was rather endearing in the grand scheme of things.

When you arrived at the restaurant, you were immediately ushered to a table and given water and tea. You politely thanked the waitress who told you she would be back with the complimentary appetizers. You bowed slightly while Hawks casually leaned back in his chair and stretched his wings.

She seemed to be an older lady and probably the owner of the restaurant, making politeness seem more necessary than usual to you.

Luckily, the two of you were sitting in a private area, something Hawks requested when you first entered the restaurant. His want for privacy made your heart thump in an unfamiliar way. On top of that, the area was dimly lit with almost ethereal lights that shined on Takami’s skin in a perfect way.

Your obvious looks to the hero did not go unnoticed and Hawks eventually decided to speak up. “You know, in Korean culture, the younger person should pour the elder the drink,” Keigo smirked while glossing over the menu.

“And what makes you think I’m younger?” You snapped back, your own cheeky smile glossing over your lips while you also busied yourself with reading over the menu to try and look as carefree as your soulmate seemed.

Hawks’ unrestrained laughter caught your attention and you looked back to him. “I know you are younger,” He explained, “It’s not like our birthdays are hidden from the world.”

“Oh?” You perked. You reached forward to grab the kettle of tea, giving Hawks a cue to hold up his small glass. You poured the hot, steeped tea while he presented his cup to you delicately. “So you did research on me?” You questioned once done pouring his glass.

“Why wouldn’t I look up the cute hero I had plans to meet today?” Keigo countered before blowing on the steaming tea and taking a sip.

A faint blush found its way onto your cheeks which Hawks immediately noticed. Before you had a chance to quip back, the waitress made her way to the table with a platter of small appetizers. You recognized a few of them immediately and suddenly became much more aware of your growling stomach. The japchae, kimchi, and seaweed salad stared back at you and you immediately opened your metal chopsticks.

“Thank you,” You commented while looking up to the waitress.

“Of course,” She replied, nodding slightly as a bow. “Are you ready to order?”

You looked at Hawks with a questioning face and nodded slightly to tell him you were ready. He smiled and looked to the waitress, “Yes, we are. Can I please have the chicken hot stone bowl?”

The lady nodded, wrote down his order, and looked at you. “And can I please have the veggie dumpling ramen with medium spice?” You added.

“Of course,” The waitress spoke while grabbing up your menus. “It will be right out.”

“So,” Hawks began once you were once again left alone, “Tell me more about you than can’t be found on a website.”

When you looked to meet Hawks’ eyes you saw a rather fond glint in them. They seemed soft which was difficult to do considering the sharp, black designs that outlined his goldeneyes. If you weren’t mistaken, it seemed the bird boy was genuinely interested in learning about someone else, a feat that not many people could say they’ve conquered. Takami was known for being closed-off in his social life, enjoying the company of few, but being charming enough to attract the company of all.

“Well, there’s not much to tell.” You took a small sip of the glass of water. “I always wanted to be a hero. I mean, who doesn’t when they’re younger, but with a quirk like mine it seemed rude not to become a hero,” You recounted, remembering all the people who told you your time stopping quirk could stop villainy altogether. “So, I went to U.A.” You shrugged your shoulders.

“So, you felt pressured to be a hero?” Hawks inquired.

“I guess?” You replied, “I don’t think about it very much.”

“Well, what about your quirk?” Hawks asked, a small smile graced his lips. “It must have been crazy to lie about your quirk for so long.”

You sighed and ran your hand through your hair. “Yeah, it was. I don’t know why I lied about it for so long.” You looked down at your lap. “In all honesty, it felt like I dug myself into a hole. I kept trying to just forget about it, but every time I went on a mission, I had to be careful to make it seem like I was teleporting.”

While you spoke, Hawks nodded periodically. It seemed like he really was paying attention which was something you really appreciated.

You looked down and bit your lip, it was hard to talk about how miserable you were sometimes. Especially with someone you just met. Even if he is your soulmate, it goes against natural human instincts to share so much of yourself right away.

Hawks noticed your reluctance to share and quickly changed the topic to something else. “What do you do in your free time?” He asked, leading the question in a more positive direction.

“Oh, this and that,” You laughed while pushing your hair away from your face. “Training, reading, hanging out with friends, and relaxing would probably summarize my free time the most. What about you?” You questioned before picking up your tea and taking a sip.

“Ah,” Hawks sighed. He followed you in taking a sip of your tea. “I don’t have much free time.”

Fuck.

You felt like such an idiot for asking. Obviously he doesn’t have free time! He’s the number two hero, he owns his own agency. Even right now, he is probably worried about how he looks and is coming across. No matter how private this area looks, you were sure there were paparazzi lurking around every corner and fangirls just begging for him to slip up and lose his rank in approval.

“Sorry,” You mumbled before grabbing your water and taking a few big gulps to avoid meeting his eyes.

“Don’t be,” Hawks nonchalantly consoled, a sympathetic smile spreading on his face. “I want the world to one day be so free from villainy that everyone, even heroes, are relaxed. I want to just kick back, you know? It’s gonna take hard work to get there and I plan to get there within my lifetime.”

A shy grin spread across your face. You looked at your lap to hide the blush you were currently nursing. It seemed Hawks was a very brave and passionate hero, something that could be considered very admirable and attractive.

Handsome, funny, and a kindhearted personality that made his wings seem like angel wings. This wasn’t like the Hawks you had read about. The confident, almost arrogant, man was covering many tabloids. It seemed everyone was trying to find out if the winged hero was really all that great and strong.

“You don’t have to hide your blush,” Hawks insisted, causing you to look up just in time to see the waitress carrying both your dishes.

You had gotten so caught up in the conversation that you barely ate any of the appetizers so far. You resisted pouting and reaching for the seaweed salad that was almost gone and instead smiled as the waitress placed your ramen in front of you.

Once she left, you snatched up the seaweed salad before Hawks could eat all of it. The blond laughed at your childish action and raised his hands up in surrender.

“Sorry,” You mumbled before using your chopsticks to grab some salad and stuffing your face full.

Hawks’ glorious laugh once again rang through the private area, making you feel much better. “I’m just glad my soulmate loves food as much as me.” He reasoned while picking at his bowl as if to find the perfect bite.

“Yeah,” You grinned, looking into Keigo’s eyes. “Isn’t it crazy?”

“That we both love food?” Takami joked. His smile made his cheeks look like apples and his eyes like crescent moons.

“No, you idiot,” You scolded. If he was close enough, you would have definitely slapped Hawks on his arm.

The winged hero laughed in reply once more. “It is,” He confirmed, “But it’s totally worth it. The craziness now should be worth it in the end.” Hawks sighed loudly and leaned back in his chair. “And trust me, life is crazy.” He ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes.

For the first time, you noticed just how tired Hawks was. His wings were just a tad bit lower than when you were standing together on a stage in front of an audience. With these dim lights and close proximity, you were finally able to see the sunspots on his skin and purple bags under his eyes.

It made you all the more aware that your soulmate was busy and tired. It made you nervous that you might just be another chore for the winged hero. Just another person he has to take care of.

You gulped down the lump in your throat and nodded. “Yeah,” You vaguely replied before turning your attention to your ramen. You picked at the noodles while you continued to debate your relationship with Hawks.

“Hey,” You heard Takami’s soft voice speak up. Your nondominant hand, which had been placed on the table, was suddenly being held by the calloused hands of Hawks. You looked up to the golden boy to see his eyes filled with worry, his eyebrows furrowed, and a frown on his lips. “What’s wrong?” He inquired.

His warm hand encased yours and his thumb rubbed back and forth across the back of your hand.

“I’m okay,” You mumbled, “Nothing’s wrong.” You shook your head and looked back down.

“No,” Hawks countered, holding onto your hand tighter. “I can tell something is wrong. Please tell me, Y/L/N-kun.”

Hearing your name on his lips was something to behold. No Telethon. You aren’t a hero having dinner with another hero. You are having dinner with your soulmate. If you started your relationship based on lies, it would constantly be lies.

“I,” You stumbled, “I’m worried about you. Or more so our relationship.” You motioned in between the two of you and looked up at Hawks to see just how attentively he was watching and listening to you. “You are a busy man and I don’t want to burden you,” You clarified.

A few beats of silence and then the sound of Hawks once again sighing. His free hand came up to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose.

During those seconds, you worried that he was going to tell you that in fact, you were a burden. You weren’t strong enough to protect yourself. You weren’t famous enough to stand next to him. You lied about your quirk and would bring down his approval rating.

“You aren’t going to burden me,” He ensured. His free hand moved to hold your other hand which was now resting on the table. Luckily, the table was small enough so neither of you were awkwardly leaning over your dishes. “You are my soulmate,” He continued, “And that doesn’t mean we are simply stuck together. It means that we are destined to make each other better people. You will never burden me.”

A small smile found its way onto your lips. “Thank you,” You whispered.

Hawks face mirrored yours. Tired eyes and smiles.

“Listen,” Hawks finally spoke up. “I could sit here all day admiring how beautiful you are, but I am so hungry and this chicken smells so good.”

Without realizing, you began laughing at his joke and leaned back, letting go of his hands. “Yes,” You insisted, “Let’s eat. Let’s stop worrying.”

“Agreed,” Hawks murmured before digging into his food.

By now, your ramen had enough time to cool down and you were able to scarf it down fast. For the rest of your dinner, you and Hawks casually chatted while digging into your food.

Eventually, the bill came and Hawks immediately put down his credit card.

By the time you left, you were in a much better mood. You were simply enjoying the company of Takami.

“Ooh,” Hawks gushed. He grabbed your hand and pulled you across the parking lot of the complex you were in. “Ice cream!”

You laughed at the childish antics of your date. And followed him as he practically glided towards the small ice cream store. It was a fairly cold night and definitely not one for ice cream considering the rain from this morning.

Regardless, Hawks was still determined to eat the delicious creamy treat.

A bell rang when you walked through the door. You were greeted by two shocked faces of teenagers. After the workers and few guests inside calmed down, you and Hawks were able to order each of your respective cones of ice cream.

This time, you insisted on paying.

The two of your left shoulder to shoulder, each of you licking at your ice cream cones.

“Where do you live?” Hawks mindlessly mumbled. “Is it far from here?”

“Oh, not too far,” You replied. “Maybe a twenty-five-minute walk from here?”

You were currently sitting at a small table outside of the creamery, debating what to do next.

“I could fly you home,” Keigo suggested. “I’d probably get there in 10.”

“Aw,” You joked, “And lose 15 minutes with you?” You nudged him with your shoulder and caused the winged hero to chuckle.

“Nah,” He replied, “We would just spend that 15 minutes doing something else.” He winked, causing you to blush and choke on the ice cream in your mouth.

Keigo laughed even harder and you shoved him harshly with your empty hand. “Jeez, you are too confident, Takami-kun.”

“Ahh,” The blond sighed, “My name sounds so good coming from you.” A lazy yet confident smile found its way onto his face and he slowly licked his lips, causing you to become aware of the cool wind blowing past your hot skin.

You took another bite out of your ice cream to cool you down, suddenly way too nervous to even think about kissing the hero in front of you.

“Nervous?” Takami asked, leaning forward to force you to look at him in the eyes.

“Maybe,” You mumbled, keeping your attention on your ice cream.

Hawks practically cackled at your response. Once his laughter died down, he looked at your blushing face and confidently asked, “How can you be so cute?”

You bit your lip and took a few breaths before looking at Takami. You scrunched up your face and pointed your finger at him, “Listen here, you better stop saying stuff like that or else.”

“Or else what?” Hawks challenged. A coy smile fell upon his lips and there was a glint in his eyes just begging you to do something.

“Or else I’ll have no choice, but to actually kiss you. In front of all these people.” You smirked at the blond and motioned to the busy complex. “Our relationship will get released in the papers before your managers have any time to prepare. They will hate you,” You hissed, hoping the threat would work.

“Like I care,” Hawks shrugged.

“Then kiss me,” You demanded, deciding to stand your ground instead of faltering back because of his confidence.

You watched the smirk on Keigo’s face disappear. His mouth formed an ‘O’ shape and his blown eyes stared at you nervously. “I can’t,” He mumbled in defeat.

You laughed at his actions and cheered in excitement. “I knew it!”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” He mumbled before digging into the cone part of his ice cream cone.

You laughed lightly before leaning towards Takami to whisper in his ear, “We’ll just kiss back at my apartment,” You tittered.

The comment grabbed Hawks’ attention, who smiled happily and lightly flapped his wings. It was just enough to make the area windy and get him about a foot off his feet before he stopped and plopped back down into the seat.

You laughed at your soulmate before finishing off your ice cream cone. You crumpled up the small wrapper and grabbed Keigo’s which he left on the table and tossed them. “Shall we go?” You asked, holding out your hand for him to take.

“Of course,” He replied, allowing you to help him up.

You two strolled through the streets to your apartment. Keigo offered multiple times to fly, but you insisted on walking. “I like seeing all the citizens I protect,” You reasoned, shrugging your shoulders and looking at Keigo.

The blond smiled and wrapped his arm around your waist.

You invited him up to your apartment and grabbed each of you a glass of water while Hawks curiously wandered around the apartment, looking at all of your belongings.

You spent most of the night chatting until the blond couldn’t help it anymore and kissed you. His soft lips graced your cheek and ear. His hot breath asked if he could kiss you.

With a meek nod, Hawks’ lips were all over you.

A shock ran through your body when his lips first attached to yours. You were sure it was something only soulmates felt when they kissed because you really had never felt this way before.

After what seemed like only seconds, or maybe minutes or hours. You really had no clue. Anyways, after some amount of time, Hawks pulled away and looked at his phone. “I’m so sorry, I have to go.”

You saw the clock read midnight and you really couldn’t blame him although you craved for him to spend the night.

“That’s okay,” You sighed, trying to regain your composure. “I’m sure you have a busy day tomorrow.” You bit your lip and gave yourself a push to ask the question that was on the tip of your tongue. “Do you have any idea when we will see each other again?”

Hawks sighed. “Tomorrow. Come at noon to my agency and we’ll get lunch.”

“Really?” You giddily asked, not expecting to see him so quickly.

“I promise.” Hawks pulled his jacket back on, it had been discarded during the heated makeout session, and a little red book fell out.

“What’s this?” You asked as you picked it up and read the label.

Paranormal Liberation Front.

“Oh, I’ve been meaning to ask you if you’ve read it,” Hawks spoke while snatching the book from your hands. “These guys have really been growing lately, gaining tons of attention. It may be old, but it still has a lot of power for today’s society. I know it’s long, so just read the highlighted parts.” He opened the book to flash you a random page with yellow highlights all over it. “Destro’s ideals are everything we could have asked for! A society where everyone can look out or themselves, it really fits this era!”

You took the book from Takami’s hands, too distracted to respond.

The speech he just gave you did not seem like him. Although it wasn’t like you knew very much about him anyways. “Yeah,” You sighed while tossing the book onto your coffee table.

You saw Takami out the door and he kissed you on the cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow, love.” He whispered in your ear.

You smiled and waved goodbye to your soulmate. Once your door was closed, you let out a large breath you had been holding in. You stretched out your limbs and began your nighttime routine.

~~

It was currently noon the next day and you walked through the double doors into Hawks’ agency. You, unfortunately, had to go straight to work after your lunch meeting so you were sporting your heroes uniform. It didn’t bother you too much considering you would be with Takami who was always in his hero uniform.

You were currently working a grin as you walked up to the front desk and told the receptionist that you had plans with Hawks.

“Ah yes, Telethon, of course,” The receptionist spoke. “Please have a seat right over there and someone will be right down to grab you.”

Although it sparked you as weird that Hawks wouldn’t just come down to greet you, you waved off the worry and happily sat down. Nothing could ruin today.

You had already called your manager and best friend to tell them the news. It was only a matter of time till you and Takami were official and you wanted your manager and best friend to be ready.

Eventually, a man came down to grab you. He was wearing a casual suit and had an earpiece on.

“Yes sir, I’ll bring up Telethon now,” You heard him whisper into the bluetooth device.

You stood up, well aware they were coming for you. “Hello,” You greeted with a small bow.

The person who came to grab you did not bow and instead simply motioned for you to follow. “Please come with me,” He mumbled.

Although concerned with the mystery surrounding your invitation to the company, you followed. You assumed you would mainly be working with Keigo. You did not expect to have to go through multiple people just to see him.

However, maybe this was just what it was like as the number two hero.

The trip up to the 13th floor was quiet and unbearably long. There was an awkward air around you both and it gave you this weird feeling. As if the person you were with knew something you didn’t.

Once the elevator dinged, you followed him through the halls. Eventually, he opened a door for you and mumbled out, “Please go in.”

You smiled and mumbled a small “Thank you.” Once you entered, you noticed multiple people sitting at an oblong table.

Your eyes flashed around the room to look at every one. First and foremost, you noticed your manager. Next, you noticed the manager who was with Hawks at the competition yesterday. Lastly, you noticed another manager sitting right next to him.

Everyone stood up once they saw you and you heard the click of the door closing behind you.

Immediately, you stopped time, unable to think clearly.

You needed time to think.

The unease in your stomach spread to your throat and your heart began to beat all too fast. You felt your sweat drip from the back of your neck to down your spine. You gulped down the lump in your throat and started time again, knowing that stalling the inevitable was worthless.

Your manager was motioning for you to sit next to them. Silently, you moved to take your seat.

About 10 feet away from you were two incredibly average looking people. They each looked so plain and stern. However, most of all, all you could think about was where is Takami?

You knew something was wrong. Tears swelled in your eyes and you looked down to hide them. You saw a single teardrop onto the shaking hands in your lap. You took in a deep breath and croaked out, “Why am I here?”

“Telethon, we are here because of your forming relationship with Hawks,” The female spoke, her voice rather curt.

The use of hero names irked you to no end. Before they could continue to speak, you looked back up to meet their eyes. “I’m Y/L/N Y/N, he is Takami Keigo and we are soulmates. Don’t belittle that if you are here to end it,” You hissed through seething teeth.

“Please, Y/L/N-san,” Your manager spoke, looking at you with pity in their eyes. “Please listen to them.”

Reluctantly, you looked back to the people across the table. “Go ahead,” You mumbled.

“Tele-Y/L/N-san, Takami-san is on a very important mission right now,” The male manager across the table explained. “We cannot give you explicit details, but it is vital to the safety of Musutafu that he remains undercover and does not date you now.”

“It would not only put his life in danger but also yours. We cannot take that risk,” The woman added.

There was a ringing in your ears that wouldn’t go away. In order to help you think clearly, you stopped time.

You felt so helpless. Like the world was coming crashing down on you. Through last night and today, all you thought about was how happy you now were. How happy Takami made you feel.

Without thinking clearly, you exited the room. Although your lungs were already beginning to burn, you pushed through and searched the hallway.

You had to find him.

You had to find Keigo.

Nobody could see you wandering around. You had a sinking suspicion that everyone at this agency knew your secret and you were determined to find him without the help of anyone else.

Knowing Hawks, although you only met him yesterday, he was probably on the top floor. Of course he would want to be high in the sky when he launched himself with his wings. You couldn’t use the elevator with time frozen so you ran up the stairs as fast as you could. If you weren’t right about him being on the top floor, you would have no time, no breath left, to keep searching.

Once you climbed up the 7 additional floors, you paced through the hall in an attempt to find Takami. There were no labels on the doors, so you had to open each and every single one to see if you could find him.

Eventually, finally, you opened a door to see Keigo nervously sitting on his sofa. He was sitting perfectly still and his bright wings were gray because of your quirk. Despite the stillness of his wings, you could see they had been nervously flapping like one would do with their legs when nervous.

You started time, took a deep breath in, and practically leaped at Hawks.

“Takami-kun,” You cried, falling to your knees and grabbing his hands.

Although shocked, Hawks still caught you to the best of his abilities. His wings no longer flapped because he was too shocked by your appearance. He did not expect you to run from the meeting, but here you were, right in front of him.

“Y/L/N-kun,” He whispered. You looked at him and he caressed your cheek and swept his finger across it to wipe away a tear that had fallen from your eyes. “Why are you here?”

“I had to see you,” You reasoned. “I need to hear you say it yourself.”

Takami’s phone rang.

You held him close, worried he would answer it, and direct you back to the meeting.

“Just tell me, please,” You begged.

“Sweetheart,” He mumbled, the endearing words falling from his lips. He never expected to see you like this. Yes, it was hard on him, but he had been trained since his childhood to dissociate. You were never trained to forget people easily, let alone your soulmate. “I know this hurts.” He pulled you up onto his lap and held you tightly. “I don’t want to put you in danger.”

“Please just tell me,” You pleaded. “Tell me what you can tell me and then I’ll go.”

Takami sighed, “Fine.” He ran his hand through his hair and took off his goggles.

You could tell he was worried, not irritated. He didn’t want to put you in harm's way. Before you could stop yourself, you kissed his cheek to try and calm his nerves, something that sent heat up his neck.

“I am working with some bad people,” He explained. “If I date you, then you’ll be a target. I can’t let that happen and I can’t say anything more. Please just read the book I gave you.” His golden eyes bore into yours. “Remember, read the highlights.”

You nodded at him with wide eyes, finally being forced to accept your fate.

The blond knew he should send you back now, he was sure people were on their way up to grab you. But he just couldn’t let go when you looked so weak and soft. He craved to continue to hold you and he knew this somehow related to the soulmate bond. He knew this was the last time he could hold you for a while. And so he held on tight. He held you tighter and kissed the top of your head.

He didn’t know how long it was, but eventually, security came up and you two had to part. The last he saw was you exiting the room with your head hung low. The image of you crying played on repeat in his head and made it all the much harder for him to forget you.

On your end, you were ushered back into the conference room and given a glass of water. After you chugged down the cup, you were handed a contract.

“Please take your time to read it over, we constructed it with your manager before this meeting,” The female manager spoke up. “Overall, it details that we cannot have you see Hawks, I mean Takami-san. This contract is to last six months. We are hoping it may be able to be canceled, but it also might have to be extended. As we said, Takami-san is under-”

“I know,” You interrupted and your eyes glossed over the contract. “I understand. I, um, I just had to hear it from Takami-kun,” You reasoned. You knew you must have looked crazy. Your hair was a mess and your eyes were surely red.

You just wanted to get this over with, fix up your appearance, and go to work.

You looked to your manager who nodded and reassuringly touched your hand. “I’m sorry,” He mouthed.

You nodded and finished reading the contract. You grabbed the pen on the table and signed each page. You said you goodbyes and followed your manager out of the building, not paying much attention to anything that was happening.

“Y/L/N-san,” Your manager sighed. “I’m so sorry.”

You meekly nodded as your manager ushered you into a private cab.

“I arranged for someone to cover your shift today,” Your manager debriefed. “I also arranged for Bubble Girl to come over with takeout and anything else she may deem necessary.” Your manager once again grabbed your hand. “I want you to be as happy as you can during a time like this.”

“Thank you,” You whispered. You wished you could show your happiness better, but it was too difficult to right now. As a result, you simply went through the motions of your day.

You got home and were greeted by your best friend, takeout, a punching bag, and face masks. You got out all your stress by punching your feelings out. You then showered and ate food while doing face masks and watching old movies. You smiled through the pain as you wished her a goodnight. You laid on your bed and cried again while looking up Takami on social media.

Eventually, around midnight, you ran out of tears. You sat up in your bed and chugged more water. You felt helpless, empty, like nothing in the world could make you happy.

It wasn’t very common that you felt this depressed, but a soulmate bond could have some major impacts on people. All day, you had been thinking of a story where two people died because they tried to ignore their bond. No matter how strong-willed Takami could be, and no matter how much you cared about keeping him safe, this could take a major toll on your mind and body.

You felt utterly defeated like there was nothing left to do. You couldn’t fight against the contract because it was only in place to protect you and you couldn’t help Hawks in his mission either.

You literally couldn’t do anything.

All you could do was go about your life and wait.

Or maybe…

You immediately stood up with a new mission on your mind. You beelined it out of your room and through your small hallway. You flicked on the living room light and glanced over the area in search of the small red book.

It was still sitting on the coffee table from when you gingerly placed it there the night before. You grabbed it off the table and walked back to your room while flicking through the pages. As of now, you weren’t paying too much attention to the words. You were much too distressed and tired to actually read.

As you reopened the door to your bedroom, you noticed a flash of red outside your window. Your room was too dark to see what it was, but out of pure surprise, you stopped time. Before starting it once again, you realized that the red blur could very well have been the winged hero you had been crying over.

You rushed to the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of Takami. If you were right that he was watching over you, you would know that Hawks was just as depressed as you were. Although it pained you to know he was sad, it at least proved that he longed for you just like you longed for him.

It proved he cared for you and would continue to look over you regardless.

Your eyes analyzed the sky outside your window. You searched up and down for any sign of your soulmate. Alas, you turned up nothing.

Once again, Hawks was simply too fast for his own good.

~~

Taglist: @hawkso-o @fashinogi @sprinkklz @shirotology

[alaskatraveler55]

Headed west to Alaska

Alaska Traveler 55 

 I started writing about our first adventure in Old Harbor, Alaska in 2016 when my husband took a teaching job in the native Alutiiq village off the road system on Kodiak Island. Fast forward to 2020. We spent two years in Old Harbor, back in Minneapolis for two years and decided to return to Alaska in search of a less complicated life in a small community surrounded by nature. I sit here this morning a bit more than a week after our arrival, looking out at the ocean from my new digs. We are about a block from the ocean and I can see a spruce covered island a little ways out and the occasional fishing boat passing by in the drizzling rain. 

The journey to get here has been complicated by a pandemic, truck issues, and the uncertainty of what this new place would be like. As we did in our last adventure, we moved sight unseen to a house save a few grainy photos, knowing that this time, our place would be unfurnished.

So here we go again, this time at 55, I’m starting in a new community, a new house and some new adventures worth sharing.

8/2/2020

Today starts our journey back to Alaska. We are moving to a new village on Annette Island in Southeast Alaska, to Metlakatla, the only Native Alaskan reservation in Alaska. It has not been easy to figure out how to navigate such a move during a pandemic, added to this our daughter’s own battle with Covid-19 in June and July. 

Our original plan was to drive our truck to Bellingham, WA to catch the 30 hour ferry to Ketchikan, and then a second 45 minute ferry to Metlakatla. The Corona virus, however, had other plans. We found out in order to get on the ferry we would have to have a negative Covid test within 72 hours of our departure. This meant finding a location in Montana or Washington with a quick result turn around time. After numerous searches and calls, it turned out that Montana’s asymptomatic test results were taking 30 days so they decided to stop testing. We purchased an approved mail-in self-administered test for $100 each but their results are back in a minimum of 4-5 days. This meant the ferry was just not an option for us.

A week from departure, we booked a barge from Seattle for the truck, flights for us from Seattle to Ketchikan and shuffled hotel bookings. We also had to re-think packing as all the items on the truck would not arrive until up to a week after we arrive in the village. We’d be under day quarantine and couldn’t shop at the grocery. I put dishwasher soap in my boots, a couple of rolls of toilet paper and sheets in my suitcase. 

We traveled to Bismarck, North Dakota today, wearing masks at each rest stop and washing hands frequently. All people were wearing masks in Minnesota, and that changed as we crossed over the North Dakota line. Our hotel doesn’t seem to have many guests, but some were not wearing masks. We walked nearly a mile to get Mexican food and ate it back at our hotel. The restaurant had inside seating and while staff were wearing masks, the patrons were not.

8/3/2020

This morning we got up and carefully prepared our self-administered Covid-19 test. This required correctly labeling, collecting the nasal specimen and finding a UPS dropbox on our way out of town. We stopped at a co-op near our hotel with a great selection of items for our tailgate breakfast of coconut yogurt, blueberries and granola. One thing that the Broadband employee in Metlakatla requested when I called to set up our service, was some large Ball jar lids. Each year, families can up to a case of fish and this year the lids that normally go for $3.50 a dozen, are $12 on Amazon. I’ve checked several Menard’s in search of lids, including today in Bismarck. There were only empty shelves both here and in Minneapolis. 

The drive was rather similar to our eastern North Dakota landscape until we reached the Badlands with pastel sedimentary rock outcroppings. We passed Hebron that boasted the Historic Ft. Sauerkraut and a large cutout of a baby, dinosaur and buffalo fossils. Upon entering Montana, we had to stop and have the canoe inspected, ensuring we wouldn’t be bringing in unwanted marine life.  The rest stops were farther apart, and at gas stations, we noticed that not only were people NOT wearing masks, they were looking at us FOR wearing masks.

8/4/2020

No trip is complete without some sort of car trouble. Last night when Mike tried to move the car, it was dead. Maybe we left the lights on, or need a new battery. It could be the alternator at worst. A massive rain descended on the Radisson parking lot and we decided to wait until morning to figure it out. That makes for less than ideal sleep, and there was a fair amount of tossing and turning. In the morning Mike went to the battery store and got and installed the new battery with less than optimal tools. Of course the ones he needed were somewhere toward the back of the truck.  We re-tied down the canoe and started off. The battery light came on again, and as a precaution, we decided to stop in at an auto repair shop to see if they might be able to tighten down the battery. A wisened mechanic with a long beard came out and checked our connection after untying the canoe. Turns out the worst case scenario-the alternator. He held up four fingers when Mike asked is he’d be able to fix it today:  $400. Now we are sitting on a bench outside the shop on a busy road, watching all the other trucks go by and glad that we built in a cushion and a short trip today. The truck just pulled up finished in less than an hour and 15 minutes.

Back on the road, this our short day, hoping to get into Missoula early enough to find some dinner. Those plans were derailed as we rolled into Butte as our gauges stopped working. We pulled into the Thriftway gas station and our battery was dead…again. I called AAA and they said they would send out a truck by 5:00pm and tow us to their shop in Helena (an hour and a half away.) We knew we wouldn’t get to Missoula with this scenario and opted to call around and see if we could find another shop since it was almost closing time. Mike found a shop half a block away and they came and towed the truck back to their station. The AAA tow truck pulled up just as our truck was loaded onto the other tow truck.

Turns out our first replacement battery was bad and it fried the new alternator. We had to get a new battery and alternator and there were calls to the previous repair shop crediting us with the alternator, but still we had to pay for a new battery and the installation. The mechanics were helpful and stayed late to get our car back on the road by 6:30pm. We had 125 miles to travel to get to Missoula…back on the road again.

8/5/2020

Excited to have our truck fixed and get on our way to Washington state, we checked the oil, transmission fluid, battery connections and retied the canoe. Today we’d be doing our major shopping in Spokane, getting dry goods to load the truck as things are so much cheaper in the Lower 48.  Mike turned the key to start the truck and the familiar sound of the past two days-click-click-click signaled that our battery was dead.  Untie the canoe, jump the battery, and head for the nearest service station. We knew the drill.  We stopped by 2 stations before someone was able to assist. The battery we got in Missoula was also a dud. This means we had to purchase battery #3 in less than 24 hours. This time no cheap battery, AC Delco all the way. ARGH!! We were able to return battery #1 for a refund, before heading out and hoping that this would be our last time at a service station.

We made our way through Idaho and stopped in Coeur d’Alene for gas and lunch. The main shopping and restaurant strip was filled with people, not wearing masks. We opted to eat our own food at an empty rest stop instead. We did get to Costco in Spokane and shopped in a busy store with the temperature at 93 degrees. We threw our stuff in the back of an almost full truck and drove to Ellensburg, about 100 miles from Seattle. 

8/6/2020

After a night of re-shuffling our stuff and getting the truck re-packed for it’s barge journey, we drove through the misty rain to Seattle, stopping at Safeway for more last minute provisions, and a bit of gas. To go on the barge, the tank had to be less than a quarter tank, so we guessed how much we’d need before leaving it at Samson Tug and Barge. We also stopped at the Asian Grocery to load up on sauces, oils, noodles and other items (cases of beer) we’d likely not find in Metlakatla. 

Samson Tug inspected the truck and we made sure everything we needed for the next week was in our suitcase, then the barge service called a taxi and gave us a voucher for the trip to the Seattle airport. The airport was not busy and we didn’t have to wait in line for baggage drop or security. Most people were wearing masks in the terminal, but not all. Our flight was uneventful and we arrived in Ketchikan, picked up our bags and waited in line to show the negative Covid test results from our mail-in test that had arrived the night before. This gave us the “golden ticket” or in this case, the orange ticket that said we had had a negative test. The airstrip in Ketchikan is on Gravina Island and there is a 5 minute ferry ride to get to the town. 

Most people had to test in the parking lot on the Ketchikan side if they weren’t able to produce a negative test within 72 hours. We found the shuttle to our hotel and were happy to be closer to our new home.

8/7/2020

One more day to secure provisions before heading out on the ferry to our final destination. The shuttle took us to the grocery and furniture store, and our driver was from Metlakatla. We loaded up on meat, veggies and other perishables which we put in the large soft-sided Polar cooler that my brother gave us. It kept everything frozen and cold for the rest of the day. Back at the hotel while getting ready to leave, we saw US Senator Lisa Murkowski and spoke to her and had our picture taken by her brother.  She is a Republican Senator, but has been put on President Trump’s bad list and Mike thanked her for her independent voice.

All our groceries and luggage are loaded into the shuttle and we go across the street from the hotel to get onto the ferry. We have a cart to schlep everything down a long gang-plank and onto shelves in the ferry bow. The cars are loaded on and we spend the next 45 minutes on calm waters navigating through the channel of islands until we reach Metlakatla. We dock and unload our stuff, get told to quarantine for 14 days and hitch a ride with the school superintendent.  The ride from the ferry dock to town takes about 20 minutes. The previous dock was close to town but required an hour and a half to get there.  Ferry services run twice a day so technically you can go into town and return in the same day. Fare is $58 roundtrip per person. 

We are dropped off at the new turquoise, 4 bedroom home we’ll be living in. More next week about our first week in Metlakatla.

[ghostlywritten]

When I Was Your Man (Epilogue)

A/N: haha, you thought it was the end...well, it kinda was.

Words: 5k

I puffed out a sigh as I handed out the change to yet another customer. Looking at the clock I was relieved to see it would only take another ten minutes and I would be done for today.

My eyes were dropping unwillingly as I absently cleaned the counter. The kiosk I was working at was open 24 hours and it was almost midnight now. I had to take this as a second job after leaving my husband for good. It was enough to pay off the rent of a small apartment I was sharing with a fellow student called Lilou and buy some groceries. After I had left Antoine's house that day, I had handed over the divorce papers to his lawyer - whom I knew because he was also a close friend of Antoine's, stating clearly that I didn't want anything but the divorce, hoping they wouldn't have to contact me because of any marriage settlements and that I wouldn't have to see my husband again. Fortunately, they never did.

A slight ache filled my chest as I thought of him. The last time I had seen him was quite the tearful event and I had yet to forget his blue eyes brimming with water. I would never say that I regretted leaving...but I did miss him. A lot.

“You can leave now, Ads,” the old man, who was the owner of this little shop, told me, patting my back good-naturedly.

“Thanks,” I breathed, glad for the distraction, “I will come back by 6 tomorrow?”

“Sure thing, hun. Don’t overdo it.”

I chuckled, taking my jacket and opening the back door, “I’ll try.” He knew I had another job at the clothing store, which went from nine to five pm. It had to be like this, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to keep myself above the surface.

Trudging back home, I shivered slightly at the cool breeze but enjoyed it nonetheless; it was very refreshing after a hard day. And the fact that it was so nice and quiet at this hour was another plus. I remembered that one time I had went on a spontaneous midnight walk with Antoine.

“How do you know if you’ve fallen in love?” Antoine asked, his hands crossed behind his head as he strolled next to me.

“It usually starts with asking someone how you know if you’ve fallen in love,” I replied, thinking back on how I had asked his Gran the same question.

“Yeah, but how do you know the exact moment? Like, I can’t even tell when I’ve fallen for you,” he said, throwing his arm around my shoulder to pull me closer, “I just suddenly knew that I do.” My heart skipped a beat at his open display of affection.

“Well, that’s how it happens most of the time, I guess. You start liking someone and suddenly you love them,” I mused, “It could only take a specific, simple thing the person is doing that would make you realise it.”

“When did you realise it?” Antoine wondered.

“When I asked your Gran exactly what you just asked,” I chuckled and he giggled along, nuzzling my hair.

“And you?”

“Hm...I think when I saw you in my jersey,” he said thoughtfully and I rolled my eyes.

“Of course.”

“And when you were there when I received that Cup,” he continued, stopping in his tracks, “How you were there at every game with your veggie soup-”

“I didn’t bring any soup with me,” I pointed out.

“Shut it, I’m trying to be romantic,” he scolded, flicking my forehead.

“Okay, okay,” I laughed, feeling shy. It hadn’t been that long since we had admitted our love to each other and I was still not used to it, yet.

“I really can’t believe you’re still with me after all I’ve done,” he said quietly, grazing my hand with his fingers.

“Me neither,” I joked light-heartedly to which he glared at me playfully. I watched him close his beautiful eyes and bite his lips.

“I don’t deserve you,” he whispered and my heart softened at his vulnerable state, “I sometimes fear you’re going to realise that and leave.”

Placing my hands on his cheeks, I pulled him closer to rest our foreheads against each other. “I admit I had thought a lot of times about leaving,” his breath hitched, “But I never did. And after everything is revealed now and there are no more secrets between us, there is no reason for any of us to go...” He smiled and leaned down to pull me into a passionate kiss.

Well, there had still been secrets between us and they were severe enough to make us drift apart.

So, here I was, walking down the same path I had once done with him in the pitch darkness. Three years later.

-

“Can you believe there only a few days left and we will officially graduate!” my roommate Lilou squealed, stirring the ramen in the pot.

I nodded with a grin as I chopped some vegetables next to her. Although it had taken a long while we had managed to establish a stable co-existence in the three years of living together. “I don’t think I will truly process it all until I have that certificate in my hand.”

“And then we’re going to be lawyers, yaaaay!” she cheered, “I’m so done with university.”

“Me too, my brain is all mushy after all these exams,” I said with a yawn, stretching my limbs.

“I still don’t get how you’ve managed to pass them all with two jobs at the same time,” she said, incredulously.

“Well, I did pass them all but not exactly with flying colours,” I sighed, disappointed.

“Who cares. You still got job offers and that’s what counts,” Lilou said, placing a bowl with steaming noodles in front of me, “Cheers!”

I laughed, “You forgot the vegetables.”

She pouted, “Are they even needed in ramen?”

“No, but they’re healthy,” I insisted, adding the chopped goods into the pot.

“No, but they’re healthy,” Lilou mocked and I glared at her playfully. “You’re like my mom.”

“She’s going to be happy that you have me as your roommate then,” I sniffed, stirring the noodles.

“She actually is,” she giggled just as her phone rang, “Oh! Mathis is calling! Excuse me.” I smiled fondly at her excitement as I watched her pick up and leave the room with a bounce in her step. Love can do that to you.

Looking down with a sigh, I absently proceeded to fill two bowls up, the ghost of Antoine jumping around me in happiness at the prospect of food.

“You seriously make the best food, Addy!”

I shook my head quickly and walked towards the small table in the kitchen just as Lilou came back.

“Sorry, I had to take that,” she said, eagerly taking one of the bowls for her.

“No need to apologise,” I replied and she smiled. “Mathis was just asking whether I had time tomorrow for a little dinner date,” she rambled as we started eating.

I hummed, “Good. As far as I know you’d be lazing around otherwise.”

She pouted, “Would not!” I raised an eyebrow and she sighed in defeat, “Okay, I would.”

“Anyways, you remember his friend Jacques from that party, right?”

“The one you forced me to go to?”

“Exactly,” she said, snapping her fingers, “He was the one with the super broad shoulders and great hair, you know?”

“I guess. Why do you ask?” I asked, dreading her answer as she smiled coyly.

“Well, a bird twittered me that he might or might not be very interested in having a date with you-”

I sighed.

“-and since he is too shy to ask, Mathis is suggesting a double date tomorrow.”

“No, thank you,” I said plainly and her face dropped.

“Oh come on, Addy!”

“Nope, I’m good.”

“Why though? You haven’t had a boyfriend in the past three years and this is your golden time. He’s such a gentleman, you would love him,” she tried to convince me but I shook my head resolutely.

“You know that I just got out of a marriage, Lilou.” I had told her one day when we had talked about past relationships and stuff, but not exactly what happened to cause a divorce.

“That was years ago, Addy. You can’t be hung up on the past,” she said softly and I wished it would be that easy.

“I’m not ready, yet, Lilou,” I said quietly, “And it wouldn’t be fair on any guy to date them with only half a heart.”

Lilou sighed, exasperated, “As mature as that sounds - and I applaud you for that - you don’t necessarily have to think you’re looking for a rebound. More like someone, who can help you heal with their love for you.”

“Even so, this is not the right time for it,” I said, swishing the noodles around in my bowl, “We’ll graduate in a few days and then I’m going to start working. I need to stay focused and dating would only distract me from everything I’ve worked for for so long.”

“I get that, really,” Lilou replied, staying silent for a second, “But I fear you will get stuck too deep into your career to ever find time for a relationship once you start.”

That was what I was aiming for but she didn’t need to know that. As nice as it would be to have a romantic happy ending, the world simply didn’t work like that in my case. Ever since my marriage I had developed major trust issues that I hadn’t been able to overcome, yet. Even Lilou, who I had known for years now and who never did anything to me, didn’t know half of the things that had happened in the past because I simply didn’t want to be vulnerable. And confiding in someone would make me vulnerable.

And not only her, I had kept everyone a good distance away. Jennifer, who had tried to reach out for me after that disaster of a party, left for England in despair after I had picked up only one of her calls, asking for some time alone and that I would call her back. Which I never did.

Olivier, who I hadn’t been that close to, but who still took my phone number from his wife to ask whether I was okay to which I could hardly keep my sobs in.

Gran, whose calls I didn’t even pick up but listened to her voicemails, her soft voice that used to be so soothing only sending chills down my spine after knowing that she had played with us like puppets.

My father, whom I was surprised had bothered to call at all only to hear him scold me for throwing Mother out of the hotel room. I had ended the call during his mid-rant.

All of them, who had been part of my everyday life (mostly), had been cut off without mercy. I simply couldn’t face them anymore without being reminded of that part of my life.

Though the past would always come back to haunt you.

And my past came to haunt me one day before graduation in form of my former best friend knocking on my door.

“Cateline,” I whispered, my throat turning dry in a second.

She looked at me with eyes so painfully familiar, so painfully friendly, reminding me of all the years we had shared together before Antoine came along, overshadowed by her cruel actions.

“Hey, Adeline,” she greeted me softly, swallowing nervously.

“What are you doing here?” I asked in shock, “How did you find me?”

“Well, I knew you were going to this university and I asked around a bit, showing a picture of you. It took me about an hour and a few embarrassing knocks on wrong doors to get here,” she said, chuckling sheepishly.

“Why would you come here?”

“I...can I come in first?”

“No.”

She winced at the cold tone in my voice and shuffled her feet anxiously. “O-okay. First and foremost, I came to apologise. And I know I’m three years late, but it took me that long to find the courage to actually face you again.”

“I don’t think an apology is going to get us anywhere, Cateline.”

“I didn’t expect that,” she said quickly, “I know we can’t go back to how we used to but I’d like to at least say sorry once-”

“Great, you said it. Now bye,” I said, trying to close the door but she held it open.

“Please, Addy. Hear me out!”

“What? What else do you want?”

“I would like to explain.”

“What do you want to explain?” I asked incredulously, raising my voice, “Like, seriously. What’s the point? I’m not going to forgive you and no reason on earth can justify that you slept with my husband whilst faking a friendship with me!”

“It wasn’t fake, Addy! Come on, we’ve been friends for years before Antoine happened.”

“Yes, did you ever think about that when you met up with my ex behind my back?”

She breathed in shakily, “Yes. Of course. I felt so guilty. But I couldn’t help but fall for him and when he reciprocated my feelings...it just happened.”

“Yeah...because stuff like that just happens,” I muttered, rubbing my forehead as a headache was forming. “Cateline, there’s really no point of you being here.”

“I...I’m sorry, Adeline,” she said with tears forming in her eyes, “And I wish I never let a guy come between us.”

I nodded, sucking my lips in as my own eyes watered slightly. “Me too.”

She gulped, nodding as well before she slowly turned around to leave when she halted and faced me again. “I also have something for you...from Antoine.”

My breath hitched as she held up a ring; my stolen wedding ring to be precise. “H-how?”

“I had talked to Antoine to apologise to him as well before I came here. He told me that he flew over to Russia to search the boy, who’s stolen it from you, but never had to courage to face you after he found it...we’re pretty similar in that aspect,” she chuckled weakly as I kept staring at the sparkling wedding band, “So he asked me to give it to you in his stead.”

My hand shook as I picked it up, swallowing tightly. “...thanks.”

“If you can, you should forgive him. He’s taking this divorce pretty badly.”

“Ditto,” I replied quietly, my voice breaking slightly.

-

The next day started with red, puffy eyes and a pounding headache. Not the best way to begin your graduation day.

“As if I’m hungover again,” I grumbled, remembering that one time in Russia where I had woken up the same way, only that I was naked and had lost my virginity. I chuckled. Even up to this day I couldn’t remember a single thing from that night.

“Addy! Get up!” Lilou yelled from the other room, “Today is the day!”

“I’m up,” I shouted back, running a hand over my face with a groan.

“Now, there’s the grad girl,” my roommate said as she strolled. She flinched, “Holy shit, you look like crap!”

“Thanks a lot,” I grumbled.

“What happened?” she wondered, settling down on the bed next to me.

“Nothing much. Just the past haunting me,” I said vaguely.

“Ah, right...what?”

I chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Right now, I just wanna celebrate how we are over with university now!”

“Okay...You better get ready then. The ceremony starts in two hours!”

I took a long, hot shower, trying to forget about yesterday’s encounter. It might have not helped that I had stared at the ring all night, all memories flooding back that I had tried to so desperately to push down. ‘You graduate today, Adeline,’ I thought to myself, ‘A new point in life is starting for you. Focus on that.’

Stepping out of the bathroom, my eyes immediately caught sight of the ring on the bed. A heavy sigh escaped my lips as I went over and picked it up, observing it quietly. It wasn’t big or fancy, just a small silver band with a small diamond and our names engraved on the inside.

I put it on my ring finger, reminiscing in the familiar feeling of it. My chest burned at the nostalgic rush that went through me. I knew I was missing him deeply.

“Addy! Mathis said he would pick us up in about an half an hour. Be ready!” Lilou exclaimed, efficiently breaking me out of my stupor.

“Crap,” I muttered, still in my bathrobe and my hair dripping wet.

Blow drying my hair had never taken so agonisingly slow as I tried to do my makeup at the same time.

Finishing up I grimaced at my own face. “Eh...could be worse,” I muttered, cursing under my breath when I only had another ten minutes left. I rushed over to the small wardrobe, eyes flicking through the three dresses I had.

I bit my lip, fingering the one I had been wearing at the last party at Antoine’s home. It would have been a nice blissful day, a sweet memory if everything had gone the way I had expected it to. I wondered if the people present at that party still remembered me and the most humiliating moment of my life, whether they were laughing about it or pitying me.

“It’s a really cute dress,” Lilou said from behind me, causing me to flinch in surprise.

“Dear God, when did you come in?”

Lilou giggled, “Around five minutes ago. I was wondering when you would stop spacing out but it got boring after a while.”

My eyes widened when I heard a knock on the front door. “Put it on, I will entertain Mathis. If you know what I mean,” my roommate said, winking suggestively. I rolled my eyes but did as ordered, swiftly putting the dress on.

“I’m done, stop snogging each other,” I said, walking past the smooching couple on the couch as I grabbed my purse.

Mathis chuckled, “Hey Addy. You excited for today?”

“Obviously. I’ve been waiting for this for three years,” I said with a grin, which he reciprocated.

“I can tell. I remember when I graduated-”

“Which was a decade ago, now chop chop. We’re late,” Lilou cut him off, rushing past him and outside.

We followed her with her boyfriend grumbling, “It was only two years ago.”

-

I had to admit I almost teared up when I finally received that scroll up on the stage with a crowd cheering in front of me. I shook the headmasters and professors’ hands before looking over at the mass of people. I could see them all clapping out of simple politeness, which was a bit depressing to think about. But I smiled when I saw Mathis and Lilou hollering like crazy whilst Jacques stood next to them, trying to pretend he didn’t know them.

Laughing at them I carefully climbed down the stairs, hoping not to trip like the one before me.

“We did it!” Lilou squealed, squishing me into a hug after the ceremony.

“Yes, we did!” I exclaimed, not being able to contain myself.

“Group hug!” Mathis yelled, crushing us both against his chest and Jacques joined in with a laugh. I felt warmth at their action and squeezed them tightly as they shared this special moment with me.

“We gotta celebrate this,” Jacques suggested and we nodded in agreement.

“Sounds great! I’m gonna tell my parents real quick!” Lilou agreed eagerly, tugging Mathis along with her.

I bit my lip at the sudden silence, smiling awkwardly at Jacques, who had his hands stuffed in his pockets and a shy grin on his face.

“Congratulations,” he cheered with a laugh, squeezing my arm gently and I chuckled.

“Thank you, I still can’t really believe it. It’s like a dream.”

“Yeah, I felt that way too...you will wake up on your first day at work,” he said, causing us both to laugh. “You know where you’ll start, yet?”

“I got a few offers but I don’t know, which one to accept. It’s a big decision.”

Jacques nodded. “Take your time.” Another silence and I sighed inwardly at the awkward tension, trying to come up with some topic when he spoke up again, “Hey, um...can you tell me why that guy over there has been staring at you for the past three minutes?”

“Huh?” I turned around to follow his line of sight.

“It’s kind of creepy,” he commented, nodding in the general direction. My eyes widened when I met Antoine’s.

“What on earth...,” I muttered, my heartbeat quickening. I watched him shuffle nervously before he strolled over in an overly casual but determined manner.

“Do you know him?” Jacques asked though I could only hear him vaguely. I glanced around panicked, not knowing whether I wanted Antoine to come over or not whilst he kept getting closer.

“Adeline,” he spoke and I closed my eyes, listening to his melodic voice after being deprived of it for so long.

“Hey, mate. I don’t know who you are, but please don-”

“Jacques,” I interrupted him shakily, “Don’t worry, I know him. Could you leave us alone for a minute?” Mathis’ friend looked down at me with a crease on his forehead before nodding and walking off.

I hesitated in turning back to face him but did so anyways, looking at his sneakers.

“Can you please look at me?” he asked, his voice pained. Taking a deep breath I glanced up. My heart rate took a screeching halt when I gazed into his ocean blue eyes and I almost gasped at the amount of emotions that rushed through me.

He smiled slightly, his eyes flickering through my face as he took in my appearance. I cursed myself for not taking care of my makeup but then cursed myself again for even caring what he thought when I tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. “You look great. Graduation suits you well,” he said, chuckling slightly.

I nodded. “Thank you.”

“E-ehm...congratulations by the way,” he stuttered and he held up a bouquet of my favourite flowers for me that I hadn’t noticed until now. I took it, almost flinching at the electric shock that rushed through my veins when his fingers brushed mine.

“Thank you,” I said again mechanically.

“Um, I found out the ceremony is today and wanted to congratulate you in person...despite everything that happened I wanted to say I’m really proud of you,” he answered my unasked question, scratching his neck.

“Thank you...” I cringed at how repetitive my responses, “I-I’m sorry. I wasn’t expecting you or anyone for that matter to come. It's quite the surprise.”

“Well, I’ll be glad to surprise you once more. Jen and Olli are waiting eagerly to congratulate you as well,” Antoine said with a grin as he looked behind me. And not a second later did I jump when two bodies collided against my back.

“Congratulations Addy/Snoring Beauty!” The Giroud pair shouted from the top of their lungs.

“You guys! What are you doing here?” I asked in delighted shock as I turned towards their beaming faces.

“Girl, you think I would miss your graduation?” Jennifer asked, crushing me into another hug. I felt tears well up in my eyes as I wrapped my arms around her as well. Despite the fact that I had pushed them away they still decided to come over and spent the most important day of my life with me.

“You...I...this-” I stuttered, trying to portray my gratefulness and say sorry at the same time but I was too choked up.

“We get it,” Olivier said, patting my head affectionately. I smiled thankfully before being reminded of the person standing behind me.

“Oh my God. Is that Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud?” Mathis exclaimed in shock as he approached us with Lilou and her parents.

“Friends?” Jennifer asked, still holding onto my arms, and I nodded. “Then yes, they are,” she said with a grin and I chuckled when I saw Mathis seemingly close to fainting. He was a passionate football fan to say the least.

Antoine cleared his throat, catching my attention again. I observed him shoot the Giroud pair a demanding look to which they reacted immediately.

“I bet, you’re a big fan,” Olivier said, approaching Mathis with Jennifer, “Let’s talk about how much of a fan of mine you are over there.”

And once again, I was alone with my ex-husband. “Um, thank you for coming,” I said too politely.

He nodded and I felt a bit uncomfortable at his intense gaze. “Addy,” he started softly and dared to take a step closer, sighing quietly in relief when I didn’t move away. “I-I had a whole speech planned out about what I would say when I saw you again, but somehow I can’t remember a single word of it,” he chuckled almost desperately.

I took a deep breath. “You had Cateline give me the wedding ring...,” I trailed off, waiting for him to fill me in on the ‘why’. I had been racking my brain over this ever since I had received it.

“Oh right! She gave it to you then, good. I wasn’t sure she would,” he brightened up before he tried to shrug it off, “Yeah, it was crazy. I suddenly got a package from Russia, seems like the police has found the boy and got your purse bac-”

“But...she said you flew over and searched for it?” I wondered with furrowed eyebrows and he blanched.

“O-oh, she told you?” Antoine cleared his throat, sighing, “Yeah ok. I admit, I went there. I first wanted it for myself so I had something from you to hold on to...” I swallowed slightly at his confession, feeling a tiny spark of warmth spreading out of that emptiness in me, “But then I thought I would give it to you instead...since it actually belongs to you.”

I nodded, “I will keep it.” He beamed and I glanced down at the flowers in my hand, not being able to see him without feeling like my heart would jump out of my chest.

Hearing him gulp I got startled at how close he had gotten at this point. “Addy, I know...I know I screwed up real bad and there’s no way you can forgive me...but forgive me, please?” he ended sheepishly.

I huffed out a laugh at his blunt ways, causing him to beam in happiness. “Antoine, I...I think I’m actually in the process of forgiving you.”

“Really?” he breathed out in shock.

“Yes...I miss you a lot-”

“I miss you, too! God, Addy. You-You don’t know how much I miss you,” he said earnestly, his warm hand gripping on my arm softly.

“-But...,” his smile faded, “...even if I’m able to forgive you someday, I won’t be able to forget.” His hand fell off and he closed his eyes, furrowing his brows in agony. “It wouldn’t be a healthy relationship, Antoine.”

“Better toxic than nothing, eh?” he suggested, chuckling weakly.

I shook my head with a smile, “I’m grateful that you came, really.”

He nodded, running a hand through his hair. “I’m glad I came, too. At least I got to see you again for a few minutes.”

“Yeah, it’s been a while.”

“Three years and 16 days,” he said, “Not that I’m counting.”

I laughed slightly before shaking my head. “Sure. Do y-”

“Hey, so Mathis said you’re going to celebrate at some Italian restaurant,” Olivier cut me off as he jogged over, “We should get going.”

“Oh, you gonna join us?” I asked, smiling brightly and he nodded eagerly. “For sure. Come on, you guys. They’re waiting!” he said, already turning around and jogging back where he had come from.

“Ehm, I probably shouldn’t join,” Antoine said as I opened my mouth to speak, “I gotta go anyways.”

I tried not to show my disappointment. “Okay then. I should go over, the others are waiting.”

“Right! Right...” Antoine stepped forward and my heart pounded in my chest when he leaned in tentatively to kiss my cheek. “Congratulations,” he whispered, his breath brushing my skin and causing goosebumps to erupt. I tried to breathe as evenly as possible when I felt him push something into my hand. Glancing down I took hold of the brown envelope that he gave me, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.

"What is this?" I wondered, looking up into the shining eyes of my ex-husband. He smiled slightly, "Just something I wanted you to have for a long time. I'll see you around."

"Ehm ok," I replied dumbly, wondering what he meant. I couldn't see him around, he was working in Spain. He waved goodbye as he turned his back around.

I couldn’t tell how long I watched him walk away even after he was out of sight, willing my body not to run after him and cling onto him like a koala. Pain seared through me at the thought of never seeing him again but I knew it was better this way. It was better this way, right?

Reaching into the envelope numbly, I was confused at the amount of papers in them, especially at the once that were ripped in half. Taking out one of the papers that was not ripped I read through the first paragraphs. It was a contract for a football team, Paris St. German, signed by Antoine. My jaw dropped, 'He left Atletico?'

Shaking my head in shock I proceeded to fish out the other papers, trying to discern what was written. It only took me two seconds to recognise the divorce papers, signed by Antoine and me. And ripped to pieces. "What...," I whispered. Did he never-

I peeked into the envelope again for some kind of answer when I noticed another small piece of paper, folded in half.

His old number was scribbled on it with a few simple words:

I won't give up on us, Patricia. Your Spongebob.

End. For real now.

Help me Get Coffee Support?

[joonshadow]

"i'm not straight"

being in the closet isnt that much fun

or

namjoon comes out to the other members after hiding for so long.

/namjoon-centric fluff/

namjoon knew he wasn't straight for quite a while now but never told anyone, neither his family or his members. not because he wasn't sure about it, heck no, he knows for a hundred percent.

but coming out to yourself is really hard and coming out to everyone else in your life is even harder sometimes.

the leader always is open and accepting, never judging anyone. he has some not straight friends and loves them so much, couraging them to be open and happy. but being not straight himself is a bit different.

first, he could never be open about his sexuality to the whole world. its just the sad truth that an idol isn't supposed to be gay, they should be "normal" and appealing to their fans, who are mostly female.

which leads to the second reason; the hate.

as the leader of the group its his job to hold the members together and look after them. if he came out as gay, the media would go crazy and not just attack joon, but probably the whole group with hate and drama.

so no, being out and about isn't really an option for him. but for a while now he thought about telling his little "secret" to his members, his best friends who are like a second family for the boy.

-

turns out that trying to come out is nerve wracking as fuck.

all seven boys are cuddled up on the couch, watching a movie yoongi choose called "love simon" and eating popcorn.

namjoon is squished inbetween jungkook and hoseok, the youngest laying his head down on joons lap while his head is on hoseoks shoulders.

namjoons hands are sweaty, his heart is bumping hard in his chest and his throat is dry as hell. the blonde boy kept thinking over and over how he should say it but everytime he wants to say it out loud, he gets too scared.

its weird because he knows he will receive nothing but love and support from his friends, so he doesnt know why its so scary to actually tell them.

probably because his whole life, it was his little secret just for himself that no one else knew. so telling it someone else who obviously isnt him, is scaring the hell out of him.

and the time passes, the movie almost over and jungkook asleep on his thighs.

the first one to speak up wasnt namjoon, it was taehyung.

"i love this movie, its awesome. the two boys are so cute together!", the blue haired boy said with a sleepy voice and smiled at the other members, everyone agreeing with him instantly.

which makes joon incredibly happy. he doesn't know if its just something he feels or if its common among lgbt people, but everytime someone whos important to him says something accepting or nice about the community, his heart secretly bursts full of happiness in his chest.

"its late, we should sleep.", hoseok mumbled while carefully standing up, trying not to wake the youngest member up.

"youre right, hyung. do we have any schedules tomorrow?", asked jimin, who also was almost asleep next to jungkook.

seokjin told them all that they dont have anything planned for the next week since promotions are over and their tour starts in three weeks. everyone smiled because that means they would all be able to sleep as long as they want tomorrow.

namjoon brought some blankets from his room for jungkook who will sleep on the couch today because everyone is too tired and lazy to wake the youngest up and bring him to bed.

he carefully put them over him and tucked the sleeping boy in, kissing his head before turning off the tv and going out of the living room as quiet as possible.

seokjin and hoseok already dissapeared in their rooms, tired from practising their newest choreo all day long, while jimin and taehyung were in the bathroom and getting ready for bed.

namjoon did the same, telling the younger ones to sleep well and not to stay up too late before going to his room as well.

yoongi was his roommate, the two rappers sharing their room for quiet a while now.

the older boy was already in his bed when namjoon came in and crawled into his bed after changing into his pyjamas.

namjoon thought he was already asleep so he tried his best to be quiet and not make any noise to disturb the other. he almost fell asleep too before he heard some footsteps coming near his bed, his big blanket being held up and yoongi going under them.

it wasnt surprising since the two of them cuddle almost every night. but namjoon still got surprised as yoongi began to talk in a soft, calm voice.

"whats wrong, joon? i know somethings on your mind. you can talk to me, you know?"

is he that obvious? okay maybe he is a little bit tense lately, trying so hard to act normal but at the same time trying to find a good moment to tell his members about his sexuality.

after the movie was over today, he was kinda pissed at himself because he wasted such a good opportunity to tell them.

"i dont know what you mean, hyung. im just like always?"

yoongi sighed but besides that he just stayed silent. he softly caressed joons hair and waited for the younger boy to speak up when he is comfortable with doing so.

namjoons heart started to pound faster and he felt his hands getting sweaty again. maybe this was better than telling it everyone at once.

so he took a deep breath, tried to get his shit together and with a voice that yoongi almost wasnt able to hear, he finally said it out loud.

"im gay."

namjoon couldnt see yoongis reaction, wasnt able to read his face because it was pitch dark in their room and his back was turned towards the older one.

he started to breath faster, anxiety rising up in him because yoongi didnt say anything and for a second namjoon thought that he will hate him now.

but all his fears went away as yoongi wrapped his arms around namjoons waist and pulled him a little bit closer, giving him a soft kiss on his shoulder and smiled against his neck.

"hyung?"

"what?"

"arent you gonna say anything?"

"what should i say, joon? its no big deal,

i still love you. youre still the same person as before, you know?"

namjoon fell asleep a few minutes later with the biggest smile on his face.

-

"so for how long have you known?"

yoongi decided the morning after that just the two of them should sit together and talk a little bit. namjoon was more than okay with that which resulted in them sitting on yoongis bed, both with a cup of tea and surrounded by soft blankets and pillows.

namjoon told him everything, about how he found out and if he ever had a boyfriend, to which he sadly answered with a no.

"i dont know if anyone would every truly love me for who i am, you know what i mean?", namjoon said and looked down at his cup.

yoongi looked at the other boy and smiled softly, hitting his shoulder playfully.

"i bet youll find the perfect boy soon, joonie. dont worry too much about it."

-

this same afternoon namjoon decided that he should tell the other members too. it was unfair to just tell it yoongi and keep this big secret from everyone else.

its kinda hard to plan this kind of stuff since he is the type of person to back out on the last second. but after feeling so relieved from telling yoongi about his sexuality, he figured it wont be that bad to tell the others as well.

he went to seokjins and hoseoks room, knocking on the door twice and letting himself in after hearing a tired "yes?" from the inside.

there they were, sitting on their comfortable beds while probably scrolling through social media and stalking fan accounts. neither of them looked up, too concentrated on their phones and whats going on on the internet.

"hyung?"

both of them looked up after they heard namjoons quiet voice filled with anxiety, instantly putting away their phones and just focusing on him which, to be honest, didnt make this any easier.

"whats wrong, joon?", hoseok asks curious while standing up, taking his hand and pulling him over to seokjins bed.

hoseok sat right next to jin, which meant that namjoon is right in front of the two older boys.

nervously he was fiddling with his hands, taking a deep breath and thinking about what yoongi told him.

its no big deal,

youre still the same person as before

"i have something to say that i feel like you two should know, okay? its nothing big, at least thats what yoongi hyung says, but i just wanted you guys to kno-"

"are you gay or what?", hoseok said while letting out a small giggle, stopping the moment he saw namjoons surprised face.

"wait, youre really gay. holy shit, im sorry namjoon, i didnt mean to-"

"oh shut up hoseok, dont make this even more embarassing for yourself.", seokjin insisted and then just focused on namjoon, who was just hella surprised and a little bit shocked to be honest.

"yeah, im actually gay. thanks for ruining my big surprise", namjoon joked and smiled at hoseok, who still feels kinda bad and tightly holds joons hands in his.

the two older boys gave namjoon a big hug, telling him that theyll love and support him no matter what and reminded namjoon that theyre always here if he needs someone to talk to.

everything they said means a lot to joon and he is so happy to hear it, especially from the oldest member in the group. the two were always really close with each other so to know that seokjin still loves him just the way he is, means a lot.

-

"hyung?"

namjoon looked up from the pot with boiling hot water in it, making pasta for everyone or at least trying to. taehyung came into the kitchen and just silently started to cut the vegetables that joon already put out for cooking.

"whats up, tae?", joon asked while taking out spices from the cabin, tasting the sauce for the noodles before adding some more salt and pepper. hes not the best cook but still able to make simple pasta with tomato sauce without making everyone sick or burning down the kitchen.

taehyung put away the knife for cutting the veggies, puts his hands on joons shoulders and turns him around so that the two boys are facing each other.

"uh, taehyung? what are you doing?"

the younger one just hugged joon tight and buried his face in the taller ones neck, pulling him close. to say that namjoon was a little bit confused was an understatement.

taehyung began to speak quietly with a shy, almost embarassed voice against joons soft skin.

"i heard you, hobi hyung and jin hyung talk in their rooms. i shouldnt have listened, but i was so curious about what you guys were talking about. im so sorry, hyung."

he was a little bit confused but understood after a second whats going on.

"so you know?"

the blue haired boy nodded quickly and promised namjoon that he doesnt mind it at all and that hes still the best leader of the whole world to which namjoon just responded with a soft "thank you", a big smile and an even bigger hug.

-

the day is almost over, no one really did anything besides sleeping and eating all day long. days like these are much needed after stressful promotions and exhausting award shows.

the boys ate joons pasta for dinner, complimenting him on his "amazing" cooking skills and after that they all just dissapear in their rooms or somewhere else in the house.

it was already dark outside as namjoon sat down on their big couch, pulling his phone out and scrolling trough social media.

most of the fans dont know but all of the members love to look at all the different fan accounts and see what they say about their group. its fun.

around five minutes later he got a message from jimin.

jimin: hyung

jimin: do you want to watch a movie

jimin: just jungkook, yoongi and me

namjoon: sure

after hitting send, he made his way to jimins room, already hearing their voices and the tv playing in the background. he just went in there without knocking and got greeted by the sight of jimin making little ponytails with yoongis grey hair and jungkook eating leftover pasta from dinner.

"wow, looks like you guys are having a lot of fun without me", namjoon said laughing and just laid down on the bed next to jungkook.

"its boring just with yoongi hyung, most of the time he falls asleep during the movie and thats-"

"oh shut up, its not my fault that the movies you guys choose are always so boring."

both of them laughed after yoongi jokingly hit jimins arm, which hurt not even a little bit since he isnt really the strongest.

"what movie are we even watching today?"

"probably a bad love movie which jimin found on netflix after feeling lonely and sad again"

the next second jimin just deadass jumped on jungkook and both of them tried to push the other one down on the bed. jimin gave up a bit after since its unfair because jungkook is "way stronger and hes tickling him which is fucking unfair".

namjoon just laughs and sits a little bit closer to yoongi, the older one putting his arm around joons shoulders and pulling him even closer.

"guys, come on now. if you dont want me to fall asleep during the movie, we should start now and not just in a few hours when you two decided to calm down.", yoongi murmured kinda annoyed, he would probably rather be in his bed now.

after a few minutes the movie was playing on the big tv screen and all four of them cuddled up on jungkooks big bed.

namjoon couldnt hold back a small giggle after seeing that jimin chose 'titanic' and hearing yoongi and jungkooks annoyed sigh.

to be honest, it was actually really nice. a few minutes after the movie started, taehyung decided to join them too and just snuggled between jungkook and jimin.

yoongi couldnt hold back and after a while he was softly snoring on namjoons lap with messy hair and parted lips.

the younger one of the two just caresses the older ones hair, loving the way it feels between his fingers.

"did hyung fall asleep again?", jimin asked with not even a little bit of surprise in his voice.

namjoon just nodded without saying anything, he didnt want to wake up yoongi and taehyung, whos also sleeping in jungkooks arms.

maybe now is the right time to tell them too since they are the last ones who dont know about joons little secret yet. jimin is still looking at namjoon with sleepy eyes, smiling a bit.

"jimin, jungkook, i have to tell you guys something", namjoon whispered as quiet as possible, hoping the younger boys would understand him anyways since he would rather not say it twice.

"what is it?", asks jimin, now wide awake and looking at namjoon full of curiosity.

from jungkook he just heard a tired "hm?".

"im gay", he whispers softly.

he honestly expected to be more calm now considering he came out to so many people in such a short time. but hes still nervous, his heart beating fast and waiting for a reaction he already knows will be the same as all the others before.

"not surprising, hyung"

wait, what? namjoon was confused.

"what do you mean, jungkook?"

jimin just giggles and shrugs his shoulders. jungkook told him that it isnt really that big of a surprise since hes not that stupid and knows his hyungs well. namjoon wanted him to be a little bit more clear, so he explained why he always kinda knew that joonie isnt that hetero.

"you never had a girlfriend and neither do you really talk about girls the way, for example jimin, does. and since there were never any signs that youre straight, i just assumed you arent."

namjoon just laughs and sarcastically congrats jungkook on his smart brain and his skill on finding out peoples sexuality. jimin joins in too and after a bit they all just cant stop laughing.

both, taehyung and yoongi woke up from the noise, confused and tired.

"whats going on?", yoongi said so quiet that namjoon and the others almost didnt notice.

"namjoon hyung likes boys!"

after that, the three boys just started to laugh even harder, not even knowing whats so funny about the whole situation.

but theres one thing namjoon knows for sure.

and that is that hes genuinely happy right now, feeling so good after knowing that he doesnt have to hide anymore and that hes so so loved.

--------

you can find my other stories on wattpad @ smolouis

please leave feedback!!

[goro-goro-studies]

You’re already sweet enough...

...so please pay attention to your sugar intake. According to the WHO, as a normal weight adult you should try not to consume more than 25g/6 teaspoons of sugar every day.  If you think “meh, I’m not eating that much candy” or “I hardly ever add sugar to foods”, think again:

a lot of sugar is hidden in products where you wouldn’t expect it right away, like pasta sauce, salad dressings, yoghurt and breakfast cereal (even seemingly healthy cereal quite often contains around 20g of sugar per 100g, so always check the packaging)

what can I do? If you can, make the above listed foods yourself - that way it’s completely up to you what goes in there. Pasta sauce? Make one big pot, then freeze it in serving sizes. Salad dressings? Look up some recipes, get the ingredients, make them yourself within 5-10 minutes. Yoghurt? Buy plain white yoghurt and add some fresh fruit or a bit of marmelade. Cereal? Get a big, sealable plastic container, buy some oatmeal, sunflower seeds/nuts/whatever grain you like, mix it and add some fresh fruit every morning. Porridge is another good option for a healthy breakfast, but it takes a bit longer to make.

note that sugar which occurs naturally in fruit and vegetables is exempt, but the sugar in dried fruit and juice is not, since these foods don’t offer you the same amount of fiber, vitamins and other things important for your health. Juice can contain as much sugar as soft drinks, so be careful. (Smoothies are somewhere in the middle - store bought ones often also contain juice since it is cheaper than only using fruit. Again, the best option is to make them yourself and add some vegetables, so they won’t come out too sweet - for example oranges, apples and carrots go well together)

water>sodas. This is probably old news to you, but most sodas contain a crazy amount of sugar. By drinking a 0.5l bottle of Coca Cola you’ve exhausted your sugar intake for the next two days. Unsweetened teas or just good old water (you can add some fruit slices or mint) are better choices

snacks. Sure, just grabbing a chocolate bar or some other processed snack is quick&easy, but taking the 5 minutes to make yourself a sandwich or cut up some veggies will not only be healthier, but also keep your stomach full longer and your mind fresher, since you won’t experience a “sugar crash” after the initial burst of energy. You can find great inspiration for snacks in this post by @tbhstudying

don’t buy too much candy. You can’t eat stuff you don’t have, so don’t buy too many unhealthy snacks and resist the temptation to overbuy when candy is on sale

avoid adding sugar to already sweet foods and drinks like hot chocolate or fruit (bonus info: by getting used to consuming less sugar you will become more sensitive to the natural sweetness of foods)

coffee with some milk and maybe a bit of sugar? Yup, that’s coffee. A triple mocha frappuccino with caramel sauce at Starbucks? More a dessert than a beverage. It’s fine to have one of those occasionally, but don’t confuse it with actual drinks

cook your own meals. As a student, I know that sometimes you just don’t have the time or energy to make fancy meals yourself, but try to limit your consumption of pizza, instant noodles and frozen meals. Look some simple recipes up online or ask your parents and friends, check whether veggies and other healthy foods are on sale at a supermarket near your and try some new things

25g per day really isn’t much. Up to 50g is okay, but 25g would be better. There are days when you’ll come home and inhale everything sweet you can find and others when you probably won’t feel like eating sugary stuff at all. It’s about finding a balance

Take the time to think about your sugar intake. Keep a food diary or sugar tracker for a week or two and note down how much sugar you ate every day. Set a realistic goal (eg. no more than 35g/day or no sweetened beverages during the next week), modify your eating habits accordingly and slowly reduce your sugar intake

Note: I don’t want to make you feel guilty everytime you eat some of your favorite chocolate and I’m also not saying you should show up to the next movie night with celery sticks instead of popcorn or decline the piece of pie your grandma offers you, but maybe consider some of these things the next time you go grocery shopping or get a snack - your body will thank you.

[thegoodgayshit]

Marvel Runaways/Pokemon AU

Yo whaddup, I got really inspired and I wrote a whole fanfic about Karolina and Nico having their starter Pokemon be in love. 

You can read it here if you’d like. 

 or you can read it here!

The Best Thing I’ve Ever Seen:

It was easy to forget that the six trainers were on the run from their parents, because adventuring together was so much fun.

Sure, Karolina knew that sometimes money was short, and that Alex or Nico losing a battle or Karolina losing a contest meant they might be short on ample food for a few days. But watching the five of her friends enjoying each other's company and raising Pokémon together was all she had ever wanted!

Once in a while, they even got to thwart their parents plans. Team Pride was always on the move, and always looking for some way to take the Pokemon world all for themselves. It was horrible, and it didn't make it any easier for Karolina and her friends. Nobody else knew after all, that the leaders behind the Teams horrible crimes were their own parents.

Alex's parents ran the actual business side of Team Pride, while Nico and Chase's parents worked on the production of pokeball's, pokedex's, and technology, Gert and Molly's parents were always creating the next best potion, and Karolina's parents… well her mother had been hunting legendary Pokemon since before she was born. She could only imagine what horrors awaited the world with all of these Region Superpowers working together. She didn't even want to think about it.

Karolina gripped the loops in her belt, where all her Pokemon were safely tucked away, and closed her eyes as she remembered the night everything went to shit.

She was frantically running around her room, throwing whatever she could in her backpack. She didn't know how much she would be able to carry, so she just brought the basics, some cash, her toothbrush and other personal items, a change of clothes. She wrapped the belt she had been given for her tenth birthday around her waist, one she had never worn for longer than twenty minutes. Girls like her, girls from Brentwood, didn't go on Pokemon journeys. It was unheard of.

She clipped it on quickly, reaching over to grab her only Pokeball. She snapped it on her belt and grabbed her last important item, her Pokedex, a bright vibrant yellow. She had to hurry, leave and join the others now before they came home. She froze as the door downstairs opened, and a very stern woman's voice yelling her name and charging up the stairs. Panicking, she opened her window and grabbed her backpack, sparing one last look at her childhood bedroom before leaping, and landing on her feet on the soft grass below. Without wasting another second, she fled, running through the trees to meet the only other people she could trust.

"Karolina?"

She snapped out of her trance, glancing around wildly. It was Chase, looking at her with concern.

"Are you alright? Gert made dinner, although just between us," his voice dropped to a whisper, "I don't know if it's safe to eat."

Karolina forced out a little laugh, not wanting him to be worried about her. The shock that came with discovering their parents' true identities left an imprint on all of the trainers hearts, even though it had been three months since they had run away. Karolina still couldn't shake the fear and despair she felt.

"Alright, I'm sure the Pokemon are hungry." She said, giving Chase a smile. The boy had clearly been training, probably battling with Alex or forcing his Pokemon to run with him. His hair was windswept, his face red, and he looked out of breath. Instead of his jeans and boots, he was wearing a muscle shirt and shorts with his sneakers. For someone so fit, it must have been quite the workout.

Karolina left the little cliff side she had been meditating on, joining the others at their temporary campsite instead. A small clearing on the outer edge of the forest they were passing through. There was a campfire roaring, and around it she could see Alex and Nico setting up a large tarp to sleep under. Karolina looked at the sky, though the sun was setting, she could see a series of clouds blowing through. There was a chance it could rain. She seriously hoped it wouldn't, it always left the people sleeping on the outside of the tarp area slightly damp when morning came.

As she and Chase got closer, she could hear Alex and Nico bickering while Molly and Gert were prepping the food onto plates they had snagged from a restaurant they visited a few towns back.

"I told you, we should have kept walking and found a cave or some other kind of cover. Nobody likes getting rained on!" Alex complained.

"And I told you, look around! Everyone's tired, we've been walking for two days now. The next town is still a few days journey and we need to rest." Nico hissed back.

Karolina resisted the urge to roll her eyes, the two were rivals after all, they couldn't help but getting in each other's faces. Instead of just watching however, she joined in on the debate.

"Guys, enough. Look, Alex you have a point, I definitely don't want to be rained on. But Nico isn't wrong. We've somehow managed to run into three different Team Pride goons in 24 hours, and we need to stay off the path and keep quiet. Besides, we have a river, which means we can clean up, and not to mention a good clearing up the hill to train."

Nico held out her hands smugly. "There! See Alex, this is the smarter move!"

Alex looked disgruntled but nodded nonetheless. "Fine. You're right, I don't want to go looking for trouble with Team Pride, but do you always have to side with Nico? It's getting old."

Karolina felt her face heat up, and she had a sneaking suspicion Nico's did too. She covered it up by looking away quickly.

"Ok, now that that's over with…" Gert said, clearly tired of the two bickering, "I have actual food ready! Soup, Salad, and noodles!"

Everybody sat down around the fire, Karolina taking a hesitant seat next to Nico, whose face was still cooling down from the teasing. Gert passed around bowls and everybody started to eat.

Karolina's mood quickly skyrocketed, it looked like Gert and Molly actually came through. Good food was hard to come by, especially things they couldn't make out of a box. Salad was impressive.

As if reading Karolina's mind, Gert bumped Molly's shoulder with pride. "Molly and Eevee were a real help! She picked all the veggies today."

There was a murmur of appreciation, and Molly flushed. "Thanks. Considering I'm 'too young' to battle like the rest of you, I might as well do something useful."

"That's because you are too young Molly." Gert sighed.

"I'm fifteen! Plenty of people are battling at my age."

"You need more training Molly." Chase said diplomatically. "You're coming a long way though! You really had Flareon and I going for a bit!"

Molly pricked up a little at the praise. "Well, if I can beat you does that mean I can enter a gym battle?"

Gert quickly shut down the conversation. "Maybe. Now let's talk about anything else."

"I spotted a strange looking Pokemon today." Karolina piped up. She was tingling with excitement, when she had seen it she wanted to go after it, but it was across the river and she knew running off would only cause panic with the others. "I don't know what it was, my Pokedex wouldn't reach that far. But it was very graceful, perfect for my contests."

"We sure are getting a lot of new Pokemon recently." Alex added, looking pleased. "The more Pokemon we train, the stronger we'll be."

Nico nodded. "Hate to say it but Alex is right, if you want Karolina, we can go look for it tomorrow."

"Yeah, for all we know there could be other interesting Pokemon we haven't seen." Chase encouraged. "Maybe we'll all catch something new!"

Gert suddenly jumped, as though electrocuted. "Shit! We forgot to give the Pokemon food!"

Everybody else looked guilty. They got so wrapped up in the conversation they realized Gert was right. Mumbling apologies to their belts, everyone reached over to their pokeball's and released their teams.

The first to appear were Alex's Luxio and Combee, Chase's Machop, Gert's Ponyta and Tyrunt, (who they had all been affectionately calling Old Lace since she grew a strange love of shoelaces) Molly's Budew, Nico's Houndour and Nuzleaf, and Karolina's Rockruff and Mareep. Once appearing the Pokemon looked at the food happily, and began to take some and converse amongst themselves.

The last Pokemon to appear were the groups starters, appearing in the order they always did. Alex's Vaporeon appeared looking regal, as though judging Chase's Flareon and Gert's Jolteon for appearing with energy and excitement. Molly's Eevee appeared with cute, blinking eyes, and finally came Karolina's Espeon and Nico's Umbreon, both standing close to one another.

A permanent reminder of their parents, who gave them all the best gifts any child could ask for. They had come back from a Team Pride meeting, (at the time, the six had assumed it was a charity event) with six pokeball's, one meant for each of them. The only rule they had been given was they could not open them before picking one.

"But how are we supposed to know if they're any good without looking first?" fifteen-year-old Chase asked, and his father gave him a withering look.

"Chase, as I've said before, Pokemon are not valued by if they are 'good' or not."

He visibly shrunk back, which went unnoticed by all the parents. Nico's mother Tina took the silence as a chance to continue.

"You probably noticed that most kids your age have Pokemon already. We wanted you six to know the value of Pokemon, and how essential they are to us. So, until today we made you wait."

Dale nodded, looking excited for the six of them. "But now you can have one! Trust your instincts, and choose wisely, they will be your friend for life!"

Leslie and Katherine on the other hand, looked a little uncertain.

"But there will be no journeying! You have responsibilities outside the Pokemon world." Leslie said.

"And absolutely no battling! It's not a competition to get strong!" Katherine added.

The six young teenagers eagerly reached for a Pokeball of their own, gripping one tightly. Karolina grabbed the one that seemed to draw her in, a calmer energy to match her excited one. When each teen had one, the parents took a few steps back.

"Now meet your Pokemon!" Geoffrey said with a smile, and the teens all pressed the button on their ball, and were met with six identical Eevee's.

"Evee?" They all cried, before glancing at their new trained with confusion and apprehension.

The stunned silence on all six kids was broken by the squeal Molly let out.

"They're so cute!"

As the others slowly approached their new Pokemon, Karolina gasped in awe as her own nuzzled her hand, looking completely at ease.

"But, they're all the same!" Alex said in confusion.

"Yeah!" Nico agreed, holding her very quiet Eevee to her chest. "I thought we had to trust our gut!"

Robert chuckled with amusement, and each parents face seemed to resemble the same look, even Victor.

"Well that's just it sweetheart! That's what the lesson was!"

"What, that every Pokemon is actually the same?" Gert questioned, and he shook his head.

"No no no, the lesson is…" He gestured to the Eevee's with pleasure on his face. "That you had to trust your gut and pick the Pokemon that spoke to you, because every Pokemon is different on the inside!"

Karolina remembered that day like it was yesterday. It had been three long years ago, and so much had happened since then. Alex, Chase, and Gert had evolved their Eevee's accidently at the Pride gala last year, when they had accidentally knocked down a table of stones. They laugh about it now, saying that everything happened for the best.

Karolina and Nico's Eevee's were the next to evolve. They had been battling secretly late at night and had totally lost track of time. As the sun was rising, the rays touched Karolina's Eevee, and the darkness remained on Nico's, and the two had evolved together. The others joked that Espeon and Umbreon were in love with each other, which made both Karolina and Nico blush. Karolina didn't know why the thought made her go red, because it was most certainly true. When released, the two were inseparable.

Molly's Eevee had yet to evolve. Molly didn't seem to mind though, when the conversation was brought up she would always affectionately pat her head and tell the others that she would evolve when she was ready. Karolina thought that was incredibly cute, despite Molly just calling it decency.

Molly's Eevee immediately leapt onto her lap and began eating food Molly would hold out for her. Jolteon, Flareon, and Vaporeon bounced up to join the other Pokemon, but Espeon and Umbreon just wedged their way between Karolina and Nico and laid down, tails intertwining.

Nico hummed, stroking Umbreon's head. "Not hungry?"

In response, the sleek black Pokemon just chirped lazily and rested his head on his paws. Espeon cooed as well and did the same, leaning back appreciatively into Karolina's hand as she ran it up and down her purple body.

After dinner, everybody helped wash up. By the time they were done, the sun was beginning to set, and Karolina was ready to finish up the day with another quick rehearsal.

"Hey guys, can you watch my appeal and give me some tips?" Karolina asked, and the others nodded.

"Sure! You appeal's are so good!" Molly encouraged.

Karolina looked over at her Espeon, who was blinking at Karolina. She chuckled and waved her over. "Come on Espeon, one more run with Mareep and Rockruff and then you can sleep."

Espeon chirped in understanding, and slowly detached herself from Umbreon. When Mareep and Rockruff realized what was happening, they headed over too.

The five others sat down a good distance away, giving Karolina space to practise.

"Ok, so this is part of the new versions of appeals. Triple appeals are difficult, so we have to really practise to get it right." Karolina said, her nervousness shining through.

The others whooped and gave Karolina encouraging smiles.

"You got this Karolina!" Gert cheered, and Tyrunt roared in approval.

"Knock em dead!" Chase agreed, his Flareon bouncing in excitement.

Her Pokemon were straightening in excitement, but Karolina was still feeling a little nervous. She looked up and met Nico's gaze, and the black-haired girl shot her an encouraging smile.

"I've seen you do it before," she said, "you can do it now."

That was all Karolina needed. With a deep breath she nodded and began her appeal.

"Ok, Mareep use Electroball, and Espeon use Psybeam!"

The two Pokemon shot out the attacks as called, but instead used their energy to curve the attacks into one another. Mareep's Electroball was sustained in midair as Psybeam curved around it, holding the giant yellow electric ball up with a purple, yellow, and blue wavelike force.

"Rockruff, use Stealth Rock!"

Rockruff grunted and slammed his paw into the ground, causing shards of rock to fly into the air, circling around the Psybeam, and when Espeon dropped the attack, the Stealth Rock seemed to hold the electric ball right into the air.

"That's incredible Karolina!" Alex gasped. "How did you managed to figure out that Stealth Rock changes the gravitational pull inside the-"

"Shut up with your nerd talk Alex!" Molly groaned, "let her work!"

Karolina let out a little giggle at her friends faces, they all did seem very impressed.

"Mareep, confuse ray! Rockruff, attract!"

A purple ghostly orb shot out from Mareep, sailing around the golden ball of energy. Rockruff sent out little red hearts that soared around in the opposite direction, but the second they entered the Stealth Rock zone, they changed into a marvelous black colour.

"I know what she's doing!" Chase exclaimed, "she's mimicking space, and the Electroball is a planet!"

"Did you just get that now, Protein Powder?" Gert snapped.

"Guys! Shut up!" Nico growled.

Karolina was barely listening. Now was the moment that always went wrong. She had to focus and time it just right.

"Espeon, Future Sight!"

Espeon's eyes glimmered for a single moment, before it went quiet. Karolina hesitated for a moment, before nodding.

"Ok, use Swift!"

Espeon flicked its tail quickly, and a glimmer of stars sailed once around the Electroball before vanishing.

"Wow! Shooting stars!" Molly gasped.

Karolina nodded one last time.

"Rockruff! Rock Tomb!"

Slamming his paw down again, the ground lifted around the floating Electroball, and a pillar shot from the middle of it. For a brief moment, the Electroball flickered, and Karolina panicked.

"Now!"

As if someone heard her cry for help, a cloud appeared seemingly out of nowhere, and a thunderbolt fell from the sky, cracking into the Electroball causing it to explode. For a brief moment, Karolina had to squint as the light blinded her, before there was complete peace, and all that was left of the electric ball was sparkles that rained in every colour down from the sky.

Karolina let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding, and her friends all cheered.

"That was incredible Karolina!" Alex and Gert cried at the same time.

"That was SO COOL!" Molly yelled, and Chase didn't say anything, he just sat there stunned.

Karolina laughed and was encircled by her Pokemon, chirping excitedly.

"You did awesome guys! That was our best run yet!" She exclaimed proudly, giving them all a hug.

She did notice however, that one person hadn't spoken. She turned to look at Nico, giving her a searching look.

Nico's face was hard to read. It was swimming with pride, which helped calm her nerves right away. There was also wonder, and amazement, but there was also something else there too. Something she couldn't quite reach.

Nico had gotten up and walked over. Karolina froze as she lifted up her hand, and gently flicked a sparkle off of Karolina's shoulder.

"You know, I think that was the best thing I've ever seen. Ever." She said.

And meeting Nico's eyes, and seeing that strange glimmering look up close, Karolina knew she was telling nothing but the truth.

[the-expert-zone]

15 Awesome Keto Gifts You Can Order With Free 2-Day Shipping

Shopping for the perfect Keto gifts during the holidays can be exhausting. Don’t worry though — here’s a list of my favorite products that fit seamlessly into a low carb lifestyle.

Better yet, most of these products can be ordered with free 2-day shipping if you are a Prime member.

Dash Mini Waffle Iron

The Dash Mini Waffle Iron took over the Keto Instagram community by storm this past year! I personally use mine every single week.

These are great gifts for college students as well and couldn’t be easier to use.

Get it on Amazon

Veggie Spiralizer

This is a simple little cooking gadget that produces some AMAZING results! If you’ve ever seen noodles made from zucchini or carrots, they were probably made using a spiralizer.

When I first started Keto, I purchased one of the crank versions. It works great, but it is the biggest pain to clean.

This one is much easier, and they even provide the tools to clean it! You can’t beat that.

Get it on Amazon

Keto Cheat Sheet Magnets

The perfect gift for beginner’s of the ketogenic diet! These magnets take the guesswork out of one of the most common questions — “Is it Keto?”

Color coded and graphed by food type, use these visuals to help map your low carb meals.

Get it on Amazon

Beeswax Food Wrapper

How cute are these avocado patterned food wrappers? Better yet, they’re a good choice for the environment, too!

These reusable wraps are coated in beeswax and can be used multiple times to wrap and cover your foods.

You can get roughly 150 uses from each wrap, so these should last a while, too.

Get it on Amazon

Bacon Fat Strainer/Storage

This stainless steel oil strainer is a perfect gift for the Keto-er that is obsessed with bacon!

After preparing your bacon, simply pour the leftover fat through the mesh strainer and into the container. This will keep the delicious fat separated from any stray bits of bacon. The straining step is super important because the bits can go rancid and ruin all of your beloved bacon fat!

This is a high quality upgrade from the old Maxwell House coffee tin my mom used to keep in the kitchen, haha.

Get it on Amazon

Dash Egg Cooker

Eggs are a staple for many of us on the Keto diet. With this Dash Rapid Egg Cooker, you can easily prepare perfect poached, soft-boiled and hard-boiled eggs. You can also whip up scrambled eggs and omelets, as well!

When boiling eggs, the egg cooker does some sort of wizardry that makes the shell so easy to remove. I’ve never had eggs peel so effortlessly!

The egg cookers come in a variety of colors that will suit just about any kitchen!

Get it on Amazon

Insulated Shopping Bags

My mother-in-law bought us one of these insulated shopping bags last Christmas and I absolutely adore it!

First and foremost, they’re awesome for the environment. Instead of getting plastic bags, just pack up your items in these!

They also stand upright and stay put in the car while driving. Nothing is more cringe-worthy than when you’re rounding a corner and you hear the jar of Rao’s tomato sauce fly across your trunk.

These bags come in a two pack, making each one just $10! You can totally get two gifts out of one. If you want to take this a step further, you can fill the bag with some Keto staples like almond flour, erythritol, and maybe a few of Good Dee’s low carb dessert mixes!

Get it on Amazon

  Light & Phone Holder

If the Keto-er in your life is anything like me, they probably love taking photos of their food and sharing it across social media.

This contraption makes the process a lot easier and also provides a steady balance with minimal shaking. The lighting is also surprisingly good! This is perfect if you are just starting out as a blogger or social media influencer. It also makes a great stocking stuffer!

Life is too short for ugly food.

Get it on Amazon

Keto Krate

Keto Krate is available for $39.99 and shipping is free for both if you’re in the United States.

You can sign up for a monthly subscription or simply send a box as a one-time gift. It’s so simple and totally worth it!

I’ve been receiving a Keto Krate for years now, and it’s one of my absolute favorite things. Each month, I get a box of sugar free goodies shipped directly to my doorstep and it’s almost like having your birthday twelve times a year.

Keto Krate is also conscious of the ingredients in the products they send out. All contents are gluten free and you will never see ingredients like maltitol listed (it tends to give people explosive diarrhea).

Through Keto Krate, I’ve discovered some of my favorite products like Smart Cakes (Lemon is my personal favorite) and Keto Carne jerky.

You can save 25% on your Keto Krate order with Coupon Code: nobunplease

Order Keto Krate

Sweese Butter Dish

On the ketogenic diet, we tend to go through A LOT of butter. I like to keep a bar of Kerrygold on hand for when my dishes really need a boost of rich butter flavor (I can seriously eat it like cheese, too).

This butter dish is big enough to store an entire block of Kerrygold! If you are unfamiliar, Kerrygold is a butter produced from grassfed cows and the packages are about twice the width of a traditional stick of butter.

For those of us drinking bulletproof coffee (coffee + butter + coconut oil) or wanting spreadable butter, this is perfect. You can leave it out on the counter and use it whenever you need it. The cover also means that no bugs or pet hair will ever make it’s way into your butter!

Get it on Amazon

Cold Brew Pitcher

A cold brew pitcher is an excellent gift for the coffee lover in your life!

This pitcher makes it so easy to whip up a batch of cold brew at home. I use the 2 quart size, which means I only have to prepare one batch per week. The handle makes it super simple to pour straight from the fridge.

Ever since I’ve switched to cold brew, I find I can drink it black with nothing added. The result is a super smooth cold coffee at an affordable price! Score.

Get it on Amazon

Vava Electric Milk Frother

If a certain someone on your list is a coffee fan, you can’t go wrong with this milk frother as one of your Keto gifts! No need to go to a local shop when you can do it just as well in your own kitchen.

This electric milk frother produces A LOT of foam and you can use all sorts of bases like heavy whipping cream, coconut milk, and even almond milk. Pair it with a cute coffee mug and you’re set.

Now that’s the way to start the day!

Get it on Amazon

  Anova Sous Vide

Are you horrible at preparing meat? A sous vide might just be the perfect solution.

A sous vide is an electric device that gives you the ability to cook your food at a very precise temperature. Typically, you seal your food, submerge it in a container filled with water, and the device does all of the hard work.

This means that you can perfectly cook your steaks to ANY temperature and it will come out exactly how you like!

I’ve even seen some make a copycat version of the egg bites from Starbucks using a sous vide.

Get it on Amazon

  GoWISE Air Fryer

If you haven’t used an air fryer yet, you’re severely missing out! When I received one as a gift a couple years ago, I didn’t think much of it.

My first recipe was a small batch of chicken wings. This is all it took to convert me! Imagine the crispiest wings you could ever imagine, without the oily mess!

My air fryer has grown to be a staple in my kitchen and I legitimately use it every single day. Aside from wings, they’re great for reheating leftovers (the Blackened Tenders from Popeyes reheat beautifully), cooking burgers, making perfectly crispy bacon and tons more! According to the booklet that came with mine, you can even make a cake!

Get it on Amazon

Soda Stream

I use my Soda Stream every single day!

While marketed as an at-home soda machine, I actually use this almost exclusively for sparkling water.

This device makes it easy to control the amount of bubbles and you can even add your choice of your flavorings.

Soda Stream offer some sugar-free flavor concentrates (the Dr. Pepper alternative is quite yummy) and they’re so nice to have on hand.

Aside from the cost savings, it also means that I don’t have to carry or recycle a ton of plastic/glass from the grocery store.

Get it on Amazon

What are your favorite Keto gift ideas? Share them below!

This post contains affiliate links.

You can click the LINK to start creating your 8-week plan. Simply follow the plan to achieve a successful keto diet.

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[ketoeasyrecipes]

healthy recipes to lose weight

Looking for Healthy Recipes to Lose Weight?

If certainly one of your targets is to prepare dinner extra (and more healthy) at residence to stay to your weight loss targets, you may need to set your self up for achievement. A key a part of that's ensuring you've got received an arsenal of recent healthy recipes to lose weight to whip up, which are *additionally* scrumptious. It can really feel rattling close to torturous to place collectively one thing nutritious and flavorful after an extended day of labor. But upon getting a meal-planning playbook, your dinner recreation goes to enhance. Also, you will not be tempted to order takeout if you have already got a yummy, weight-loss pleasant meal prepped and able to go. These 14 healthy recipes to lose weight every have 500 energy or much less and can depart you glad sufficient to stave off cravings till breakfast. Eating wholesome after 5 p.m. simply received a lot simpler.

healthy recipes to lose weight

1. Chunky No Bean Chilli

I’ve stacked this recipe at the start of the article because it’s one of my all-time favorites. There are a couple unusual substitutions found in this recipe but as you’ll see, they pack an extra punch of savory satisfaction.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

1 ¼ pounds ground beef

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon dried onion or ¼ cup finely chopped fresh onion

28 oz can crush tomato

15 oz can dice tomatoes

2 tablespoons chili powder

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon allspice

½ tsp ground cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon cumin

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 packet sweetener optional

INSTRUCTIONS

Brown the meat and drain fat if needed.

Add the garlic, onion and chili powder and cook with meat for a couple minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients.

Simmer for about an hour.

NOTES

Also try this 19 Quick an Easy Dinner Recipes

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healthy recipes to lose weight

2. Egg & Bacon Muffins

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

1 to 3 packs of smoked or unsmoked bacon (at least 12 strips)

6 small organic eggs

Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 375ºF/190ºC/Gas Mark 5.

Grease 6 wells of a non‑stick muffin pan (or ramekins) with butter, then wrap two or three strips of bacon around the inside of each muffin cup. You may need more or less bacon depending on the size of each strip.

Gently crack one small egg into each muffin cup lined with bacon. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until bacon is crispy and eggs are cooked through to your taste.

Serve with fresh grilled juicy tomatoes.

NOTES

Also try this 14 Simple Meal Plan to Lose Weight

Don’t forget to pin and save for later! 🙂

healthy recipes to lose weight

3. Thai Fish Cakes

Fish cakes are a tasty treat and infusing them with Thai flavors make them even better, these will definitely activate your taste buds and leave you wanting more. 

They have great texture on the exterior and the interior is light with a slight crispness from the green beans. When accompanied by a sweet dipping sauce it really amplifies the dish. You have an amazing plate that can be served as a snack, side or an appetizer.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

18 oz. white flesh fish fillet, boneless and skinless

2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste

1 tablespoon corn starch

1 beaten egg

4 kaffir lime leaves, finely minced

Salt and pepper to taste

5 green beans, trimmed and thinly sliced

Olive oil for frying

Dipping Sauce

3 tablespoons Reduced Sugar Tomato Ketchup

2 tablespoons chili sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

Add the fish fillet to a food processor along with the red curry paste, corn starch, beaten egg and lime leaves. Season with a little salt and pepper then process until a paste forms. Transfer the paste to a

bowl, add the thinly sliced green beans and fold into

the fish cake mixture.

When the mixture is done divide it into 8 equal portions, form the fish cakes with your hands and place them onto a platter. Once this is done fill a deep pan or wok with enough oil to deep fry the cakes and

heat oil until hot.

Fry the fish cakes in small batches for 3 minutes or until golden brown. When they are fried place them on paper towels to drain the excess oil.

As the fish cakes are draining make the sauce by adding the reduced sugar tomato ketchup and chili sauce into a small bowl. Mix well.

Plate and serve the fish cakes with the dipping sauce and enjoy every bite!

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healthy recipes to lose weight

4. Salad Niçoise

Salad niçoise is the ideal way to display a wonderful bounty of fresh ingredients. This salad is packed with protein and features seared tuna, anchovies, eggs, asparagus spears and an array of vegetables. This French salad recipe is definitely unlike any other salad you have ever had. It is loaded with great ingredients that work surprisingly well.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

Vinaigrette

¾ cup olive oil

½ cup fresh lemon juice

1 small shallot, minced

1 ½ tablespoons fresh basil leaves, minced

½ tablespoon fresh thyme, minced

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Pinch of dry oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Salad

2 tuna steaks, 8 oz. each

Olive oil

½ lemon, juiced

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon soya sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

10-15 asparagus spears

1 cup fresh green beans

2 heads lettuce

2 ripe tomatoes

1 red onion, thinly sliced

6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced in half

¼ cup olives

Anchovies

INSTRUCTIONS

Add tuna steaks to a baking dish and coat with olive oil, lemon juice, sesame oil, soya sauce, salt and black pepper. Cover and marinade in the fridge for one hour.

Heat a large pan over medium high heat and add tuna steaks. Get a nice sear on each side. This should take about 2 minutes per side. Remove from the pan and set aside. 

In a bowl add all the vinaigrette ingredients. Whisk until emulsified.

Place asparagus spears in a pot and cover with hot water from a kettle. Bring to a boil. Cook until tender. Drain, sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a smaller pot bring salted water to a boil.

Prepare an ice bath.

Blanch green beans for 3 minutes or until tender.

Place into the ice bath to maintain that lovely color. Drain beans and set aside.

Tear lettuce leaves and place into a salad bowl. Add some of the vinaigrette and toss.

Arrange on a serving platter.

Cut tuna into ½ inch strips and coat with a little vinaigrette. Place in the center of the lettuce.

Toss green beans in about 3 tablespoons of vinaigrette. Place at the end of the bed of lettuce along with the asparagus spears.

Toss tomatoes, red onion and 2 tablespoons vinaigrette in a bowl and place on the lettuce.

Add hard boiled eggs, olives and anchovies

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healthy recipes to lose weight

5. Pan Fried Steak Tomato Salad

There is nothing like a steak dinner that allows the meat to shine on the plate. All that is needed with it is a simple, lightly dressed salad. One great meal that encompasses these characteristics is a pan-fried medium steak with a tomato and rocket salad. The steak is juicy, simply seasoned, and has a nice crust on the outside. The salad has a nice peppery kick.

The sweetness from the tomatoes and a balsamic vinaigrette made with olive oil to dress the salad. The steak will be restaurant quality and the salad is light and fresh with a very satisfying depth of flavor. The first thing to do is focus on making a perfect pan-fried medium steak.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

Steak

Sirloin steak, about 1 inch thick

Salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon garlic granules or powder

Unsalted butter

1 teaspoon honey

Salad

1 cup cherry tomatoes

1 cup rocket

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Steak

Bring the steak to room temperature.

Season steak liberally on both sides with salt, pepper and garlic.

Heat a large skillet over high heat.

When skillet is hot adding about 1 tablespoon of butter into the non-stick pan.

Immediately place strip steak on top of the butter (the butter helps to create a nice crust on the exterior).

Allow to sear for about 3 minutes undisturbed.

Turnover and cook for 3-4 more minutes for a medium rare steak.

Remove from skillet.

Allow to rest (resting helps retain juices).

Salad

Halve cherry tomatoes.

In a large bowl combine tomatoes and rocket.

Make a quick dressing by whisking olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Add to salad and toss to coat. Season with a bit more salt and pepper if desired.

Now that your steak is rested and the salad is ready, slice and serve on top of salad.                    

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healthy recipes to lose weight

6. Stir Fry Shirataki Shrimp Noodles

Japanese Shirataki noodles are a great alternative to pasta, they contain no bad carbohydrates, the noodle is low calorie and low carb. Stir fry shrimp noodles is everything you want in a stir fry and so much more. 

All the textures and tastes in this dish just work. You have your crisp elements thanks to the veggies, tender shrimp and softness from the Shirataki noodles. Aside from texture, the aroma is truly unforgettable.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

4 tablespoons dark soy sauce

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine or sherry (optional)

1 thumb size piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced

1-2 teaspoons ground white pepper

1 teaspoon granulated sugar (optional)

¼ cup olive oil

1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined

4 celery ribs, thinly sliced diagonally

4 scallions/spring onions thinly sliced diagonally

2 medium sized carrots, shredded

1 head of garlic, peeled and minced

1 package Shirataki noodles

INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the sauce for the stir fry by combining the soy sauce, sesame oil, cooking wine, ginger, white pepper, sugar and mix well.

Once the sauce is done, add half of the oil to a deep saucepan or wok and heat over medium high. Add the shrimp to the hot oil and cook for 4‑5 minutes or until pink and opaque. Remove the shrimp and set those aside.

In the same pan or wok add the remaining oil along with the celery, green onions, carrots and garlic. Stir fry for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables are warmed through but still have crispness and bite. When they are done set them aside.

As for the Shirataki noodles, they are packaged in water so just take them out of the packaging and run them under hot water. Once this is done add the noodles to the hot pan or wok and stir fry for 3 minutes before adding in the sauce, shrimp and vegetables.

When all the components come together stir fry until everything is warmed through and coated with sauce. Now that the dish is ready, serve and enjoy every bite.

NOTES

Also try this 19 Vegan Dinner Recipes

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healthy recipes to lose weight

7. Baked Cod with Vegetables & Herbs

Cod is a wonderful product to cook with. It is a very delicate, mild fish that pairs well with so many ingredients. 

With a few super fresh fillets and some thyme, it is easy to create an impressive dish that pleases all the senses. 

One dish in particular that is quite phenomenal is cod fillets baked in foil accompanied by leeks and carrots. This trio is then seasoned with herbs and spices and cooked until flakey.

Baking in the foil allows the fish to steam until it is perfectly flakey and the vegetables cook down while still maintaining their bite. As for the herbs and spices, they bring the dish to new heights. 

In the end you have little packets of elegance to serve and enjoy.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

Salt and pepper to taste

Dry white wine of choice

2 cod fillets (6 oz each), boneless and skinless

Lemon wedges

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 garlic cloves, minced finely

2 teaspoons lemon zest

1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced

1 ½ tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

1 cup baby carrots

2 leeks, cut into matchsticks, white and light green part only

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 375ºF/190ºC/Gas Mark 5. Add the butter, a little garlic, a portion of the lemon zest and all of the fresh thyme to a small bowl along with a sprinkle of black pepper. 

Mix to create a seasoned butter for the cod. 

Once this is done, add the remaining garlic, parsley, and lemon zest to a separate bowl and mix to combine.

In a medium sized bowl toss together the carrots and leaks along with some salt and pepper. 

Tear off two sheets of aluminum foil and lay them flat on the counter.

Place a mound of the leek and carrot mix in the center of each sheet of foil and add a splash of white wine along with the juice of a lemon wedge. 

Add a fish fillet on the top of the vegetables and season with black

pepper. 

Top each with half of the seasoned butter and fold the foil to create little packets. 

Place both packets onto a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. After this time remove from the oven, unwrap each package to allow steam to escape and check for doneness by making sure that the fish flakes easily with a fork. 

When the fish is done top with the garlic, parsley and lemon zest mixture and serve with lemon wedges.

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healthy recipes to lose weight

8. Chicken Chasseur

Chicken chasseur, which translates to hunter’s chicken, is a classic French dish. This super easy main course is exceptional. The chicken is super tender, the tomatoes add some acidity, the herbs provide a pronounced flavor and the mushrooms bring an amazing earthiness. Making the entire recipe in one vessel ensures that the end result is a beautiful dish that pleases all the senses.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

1 can chopped tomatoes

2 sprigs fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

4 sprigs fresh tarragon

1 small pot double or heavy cream

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

4 skinned and boned chicken thighs

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, peeled and sliced (or shallots)

1 cup sliced chestnut mushrooms

3 garlic cloves, minced

½ cup dry white wine

2 cups chicken broth

INSTRUCTIONS

Pre-heat an oven to 425ºF/220ºC/Gas Mark 7.

Quickly season the 2 tablespoons of flour with a little salt and pepper. Once seasoned coat the chicken thighs with flour and shake off the excess (this will help brown the chicken).

When the chicken is coated, add oil to a large pan and place over medium high heat. Put chicken thighs into the pan and cook until golden brown on both sides. As soon as the chicken is brown add the sliced onions along with the mushrooms and garlic. Stir continuously until the onions and mushrooms are fragrant then pour in the wine and bring to a boil for 3 minutes.

Follow by pouring in the chopped tomatoes and let the sauce boil and reduce once again for 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock, thyme, bay leaves as well as the fresh tarragon and give it a good stir. Transfer the dish to the preheated oven.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. After the 30 to 40 minutes have passed check the chicken for doneness (it should not be pink). Remove from the oven, stir in the heavy cream and serve with vegetables.

NOTES

Also try this 16 Chicken Dinner Recipes

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healthy recipes to lose weight

9. Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

1 large white cabbage

Olive oil

1 onion, peeled and finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 carrot, peeled and finely diced

½ cup mushrooms, finely chopped

2 pounds ground meat of choice(beef, turkey, chicken or pork is fine)

18 oz. can of tomato sauce

1 tablespoon tomato puree

1 teaspoon brown sugar (optional)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Pinch of red chili flakes

1 cup chicken broth/stock

Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

With a sharp knife carefully core the cabbage and place it into a large pot. Cover the cabbage with water and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Cook for 7-10 minutes or until the leaves are pliable and tender.

When the cabbage is cooked, drain and remove it from the pot. Once cool enough to be handled remove the leaves and lay them flat. Allow to cool for a few additional minutes.

As the cabbage leaves are cooling add about a tablespoon of oil to a large pan. Heat over medium and sauté the onions, garlic, carrots and mushrooms until softened. Once this is done add the ground meat and brown. As the meat is browning preheat the oven to 350ºF/180ºC/Gas Mark 4 and grease a large baking dish with olive oil. When the meat is cooked the filling is done.

Now that you have the filling add about 2 tablespoons in the center of each cabbage leaf, fold in the sides and roll. If the leaves are too thin use two per roll (just make sure to align the spines). Once the rolls are done place them in an even layer in the non-stick baking dish.

In a medium saucepan add the tomato sauce, tomato puree, brown sugar, lemon juice, red pepper flakes and chicken broth/stock. Season with salt and pepper. Once seasoned bring the sauce to a quick and pour this over the cabbage rolls. Now just cover the dish with foil, and bake for 45 minutes. After this time uncover and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes.

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healthy recipes to lose weight

10. Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes

If you like mashed potatoes it is time to try mashed cauliflower. The appearance is very similar but the taste is so much lighter and brighter. Mashed cauliflower still has that rich quality and is packed with essential vitamins and minerals. It is also low carb and low in calories! Here is how to make this healthy mashed potato alternative.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

1 large head of cauliflower

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 - 3 garlic cloves, minced

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Fill a large pot with water, attach a steamer basket and bring to a boil over high heat. If you do not have a steamer basket on hand simply cover pot and bring water to a boil.

As the water is heating up cut the head of cauliflower in half with a sharp knife and carefully remove the stem. Once this is done chop the cauliflower into small pieces.

Steam or boil the cauliflower for about 15 minutes. During this time drizzle a little oil in a small pan and sauté the minced garlic. Sauté while stirring until softened and fragrant.

Check that the cauliflower is tender and remove pot from the heat. Drain the water and transfer vegetable to a mixing bowl along with the garlic, use a hand held potato masher to crush the cauliflower, then add the butter, some salt and a generous amount of pepper. Pound until smooth, taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Now that the mashed cauliflower is done simply transfer to a plate and serve as desired.

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healthy recipes to lose weight

11. Zucchini Lasagna

Lasagna is a lovely dish. It has the signature layers, the richness, tomato sauce and of course cheese. Although often made with lasagna noodles, why not reduce the carbs and replace the noodles with zucchini (courgetti)? Doing so brightens up the dish and takes out the heaviness while retaining the richness that every lasagna should have.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

Olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb. ground beef or turkey

24 oz. tomato sauce

1 teaspoon oregano

2 sprigs fresh basil, chopped

16 oz. shredded skim-milk mozzarella plus more for topping

½ cup freshly grated parmesan plus more for serving

2 eggs

4 medium zucchini (courgetti’s), cut in ⅛-inch-thick slices

Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350ºF and heat a large skillet over medium. Add some olive oil into the skillet along with the onion and garlic. Cook until softened and fragrant. Add the ground meat into the skillet and brown. Season generously with salt and pepper.

Pour the tomato sauce into the pan with the browned meat, add in the oregano, basil and simmer for 10-12 minutes.

As the meat sauce is simmering, combine the mozzarella, parmesan cheese and egg in a bowl to make the mixture for the cheese layer. Mix until the egg is evenly distributed into the cheese.

Direct your attention to the sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. When the sauce and cheese mix is done, lightly coat a 9 by 13 inch baking dish with oil and arrange the slices of zucchini in an even layer on the bottom. Top this layer with half of the meat sauce and a layer of the cheese mixture. Repeat the layers and finish with zucchini.

Top with mozzarella cheese and cover the lasagna with foil. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes before removing the foil and returning it to the oven for an additional 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven, cool for about 5 minutes, plate and serve with a little parmesan cheese if desired.

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healthy recipes to lose weight

12. Gluten-Free Pizza

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

3 cups (440 g) gluten-free flour blend

1 cup (160 g) white rice flour

1 cup (160 g) brown rice flour

1 cup (120 g) tapioca flour

¾ tsp xanthan gum)

1 tsp salt

½ tsp baking powder

3 Tbsp (37 g) sugar, divided

1 Tbsp (10 g) yeast

1 ¼ cup (300 ml) warm water, divided

1 Tbsp (15 ml) olive oil

Sugar-Free Pizza sauce

1 cup pepperoni

1 cup skim-milk mozzarella & and desired veggies

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C).

In a small bowl, combine yeast and ¾ cup (180 ml) warm water about 110 degrees F (43 C). Too hot and it will kill the yeast! Let set for 5 minutes to activate. Sprinkle in 1 Tbsp (12 g) of the sugar a few minutes in.

In a separate bowl, combine gluten free flour blend, salt, baking powder and remaining 2 Tbsp (25 g) sugar. Whisk until well combined.

Make a well in the dry mixture and add the yeast mixture. Add the olive oil and additional ½ cup (120 ml) warm water before stirring. Then stir it all together until well combined, using a wooden spoon.

Lightly coat a baking sheet or pizza stone with nonstick spray and plop your dough down. Using your hands and a little brown rice flour if it gets too sticky, work from the middle and push to spread/flatten the

dough out to the edge. You want it to be pretty thin, less than ¼ inch.

Put the pizza in the oven to pre‑bake for roughly 25‑30 minutes, or until it begins to look dry. Cracks may appear, but that's normal and totally OK.

Remove from oven and spread generously with your favorite pizza sauce, cheese and desired toppings. We went with Daiya to keep ours dairy‑free. Pop back in oven for another 20‑25 minutes, or until the crust edge looks golden brown and the toppings are warm and bubbly.

Cut immediately and serve. Reheats well the next day in the oven or microwave.

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healthy recipes to lose weight

13. Coconut Lime Chicken

This coconut lime chicken is for everyone out there who gets unbelievably bored eating plain old chicken day in and day out but can’t be bothered with making anything too fancy for dinner.

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, about 1 ½ pounds

¼ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon coconut oil

½ cup red onion

1 whole red chili, chopped optional

1 cup organic chicken stock

2 tablespoons lime juice, about 1 large lime

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

½ teaspoon red chili flakes

½ cup full fat coconut milk from a can or coconut cream

pinch turmeric powder (optional for color)

1 tablespoon arrow root starch for paleo/whole 30 or corn starch mixed into 1 tablespoons water optional

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic cling wrap and pound them down to make them even in thickness. 

This will help the chicken cook evenly and make for more tender chicken. 

Sprinkle each side of the chicken with salt and pepper. 

Melt the coconut oil in a large skillet over a medium high heat on the stove.

Add the chicken breasts and cook each side for 5-7 minutes or until browned on each side. 

Remove the chicken and set aside on a plate. 

The chicken doesn't need to be fully cooked yet because you'll be returning it to the heat shortly. 

Wipe down the pan with a paper towel to remove black/brown bits. Add a little more oil along with the chopped onion to the same skillet and sauté for a few minutes to soften.

Add the chili pepper if you're using it. 

Sauté another couple of minutes. 

Add the chicken stock, lime juice, cilantro and chili flakes.

Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce down to a simmer. 

Add the coconut milk (and the turmeric if using) and bring to simmer again for another 5 minutes. 

Add the starch and water at this time if you're using it. 

You may need to raise the heat slightly higher to bring this to a boil to activate the starch. 

Once the sauce thickens reduce it back down to a simmer. 

Add the chicken back to the skillet, cover and let cook for another 5-10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked all the way through. 

Serve with rice or cauliflower rice with the sauce spooned over the top. Add an extra sprinkling of cilantro & chilies and enjoy!

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healthy recipes to lose weight

14. Chicken Nuggets

healthy recipes to lose weight

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

½ Cup Dill Pickle Juice

2 eggs, Beaten

1 can Full-Fat Coconut Milk

½ C. Arrowroot Powder

2 Tbsp Paprika

2 tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

Salt and pepper to taste - I like to use sea salt

½ Cup coconut oil for frying

INSTRUCTIONS

First, prepare the chicken by dicing into 1-2-inch cubes.

Add diced chicken and pickle juice to a mixing bowl and cover.

Refrigerate for at least 6 hours and up to 24 hours.

After chicken has marinated in pickle juice, drain pickle juice from bowl and add coconut milk and beaten eggs to the chicken.

Toss the chicken in the mixture and let sit for at least 5 minutes.

Mix the dry ingredients- arrowroot powder, salt & pepper, garlic powder, cayenne, and paprika in a shallow pan.

Add batches of chicken to the dry ingredients. 

Make sure to cover each piece of chicken completely with dry ingredients.

Shake off excess powder and place on lined baking sheet.

Heat a cast iron skillet with the coconut oil on mediumhigh heat.

Once the oil is hot, add one batch of chicken at a time.

Do not crowd the chicken- this will take 3 or 4 batchesand make sure to turn each piece individually once the

crust has browned, about 3 or 4 minutes per side.

Drain cooked chicken on a drying rack over a baking sheet.

Keep cooked chicken warm in the oven at 170 degrees.

Don’t forget to pin and save for later! 🙂

healthy recipes to lose weight

[just-another-winchester]

Cooking Class

Request? Naw, challenge though. :)

Pairing/ Castiel x reader

Word Count/ 2,160

Warnings/ Uhm, lots of fluff.

Plot/ Reader teaches Dean and Cas how to cook spaghetti

A/N/

Sup ya’ll!? This was for a challenge made by @cass-trash for her follower challenge! Congrats on the numbers girly! I hope you like.

Also huge thanks to my girl Beka! :) @impala-dreamer

“I swear to god Dean!” you laughed aloud at the tall man standing before you, “You make it seem like I’m so boring!”

“Well, I mean you kind of are,” the Winchester shrugged, “I mean all you do is stay around here in the damn bunker and cook and clean and all that crap. Go out, get a beer, have sex,” he suggested.

You had just spent the afternoon cleaning up the kitchen and doing laundry. The boys always made such a mess that this was pretty much every Saturday for you; today though, Dean decided to pester you about it.

“Well I don’t see you cleaning anything, and if I don’t cook all you’re going to eat is fast food and grease on a stick!” you argued back at him.

Dean shook his head. “Well, maybe that’s just easier. Who has time for home cooked meals?” he asked rhetorically.

“I’m going to guess people who don’t kill monsters and commit credit card fraud for a living,” you suggested; he shook his head.

“Well ain’t that just an awful way to live? Again… boring.”

“Dean...” You chuckled, grabbing the empty bottle of beer from his hand and rinsing it off in the sink.

“Hey, I’ll tell you what you should do. Teach us how to cook!” Dean Winchester suggested. The moment the words came out of his mouth, you turned to him, a brow raised as you studied him.

“Uhm… what?” you asked cautiously.

Dean just smirked and nodded. “Yeah sure, why not? I can’t really find a hunt anywhere near us right now, kinda bored just drinking beer and picking on you.” He shrugged.

“Okay, Sam knows how to cook though, I didn’t have to teach him; I think he learned in college.” You pointed, that’s when Dean gave you the grin that you knew meant trouble.

“That’s not what I meant by us,” he smirked, lifting his phone in the air and beginning to type something as he spoke.

‘Hey Cas! How’s it going? I’m just here with Y/N in the kitchen and she was saying how she would just love to teach you and I how to prepare a meal. I’m guessing you ain’t doing nothing, so stop by.’

The moment Dean began to speak you were on him like butter on toast… only with more stabbing and less spreading.

Dean knew you had a crush on the angel, hell, who didn’t have a crush on Castiel? You teased Dean about it sometimes, even though he always rolled his eyes, and you were perpetually teased by the hunter, leaving you a blushing mess at the simple thought of Castiel.

“Dammit Dean!” you yelled as Dean fought you off, chuckling as he finally pressed the send button on the screen. You backed off as Dean gave you his signature grin, causing you to slap him upside the head.

“Ow! Hey!” He chuckled, grabbing his head where you bonked him, and you crossed your arms over your chest.

“You’re dead for this!” you grumbled, although secretly you were hugging and kissing the man. You always loved having Castiel around, but you were such a bumbling fool. You were cool, confident in the kitchen, always very laid back; perhaps if Cas met you on your turf things would come out differently.

“Now I gotta think of something easy to teach you guys,” you muttered, running your fingers through your hair as you grabbed your notebook full of recipes. You skimmed over each page, trying to find something easy that could get both men to the end of the day without having been killed.

Finally, you settled on spaghetti. It was simple enough and took little time to cook.

You had no honest idea when Cas would arrive, but you decided you may as well get the things together and prepare.

“Alright, you got me into this, you get to help me get all the crap out.” You smirked at Dean. The man smiled; he had been looking at his phone, but shut it off immediately to look up at you.

“Sure thing, whatcha need?” he asked.

You told him everything you were going to need pots and pans and utensil wise, and while you let him sort through the cabinets to find that, you went to make sure that you had everything you needed.

After gathering the tomato sauce, noodles, and meat, you set them aside. Knowing you would end up making meatballs as well, you checked to make sure you had the ingredients for those.

As you were checking all the food, making sure nothing was past the date, you heard a gush of wind and turned to see Castiel standing almost right behind you.

You squeaked slightly, which alerted Dean to you. The man turned and grinned, a large stock pot in his hand, and for some reason a bowl on his head.

“Hey, Cas.” He grinned. You just groaned and rolled your eyes.

“Dean!” you growled, walking over and taking the bowl off his head, trying to ignore the angel as you scooted away from him. “Now I’m going to have to wash this!”

Castiel remained silent as you argued with Dean, looking between the two of you. Finally, his gaze landed on your face.

“Dean has informed me you would like to partake in an activity,” Castiel said to you.

You looked back to him and nodded.

“Uh… yeah,” you muttered, trying to look into his blue eyes without vomiting from nerves. “It was Dean’s idea though, I don’t know why he lied to you,” you said, elbowing Deam in the ribs. He let out a soft

noise as your elbow connected with his ribcage, before glaring at you.

“Hey, I gotta protect my pride somehow. I don’t cook.” Dean shrugged, setting the utensils and dishes he had gathered on the counter.

“Well, you do now,” you said to him, pursing your lips before looking to Cas. “Wanna join? We can enjoy it afterwards.” You grinned at him. You were right, your nerves were much less frayed when in the kitchen, even around your angel crush.

Cas looked at you, tilting his head a bit. “Of course, I would be pleased to join you. However I will not be enjoying anything afterwards.”

Dean made a fake shocked face. “Why Cas! Don’t say such a thing, you might hurt her feelings,” he said.

As you were about to pummel him, Cas spoke again.

“I only mean… I don’t need to eat, so even if I do, I can taste every molecule in the meal, I promise you, it’s actually quite disgusting.”

“Okay then, Dean and I will enjoy it for you.” You smiled, not letting Dean get a word in.

You led the boys back to the metal table where you had gathered the food, and once Dean finished retrieving the pots and utensils, you began.

You handed a pot to Cas, looking up at him. “Fill this with water, please? Up to the embossed line right there,” you said, showing him the line in the pot. After you sent Cas to fill the pot with water, you showed Dean how to mix together the ingredients to make a few meatballs before going over and starting the stove top, letting it warm up as Castiel brought you the pot.

“I filled it,” he said to you, looking you in the eyes.

You smiled kindly at him and stepped back. “Okay, just set it on the burner, we’re going to let it come to a boil.”

You grabbed the salt and your measuring spoons, handing the angel the spoon marked half a tablespoon.

“Now, I always add salt to the water, I like to think it makes the noodles a little less bland,” you said to him. Cas held the spoon as you poured the salt into it. When you were finished, Castiel poured the salt in the water.

You moved away from the stove, letting the water heat up and boil as you came back to Dean, seeing him mix and mush the meatballs. All the ingredients you had given him were already added and he was currently making them into ball shapes.

You tasked Cas with helping Dean as you went to prepare the rest of the meat.

You gathered everything you needed and placed a large frying pan on the stove top, grabbing what was left of the meat and putting it in the pan while you began to cut up vegetables to add to the mix.

You hummed slightly to yourself as you worked. You got the peppers chopped up first, seeing as you were dreading chopping up the onion.

As you began to cut the onion, you could already feel the sting in your eyes. You tried to focus on something else and your mind went to why you liked Castiel in the first place. The angel was a lot of things: he was adorable, thoughtful, sweet. He does what he believes is best, in your opinion, he may as well be a Winchester with wings and a trench coat.

You became lost in thought when suddenly you felt a presence behind you. You turned to look and saw Cas right behind you.

You wiped your eyes, the stinging sensation still remained.

“Are you alright?” Cas asked you. “Why are you crying?”

At his words, you wanted to hug the little fallen angel, and you chuckled softly, still trying to wipe the sting from your eyes. “It’s nothing, just cutting this damn onion, it typically makes people cry.” You shrugged, smiling a little as you looked at him.

You couldn’t get over the frown plastered on Castiel’s face as he looked at you, his blue eyes full of concern as he reached out and took your hand.

“Here, let me,” he said, gently moving you aside as he began to chop the onions himself. You stood for a minute, watching him in awe. It wasn’t difficult to chop onions, but still, you didn’t think Cas would know how.

The angel looked back up at you, seeing the tears still in your eyes.

“Perhaps you should go supervise Dean. I can handle this, he’s over there making little meatball men,” Cas said.

At Castiel’s words, your eyes widened and you turned to see Dean had made his own little meatball family. You rolled your eyes and walked over to smash them all.

“MY FAMILY!” He yelled at you.

Finally, after a great sum of arguing, remaking meatballs, and Castiel taking care of the meat, veggies, and noodles, your food was done.

You drained the water from the noodles with the help of Dean as Cas brought over the pot with the meat in it. The meatballs had been simmering over the heat as you let Castiel mix the meat and noodles in together so it would be evenly dispersed.

Dean grabbed two plates and brought them over to you so you could plate some for the two of you. You looked back to Castiel

“You sure you don’t want any?” you asked, but he simply shook his head. You shrugged as you placed meatballs over the meat and noodles on the two plates, and watched as Dean walked back to the table with his plate before turning to Cas.

“Welp, uh… thanks for attending. We probably won’t do this again,” you said softly, looking up at him.

“Oh, well, that’s a shame. I actually rather enjoyed this,” Castiel told you earnestly, looking down at you with a small smile on his lips.

“You did?” you asked him, not hiding the surprise in your voice.

Castiel nodded. “Of course, how could I not? I always enjoy spending time with you. Uh, and Dean,” he said, causing you to grin.

“Well, I guess maybe I could teach you, and Dean, how to cook something else?” you offered.

Castiel cleared his throat.

“Of course, I’ll be there,” Cas said to you. “Just uh… please let me cut the onions next time.”

You nodded at the angel, pursing your lips before he vanished. You turned back to the table where Dean was humming to himself, he looked up at you and grinned.

“Cas and Y/N sitting in a tree.” He started to sing mockingly as you walked over to him,

“Shut up Winchester,” you said to him, causing him to laugh.

“Hey, you owe me a thank you. If it wasn’t for me, Castiel would’ve never shown up,” he said.

“Oh Dean, I owe you something better than a thank you” You smirked, and he raised a brow.

“Okay?” he said.

You could see the unease in his expression as you punched him in the gut. He bent over and you laughed. “I owe you that, for not doing it sooner,” you said before running out of the kitchen as you heard Dean chasing after you.

You already couldn’t wait for the next class.

Tag List: @spn67-sister If you would like to be on my tag list just leave me an ask!! :)

[familylifescsaping-blog]

All About Lemon

All About Lemon Video What is a Lemon? The lemon tree, which is an evergreen, originated in China or Northeast India and can grow to be around 20ft (or 6 meters) tall. 

Lemon Orchard It produces lemons (aka citrus limon) that are a popular fruit due to their versatility in drinks and in both sweet and savory recipes. However, instead of the traditional steam-distillation process, its essential oil is obtained from cold pressing the rind of the fruit.  It takes approximately 75 lemons to make one 15ml bottle of lemon essential oil, or about 250 drops. And of course, as usual, we’re only talking about Young Living’s essential oils. You can tell with the aroma of this one, that you’re ONLY getting lemons in your bottle. It smells AMAZING.  So, Why use Lemon and Lemon Vitality Essential Oils? Lemon has many wonderful properties that are a great addition to a healthy lifestyle, including the naturally occurring constituent limonene, which is known for its cleansing properties. As a result lemon is a key ingredient in many health products and essential oil blends.  It also contains other key constituents such as Alpha-Pinene.There are multiple research studies that are available to the public detailing its benefits. Pub Chem When taken internally, lemon vitality has antioxidant properties that can support a healthy immune system. It supports the nervous system and keeps your system alert with its potent properties.  It can also balance pH levels to the alkaline state. Remember, if your body pH is low, your body will be acidic and so you will have less of a response to essential oils. And diseases thrive in an acidic environment. It’s very insightful to delve into other culture’s historic usage of lemon, so I highly recommend you do a little research. Click here for a starting point. The aroma of Lemon also revitalizes and lifts the spirit. When you diffuse this essential oil you’re also getting a bright aroma that can tackle strong odors.  So, How To Use Lemon Essential Oil Aromatically Lemon is a wonderful air freshener, but you can take it up a notch by adding 6 drops of lemon and 6 drops of purification into a glass spray bottle with distilled water. Shake it up and use it in the bathroom as an air freshener.   As I’ve mentioned several times before, there are endless combinations you can come up with to diffuse. Here are some that include lemon, which I regularly diffuse: The most popular is probably LLP, which contains 3 drops each of Lemon, Lavender and Peppermint.  Running low on the Raven blend? No problem, I combine 3 drops each of Lemon, Wintergreen and Eucalptus Radiata, especially at bedtime.  It’s summer, so try this one to help you get in the right mood: 1 drop of Lemon, 3 drops of Lime and 4 drops of Stress Away.  And here’s one I’m diffusing right now for the first time, which has: 2 drops of Lemon, 3 drops of Grapefruit, 3 drops of Orange and 1 drop of Bergamot. Now, How To Use Lemon Essential Oil Topically

Safety Alert # 1 To avoid photo-sensitivity, some essential oils such as citrus oils, should NOT be applied to skin that will be exposed to direct sunlight or ultraviolet light for several hours. This is why you don’t normally find people bathing in lemon essential oil. Having said that… if you have blond hair there are plenty of recipes to brighten the look of your hair that contain lemon.  If you happen to find me handling fish after a successful fishing trip, there would be no doubt that I would be using a couple of drops of lemon oil on my hands and rubbing it in throughly at the end of the day. How To Use Lemon Vitality Essential Oil Internally Lemon vitality, which comes in your Premium Starter Kit is a very simple and straight forward essential oil to use internally. Add it to your NingXia Red shot for an added boost, or practically any other drink you like.  Typically it’s added daily to my glass of water or glass container that I sip from throughout the day when out and about. Water now has flavor for me without any harmful ingredients, and is actually doing me some good.  

Safety Alert # 2

Always use Lemon, and other citrus essential oils in glass or stainless steel. They eat away at petrochemicals. So in a plastic water bottle, they are effectively eating away at the plastic, and you do NOT want to be drinking that.  The whole point is to be flushing nasty chemicals out of your body, NOT adding more to it.  To make this point…I’m going to show you what happens when you add one drop of lemon essential oil to the bottom of a styrofoam cup. 

I’ll leave it alone and show you the results in a couple of minutes.  You can even put Lemon vitality into a vegetable capsule - a common combination is equal parts of Lemon, Lavender and Peppermint vitality essential oils. You’ll find us doing this one mainly in the spring time. But you can easily combine lemon vitality with other vitality oils of your choice. Once you’ve made the capsule either swallow it immediately or put it in the freezer for a couple of weeks, otherwise you’ll quickly make an oily mess.  Now, even though Lemon is a wonderful summer smell to me, it’s great to take internally during the winter.        How about this warm spicy apple punch: Combine 2 quarts apple cider (or juice), 2 cups orange juice and 1 cup of pineapple juice into a large pot and let it simmer over a low heat. Then add the following vitality essential oils: 5 drops of Lemon, 4 drops of cinnamon, 1 drop of clove and 1 drop of nutmeg. This recipe makes approximately 10 cups, and you serve it warm. Now, something for the adults…Winter Whisky: Warm up 1/4 cup of honey and add 3 shots of whisky and 6 shots of water, where 1 shot equals 1 oz. Then add your essential oils: 6 drops of Lemon, 2 drops of the Thieves blend and 8 drops of Orange.  Or make a lemon martini with 2 oz of vodka, 1 oz of simple syrup, 5 drops of lemon vitality essential oil and 1/4 oz of lemon juice for an added tangy twist.  You can even add it to a turmeric infused honey for a boost during the colder seasons. Take 1 teaspoon of ground turmeric and add it to 1/4 cup of raw honey. Then mix in 2 drops of Lemon vitality and cover as you may store this at room temperature. Stir the contents before each use and take 1/2 teaspoon several times a day.  Or simply add 1-2 drops of lemon vitality to a teaspoon of honey and put it down the hatch. I like to add a couple of drops of Copaiba as well for added benefits and to soothe some of the heat from the lemon.  We commonly use Lemon vitality in our kitchen. It adds a bright and dynamic flavor to many dishes we cook from around the world.  Why not add a drop or two to savory foods like fish, chicken, vegetables, noodles, rice and pasta, or sweet foods like pastries and cakes. What about adding a drop next time you have a plain or vanilla flavored yogurt? Or add 2-3 drops when you want to give a lovely  fresh twist to your salsa.  It’s very convenient to use instead of zesting or juicing. My husband nearly always uses it when creating vinaigrettes or marinades. It really does add a bright taste to summer salads and grilling.  Back to our styrofoam cup…

And the lemon is going to continue to eat away at these chemicals. Lemon is powerful and gets down to business.  This is why it’s ALSO so good in DIY recipes for the Household Lemon can be added to cleaning solutions to infuse them with a fresh citrus scent, AND it has cleaning power too! Here are some recipes:  Furniture Polish: Mix together 1 tsp of olive oil, 1 tsp of water and 2-3 drops of Lemon Essential oil and apply with a soft cleaning cloth. You’ll want to make this fresh each time. If you don’t yet have the AMAZING Thieves Household Cleaner, which also contains lemon (a very important ingredient ), why not use this recipe for a window cleaner. Mix 1 cup of white vinegar, 3 cups of distilled water and 10-15 drops of Lemon EO in a spray bottle for sparkling windows and mirrors.  Or, this recipe for a floor cleaner: 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1 bucket of hot distilled water and 5-10 drops of Lemon, Tea Tree or Purification essential oils. Of course, I prefer the Thieves Household Cleaner, but in a pinch this is what I would do. Or use 1-2 drops of Lemon essential oil on stains. Let it stand and then rub it off with a clean cloth or throw it into the laundry cycle.  However, if you do have the Thieves Household Cleaner, but need a little extra elbow grease for a build up of soap scum, tile grout needs brightening or marker mishaps, I highly recommend this soft scrub: 1/4 cup Thieves Household cleaner, 1 tsp distilled vinegar, 10 drops of lemon essential oil and 1 cup of baking soda. Mix the first 3 ingredients together and then slowly stir in the baking soda. It makes approximately 8oz of paste, and I keep it in small mason jars so it’s ready to go when I need it.  For a Dishwasher Detergent I mix together 1 cup of baking soda, 1 cup borax, 1/4 cup citric acid, 15 drops of lemon and 10 drops of orange in a large glass container. Add 1 heaped tablespoon per load. You could add a sachet of uncooked white rice to the container to absorb moisture. I commonly also add a drop of Thieves essential oil blend directly into the dishwasher for the sparkle and odor elimination.  Even More DIY Recipes: Use 1-2 drops of lemon to remove gum, crayon, grease spots or oil.  A couple of drops also removes the sticky residue from labels. Help keep your fruit fresh by adding 2-3 drops of lemon to a bowl of cool water. Soak the cleaned fruit into the water and stir, making sure each piece of fruit has had contact with the lemon. Drain, rinse, dry and place in a bowl. Of course, you can skip this step if you’ve cleaned your fruit and vegetables with the Thieves Fruit and Veggie soak. You’ll be amazed to see how that cleans up your food. You can also freshen dishcloths before they start to sour, by soaking them overnight in a bowl of water with a several drops of lemon. Also freshen your counter tops by adding 2-3 drops of lemon to a spray bottle of water and spritz your counters Let’s take another look at the styrofoam cup.… There’s no doubt that Lemon does its job!

This photo was taken after the video. So use this as a reminder to use glass or stainless steel containers with essential oils, rather than plastic. Plastic particles can leach into the oil and then into your body one way or another, including if applied via a lemon mixture onto your skin. However, if you must use a plastic container, look for HDPE or PETE that have the recycling symbols 1 or 2 as apparently these are less likely to react. Although, I haven’t done my research on those yet.  There are so many more ways you can use a drop of Lemon or Lemon Vitality essential oil, Google it and you’ll be lost for days! This is truly and essential oil no home should be without, and it’s cheaper and better quality than any of the Lemons you can buy in the store. With Young Living’s Seed To Seal Commitment, you know where your lemons have come from.  So, now you can go and make the most of every drop of your Lemon essential oil Read the full article

[hadarmarkin]

Alexandria – The Diaspora within the Diaspora

Close your eyes and imagine you are traveling back in time and space. You are sitting at a seaside restaurant patio drinking a glass of wine.  The ocean breeze gently blows the leaves of the palm trees.  At the table next to you sits a beautiful woman dressed in a fine light suit, chatting in French. You cannot help but listening to her story interrupted only by the long inhales from her cigarettes. She is talking about the new Patisserie that recently opened just down the street. Their croissants, she exclaims, are the best! “Alores”, she concludes “Even better than Paris”.  All around you are couples dancing to the soft melancholic music being played by the band.  It’s just another beautiful night in late 1940’s Alexandria, Egypt. Don’t forget to order the Arabic coffee - they say it’s the best. 

So much has changed in Egypt as a result of the geo-political and socioeconomic instability of the last 70 years - particularly the Officers’ Coup D’état (1952), the Islamic radicalization, the growing poverty and widespread human rights violations. Alexandria, the second largest city in the country, was not spared from this dreary reality. However, as an important port city, Alexandria has managed to attract people from different nationalities and to keep its original charm.

(Above: The port in Alexandria)

One group of people longing for the city’s glorious past are the Jews who were forced to leave the city in the 1950’s given the animosity between Egypt and then the brand new State of Israel. The Alexandrian community had a notable place in the Alexandrian landscape.  Like the city itself, the local Jews were a vibrant multi-cultural entity. They may have lived on the Mediterranean coast, but they looked northwest towards Paris for cultural cues and trends. Alexandria’s cosmopolitan appeal allured Jews from all over Europe and the Near East (more on that later).

The Jewish Community in Antiquity

The Jewish fascination with Alexandria began early on in Ancient Times and there is evidence of Jewish presence in the city beginning from the third century B.C.E. Under the Roman rule (circa the first century C.E.) the Jewish community became a sizeable component (about 40 percent) of the overall population, and it flourished both economically and spiritually. As time progressed, the Alexandrian community gained political and intellectual power in the ancient Jewish world, representing the model of Hellenistic Judaism, which integrated the Greek language and elements of Greek culture in the Jewish worship. The Bible translation into Greek (also known as Septuagint), compiled especially for Alexandrian Jews, is a proof of the community’s prominence.  

(Above: The Codex Vatican's, one of the oldest extant manuscripts of the Greek Bible)

The Jewish Community in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

Throughout their history, the Alexandrian Jewry underwent periods of turbulence and others of relative peace.  However, the increased colonial intervention of France and Britain in Egypt during the course of nineteenth and twentieth centuries was perhaps the most pivotal chapter in the history of the community.  The western influence presented new opportunities for Alexandrian Jews who utilized their language abilities and mercantile skills to serve as mediators between the native Arab society and the colonialists. These developments brought economic prosperity alongside greater exposure to European culture and lifestyle.

Gradually, Alexandria’s name as the city of opportunities, where one could live large for less, spread out among various Jewish communities. Jews from all over, including Greeks, Italians and Syrians came to Alexandria to seek fortune. Also, Eastern European Jews, victims of pogroms and Anti-Semitic persecution, jumped on the wagon and made their way down south to Alexandria. These Jewish immigration waves changed the demographics and cultural make-up of the community, rendering Alexandria “a diaspora within the diaspora”. The community was no longer a homogenous body but rather a mix of Ladino, Yiddish, Arabic and Italian speakers.     

(Above: Eliyahu Ha’Navi synagogue in Alexandria)

Certain ideas united the various sub-cultures, among them the obsession with everything French. Alexandrian Jews from different origins and social classes enthusiastically fostered French mannerisms and prided themselves in being fluent in the French language. But beyond the Francophile approach, Jews in Alexandria bonded over materialistic values and their passion for hedonistic living.

Alexandrian born, Israeli writer, Yitzhak Gormezano Goren, deeply criticized the Nouveau riche spirit prevailing in the streets of Alexandria. In his Alexandrian Trilogy, including the books Blanche, Alexandrian Summer and The Path To The Stadium, he describes how the economic prosperity of the city attracted opportunistic characters and how servants and people from lower social classes were treated with disdain. The following segment from Blanche, reflects this mindset (translation from Hebrew, H.M): 

“-‘Why is it so important for your father that you will marry Mireille’?

-       ‘Why’? Gaston was astonished. Is she pretending? Doesn’t this little innocent girl understand that money is the answer for everything? In Gaston’s world money was the top value, as freedom, equality and love for mankind were top values in other places. These days, in our society Gaston is no an anomaly. With all the hypocrisy in the Alexandrian society, it should be said to its defense that there was never hypocrisy towards money. The Golden Calf was the most popular and overall admired idol and no one dared to break the tablets while seeing the crowd dancing around it, and no one tried to cover the idol’s glittery naked body with fake ideals”

(Blanche, 14-15).

In addition, Gormezano Goren sneeringly portrays the luxurious lifestyles of the Jewish upper classes, who exploited the cheap local workforce: 

“The city (Alexandria) allowed you to live as a careless lord without the required funds. It’s sufficient to be Jewish or European with minimal intelligence, and even that is not really necessary. Money? Money is meant for spending on pleasures and indulgent seeking. Only the old people are accumulating money for a gloomy day. Balls, trips, cruises, races and card games. If one earns between thirty to a hundred sterling a month, he pays rent of four and a half sterling monthly and lives in a palace, surrounded by servants, who make about two sterling a month each. What a wonderful gap!”

(Alexandrian Summer, 19-20).

(Above: The couple Benison and Simone Hazak in Alexandria in 1940)

 Food

Alexandrian Jews (and Egyptian Jews in general) perhaps tend to distinguish themselves from the majority Muslim population, yet their cuisine is heavily based on local staples, such as falafel made from fava beans (different from the traditional Middle-Eastern garbanzo beans falafel), koshari (rice cooked with noodles and lentils), kamoonia (chicken liver cooked with cumin) and the quintessential comfort food, Molokhia, a leafy green stew (recipe below). Israeli author, Nissim Zohar, wrote a play named, Memories from Alexandria, a nostalgic recollection of his childhood home in Alexandria, and primarily the kitchen. In the play, he fondly recalls the disputes between his grandmother and the cook over the amount of cumin or cardamom needed for a dish or whether a crushed tomato will add flavor to the Molokhia. He mentions that the beauty of the Egyptian cuisine is in its simplicity. The preparation process is basic and the dishes are mostly based on local vegetables and rice.

The Molokhia, in terms of ingredients and prep, exemplifies the idea of easy cooking. The Molokhia leaves grow wild in Egypt, and they make a nutritious and wholesome stew for poor and rich alike. Although many argue that the flavor of this dish is an acquired taste, many Egyptian and Egyptian Jews are extremely passionate about it. The obsession over Molokhia is well described in the book, Mandlebaum Gate by Israeli author Dalia Cohen Knohel. The book takes place in Israel during the 1950’s and tells the story of Jacqueline, a sophisticated Jewish Egyptian intellectual, who is desperately craving her mother’s Molokhia, but cannot find the leaves to make it herself. Indeed, finding fresh Molokhia in markets outside the Arab world is not an easy task. Fortunately, nowadays frozen Molokhia leaves can be found in Middle-Eastern grocers and dried leaves are sold online.

A couple of helpful notes prior to the recipe:

1. The recipe chosen for this purpose uses dried Molokhia leaves. However, it works also with fresh and frozen leaves, if accessible.

2. Molokhia is traditionally chicken based. But it is also very common to make it vegan as many impoverished people in Egypt cannot always afford meat. It is also worthwhile to replace the chicken with a soy supplement.

3. Molokhia is meant to be thick and hearty. It could be served as a main course soup or as a sauce above rice or other grains.

(Above: Dried Molokhia leaves)

Molokhia Recipe:

 Translated from the Israeli website, Bishulim

 Ingredients: 

-8.5 cups chicken or veggie broth

-120 grams (about 4.2 oz.) dried Molokhia leaves or 1 kg (2.2 pounds) fresh or frozen leaves

-3 garlic cloves

- 2 tbsp. oil (I used sunflower oil)

-1 tbs. ground coriander

-Paprika

-Salt and pepper

Preparation:

- Place the dried leaves in a big bowl and pour warm water to cover. Wait a few minutes until the mixture doubles in size (If using fresh or frozen leaves: Remove the stems, wash the leaves thoroughly and then dry them on a towel for one day. Once the leaves are dry, puree them using a blender).

(Above: Bright Green- The Molokhia after adding water to the dried leaves)

- In a big pot, bring the broth to a boil. Then add the Molokhia mixture. Cook for about 30 minutes (10 minutes if working with fresh or frozen leaves).

- Meanwhile, make the garlic paste: Mince garlic cloves, fry them with oil until golden, then add coriander, paprika, salt and pepper.

- Add the garlic paste to the Molokhia stew; Cook for a few more minutes.

(Above: the bubbling Molokhia soup).

Serve as a soup or over rice.

Enjoy!

[24hourchampagnediet-blog1]

Here are some easy, healthy dinner ideas for busy families

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Here are some easy, healthy dinner ideas for busy families

Dear Nutritionist, I enjoyed your recipe suggestions last week. I’ve never heard of bento boxes before and my kids liked the idea and so we picked out boxes together and got started. So far so good! My problem is managing dinners when the kids play sports and have band practice. I just can’t think what to cook that’s fast so I’ve ended up doing take out a lot. Other nights, I do our traditional rice and veg with dahl or some meat in sauce because I know how to cook that but I know the rice makes me put on the weight. I’ve lost weight this summer and don’t want to gain it all back again! Do you also have recipes for healthy quick weeknight dinners?  Thank you!  Amani

Dear Amani, I hear you! This was the hardest time for me to manage my son’s diet when he was at home. After battling rush hour traffic and being on my feet all day, the last thing I wanted to do was cook a meal from scratch. But with a kid who was gluten, dairy, sugar, and preservative intolerant, the options were limited. As a result, I got really good at it. I’ll share some of my solutions — one of which is South Asian (my favourite food by the way)!

With mothers working outside the home now, really, who has time to stay home and cook healthy food from scratch? But convenience / take-out foods are loaded with unhealthy fats, excess sodium, highly processed starches, and sugars. And despite selling the “there’s veggies on it so it’s OK,” the standard take out pizza fare isn’t any better. But I have a hack for that, too!

Let’s jump right in.

The first thing you can do to make your life easier is make a seven-day meal plan. You can then do this again once you master the first one, to add variety. So at that point you have two meal plans of seven days each, and are only eating the same meal every two weeks. That’s enough variety for anyone. 

Let’s start with seven days. It may seem cumbersome at first, but when we ritualize changes they stick. And this is the secret every fitness guru knows about weight management that we commoners seem to miss: you need to have a plan to succeed. This is especially so in an environment that is laden with overly processed convenience food everywhere you turn.

I will suggest a few recipes that make week nights easy, to get people started. You can supplement them with other ones if they suit you better. But you will need a plan and a grocery list. This grocery list will be a royal pain to generate at first, but you will put it on your phone and thereafter, you can get the same groceries every single week (or two, once you’re on a biweekly schedule). 

That alone makes life so much more manageable — you know exactly what you are getting and where to get it. And, if you take advantage of the order online services grocery stores now offer and have a butcher for the meat, you can order and just pick up. There’s an hour or more of time saved and you do not have to walk through aisles and be tempted by foods you’re trying to avoid, or worse, wrestle with kids putting things in the cart that you really don’t want in the house.

Next — and this is key to your busy routine success — when you buy your groceries you will spend about one to two hours doing meal prep for the week. If this is totally overwhelming, I offer inexpensive classes online where I go through this weekly to demonstrate. Clients who sign up get a menu plan and grocery list in advance so they can be prepped for the class to cook together. It ends up being a lot of fun.

Doing the meal plan prep may seem like a huge chunk of your weekend, but you’ve just saved at least an hour shopping. And during the week you will save another hour running around after take-out or trying to get groceries and figure out what to eat. So a meal plan is really very efficient. 

I find it’s a nice early Sunday afternoon ritual and I do it with music or audiobook/ podcast and a bit of kombucha or dry wine or sangria. I often talk to friends on the phone while I prep and sometimes we do it together on the phone or in person. This short time spent organizing ensures you have all your ingredients (and a few dishes) prepped for your meals in advance, making weeknights a breeze. 

So on to some suggestions.

Homemade Tortilla Pizzas: These are a much healthier version of pizza that take about 10 minutes to make – if you cut up your ingredients and shred the cheese on the weekend when you get your groceries. (Home shredded cheese is much healthier and fresher.) These are made with a very thin crust, low carb flat bread I get called Protein Up. There are a variety of flavours. The kids may be able to handle more carbs than you and you could make theirs with a standard soft flour tortilla or whole wheat tortilla. If someone in the family is gluten-free, you can also use gluten-free tortillas.

The toppings you choose are completely up to you! My favourite is spinach, pesto, sundried tomato, artichoke, and feta or goat cheese. The great thing about these is the kids don’t have to agree on toppings and you don’t end up having anyone picking things off. It also puts the prep into each person’s hands, which makes things faster and gives the kids cooking skills that will stay with them for life. The key to this coming out right is to pre-bake the tortillas first. The entire recipe is done in less than 15 minutes. And if you pair it with a bag of Dole’s premixed salad kits (Greek or Italian have less sugar than others), you have an easy, fresh meal. 

Fish Tacos: This is a great, delicious, gluten-free recipe if you use corn tortillas. If you want to go low-carb, it’s way easy to hack by just putting the ingredients in a bowl and eating it like a salad. And there’s no loss of flavour or texture in doing that with this recipe.

The only things to make ahead for this are the salsa, guacamole, and mango salsa, if you want them. Click on each for links to recipes. The salsas are better if they sit in the fridge a few days, so making ahead is perfect, and this gives you dips for your bentos. The entire dish takes only 15 minutes to whip up once that part is done. 

If you’re not into making salsa by hand, try adding chopped red onion, pressed garlic, and finely diced cilantro (optional jalapeno finely diced) to a jar of store bought salsa (always get the unsweetened kind). Let this sit in the fridge a few days and you will be amazed how delish it is! 

For anyone who has a family member who’s dairy intolerant, I substitute goat or sheep cheese and coconut or homemade cashew milk for cream. 

Pasta Bolognese: This is a meal pretty much every person I’ve ever met likes. It can be made much healthier by using whole wheat or high fibre pasta for the kids and shirataki spaghetti noodles for you. These are found in Asian or specialty stores and they are a very good texture with no taste and zero carbs! The shirataki only need to brought to a boil to freshen them up, so it’s a 5 minute meal if you make your bolognaise sauce ahead. 

You can put whatever you like in your Bolognese sauce, but the foundation should be a sugar-free, good quality tomato sauce. I like the Classico brand, but you can also just used canned pureed tomatoes and add your own oil and spices. I cook all my other ingredients (onion, carrot, garlic, sweet pepper, spinach, ground beef, spices) before adding the tomato sauce to simmer and reduce. Many people use ground veal or pork and celery in this, but it’s really up to you.

Instead of serving parmesan cheese as a topper, try nutritional yeast. It’s very high in B vitamins and it’s a very close substitute for that cheesy flavour. Serve with another pre-made salad mix with a higher quality italian or homemade oil/ vinegar dressing. I add baby tomatoes, olives, and red onion with a feta dressing to make this a nice greek salad. 

Again, your pasta prep on the day of is super quick. Any leftover pasta sauce can get frozen for a quick heat up the next time you make this dish, so making double or triple will save you time and work going forward!

Chicken Korma with Parboiled Brown Rice: Before you moan and eyeroll about the disgusting stickiness that is most brown rice, let me tell you about a very well kept secret. Uncle Ben’s Instant Brown Rice. I am not kidding. This stuff is perfectly formed, long grain rice that retains its texture while taking only 10 minutes to cook! And, unlike basmati, any idiot can do it right.

Brown rice is known to be more nutritious, higher in fibre, and lower glycemic than white rice, owing to the bran, while parboiled rice is low glycemic and retains the nutrients, at the same time as being more palatable and easier to prepare. New research shows that cooking the rice with coconut (or possibly ghee or olive) oil and then refrigerating it overnight changes the starch and lowers the glycemic index even more. That means a modest portion of this staple food can be part of a low-carb diet when prepared this way. 

You can also do cauliflower rice for yourself, if you want to stay ultra low-carb or keto. I’ve included links on how to make it. 

Again, if you make extra korma and freeze it, you’re ahead of the game for the following weeks. 

Some other suggestions I have for weeknights are make ahead chaplee kabobs with green beans, and turkey breast protein-up wraps with lettuce, and cranberry mayo, with a broccoli salad. These are just a few of the recipes I share in my meal prep meetup.

If all this sounds overwhelming, I urge you to remember you have to make something. At least having a plan will make sure they are good meals and you’re not eating out. You will know exactly what you are eating on each day, and so will the kids. This predictability really helps. While it may be a lot to get done the first few weeks, within a month you will get very good at your meal plan and you can add another week of recipes to it to make sure there is no boredom. And making it a habit will do more to get you into your skinny jeans than any amount of time spent at the gym!

OMG all this food writing is making me hungry! Until next week!

Namaste! Nonie Nutritionista

Nonie De Long is a registered orthomolecular nutritionist with a clinic in Bradford West Gwillimbury, where she offers holistic, integrative health care for physical and mental health issues. Check out her website here.

Do you have a question about health and wellness? Email nonienutritionista@gmail.com

Source link Keto Diet Dinner Ideas

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25 Authentic Thai Vegetarian Recipes

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Aromatic and appetizing, Thai cuisine is a feast for all the senses. It’s also very healthy, judging by this list of deliciously different Thai vegetarian recipes.

Fragrant stir-fries, zesty salads, and creamy curries are a delight for the senses. Dinner is covered with this list of 25 flavorful Thai dishes.

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And not just dinner. Dessert too! Thai fruit salad, coconut cake, and rolled ice-cream provide plenty of decadent, veggie-friendly options for afters. 

Spicy, sweet, sour, and savory – there’s so much flavor and variety in Thai cuisine. So take your tastebuds on a trip and enjoy these exotic eats. 

If you’re a Pad Thai addict you’ll love this easy recipe for recreating the takeout classic at home.

On the table in just 30 minutes, this is a satisfying stir-fry made with rice noodles and firm chunks of protein-rich tofu.

The tangy sauce is made from tamarind, coconut amino acids, sugar, chili, garlic, and lime. It’s just the right ratio of spicy, sweet, and tongue-tingling.

Light and fresh, this zesty salad is a bright blend of juicy tastes.

Made with butter lettuce, sweet diced mango, red bell pepper, and jalapeño, there’s goodness in every bite.

Toss everything in a spicy peanut dressing, and enjoy one of the most irresistible salads you’ll ever make.

Satay crept into Thai cuisine thanks to its neighbours, Malaysia and Indonesia – both of which have a huge influence on the country’s cuisine.

The term usually describes spicy, seasoned meat cooked on a skewer over a grill.

In this vegan recipe, tofu gets the satay treatment after hanging out in a soy sauce and peanut butter marinade.

Colorful veggies are tossed in a rich, creamy sauce for this scrumptious salad.

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Crunchy, shredded cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, and radish give this dish a nice bite while tender noodles soak up the flavorful sauce.

Top with toasted peanuts for extra nutty goodness.

Thai curries come in traffic light flavors – red, yellow, and green.

As you might suspect, red is the most fiery. It’s made with chili peppers and a hot red curry paste. 

You can easily tweak this recipe though if your spice tolerance isn’t up to it.

Add more coconut milk for a creamier curry or just make as-is and enjoy the warming blend of heady spices and herbs.

A delightfully different side, Thai coconut rice is sweet, sticky, fluffy, and very addictive.

It’s really easy to make too. Just simmer long-grain rice in coconut milk with a dash of sugar, turmeric, and ginger.

Garnish with candied ginger and sliced almonds to serve.

If you’re doing a veggie Thai dinner party, these cauliflower wings will get the party started with a bang.

Ridiculously addictive, you won’t believe the humble cruciferous vegetable could be this tasty.

Cauliflower florets are dipped in a peanut butter curry batter and baked until golden, crispy, and crunchy.

Don’t forget the agave soy dipping sauce, which gives each popcorn-like piece a sweet and tangy bite. 

Peanut sauce goes with everything, so it’s handy to have a quick and easy recipe around for those times you need more pep on your plate.

This vegan dip is creamy and nutty, but surprisingly light.

A squeeze of fresh lime cuts through the richness while ginger and chili bring a hint of spice. 

Eat with veggies or noodles, pour over a stir-fry or salad, this silky sauce adds something special to every meal.

Caramelized pineapple meets Thai spices in this sweet and savory side.

Bulked out with fresh bell peppers, cashews, and egg, this also works as a meal in itself.

If you like more protein, add some fried tofu pieces. Want to make it vegan? Just skip the eggs.

This dish stores well and tastes even better the next day after the flavors have had a chance to mingle.

The tropical Thai climate is home to some of the most delicious exotic fruits. They’re used to full effect in this fruity and fresh salad.

Banana, pineapple, lychee, star fruit, and strawberries are tossed together in a coconut and lime dressing. 

It’s a healthy and refreshing dessert that would also go down well at breakfast, or as a summer-time snack.

You’ll only need one pot for this spicy noodle dish, which means less time washing-up and more time getting a bowl in your belly.

It’s also one of those recipes that lends itself to experimentation. Want less spice? Cut the sriracha.

Need more protein? Add some tofu or hard-boiled egg. Going low-carb? Use zucchini ‘zoodles’ instead of rice noodles.

They might enjoy a balmy, tropical climate but that doesn’t mean Thailand can’t do comfort food.

This cozy, creamy pumpkin soup is the perfect mood-booster on dull, drizzly days.

It’s made with rich coconut milk and flavored with ginger, lemongrass, and fresh cilantro.

Light and refreshing, this salad is perfect as a quick, healthy lunch or an enticing appetizer.

Crunchy cucumber is mixed with sesame oil, red pepper, onion, and chopped peanuts.

This is a sweet and spicy dish with complex tastes and textures. 

Green papaya is just orange papaya that hasn’t fully ripened yet. 

The immature fruit is less sweet but has a firmer texture and more bite, making it ideal for this mildly sweet and tangy salad.

This vibrantly colorful salad is almost too pretty to eat. Almost.

Kale, carrots, bell peppers, and cilantro provide a rainbow-like mix of shredded veggies.

This healthy blend is then drizzled with a homemade sesame garlic dressing.  

There are two words guaranteed to get me drooling. And those words are corn fritters. 

These addictive appetizers may involve deep frying, but they’re surprisingly easy.

Just whisk up a simple corn batter, chill until thick, and drop into hot oil to make golden brown, crispy nuggets.

Serve warm with a side of Thai sweet chili sauce and watch them disappear.

Forget salt and pepper peanuts, it’s time to rethink your condiments with this unique recipe for Thai-flavored nuts.

Peanuts are fried with lemon leaves, garlic, and chili until crispy, spicy, and irresistibly delicious.  

If you’ve never made spring rolls you owe it to yourself to try this easy and fun recipe.

Crunchy veggies and soft noodles are encased in rice wrappers and served with a zesty, peanut sauce.

Once you’ve mastered the technique, you’ll want to eat these for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

You’ve probably eaten carrot soup before, but have you tried Thai carrot soup?

Adding classic Thai flavors like sweet basil, garlic, coconut, and peanut transforms this traditional soup into something exotic and enticing.

Try a bowl, and you’ll never want to make it any other way.

Fed up with Thanksgiving-style sweet potatoes? This Thai-inspired side will reignite your sweet potato spark.

Chunks of sweet potato are roasted and coated in a Thai spice blend before being served up with coconut shavings, green onion, and a dash of lime juice. 

This quick and easy curry is a must for meatless Mondays. 

Packed with healthy vegetables – including asparagus, carrot and spinach – it’s a creamy, mild curry that’s more fragrant than fiery.

Serve over rice or quinoa and add tofu if you’re in the mood for something more filling.

Thai desserts showcase the best of the region’s fruits and there’s no fruit more commonplace in Thai cuisine than coconut.

Here, coconut milk and flakes are whipped into a potato flour batter and baked until golden brown. 

This isn’t your usual sugary cake, it’s a lightly sweet, moist bread that would be equally delicious as a snack, at breakfast time, or served with dinner.

This inventive recipe for rolled ice-cream features just two ingredients. Yes, you read that right – two!

Simply mix sweetened, condensed milk with cream, spread on a baking tray, and freeze.

When it sets, you can then roll the flattened mixture into a spiral shape. 

The fun part comes when you pick your toppings. The recipe gives three suggestions – strawberry cheesecake, Nutella, and cookies n’ cream.

In the spirit of scientific endeavor, you’ll simply have to make all three and choose your favorite.

Sticky rice is simmered in coconut milk and sugar for this fruity dessert. 

Chunks of sweet and juicy mango are added just before serving, and the whole bowl is finished off with a sprinkling of sesame seeds.

If you’ve never had rice for dessert before, now’s the time to give it a try!

Known as Kluai Buat Chi, this is a deceptively simple dessert that’s healthy but satisfying.

It has just four ingredients – banana, coconut milk, salt, and sugar – and is ready in 15 minutes.

Stir everything together and serve warm for a sweet, porridge-like pudding.

25 Authentic Thai Vegetarian Recipes

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