#baby table and chairs sri lanka

[lordseochangbin]

Bad News 

Smut, Fluff, Angst

Pairing: “Badboy” Lee Minho x Aspiring Writer

A/N: So I honestly didn’t want to publish this 4.1k baby because it’s so long but I had so much fun writing it LMAOO so when I finished I was like hmph why not :D After reading it again I realized it actually goes by pretty quickly so enjoyyy

----

Scribble. Scribble. Scribble. 

So annoying.

You’re jotting down every note from this man, this doctor who claims that if humans eat raisins it will save their life from any harm. Evidence? Bullshit. But I suppose that’s what you have to do in order to get into Yale’s English department. Sir Lordseochangbin expects nothing but a good story and you already know he’s going to throw this one in the trash. Just like the others. 

“... and so the texture of the raisin is very particular. Every ridge is filled with yum but it is also the color, OH the color! The color of the raisin is magnificent! People may mistake the raisin as a cat's disposal however…” 

“Doctor!” you get up from your seat, closing your notebook and showing a fake smile of happiness to leave and resent of the wasted time. “I believe we should wrap this up, thank you for your time!” You tell him, shaking his hand before quickly running off. 

“Take care!” 

You enter the busy room full of books and posters. Had you never done your research on the professor behind the English department, you would’ve guessed this was some 17 year old fangirl obsessed with some hotshot korean rapper. Pictures of the man were everywhere and you couldn’t help but to cringe, was he obsessed with himself or something?

He’s sitting on a comfortable chair with a mirror in his hands, his fingers forming the classic ‘peace’ sign as he giggles in a cute voice “Mmhpm! Cute binnie! I’m cute binnie!” 

You literally want to gag in your throat but okay. “L-lordseochangbin? Lord? Are you there?”

“Oh fuck” you hear in his normal voice as he slides the mirror under the desk and straightens his shirt. 

“Ahem. Y/n, how can I help you?” You take a breath of relief to see him back to his old self before handing him your notes.

“I got a story, just wanted to know your opinion” you said with a grin. 

He grabs the pack of papers out of your hands and looks at the first page. “How one doctor is raisin-g awareness about the new way to save lives” He reads in monotone before tossing your work on the floor. 

Your heart is pulsing and your hands are fidgeting. This is fucking stupid. You don’t need Yale. Fuck it. Can’t deal with this stupid conceiting motherf-

“Y/n… sit down.” he takes a sharp breath before grabbing the mirror out the floor. “Do you want to know what I see when I look at myself?”

Not this bullshit again. “Lordseochangbin, what do you see?” You ask, rolling your eyes.

He looks into the mirror, winking at his reflection before answering “I see perfection. You know why? Because interesting shit happens in my life. They range from being thrown into a dumpster in Sri Lanka to marrying the love of my life, Mel. Like I said, terrifying yet beautiful experiences and what’s best is that I learned from it!”

“W-what are you saying?” You respond, leaning closer to him on your seat as you anticipate his response.

“The first story you sent me, the one about that boy. The boy in your story captured my eye. He helped others by secretly selling illegal drugs, donating the money to charity and supporting his family.  I want more guys like him.”

“Like him?” 

“Hmm… how do I say this in the nicest way possible? Y/n, get yourself out there man.” He says, sending you a look as if to sympathize with your loneliness

“Oh”

“Yeah.. now go get a life” He says, shooing you off before he could shut the door on you. 

Wow. Okay. So not only did he throw away the story you spent 7 hours on but also told you to go do something with yourself? 

You turn around, facing the closed door. “One day, I’m going to go inside that room and draw devil ears on every one of those fucking posters! Triangle headass!” You curse, rolling your eyes before hearing a quick “I heard that!” and running out of the building.

-----

You know what the funniest thing was about that story Lordseochangbin mentioned? You made up the name. Your high school memories were long gone and all you could remember was calling him “Daddy” every time he pushed you to the edge. In the story, you called him Eric but what was his name? You just couldn’t remember.

The high pitched screaming ringed through your ears as you remembered the times with “Eric”. You made those scenes extra spicy in your book, replacing high school jerseys with suits and lingerie, old school basketball games with extreme galas throwed by rich people. The whole story was like a perfect manhattan lifestyle until he broke it off with you. 

And god, your safe word with “Eric” was the best part… like seriously? The number of times you screamed “CRANBERRY JUICE” as he fucked your insides out was insane and perfectly memorable. His face, unforgettable. 

These vivid images ran through your head as you jumped into the taxi with your two friends. You, y/n, were bound to get into some trouble. 

The night’s off to a boring start as you have time adjusting from candles and Netflix to DJ lights and drinks. You hit your tenth shot before your friends could pull you off to the floor. You sway your hips to the music, throwing your head back as you feel the beat pulse through you. Throwing your hands up in the air, you feel a tight grasp on your hips before turning around to see your friend. 

“Yo. 9 0’clock. That guy has been checking you out, go get yourself into some trouble!” She says, pushing you in the guys direction. You start to stumble on your feet, letting the crowd of waving arms and stepping heels lead you to him before you're in his arms. 

“Umm… are you okay?” He asks with a smirk on his face. This man is gorgeous up close, and that aching feeling between your legs is just hoping you can get a taste of those plump lips. The ones that lie agaped as he waits for your response. 

“Oh right! Yeah, I-I’m fine..” you shake your head, stupid y/n. His arm finds itself around your waist as he guides you to the bar table, a glass of water in front of him. 

“No drinks?” You ask with a smile. “I’ve had enough” He simply replies, taking a sip of his vodka as he looks across the table. You’re staring at his side profile and as much as you know you shouldn’t you just can’t help but to gaze at him. 

“You’re perfect…” you mutter under your breath before he could turn his attention back to you, “What was that? Sorry the music is a little too loud” He apologizes as he leans in closer. 

No..no no no. Please. He’s so close you can smell the cologne he’s wearing and god is it addicting.

“Umm…. hi!” You randomly spurt out, your hands grabbing his shoulders. At this point you are just wide eyed staring at each other, centimeters apart as your gesture seemed to pull you two closer. You have his full attention and you’re not sure what to do with it. The proximity is making your breath hitch and he’s staring at you like an eager kitten, pupils wide and a grin on his face. 

“Umm.. hi” he mocks you, “What is it? Virgin that’s trying to get knocked up? Good girl trying to disappoint her parents in a club?”

“What?!” you reply confused, “Oh! Wait I mean I’m not trying to get knocked up and I think I’ve dissapointed my parents enough but you’re kinda hot so I mean I wouldn’t mind having sex with you NOT that I haven’t had sex before or anytime I mean I’ve madeout but like sex with you seems-” You realize how fast you’re talking and wince at his still expression, silence between you two for a few seconds before he finally says: 

“Perfect, you’d look so pretty under me kitten” he whispers, his thumb holding your chin up as he pecks your lips.

You close your eyes into the kiss before he could say, “Strawberry chapstick, cute” Looking as innocent as a doll, you look up to him as he gets up.

He sends a wink in your direction before grabbing his jacket, “Let’s get out of here” You get a chance to look back to your friends before they mouth to you, “Use protection!!” and you laugh at their responses and the thrill that’s running through your nerves. 

You two exit through the back, a motorcycle helmet in your hands as you throw your leg over him and settle on the backseat. Once the helmet’s on, he turns his head slightly as if to check on you and grabs your hands, wrapping them around his chest. His black denim jacket is covering your shoulders and his white tee is clinging to his body.

You y/n, you just got yourself into some trouble. 

----

A million fans blowing at your face simply couldn’t compare to the cool breeze that blew past you as you find comfort on the motorcycle seat. Your initial goal is long forgotten, but this guy in front of you is already screaming danger and you love it. 

“What’s your name?” you ask, your question being muted by a nearby car horn.

“Sorry, what?” he replies with a smirk before pulling to the side, pushing the kickstand with his foot and getting off the bike. You’re stunned when he takes off his helmet, his messy hair poking all over the place and when he uses his fingers to comb through his dark locks you realize you are absolutely done for.

“Did you ask something?” 

“W-what’s your name?” you ask, your voice muffled because of the helmet. He simply chuckles as he takes the helmet off you, he’s so close that he can hear your shaky breaths and unsteady heartbeats. 

“It’s Minho. Lee Minho… yours?”

Your nails grip onto the leather seat on the motorcycle as you attempt to get off when your dress gets caught on the bike. “Aw, fuck!” you curse yourself, you knew jeans and a jacket would’ve been a good idea. 

“Woah, woah don’t worry I got you” He says, walking over to the other side of the bike before getting on one knee to help the situation. You’re trying your best to look away because this may or may not have been one of the most embarrassing moments of your life, one leg is mounted to the floor and the other is leaving you unbalanced on the other side of the seat. 

“Nice panties by the way” he says with a smug look. Your cheeks are pink when you turn around to see that he's right in between your legs, the inside of your dress completely open for him to see but his eyes are still focused on that one knot that he’s been trying to untangle. 

“Oh my god” you pant out, covering your eyes in humiliation. “This is so embarrassing”

“It’s nice to know you were serious when you said you wanted to have sex” his smile is hard to hide when he finally sets you free, the balance of the bike suddenly shiftng your weight as you fall towards him. 

“Oh-” you let out as his eyes stare into yours. They’re literally shining, and maybe it’s the reflection of the street light behind you but it looks so magical in the moment as your hands wrap around his neck and pull him into a kiss. 

His hands are around your waist, giving your ass a tight squeeze as he stands up, your lips still connected before he could pull away with a smile. 

“You…” he says with a quick breath, “You never told me what your name was.”

---- 

At the sound of the elevator bell, your back is up against the wall. Minho is quick to get his hands on the bottom of your dress, slowly pulling it up to your waist as he presses kisses into your neck. 

“The second I saw those white lace panties, I wanted them off you right away” He growls into your ear as he grabs your jaw. 

Your legs stiffen as he presses your back on the wall and you gasp as he throws off his jacket, pulling his back tee over his head. “So.. so..” you stutter as your hands grab his hair, pulling him into a deep kiss. His tongue is past your lips, his teeth biting down your bottom lip and you whimper at the arousal building up between your legs. 

“Aw, what was that kitten?” He asks in a playful tone

“G-god stop teasing Minho.. just fuck me already” you whisper, your eyes close shut as the trail of wet kisses he’s leaving across your chest as he slowly takes off your dress. “Is this okay?” he asks as his hands go to your waist.

“It’s fine.. please just-” your lips shut as his attaches to your breast, the other one being groped by his hand as he massages it. His tongue swerves around your wet nipple as he flicks it softly, your cold buds hardening before he could suck on it harshly.

It’s a moment of pleasure until you feel your core pulsating, your hands diverging between your legs as you rip off your panties, fingers diving into your wet folds before Minho could slap them away. 

“Who said you could fucking touch yourself?” He asks, making you whine at his words before he unzips his jeans. “This should fucking teach you a lesson…” His pants are on the floor and before you know it he’s carrying you bridal style onto the bed. 

He’s leaning against the backboard, leaving you confused at the fact that you’re just lying there before he pulls his boxers down, revealing his cock covered with beads of pre-cum. 

“M-minho..WAIT. Umm.. shouldn’t we make a safe word?” Minho looks at you in surprise before letting out a chuckle.

“A safeword kitten? C’mon, I can be rough.. but not that rough”

“Just say a word Minho”

“Strawberry-chapstick.”

“Strawberry...chapstick? O-oh.. okay”You stutter as you place yourself in between his legs. Your hands wrap around his member as you pump him up a few times, your tongue sucking on his tip as you leave his arousal all over your lips. When you go down on him, he lets out a loud moan, his eyes shut in pleasure as his hands go to your head. 

“Nnngh, God.. you look so pretty with my dick in your mouth” he lets out, his eyes watching you attentively. A few more groans pass his mouth before he’s biting onto his lip, trying to let anymore out. When he feels you slowing down, he starts to thrust up your mouth, stuffing it with his cock and watching you gag on it. 

“I-i’m so close kitten, I’m gonna fuck your mouth so good” he mumbles as his hips meet your face, your nails gripping onto his thighs as you feel that familiar twitch.

In seconds he’s laid back on the bed, his hands pulling you up to your face as you manage to swallow all his cum before he could align his cock with your entrance, quickly moving past them as he bucks his hips into yours. 

“OH!” you scream, a mantra of his name leaving your lips. As if you haven’t said or thought of his name enough already. It’s the only thing on your mind when you’re staring at him in bliss, your hands on his shoulders as you sink down on him, just for him to hit your sweet spot again. The way his cock is stretching your walls feels so fucking good and you can’t come to terms on whether is pain or pleasure. It’s a pattern of thrusts and moans before it could grow slower and sloppier. 

“I’m so close Minho, please fuck me Minho! Please!” You cry, his hands playing with your clit as he rubs his fingers on it. His hips buck into yours again, finding that same pace and you look helpless, letting him take over you as your breasts jiggle against his chest, mewls passing your lips. 

“J-Just-” You stutter before you could reach your high, letting out a loud pornographic moan as he reaches for his own before filling you up. Your eyes close shut as you get up, falling on the bed next to him. 

He lets out a long, exhausted breath before his hands could play with your hair, giving you access to lay on his chest before saying, “For a virgin.. you really know how to suck dick” 

You nearly choke at his words before rolling your eyes, “I’m not a virgin” 

“Ahh, that makes sense. Who was the lucky guy?” He says with a smirk, leaning down on the side of his bed to grab another liquor bottle and handing you a glass. 

“He’s.. not sure how to explain it. High school friend I guess…” you reply as you take the drink down in one go and place it on his nightstand, cuddling into his arm as you start to fall asleep.

“Who was your first?” you mumble before your drink could get the best of you.

“Mine… she was in high school too. I had some shit going on though, couldn’t keep her. You know, it’s hard thinking my parents own some bigshot company, and I'm just here. Going to be heir to a billion dollar business and I just… can’t handle all of it. I’m here clubbing every night because I know no matter what I do I’ll never be able to impress them…”

---

Thank god. Thank GOD for that recorder you snuck underneath your dress. What you didn’t thank god for was all the times you screamed, “Fuck me! Fuck me!” God… it made you cringe in your seat. It was good sex though, you had to admit. 

What you weren’t proud of was the fact that you didn’t get anything out of that night. No inspiration, no good story. No nothing. You slumped down your seat in exhaustion before you could hear Minho’s voice. 

“It’s like I’ll never be able to impress them…” you hear him pause for a second before rewinding the tape and listening to what he said seconds before you fell asleep. 

He has a story. Minho… he’s more than just a guy that goes clubbing and rides on his motorcycle and drinks every night. He’s a boy that was never loved by his parents, using his money to donate to charity, never knowing what his future lies of him as the heir to a billion dollar company. 

“I trust you.. you know. I don’t know what it is about you but… oh, are you sleeping?” He giggles. You smile at how attractive his laugh is before looking down at his notes. Would it be bad to use these for a story? His life… as a book? 

You remembered his sleepy eyes as he laid on the bed, you trying to put on your clothes in a hurry as you left the apartment without a sound. Should you have left? You throw your face into your hands before hearing the sound of his voice again. 

“She looks cute with this cat filter” you hear him mumble before you could hear the click of his camera, a laugh leaving his lips as you could hear him close settle in his spot next to you. 

“Fuck me, fuck me” He mocks in a high pitch voice before hear a starling snore. “Oh, she snores. Great.” 

You mentally facepalm yourself before turning off the recording, leaning back in your seat as you stare at the roof wondering if it was worth it to break his trust like this.

“I gave you a day, y/n. Got any ideas?” You turn around to see Changbin leaning against the door before looking back at the recorder on your desk.

“I think I do. I’ll have it done in a week.”

----

A month passed and all of your dreams came true. Getting into Yale, publishing a book, and getting the status as an official writer. You regret giving yourself a deadline of a week, but when Changbin saw how well you were doing he extended it, knowing a book could never be done in a week, not even a month. You spent your days and nights on this however, the thought of Minho in mind was only brain fuel. 

Some nights resulting in reaching your own high, but you couldn’t even count the number of men who passed by your apartment door. They weren’t just men, men from Yale, and were they hot. 

You ended up asking them to leave however, knowing you had to get back to work. None of them used “Strawberry-chapstick” as a safeword. None of them took a cute cat filter selfie when you fell asleep. None of them were Minho. 

----

Smile, sign the book, have a conversation and it’s the next person. Minho walked past the book-signing banner as he walked into the library, heading straight to the counter. 

“So busy here, it’s not usually like this” 

“Mr. Lee, there’s a book signing going on here. New author who just made her way to Yale, you should read her book.”

“Yale? It’s probably a book about Hilary or Bush, i’ll pass on reading about notable alumni” he sarcastically replied.

“Well if that’s the case sir, the kids are eagerly waiting in the room past the signing for you” 

“Perfect, thanks..”

Minho tucks his jacket as he walks towards the kids room, catching a glimpse of the fan meeting as he walks by the crowd. 

“Shit, shit! Hide me” You whisper, hiding behind Changbin’s back as you watch him walk by you. 

“Y/n.. I’m your boss not your friend, get out there” he says, stepping to the side before you could make eye contact with him. You see him stop walking down the hall, his eyes staring right at you. 

“Shoot, um changbin can you-”

“Sir you can’t come past this line, it's a book signing.” 

“I need to talk to that girl!” Minho exclaims, pointing a finger at you as you continue to hide behind Changbin. Minho tries to fight off the bodyguards before you could tell them to let go. 

Brushing a piece of hair behind your ear, you look down at his luxury shoes as you ask, “What are you doing here… you shouldn’t be here”

“I’m always here, the real question is” he looks off to the side, reading the name off the banner, “Y/n.. you left me that night”

You took down a harsh gulp before looking back up at him, “I did.”

He scoffs at your words, “Seriously y/n, you did? No fucking joke, I had no idea what your name was, who you were, all I had was this” he presses the button on his phone, lighting to show you his lockscreen of you sleeping with the cat filter.

“I’ve been thinking about you since that day y/n… please” he says, grabbing your hands in his and giving it a squeeze. You’re left speechless, not sure how to reply before Changbin interrupts you two. 

“Y/n, it’s time. You! You must be a friend of y/n, check out her new book!” 

Changbin hands him a copy and you try to grab it out of his hands, “No Minho you seriously shouldn’t…”

“Wait y/n this is crazy..” he says, swapping your hand away. He mumbles out the title ‘Bad News’ before turning around to read the description. “Bad boy with a bad reputation. Drugs, Drinks, and girls. A billion dollar company and parents that are more than disappointed. Choi Mino..” 

He glares at the words before looking back up to you. “Minho… look I can explain-”

“Don’t bother” he says, dropping the book on the floor, “You could’ve at least thought of a better name for a dissapointment” 

Minho bits his lip in anticipation of a response, another try to ask him to stay but you’re left without words. You don’t know how to explain yourself, you can’t. 

“I-i’m sorry..” you whisper under your breath before Minho could roll his eyes at you and leave. 

“Oh, where’d your friend go?” Changbin asks you, you turn around- trying to hold back the tears that were close to falling before facing the crowd of readers in front of you.. books in their hand and smiles on their faces.  Posing a fake smile you grab the book that Minho dropped in your head, leaning against a table.

“Hello everyone, you know my name. I’m the author of Bad News.

[kernigkrafts123]

TEAK WOOD: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW

Tectona Grandis, commonly known as Teak wood is a highly desirable wood that is prized for its exceptional properties. You must have heard about how incredible this wood is or you might even have Teak wood furniture in your home or office!

Teak is an expensive wood as compared to other types of wood but it is also one of the few woods that is extremely long lasting. If properly maintained, teak wood furniture can last upto 70 years!

Teak is a tropical hardwood like Mango wood and is found primarily in South and South-East Asia. India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Northern Thailand are some countries where Teak grows. Nagpur and Central province Teak are two types of Teak wood found in the respective regions of India.

Find out more information about this wood and why you should buy Teak wood furniture for your home, office or café below.

Characteristics of Teak Wood

Teak can be of any color ranging from a beautiful, rich golden brown to a classy yellowish white, depending on the species of the wood and what part of the tree it is from.

The trees are large and quite tall, upto 130 ft in height and take about 40-80 years to mature. The outer layer, known as sapwood is whitish to pale yellow. The core is called heartwood and has golden brown to dark brown color.

As Teak is a tropical hardwood, its sapwood has high moisture content. The heartwood has dark patches on it sometimes and is harder, stronger, more expensive and more desirable than sapwood.

All trees have natural oils, what makes this wood exceptional is that it maintains its natural oils and rubber even after being cut and processed. The tight, dense grain that Teak has, allows it to retain all the goodness!

The rubber content and the oils present in the lumber give Teak an edge over other woods for furniture making as they make it weather-resistant. It also successfully resists pests and insects, humidity, wind damage and sun damage!

Unlike other types of wood, Teak is not prone to cracking and warping. It does not even splinter. This explains Teak’s exuberant price tag, doesn’t it?

To recognise Teak, it is important to look at its grain which is generally straight. It often has lines of a darker color that run though the wood. You can also determine if it’s teak by smelling it. The high amount of oils in the timber give it a leather like smell. You can pick it up and weigh it in your hand, Teak wood is dense and moderately heavy.

Why Use Teak Wood

Classy and chic. Loved by both interior designers and architects, the warm brown color of Teak, is alluring and complements all spaces and surroundings. Teak wood chairs, stools, tables, sofas etc. can easily be used anywhere, right from homes, apartments and offices to commercial spaces such as cafés, bistros, restaurants, bars and hotels.

Longevity. Who doesn’t dream of building a beautiful house that can be passed on to generations. Furniture made from Teak wood makes for elegant family heirlooms that can be used for decades owing to Teak’s high tensile strength and durability.

Water resistant. Being water resistant, Teak is the preferred choice of wood for boat building and for making boat decks and yachts. Steel ships last upto 50 years whereas Teak wood ships can last upto 100 years! Since it is sturdy, has high tensile strength and requires low maintenance it is perfect for this purpose.

Outdoor furniture. Being resistant to water, Teak wood makes excellent outdoor furniture whether it’s for your patio, porch or backyard. Though Teak tables and chairs for your patio will cost you more than furniture made from other types of wood, the benefits of Teak are unparalleled. It is disease resistant because of the natural oils present in the lumber, these oils prevent water from trickling into the wood which means your patio furniture will be safe from wind, heat, cold and rain at all times. The presence of these oils also makes it mosquito repellent, so when you sit outside to enjoy and relax with your friends and family, you won’t be bothered by any unwelcome guests. Also, the look of a handcrafted Teak wood patio set in your garden cannot be matched by any other!

Weather proof. It is extensively used in exterior construction because it is weather proof. Teak has natural resistance to rot and decay and it’s dense grain makes it exceptionally strong.

Withstands extreme heat and cold. Teak wood’s ability to withstand extreme heat and cold makes it a lucrative option for furniture making. If you get Teak wood furniture, you won’t have to change it according to the changing seasons. Even if you plan to redo your space after a few years you can keep your Teak furniture and decorate the rest of the space. Teak is also used to make kitchen accessories such as chopping boards, countertops, bowls and spoons because of this advantageous property.

Resistant to timber termite and pests. Teak is naturally resistant to timber termite and pests, so it can be used without oil or varnish. It does not require a lot of treatments like other woods and can be used with little finishing.

Reclaimed. Because of its excellent properties, Teak lasts really long and withstands the effects of weather and time, hence Teak is often available as reclaimed wood. Reclaimed wood is green wood, unique and eco-friendly. Its beauty is matchless and it never goes out of fashion. If you use reclaimed teak wood furniture in your café, restaurant, bar or apartment it will surely stand out and fetch you a lot of compliments!

Sustainable production. Teak is an endangered species of wood. Sustainable production of plantation teak is being done since teak forests are being depleted. Plantation teak is grown in dry tropical climates and considered a renewable resource. You can go for plantation Teak as it has the same profitable properties as old-growth trees.

Carving. Since Teak can be carved and turned, it is a furniture maker’s delight. Artisans love working with Teak because it can be easily hand-carved, sawn and cut. It is therefore, often used to make décor objects with intricately carved patterns and designs.

Low maintenance. Teak changes its color on exposure to sunlight from warm honey brown to a chic silver grey which allows you to experience different colours in the same set of furniture. Rotate your furniture for even weathering of the wood. Though the color change looks beautiful and is only cosmetic, if you want to prevent it you can use a finish on your Teak wood furniture. Teak is also quite low maintenance in general. All you need to do to keep it clean is use soap and water and rub it lightly with a soft brush, make sure the furniture is wet when you scrub it. Allow it to dry completely, preferably not in direct sunlight.  

Versatile. Teak wood is excellent for making exquisite doors, window frames, indoor flooring and all kinds of furniture items.

What all furniture can be made with Teak Wood ?

Teak is versatile and can be used to make anything and everything, but here’s a list of some furniture items that are often made with this wood.

Tables

End Tables

Dining Tables

Coffee Tables

Side Tables

Bar table

Office desks

Bedside Tables

Community Tables

Nesting Tables

Display Tables

Chairs and Stools

Ottomans

Bar Chairs

Low Height Chairs

Dining Chairs

Restaurant/Café Chairs

Rocking Chairs

Baby Chairs

Desk Chairs

Bar Stools

Accent Chairs

Outdoor Chairs

Wicker Chairs

Chaise Lounge

Storage

Cabinets

Cupboards

Chest of Drawers

Sideboards / Credenza

Racks

Shelves

Display Units / Étagères

Wine Cabinets

Bookcases

Knick-Knacks

Chopping boards

Trays

Serving Platters

Photo Frames

Table Lamps

Mirror Frames

Beds and headboards, sofas and sectionals, dressers, media consoles etc. there are so many more items that can be made from Teak!

Now that you know the benefits of buying teak, I am sure you will consider buying that handcrafted Teak table, you had your eyes on! To feast your eyes on more Teak wood furniture or for information on how to customise Teak furniture click here!

[visionexterior]

Baby Table And Chairs

Baby Table And Chairs

Kids haven is singapore s biggest children furniture store. Hellohome pj masks kids table and 2 chairs set wood multicoloured. Kids Table And Chairs Set Beautiful Modern Designer Childrens Table And Chair Set Handmade In Aust Toddler Table Wooden Toddler Table Kids Table And Chairs With a range of styles and colours available such as our pink rocking chair and grey toy chest there are a selection…

[172salamandersinatrenchcoat]

The Sun Shines Brightest In The Dark

[10:14] Eren: hey, how r u?

[10:22] Levi: Good. Sitting in class right now. You?

[10:24] Eren: suffring thru 1 of my dad’s lectures

{10:25] Levi: Fuck.

[10:26] Levi: I hope you’re alright.

[10:26] Levi: Anything I can do for you?

[10:27] Eren: u already have :)

[10:28] Eren: but maybe dinner tonight?

[10:34] Levi: Sure, when and where?

[10:35] Eren: i’m off work at 7

[10:36] Eren: small restaurant named Wall Rose?

[10:40] Levi: I like the Rose. Okay, I’ll meet you there at 7:30?

[10:41] Eren: awesome <3 i can’t wait

[10:51] Eren: hey Levi

[10:51] Eren: is it alright if i wear a dress?

[10:52] Levi: Wear whatever the fuck you want, brat, as long as you bring yourself.

[11:12] Levi: Eren? You okay?

[11:14] Eren: … i’m good. thx Levi. <3

[11:15] Levi: You’re welcome. Talk to you later.

[11:16] Eren: later

.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.

Eren slowly leaves the public toilet while clicking his purse shut. He pushes his work clothes deeper into the plastic bag in his right hand, then makes his way towards the Wall Rose. His heart is beating like mad in anticipation from the feelings Levi’s text induced within him. It still warms him to his core -- and it made him bawl like a baby for ten minutes after he had received it.

Levi’s too good to be true. Just like a dream in which everything in his life works out for once. Every time he thinks about him, there is a flutter in his stomach and warmth spreads throughout his body. The sight of Levi’s smile alone would be enough to chase away the bitter aftertaste his father’s lecture left in his mouth.

God, Eren has it bad.

He yearns to hear Levi’s voice again, to tell him a joke and make him laugh -- he wants to get Levi, his desires, his fears, his passion. And it scares the fuck out of him, as he has never quite felt like this before. If Armin could see him now, he would probably tease him, but his friend is away at Stanford.

Eren approaches the Wall Rose carefully, looks around if Levi is already there. He sees him sitting on the stone bench at the fountain, his phone in his hand. He’s making such a disgruntled face that Eren cannot help but chuckle as he approaches him. Levi is so obviously distracted by whoever writes him that he only notices Eren when the brunette talks to him.

“You look like you bit into a citrus.”

Levi almost jumps into the air in surprise. His phone slips from his hand. He barely catches it in time.

“Geez, Eren,” he admonishes. “You scared the fuck out of --” Any words he wanted to say get stuck in his throat at the sight of his date. It sends a shiver down Eren’s spine to see Levi speechless because of him.

He’s wearing one of his favorite dresses today. It is an A-line skirt dress in such a dark green that it is almost black. It reaches only down to Eren’s bare knees which are not covered by tights today. Instead, Levi gets an eyeful of smooth skin and long legs. They end in intricate dark brown sandals whose straps wind around Eren’s calves like snakes. The brown haired wig Eren wore during his performance sits snugly on his head again. The wavy brown hair softly cascades down his back. He smiles and blushes under so much scrutiny.

It takes Levi several minutes to find his voice again. “Fuck, you look amazing!” he says while he stands up, obviously flustered. It’s a look that Eren would like to see more often on his face. “I don’t … damn, I don’t know what else to say.”

“It’s alright,” Eren says, grinning like a fool. “You just made my day to be quite honest.”

“And you made mine,” Levi blurts without thinking. His cheeks color. Eren never wants this to end.

Levi stuffs his phone into his bag, then shoulders it. He holds out his arm to Eren like a gentleman. “Shall we, brat?”

Eren loops his arm around Levi’s and grins. “Lead the way.”

.0.0.0.0.0.0.

Wall Rose is a small restaurant built into the wall of a former military base called Trost Base. The base had been built some 200 years ago and is quite a tourist attraction, promising a lot of income to the small establishment. The owner is a guy named Keith Shadis, an ex-military commander that loves to shout orders at his kitchen crew. Under his rule, Wall Rose had been renovated to represent a US government facility as they’d existed before the Independence War all across the country. If not for the tables and chairs that are strewn about the place, it would look more like a museum than a restaurant.

Levi and Eren choose a table in a quiet corner that isn’t plagued by tourists like the rest of the place. A waiter comes by as they sit down to give them the menus, and soon they browse through them.

“Oh, nice,” Levi says suddenly, delighted. “They have Ceylon again.”

“Ceylon?” Eren looks at the name printed on the page. “Isn’t that a black tea brand?”

“Yes,” Levi answers. “It’s from Sri Lanka. Shadis usually bought it from a company specialized in importing it since they were giving him a discount. But two years ago or so the tea plantations in Sri Lanka had a drought and most of the plants died -- so the value shot up and the prices skyrocketed. Shadis had to take it out of the menu.” He ends his rant suddenly. “Oh god, sorry. I don’t usually ramble like this.”

“I think it’s cute,” Eren says, fondness creeping into his voice. Levi had looked so alive while talking about something as mundane as his favorite tea brand that Eren could’ve watched him until the end of his days. It makes him smile. “You really like tea, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Levi’s cheeks color. “I’ve started drinking it as a kid.”

“You’re so passionate,” Eren grins. Making Levi blush is as easy as it is charming. “I wouldn’t mind trying it.”

“Sure,” Levi clears his throat. “What do you want to eat?”

Accepting this change of topic, Eren looks at the menu once more. “I think I’ll take the chicken pasta.”

“Neat. I’m gonna take the fish.”

They make small talk until the waiter comes back to take their order. He brings their tea not soon after alongside a basket of bread slices with garlic cream on the side.The first sip Levi takes makes him moan.

“God, I love that taste.”

“I bet,” Eren says, trying to get his hormones under control. It’s not really a common courtesy to spot a hard-on during the first date. The things Levi does to him with a mere noise, though, are just--

“Aren’t you going to try yours, brat?”

“Er--” Eren is at a loss for words. “Sure.”

He tries the tea and finds it a tad too bitter for his liking, then adds sugar to Levi’s obvious snort. It is quite delicious afterward.

They enjoy their tea in sweet silence until the meal arrives. Levi’s fish is still steaming from the grill, whereas Eren’s pasta smells so delicious that he can literally feel his mouth water. He starts eating with gusto and almost moans himself as the flavors explode in his mouth. Soon enough, Levi is following his example.

“I love the food here,” Eren says after he’d swallowed his first bite. “It reminds me of my mom’s cooking.”

“Was she a good cook?” Levi asks.

“Yeah, the best,” Eren’s spirit seems down for a moment, then he smiles wistfully. “She thought me a few things. If you want, I could cook for you some time?”

“I’d love to have you cook for me,” Levi admits. “I can’t cook for shit.”

“Really? Do you set a kitchen aflame just by walking into it?”

“It’s not that bad yet, brat.” Levi smiles into his tea, Eren can see it through the wrinkles around his eyes. It fairly suits him. “I can do scrambled eggs.”

“Everyone can do scrambled eggs.”

“You make it sound as if I need a degree to work in a kitchen.”

“Not a degree -- more experience, and a helping tutor of course.”

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Levi shoves a forkful of white fish meat into his mouth. “I have a tutor sitting right here if he’s willing.”

“I always am,” Eren says in a sultry tone. It made Levi chuckle.

“Not bad, brat, not bad.”

They return to their meals after the banter, as they don’t want the fish and the pasta to go cold. It tastes delicious, and Eren savors every last bite. When they finish their dishes and only their barely filled teacups remain, Eren tackles the question that he’d been thinking about for hours.

“Say, Levi,” he started. A glance at the black haired man tells him that he has his attention. “Say -- how would you like to go to a movie with me?”

“Sure,” comes the answer, fast as a shot from a pistol. “When and where?”

“Actually,” Eren’s hands become sweaty. He grips the fabric of his dress tightly. “I thought about -- maybe right now?”

“Oh.” Levi looks at his watch. It’s barely nine. The evening is still young and fresh. “Ok.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, really,” Levi chuckles while Eren sighs in relief. “You don’t want to go home yet, do you?”

Eren’s silence is answering enough. He feels Levi’s arm slide around his shoulder, then the smaller man is sitting right next to him.

“I’m sorry,” Levi says quietly. The honesty in his voice makes Eren tremble. “I understand where you’re coming from. Having your parents yell at you for reasons that you can’t change without denying your true self seems to be going around.”

Eren laughs. “You make it sound like a sickness.”

“Perhaps it is,” Levi tightens his grip. “You’re wonderful and talented, and if your Dad can’t realize that, then it is his loss.” He sounds so sure as if he had done this before. His parents must’ve been assholes, too. “No one should be afraid to go home.”

“I -- Levi --” Eren doesn’t know what to say. The mere thought that Levi might understand what he feels like is too much. How can it be that someone like Eren got to meet such a good guy who would get him and not mock him for the problems he has. Levi must be an angel, sent from Heaven to brighten Eren’s life. He can’t explain it otherwise.

Before he can stop himself, he has shortened the distance between them and presses his lips against Levi’s unresponsive ones. Levi is surprised by the kiss -- his eyes widen and he goes rigid as a board, but when Eren tries to end it as quickly as it began, he grabs at his head and pulls him closer still before he opens Eren’s lips with his tongue.

Eren’s eyes slide shut. His hands roam about Levi’s body for a second, before they settle at the shorter man’s waist. Eren can feel the softness of Levi’s shirt below his fingers, as well as the hardening body beneath it. Their tongues start a desperate battle. All blood leaves Eren’s head to rush south.

They are interrupted by someone clearing their throat near them and jerk apart. While Eren turns cherry red, Levi levels a glare at the person interrupting them, who happens to be the waiter that attended to them all night. The man visibly shrinks in on himself and then ask in a timid voice if he can bring them anything else.

“No,” Levi says a tad sharper than intended and crosses his arms over his chest. He is not at all pleased by this sudden interruption, but he doesn’t want to have a fall out with one of his favorite restaurants, either. He, therefore, opts for polite neutrality. “We’d like the bill, please.”

The waiter nods sharply before he basically runs off. Still blushing, Eren can’t help but chuckle at his haste. He gently covers one of Levi’s hands with his own and watches the other visibly relax. “You handled that well.”

“Yeah,” Levi responds, then levels a warm gaze at Eren. It makes the brunette shiver despite the warmth in the restaurant. “I was tempted to chew him out, but I happen to like meals here.”

“They are really delicious, aren’t they?” Eren hums. He takes one of the tablecloths and folds it into a square, needs to occupy his hands or else he’s gonna jump Levi right then and there. He can still taste him on his lips.

Luckily for him, the waiter comes within another minute. Levi pays, doesn’t even accept when Eren tries to intervene -- “We could at least share it, Levi.” - “No, this one's on me. You can pay for the movie if you want to lose money so badly.” - “... Fine.” -- and they leave the place naught five minutes afterward.

A gentle breeze greets them. Eren can feel it caress his bare legs as well as the long strands of his wig, relishes in the feeling of breathing in fresh air. He stretches a little and sees Levi watching him out of the corner of his eye. When Eren turns his head, Levi averts his eyes. A blush colors his beautiful pale face.

“Everything alright?” Eren asks teasingly, a grin on his face. At this rate, it will become a permanent fixture on his face, he’s sure of that.

“I just thought -- nevermind.”

“Oh, come on,” Eren bugs. “Tell me? What did you think?”

Levi turns even redder, then clears his throat. “... I thought about how much I wanted to kiss your neck right now.”

“Oh.” Now it is Eren’s time to blush. “I wouldn’t be opposed to it,” he blurts out before he can even think about it.

Levi laughs. “Of course you wouldn't.” He shakes his head for a moment, then looks at his phone. “We should probably get going to the cinema, though. To catch your movie.”

The sudden change in topic throws Eren off-guard for a moment, but then a smile graces his face. There are a lot of things two people can do in a darkened movie theater, after all. “Alright,” he purrs, grabs for Levi’s hand and drags him along. “Let’s hurry then!”

.0.0.0.0.0.0.

They end up expulsed from the cinema for ‘steamy behavior’ halfway through the movie. Eren almost keels over while they leave since he’s laughing his ass off, and even Levi finds the situation weirdly amusing. Once outside, however, the brunette continues where they left off. He urges Levi against the wall next to the exit, takes the other one’s hand and guides it back to where it had slipped under his dress before a security guard asked them to ‘leave’. He finds Levi’s lips once more and moans into his mouth when Levi squeezes his thigh.

“Don’t stop,” he mumbles against Levi’s lips when they break apart for air, then surges back into the kiss. Levi’s hand is warm as it trails up and down Eren’s leg, and he can’t help growing hard as fast as he does. His leg bends on its own accord and wraps itself around Levi’s waist, drags the other even closer than before.

“I don’t intend to,” Levi groans. “You taste so good, Eren.”

Warmth spreads through Eren’s being, and before he can help it his lips are on Levi’s again. One of his hands finds its way into Levi’s hair, nails scraping over the short strands of the other’s undercut, while the second goes to Levi’s own on his thigh. He breaks the kiss and guides it to his crotch. “Look what you do to me,” he whispers.

The reaction is not as anticipated.

Levi tenses the moment he touches Eren’s groin. Grey eyes widen, then dart from Eren’s middle to his face and back. The brunette reads fear within that gaze and slowly uncurls the leg he had partially wrapped around the other.

“Levi?” he asks carefully. Gently. “Is everything alright?”

“I --,” Levi breaks off, suddenly pale, then licks his lips. “I -- you -- Eren you have a dick.”

“Er--” At first, Eren doesn’t understand. Yes, he has a dick, he’s a guy after -- oh. Oh. Of course. His grip on Levi’s hand loosens with sudden realization. “Oh, Levi. I’m sorry.”

Levi shakes his head. He looks oddly vulnerable. “It’s okay,” he says. “I should’ve known. Of course you have a dick. You’re a guy.” And I’m not, goes unsaid, but Eren hears it in the defeated tone of Levi’s voice. He wants to assure him that everything will be okay one day, that he will have a dick at one point in his life. But he doesn’t find the words. Instead, he wraps his arm around the shorter male in a gentle embrace as his arousal bleeds into concern and something else. Something he doesn’t want to acknowledge just yet.

“I won’t like you any less if you tell me that it is, in fact, not okay,” he says quietly. Levi breathes harshly. “I can only try to understand what you feel right now, and I will probably never get it completely, but just know that I care about you and your well-being. If you need time, just tell me.” Another harsh breath that sounds suspiciously like a sob has Eren press Levi’s body even closer. Slowly but surely, Levi hugs him back.

“I’m sorry,” the shorter man mumbles in a voice full of unshed tears. “I didn’t know it would affect me like that but … when I held your … it is hard to explain--”

“Shh, it’s alright. You don’t owe me an explanation.”

“I know,” Levi says. He lifts his head and locks his gaze with Eren. “But I want to give you one.”

“Okay,” Eren only manages, then waits patiently for Levi to find words. He rests his arms on Levi’s shoulders and interlaces his hands behind the shorter man’s neck. Levi’s right hand finds Eren’s forearm and squeezes it in silent thanks.

“... I’m jealous,” Levi finally blurts out. “You were born with a dick and you’ve never had to struggle with what I’m going through and … shit, this is hard --,” Levi swallows harshly. He looks away before he continues, “for a long time, my life was shit, you know? Before I realized that I had been born in the wrong body, I always wondered what was wrong with me. Nothing felt … right. I rarely smiled because I always felt …weird. I can’t really explain it, but -- I … I thought about killing myself for the first time when I was eight. Everyone was expecting me to behave in a certain way, and if I didn’t they were so disappointed in me. They called me names … and they … they ” He breaks off, clears his throat. “I’m sorry. I feel so guilty for being jealous of you.”

“You don’t have to. Feel guilty, that is.” Eren places a gentle kiss on Levi’s forehead. It makes Levi look at him again. “And thank you.”

“For what?”

“For sharing that with me,” Eren answers. “I know it must’ve been hard to admit the truth. Not only to me, but to yourself as well.”

Levi looks at him oddly, then-- “How can you be real?”

“Excuse me?”

“How can you be actually, properly real?” Levi pinches his cheek. The color has returned to his face and he looks a lot more like himself. “I swear, half the time today I thought I was dreaming.”

“... I take that as a compliment,” Eren grins cheekily.

“You better. I don’t often compliment people, brat.” Thank fuck, Levi has returned to normal. On a sudden impulse, Eren places a wet kiss on Levi’s cheek which has the shorter man immediately recoil from him. “Fuck, now I have drool all over my face!”

Eren just laughs.

“That isn’t funny,” Levi chides but doesn’t wipe the wetness away yet. Instead, he takes Eren���s hands in his and looks at him with sudden profoundness. “Thank you, Eren. For listening. I didn’t know I needed that.”

“Anytime,” Eren responds honestly. “And just for the record, we can take it slow. You don’t have to do anything that makes you uncomfortable.”

“The same goes to you,” Levi places a chaste kiss on Eren’s lips before he interlaces his right with Eren’s left. “Since we couldn’t finish the movie, let’s walk around until you feel comfortable enough to go home.”

And there it is again, that warm feeling that spreads through him whenever he is in Levi’s presence. Eren takes a deep breath and smiles. Together, they walk into the night.

To be continued.

Part 1 | [Part 2] | Art for Part 1

[shazyloren]

The Dragon Club: Chapter 19 - Papers and Elephants

Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/12018519/chapters/27728961

---------

Jon and Daenerys didn't see anything of each other over the next two weeks, however they did text each other nearly everyday, getting to know a little about each other bit by bit. They would also correspond about the photoshoot which Daenerys had planned but unfortunately, it had been pushed back until three days later than scheduled due to a double booking.

This meant Daenerys was in her office all day making sure all the pieces she'd already received from her writers and photographers were properly edited and ready to go into the April issue. Once the shoot and interview was done she would need Jon to write as quickly as possible as so to make the deadline in 8 days time.

It was midday and Daenerys had not been interrupted since she got to work. She was going spare over the amount of stuff she was having to cut down as all the stuff she received was exceptionally high quality. "Seven hells"

She took a mini-break, opening her lunch box that was in the mini fridge under her desk and eating her salmon and cress sandwich, She did so closing her eyes, she thought that perhaps if she didn't look at anything while she was eating this headache she was seemingly achieving would go away. It worked for a few minutes, that was enough.

As she looked at her desk, there was just a large mass of papers and photos. Her computer had the layout of her magazine on and most of the pages were filled with the different articles she'd already got. There was a 10 page space in the middle she was leaving for the cover shoot and article plus a bunch of one page spaces throughout.

Why did editing magazines have to be so hard?

Daenerys had always struggled with this part, she knew the vision in her head and she knew what articles she wanted, the layout was just always a pain. She liked the magazine to flow, one article into another. It was why she'd won editing awards, because of how picky she is when it comes to layout.

It was another hour before anyone else disturbed her again, Missandei poking her head around the corner. "Sorry to disturb you, Miss. Targaryen, but Marco Lambertini from the WWF is here to discuss your limited edition magazine coming out in August"

"Ah yes, give me one moment and allow me to clear up" Daenerys had forgotten all about it, but she too had been doing plans to give back to the WWF from proceeds of her magazine by doing a limited edition version in which it's all about animals and wildlife and endangered species.

From early setting up of Valyrian, she said no fur would be used in the photos of her magazine (especially that of minx and tiger skin). She had also not used leather in the magazine (even if she has leather bags at home) and this had been applauded by people in the fashion and makeup industry.

"Very well" Missandei bowed her head and left the room. Daenerys was feeling a little stressed to say the  least so a nice conversation would release the pressure she was feeling in her head from staring at a screen for hours on end. She tidied her desk up as best as she could; putting photos and articles in all the drawers of her desk and just leaving the planner on her table.

As she opened her planner she saw Jon's name scribbled on Friday 16th February, the photoshoot. Daenerys felt her heart skip. In three days she would see his face again. She remembered all those things he had said, about this mysterious girlfriend of his past, her death, how lonely he feels and how... alive and distracted he felt around her. He had been very closed off from her, and she hadn't liked it. She knew that even his siblings probably didn't know what he was feeling, and so she was thankful that after all the interrogation of her he'd finally let her in slightly. But she still couldn't help feel like she knew him less than before too, there was no mystery around him anymore, or at least not as much as there had been.

Jon had pretty much not left her thoughts since Daario drove her home from the wedding. She'd gone to bed when she got home at six in the morning and had found herself lying awake another hour thinking of him. And even though the thought of this still embarrassed her, she had found her hand touching herself while she thought of him. It had been so long since she'd had anyone and he had filled her senses so deeply that her brain had stopped functioning and her body had taken over.

Shaking herself from thoughts of Jon, and of an aching that has begun in her thighs, she rang Missandei's phone just outside her office and said she was ready for this man to come in. She stood from her desk and looked out the window, as she always did before a meeting, just to calm herself and take in the view. The door swung open and an aging white man with barely any hair stepped through the door. "Marco, is it?"

"Indeed" He said, not used to being addressed so casually. Dany smirked, she was going to have the upper hand in this conversation. Dany motioned for him to take a seat after they shook hands. "I have to say, I was surprised you were okay with this meeting going forward after your disaster meeting which made the headlines"

Daenerys just laughed. "Jon Snow is harmless, well, he's actually become a friend over the last week or so"

"So I've heard" She smiled like how Daenerys would imagine a super-villain to smile, as if he was taunting her almost.

"The dear old media, love to go after things and make big headlines out of nonsense" Dany sat in her own seat and got out her planning for the magazine. "So, why have you come today, Mr. Lambertini? To press me about my personal life?"

"My dear your personal life has nothing to do with this magazine we're working on" He leered almost. Dany found the man repulsive slightly.

"Has there been an issue with the progress of our collaboration, then?" Dany said with authority as she got comfortable in her seat.

"No issue; we want to propose you something" He said getting a leaflet out of his pocket. He slid it over the desk.

"Udawalawe National Park?" She said picking up the leaflet. It was a guide of one of Sri Lanka's biggest Elephant reserves. "What's this about?"

"We want you to go to Sri Lanka, to the reserve" He said with a face which she knew he was putting on to get sympathy from her. "This is one of the reserves we protect in Sri Lanka, the elephants are found in the wild outside the boundaries of the park when they're in need of medical attention. We help fix them up and even help them mate in the park to build up numbers"

He slid some photos of baby elephants with the park rangers and himself feeding them. "It looks happy"

"That's Whispers, she's only 6 months old in that photo. I just got back four weeks ago" He informed her.

"Precious" Dany felt her face smiling brightly.

"We'd really like for you to go, even just for a few days and interact with the elephants there; just to get a feel of why we do our work"

"You want me to visit Sri Lanka?" Dany had never thought about that.

"We can provide you with a photographer and videographer, then, when we launch the magazine we can launch the small video with you of your experience. It'll be good publicity since the bad press you received ages ago" She actually found herself agreeing, she could do with the good press.

"Not a bad idea and to be honest with you, Marco, I'm in need of a change of scenery" She thought about it some more. Photographer? She could ask... No he won't do it, he's already doing you one favour. Daenerys did have another thought though. "Okay, you've got yourself a deal. Now, my idea"

He leaned back in his chair. "Shoot"

"If I'm going to this reserve, and that video releases, there will be a lot of people wanting to visit. So, how about in the back of the issue we have a little competition for a week's holiday in Sri Lanka, all payed for by me, right by Udawalawe National Park?" Marco smiled. They spoke for another few minutes before Daenerys mind was back onto Jon. Marco left after a handshake and a promise of further contact; but all Daenerys thought of, was the curls and the grey eyes she was going to be seeing in a few days time.

Missandei left Daenerys for the rest of the afternoon; Jorah took her home and once she'd eaten dinner she'd retreated to her bedroom for the night. The black walls and red silks, the four poster bed and the pillows so soft. Her own silk nightdress mingling with that of her bedding as her hand travelled up her own thigh, finding her sweet spot, thinking of Jon's eyes and her release afterward.

Daenerys went to sleep dreaming of those eyes and the warmth that enveloped her when he was around.

[eandamj]

Elephants and Crafts - 15 January

Today we drove 40km west to Pinnawala to see the elephant orphanage. There is great scenery on the way showing the hill country. The interesting rock shape on the hill in the distance (below) is called Bible Rock - a clear throwback to the British colonial era. We passed trees at one point laden with fruit bats all asleep hanging upside down. (With regards to “extra” wildlife, we followed at slow pace a porcupine running down the road on the approach to the hotel last night which was great and much better than seeing the porcupines held at the side of the road by local people hoping that tourists wil stop and pay for a photograph. I also note today is the fourth day running I have seen a snake and as I really hate them, I could have done without that!)

The elephant orphanage was set up in the 1970s as part of conservation approach where jungle was claimed for development. They provide a home for up to 80 elephants who are well looked after but clearly accustomed to human contact and not having to forage for food. Thus these elephants cannot ever be released into the wild which includes babies born at the orphanage. We arrived in time to see the elephants being taken down to the river.

We observed elephants being fed by other visitors:

The elephants loved everything provided. We then followed the elephants down to the May Oya River to watch them playing and splashing about. The elephants cross the main road in Pinnawala which clearly causes some interesting distruption every day. It was great watching them in the river.

Some people got into the river to help wash and scrub the elephants. The elephants lay down in the river on their side and seemed to love being in the water and being scrubbed! We stayed watching them for about 45 minutes. They were then being guided back up the road, across the main road again and into the orphanage grounds.

We then returned to Kandy and visited first a wood carving factory and then a gem house. We were shown the methods of wood carving and dying of some products with natural ingredients. We saw some great chemistry in a glass with changing colours in water which started off with wood dust being mixed with water and then by using ingredients like lime juice and chalk, an astonishing range of colours were produced. The skill of the wood carvers was fantastic as we observed some beautiful tables, chairs and ornaments being finished for export across the World. At the gem house we were shown how sapphires are mined in a particular region of Sri Lanka and shown the range of stones that are found. We then watched skilled craftsmen cutting and polishing gems and making full pieces of jewellery. We finished our day trip with being taken to a high point above the centre of the city for a city view with the lake in the foreground. The Temple of the Tooth which we visited last night is to the right on the banks of the lake.

[coeurdastronaute]

Either/Or: Green Lantern

All alone, above the checkered skyline, the singular light glowed from the two-corner office. A few floors below, some lights remained on, though the employees were long since gone for the night. A few more below that, the lights came on and went off in an almost rhythm as the cleaning crew worked through the offices and rooms, headphones on and disinterested in much of the actual happenings of the business.

Absently, the CEO watched stock prices jump and fall on the monitors acting as bricks on the large wall across from his dark, heavy desk. None of it particularly interested him though, as he ran his finger over his lip, eyes far away and contemplating many other things simultaneously.

The light from his computer monitor faded with inactivity as he stood up and poured himself another drink before scanning the files once more. His hand-crafted leather shoes padded against the antique rug as he absently drank and tried to make sense of the calculations he requested from his research department.

On a table by the old leather couch, a marble chess set went undisturbed, though the exact location of every piece was meticulously catalogued in his head. That, too, his next move, was calculated at the same time as the files he perused. So was the ticker on the news that muted itself in the corner. So was the state of his holdings in the current market trends.

The sight was almost a picture of a memory his sister had of another man, someone she never got to say goodbye to, even. But the sight of Lex Luthor pacing languidly through the office in the middle of the night brought back so many thoughts of her father in much the same state, it was haunting.

“The new CEO of the newly branded LexCorp, as I live and breathe.”

The pacing stopped, and even with his back turned to the intruder, he knew exactly who she was, he knew exactly what she was doing. He could scarcely believe it, but he knew.

“The prodigal daughter returns,” he smirked. She could feel the anger though. The bitterness and the pain still lived there. “Just stopping by to fill up the trust fund again?”

“I came back because I saw a picture of you, and you looked like shit,” she retorted, shoving off the door and finally making her way into what she still saw as their father’s office.

Many an hour was spent there, in that exact office, on the floor, coloring pages that would be praised as masterpieces, despite her inability to stay in the lines entirely. Afternoons were spent spinning in the big chair, doing homework during meetings, and playing soccer in the halls and breaking many a picture frame. The office housed much of her childhood. Her first logarithm was still done in sharpie on a small panel beside the door.

The furniture was the same, but the feeling of the office was far from congenial, and far from her own memories that tried to parade through it all at once. She meandered through the office, looking at pictures and awards before gazing at the chess board. A few seconds later she moved a piece. The entire feeling was entirely undefinable, that loss and nostalgia and longing and remembering all wrapped up into one messy package that paraded itself as neat and not a problem.

“That is naturally what one looks like after burying their father and taking over an entire company with declining stock prices, all on their own,” he muttered, tossing the files on the desk before turning around and leaning there, carefully crossing his arms. “After waging a publicity and legal war against the godlike hero that killed him.”

“Knight takes G7,” she explained, moving the pawn to the side with the rest of the defeated pieces. “I did my best to get back. I didn’t hear about it until--”

“King to D8,” Lex flexed his jaw. “I’m sure the reception is terrible in… where was it this time? Deep in the mountains of Nepal? Some hovel in India? The last email I got said some camp in Zambia, but that was almost two years ago.”

“Father used to admire my free-spirit,” Lena tossed back. “That was why he funded my charity efforts. Queen to F6.” She met his eyes, challenging. “That and the fact that I couldn’t look at him after I saw what he wanted to do to those poor peop--”

“You were always one to go in guns blazing. Haven’t seen you in the headlines in a while. I thought maybe you were dead somewhere too.”

“I’ve grown up.”

It was the truth of the truth. Gone was the girl who ran away and drank too much. In her place stood someone who had a kind of humble pride and awful knowledge about the ways of the world.

“You’re rusty,” he admonished. “Father knew he was funding your partying and traipsing all over. He babied you, hid you from the harsh facts of those aliens you like to think care about us. We all did, and you couldn’t even show up for his funeral. Or if you thought you were, you’re about...” he checked his watch, “ten months too late.”

“I didn’t know, Lex!” she yelped, losing that bit of cool she tried to retain despite desperately wanting to not cry.

All of her efforts, all that she’d seen and accomplished and fought for since she’d been gone, it all was relegated to second place when she was just a little sister under the harsh Luthor eyes.

Gone was the gentle, thoughtful boy she remembered. In his place was the stern, wounded man she saw in the pictures. His features were more angular, the sheen to his head a little less glaring. The dark of his eyes was not warm and full of mirth like she remembered when she’d been kicked out of college and he took her out to celebrate.

“It was just me. It’s been just me. And I’ll handle everything else. No need for you to worry about your big brother,” he sneered. “Knight takes queen.”

For a moment the siblings looked at each other, both hurting in much the same way, though both equally incapable of voicing it, and so instead it just came out in jabs and parries, hoping to keep the upper hand. Both tilted their chins, both held that regal indifference and muted apathy like a shield against all attacks.

“Bishop to E7. Checkmate,” she whispered, carefully knocking over the king in defeat. “You can’t hate me forever, Lex. Father always said we were all each other had. I came back to help you. To make sure you were alright. To find some… I don’t know. To say goodbye.”

“I don’t need any help.”

“I know, but I thought you might miss me a little. I missed you,” she offered a small attempt at a smile. “We need family at times like this.”

“You disappeared! You’ve been gone for years, not a trace!” He yelled before calming himself with another drink of the liquor he poured himself. “Where were you?”

“Believe me, if I would have known. If I could have been here, I would have. I just… I got into some stuff,” Lena knit her fingers together, fiddled with her jewelry anxiously. “And then I took up with this group that was helping, but we were a bit removed and out of reception. I did a lot of growing up, I thought I was going to find out what happened to my birth parents. It’s just been… It’s been a long, long, long few years. One thing led to another, and I got… I--”

“That’s about six non-answers, and not one of them is whole or makes sense.”

The truth was no where close to her tongue.

“I was trying to do some good, Lex. After I saw that… that… program Father started. He was responsible for-- I just. I ran away from the debt I could feel. We had money that we earned in literal blood and war. I couldn’t--”

Nothing was going right. Lena wasn’t sure she expected the red carpet or even a warm reception after disappearing without a word, after missing her father’s funeral, but she hadn’t expected Lex to be so angry. Just a few breaths ago, she found out that she didn’t have even an adopted father any longer, and suddenly she was a double orphan, and now she was there, with the only semblance of family, and she couldn’t tell him the truth, she couldn’t tell him anything he wanted to hear because he didn’t want to hear anything.

Her brother finished the glass and moved to fill it up again.

“Dad boasted about you to everyone, you know?” Lex sighed. “My Lena is opening a school for girls in Sri Lanka. Or, my Lena is working at a clinic, and she has these ideas to help with this or that disease. He was always flashing those pictures you’d email him, with school kids hanging from your neck. He showed the Hungarian Ambassador about twenty.”

“He did?”

“Relentlessly,” he smiled to himself as the decanter clanked when he finished filling. “He saw pictures of you out and about with friends, but you were allowed parties in London or drinking on a yacht in Borneo because you were a saint to him. I’d tell him to bring you back, let you take your place with us, but he’d shake his head and say, ‘let her go. She’s happier.’ And then you disappeared. He was a wreck when he didn’t hear from you. It’s been three years, Lena. Where were you?”

“I was… I was… I just. I was everywhere” she lied swiftly. “Working on a few ideas, backpacking, working with non-profits, working period, experiencing life. I couldn’t… I didn’t know how to look at him when I saw what we did, or when I saw the plans for… it was genocide, Lex,” she shook her head. “What was I supposed to do? Honestly, I was just. I’ve been trying to be someone that I’m supposed to be. That Dad thought I was. I don’t know.”

“It’s not genocide, it’s war, and it’s protecting us, people like you and me, from those things.”

“That’s not true.”

“Did you find her?”

“What?”

“Did you find the girl you were supposed to be?” Lex asked, watching the liquid swirl around his glass.

Sadly, with the harsh reality before her, Lena shook her head. She didn’t have it in her to tell him that she was more lost than ever before, so instead she just clenched her jaw and looked away.

They remained opposing forces despite her best efforts. So much regret bubbled in her chest that she didn’t know how to breathe through it.

“He died in a pile of rubble, and you were locked away in some half-assed attempt at a walkabout. We are at war with those aliens. One killed our father,” her brother pointed out. “And you just show up like you went to the grocery store and just got back and didn’t miss everything.”

Angry as he was, he stood a little straighter and reigned it all in, the heaving of his shoulders stopping as he took a few deep breaths and met the weary eyes of his sister, suddenly offput by the wrath he unleashed after having no one else to understand such things.  

“It happened so fast,” Lena shook her head. “If I had known. I swear, Lex. You have to believe me. I found out exactly six hours ago, and I got here that quick. I wouldn’t have… I would have run the entire universe to get here if I had known any sooner. I didn’t come because I didn’t know.”

“You just found out six hours ago?” the CEO furrowed and stared hard at his sister.

“Yeah. I’m… I don’t want to think about it. I came for you. I can’t think about it yet. I haven’t...”

Strong and determined, pants pressed into crisp lines and shirt meticulously rolled up at the arms, though still starch stiff and stringent, he crossed the room in just four steps. He hugged his sister tightly.

Though not blood, they were bound by fate and choice, and finally, Lena allowed herself to feel it all. They were not an overly emotional family. They did not cry and they did not outrageously applaud each other. It was a surprise to hear that her father even boasted about her. They bore emotions with quiet dignity and they pent it up until they were alone. Lena often failed at it, hence the difficulty in truly feeling herself to be a Luthor. But Lex never did. He was genial in public, he was soft-spoken and assured, but he was not one for comfort.

But her brother hugged her anyway because despite all else, he understood duty to blood and family, duty to the name, duty to be a big brother, despite his little sister being infinitely infuriating.

It took a moment for her to hug him back, but she finally did and took a deep breath.

“Still underestimate me at chess,” she whispered.

“You still annoy the hell out of me.”

“I can’t believe they’re both gone.”

“I can’t believe you came home.”

Chin on Lex’s shoulder, Lena clenched her jaw and nodded. She fiddled with the ring on her finger and tried not to hate herself more than she currently did, though her ability to continually surprise herself reared its head in the form of violent self-flagellation.

Lena took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She lasted that long without crying. She just needed to make it a bit longer, until she was safe in a bed where she could pull the blankets over her head like when she was a child and the world was as small as her duvet.

“Are you staying?” Lex asked.

“For as long as I can.”

“What does that mean?”

“I have obligations, now.”

“You do, to your family,” he reminded her as he pulled away.

Her hand felt heavy as she nodded. Which family was the question of the night.

There was a rhythm to National City, and Kara knew it well. Lazily drifting over the skyline, she scanned the streets and listened to the happenings of the normal night. Her last round before calling it a success, she let her mind wonder to work, to her real life, to the other side of her life, to her sister, and the lunch she was desperately trying not to forget that they had scheduled for Thursday, to her sudden worry that she left the oven on, to wondering if she had anything left to make for a late night snack or if she should stop by the store.

Her city was quiet, her thoughts were loud, and her life was alarmingly solid, alarmingly boring, and alarmingly empty. The long hours, the countless days without sleep and deep into her work and side job and research and preventing and helping, it was all to keep away moments like this, where she was alone with herself and the stark realization that life, no matter how safe, was becoming monotonous.

Each new disaster was quelled. Each new problem was faced, analyzed, and defeated, and at night, Supergirl climbed into bed and wondered how much the same it would be the following morning. She was Sisyphus, and the city was her boulder.

The haphazard train of thought abruptly stopped when she heard an alarm going off across the city, and with a quick adjustment, she was off and on her way. She found herself trailing a speeding SUV just a minute after first hearing the alarm. Sirens started to follow, though they were still in the distance.

“I just want to go to sleep. I have stuff to do in the morning, fellas,” Supergirl complained, dodging a delivery van as the SUV wove through the little bit of late night traffic that remained. “Really important stuff. Oh. Come on.”

The grenade went off, tossed from the window and aimed well enough near her chest to blow her back, skidding into the ground in a tumble.

“Now I’m going to break their bones,” she decided, slapping the pavement and pushing off once again. “I don’t even care if Alex gets mad.”

A flash of green made the hero stop immediately as the SUV found itself jacked up by a bright green pylon, seemingly conjured out of nowhere. The back wheels kept spinning, not finding traction.

“You guys shouldn’t be driving so fast,” a voice echoed, lowering herself in front of the SUV, the ring on her finger glowing bright green.

Firm and strong, the stranger was clad in black, her mask white, and the emblem on her chest a deep, dark green. Hair that was darker than that waved in the breeze as her hand anchored itself on her hip while the other stood straight out, pointing at the SUV.

For the longest time, Kara couldn’t place the newest addition to the scene, instead she just gawked before furrowing that her capture was getting hijacked from some rogue alien. She got blown up by those thieves, she thought to herself indignantly.

The hero sized up the stranger as she landed on the ground, crossing her arms expectantly, ready for a fight of a different kind suddenly.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Supergirl finally interrupted.

“Supergirl? I’ve heard a lot about you,” she smiled. Green eyes met hers behind the mask that sat firmly over her nose and eyes. “It wasn’t all great, but the source is a bit biased. Do you need something?”

“I’ve been chasing them for about two miles.”

“Right. Sorry,” the stranger scratched her neck slightly.

Before they could argue any further, the doors started to open. Quickly, Kara fought off two of them, carefully keeping an eye on the strange alien that was wearing a costume and fighting crime and suddenly she understood how people felt when she first appeared.

The SUV hit the ground a few minutes later. Kara saw the stranger in the middle of a fight, her concentration taken away from keeping the tires up. With a roll of her eyes, she put the other criminal down as the car sped away.

“Thanks.”

“Who are you?” Supergirl demanded, her voice strong and stern.

“Friendly, intergalactic Green Lantern. You know? Brightest day, blackest night?” she cocked her head, slowly waving her hand in time with the words. “Let those who worship evil’s might, beware my pow… No? Nothing?”

“Stay here. I have to finish this,” she ordered, unamused by the lie. “And then I think we have some things to discuss.”

“It’s fine,” the other hero smiled, turning toward the SUV.

A green beam shot out from her ring as a giant hand picked up the car, bringing it back toward them. With a gentle move, she shook it until the driver and a passenger fell out onto the sidewalk.

“I could have gotten it,” Supergirl insisted.

“I know. But you told me not to move,” the Green Lantern shrugged. “This seemed quicker.”

“I don’t know who you think you are, coming in here like this! I don’t know where you got that ring, but there’s no way-- Where are you going?”

“A simple ‘thank you’ would have been fine, Supergirl.”

Kara tossed a criminal toward the pile of the rest who were moaning and generally complaining about their lot in life as she followed the rogue hero toward the SUV.

“What are you doing?”

“Listen, I have to get going. Thanks for the warm welcome.”

“That’s stolen,” Kara pointed to the case the other hero grabbed.

“I know. I just need a look.”

The green light shot out and scanned the contents, acting much like Kara’s X-ray vision, which was a marvel to Supergirl, to say the least.

“Seriously, who are you?”

The sirens got closer as the beam disappeared and the hero handed over the briefcase to the Kryptonian.

“I’ll just be on my way. Let’s not do this again.”

“I was minding my own business, stopping a crime when a completely strange alien with a magic ring showed up,” Kara challenged.

“First, I’m not an alien. Second, I have been dreading running into you, and now I see why. You’re just so, so, so... “

“We get wary of strangers with powers around here, especially those belonging to groups that have been disbanded.”

“It’s not magic. I’m part of a intergalactic crime prevention org--”

“The Lanterns were… they were dismantled after the whole rogue guy destroyed their planet,” Kara furrowed. “I remember my mother talking about it when I was a kid there was--”

“Don’t tell,” she held up her finger to her lips and winked before nodding and taking off.

Kara moved to follow but was weighed down. She saw the chain and weight attached to her ankle keeping her there. In a second the strange hero was out of reach, and her chains were released.

She was supposed to be on her last round, and now, Kara found herself on her way to the DEO to do some research on National City’s newest resident vigilante.

High atop the cloudy city, the corner office was half under construction, and half already in use out of pure necessity. The builders were forced to come at night, leaving half of the room tarped or still filled with sawhorses and uncut boards. It was the organized chaos of tailoring the office that mimicked the absolute chaos of the desk as the inhabitant of the office attempted to reclaim some semblance of peace in one facet of her life.

“Jess, when is my office going to look less like a torture chamber and more like, I don’t know, an office?” Lena yelled as she continued to sort documents on her desk, files and budgets and proposals that had not been looked at in years, all scattered on every inch of surface.

“There’s an intercom, right there,” the secretary pointed at a mound on the corner of the desk.

“You’re so quiet,” her boss jumped at her noise. “If I wanted to use the intercom I would have.”

“Do you not remember how?”

“I remember how,” she sassed back, handing over files to the tiny girl who stood expectantly, for she was never called for something as trivial as a complaint. More always came.

“If you don’t I can show you again,” Jess offered, wrangling the pages stacked in her arms.

“Jess, I am a certified genius. I have an actual certificate. I have won numerous chess championships, have been to nearly every country on the planet, helped develop a program that can analyze transactions and more accurately pinpoint fraud, patented my own stock monitoring software and sold it to the Securities and Exchange commision to safeguard against tampering with US markets, I speak almost twenty languages fluently, at least sixteen at an intermediate level, I think I solved the Zodiac killer case, and I was asked to leave not one, not two, but three different doctoral programs because I infuriated so many professors with my calculations and debunking of their own papers that entire math and engineering departments threatened to quit. I am more than capable of using an intercom.”

All Luthor. That was what the secretary saw. Luthor, as in, made of steel and forged in flames and fearless. It was a sight to see, jaw strong, eyes stronger, shoulders effortlessly broad and presence effortlessly overwhelming, as if they were crafted to impose themselves politely on a space without anyone noticing until they did.

“Then why don’t you?”

“Because,” Lena insisted, furrowing. “I enjoy the sound of my own voice echoing through the office like a thunderclap. I enjoy screaming myself raw. I enjoy having this conversation with you. Or possibly it is broken because those idiots in IT are idiots.”

“All you have to do is dial one and press the button next to my name,” Jess reminded her. “Einstein was an impressive man, but he forgot to wear socks.”

“What does that mean?” she cocked and eyebrow and waited, the stern, almost violent kind of green eyes on her employee.

“It means that geniuses can solve unsolvable equations, but often can’t balance their checkbook.”

Six weeks ago, Lex told his sister to come to work, that she’d mourned enough, that she had a place. When she showed up for lunch, ready to argue with him, ready to tell him that she didn’t want anything to do with a company that profited the way it did, that she’d live off of her trust fund, that she’d find something else, he countered before she could open her mouth. Just a few floors below his, he showed her the gutted space, the white floors bright from the light of the giant windows.

A single desk sat by the back office, with a tiny girl already going through one box of the twenty or so that were stacked in wild form around her.

That was how Lena was gifted the Luthor Foundation. That was how she took over the long defunct initiative her father started to get the media off of his back for his rather ruthless methods and when a few of his developments were deemed slightly illegal and completely dangerous.

That was how her brother got her involved.

That was how she found herself in that office, stuck behind the desk.

That was how she found herself the in to try to use Luthor tech to help her night work.

That was how she got a secretary who somehow wasn’t afraid of her, and that, she honestly enjoyed.

“I pay you to do things, don’t I?” she finally asked after letting herself smile at her assistant’s analogy.

With a nod, Jess the secretary made her way out to the hall, using her foot to pull the door shut behind her.

The frustration that came behind her new job was a different kind of bother. For three years she trained, in every possible way, but she never learned how to do any of this, any of the business stuff that she rebelled against from her family. She learned how to wield her power and she learned how to fight, she learned philosophy from every corner of the universe, and she learned impossible physics, gorged herself on it, and now she decided how to raise money and spend money and it was numbing.

For three year she battled, waged a war, lost friends, lost hope, lost it all. For three years, she ran away and she thought she was on the trail of something, only to realize she was more lost than ever.

Her mother was dead, her father was dead, her birth parents were even longer dead to her, and the grief of it all sat, unexpelled and undisturbed in her chest.

Lena never learned to be human, not ever in her life. She never had to be. She was brusque and quiet and shy and hid it all beneath a veneer of quiet detachment. She had money, so she did not need attachments. She had an aloof demeanor which kept away feckless admirers. She did not know how to be human or happy. This was her hardest mission.

Lost in thought, she ignored her piles of work and tapped her heel against the bottom of her foot restlessly as she swivelled and stared out toward the city. Absently she twirled the ring on her middle finger.

She had a brother, she had a duty to him. She had a mission, she had a duty to that. She had guilt, and she had a duty to it.

“Ms. Luthor, your two o'clock is here,” Jess’ voice murmured over the smothered intercom.

With a resigned sigh, the head of the foundation organized what she could on her desk before standing.

“Send them in, Jess!” she called.

“We’re working out the bugs on the intercom,” the secretary could be heard apologizing as she led the meeting into the half-finished office.

Lena continually reconsidered every decision she made, from putting on that ring, from opening that file on her father’s computer that showed her the plans for his evil acts, from letting her brother talk her into staying out of duty, from entering a war she had no right being in, from that girl in Milan to having oatmeal for breakfast.

And then Kara Danvers walked into her office.

NEXT

[trpsluminous]

A scenic 90 km drive from Colombo to the south west of Sri Lanka will get you to the seaside resort town of Bentota. In addition to the golden sand beaches and the best dive sites the island nation has to offer, Bentota is also the home to some of the most heroic beach resorts in Sri Lanka.

Located on the golden mile of the Bentota beach and sitting on a headland overlooking the Indian Ocean was our hotel; The Taj Bentota Resort and Spa. On reaching the hotel, we were warmly greeted “Ayubowan” by everyone that was around and welcomed in the resort.

The European themed interiors of the lobby with the wooden ceilings seemed to make a seamless connect with imposing view of the Indian Ocean. We sipped on Ceylon ice tea and admired a picture perfect postcard view.

On the way to our room, we passed by a beautiful open to air atrium laced with a beautiful mini garden and cascading Koi ponds. Absolutely unique and magnificent; we stopped to look at the atrium while the kids were trying to find a way to feed the fishes.

Checked in in to our room. In addition to chic interiors and  an impressive layout, our room had an exquisite sit out area opening to the sea and the tropical gardens of the hotel. Talk about a backdrop for an afternoon tea!

In a jiffy, we were at the resort pool. The pool area is just spectacular. While the the hotel itself is set on a large headland; the pool area is at a further elevation and at-least two floors higher than the beach and this makes for extraordinary vantage views of the lush tropical hotel gardens and the beautiful sea, from every corner. A drink by the pool chairs while you gaze at the Indian ocean and you would understand the sheer lack of pace here. It is hauntingly relaxing.

At one corner of the pool, small stone elephants that sprinkle water giving the relaxing ambience a dash of playfulness

Lunched at the PALMS; a multi cuisine restaurant adjacent to the pool.

Our next stop was the beach. The resort has direct access to a golden sandy beach; with perfect waves it is ideal for surfing and safe for sea swimming, especially for the kids. Surf lessons were underway and we could see the children looking at the surfers and processing some permutations like tiny bots. After a couple of minutes of silence, we were provided with an elaborate schedule for the next two days. Talk about role reversals!

Sipped on some fresh coconut water and watched the children play at the beach for rest of the evening.

We had reserved a spot at the in-resort seafood restaurant called the SHACK. Rated as one of the top seafood restaurants, the Shack is simply brilliant. The chef curates gastronomic masterpieces from the freshest ingredients that are chosen by you from the display counter. The finale, a crème brulee as the finale was exceptional.

With live music, a soft spray of the sea coupled with a gentle breeze; the ambience of the restaurant is exceptional. At the beginning of dusk, as the sun dips and the nighttime illumination comes into play is perhaps the best time to get here. A visit to the SHACK is not be be missed while visiting this part of the world.

There is another restaurant at the lobby level called the SEA VIEW. A fine dining restaurant in a nuanced setting with exceptional views

On the following morning, there was sort of a commotion in the room, the children had spotted a monitor lizard in the lawns and the wife was freaking out. They quickly ran with their camera to get a picture of the little guy.

We hit the beach early and after making sand castles commenced with the surf lessons. The instructors were pretty good. In the next ten minutes the kids were leaping and balancing the board perfectly.

This day, I could relate to the phrase “Life is a lot like surfing”, the entire was day was dedicated to it.

In the evening we visited the Induruwa Sea Turtle Conservation Centre. We saw different turtle species viz. Olive Ridley, Leatherback, Loggerhead, Hawksbill, Green and the Albino sea turtle. We were explained the life cycle of the turtles, the current challenges facing their existence and rescue and rehabilitation operations of the conservation centre; it was very informative, especially for the children. We saw turtle eggs, a video of their hatching and newborn baby turtles in a massive water tank. We concluded the tour with the kids releasing baby turtles in the ocean. It was fantastic.

After dining at a popular local joint, we got back to our hotel. As per our guide at the conservation centre, at night-time many turtles would swim ashore at our hotel beach. So we grabbed on to a searchlight and hit the beach. We could not find any turtles but saw tons of crabs that ran into the sea as we turned our searchlight towards them. With absolutely clear starlit skies coupled with the rhythmic sound of the waves hitting the rocks; the beach at night was spectacular. There was a private dining tent set up on the beach by a hotel, it looked like a must do here. For us, it was a long shot on this trip, given the schedule charted by our children.

With kids bust playing pingpong at the table next to the swimming pool, we went to TEASE – a lively bar with tropical décor. They have both inside and outside seating overlooking the SHACK and the beach. At the bar, they serve exquisite cocktails, authentic shisha, a fine collection of wines and an impressive food menu.

  The hotel also houses an incredible Asian restaurant called the Oriental Pavilion. It is rated as one o the best Chinese restaurants in Sri Lanka.

The following day our surf lessons continued and I had mastered the art of falling off the board. The children, after their runs, used to look back in anticipation and at the epiphany moment burst into a hysterical laughter. The wife had joined in the fun as well. My instructor very subtly conveyed to me that it was much easier for the children and looks like your wife has surfed before. Ah, fun fun, well in my defence, it’s the things that you do to make your children laugh.

With a unique setting on a large headland along the Golden Mile of the Bentota beach, exquisite dining options, modern rooms, a state of art spa and most importantly the legendary Taj hospitality, a stay at the Taj Bentota is a wholesome family experience and most naturally, it becomes one of favourites in Sri Lanka.

  Thank you for the memories Taj Bentota

  Taj Bentota Resort and Spa – Surfed! A scenic 90 km drive from Colombo to the south west of Sri Lanka will get you to the seaside resort town of Bentota.

[kernigkrafts123]

TEAK WOOD: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW

Tectona Grandis, commonly known as Teak wood is a highly desirable wood that is prized for its exceptional properties. You must have heard about how incredible this wood is or you might even have Teak wood furniture in your home or office!

Teak is an expensive wood as compared to other types of wood but it is also one of the few woods that is extremely long lasting. If properly maintained, teak wood furniture can last upto 70 years!

Teak is a tropical hardwood like Mango wood and is found primarily in South and South-East Asia. India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Northern Thailand are some countries where Teak grows. Nagpur and Central province Teak are two types of Teak wood found in the respective regions of India.

Find out more information about this wood and why you should buy Teak wood furniture for your home, office or café below.

Characteristics of Teak Wood

Teak can be of any color ranging from a beautiful, rich golden brown to a classy yellowish white, depending on the species of the wood and what part of the tree it is from.

The trees are large and quite tall, upto 130 ft in height and take about 40-80 years to mature. The outer layer, known as sapwood is whitish to pale yellow. The core is called heartwood and has golden brown to dark brown color.

As Teak is a tropical hardwood, its sapwood has high moisture content. The heartwood has dark patches on it sometimes and is harder, stronger, more expensive and more desirable than sapwood.

All trees have natural oils, what makes this wood exceptional is that it maintains its natural oils and rubber even after being cut and processed. The tight, dense grain that Teak has, allows it to retain all the goodness!

The rubber content and the oils present in the lumber give Teak an edge over other woods for furniture making as they make it weather-resistant. It also successfully resists pests and insects, humidity, wind damage and sun damage!

Unlike other types of wood, Teak is not prone to cracking and warping. It does not even splinter. This explains Teak’s exuberant price tag, doesn’t it?

To recognise Teak, it is important to look at its grain which is generally straight. It often has lines of a darker color that run though the wood. You can also determine if it’s teak by smelling it. The high amount of oils in the timber give it a leather like smell. You can pick it up and weigh it in your hand, Teak wood is dense and moderately heavy.

Why Use Teak Wood

Classy and chic. Loved by both interior designers and architects, the warm brown color of Teak, is alluring and complements all spaces and surroundings. Teak wood chairs, stools, tables, sofas etc. can easily be used anywhere, right from homes, apartments and offices to commercial spaces such as cafés, bistros, restaurants, bars and hotels.

Longevity. Who doesn’t dream of building a beautiful house that can be passed on to generations. Furniture made from Teak wood makes for elegant family heirlooms that can be used for decades owing to Teak’s high tensile strength and durability.

Water resistant. Being water resistant, Teak is the preferred choice of wood for boat building and for making boat decks and yachts. Steel ships last upto 50 years whereas Teak wood ships can last upto 100 years! Since it is sturdy, has high tensile strength and requires low maintenance it is perfect for this purpose.

Outdoor furniture. Being resistant to water, Teak wood makes excellent outdoor furniture whether it’s for your patio, porch or backyard. Though Teak tables and chairs for your patio will cost you more than furniture made from other types of wood, the benefits of Teak are unparalleled. It is disease resistant because of the natural oils present in the lumber, these oils prevent water from trickling into the wood which means your patio furniture will be safe from wind, heat, cold and rain at all times. The presence of these oils also makes it mosquito repellent, so when you sit outside to enjoy and relax with your friends and family, you won’t be bothered by any unwelcome guests. Also, the look of a handcrafted Teak wood patio set in your garden cannot be matched by any other!

Weather proof. It is extensively used in exterior construction because it is weather proof. Teak has natural resistance to rot and decay and it’s dense grain makes it exceptionally strong.

Withstands extreme heat and cold. Teak wood’s ability to withstand extreme heat and cold makes it a lucrative option for furniture making. If you get Teak wood furniture, you won’t have to change it according to the changing seasons. Even if you plan to redo your space after a few years you can keep your Teak furniture and decorate the rest of the space. Teak is also used to make kitchen accessories such as chopping boards, countertops, bowls and spoons because of this advantageous property.

Resistant to timber termite and pests. Teak is naturally resistant to timber termite and pests, so it can be used without oil or varnish. It does not require a lot of treatments like other woods and can be used with little finishing.

Reclaimed. Because of its excellent properties, Teak lasts really long and withstands the effects of weather and time, hence Teak is often available as reclaimed wood. Reclaimed wood is green wood, unique and eco-friendly. Its beauty is matchless and it never goes out of fashion. If you use reclaimed teak wood furniture in your café, restaurant, bar or apartment it will surely stand out and fetch you a lot of compliments!

Sustainable production. Teak is an endangered species of wood. Sustainable production of plantation teak is being done since teak forests are being depleted. Plantation teak is grown in dry tropical climates and considered a renewable resource. You can go for plantation Teak as it has the same profitable properties as old-growth trees.

Carving. Since Teak can be carved and turned, it is a furniture maker’s delight. Artisans love working with Teak because it can be easily hand-carved, sawn and cut. It is therefore, often used to make décor objects with intricately carved patterns and designs.

Low maintenance. Teak changes its color on exposure to sunlight from warm honey brown to a chic silver grey which allows you to experience different colours in the same set of furniture. Rotate your furniture for even weathering of the wood. Though the color change looks beautiful and is only cosmetic, if you want to prevent it you can use a finish on your Teak wood furniture. Teak is also quite low maintenance in general. All you need to do to keep it clean is use soap and water and rub it lightly with a soft brush, make sure the furniture is wet when you scrub it. Allow it to dry completely, preferably not in direct sunlight.  

Versatile. Teak wood is excellent for making exquisite doors, window frames, indoor flooring and all kinds of furniture items.

What all furniture can be made with Teak Wood ?

Teak is versatile and can be used to make anything and everything, but here’s a list of some furniture items that are often made with this wood.

Tables

End Tables

Dining Tables

Coffee Tables

Side Tables

Bar table

Office desks

Bedside Tables

Community Tables

Nesting Tables

Display Tables

Chairs and Stools

Ottomans

Bar Chairs

Low Height Chairs

Dining Chairs

Restaurant/Café Chairs

Rocking Chairs

Baby Chairs

Desk Chairs

Bar Stools

Accent Chairs

Outdoor Chairs

Wicker Chairs

Chaise Lounge

Storage

Cabinets

Cupboards

Chest of Drawers

Sideboards / Credenza

Racks

Shelves

Display Units / Étagères

Wine Cabinets

Bookcases

Knick-Knacks

Chopping boards

Trays

Serving Platters

Photo Frames

Table Lamps

Mirror Frames

Beds and headboards, sofas and sectionals, dressers, media consoles etc. there are so many more items that can be made from Teak!

Now that you know the benefits of buying teak, I am sure you will consider buying that handcrafted Teak table, you had your eyes on! To feast your eyes on more Teak wood furniture or for information on how to customise Teak furniture click here!