#and there were several amazing vintage shops that i want to go back to <3

[liefst]

i'm going to helsinki for a weekend on the 6th of january!!

question nr 1: what clothes should i bring? will there be snow? do i need special shoes/coat/trousers?

question nr 2: tips on what to do and see and eat? :–)

[rosyfingereddawnn]

That’s The Way (Chapter 5)

Pairing: Jimmy Page x Reader

Word count: 4.3k

Warning(s): Nothing! This is such a sweet chapter :)

Author’s notes: Another sweet little chapter with Jimmy and Y/N, with a guest appearance from Lillian, everyone’s favourite rascal ;) This chapter was honestly such a joy, and my partner in crime @rebel-without-a-zeppelin is so amazing as always!!! As usual, please enjoy, happy reading, and send us messages if you have theories, comments, music recommendations for the playlist, or if you want to be added to the tag list :)

Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

——

Y/N was in the kitchen, washing the dishes as she hummed to a tune she had just heard on the radio. She had just spent the morning baking biscuits, brownies, and all sorts of homemade goodies, and everything was still warm and cooling on a plate on the counter. Lillian’s loud footsteps reverberating through the house signalled that these delicacies wouldn’t be there for much longer.

“Y/N! Y/N!” she shouted in her high-pitched, innocent voice, as her footsteps grew closer. She scurried through the kitchen to stand at her sister’s side, looking up at her with her big eyes.

“What is it, Lil?” her sister responded, still scrubbing a bowl with a soapy sponge.

“I need you to braid my hair,” Lillian replied softly, her smile glinting in the afternoon sun.

“What for? What’s the occasion?”

Lillian’s lips pursed into a grin that she was trying to hold back. “Nothing,” she said in a sing-song tone, her head curling into her shoulder bashfully, “I just like the way it looks.”

Y/N huffed. “I’m kind of in the middle of something here,” she motioned towards the sink with her sudsy gloves; it had been filled to the brim with dirty dishes, though the mountain of tableware was lessening by the minute.

“Pretty please? I just want to feel beautiful like you,” her little sister whined, tugging on Y/N’s clothes.

Overcome with empathetic emotion, Y/N conceded, removing her gloves and turning the sink off. Crouching down to Lillian’s level, she held her hands, gazing into her eyes.

“Lillian, don’t say that about yourself. You are beautiful, truly,” Y/N coaxed earnestly.

“But when you braid my hair, I feel my most beautiful,” Lillian frowned.

Y/N couldn’t argue with Lillian, because she herself had bouts of self-consciousness and low self-esteem. Oh, the joys of being a young girl, Y/N thought, a wry grin on her lips. Ruffling her sister’s hair slightly, she replied, “Go sit at the counter and grab yourself a biscuit then.” Lillian giggled as she scurried over to the counter, reaching to grab one of each baked good from the three plates.

Y/N ripped off a piece of paper towel and handed it to Lillian so she wouldn’t leave any crumbs in her wake, as Lillian swung her feet as she sat atop the tall barstool chair and munched on her biscuit, a mischievous look on her youthful face. Y/N stood behind her, putting two elastics around her wrist.

“What kind of braids do you want, Lil?” Y/N asked, grabbing a nearby pencil to separate a perfect middle part down the back of her sister’s hair then tying off one side.

“I quite like Dutch braids,” Lillian said cheerfully.

“Okay, Dutch it is.”

Just as Y/N separated three strands of Lillian’s hair, the phone began to ring. Oh come on! Y/N thought with a huff. “Hang on a minute, Lil, let me answer this.”

“Hello?”

“Hey Y/N, it’s Jimmy,” a familiar voice echoed through the phone. Y/N’s eyes widened at the sound, a smile creeping onto her lips. There was a part of her that hadn’t expected him to call, though the way her heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice only confirmed how happy she was about it.

“Hey Jimmy, how are you?” she replied, leaning against the wall in an attempt to look composed, though she was twirling the cord around her finger nervously, almost combusting from excitement.

“I’m well, love, how about yourself?” he asked, his soft voice coming across as calm and casual, though he was, in fact, not calm at all, unbeknownst to Y/N. His sweaty palms readjusting their grip on the phone every few seconds as they spoke would have been a dead giveaway.

“I’m doing well, thanks.”

“JIMMY!” Lillian squealed from the background, “Tell him I said hi!”

Y/N laughed, “Oh, and Lillian says hi.”

Jimmy chuckled, “I heard. A very enthusiastic little one. Tell the sweet girl I said hello, if you don’t mind.”

“I will,” Y/N giggled before a pause, “What’s up?”

“Well, I have a day off today, you see. I’m going book shopping, and I was wondering...if you’d like to possibly come along...” he trailed off, almost unsure of his invitation.

Y/N’s stomach dropped at his invitation. He wanted her company?! As much as she wanted to jump for joy and scream, she had to suppress her emotions as best she could. Lillian was sitting right there after all, and if she caught wind of her small crush? Y/N would never hear the end of it. All of St. Albans would know, given how enthusiastic Lillian can be. She cleared her throat, recomposing herself before answering, “I’d love to come along! Thank you so much for the invitation,” Y/N gushed, “What time were you thinking?”

“How about twenty minutes?” Jimmy asked, “I’ll have my driver take us, so you don’t have to worry about transportation.”

“Perfect! See you then.”

“See you soon, love.” With that, the phone clicked, signalling the man’s departure.

“What did Jimmy want?” Lillian asked as Y/N walked back over to behind her chair.

“Oh nothing,” Y/N replied, taking three strands of her hair, “just asked if I would come shopping for books with him. He’s picking me up in twenty minutes.”

“Oh, that sounds like so much fun!” Lillian said cheerfully, genuinely happy that her sister was spending time with her friend. She was not at the age to assume any type of budding romance or feelings between the two, much to Y/N’s relief.

“Yeah, I’m excited!”

“Maybe you should give him what you baked,” Lillian offered, “I think he’d like them!”

“That’s a good idea,” Y/N agreed. “Since I’m not going to be home for a while, can you help Mum with the dishes? I feel bad I didn't finish them.” Lillian nodded with a hum as she quietly munched on her biscuit and a comfortable silence settled between the sisters.

Oh, to be that young and naïve, Y/N thought as she finished braiding Lillian’s hair, no stress, no problems, no worrying about boys...

~~~~~~~~

Just as Jimmy had said, his driver was in front of Y/N’s front door in exactly twenty minutes. She put a biscuit, brownie, and oatmeal cream pie into a plastic bag and tucked it into her purse before walking out the door. Butterflies erupted in her stomach as she walked towards the car, seeing Jimmy in the back seat with an open spot next to him.  

“Hello Y/N, love,” Jimmy greeted jovially as the girl slid into the seat next to him. The smile on his face felt warm and welcoming to the young girl, easily returning a smile with the same emotion.

“Hi! Thanks again for inviting me to join you,” Y/N replied as the driver smoothly pulled away from her house and started down the road.

“Oh, no problem! I was hoping that I didn’t have to go alone, so I thought of you,” Jimmy grinned. Y/N couldn’t help but notice the way he fidgeted with his fingers nervously while he spoke. Could he actually be feeling as nervous as she was?

“That’s so sweet, thank you,” Y/N responded bashfully, smiling from ear to ear.

An unsettling silence diffused through the car, the only significant sounds being the radio playing softly in the background and the occasional bump in the road. The two, sat close to one another, felt so far away, as the cavernous quiet settled over them.

With a clearing of his throat, Jimmy spoke up, “Did you know that this is the first piece of vintage clothing I ever bought for myself?” he asked, showing off the navy blue military jacket he was wearing, adorned with several ornate gold buttons.

Y/N turned her head to look at his jacket with a grin, “That?” she answered, trying to sound serious in an attempt to tease him.

Jimmy frowned. “Yeah, you don’t like it?” he asked, slight panic bleeding into his voice at her teasing.

“Did you get it at the Embassy or something, to go off to war? Are you assuming the position of a Revolutionary War general, because I’m afraid you’re in the wrong country. And century.” Y/N said, a smile creeping past her lips as she failed to contain some of her laughter.

Jimmy huffed and rolled his eyes. “Okay, it has a lot of buttons,” he admitted defensively.

“Yes it does,” Y/N chuckled. Then after a few moments of silence, she concurred reluctantly, “I like your jacket,” she said with a smirk.

“I knew it, I knew you did!” Jimmy laughed triumphantly, “It’s so cool, right?”

“It is pretty cool, I admit.”

“There’s also a bunch of pockets, so you can fit all sorts of bits and bops in there too. You wouldn’t even know,” Jimmy said with a wink.

“I can only imagine what you keep in those pockets,” Y/N grinned mischievously.

Jimmy’s jaw dropped in feigned shock. “What a naughty mind you have, Miss Y/N! How can you assume such a thing about me?”

“I’ve heard a few whispers about you and Jackie in my day,” Y/N giggled, “things I wish to not get into at this particular moment in time.”

“What did you hear? Who told you?” Jimmy said, an air of panic in his voice as he straightened in his seat.

“I can’t tell you that!”

“It was Jeff who told you, wasn’t it? The bastard.” Jimmy scowled, turning away from her to run his fingers through his hair. The slight tremor that rushed through them made the young woman smile. He was nervous.

“I said I can’t tell you! That’s for only me to know,” Y/N giggled.

Jimmy paused for a second, contemplating his next sentence before piping up, “Well, I should say that Jackie and I broke up actually,” he said quietly, his panic now overcome with sadness.

Y/N frowned, feeling bad for her friend. “Oh Jimmy, I’m so sorry. I can only imagine how difficult it is for you right now.” She draped her arm on Jimmy’s shoulder, hoping her physical touch would comfort him in any way. Jimmy leans into her touch, a sad smile settling on his lips.

“Thank you, love.” he nodded.

“When did it happen, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“A few days ago,” Jimmy continued, “I’m actually in the same boat as you.”

Y/N cocked her head in confusion. “In what sense?”

“Jackie was married the whole time, and I had no idea,” Jimmy replied solemnly.

“Oh my gosh, that’s awful!” Y/N said, “I can’t believe she would do that to you. You don’t deserve that.”

“I guess we were both someone else’s second choice.”

Y/N’s lips downturned into a frown, “Yeah…” she trailed off, “it’s the worst feeling in the world.”

You’ll never be my second choice, Y/N thought, I’ll always choose you, Jimmy.

“I might have a temporary remedy, though,” Y/N quipped as she opened her purse to retrieve the biscuits she had packed for Jimmy. “I baked these earlier, and Lillian said that you might enjoy them.”

Jimmy smiled as she handed him the bag. “Thank you for this, I really appreciate it, love.” As little as the words were, there was a tone of genuine appreciation in his voice. He really must have been going through a dark time. If there was a way she could help, no matter how small, Y/N would take that chance.

“You’re welcome. A baked good always makes me feel better, so I hope it does the same for you.”

Jimmy smiled down at her, his heart warming at her unbelievably kind gesture. Before he could say anything else, though, the driver had pulled up to the book shop; flicking hazard lights on so the two could get out right in front. They thanked the driver and walked into the store in tanduum, arms linked.

“What were you thinking about getting?” Y/N whispered as the smell of aged paper and freshly-cut wood greeted them.

Jimmy gave her a look that screamed did you really have to ask?

“Oh, okay,” She says, drawing out the first word with a subtle laughter in her voice. “Nevermind, stupid question.” Crowley manuscripts and textbooks. She knew that. She cursed herself for not thinking before she asked.

“You’re not stupid, don’t say that,” Jimmy said gently as he rubbed her arm soothingly, walking with her deep into the shelves and stacks of books. They were so close, her physical proximity and presence taunted him, and her scent dizzied him.

Their eyes scoured through the various titles, seeing if anything caught their interests. Y/N saw the trademark bright orange spine of The Catcher in the Rye, and quickly pulled it out. She never had the chance to read it whilst at school, but it was on her mental reading list.

Jimmy watched her intently as she read the synopsis on the back cover, her irises twinkling in the golden light that shone through the store. Her lips, her beautiful lips that he dreamed about kissing one day, were pressed together in concentration. She must have just put some lip balm on, because even they were twinkling. They looked like little pillows, so soft and supple and warm…

Y/N’s face now looked at the shelf once again before glancing at Jimmy with a grin. He prayed that she didn’t see him admiring her. Jimmy simply smiled back as if nothing had happened.

“The Catcher in the Rye, I see,” he initiated.

“Yep. I never got to read it in school, and it’s on my little mental reading list. I heard it was really good,” Y/N shrugged.

“What else is on your mental reading list?” Jimmy asked, “I can help you look for those, too.”

“Hmmm,” she thought aloud, “Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk, Middlemarch by George Eliot, and Summer Crossing by Truman Capote. I also want to get The Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl for Lillian. I loved it when I was little.”

“You’re a woman of good taste,” Jimmy grinned, feeling himself falling for her even harder. He had thought it impossible, yet he was obviously proven wrong by the feeling of contentment that settled over him whenever he so much as looked at her.

“Thanks,” she said, blushing as she sheepishly chuckled at the compliment.

The two slowly walked through the aisles trying to find the titles Y/N had mentioned. Jimmy found Marjorie Morningstar and Summer Crossing, and Y/N loved the way his face lit up when he finally found what he had been looking for. Y/N was able to find Middlemarch and The Fantastic Mr. Fox herself, as Jimmy practically drooled upon sight of her when she wasn’t looking. His personal thesis of Y/N being an angel had been proven correct many times that day, but these rather intimate circumstances really pushed it (and himself) over the edge.

Crushes are so foolish, he thought, why am I acting like this?!

~~~~~~~~

Jimmy invited Y/N to go to his Pangbourne boathouse for some tea after their shopping excursion, for a chance to talk in a more private setting and scan through their purchases. He showed her around his house, since it was the first time she had been there since they had met; it was a Edwardian-Pre-Raphaelite hybrid dream, and Y/N found herself amazed with every nook and cranny.

“Next summer, you’ll have to come up so I can take you out on the boat,” Jimmy said as he showed her his boat and the view from the dock.

“That would be so fun,” Y/N smiled, “how often do you take it out?”

“Not too often, unfortunately, with all the travel and studio time.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I’m sure that will pick even more now that the Yardbirds will be traveling more.”

“Yes, you’re definitely right. But I’ll make time next summer for that boatride,” he grinned as he led Y/N back into the house and into the living room. She pursed her lips to hold back a smile full of gratitude, but to no avail.

His housekeeper must have just put a tray of tea and biscuits on the coffee table, because it was still steaming.

The two sat opposite of one another, taking things off the tray as they pleased, silence hanging in the air. Once they were situated, Y/N daintily crossed her legs with a smile as she held the cup on top of her clothed thigh.

What a sophisticated lady Y/N is, Jimmy thought as he looked at her, I wonder what she would be like in a more intimate setting…

Shaking the dirty thought from his mind, he rambled, “So I’ve been thinking about something...the other guys in the band know about it, and they agree with me...actually, it wasn’t my idea, it was Jeff’s…”

It wasn’t Jeff’s idea. He lied.

It was Jimmy’s idea.

“Oh! What is it?” Y/N asked as she tilted her head in confusion, “It sounds bad, should I be scared?” she ended with a giggle.

“Oh no! Of course not. You see, there’s so much to say, and not a lot of time to say it, so I have to go big.”

Oh my God, Y/N thought, what if he asks me out? Jesus Christ. I hope he does. But he probably won’t. He doesn’t like me. What can this mean? Jimmy, you’re killing me! However, she sat with an expectant look on her face, trying to accurately anticipate the information.

“I was wondering...if um, if you—Oh, Christ, I’m horrible at this,” he chuckled embarrassedly with a shake of his head, a pink flush dusting his cheeks.

Oh fuck, he’s gonna do it! Y/N thought excitedly.

“Oh gosh, don’t be afraid! It’s just me! Really, what’s the worst I can say?” Y/N joked, hoping to ease his obvious nerves.

But it’s not just you, Jimmy thought, you’re so pretty and nice and smart and funny...you don’t know half of the things you do to me…

“Well, I suppose you’re right,” he said, humouring her, “The Yardbirds are leaving to go to America within the next few weeks for the Dick Clark tour, and I—I mean, uh, we, would love it if you joined us.”

Y/N’s breath rushes past her lips with a surprised, almost unbelieving gasp. They wanted her to go on tour with them?! She again had to fight the stupidly giddy smile that would find its way on her lips.

“I would love to! That is so generous of you, thank you so much! I feel like I’d cramp your style though...I wouldn’t want you lot to lose women because of me,” she laughed.

“Most of those birds are nuts anyway,” Jimmy laughed with her, “They’re too caught up in themselves to notice the other people around them. Honestly, in theory, you’d probably attract more women to us.”

“I’m that bad, huh?” Y/N smirked.

Jimmy’s face became even paler than it already was. He didn’t mean that at all.

“Oh no! That’s not what I meant at all! Sincerest apologies, Y/N, I feel terrible. You’re so beaut—”

“I’m kidding, it’s okay,” she cut him off with a lighthearted chuckle, “I know where you’re coming from.”

“Okay, good,” he sighed, relieved. Y/N smiled before an awkward silence settled over the gorgeous tea room.

“So when is this tour happening?” she asked.

“End of October.”

“Wait, shit...I’m in university right now…”

“Oh, you’re right, fuck…” Jimmy muttered, his lips pursed in a pensive line, until he almost jumped out of his seat with excitement, “Wait! I have the perfect excuse for you.”

“Really? What did you have in mind?”

Jimmy smirked. “What if...you said you were participating in a study abroad-internship-sort of program for the fall semester?”

“I’m listening,” she said with a light giggle.

“Say that ‘it’s an opportunity to explore the depths of the cultural renaissance that is the British blues scene, which has indefinitely flourished over the past few years, as well as utilizing communication and leadership skills in a practical environment.’”

Y/N raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Oh, that’s good,” she nodded her head, “that’s really good. I love that.”

“Then all you need is for myself and Simon Napier-Bell to sign off on it, as well as your dean, and you’re good to go.”

“That’s genius, Jimmy!”

“Why, thank you Miss Y/N,” he said with a joking courtly bow.

~~~~~~~~

Y/N, with much pushback from the dean at her university, was able to acquire course credit for going on tour with the Yardbirds. Simon Napier-Bell, as well as other members of the Yardbirds administration, had to come into the dean’s office to fight in Y/N’s favour. All she had to do was take photographs and write a paper on it for the end of the semester.

Not too bad.

The week preceding the beginning of the tour, Y/N was so full of nervous excitement that she could barely sleep. By the time her brother dropped her off at Heathrow airport, people had taken notice of the dark circles that hung around her tired eyes.

“Y/N, you look like hell,” Jeff exclaimed as Y/N got out of the passenger seat of Tommy’s car.

“Thanks,” she deadpanned as she shut the car door, walking to the back to grab her luggage.

“My God, you have to pull yourself together,” he added as he walked with Y/N, “you look like a raccoon.”

“He doesn’t mean that,” Chris called hopefully.

“Well, I’ll sleep enough when I’m dead,” Y/N smiled as she walked over to the group at the sidewalk with her suitcase, “and I guess you’ll have to play ‘Rocky Raccoon’ to serenade me then.”

“If Y/N did, in fact, have to ‘pull herself together,’ she wouldn’t be wearing a floral dress and a jumper to an airport,” Jim said.

“Thank you Jim,” Y/N smiled, “but I do look like hell though. He’s not wrong. I’m really tired.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Why’s that?”

“I didn’t sleep this entire week,” she chuckled, “My excitement for this day got the better of me.”

“Why don’t you take a nap on the plane then, love?” Jimmy asked, “You can get sick from lack of sleep, and we can’t have you sick when we’re abroad.”

“I brought my melatonin just for sleeping on the plane,” she smiled, “and I just took a shower too, so I’m ready to go to bed.”

“Lads, we have to go now. The security line is already awful,” Simon called as he rallied the boys and Y/N together to enter the airport.

Everyone obliged, groggily entering the airport as the road crew pushed heavy baggage carts of encased instruments, monitors, and other electronics behind them. The security line was dreadfully long, but they made it through and boarded the plane with little time to spare.

As Y/N was walking on the tarmac to board the plane, Jimmy caught up to her.

“Where are you sitting? What does your boarding pass say?” he asked, out of breath from running.

“I’m in 10C,” she laughed at his disheveled state, “what about you?”

“10B.”

“Oh, looks like we’re sitting together then,” Y/N smiled.

The two entered the plane and once they got to their seats, Jimmy realized that he had the window seat.

“Uh, Y/N?” he asked, shifting his weight between his feet anxiously.

“Mmhmm?”

“Do you mind if we switch seats and you take the window seat?” he inquired, a sheepish countenance flooding his face.

“Oh no, I don’t mind at all,” she smiled as she sat down in Jimmy’s original seat, “Why do you ask? I think the window seat is so cool.”

“You see, I’m afraid of heights,” he explained as he sat down in the aisle seat, “not to be dramatic, but all the air travel has me fearing for my life.”

“Oh, I see. That’s valid,” she understood, “Planes can be uncertain.”

The two engaged in quiet conversation before the plane engine started with a roar, and the aircraft started to make its way down the runway. Once the speed accelerated and the wheels rumbled, a telltale sign that the plane would be leaving the ground any minute, Y/N noticed how Jimmy’s leg started bobbing up and down uncontrollably.

Hoping to sooth his worries, she intertwined her fingers with his as the plane ascended, sending him a gentle, comforting grin. Jimmy squeezed her hand to reassure her that what she was doing was helping. His spirits were automatically lifted, and his entire body felt bubbly as heat invaded his cheeks.

About a half hour into the flight, Y/N’s eyes were starting to droop, but she was desperately trying to fight off the sleep. She had to stay awake and not look stupid sleeping in front of Jimmy.

Jimmy took notice of her drowsiness, seeing her lightly dozing against the window, as he put a fragile hand on her shoulder. The girl woke up with a deep inhale, lightly grinning at him as if she weren’t just asleep.  

“Y/N love, why don’t you take a melatonin now and try to get some sleep?”

“Yeah, you’re right,” she admitted self-consciously, “I have to give into it now.”

She took the melatonin with a few sips of the water one of the stewardesses had given to her.

“Put your head on my shoulder so you don’t wake up with a sore neck from the window,” Jimmy coaxed gently.

“Thank you,” she said with a stretch, placing her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes, “‘night.”

“Sweet dreams,” he laughed.

Next to Jimmy, the soft motion of the plane lulls Y/N closer and closer to sleep. Head on his shoulder, inhaling the scent of his aftershave, and something that was so uniquely him, Y/N slept the best she had in weeks.

————

Taglist: @blood-on-blood @reincarnated70sbaby @jonesyjonesyjonesy @jimmys-zeppelin

[chillmichelle]

Marry Me

Some pure angst

“So catering wise, I believe you told me over the phone that a lot of your guests were either vegan or vegetarian. I think it would be smart to have a variety of options for everyone, so we should definitely cater from a place that’s diverse in option. There’s an amazing mediterranean place on 4th Oak that I think we could try…”

The wedding planner continues rambling on about the specifics of my wedding, and although it’s supposed to be a special and joyous day, my mood remains sour due to my tired state. We had been constantly planning the wedding for several days now, I hadn’t gotten any time for myself.

In addition to this, Harry had been working excessively in the studio. He had come home past midnight every day this week, and by the time I would wake up to a bright ray of sunlight slapping me in the face, his side of the bed would be neatly left behind.

With all of the wedding planning happening, and with the wedding being so soon, I expected Harry to be around more often. I thought he would at least give some cake flavors a taste, help design the background and accessory to the wedding, or come with me to look at flowers or possible bouquets. Instead, he had practically locked himself inside of his studio with Jeff, constantly stressing for an album that wasn’t even due until 3 months after the wedding.

“Y/N?” the wedding planner, Mariah, waved her fake nail encrusted hands in front of my face, snapping me out of my thoughts entirely.

“Sorry Mariah, what were you saying?” You politely but tiredly respond. She reopens the thick binder bulging with pictures and colorful papers, pointing to two designs for the walls of the wedding.

“Since you hadn’t chosen your dress yet, I figured the designs for the elegance of the background could match with your dress. However, if you decide to go with a dress that uses a lot of tulle, a more festive backdrop would look better. Now i’m not telling you to be stressed, but I talked to the people who design the festive backdrops, and they need a call confirming the order right away so that we can be prepared for the wedding.”

Mariah tells you, trying her best to reassure you. You had wanted to go dress shopping for weeks. Buying the beautiful white gown you would walk down the aisle in had always been a dream of yours. However, every time you had asked Harry, he had procrastinated and pushed the scheduled day back over and over again.

You didn’t mind Harry missing things like the bouquet, or even the cake, but you did want his opinion on which dress to wear. Although it may have been considered bad luck to see the bride in the dress before the wedding, the purchasing of a gorgeous dress was something you’d always discussed with him.

“I’ll talk to Harry today. Do you have the pictures of the dress styles I picked out?” You ask her. She nods, flipping through her binder once more before taking a few photos out of a slot and handing them to you. You thank her, standing up and saying your farewells before walking out of the condo door.

The entire car ride to the studio downtown, the same thought seemed to cross your mind.

Did Harry not want to marry you?

The prospect of marriage had always been a discussion between the two of you. In late night car rides and midnight waffle house trips, one thing you had always discussed was the details of your dream wedding, occasionally joking about how wild it would be.

But now that the time to plan had come, the wedding being only a few weeks away, Harry had almost completely isolated himself from your planning. Whenever he came home late in the evening, you would ask him about small details like the flavors of the cake, to which he would respond, “I’m tired, baby. Can we discuss this tomorrow?”

But after nearly 2 weeks, “tomorrow” had never arrived. Which was precisely the reason why you were rushing over to his studio downtown in an Uber with a purse full of dress pictures, because you were on your last nerve.

Pulling up to the parking lot of the studio, you notice that it’s nearly empty aside from his white vintage Mercedes, which you park beside, and a truck you recognize as Jeff’s. You open the glass door to the establishment, pulling the bundle of pictures out of your purse and getting ready to show them to him.

Even though he had neglected his other wedding responsibilities, you at least expected Harry to be excited about your dress. Even when you put on dresses for things like graduations or parties, he had complimented you with a sweet, “You look so beautiful, darling. How did I get lucky enough to have you?”

The dresses were something especially important to you, so you walked into the studio pushing all of the negative thoughts about his opinions on the wedding out of your mind, and focused on the positive reassurance that he would be as excited about dresses as you were.

When you walk into the recording room, Jeff is sitting at the control board, headphones tightly wrapped around his ears as he edits what you assume is a newly recorded demo. Harry sits with Mitch, discussing what you think is an idea for a new song on the album, or specifically what it will be about. You assume Mitch rode with Jeff to the studio because you didn’t see her car in the parking lot.

In the midst of their lighthearted but professional conversation, Mitch notices you, waving at you with a smile.

“Y/N! Hey!” You walk towards her, adjusting your bag to one side of your body before meeting her warm embrace. While hugging Mitch, you visibly notice Harry rolling his eyes and going back to typing on his Macbook at the table next to you.

“What are you doing here?” Mitch asks happily. He then notices the small stack of dress photos in your right hand, smiling widely in response.

“I was going to ask Harry about the wedding. You’ll be coming, right?” You ask her. Mitch nods, gesturing with her hands and shaking them as if He was saying “obviously”. He accompanies the gesture with an, “Of course! I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

You smile widely before stepping past Mitch to finally approach Harry.

“Hey” You tell him. He notices you, but continues to click and type at his laptop, his eys never leaving the screen.

“Hi.” He bluntly replies, still not looking at you.

“So I was talking to Mariah about the backdrop of the altar, she told me it all varies depending on which dress I choose. You always seem to cancel the dress shopping so-” He cuts you off, finally looking at you but holding a defensive position. He crosses his arms over his chest, “Well I have work to do.” He states.

“Yeah, yeah, I wasn’t trying to make it seem like you purposely did it.” You immediately counter, trying to get rid of any hostility that seems to arise in conversation.

“But I know you can’t make it to coming with me, so I brought the designs here. Since we have to make the decision really soon.” You lay down the stack of wedding dress photos on the table he’s working at, dodging some of the papers messily scattered around the desk. You lay out a few dress designs, admiring all the pretty looks. When you look back up at Harry, you realize he isn’t even looking at you, and instead is typing away at his computer once again.

“Harry!” You snap him out of his work, waving your hands in front of his face like Mariah had done to you earlier.

“What? I’m busy. Couldn’t this have waited until tonight?” He annoyingly snaps at you. He seems irritated by your presence, and although that hurts you, you’re more mad than sad.

“You always say you’re tired when I ask you about it at night!” You defend yourself. He shakes his head and ignores you purposely, typing at his computer once more.

“Harry Edward Styles, don’t you dare ignore me while I speak to you.” You raise your voice slightly. From the back of the room, you hear the clacking of a soundboard halt, and you know you’ve startled Jeff.

“Y/N i’m doing important shit right now, I really don’t have time for this.” He snaps. You take the lid of his laptop and slam it down so that he’ll stop deterring his attention to the screen. Startled and surprised, he stands up from his chair, his significantly taller frame suddenly overshadowing you.

“What the fuck is your problem?” His voice raises. It scares you, but it hurts you more than anything else that he couldn’t just take a few minutes out of his work to look through your photos and help you choose.

“You haven’t contributed a single thing to planning this wedding, I just wanted you to be there for this one thing!” You snap back. He places his hand on his forehead and the other on his hip, annoyed and fed up.

“It’s a fucking dress, Y/N! It doesn’t even matter, i’ll buy you whatever you choose. Why does it even matter what you wear when I marry you?” His statement hits you suddenly, you feel hurt and betrayed by his sudden carelessness and blunt nature. This wasn’t the Harry you had 12:00 AM discussions with while eating waffles in your sweatpants, this Harry was different.This Harry was rude and intrusive, careless and selfish.

“Harry, at this point I don’t even know if you want to marry me!” You tell him, tears welling up in your eyes. You clear your throat to preserve your voice, expecting him to show at least some sympathy towards you. Instead, he just seems even more annoyed as he forms a quick rebuttal.

“Don’t be fucking ridiculous, Y/N.” He lifts up the lid of his macbook, waiting for it to turn on again as he types in his password. You feel a hot tear roll down the side of your face but wipe it away, sniffling. He doesn’t notice you crying.

“I just wanted to do this with you, you’re not even home anymore.” You tell him, running your forearms across your eyes roughly.

“It’s annoying that you think you can just bust in here when i’m working to help you choose what to wear. It’s not worth my album prep time to help you decide which ugly dress I like slightly more.”

You start crying even more and he’s back to typing away on his computer. Swallowing the enormous lump in your throat, you try to form any sentence to hurt him as much as he’s hurt you. You can feel Mitch and Jeff’s eyes burning holes in the back of your head, intrigued and surprised by the drama that’s unfolding.

“If you’re going to treat me like this when we’re not even married, why are we getting married Harry?” You ask him lightly. He looks up at you, shrugging.

“I don’t know.”

His response is nonchalant, as if he genuinely doesn’t care at all. You figure arguing with him is just a waste of time, regardless of how devastated you feel. You pick up some of the dress photos from his desk, preparing yourself to leave broken heartedly. He notices the small droplets of water dripping from your eyes onto the desk, and you can notice him starting to soften up. He grabs your wrist just as you finish collecting your design pictures, speaking softly

“Y/N…”

You cut him off.

“No. And Harry? You don’t ever have to worry about choosing between ugly dresses or being too busy for wedding planning ever again, because the wedding isn’t happening anymore. I wouldn’t want to marry someone who isn’t ever home anyways.”

[themcuhasruinedme]

Vintage Film Fest (Pt. 3)

[Summary]: You and Steve have been dating for a while and you surprise him with a pair of tickets to a vintage film festival as an anniversary date

[Pairing]: Steve x reader

[Word Count]: 2,806

Tagging: @theashhole @dividedwecantfall @peterman-parker @avengerofyourheart @nataliarxmanxva @metalarmproblems @mcuimxgine @accio-rogers @imagine-assembling-the-avengers @that-sokovian-bastard @hellomissmabel @abovethesmokestacks @peculiar-persephone @bellameys @beccaanne814 @hymnofthevalkyrie @buckys-shield @callamint @redgillan @lancefvcker @thetalesofmooseandsquirrel @iwillbeinmynest @theassetseyeliner @lilasiannerd @aubzylynn @sgtbxckybxrnes @iamwarrenspeace @marvelrevival @httpmcrvel @avengersnthings @feelmyroarrrr @girl-next-door-writes @honey-bee-holly @patzammit

A/N: Harold Lloyd gif was made by yours truly! So, since Tumblr links no longer work you can find the other parts of this short series in my masterlist. And again, I encourage you guys to watch the movies and shorts I mention in this as they are all wonderful and amazing (heads up though: some of them are silent!) and all can be found on YouTube.

Day three seemed to go by kinda slow and you kept watching the clock throughout the day, waiting for the time to hit when Steve and you were to drive over to the theater.

You had went out shopping a little earlier that day, going to your favorite vintage clothing shop - a place that had everything from 1920′s to 1950′s inspired clothes and dresses and found a really cute day dress that looked like it could be from the 1930′s.

Steve liked when you wore clothes like that. He would say that they look much better on you than any “modern day” style. But then again, he said anything looked good on you. You also believed that he liked it mostly because it brought him back to that period in time. And you were happy to have anything spark those memories, cuz it meant that you were in for a walk down memory lane with him and it was the best feeling both of you could have.

When it was finally time to go to the theater, Steve couldn’t believe his eyes.

“Wow, [Y/N]. You look gorgeous,” he said as he took you by the hand and turned you around to look over the dress.

“Thank you. I found it at that vintage clothes shop, the one I told you about.”

“Oh, you mean the one that you always go to?” he asked as he locked the front door behind you and escorted you to the car.

You nodded. “That’s the one. I’ll have to take you there some time. They have clothes for men there as well.”

Opening the door and gently letting you sit down in the passenger seat, Steve placed a kiss on the top of your hand. “We’ll make that our next date,” he said giving you a wink.

When you got to the theater, Steve helped you out of the car and held your hand as the two of you walked in and stood in line to get the popcorn and drinks. And when you got all your snacks for the movies, the two of you walked in to a quarter-filled theater.

“Not as bad as last night, huh?”

“Hush up,” he said and playfully nudged your arm.

Finding seats around the same area as the two previous nights, you both settled down and waited for he movie night to begin. As the night before, there was plenty of time to wait before the movies and shorts actually started which again made you need to pull out your phone and play some games on. This time you brought your earbuds with to also watch some videos on YouTube, mostly other shorts of Charlie, Buster and Harold that weren’t being played on the big screen.

When you felt Steve tap your arm then point to his ear, you removed your earbuds to hear that there was going to be a five minute delay which then you heard moans and groans from all parts of the theater, mostly from the kids. But that five minutes went by quickly.

When the lights went dark and the first film started up, you had a smile appear on your face as it was one of Laurel and Hardy’s famous silent shorts called Liberty.

The theater made have started out quiet but laughter rang out seeing Stan and Ollie in prisoner outfits being chased by a cop, getting in a get-away car and trying to change into normal clothes. Even more laughter happened when a cop started chasing the car which sent Stan and Ollie into panic mode and made them quickly get out of the car, only to find out they had each other’s pants on.

The laughter was practically non stop through out the rest of the short as Stan and Ollie keep trying to find places to change pants but had no luck and had even worse luck while they were behind a seafood restaurant with Stan having a crab fall into his pants and begin to have problems with the crab nipping his butt.

A lot of gasps and ooo’s came from the kids all over the theater as they watched Stan and Ollie somehow get stuck at the top of an unfinished building and almost fall off of it several times, due to the crab still being stuck in the pants which were now properly on Ollie.

And squeaks of joy scattered throughout the place when Stan and Ollie were finally able to safely get back down on the ground.

When the lights came on for the first break to start, Steve looked over at you and smiled. You smiled back and placed your head on his shoulder, the two of you waiting quietly for the next one to start. And quickly start it did.

Your smile got even bigger seeing that it was one of your favorite Buster talking shorts called The Timid Young Man. You remembered that when you had started really getting into watching everything Buster had did, you were very hesitant with watching his talking stuff because you weren’t entirely sure if you were going to like the way he sounded. But when you heard his beautiful low, Midwestern, gruff, flat baritone voice, all your worries went out the door because hearing it made you melt into a puddle.

The audience sat in silence and watched as a girl ran out of her wedding ceremony, saying how she didn’t want to marry the man then watched the scene change as another girl gets a key to Milton’s, Buster’s character, room and wakes him up to tell him that their wedding was that day.

“Last night you said you couldn’t live without me,” the woman told him.

“Oh, I must’ve been drunk,” he replied, which made the audience burst out laughing.

The audience then watched as his butler told him to leave and go up to the mountains so he wouldn’t have to marry her. It then turned into him picking up the runaway bride on his drive out, getting into a heated standoff with another driver and finally getting to camp where the woman set everything up while Milton went fishing, which in turn had the whole theater laughing over.

Plenty of laughter came and went throughout the short, especially when the driver they had met earlier wandered on to their camp and Milton tried to get rid of him by doing several different things including pouring gasoline into the man’s salad. And when the short ended and the lights came on, you could see smiles on so many faces in the theater.

Another break happened and as you and Steve sat quietly waiting for the next one to start, you felt a tap on your shoulder. Looking behind you, you saw the couple you and Steve talked to the night before. Your excitement caught Steve’s attention and he turned around also getting excited to see them. The four of you talked for a bit during the break and got quiet when the lights dimmed down.

The title card of one of Charlie’s famous silent short’s called A Dog’s Life flashed across the screen and you were in a moment of quietude. It may not have been one of his laughter filled comedies but it did have some laughs here and there.

As soon as the dog appeared on the screen, you heard so many awww’s from every corner of the theater and most of it was from the kids. But you couldn’t help but smile too as the screen stayed on the for for a bit.

But laughter started when The Tramp got busted by a cop for trying to steal a hot dog and when the cop tried to get him, The Tramp evaded him by rolling out from under the fence, untying the cop’s shoes and kicking him when the cop got stuck under the fence.

It became quiet while the audience watched The Tramp wander around looking for a job and then finding that there was one but several others wanted it as well, the laughter broke out again seeing the poor Tramp get out smarted by the others.

But when the scene came of The Tramp saving the little dog from a bunch of other dogs, all the kids in the audience whooped and cheered which then turned to more aww’s when The Tramp took care of the little dog by giving it some milk that was left over in a bottle on someone’s doorstep to drink.

Laughs came when The Tramp came across a street food vendor who had a plate of sliced bread on the counter and he started stuffing them in his mouth, only stopping when the owner turned around to suspect The Tramp of something. And laughs came again when The Tramp snuck the dog into a pub by hiding it in his oversized pants.

You nestled your head on Steve’s chest as you watched The Tramp meet a girl in the pub, quickly fall for her but then get tossed out because he had no money to pay for his tab. Steve looked down at you and placed a soft kiss on the top of your head which made you smile and sigh contently.

Watching The Tramp go back to his outdoor sleeping spot with the dog, who he named Scraps, was the most adorable thing you could ever see.

But soon the movie was over with laughs happening throughout the rest of the short and it was time for a longer break.

You and Steve took turns to go to the restroom and Steve got a couple boxes of candy from the concession stand as well. Coming back, he handed you a box of Reese’s Pieces, your absolute favorite. Eyeing it like a vulture, you snatched it out of his hand and as you started to open it, all he could do was laugh.

“What’s so funny?” you asked, shoveling a handful in your mouth.

“You,” he said. “It’s almost like you’ve never had candy in your life before.” “Well, excuse me if you bring over my favorite kind. I can’t help how my mind tells my body to react upon seeing my favorite candy.”

Steve just chuckled and shook his head. Another several minutes and the lights dimmed down once again for the next movie to start.

A talking Harold Lloyd movie called Feet First started and this was another one of your favorites from Harold. After all, how could you not love how hard he tries to be the best shoe salesman possible along with his sweet and boyish voice.

The audience watched as he helped a girl who got in a bad scrap with a man after her car hit his from behind then seeing Harold and the girl both instantly fall for each other.

Steve joked that that’s not how things worked in real life which made you jab your finger in his side.

“Ow,” he whispered while flinching a bit.

“Oh, don’t be such a baby,” you whispered back and linked your arms around Steve’s arm, adjusting the way you were sitting in your seat.

Laughter came and went as the audience watched Harold meet the girl again and believe her to be the boss’s daughter, which made him want to impress her even more. And then watching as he accidentally gets stuck on a ship eventually meeting the girl again along with his boss and his wife.

Gasps from the kids throughout the theater happened when Harold escaped from the ships crew by hiding in a mailbag which then got picked up and brought ashore to New York but fell off a delivery cart onto a window cleaner's cradle, which was then hoisted upwards.

More gasps and ooo’s followed as the audience watched the bag get caught on the side of the building as Harold struggled to get out of it. But laughter soon followed as everyone watched him get out of the bag after landing on the cradle and going into panic mode, clinging tightly to it and yelling for help while the two window washers at the top of the building hoisting it up were totally oblivious to then fact that Harold was on it.

Soon it was a mix of gasps and laughter as you all watched Harold try to get into the building while also trying to not fall off, along with the cradle going up and down only causing problems for him.

When the happy ending came and the movie finished, the lights came on and the last break of the night started. You decided to pull out your phone and scroll  through your social media for a bit while Steve did the same, which made the two of you show each other several different posts which made you both laugh until the final movie started.

It was another talking Buster movie, which this one also happened to be one of your top three favorites called Speak Easily. Even though most fans considered his talking movies to not be good at all, mostly due to how MGM treated him, making a character for him that acted like a total buffoon, there were still a few decent ones and this was one of them.

The audience watched as the timid and shy Professor Post, Buster’s character, was told by his assistant to get out and see the world because the Professor was such a lonely person. He told his assistant that even though he wanted to, he couldn’t afford to spend his money to indulge on “a whim”.

Giggles from all the kids throughout the theater came when the assistant gave the Professor a letter saying that he inherited $750,000 which made the Professor excited and that he decided he was going to go out and “buy companionship”. Laughter happened while you all watched the Professor pack his trunk with anything he grabbed, including his own bed.

Quietness came while the screen showed the Professor board the train, meet the manager of a dancing troupe that was on the same train and immediately fall head over heels for one of the dancers named Pansy. Aww’s filled the theater while watching the Professor take care of a baby from someone that was part of the troupe but laughter rang out when the Professor noticed his trunk wasn’t on the train and stopped it, causing an argument with the luggage man.

Gasps came from the kids as you all found out that the letter the Professor got was actually written by his assistant only to help get him out and see the world because the assistant couldn’t stand seeing the Professor be so lonely from day to day.

Laughter came and went throughout the rest of the movie as the audience watched the Professor miss his train, meet back up with the dancing troupe at the opera house and quietness fell upon the theater when the sheriff came to take the troupes things but then the Professor paid the man which then made the manager decide to let the Professor take over the show and manage it to repay him for his kindness.

More laughter came with seeing the Professor trying to direct the show so they could get it on Broadway, get somewhat flustered and tongue-tied with a spoiled actress who joined the production, incorporating new dance moves into the show, the actress “buttering up” the Professor and then seeing the two of them get drunk at her apartment. 

Even more laughter happened when both of them fell asleep in her apartment and the Professor not realizing what happened until he woke up the next morning and tried to sneak out quietly but didn’t even manage to make it out of the bedroom without waking her.

As more laughs came and went through the last bit of the movie with the show being put on, the manager finding out the Professor didn’t have all that money, the show crew trying to keep the Professor away from the stage and Buster causing chaos that only he would know how to do, it was sure a delight to end the night with.

When the screen went black and the lights came on to say that night number three was over, you and Steve waited until almost everyone was gone to walk back to the car. Linking your arm to Steve’s as you slowly walked through the parking lot, you placed your head on his shoulder.

“So, can I ask you yet if you’ve been having fun with this?”

You looked up at him and giggled. “And I’ll say again, do you really have to ask? This has been one of the greatest dates we’ve done.”

He smiled at you and kissed the top of your head. “You’re exactly right.”

[aupairadventures]

Nantes: My favorite places in my favorite city

Yesterday, I spent the day with my friend Laura, an au pair from Colombia that I met in my French class. Since Laura only arrived in Nantes several weeks ago, we decided that it would be a good idea for me to take her on a little tour of this incredible city. As the two of us were walking around on an unseasonably warm and sunny February day, I was reminded of why I find this city so beautiful and why it’s so special to me.

I loved seeing the look of awe on Laura’s face as we explored all of Nantes’ wonders, and it reminded me so much of what it was like to set foot in this city for the first time. When I first moved here, this city absolutely terrified me. I, a girl from a small town in Massachusetts, initially felt uneasy around all the hustle and bustle. The whirling and crowded city felt so alien and foreign to me, and at first, I feared that I would never adjust. However,  I could not have been more wrong. After some initial hesitation, I fell in the love with Nantes; and when I fell, I fell hard and fast. This city has taught me so much about the beauty of embracing your fears and welcoming the unknown into your life.

I may not be a born-Nantaise, but within the past few months, this city has become my home. Before I found my host family last April, I had never even heard of this place. Now, several months later, I can’t imagine my life without it. Since I moved here, this city has come to mean so much to me and had become very dear to my heart. Perhaps it’s because of the city’s stunning architecture or rich culture and history. Perhaps it’s because of its bustling, vibrant nature or its abundance of places to explore and things to do. Maybe it’s because last year, this city welcomed me with open arms and made me feel a sense of belonging, even though I was thousands of miles away from everything I had ever known. It might be because this city has been the setting of many of my firsts, and has been the backdrop to so many new experiences and adventures. Perhaps it’s because I have found a family here and have created strong friendships that I know will last a lifetime. Maybe it’s because my friends and I have made memories in every corner of this city, or because I can’t look at a single thing in this place without being reminded of happy memories and feeling a wave of bittersweet nostalgia. It breaks my heart to know that I will have to leave this city one day, but I am comforted by the knowledge that I will certainly be back to Nantes to visit many times in the coming years. Who knows, maybe this city is where I’ll raise my children one day; I love the sound of that.

As you can see, Nantes is without a doubt one of my favorite cities. Of course, I know that I’m quite biased on this, but there are so many reasons to love this place. I highly recommend this destination to any and all travelers; I bet that you’ll come to love this city just as much as I do.

Still not convinced? Let me tell you about my favorite places in Nantes, and I’m sure that by the time you finish reading this, you’ll be on Skyscanner booking a flight.

1) Le Château des Ducs de Bretagne

How incredible is it that I walk by an actual castle every day on my way to French class? This castle is a must-see for any travelers visiting Nantes. You can walk around the courtyard on the inside, have a picnic on the grass on a sunny day, walk around the wall of the castle and be rewarded with a beautiful view, or even go down the slide attached to the side of the structure! Just across the tram tracks lies The Water Mirror. During the summer, lots of people love coming here to splash in the fountain or sunbath on the nearby grass. But, when the water is completely still, you can see a beautiful reflection of the castle in it. Within the castle, there are two museums: Le Musée d’Histoire Urbaine and another museum for temporary expositions. Several weeks ago, some friends and I went to an exposition called “Cimarron,” which was a colorful, beautiful, and moving contemporary photography exhibit.

2.) Le Musée des Beaux Arts

If you love art or just enjoy museums, be sure to check at Le Musée des Beaux-Arts. The best part? On the first Sunday of each month, the majority of museums in Nantes are totally free of charge!

3.) La Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Nantes

The architecture of this cathedral is nothing short of stunning! This was one of the first places in Nantes that I visited with my host family when I arrived, and it was also the place that my friend Ellie and I used as our meeting spot the first time that we met up, so the thought of the cathedral and the memories I’ve made there always brings a smile to my face.

4) Le Jardin des Plantes

Le Jardin des Plantes is easily my absolute favorite place in Nantes. I could write pages about why I love it so much. This beautiful botanical garden, which is open to the public free of charge, is complete with a playground, walking trails, a cafe, greenhouses, flower and herb gardens, lots of trees, fountains, sculptures, lots of birds, a merry-go-round, and even a goat petting zoo. The garden is absolutely gorgeous; filled with brightly colored blossoms and greenery everywhere, it’s like a little slice of paradise. When the weather is nice, it’s my favorite place to go for a walk, have a picnic with friends, grab a pain au chocolat at the nearby boulangerie and sit in the sunshine, or find a shady bench to read or journal. Au Pair Super Tip: This is the perfect place to take your host kids! They’ll love the playground, the merry go round, and the petting zoo, and walking around here is a great way for the kids to play outside and get some exercise.

5) Shopping

Nantes is the perfect city for those who love to shop. There’s an abundance of chic fashion stores, vintage shops, and adorable boutiques. When visiting Nantes, be sure to check out Le Passage Pommeraye, a beautiful shopping center built in the 1800s.

6) Restaurants:

In Nantes, there’s certainly no shortage of great cafes and restaurants. Looking for a delicious croissant, baguette, or macaron? You can find all that and more in one of the many different boulangeries or patisseries. On the search for a crêpe or a galette? In any city in the Brittany region, you’re sure to find tons of creperies. Want to grab coffee with a friend and spend hours chatting in a cute café? Try Le Select, a great cafe with a vintage vibe, or La Maison d’Elise, a cat cafe. Yes, a cafe that doubles as a cat shelter! (How adorable.) Even if your searching for healthy, vegan food, Nantes has you covered! In fact, two of my favorite places in Nantes or the TreeHouse, a vegan café/grocery store, and Totem, an incredible vegan restaurant with the most amazing vegan desserts I’ve ever had.

7)  Le Jardin Japonais

If you’re looking to find some more nature when in the city, look no further than Le Jardin Japonais (The Japanese Garden) located on L’ile de Versailles. Filled with red maple trees, walking paths, streams, bamboo plants, and even rocky waterfalls, this little garden is another great place to spend a sunny, Autumn day.

8) Architecture:

I have to say, I love the architecture in the Bretagne area, especially here in Nantes. Whenever I’m walking around the city, I can’t help but look up to stare at the buildings around me. I mean, just look at how pretty these buildings are! Whether it be in Nantes, Paris, or Toulouse, my favorite part of French architecture are the balconies that adorn the historic buildings.

9) Les Machines de l'île

“The Machines of the Isle of Nantes” is an artistic exposition located in the former shipyards of Nantes. Several artists created many different gigantic, robotic animals. The most famous of these robotic works of art is the Elephant, a 12-meter high creation that passengers can climb aboard and be taken on a 45 ride around the area. Just watch out: The Elephant will spray water from its trunk when you least expect it! (Take it from my host kid; who got absolutely drenched the last time we visited.)

10) Le Lieu Unique

One of the coolest places in Nantes is the Lieu Unique. While the building actually used to be a factory for the French biscuit brand LU, it now serves as a location for a vibrant cultural center with an abundance of things to do. Visitors can eat in the cafe or restaurant, shop in the bookstore, grab a drink in the bar, get a massage or relax in the sauna in the spa, see a contemporary art exposition, or go to one of many different performances, concerts or live music events.

11) Le Tour Bretagne

   One of my absolute favorite places in Nantes is the Tour Bretagne. While it may just look like a skyscraper filled with administrative offices from the outside, this tower has a secret: For one euro, you can ride the elevator to the top floor (over 30 stories high!). There, you’ll find a funky, bird-themed bar called “Le Nid” (“The Nest”), which is one of my favorite places to go out with friends. After getting a drink and hanging out in one of their egg-shaped chairs, you can go out on the balcony and see the most incredible view of Nantes. Whether you see it during the day, as the sun is setting, or late at night, this view is always sure to stun. From the top of this tower, you can see the entire city from a bird’s eye view, which makes all the buildings (Even the cathedral!) look tiny enough to be doll furniture. I love spending time on the balcony and looking out over this city, as it reminds me about why this beautiful city is so special to me, the countless memories I have made here, and why love Nantes so fiercely.

[lordsicheng]

Something Special

One Last Bite Character Epilogue (2/3)

Kim Taedong x OC

word count: 2.8k

g: fluff

Taedong rummaged through the books in the house’s library to try and find something new to read, since he had already read almost every book inside. He crinkled his nose as he looked around the shelves and realized he might need a new book. Donghan’s girlfriend suddenly walked in to get a pen from the desk, noticing Taedong’s expression becoming irritated

“What’s wrong?” she asked as she grabbed the pen and looked at Taedong

“I may have read all the books here, I need new ones. Do you think ordering online is a good idea?” Taedong scratched his head as he turned to look at her

“Hmm, depends if the book you’re looking for is available. Why don’t you go out to a bookstore or something?” she said as she twirled the pen around her finger

“I don’t… know my way around the city…” Taedong looked down, making her raise a brow and nod as she crossed her arms

“Say, me and Donghan are going out tonight to find some nice art for our repainted room. Why don’t you come with us and go to the bookstore just next to the shop?” she grinned, making Taedong look at her with a lightened expression

“Really? I… I’d love to!” Taedong exclaimed

“I’ll lend you some money since we all know you are all broke for not actually doing any work.” she chuckled as she walked out the library, Taedong pouting and looking around the library as he noticed the interior was beginning to look too old

“This room needs repainting too.” he crossed his arms as he continued looking around

-

Donghan and his girlfriend looked at Taedong in a confused expression as he stood and grabbed on to the pole by the train’s doors as it moved, obviously his first time riding it as he tried to keep his composure and held on to not fall. The girl seated next to him looked at him as well and Taedong just gave a grin to show he wasn’t having a hard time when he obviously was

“How do you do?” Taedong gave a nod as he greeted, and the girl just looked at the other side, making Taedong embarrassed to even greet her in the first place

“Oh, our stop’s here.” Donghan’s girlfriend smiled as the train got to a stop and opened its doors, many people going out and Taedong getting bumped into as he almost lost her and Donghan

“Come here!” Donghan pulled Taedong’s arm as he dragged him out of the crowd and walked towards the stairs up

-

“Ah, one of my favorite places to go.” Donghan’s girlfriend smiled as she looked at the store she used to frequent, a small vintage art gallery situated along the streets of Insadong

“My girlfriend seems to have nice taste.” Donghan smirked as he put his arm on her shoulders, kissing her forehead and making Taedong roll his eyes and cross his arms

“Where’s the bookstore?” Taedong asked

“Oh, that one.” Donghan’s girlfriend pointed to a bookstore that had three floors, Taedong’s eyes widening in amazement

“We’ll meet you in an hour. Have fun finding a good book.” she said as she went inside, Donghan following her

“I’ll come over in a while to check up on you, alright?” Donghan said as he turned to look at Taedong, and Taedong just nodded and immediately went inside the bookstore

Taedong’s eyes were glistening from the number of books he had seen before his eyes, amazed by how many he could be able to read for the next several years. He looked around to find the non-fiction section, where he raised his head to find a book he might become interested in.

You were only a month in your new job and you loved it, being able to read books and at the same time arrange them. There was just something about being surrounded by books that calmed you and you adored every single genre you were able to read. You were carrying a pile of books as you walked a few steps backward a bit to go to the non-fiction section where you accidentally bumped into Taedong who was looking for a book for himself, causing some of the books to fall off from the top. He noticed them fall and immediately grabbed a couple of books and helped you situate them at a desk nearby, his eyes ending up staring at you as you fixed your hair and put the books aside to arrange them by genre

“Thank you.” you smiled and nodded as you took a glance of him and turned again to organize the books

“Y-you’re welcome.” Taedong said as he stood up straight, still looking at you. You noticed his gaze intact to you and looked at him, trying to figure out if he needed some guidance

“Are you looking for a certain book?” you said as you wiped your hands on your long skirt, looking around the area before looking back at him

“I…” he suddenly stopped, making you give a confused look as he tried to look at a book that was behind you at one of the shelves

“D-do you have ‘Hiroshima’ by John Hershey?” he asked, making you look up in wonder to try and remember where the book was located at until you had the idea it was somewhere on the shelves behind you, looking around and finally seeing it as you grabbed it and gave it to him

“Here you go. A classic.” you grinned

“Thank… you…” he said as he looked at the book

“Hmm, are you into books about wartime?” you beamed as you looked at him

“I… I do…” he nodded as he looked up at you, and you turned a bit to look at the desk to find another book

“Here, try this one. It’s a book about some soldiers who survived World War II.” you handed the book to him and he grabbed it in no time

“Ah, I was alive in World War II…” he mumbled, making you raise a brow in confusion and look at him

“Excuse me?” you asked

“I mean, I saw a movie! About World War II…” he chuckled awkwardly, making you open your mouth and nod to his words

“I see. Have a fun looking for more books.” you smiled as you grabbed the pile of books again to walk away

“Wait!” he called out following you, making you turn to him

“Yes?” you gave a smile

“Can you recommend me some books from the…” Taedong looked around to find a certain genre

“Romance section…?” he said as he turned to look back at you, making you chuckle a bit

“Romance?” you repeated, and he just nodded

“Hmm, alright. I’ll just put these books to the counter nearby and I’ll be right with you.” you beamed as you walked away to the counter to ask your friend to cover for you a bit since a customer asked for your help, Taedong not able to hide his shy smile as he turned to go to the romance section of the shop

“Alright, romance…” you put your hands on your hips as you looked up at the shelves in front of you, Taedong again staring at how cute you looked when you were serious

“Ah, this one!” you exclaimed as you grabbed a book on one of the shelves and handed it to Taedong

“The Notebook?” Taedong raised a brow as he looked at the book

“One of our best sellers.” you nodded, making Taedong confused

“Have you read it already?” you looked at him

“N-no. But I’ve seen the movie.” Taedong gave a small smile

“The book is better. Oh, and this one too.” you grabbed another book from the side and handed it over to Taedong

“Eleanor & Park…” he mumbled

“Teens love this one. I find the story to be adorable.” you chuckled, looking at Taedong as he eyed the two books you gave him and looked at you

“A-are there any more? Like, for adults…?” he shyly asked, making you widen your eyes in surprise

“Oh, you mean… with those kinds of scenes? I mean, like Fifty Shades of Grey?” you turned to look for the book

“Wait, no, I mean… something a bit more of a realistic story.” Taedong snickered, and you gave a sigh of relief as you thought he was asking for a book that had some pretty rated scenarios

“You had me there. Hmm, most romance novels do have some rated scenes on them, but I’ll try to suggest you ones that have minimal.” you smiled as you turned, making Taedong follow you around to find more books to read

After a while, Taedong was already bringing a basket full of romance novels, making you applaud yourself as you thought you did a great job of helping someone out at work. You went over the counter to scan the books for payment, Taedong not able to take his eyes off of you as you worked

“Hey, did you find anything?” Donghan asked as he arrived the bookshop and walked over to Taedong

“Ah, yeah… I kind of went overboard.” Taedong grit his teeth

“Overboard? What, did you get like, five books or something?” Donghan chuckled as he crossed his arms

“More like 18 books about love.” Taedong mumbled

“WHAT?!” Donghan snapped

“No, please, let me explain” Taedong shushed Donghan as he dragged him to the side

“Excuse me for a moment I’m just gonna talk to my brother over here.” Taedong smiled to you, and you nodded as you tried to find the barcode on one of the books while scanning

“Donghan, I think I found someone I like. She loves books! And she’s really pretty.” Taedong whispered, turning his head to your direction

“Taedong, that doesn’t mean you have to buy 18 romance novels to get her attention.” Donghan rolled his eyes as he looked at you and then back to him

“I know, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted to suddenly spend time with her.” Taedong grinned as he suddenly got excited

“Well if you said so, I should’ve asked my girlfriend to stop time for you to be able to hang out with her longer.” Donghan shook his head and chuckled

“Donghan, please, just this once that I’ll read all her suggestions and then try to make a move.” Taedong pleaded as he clasped his hands together, Donghan only able to look at you again before turning to Taedong

“Fine. I’ll use the card, but you better explain to her if she shrieks.” Donghan sighed as he grabbed the credit card from his wallet and walked over to the counter

“Hi, I’ll pay for the books.” Donghan smiled and nodded to you

“Alright. Would you like to pay with cash or card?” you asked

“Card.” he said as he handed the credit card to you

“Thanks, man.” Taedong said as he nodded and pat Donghan on his shoulder

“Thank you for coming! See you again… what was your name?” you said as you handed the paper bag of books

“Taedong.” he grinned as he grabbed the bag from you

“Taedong. Ah, it’s been a while since someone bought these many books… Anyways, hope to see you again soon!” you smiled as you gave the gentlemen a wave as they walked away

“See? She hopes to see me again soon!” Taedong whispered excitedly to Donghan as they walked

“Don’t get your hopes up.” Donghan shook his head as he gulped

-

“110 DOLLARS?!” Donghan’s girlfriend shrieked as she looked at the receipt of the books Taedong bought while sitting on the kitchen stool

“Umm….” Taedong looked away, making her look at him with a horrified expression

“Taedong, I asked you to buy a couple of books to read, not eighteen books to make your hormones explode!” she complained as she put her hands on her hips

“I’m sorry! It’s just that…” Taedong scratched his head as he looked at her

“What? Give me one good reason why you bought these many books.” she clicked her tongue a few times as she tapped her foot impatiently

“Taedong’s got a bit of a crush on someone in the store.” Donghan walked into the kitchen as he smirked and stood next to his girlfriend

“Ooh, a crush you say?” Yongguk widened his eyes as he turned from cleaning the kitchen counters, his attention diverting to the topic

“Idiot, go back to cleaning.” Taedong scoffed

“Tss. As if I’m the one who blew a hundred dollars on useless books.” Yongguk gave a stank eye as he turned to continued to clean the kitchen

“Just, please explain, Taedong.” Donghan’s girlfriend looked at him in annoyance

“Okay, so I met this girl at the bookshop and I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. It’s like, time stopped as I stared at her. She was so graceful, adorable, helpful, beautiful…” Taedong said as he looked up in wonder as he thought of you the moment you were seen from his eyes earlier

“Looks like you’ve fallen in too deep.” Donghan chuckled as he leaned on the counters

“I have.” Taedong nodded and smiled widely

“Taedong, how can you expect me to forgive you for spending this much money which I earned? You should get a job.” Donghan’s girlfriend crossed her arms

“I got an idea! Why don’t you apply for a job at the bookshop?” Yongguk chimed in, making everyone look at him

“For once, Yongguk, you’re making sense.” Donghan laughed

“I’m serious. He did say he wanted to spend more time with her.” Yongguk shrugged

“Sounds like a good idea. Taedong?” Donghan’s girlfriend turned to look at Taedong

“Um, wouldn’t it be weird if I see her immediately again tomorrow? Wouldn’t she get the wrong idea if I just act as if I needed another book?” Taedong worriedly said as he walked back and forth the kitchen counter and the dining table

“But you’re asking for a job, not another book.” Donghan raised a brow

“Don’t worry, we’ll go with you tomorrow night.” Donghan’s girlfriend said

“Okay…” Taedong nodded as he turned to walk out of the kitchen

“Oh, and Taedong.” she called again as she scanned the receipt

“Yes?” Taedong replied as he turned

“Make sure you read the damn books to get a hint of what romance is like.” she said without looking at him, making Taedong look at her awkwardly as he turned to go out of the kitchen and to the stairs to his room

“Where’s Hyunbin?” Donghan asked as he turned to look at Yongguk, who was rearranging the things on the ­­counters

“He said he was meeting someone. A girl, if I’m not mistaken.” Yongguk shrugged as he cleaned

“How come you’re the only person here who hasn’t tried their luck on finding someone?” Donghan’s girlfriend raised a brow as she looked up to look at Yongguk

“Well maybe girls can’t handle my straightforwardness?” Yongguk raised his shoulders as he turned to the two before he continued to clean, making them just chuckle in return

-

Taedong took a deep breath as he stood outside the bookshop and looked at you through the clear glass door, Donghan patting his back to make sure he was calm

“Just go in, ask if they’re hiring, and try to talk to her with only that topic in mind.” Donghan smiled, pushing Taedong towards the door as he opened it and walked inside. You were busy writing some inventories by the counter as he slowly walked over to you, becoming nervous as he felt his palms become cold and sweaty

“H-hi.” Taedong greeted, and you raised your head to give a small smile

“Oh, hello, Taedong! Gimme a sec.” you said as you turned to put the notebook away

“She remembered my name!” Taedong thought loudly

“So, what can I help you with?” you asked as you looked at him

“Um, I… read ‘The Notebook’ last night…” he scratched his head and shyly smiled

“Oh, really? The whole book? That was quick.” you chuckled as you crossed your arms

“Yeah. Um, anyways… I was wondering….” he paused, you raising your brow in curiosity

“Are you guys hiring? For like, any position here…” Taedong cleared his throat, you giggling in response as you covered your mouth and looked back at him

“I’m not sure. But I’ll ask the manager when he comes tomorrow morning.” you nodded

“Oh, okay. Anyways, thanks.” Taedong gave an awkward smile

“Is that all?” you said as you put some books to the side for inventory

“A..are you free tomorrow night? For like, um, coffee… dessert… dinner…?” Taedong asked gawkily as he looked away

“I’m working overtime tomorrow, Taedong.” you admitted as you looked down

“Oh, um, okay. So I’ll just go now…” he nodded and turned to slowly walk away

“But I’m out in thirty minutes, if you can wait.” you called, making his face light up a bit as he slowly turned to you again

“R-really? I mean, oh, I see.” Taedong shyly looked away, making you chuckle at his cute reaction

“There’s a café that’s two stores from here. You can wait for me there, if you want.” you smiled

“I can wait.” he grinned, unable to contain the excitement in him

[peonyrice]

Designer Tips: 10 best ways to find your Wedding Dress!

Amazing you are engaged! Congratulations and you must still be walking on air i am sure, so many things to plan. There’s the wedding location, date, who to invite, what kind of wedding ??? all these questions.... and as everything starts to fall into place - you need your wedding gown. Where do you start?

Here’s our 10 tips to help you on your way. There are many options and you are not sure where to start, you have either been scrolling over pages and pages of images on pinterest falling in love with different backs, styles of dresses....it brings up a whole world of possibilities but which is realistically your dress??? or perhaps you are feeling totally relaxed about the whole wedding and don’t want to make a big deal of it you know you will find that gown as you still have time!

Either way  - Stop procrastinating, our advice is better not to leave it to the last minute and give yourself time to prepare all the other little things.

Haven’t a clue where to go?

1. Referrals - Talk to your friends, girlfriends, sister, mum, work colleagues and see where they suggest to go. Within your inner circles - they are likely to have some recommendations or places that they may have liked the style or service. Referrals tend to be the best way.. especially if you know or see that someone has a similar taste or style as yourself... its usually a great indication that you may also like the same designer or boutique.  Make an appointment and go take a look.

2. Online research - check out local wedding blogs, Wedding planners, Wedding photographers, Brides may share their story with all the details of the big day and the events running up to it. Be inspired and you can draw from their experiences and get some great tips on making it your special day. Read magazines, most bridal magazines from print to online versions, instagram there will be plenty of visual of bridal boutiques and bridal designers that are recommended in the big cities. Decide who you like and make that appointment.

3. Wedding Planners & Wedding production houses, Wedding Photo Studios - you may have them planning or involved in some aspect of your wedding and the themes. Some companies may include the gowns as a part of the overall wedding package - but this may also dictate that your gown has to “fit” the theme of your wedding... all part of the beauty. It’s a great option to not have to think too hard about your dress.. but be warned - you will be the star of the night... make sure you are comfortable and beauty will shine.

4. Multi Branded Bridal Boutiques These are stores that carry numerous bridal brands. You can either decide if you are a classical, modernist, boho type of girl as some stores maybe curated by a certain aesthetic and styles are rounded up from several designers..or some more by a more general range of bridal gowns assorted by price point. It’s great if you are not sure what kind of style you think will suit you and there’s likely to be a variation of styles... or if you have a definite idea of a certain look or a designer that you absolutely love, then you just need to find who’s stocking them! Think about your budget. Some stores maybe purchase only or some may also rent. Generally the stores will have a sample size gown for you to try on for an idea and then book the closest standard size which would need to be adapted by a seamstress to fit you well.

5. Designer Boutique - If you are lucky to live in a big city - then there may be many bridal designer’s flagship store whereby you can make and appointment and see the latest offerings from that designer. If you know the style and have identified the vibe then its just working out how to get your hands on the dress!  There may also be a possibility if the designer is around to make an appointment directly and get the best advice or if you wanted to even have a special gown designed for you. Most designers will offer made to measure service from their own ateliers and include alterations and fittings. Please check directly.

6. Wedding photo studios - Perhaps you want to try out a few different bridal gowns and looks before your big day for pre wedding photos or engagement photos -  Wedding studios are specialists at making you look great and with surreal surroundings or perhaps even with travel to the countries of your choice with all inclusive package of as many gowns as you may need -  sounds great.  These tend to be rental, alterations will be minimal unless you are purchasing the dresses.

7. Rental Wedding Gowns - many local stores will offer rental options which maybe beneficial to your pocket and budgets. If you need more than one gown for the wedding day or perhaps you have two weddings to prepare for - they will have options for your reception gown, main wedding gown, first dance - evening gown, toasting gown and off course the tea ceremony attire.... so this can lead to quite a splurge - some gowns and dresses being options that you can wear again and would like to invest in them for the future to rewear again. Or it maybe a pure lack of space, that its easy for rental and you do not need to worry where to pack and store the gown after the ceremony.

8. Vintage gowns - Even better, for something old.... something borrowed,  as the saying goes, perhaps there’s a family heirloom from your grandmother or mum that can be adapted for your special day. Worth to ask! Some of you may really love vintage wedding gowns and all their amazing details, if you have an idea of the type of era you like, you can try exploring local vintage stores especially those specializing in that period and maybe by luck you will find that beauty. We especially love the 1920′s deco period and many of these gowns were a little more easier to wear but be prepared that you may need a great seamstress to help you fit the dress perfectly.

9. Online Shopping - if you are feeling brave, and you absolutely know what kind of gown you want and perhaps the designer may have a great selection online. Get started to find that look, many online retailers as netaporter, matchesfashion, lanecrawford all have a small fashionable bridal collection, ooozing alot of style and designer coolness perhaps for a more contemporary brides who are looking for some thing different. Be prepared for alterations

10. Bespoke Bridal gown design - Nothing more original than having the chance to make your own wedding dress. Make it truly your own vision with the designer. Spend some time to research your gown and find a designer with a similar aesthetic to yourself.

For us, we love Bespoke designs for our clients, it’s an intimate process and every time we get to work on a gown that has the client’s style in mind and seeing the results are stunning!

[cessanderson]

Charming, Trendy Small Town AirBnB Apartment https://ift.tt/2uHhoD7

Ready for a ‘Suite Thyme’? There’s a new place to stay in downtown Butler, PA. Suite Thyme (AirBnB) is officially open for guests! 

Welcome!

Suite Thyme

Created with the help DIYShowOff partnerships, the second story of this 1890s home boasts a trendy newly renovated efficiency apartment loaded with charm, located just steps from the main thoroughfare of downtown Butler’s best eateries, antique shops, breweries and more. Perfect for festival-goers and travelers looking to enjoy a small town vibe just approximately 30 miles north of Pittsburgh, PA. 

1st story…

Located on the main floor, Wellness Inspired Living is a quiet, by-appointment-only wellness workshop providing Aroma Freedom Technique, small chemical free living/healthy lifestyle events, reiki, relaxation sessions, iTovic scans and more. We’ll always let you know if there’s something scheduled during your stay and you’re always welcome to join in, free of charge, if interested. 

2nd story…

This 2nd floor eclectic space is the efficiency apartment “Suite Thyme”. It’s loaded with personality and beautiful style. Inviting, warm and welcoming, all ready for your next trip to Butler! 

One bedroom, two beds!

Sleeping arrangements include 2 queen beds in the bedroom + a queen sleeper sofa (officially sleeps 6) in the living room for peaceful night’s rest and sweet dreams,

a lunar retreat…

and a boho beauty…

Time to eat!

Cook up your favorite meal with local veggies from the farm market in a beautiful fully equipped modern kitchen area.

Coffee (tea, hot cocoa), anyone? Help yourself to the complimentary coffee bar. You may even find snacks in the pantry area. Open the cupboards. Get familiar. Make yourself at home! 

Dine…

Downtown Butler is home to multiple restaurants with an eclectic menu ranging from your favorite comfort foods to gourmet dining. Ask about our favorites! But there’s room for 4 at the dining table, with additional seating for 3 at the breakfast bar if you’re staying in and whipping up a meal or ordering delivery. 

Unwind!

Kick back on the comfy sofa with the tv remote. Choose your subscription and favorite shows utilizing the Smart TV feature or browse the limited selection on a very basic cable package. Or connect your phone to the blue tooth speaker and pump up the volume!

Quiet time!

Curl up in the cozy egg chair on the landing nook with a good book or your tablet and favorite game. 

Soak your worries away!

Bathroom updates include the original but refinished vintage clawfoot tub for soaking away the tension. Escape! When was the last time you had a relaxing bath? It also offers up the traditional or handheld shower option. Bath bomb,  fresh fluffy towels and bath essentials provided. PLUS! Suite Thyme has a la carte options including several ritual baths – baths with intention, herbs and essential oils. Coming soon! 

Get to work!

Traveling to Butler for business? Connect your laptop at the USB charging station at the breakfast bar aka workstation and catch up on your work. 

Seasonal:

…just a little gazebo/outdoor seating area.

Local Favorites:

Plus, it’s just a short stroll to Butler’s charming Main Street district!

Social Media:

Follow us!

Instagram: @SuiteThyme

Facebook: @ButlerSuiteThyme

#suitethyme

#suitethymeinbutlerexperience

#butlerdowntown #downtownbutler #butlercountypa

Suite Thyme amenities:

* Sleeping for up to 6 guests (2 queen beds, 1 queen sleeper sofa) * Full kitchen: electric range, refrigerator, microwave, toaster, coffee maker * Coffee, tea, sugar/sweetener, creamer * Small outdoor patio area in back * Free wi-fi * Free parking for 1 (maybe 2 if vehicles are small) * Smart TV * Bluetooth speaker * USB charging station * Clawfoot tub/shower * Heating // Central A/C * Self check in//keyless entry * Hair dyer * Bathroom Essentials * Iron * Essential oils diffuser and oils

Discounts: 

Suite Thyme offers 20% off a weekly stay. Yay!

Around the Area:

30 mi. north of Pittsburgh, PA

Local breweries – walking distance

Restaurants – walking distance

Antique & boutique shops – walking distance

Brushes & Barstools painting studio – walking distance

Escape Room – walking distance

YMCA, library – walking distance

Talk of the Town Nail Salon – walking distance

The Art Center – walking distance

Maridon Museum- walking distance

Moraine State Park – Butler County

McConnell’s Mill – Butler County 

Trampoline Park – Clearview Mall

Butler Freeport Trail – Butler County

Festivals (Jeep Fest, Italian Festival, Fall Festival and more, holiday parades) – walking distance

Butler Fair – Butler County

Butler Farmshow – Butler County

Saxonburg Carnival – Butler County 

and more! 

A la Carte Menu!

Coming soon! In an effort to familarize out of town guests with the downtown Butler, PA area, we’re partnering up with other local businesses by adding an a la carte menu with upgrades including a wedding weekend package, a romance bundle, photography sessions, reiki appointments, mani-pedi pampering, beer tasting, florist services and more – all from locally owned small businesses within walking distance to Suite Thyme. 

Ready to make a reservation?

We are dedicated to ensuring you have a five star stay and look forward to hosting your “home away from home”.

BOOK SUITE THYME HERE! 

What guests are saying:

“Beautiful Butler City Apartment is indeed a beautiful apartment. Everything was very nice, and the apartment was a beautiful, cozy place. The couch and beds were very comfortable, and the kitchen was very modern, with high quality, modern cooking utensils. Roeshel obviously takes a lot of pride in this apartment, and it shows. I was very pleased with my experience there.”

  ~Robert

  “Beautiful apartment next to a cute down town! Our first Airbnb fell threw last minute and Roeshel was on top of getting back to us and having us stay with such short notice! So many extra touches to ensure a great stay! Lists of local places to eat and a calendar of things to do! If I could give more than 5 stars I would! Definitely recommend.”

  ~Brittany

  “Roeshel’s place was simply spectacular!! Luxury surrounded us in every detail of her space. The kitchen was a dream…I enjoyed cooking up local vegetables. The beds were super comfortable with fabulous linens. And the decor was right out of a magazine! Roeshel’s special touches made this my favorite all-time AirBnB experience. We felt so at home and didn’t want to leave. If you’re lucky enough to get to stay here, I’m certain you’ll feel the same way.”

  ~Cathy

  Holiday stays:

“My husband and I stayed at Roeshel’s for a trip home over the holidays and absolutely loved it! Roeshel met us for a quick tour when we arrived. The whole place is filled with cute little touches and smells amazing (all essential oils). She even had it decorated for Christmas and it looked incredible! The bed was super comfy and there are throw blankets to keep warm under and a full kitchen should you need it. We would definitely stay again!”

  ~Shannon

  “This place had everything you need and more. I mentioned to the host that I was visiting my 2 1/2 yr old granddaughter for the holidays and I found a basket of perfect toys that were placed to share with her in the space. The house is sparkling clean and the atmosphere so inviting. Everything you need to have a nice getaway! I highly recommend staying here!”

  ~Christine

  Wedding weekend:

“My husband and I booked Roeshel’s place for our wedding weekend. We used the space to get ready in and as a retreat after our long exciting wedding day. Her space is decorated beautifully with many amenities for her guests to use. One feature my make-up artist loved was the long table/desk with built in charging station – convenient!

  Not only did she go above and beyond with her communication and little touches but she also surprised us, not once but twice! When we arrived the morning of our wedding she had laid out a little welcome platter of fruits and drinks with a congratulations sign hung on the fire place mantle. She also drew up a cute little note on the calendar on the refrigerator!

  When we arrived back to the space late that night after having the most perfect wedding day, we were greeted with another surprise. The entry way and stairs leading up to the AirBnB had been decorated with rose petals and electric candles. This led to a decorated romantic set up outside the apartment door along with chocolates, drinks and chilled glasses. We cried. It was the most perfect ending to the beautiful day we had just shared. It meant the world to us.

  Her thoughtful touches, ultra clean + super hip space and her timely communication make this easily the best place to stay in the Butler area. If you are in town or just want a little stay-cation I can’t encourage you enough to book Roeshel’s space!”

  ~Lizi

    https://ift.tt/31R1QIW Roeshel

[torontotravelblog]

30 Cool Things to do in Toronto, Canada

Toronto won my heart by tornado. After spending a week trip around Ontario and immersing myself in nature and also serenity, Toronto was simply the right mix of laid-back mindset and huge city buzz for me. I checked out the city with plenty of time at my hand and collected a list of 30 cool things to do in Toronto that will be available in convenient, whether you are looking for websites to see, activities to do, locations to eat or where to stay. This Toronto city guide has it all!

For me the ideal means to explore a brand-new city is to obtain as close to regional life as possible. So when I had the possibility to take a trip to Ontario in autumn 2016, I recognized I didn't just intend to invest the common 2 to 3 days in Toronto as well as race from sight to sight ...

I intended to experience what it felt like to reside in Toronto, locate my much-loved coffee shop to work on my writing, find neighbourhood dining establishments as well as shops, stroll the markets and vintage shops, and also just generally figure out what makes the city so remarkable. I wound up investing 10 days here and did all of those things-- and more. Not all of the things on this checklist of points to do in Toronto are sights, some are straight-out arbitrary day-to-day things I did while I was claiming to be a neighborhood-- yet all are have to do's on your plan!

Sites & Attractions: Points to do in Toronto

1) Ride the lift up to the top of CN Tower

CN Tower is a staggering 553.3 metres high and also held the record for the highest free-standing structure till 2007. It is the ninth-tallest tower on the planet and also for CAD$ 38 you can succeed of it!

The elevator takes you to 2 different sight decks 342 as well as 346 metres high. On the lower deck you can stroll throughout a glass ceiling-- if you dare-- and also accessibility an exterior balcony. You can additionally reserve extra accessibility to the tower's SkyPod (at 447 metres) or an Edge Walk on top of the primary husk of the tower at 356 metres.

CN Tower, 301 Front Road West, internet site

Arriving: Metro line 1 to St Andrew Terminal, Cable Car to Union Terminal

2) Do a free assisted tour at the Royal Ontario Gallery

I had not planned on checking out the Royal Ontario Gallery on the very same day as the footwear gallery, yet they are so near to each other, that it would certainly have been a missed out on chance. The ROM supplies a substantial collection of art, globe society and also nature-- there is certainly way too much to see it done in simply one browse through.

After obtaining my ticket ($ 20) I did not even know where to begin-- which is when I observed the museum overview awaiting individuals to join her totally free directed tour with among the galleries in the gallery. I was done in. Doing an arbitrary directed scenic tour ended up a fantastic idea-- not just did I obtain an expert view on a gallery I may have not or else gone to; however it additionally took the choice where to begin with me. Trips are used day-to-day as well as much of them are totally free!

After the excursion, I took place to check out the present short-lived exhibition, which was devoted to the glass artist Chihuly.

Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, internet site

Arriving: City line 1 to Gallery Station

3) Go To the Bata Shoe Museum

The Bata Footwear Museum is a special and wacky museum experience-- never ever had I believed I would learn about the evolution of footwear on a vacation to Canada! The gallery has numerous collections taking a look at the historic development of shoes-- did you know heels were initially only used by men ?!-- along with typical shoes made use of by initial nation individuals all over the world. I specifically delighted in the short-lived event about typical colouring techniques!

Bata Shoe Gallery,327 Bloor St W, website

Getting there: Metro line 1 or 2 to St George Station

4) Marvel at the design

I enjoyed walking around various areas of Toronto and simply admire the style. The mix of industrial and domestic buildings was something I had never seen fairly like this before. I would certainly walk down a roadway of office towers made from glass and all of a sudden the next block would certainly flaunt red-brick buildings full of shops, nail beauty parlors as well as restaurants. I would certainly turn one edge and stand in the middle of a lengthy household road lined with two-story family homes with front verandas and also small gardens. It's impossible to determine precisely which areas and roads where my favourite, so simply check out for yourself!

5) Do a sundown cruise ship on the Tall Ship Kajama

When I went to Toronto in September 2016, Toronto Island had been swamped and also my chances to see the famous horizon of the city from the water were close to no. Then I found out about the high ship Kajama as well as its sundown cruise ships.

The ship travels the harbour of Toronto several times a day during the summertime (Might to 1st October weekend). Cruise ships take 1.5 hrs plus half an hour of boarding time and also offer amazing views of the horizon, Toronto Island and Toronto City Airport. I very suggest doing this cruise during sundown, as the sinking sunlight dips the city's metal towers right into pink as well as orange gold tones. it was spectacular!

I even saw a little plane arrive at the main touchdown strip of the City Airport terminal-- fairly an unique experience! There is a completely licensed bar on board the tall ship and food is worked as well, making this the excellent supper activity!

235 Queens Quay West, sunset cruise ship sails at 8 pm, website

Arriving: Cable Car to Queens Quay West at Harbourfront Centre

6) Join a totally free street art excursion down Graffiti Street

Street art in Toronto is a fascinating topic-- it's unlawful, as well as if your structure gets sprayed as well as somebody reports it, YOU need to spend for its removal. For this reason, there are a lot of owners as well as businesses who surrender their wall surfaces to be splashed on for commissions along with devoted areas where graffitis are gathered in one area.

Among those is Graffiti Alley as well as I liked exploring it on a totally free led tour! The tour lasts concerning 1.5 hours and includes not simply the street, yet also great deals of other colourful locations, art pieces and also photo alternatives in the area around Queen Road West.

Excursion Guys FREE graffiti strolling trip, meet outside the Black Bull Pub at 298 Queen St. W, daily at 3.30 pm (May-Sept) web site

7) Check out the celebration schedule at the Harbourfront Centre

Events are a fantastic way to immerse on your own in the regional culture as well as at the Harbourfront Centre there is a various festival going on practically every weekend during the summer.

I was fortunate adequate to run into a vegan celebration organised by the regional Vegetarian Culture. I got to taste vegan foods from around the world, listened to motivating discuss ethics as well as nourishment and listened to tons of real-time songs while resting among residents in the lawn.

Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay W, Celebration Schedule

Arriving: Cable Car to Queens Quay West at Harbourfront Centre

8) Catch a film at TIFF or at the TIFF Bell Lightbox cinema

The Toronto International Film Event is one of the largest audience celebrations worldwide, suggesting that unlike Cannes, the public can attend numerous movie testings throughout the city throughout the festival.

I checked out the city in September, giving me the chance to see great festival movies and really feel the celebration buzz around me, but even if you check out outside the event duration, you can capture great worldwide arthouse films at the TIFF Bell Lightbox movie theater in central Toronto!

Toronto International Film Festival, yearly in September, web site

TIFF Bell Lightbox Cinema,350 King St W, website

Arriving: City to St Andrew Terminal, Cable Car to King St West at John St.

Toronto International Film Event ticket store.

9) Go treking at Scarborough Bluffs.

Scarborough Bluffs is a location in the east of Toronto's waterfronmt with high cliffs rising to 90 metres over Lake Ontario. There are numerous parks on the Bluffs, however if you head to just one of them, let it be Bluffers Park. This park is the just one with access to the lake as well as a coastline and also obviously beautiful views of the cliffs and the water past.

Getting there: Tram to Eglinton GO Station and then buses 86 as well as 175.

10) Check Out Toronto Islands by kayak or bike.

As a result of floods I did not actually most likely to Toronto Islands myself, but I hear it's a remarkable location to invest a day out far from the active streets of the city. Take the ferry throughout and then determine whether you want to walk, bike or kayak around the islands-- I know what I would certainly do!

Kayaks and canoes can be rented out at the Watercraft Home, a 10-minute stroll from the ferry dock on Centre Island. It's finest to find early to obtain front runner of offered boats!

Arriving: Tram to Queens Quay Ferryboat Docks Terminal, Ferry: Centre Island Ferry.

More on 30 Cool Things to do in Toronto, Canada

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Dr. Amauri Caversan - Toronto Naturopathic Doctor

[taywantsyoutostay]

My trip to London this year was a class trip soooo we basically did some things as a group but also on our own in the free time we got.

Day 1: 

(We started our journey at 8 pm in Germany, which is why none of us got much sleep on the bus or the ferry and we were trashed af the whole day)

7 am: Arrival in greater London. I was so excited that I could´nt even think about sleeping until we arrived at the hostel at 8:30. We only put our luggage down there, as we could´nt move into our rooms yet.

Our hostel was the smart hyde park view hostel, so first thing we did was walk around Hyde Park that was very near and do some morning gymnastics as requested by one of the teachers 👯

Finishing our little walk around Hyde Park, we got some food #pretamangerislife and started a walking tour in Notting Hill, leading us to Portaballo Road, where we visited several cute vintage shops on our own and just had a look around. As I already mentioned we were really really tired so we just sat around at a cafe or just on the ground most of the time.

Next, we took the tube to Kings Cross for the Harry Potter Shop, where i bought some pencils because i felt like the rest was overpriced whoopsie. After that we went to Leicester Square and found out about the Kingsmen premier being that evening. Some of my friends got bracelets to see the premier but I didn’t because i didn’t know many actors. Still my the ones that went to the premier in the evening met Channing Tatum so congrats 🙂 After some drama about who got which room in our hostel we moved in (Our 8 person from was so tiny omg it was so hard getting ready in the mornings lmao) Later that evening we went to Leicester square again to get some food for dinner, go to M&M store and to inform us about last minute musical prices. We ended up deciding on Kinky Boots or Dreamgirls (we got the tickets on Wednesday bc we had to talk about all the things concerning the musical with our teachers) I got shake shack for dinner and it was too good. After that we basically just fell into our beds 🙂

Day 2:

We had to get up early bc it was hard getting ready in the tiny space that was our hostel room with 7 people, but it kinda worked out. After a very flat breakfast we stared our “Tourist-Walk” around London, visiting Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square, Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace. it was so much walking but so fun and wonderful for me to finally be back in London

We then had some free time and went to London Eye again to look around. Later we went to do some shopping on Oxford Street and in Carnaby and got the cutest Jean Jacket at Brandy Melville and some other stuff.

In the evening we really got into rush hour tube traffic and were nearly too late for the planned Jack The Ripper Walk. The tour was very good and I found our Tour guide to be very funny, but my feet hurt so bad that I was unbelievably happy when I was back at the hostel.

Day 3:

We stared the day by looking at the Tower of London and Tower Bridge and the walking along the river Thames to Tate Modern. We stopped for food at Borough Market, which was incredibly eclectic. I had mac n cheese, my fav food ever.

Near the market we listened to the amazing singer called SoundRefuge. I was really blown away by the fact that he sounded like Passenger and that his covers were so different from the original but still so good. we sadly didn’t have that much time to listen, because our teachers wanted us to go on with the walking. We the went into Tate Modern and just sat at the bar in the highest floor because we were really tired.

We then went to Leicester Square to get tickets for Kinky Boots on Thursday YAAY. After that we did some shopping around Covent Garden and went to the hostel to get ready for dinner (we went to Pizza Hut with the whole class and it was so good).

Having finished dinner, we did a “London at Night” walking tour with out teacher and i loved it. It was so wonderful to see all the lights and experience a bit of Londons nightlife.

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Day 4:

On Thursday we basically spend all morning in Camden Town and Camden Market. I love the vibes there and how everyone and everything si so different.

We the went onto Primrose Hill and to the Abbey Road Studios and it was so good, i loved how well we planned out that day.

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We then went back to the hostel to start packing as we were leaving the next day and to get ready for Kinky Boots! Kinky Boots was a bloody good musical, I am so impressed by the dancing and also the story. I definitely recommend it to everyone (gonna write a post about the musical soon) after the musical we got some food and had a great time just having fun and enjoy g our last night in London.

Day 5:

Friday was our last day. It was sad. Anyway, we had the whole day to ourselves and fistz went to Victorias secret and some other stores near Oxford Street. We the went to Peggy Porschen cakes and it was the cutest cafe i had ever seen in my life. The cake was delicious and it was wonderful to sit there with the sun shining on my face.

Next, my friend and i decided to go to Greenwich (where our bus would be leaving in the afternoon) by boat. It was the best decision ever, because the weather was really good and we saw so much of London sights again. In Greenwich we went to the market and the of course near the planetarium because of the incredibly lovely view we got from up there. I was so happy in these moments, can I just go back please?

We then had to leave London and I, being the girl I am, was unbelievably sad. London is one of my favorite places in the whole world and I had such a great time. I miss it so much, I don’t know if there is something like post-travel-depression but i definitely have it.

Looking back, I’m so thankful for the life I’m living and the great time I had in London and how much I got to see in these 5 days. It was´nt my first time in London, but definitely one of the best times as I stayed in London of not only a day trip, but 5 whole days this time. London, I´ll definitely be back soon.

  5 days in London 🇬🇧❣️ My trip to London this year was a class trip soooo we basically did some things as a group but also on our own in the free time we got.

[lady-divine-writes]

Klaine fic - “All the Beautiful Pieces” (Rated NC17)

Blaine Anderson is spending the summer after graduation flipping houses with his brother for Cooper’s total home renovation show. The show features the worst houses Cooper can buy, with Blaine playing the role of lackey so that Cooper can torture him in front of his viewers. The last house Blaine has to renovate is an original Victorian House in San Diego, CA, which is in terrible condition. But this house turns out to be more than just another job. It was once owned by a famous Vaudeville ventriloquist by the name of Andrew Smythe. It houses a very interesting collection of items - among them, two life-sized puppets. Blaine isn’t sure exactly why, but he’s drawn to them - especially to the one with the beautiful blue eyes. He convinces Cooper to give him the puppets, and Blaine starts to restore them. In the course of the restoration, Blaine finds out that neither puppet is simply a run-of-the-mill puppet, and Andrew Smythe was hiding a secret that will be the key to saving two lives.

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4

Chapter 5 (6811 words)

Blaine pulls up to the house at a quarter after ten. It looks exactly the way he left it, horrendous paintjob and all, but with the addition of a U-Haul truck parked by the curb, and a grown man wearing a navy blue polo and retro 1980s acid wash jeans staring in at the window with his hands pressed to the glass. From the back, he looks like an oversized Cabbage Patch kid, but in the reflection of the window, he more closely resembles a young Karl Marx with the iconic frizzy beard.

“Blaine,” the man plaintively moans. “Blaine, where are you? Open the door…”

Blaine shakes his head when he sees him, chuckling at his woeful wail. Blaine parks in front of the house, but the man doesn’t notice, focused as intently as he is on the living room full of toys, visible through the curtains that Blaine neglected to pull closed the night before.

“Gary!” Blaine calls out as he steps out of his minivan. “Have some self-respect, man.”

“Blaine!” Gary exclaims. He spins around, face glowing with childlike excitement, but his voice tinged with exasperation at being kept waiting. “You can’t leave me out here with all those toys inside, begging for me to take them away from this awful house.” Gary presses his ear against the glass. “I can hear them, Blaine,” he says as Blaine approaches the door. “They’re saying Gary…come rescue us, Gary. We need you…”

“I’m sorry,” Blaine says, sorting through his key ring for the correct key. “I got held up.”

“Yeah” - Gary flashes a knowing grin and a wink - “your brother told me all about it. Getting into the puppet biz, huh, Blaine?”

Blaine makes a disgusted face and turns away from Gary to unlock the door. “Jesus Christmas! You, too?” Blaine pushes the door in as far as he can. He grabs a broken ottoman to prop it open.

Gary walks in behind Blaine, but stops inside the doorway, his eyes wide with awe, his jaw dropped, a hand raised to cover his heart.

“I can’t…I can’t believe it,” he says dramatically, staring at the heaps of toys and the stacks of boxes. “It’s…it’s amazing.”

“Yeah,” Blaine agrees, pulling his webcam out of his pocket and switching it on, “and this isn’t even half of it.”

Gary whimpers. Blaine trains the camera on his face.

“It’s like a dream come true,” Gary whispers, wiping an imaginary tear from the corner of his eye.

“Snap out of it, Gary.” Blaine snaps his fingers in the air above the webcam. “You have to do your spiel.”

Gary startles out of his trance at the unpleasant noise.

“Right, right…” He tugs down on the hem of his polo to straighten out the wrinkles (not that it does any good, or that they matter compared to the mustard stain on his collar) and looks into the camera. “When should I…”

“Now,” Blaine says, launching straight into the segment. “Hello, guys, gals, and Internet pals (Cooper’s tagline; Blaine had nothing to do with it). This is Blaine Anderson, coming to you from day 2 of our renovation. I’m here with our good friend Gary Shepton…” Gary gives the camera a timid wave, his eyes bouncing between Blaine and the webcam, unsure where to look even though they’ve done this several times before already “…and he’s going to be appraising the toys in the house. Gary, please tell our viewers what exactly it is you’re going to be doing while you’re here.”

“I’m going to start off by photographing and cataloging,” Gary explains. He pulls an iPad mini tablet out of his back pocket and holds it up. He accesses an empty Excel document and shows it to the camera. “When I’m done, I’ll load up the toys that I can sell immediately into my U-Haul and take them to my shop. In the interim, I’m going to send Cooper a detailed inventory of all the toys, their conditions, and their estimated values.”

“How will you get that information?” Blaine asks, again taping filler for Cooper to use in case he runs a few minutes short of his time slot.

“I use Google Goggles and other appraisal specific Internet surfing software to help me research the items I’m looking at fairly quickly. One photograph and I can bring up the information I need.” Gary switches to a program on his tablet and turns on a demo that illustrates the technique. “It makes researching a lot easier and more accurate. It can also put me in contact with other appraisers who have encountered the same items, who might have some insight that could be useful. Cuts down on the possibility of accidentally dealing in counterfeit merchandise.” Gary smirks. “I wish I had this five years ago, I’ll tell you what. Would have saved me a ton of money on my AT&T bill, tracking that information down one phone call at a time.”

“We have rooms and rooms full of toys in this house. How long do you think that’s going to take?” Blaine asks, his question a veiled way of finding out how long they’re going to be there.

“Most of the day, if I’m lucky,” Gary says with a dreamy sigh.

Great, Blaine thinks, hoping that Kurt and Sebastian don’t get too bored watching old movies all day long.

Yup, bored puppets. Because that’s a definite possibility.

“Okay,” Blaine says, switching off the webcam while trying not to sound too disappointed. “I have some things to do in the house and some phone calls to make. If you need me, just holler.”

“Will do,” Gary says, his attention already drawn to a stack of vintage Barbie dolls in the far corner.

Blaine watches him go, shaking his head at the odd man.

“Have fun,” he says, watching Gary put on a pair of white cotton gloves and get to work.

***

Unlike dealing with Cooper’s other project houses, which were a simple matter of calling in a clean-up crew to get rid of the garbage and occasionally coming across a gem or two that they could sell, this house is a complicated mishmash of treasures and antiques, coupled with the fairly typical, grotesque trash. Blaine needs to pull out his whole metaphorical Rolodex of contacts for this project. He needs to find someone to unload the heavy tools in the basement, someone else to appraise the sports memorabilia upstairs, and he needs to order a temporary storage unit for the furniture. Authentic Victorian furnishings are highly coveted, which makes them hard to locate, and ultimately expensive when you find someone willing to part with them. He intends on keeping anything he can salvage and repurposing it for the renovation.

The upstairs bedrooms are going to be the easiest rooms to renovate by far. It’s a given that Cooper is going to want to sell the baseball pennants and the bat, and probably the opera posters, too. There’s a huge market for those vintage posters, especially ones in mint condition with bright colors like these posters have. But the furniture will stay.

A pit blossoms in Blaine’s stomach at the thought of dismantling Kurt’s bedroom.

Blaine had originally thought that the workshop in the basement where the puppets were made was the heart of the house. After he saw the bedrooms, he realized he was wrong. The upstairs rooms, so well-tended, adorned with carefully chosen mementos – those rooms are the heart of the house.

Blaine feels sick at the idea of tearing that heart apart.

But he has Kurt, he reminds himself. He saved Kurt…and Sebastian…and that’s all that matters.

Yes, all that matters is my burgeoning insanity and a future on tabloid talk shows, he acknowledges ruefully.

Blaine heads down the hallway to the dining room, smiling to himself when he hears Gary chirp in triumph at some amazing doll-related discovery.

“They had the whole Bob Mackie for Barbie collection? Sweet!”

Blaine heads up the stairs to the next level, but bypasses the bedrooms, opting to start in the attic. They spent practically no time up there yesterday during the walkthrough. Blaine wants to get a better look at the neat stacks of boxes and the furnishings that were kept up there. He knows he’ll have to deal with those latent memories in the bedrooms eventually, plus the possibility of another fantasy involving Kurt, so for now, he’ll start with the easy-to-handle stuff.

Blaine switches the webcam to still-camera mode as he heads up the last flight of stairs. There doesn’t appear to be a light switch up here, but sunlight floods in through a large circular vent in the outer wall, making the whole room warm and bright.

Blaine puts on a pair of his own protective gloves and examines the furniture items stored up there closely – a stand-up lamp with what looks like a Tiffany shade; another table lamp with a pleated, cream-fabric shade, sitting on a squat, cherry wood end table that had most likely been in the living room at some point; four chairs that belonged to the dining room table downstairs; and a matching pair of Queen Victoria wing chairs, upholstered in a cream fabric imprinted with gold ivy leaves.

Blaine photographs each piece, mentally fixing where he wants to put them in the house. He wonders if Kurt would have liked one of those wing chairs in his room, or maybe the stand-up lamp next to his sewing machine while he worked. What kinds of clothes did he sew? Did he make outfits for himself, or did he maybe make clothes and sell them?

Or perhaps he worked in the theater, designing costumes. Those posters in his room could be from performances he worked on.

Blaine smiles, imagining Kurt as a student at McKinley, working on the costumes for the musical Blaine starred in his junior year – West Side Story. They could have chatted while Kurt took his measurements, discussed what outfits Kurt could see Tony wearing during certain scenes and why. What insights might he have had on Tony and Maria’s motivations, and how would he have portrayed that through their costumes? Blaine always felt that the people in charge of wardrobes on certain television shows understand the characters better than the writers do sometimes. What would Kurt have to say about that?

Blaine moves the standing lamp into better lighting while he daydreams of afternoons spent with Kurt after school, talking over fittings between rehearsals. Blaine could picture himself asking Kurt to help him run through his lines while he built up the nerve to ask Kurt out on a date…provided, of course, that Kurt liked guys that way. Blaine can’t shake the feeling he did. Blaine sighs. Didn’t he get on Cooper’s case for making assumptions about the sexual identity of the person who inhabited Kurt’s room? Blaine doesn’t want to be a hypocrite, but for some reason he can’t help doing the same thing. Everything he sees, everything he touches is a clue to who these people were, the same as in every house, but with Kurt…there’s an impression Blaine gets that has nothing to do with the posters or the sewing machine. It’s like he feels Kurt in this house. A part of him is there, telling Blaine about him; things that Blaine wouldn’t otherwise infer from the stuff lying around. But it’s not as simple as that, either. This impression of Kurt, it’s not passively hiding in individual objects, waiting to be uncovered. Blaine feels like it’s following him, guiding him, the same way he did when he first went down to the basement.

Whatever secret this house holds that has to do with Kurt, it wants to be revealed.

Blaine repositions the lamp shade so that the sunlight streams through the dark glass and takes a picture. He’s all set to take another picture when, out of the corner of his eye, he spots peculiar markings along one side of the boxes. Blaine pockets his webcam and walks over to take a look. He runs a gloved finger over one line of writing. It’s difficult to read because whatever marker had been used to write this has bled into the cardboard, but a skeleton of the words remains.

Blaine has seen this before. He wishes he had brought one of the photographs from the album at the beach house with him to compare against. He had thought about carrying Kurt’s picture in his pocket, but he didn’t want to ruin it. These nearly unreadable words, hastily scribbled by a hand that probably didn’t spend too much time writing, look identical to the writing on the backs of the photographs.

Blaine tears into the first box. The interlocking flaps, softened by age and dampness, pop up with little effort. The very top of the box is layered in newspaper, faded where the inch-wide seam between the loose flaps exposed it to sunlight but otherwise intact. Blaine digs through the pages, catching sight of conflicting dates. The newspaper on top is the most recent, albeit from about thirty years ago, but a few layers down the dates get older. Beneath them, Blaine finds a wealth of leather bound books. Blaine lifts the ones on top to peek underneath.

Yup, more books.

Blaine frowns.

A lot of people collect vintage books. That’s not unusual. It just seems too normal for this house. Blaine isn’t sure what he expected to find in this box, but it wasn’t boring books. Blaine picks one up anyway to examine it.

At least Cooper will be thrilled. He has a guy in L.A. who buys rare books, and considering all the other collectibles in the house, these books are probably first editions.

Blaine opens the cover and turns to a random page.

January 18th –

I’ll never get used to the weather in Seattle. Always so wet, always so dreary. I much prefer the California coast with its sunshine and warmth. And the ocean. God, I love the ocean. If only we could find a place to settle down there where we all can be happy. I miss you guys. Every day I miss you guys. I’ll never forgive myself for missing the most important day of our lives…and I did it again. But I’m trying to make a new life for us, doll, and when I break into the big time, it’s going to be the best of the best for the Smythe family.

Blaine stops reading. He looks at the black leather cover, the spine bare except for a gold embossed number – 1915.

These aren’t just books, Blaine realizes. They’re journals.

Blaine reaches into the box and looks at the books again, each one similar, each with a different year embossed along the spine – 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919…

It doesn’t seem like there’s an end to them. Blaine returns the book, pulls the box down from the stack, and goes for the next box. The flaps spring open as if they have been waiting years for someone to come along and find them, and a strong smell escapes.

A burnt smell, like coals left over after a barbecue.

No newspapers cover these. Blaine picks up the first journal on top. The date on the spine is worn flat and almost too difficult to read. He traces his finger over it, revealing an imprint of the number 1932. Blaine examines his glove covered digit. The cotton is stained black by a layer of fine ash. He raises the book to his nose and takes a tentative sniff.

It smells like a fireplace.

Blaine looks the journal over thoroughly. The gold rind on the pages is singed, and parts of the leather cover are burnt. Blaine opens the book to a page in the middle.

November 24 –

It’s Thanksgiving Day, but there’s nothing to be thankful for. Everything is gone. All of it, my entire life, gone. I would bring you all back if I could. I would trade everything that I said and did to make it all right again.

The paragraph cuts off there with a long, violent swipe of black ink cutting across the page, leaving an impression so deep that the tip of the pen sliced through the paper. Blaine turns the page to look for another entry but there’s nothing. No entry for November 25, none for November 26, no other entries for the rest of the month. Blaine keeps flipping the pages, but the book is blank until Christmas Day.

December 25 –

Merry Christmas to all those I love who are no longer here with me. I feel your presence every day, haunting me, but it’s not the same.

That’s the last entry for the remainder of the year.

Blaine stares at the blank page labeled December 31st.

It seems so empty, so final.

Blaine wishes there was something written there – anything. Something that tells him that despite it all, despite this obvious pain, life continued on and good things happened.

Blaine turns back to the beginning of the journal, to the earlier entries for the year.

February 14 –

It’s Valentine’s Day, and I miss you so much that I don’t think that I could even begin to tell you. I made your favorite dinner, bought a bottle of that God awful wine you loved so much, and ate alone. Well, not alone. Kurt was here with me. I love that boy and I appreciate his company, but it wasn’t the same as having you here. Meanwhile, Sebastian went out drinking…again. He takes a little too much after me, I’m afraid. He’s going to get some floozy knocked up, and then what? He’ll get chained down with a brood of simpering brats and no future. That’s not what you wanted for him, and it’s not what I want for him, but he doesn’t listen to me.

The sad thing is that I’m past the point where I think I care anymore.

Blaine feels his throat tighten as he reads on, blowing through a bunch of pages, letting the book lead him to where he should read next.

March 6 –

Everyone is telling me to pack it in. They tell me that it’s over, but I refuse to believe it. So maybe the work isn’t out there the way it was, but we’ve suffered dry patches before. The audiences will come back. Once they realize these talkies are just a gimmick, they’ll return. They always do. They’ll be begging us to perform for them, and we’ll be able to name our price. The money will flow in ten deep, I’m sure…but if they don’t, what will I tell my boys? How do I tell them it’s over? That the world thinks we’re finished?

“What?” Blaine asks the book, thumbing through the pages and hoping he’ll magically stumble on the answer. “What’s over?”

Blaine scans the pages, but he’s overwhelmed by the amount of entries and the nearly indecipherable script. He looks at the boxes stacked in front of him. There are six total. They can’t all be full of books, can they? Did whoever wrote in these journals write one for every year of his life?

There’s only one way to find out. Blaine would have to read through them all.

The boxes are going home with him.

Blaine repacks the box and hoists it into his arms.

It’s a treacherous trip down the narrow stairs with this box of books he’s carrying, but as with the puppets, there’s a compulsion within him to see this through. Whatever went on here, these books are a clue he’ll need to solve the mystery. He can’t leave them behind.

Blaine walks into the dining room and shuffles across the floor, down the hallway and into the living room, which has become emptier now that Gary has started loading the dolls into his U-Haul. Less clutter means more room for the house to breathe. The atmosphere in the downstairs level already seems lighter.

Blaine carries the box out to his minivan. He balances it between the door and his leg in order to fish his keys out of his pocket and open the back hatch. He puts the box in his trunk, shoving it over as far as he can to one side to make room for the others. He doesn’t shut the hatch completely before rushing back inside for another box.

“How’s it goin’, Gare?” Blaine asks as he blows past the man heading toward the front door, his arms laden with pink boxes. Blaine asks the question, but doesn’t stop to wait for an answer.

“I never want to leave,” Gary calls after him.

Blaine grumbles to himself, “Well, you’re gonna.”

One by one, Blaine carries the boxes of books down to his van, eager to go through each box and unlock whatever secret these journals may hold.

As he carries the last box through the living room, he remembers that he’s supposed to be filming Gary working, and to a lesser extent, himself.

“When I come back in, I need to film you, Gary,” Blaine yells to the man unloading the toys in the downstairs bathroom.

“Whatever floats your boat,” Gary replies. “By the way, I think your brother is going to be really happy with the numbers I’m going to send him.”

“That good?” Blaine asks, stopping for a moment out of curiosity.

“Oh, yeah,” Gary says. “Most of this stuff is going to be no problem to move. I have a guy who’s looking for half the stuff I’ve found already, and he’s willing to pay higher than market price. I think he’s reselling them in Japan or something. He’ll probably get ten times as much over there.”

“Wow,” Blaine says, genuinely impressed.

“Yeah. If I were you, I’d ask for a raise.”

Blaine swallows. Too late for that, he thinks. God knows he could have used the money, too. But he’s not about to unload on Gary – not about this.

“I’ll do that,” Blaine says instead and heads out to his van.

All six boxes fit, shoved against each other tight without a single centimeter of space between them. The rear of his minivan sinks about a foot beneath the weight.

He closes the trunk, intent on heading back into the house right as a silver Lexus pulls up to the curb. Blaine doesn’t recognize the car and waits to see who it is. Maybe a neighbor stopping by to see what the activity is about. Blaine hasn’t met anyone from the neighborhood yet, which seems peculiar. Not one lookie loo. Not a single nosy neighbor.

The Lexus parks in front of Blaine’s Honda, nearly bumper to bumper. The driver’s door opens and a woman steps out, but she doesn’t acknowledge Blaine. She may not even realize that he’s standing there with the way she has her gaze honed in on the house in front of her. When she stands completely, she’s an inch or two taller than Blaine. She’s dressed to intimidate in a tailored, aubergine suit. A billowy, white shirt underneath the jacket lends an air of femininity to her starched ensemble. She has sleek, auburn hair styled in a bob that falls an inch above her earlobes. Her tan looks artificial – too perfect, too even, and a touch too orange, but everything about her appearance has been meticulously thought out. She seems put together with exceptionally clean angles, from the razor cut of her hair, to the severe downturn of her mouth and her sharp, pointed chin.

“So, it finally sold,” she says, shaking her head with blatant disapproval. “I almost didn’t believe it when I heard.”

“Uh, may I help you?” Blaine asks. He walks toward her, reaching for his webcam, but the scowl on the woman’s face causes him to reconsider whether or not he should record this conversation for his brother’s show. She turns only her head and looks Blaine over from head to foot with an unamused half-smile/half-frown playing on her lips.

“I don’t know,” she says curtly. “Can you?”

Blaine jerks back at her impolite and, frankly, adolescent response. “I probably can if you tell me…”

“My name is Catherine Dorst,” she interrupts. “I’m a liaison for the San Diego Historical Society, and I’m curious to know what the new owners have planned for this house.”

“I’m Blaine Anderson.” Blaine offers the woman a cordial smile and his hand. She looks him over again and scoffs, turning back to the house.

“Okay,” Blaine starts, pulling his hand away, “well, we plan to bring the house back to its original design,” he says confidently. “We’re going to keep all the original structural details and…”

“We?” she interrupts again with a smirk, examining Blaine shrewdly. “You and who else? I mean, how old are you? Twelve?”

“Uh, no,” he says, ducking his head and adopting what tries to be a polite smile. He doesn’t take too much offense since looking younger than his age is a boon in his chosen profession. “Cooper Anderson bought the house for his home renovation show. I’m his brother. I’m in charge of the renovation.”

Her eyes pop open, still glaring at him, but with an excited expression on her face.

“Cooper Anderson?” she asks. “The Cooper Anderson?”

Blaine sighs. Oh boy. A fan.

“The one and only,” he says, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

“I’ve seen him on TV,” she says, straightening her suit and fussing with her hair. “Is he here?” She starts up the walk as Gary walks out with another armload of dolls, humming to himself and laughing at odd intervals. She glances at him with a grimace but keeps on walking.

“No,” Blaine replies, tailing after her, “he’s not here. He’s in L.A.”

She stops short and stares at the open door, deciding whether or not it’s worth going inside and checking for herself. When she spots Gary walking back to the house, brushing grey dust off the legs of his jeans, she comes to the conclusion that risking similar damage to her $1200 suit isn’t worth it.

“Shame,” she says, turning back around and heading for her car. She crooks a finger over her shoulder, summoning Blaine to follow. “The Historical Society has been trying to buy this house for a while now, but I guess it just wasn’t in the stars.” She opens her passenger side door and pulls out a leather briefcase. Resting it on the roof of her Lexus, she dials the combination to the lock. When the lid snaps open, she pulls out a manila file full of paperwork. “Since this is a historical point of interest, we have some recommendations for the renovation, a list of materials we ask that you use, a request form to put the address of the house on our tour list…”

“What list?” Blaine asks, taking the papers that she thrusts in his direction.

“Our website lists the addresses of authentic Victorian houses in the county for people to drive by and look at. You’re not required to add the Smythe House to the list, of course, but that doesn’t mean people won’t find you and drop by anyway. At least if you are listed on our website, people will have to abide by the rules we lay down to protect your privacy.”

Blaine’s eyes flick up from the papers in front of him. “Smythe House?”

“Andrew Smythe,” Catherine says. “He bought this house back in the mid-30s.”

Smythe. The same name that’s on the Little League jersey in the bedroom upstairs.

“Who was Andrew Smythe?” Blaine asks, giving Catherine his undivided attention.

She rolls her eyes. “Did you even Google this house before you started tearing into it?” she asks bitterly.

“I only first saw it yesterday,” Blaine says, trying not to sound too defensive. “And I haven’t torn into it. We’re in the process of clearing it out. I intend on taking my time to get this renovation right. I was actually planning on dropping by your offices myself later on this week for some advice.”

Catherine stands up an inch straighter, visibly impressed. “Well then…Andrew Smythe was one of the last great Vaudevillians of his time,” she explains with a smidgen more respect, but for him or for Andrew, Blaine doesn’t venture a guess, “as well as one of Vaudeville’s staunchest supporters.”

“Really?”

“Really.” Catherine shuts her briefcase and puts it back in her car, closing the door to lean against it while she speaks. “He was one of those precious few who were holding on with both hands, waiting for Vaudeville to make a revival.” She crosses her arms, and her eyes go slightly unfocused, recalling a memory. “Vaudeville took a lot from Andrew, like it did from other performers.”

Blaine has a feeling he knows what she’s referring to, but he asks anyway. “What did it take?”

Catherine gazes over Blaine’s head at the house with a sorrowful look in her eyes before she answers. “His wife,” she says heavily, “and his sons.”

“He had sons?” It’s both a question and a declaration. Blaine is stitching up the clues he already knows, adding Catherine’s confirmation to the seams.

“Yes. Two. Though there was speculation that one of them wasn’t his son.”

Blaine narrows his eyelids at the woman staring past him at the house. “Were their names…Kurt and Sebastian?”

Those names seem to snap her out of her haze, her eyes shooting down to meet his. “Yes, they were.” She smiles. “It looks like you may have done some homework after all.”

Blaine is about to mention the puppets in the basement and the journals from the attic, but he holds his tongue. He doesn’t want Catherine asking to see them…or possibly to take them. This house was declared a historical landmark before Cooper bought it. According to the auction company he purchased the property from, everything inside the house belongs to him, but if it has historical significance, can Catherine claim it? Blaine is iffy on the legalities of their situation, so he says nothing. He’s not willing to part with his puppets – to part with Kurt - or these new clues that he’s found.

“Look,” Catherine says, her turn to break Blaine from his thoughts, “I apologize if I’m being a little touchy about this, but we were supposed to be the first ones contacted when the owner died. We were poised to buy this house, but the bank moved straight to auction and we were never informed…”

Catherine’s comment strikes a chord – something Blaine read in the paperwork his brother sent him that doesn’t match up to Catherine’s story about Andrew Smythe owning the house.

“Okay, but what I don’t understand is” - Blaine interrupts this time, feeling an ease to do so - “my brother bought the house at auction, but the owner prior to the bank is listed as…Terry? Tricia?”

Catherine shakes her head as a breeze picks its way through her auburn bob, blowing a few strands in her face. “Teresa,” she corrects, brushing the hair from her eyes. “Teresa Calhoun. She was named on the deed to the house as his niece.”

“So, Andrew had a sister?” Blaine asks hopefully, interested in finding a living relative who might know the story of Andrew and his sons.

“No, Andrew Smythe had no other family according to public record. I don’t think she was a blood relative. Vaudeville performers were a tight knit group. I think Teresa was dumped off on Andrew because there was no one else to care for the girl, and he couldn’t say no. But by that point, he didn’t quite have all his ducks in a row, if you catch my drift, and with good reason.” Catherine sighs. It’s a fretful sound. “I don’t think he sent her to school. I don’t think she even left the house.”

Catherine pauses, watching Gary emerge through the front door while Blaine stands by quietly, waiting for her to continue.

“Before Andrew died, he tried to make arrangements for Teresa, but she had no other relatives, and she couldn’t live on her own. Without a guardian, she would have been committed. So he contacted us, and we worked together to have the house declared a historical landmark.”

“I heard Victorian houses were a hot commodity out here,” Blaine interjects.

“They are, but being a historical landmark, she would be safe to live out the rest of her life here. There were some requirements with regard to the house’s upkeep that Andrew still had to fulfill. We had discussed plans for turning the house into a Vaudeville museum eventually, but Andrew died before we could finalize the paperwork. After that, Teresa wouldn’t answer the door when we came by, and she never picked up the phone.” A veil of longing clouds Catherine’s eyes. “You know, Andrew bought this place pretty much right after his sons died. I think it was a way for him to try and start over. Maybe he was considering starting another family. I don’t know. But I hope whoever buys this house knows what it’s worth.”

“I’ll make sure my brother finds someone worthy of it,” Blaine says. The moment the words come out of his mouth, he commits them as a vow. Usually Blaine doesn’t concern himself with who buys the renovated houses off of his brother once he’s done with them, but he can’t let just anyone buy this house…not now.

“See that you do,” Catherine says with a wink, extending a hand his way. “It was nice meeting you, Blaine.”

Blaine takes her hand and shakes it. “It was nice meeting you, too.”

She smiles at him, takes one last look at the house, and then climbs back into her Lexus. She starts the engine, but doesn’t pull away from the curb. She rolls down her passenger side window and leans across the seats.

“Oh, Blaine? One more thing.”

“Yes?”

“We still have an exhibit down at our main offices on the history of Vaudeville in San Diego, but we are desperately short on any actual artifacts. If you come across something in there that you think you can part with, would you give me a call?” Catherine reaches into her glove box, pulls out a business card, and hands it through the window to Blaine.

“Sure.” A spark of possessiveness lights in Blaine’s chest, almost as if she had asked for his puppets outright. “Anything in particular you’re looking for?”

“Anything really,” she says with a non-committal twist of her lips. “Posters, costumes…if you guys find Sammy, and your brother is willing to part with him, I’d be extra special grateful.” Her words sound oddly suggestive, but Blaine lets it go.

“Sammy?” Blaine scrunches his nose.

“Andrew’s puppet,” Catherine clarifies. “His main puppet, I should say. After Andrew left Vaudeville, no one saw Sammy again. I would love to see him resurface.”

“So, Andrew Smythe was a ventriloquist.” Blaine reads the words on the business card before sticking it in his back pocket. “Were Kurt and Sebastian ventriloquists, too?”

“Sebastian was” - Catherine sits up in her seat, preparing to drive - “or his dad was training him to be. People say he wasn’t all that good at it.”

“And Kurt?”

“He sang. He was a countertenor - a rare talent. He would have been a headliner, too, only…” Catherine glances down at her steering wheel. “Well, I think you can guess.”

“Yeah. I can guess.”

Catherine raises a hand and waves at Blaine. Then she turns her Lexus around in the cul-de-sac and drives away.

Blaine stares at the papers in his hands. Every day at this house is going to be a new adventure in pain and heart break; he can feel it. Now along with Andrew and his sons, he can add the mysterious Teresa to the mix. But even with this new information, he has more questions and less answers than he did before. He stows the paperwork Catherine gave him in the van and returns to work, eager to wrap things up for the day and go already.

“Hey! I uncovered the fireplace,” Gary says, gesturing to a space in the far corner of the living room when Blaine re-enters the house.

“Fireplace? Oh, yeah…” Blaine had seen the chimney from the outside, but for some reason the idea of the house having a fireplace hadn’t occurred to him. A working fireplace will definitely tack higher digits to Cooper’s asking price. But that hollow recess in the living room wall made of soot baked bricks, the corpses of dead birds piled where logs normally would be, immediately brings to mind the burnt journal currently sitting in his trunk, waiting to be read. And he’s dying to read it. He groans, knowing he can’t leave until Gary is done with his work.

There’s got to be a way to get him to move faster.

Blaine spends the rest of the afternoon slogging through the busywork that he didn’t get done the day before. He makes his phone calls, schedules more appraisers to come down to the house, and orders a storage unit for the furniture. Then he putters around with Gary, taping him for Cooper’s show. He gets the brilliant idea to help him move the dolls to the U-Haul so he doesn’t just sit around and count the hours before he can return to the beach house and Kurt.

It’s a little before seven in the evening before Gary has to call it quits for the day, his eyes crossing every time he tries to read the print on another pink box. He begs Blaine for the opportunity to come back tomorrow and finish with the lot.

Blaine needs Gary to sell the toys. Did Gary really think Blaine would say no?

Blaine waves to Gary, watching the box truck pull away with its haul. Blaine is glad that those toys will find new homes, but seeing them go feels like carving away at the spirit of the house. But without them littering the floor, Blaine gets a better idea of what the house looked like when it was new. It wasn’t a glorified storage unit or a junk pile. It was a home, and this one might have been more full of hope than any Blaine has ever seen. It was supposed to be a way to start over.

Blaine wonders how far Andrew Smythe really got with that goal.

He peeks over at his trunk, filled with boxes of journals that might answer that question, ready to travel to the beach house.

That’s a lot of reading he’s got ahead of him.

Blaine starts locking up, making sure that the curtains are drawn this time around before he leaves to deter any other curious eyes, but just as he’s about to throw the deadbolt, he has a thought. He unlocks the door and heads back in, jogging upstairs to the bedrooms. He goes into Kurt’s room and retrieves the suit from the bed.

This suit was made for Kurt, and Blaine is eager to see him in it.

It still astounds Blaine how this suit seems so brand new, like it could have been made yesterday.

Blaine brings the fabric to his nose and sniffs it.

It even smells new; not like it’s ever sat in mothballs, even once. Blaine’s mother had inherited dresses of her grandmother’s that had been stored improperly in mothballs after she passed away. His parents had those dresses professionally repaired, but no amount of dry cleaning could get that odor out. It adheres to the fibers, embeds itself there.

But this suit simply smells like fabric.

Blaine examines it. He admires the weave and the stitching. Then he turns his attention to the rest of the room – the bed, the sewing machine, the dress form, the posters… Everything in here was tailored for Kurt, the way the other room was decorated specifically for Sebastian.

Everything looking brand spanking new…new and unused.

Blaine thinks over his conversation with Catherine, and as her words repeat in his head, he pulls the suit close to him, hugging it tight to his chest.

If Andrew Smythe bought this house to start over after his sons died, that means Kurt and Sebastian were never in these rooms.

Sebastian likely never wore that jersey, never saw that signed baseball bat or those pennants hanging on the wall.

Kurt never used the dress form, nor the sewing machine, even though the bobbins are full and the needle threaded.

They never opened their wardrobes, never slept in their beds.

Blaine gulps down the pit that’s been bouncing around in his stomach all day.

Kurt and Sebastian never set foot in this house.

This isn’t a bedroom he’s standing in.

It’s a shrine.

[emospritelet]

Please don't make me socialize prompt for outsider!!!!!!! Please give me more of this amazing verse!

A fic based entirely on prompts from this post.

This is the final chapter!  Thank you everyone that sent me prompts, read, liked and commented :)

AO3 link

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6] [Part 7] [Part 8] [Part 9][Part 10] [Part 11] [Part 12] [Part 13] [Part 14] [Part 15] [Part 16] [Part 17] [Part 18] [Part 19] [Part 20] [Part 21] [Part 22] [Part 23] [Part 24] [Part 25] [Part 26] [Part 27] [Part 28] [Part 29] [Part 30] [Part 31] [Part 32] [Part 33] [Part 34] [Part 35] [Part 36] [Part 37]

They waited until Belle’s shoulder had healed enough to take off the dressings.  She had a puckered scar where the bullet had punched through her skin, but Gold kissed it gently and told her it showed her strength.  Despite that she didn’t want it in any wedding photos that would be taken, but given that it was winter, and their wedding was to be as small and informal as Gold had managed to constrain Dove into arranging, she wasn’t about to be wearing anything strapless.  There was to be only a handful of guests at the ceremony: Dove (who would be giving her away, much to his delight), a large, bearded man called Anton, whom Belle liked very much, Jefferson, Ella and her girlfriends, and Ruby and Granny from the diner, with whom Belle had quickly made friends.  Archie, the local psychiatrist, was ordained, and had readily agreed to perform the ceremony.  Ruby had something of a crush on him, and Belle suspected that she was looking forward to sharing a few drinks with him in the diner afterwards.

The general reaction from Storybrooke to their relationship had been one of surprise and some hostility.  She had received disapproving looks from some of the townsfolk, but the majority of their censure appeared to be directed at Gold, and as he didn’t care in the slightest it didn’t really matter.  It was approaching Christmas, and she supposed that the town had better things to do than worry over the pawnbroker marrying a woman less than half his age.

The evidence that Jefferson had sent to Agent Fa had created an almighty stink within the government, and there had been several high-profile resignations and arrests already.  It gave Belle a tremendous sense of satisfaction to know that the work she and her mother had done had not been in vain, and that several trafficking rings had already been broken up and dozens of people, mainly women and children, had been rescued.

Two days before the wedding, Jefferson and Ella arrived with two other women Belle had met before, if only once.  Ursula was tall and curvaceous, with smooth brown skin and bronze-streaked hair, and Mal was slender and blonde, with full lips and high cheekbones, and a penchant for vintage clothing.  The three of them seemed inseparable, reaching out to touch one another or brush back a lock of hair whenever they passed, fingers lacing together as they walked.  They raised eyebrows amongst the townsfolk upon walking into Granny’s diner wrapped in silks and furs and demanding a room, a bottle of gin and three glasses.

Belle couldn’t help hiding a giggle at the reaction of the townsfolk to the three impeccably-dressed and very affectionate women.  Granny, however, had simply raised a brow, told them to keep the noise down after midnight, and plonked a bottle of gin and a dish of sliced lemon on the bar.  The arrival of Jefferson, in his velvet frock coat and a battered top hat, almost caused some of the patrons to spit out their beer.

“Those are Gold’s friends?” asked Ruby, sitting across from Belle in one of the booths and stirring her drink.  “Wow.  I mean you’d never think it to look at him, he always seems so… buttoned up.”

“Well, once he’s unbuttoned it’s a very different experience, I assure you,” said Belle, and sucked at her straw with a waggle of her eyebrows.  Ruby giggled.

“So - no bachelorette party tomorrow?” she said, and pouted.  “You sure I can’t persuade you?”

Belle put down her drink, shaking her head.

“Drinks and music at our house, and that’s it.”

“You know the Rabbit Hole’s really not that bad,” said Ruby, and wrinkled her nose.  “Okay, it’s a dump, and the bartender’s a sleaze, but still…”

“Please don’t make me socialise,” sighed Belle.

“It is traditional, the night before your wedding,” Ruby pointed out, grinning at her.  Belle rolled her eyes.

“I only really know a few people in Storybrooke,” she said.  “And we’re not exactly traditional, so we’d rather spend our last evening as an unmarried couple together.”

“I thought that was bad luck,” remarked Ruby.  “What if Gold sees your dress?”

“I don’t believe in luck, bad or otherwise,” said Belle.  “Besides, he’s staying here tomorrow night, remember?  We’re only together for the evening.”

“Hmm.”  Ruby watched with amusement as Mal straightened Jefferson’s collar and kissed him on both cheeks.  “Should be fun.”

“Archie’s coming,” said Belle innocently.  “Maybe you can find a way to ease his nerves before the big day.”

Ruby blushed.

The following evening started out well, with Ruby bringing over boxes filled with finger food that Granny had prepared, and Ella opening a bottle of champagne as soon as the clock struck five.  Belle waited until Gold had packed his wedding outfit and overnight bag - he was to stay at Granny’s with the others that night - and then she hung her dress up in their bedroom, hands smoothing the skirt.  Given that the wedding was small, she had gone for something understated.  The dress was short, with a skirt that flared out from the waist, and lace covering the bosom and making up the sleeves that reached to her elbows.  She had gone shopping with Ella and Ursula in New York, but they had wanted something far more extravagant.

“But look!” Ella had protested, holding up a long ivory satin gown, beautifully stitched with tiny crystals.  “You’d be stunning in this one, darling!”

“You said that about the last twenty,” Belle had said in a dry tone.  “Do I have to remind you that I’m getting married in the woods?”

Ursula had sniffed.  “No, but we were hoping you’d change your mind.  What’s a wedding without a little spectacle?”

“I’ll leave the spectacle to you guys,” Belle had said, picking up up a couple of plainer dresses.  “This is going to be small and simple.  Just the two of us, and fewer than a dozen guests.  It’ll be perfect.”

“But just look at the train!” Ella had protested, spreading it across her arm to display the intricate beading and embroidery.  “You’d look ravishing!”

“Oh, I fully plan on being ravished afterwards, believe me.”  Belle unzipped one of the short dresses.  “But walking in those heels is going to be difficult enough without a - a bloody great satin train dragging half the forest up the aisle with me.  I’d probably find a squirrel in it when I took it off.”

Ella had sighed, but relented, and she and Ursula had helped to choose the dress that now hung from the wardrobe.  And the underwear that sat in her drawer, wrapped in tissue paper.  She grinned to herself.  Less than a day, and they would be married.

Guests for the pre-wedding party began arriving at around seven, stamping the frost from their shoes and shaking hands and kissing cheeks as they entered.  Music was playing, Ella and Ursula selecting a mixture of jazz and blues tunes, and Gold let the music seep into him, the chatter and laughter of the guests washing over him in a wave of contentment.  Belle had donned a dark green dress, her hair wound up on her head, and Gold watched from the doorway as she had an impromptu dance with Ruby, who was wearing red, dark hair swishing as she moved.  The two of them had each drunk a couple of glasses of champagne, and Belle was adorably flushed and giggly.  He couldn’t keep the tiny smile from his face.  In twenty four hours they would be joined, and he would be part of a family again, each of them caring for the other.  In their different ways.

“You’re besotted, aren’t you?”

Ella came up behind him and rested her chin on his shoulder, casting her eyes at him.  His smile widened.

“That obvious, is it?”

“Painfully, darling,” she drawled, winking at him, “but she’s besotted too, so I suppose I’ll allow it.”

“Very generous.”  He took a sip of his wine.  “You seem very happy too.  It’s nice to see.”

“Yes.”  She sighed in contentment.  “We must be getting old, hmm?”

“It has its advantages, I suppose.”

She lifted her chin, walking around to face him, and drank the last of the gin and tonic in her glass.

“Can we expect the patter of tiny feet soon?” she asked, with a grin.  “I feel the need to be a terrible influence on a small child, and yours would do nicely.”

Gold returned her grin.

“We’ll see,” he said.  “We haven’t discussed it yet.  I suspect Belle will want to go to college first.”

“Well, don’t hold back if you decide to get carried away on honeymoon,” she said airily.  “Just remember I’m to be First Vodka Aunt.  Ursula and Mal can duke it out for second place.”

“And here I thought you’d be Gin Aunt,” he said dryly, and she smirked.

“Speaking of.”  She held up her empty glass, and he rolled his eyes.

“Let me get you another,” he sighed.

“You’re an absolute darling.”  She reached out to snag Mal with a hand as she passed, and pulled her in for a kiss.  “Another drink?”

“Don’t mind if I do.”  Mal shot Gold a beaming smile, and he gave her a flat look as he took her empty glass.

“I need to get some ice,” he said.  “I presume you want a large one?”

“Is there any other kind?” she drawled, and he grinned.

“A moment,” he said, and stepped into the hallway to head for the kitchen.

The telephone rang, a shrill, insistent noise, and Gold rolled his eyes, quickening his pace.

“I’ll get it,” he called over his shoulder.

“Oh, it might be Archie!” shouted Belle.  “He said he’d be a little late.”

“Okay.”

He walked to the kitchen, snatching up the receiver and putting it to his ear.

“Yes?” he asked absently, sliding the empty glasses onto the table.

“Mr Gold.”

The voice was smooth and distinctly English, and Gold was snatched back in time, dragged back fifteen years or more to a life he had tried his hardest to forget.  A time of darkness and shadows that he had thought until recently would only be revisited in his nightmares.  His mind went unwillingly, scratching and clawing at the ether, trying to remain in the present, where he was content.  Where he was happy.  Where he was with her.

“It’s been some time,” the voice went on, “but I was delighted to hear that your loyalty remains as unshakeable as ever it was.”

Gold’s heart thumped in his chest, a heavy feeling of dread flowing into him and sinking down through his body.  He raised his chin, his face smooth and impassive, as though they could already see him.

“What do you want?” he asked calmly, and there was a sigh on the other end.

“Really?” drawled the voice.  “No greeting, after all this time?  No polite inanities about the weather?  No enquiry after the health of my family?  Where are your manners?”

“What do you want?” repeated Gold, his voice cold.

“Ever the savage at heart, I see.  You can take the man out of Glasgow…”

“I won’t ask again,” said Gold quietly, his accent thickening with emotion, and there was another sigh.

“We have an assignment for you.”

[pinupgalore-lanadelrey]

Record Exec = Jimmy

Who was it that broke your heart? “The songs are about two people that I couldn’t hang on to because they got in trouble and had to leave. When you’re an introvert like me and you’ve been lonely for a while, and then you find someone who understands you, you become really attached to them. It’s a real release.”

“I have taken taking my music to labels for years, and everyone just thought it was creepy. They thought the images with the music were weird and verging on psychotic.”

Bob Leone was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, where he currently lives. In the late '70s & early '80s, he played in the rock band Flame. Flame was formed by the legendary Jimmy Iovine, a childhood friend of Bob's. In 1990, Iovine formed Interscope Records. James "Jimmy" Iovine is an American record and film producer. He is best known as the co-founder of Interscope Records (where Lana is signed) and chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M.

In 2006, Iovine teamed with Dr. Dre to found Beats Electronics, a company which produces audio products and operated a now defunct music streaming service. The company was purchased by Apple for $3 billion in May 2014. Lovine's net worth is estimated at $970 million. He "discovered" Eminem & worked with Bruce Springsteen.  Iovine almost singlehandedly brought so-called “gangsta rap” from the outer fringes of the music industry – to right smack dab in the mainstream.  It started back in 1990 when Iovine co-founded Interscope Records. He partnered with Death Row Records, putting up several million dollars to distribute its hard core rap.

Iovine was close with Death Row CEO Marion “Suge” Knight, who made no secret of his close ties to Los Angeles street gangs. Some of those true-to-life gangstas actually worked for Death Row, routinely bringing guns and drugs into the offices Iovine provided to Suge and his posse. Why did Iovine do business with Knight? Because Death Row delivered a succession of multi-platinum gangsta hits, which generated some $325 million in sales for Interscope by 1997. He didn’t part ways with Death Row until Knight went to jail (after violating probation on an attempted murder charge) and the label stopped delivering multi-platinum hits; stopped generating annual sales in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

“K's a friend of mine. I think about him as he does time. Last year they decided That his time is up and then he got retried. Double homicide. Sent him on to death row. Not to hang around though.”  (Yes I know For K is about another ex but he didn’t attempt murder or anything)

Iovine was divorced in 2009, court paperwork cites the generic “irreconcilable differences”, rumors have abounded for quite some time that Jimmy Iovine has been having an extramarital affair with Pussycat Dolls’ singer, Nicole Sherzinger.

Iovine even wrote an article in 2003 for Rolling Stone about American Icons.. Lana’s favs  -  Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan & Bruce Springsteen.

"You know, I have slept with a lot of guys in the industry, but none of them helped me get my record deals. Which is annoying." 

Lana Del Rey had long on-and-off relationship with a record-business exec, but he never signed her. They met in her early twenties, while she was shopping her first, independent album to major labels.

“I had a long-term relationship for seven years with someone who was the head of a label and I felt like I was that change of routine. I was always waiting to become the person who his kids came home to, and it never happened.”

“It was a love affair. But, I mean, I saw him off and on for seven years, and I’m still close with him. He’s someone who really influenced the way that I saw things, just in terms of not being able to have what I wanted. And just being close to a life that I really envisioned and loved. It wasn’t a career thing, it was a lifestyle thing. I was passionate about him and what he did, and it was being close to what I loved, but not really having it. Which I felt was just symbolic for the way things had been for so many years, standing right next to something that was so beautiful, but never quite having it.”

“Strangest performance: Alone in a basement for a handsome record executive. Strangest [song] ever written: Back at his office while I was making out with him.” When I ask her if she regrets joking like that, given how often people perceived her as a puppet of some executive team, she says, no, the story was true: “I had a seven-year relationship with the head of this label, and he was a huge inspiration to me. I’ll tell you later when more people know. He never signed me, but he was like my muse, the love of my life.”

“I relate to being the person who people come to for “such a change from the old routine,” but not being the main thing. I had a long-term relationship for seven years with someone who was the head of a label and I felt like I was that change of routine. I was always waiting to become the person who his kids came home to, and it never happened. Obviously I had to seek other relationships, and I felt like that became a pattern. I was younger—24, 25 at the time. I had known what I wanted to do for a long time. I had been serious about music since high school, and I stopped drinking when I was 18. By 24, I was a pretty serious person. I thought I was a writer, and I was a singer. I thought I knew what I wanted my path to be. The people I was drawn to were already established, but they were probably looking for someone more on their level, age-wise.”

“I was like, “Yeah. I told [record executive] Jimmy [Iovine] when I signed, ‘If you want to sign me, this is all it’s ever going to be.’” I was just so committed to making music because I believe in what I do. All I had to do was not quit.”

“I sort of have an affinity for really good, strong, self-assured people,” she says. “I would say I haven’t met them as much in people who are in their 20s. So for me, I have nothing in common necessarily with somebody who’s in their 20s.” 

Jimmy dated Stevie Nicks and now Lana is collaborating with her on Lust For Life

Stevie Nicks - “Rick went on to be this totally famous producer and songwriter. He started with me in 1985 on “Rock a Little,” when Jimmy Lovine dumped me and the record into Rick’s lap and said, “Goodbye, good luck.”

Lana Del Rey: Which is so full circle because he ended up being the head of Interscope, which I’m signed to. There are so many full circle moments.

Stevie Nicks: “I think all of these little things, in a really fairy tale way, lead me to you and lead you to me in a strange witchy way. It’s set up, like all of these things that happened with my friend Robin, and her brother, and Rick, and everyone moving down here, me being Jimmy Lovine’s girlfriend from 1980 to 1984, then him giving the record and me to Rick, basically saying, “Here, take them both and go.” All of this led to me meeting you and singing on your record.”

__________________________________

"On this album, in my opinion [Ultraviolence], you didn't want her to try to do something," adds Jimmy Iovine. "I felt she hit a bull's-eye. Everybody's saying to me, 'We need a single,' calling me from Europe. I said, 'You don't need anything.' It's a very coherent body of work, and thought any other conversation was a distraction."

After a video segment featuring several vintage clips of Iovine working in the studio, the Interscope Geffen A&M chairman took some time to reflect on his tenure in the industry, thanking many in the room personally. He then introduced his latest signing, Lana Del Rey, who performed her breakout song, “Video Games”  -- competently and confidently, we might add.

The sexy newcomer has been the subject of much controversy in recent weeks after a shaky TV debut on Saturday Night Live. But the 25-year-old beauty clearly has Iovine in her corner. He called her “an incredible girl” and told the crowd that Interscope has “a real commitment to her” just moments after complimenting Nicks, standing nearby, for her one-of-a-kind voice. “I dare anybody to tell me that’s shit’s not amazing,” said Iovine of Del Rey’s debut album, Born to Die. “It’s left-of-center, it doesn’t sound like anything on the radio, it’s not trying to be anything to anyone…”

After the performance, The Hollywood Reporter asked Iovine if was in fact comparison Del Rey to the iconic Nicks. His answer? “Lana haunts me the way that Stevie's voice haunted me and I just love her album so much,” he said. “But I can't compare anybody to Stevie Nicks because Stevie has the greatest tone of any female rock singer that I've ever heard.”

What does label chairman Jimmy Iovine make of it all, especially how divisive the album has been? “It's a drag,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter. “Maybe this is a new sport. It's something we've never seen before. Or maybe it's [like] the Giants and the Jets.”

Musically, insists Iovine, “her album is really good. Great lyrics and great songs. I don't care what anybody says, ‘Video Games’ is a great song. When she sings that song, it moves me. It’s how we signed her – we saw her, she sang and it was beautiful. I think she's really talented. Period.”

“Lana made a record that is incredible at a time when people aren't making albums. People should support her like crazy because she's done what people like Adele are doing -- incredible music.”

“Hollywood and New York, mister major. And there's me, little queen of the stage, yeah. He's a God, One the stars, call creator. Hail the king of the industry players. Take off your business suit, sitting in your lap for my interview.” “You know this world is mean. Nothing's for free, It's money and technology. Together we'd be deadly.” - Hit and Run

“I look for you in magazines. I'm taking off my wedding ring. I gave you everything. I gave you everything. Give me the bright lights.”  - Brite Lites

“When you take her to Chateau Marmont cause you booked the top suite Lay her on the bed. (Do you remember my name?)” - She’s Not Me

“So I heard you wanna go to Rio, baby. Yes, I've seen page six lately. I told you both them broads was crazy, hacking in your phone and shit. Diamonds and pearls, your little girl. She got the best, sparkling like a Hollywood movie. If you got the cash, lock it down tight. I got the looks, you got my heart right. Give it to me, give it to me, everything. You know how I like my world on a string. I didn't want nothing from you. Just to be like you, my king. I thought that you wanted a real girl, baby. You lured me in with all your gold. Catch and release and you're so cold.”  - Catch and Release

“You're my one king daddy. I'm your little queen, red, white and blue. Record executive, I need you to live. You're my king jewish maven. Kids on vacation. Florida Keys are calling, come back to me.” - Axl Rose Husband  

Mr. Iovine happens to be Jewish.

“Who else knows you're not a stand up guy? Trouble in paradise, they can see it in your eyes. Living double lives, yeah your living double lives. He says he loves me, I don't believe him. If I'm so angry, why don't I leave him? But he knows that I, I really need him. I'm tired of being, tired of being the other woman.”  - The Other Woman 

“And when her old man comes to call he finds her waiting like a lonesome queen.'Cause to be by her side it's such a change from old routine. But the other woman will always cry herself to sleep. The other woman will never have his love to keep. And as the years go by the other woman will spend her life alone.”  - The Other Woman (Nina Simone cover) 

“He's got the fire and he talks with fame. His Bonnie on the side, Bonnie on the side, Makes me so sad, girl. His money on the side, money on the side, makes me so sad, girl.” - Sad Girl  

 “Break up with your girlfriend, let me move in. I see the way you look at me and I loved you since.”  - Midnite Dancer Girlfriend

“I’ll never have to work cause my daddy is rich.” - Go Go Dancer

“I’m kissing you hard, you got my lipstick on your face. I stole your girlfriend’s keys, kicked her out of your place. Cause I want you more than I did before, I’m missing you hard, give you my softcore babyface.”  - Roses

“He's rich and I'm kissin' him, magical musician. Sitting on your lap singing you my song.” - Be My Daddy

[elevenhoursinfront-blog]

30th April 2017

I woke up at 0530 and see that Steve was still asleep. He was meant to be up getting ready for the Boxing match. I woke him and asked whether he was going and as I guessed, the answer was no. He fell back to sleep within seconds. I went back to bed and tried to get off to sleep. I managed too around 0630 and I woke up again at 0830. We went down for breakfast and sat with Sophie. We all had pancakes. 

After food, Steve, Soph and I played a few rounds of pool. There's usually the same group of people who play pool day in and day out for hours on end. Whenever they're not on it, you have to take the opportunity. We wanted to watch a film but there was a rubbish film on already. I played Steve first and I won. He walked away at one point so I pushed one of the balls down without him knowing. I'll tell him later on when he gets in from work. He had roughly 3 more than me any way. I still would've won. I then played Soph. We are as bad as each other as this. We're best at potting the white ball and then each other's balls. Only every now and then do we actually hit our own and they go in... We played double's after and Stuart (a guy from the hostel from England somewhere) joined us. He spent the morning watching and laughing at Soph and I. Steve and I lost against Stuart and Soph but it was close. It was the black ball left for both of us. 

After pool, it was roughly 1130. We decided with Mel yesterday that we would go to Fitzroy for a wonder around 1300. We all went off to get ready. I jumped into the shower, washed my hair and got ready. I managed to put my hair into 2 dutch braids which was good. I've never been able to do it before. The pain in my arms afterwards... 

We went down to the kitchen around 1300. Mel was running slightly late so I made Steve and I two boiled eggs each. We were slightly peckish and they needed eating. Soph joined us next who had a cup of tea and Mel eventually arrived and quickly ate some super noodles. 

Fitzroy is an inner-city suburb of Melbourne. Fitzroy is known for its street art, music scene and culture of bohemianism. There's loads of vintage and retro shops, pop-up bars and restaurants. Your typical person will be walking down in a denim jacket with fishnet tights and Doc Martin’s.

We walked down the famous Brunswick Street looking in several vintage shops. They're much like charity shops at home but the price tags are VERY different. Over $100 for every item inside. All of the items are hand-me-downs but it's considered as very 'in' fashion therefore it deserves a price tag like it's from Prada. 

We walked past the most amazing smelling Indian restaurant. The spices made us all hungry so we went inside to have some lunch. It was a tiny restaurant with brick walls all round. The brick had graffiti on - an Indian woman took up the majority of one wall. It looked amazing. Steve and I ordered a chicken Byriani, Mel ordered chick pea and spinach curry, Sophie just had picky bits - poppadoms and samosas. She had two breakfasts. I wanted to go for my usual Chicken Tikka Masala but it had an (S) next to it for spicy so I couldn't. I enjoyed the Byriani but the chicken was on the bone which I don't really like. There wasn't any sauce either but you could taste so many different flavours which made it enjoyable. 

We left the restaurant and walked around for awhile again. We found an ice cream shop called 'N2'. They make their ice cream with liquid nitrogen hence the name N2. This is why... (skip the next scientific paragraph if you're not that interested, I don't understand much either). 

Ice Cream is a crossbreed of art and science creating a microstructure of ice crystals, air bubbles, fat droplets and a viscous solution of sugars, polysaccharides and milk proteins. The use of liquid nitrogen at N2 plays on the strength of a phenomenon called nucleation-dominated ice crystallisation, it forms a large number of microscopic ice crystals in seconds, resulting in an exceptionally smooth texture in ice cream. Therefore they are able to make ice cream to order and serve it at a warmer temperature of -6C so your palate can perceive the flavours better. Nitrogen is non-toxic, non-flammable and it constitutes 78.09% of the earth’s atmosphere. Liquid nitrogen boils off when it comes in contact with anything warmer than itself (the boiling point of liquid nitrogen is -196°C), it will be completely evaporated by the time it hits your cup. 

We all ordered one - different flavours come with different things. I got one that came with a chocolate syringe on the side so I could inject more chocolate sauce. Steve's did the same. It was really flavourful ice cream and I watched the man make it. There's tanks of N2 at the back of the shop and there's glass frames up and around so you can watch but not come into contact with it. I watched him pour the N2 and cream into a mixer and so much clouded air poured out. I videoed it - it was so cool. There was a massive wooden platform with cushions that we got to sit on whilst we enjoyed our ice cream. I would definitely recommend to anyone in Melbourne! We left N2 and wondered around again. We found an actual charity shop with cheap prices. Most items being under $10. There was even a $2 rail. Steve managed to find a SuperDry coat for $20 so he bought it. We now both have coats to keep us warm. Mel bought a top for $4 too.  Afterwards, we went to have a look at some street art. We found a massive wall with amazing graffiti work all over it. We took our tourist photos but decided to leave not long after. It was roughly 1700 so it was getting very cold and most stores were closed. We jumped back onto the tram for the 15 minute journey home. We all said our goodbyes and Steve and I went upstairs to chill. I managed to FaceTime my mum for sometime as she wasn't at work. Steve was watching the Boxing match online as he was SO gutted he didn't wake up for it. I told him he would be... I tried to FaceTime my dad but he was at Lakeside shopping with the family. I was so jealous, I would dream of having money to buy new stuff. I miss my wardrobe and shoes and clothes and makeup and room... My brother rang me as I am his 'Fashion Adviser' for some advice (funnily enough). We went with Levi Jeans, SuperDry tracksuit bottoms and Nike trainers. I wanted to be there so badly!  Steve then decided he was hungry and wanted food. I wasn't particularly hungry but I went with him. He got McDonalds (obviously) and we sat there using their wifi for sometime before heading back in. We paid for our rent too as that was due in the morning. I didn't want to risk forgetting. We ended up falling asleep earlier than expected, around 2230.