#but i wanted to celebrate because i passed my driving test!

[vivwritesfics]

Padawan Learner

Mrs Vettel, ex Williams driver, current McLaren driver, can't drive while pregnant. Although she's contracted until 2026, she can't drive while she's with child. But she can't stay away from racing, and can't help but take the Williams rookie under her wing.

Sebastian Vettel x Reader, (Platonic) Logan Sargeant x Reader

Warnings: Brief description of smut

She wasn't supposed to retire at the same time as her husband. He felt as if he was at the end of his career and there was nothing more he could offer to the sport, so he retired. He'd had his glory years in Red Bull, moved to Ferrari, every racers dream, and ended things in Aston Martin, alongside his wife's old teammate.

She still had more race left in her. She'd been with Williams for years, racing alongside Valteri Bottas, Lance Stroll, George Russell, and, later, Alex Albon. But then she moved to McLaren, a team she felt would help her fight for wins.

Her husband very thoroughly celebrated the beginning of his retirement. She found herself stuffed full of cum almost every day of winter break.

It shouldn't have been a surprise when they got pregnant. But she wanted to murder Sebastian. For all of five seconds she wanted to drown him in their pool. But, after that five seconds passed, she was overjoyed, wrapping her arms around Sebastians neck and pulling him in for a kiss.

She told McLaren and they pulled Oscar Piastri in for the year. That was how he got his first drive in F1. All because Sebastian Vettel was incredibly horny, but he didn't need to know this.

She might not have been able to drive, but she still wanted to be trackside whenever she could. Her old team gave her this opportunity. She didn't hang around the McLaren garage, as she had half expected.

No, it was Williams and the new team Principle, James Vowles, who gave her somewhere to be during the season. Even in preseason testing, she was there, watching the Williams.

It was great to be in the garage with Lily again. She'd always liked Lily, thought she was great for Alex when they first met. After her move to McLaren she rarely got to see Lily, and as much as she hated sitting in the garage, it was nice to be sat in the garage with her.

Alex was a great driver. Any advice a veteran like her could have offered him, he already knew.

But then there was his teammate.

She watched Logan from his very first race weekend. She had known about the rookie for a couple of years now and had watched him succeed in Formula Two.

But now, in the Williams tractor, he was struggling. Week after week after week he was finishing outside of the points, or he wasn't finishing at all. She really felt for him.

"Hey," she said after the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Logan hadn't spoken to anybody since he got out of the car and did all that he needed to do. Clearly he was struggling. He didn't say anything, just looked up.

She stood beside him. At her stage of pregnancy she could have gotten down to the floor to sit with him, but she wouldn't have been able to get up without help. Her hand rested on her bump as she looked down at him.

"I still remember my first season in Formula One," she said as she looked at the retired car. "It was 2013 and Seb was set to win the championship. I was in my first year in Williams and I think I only finished maybe ten races," she said with a laugh.

"Wait, seriously?" Asked Logan as he looked up.

She nodded her head. "I crashed out of most, or the car fell apart on me. Most people wondered why I had a seat for the next year, but Williams saw potential in me. I know they see it in you, too."

Every time Logan didn't finish a race, every time he came dead last, she was there. Nobody could comfort her like she did. Sometimes Seb joked that they might as well adopt him, and Logan agreed. Most up and down paddock called Logan her padawan learner, which was very fitting.

Logan began being the person she spent the most time with when Sebastian wasn't there. He'd looked up to her for many years and having her support meant the world to him. He was there for her too, making sure she had somewhere to sit and something to drink whenever she needed it.

In September, a month before her due date, Sebastian begged her to stop travelling. Just in case he wanted her home with him, where he could take care of her. They still watched every race together and she made sure to send Logan a good luck text before every practice session, qualifying, and race.

When Logan got his first points, nobody celebrated more than Sebastian Vettels wife. She was so proud of him, even if those points were because of two disqualifications. She posted a picture of him and her from a previous race on Instagram like a proud mum. Funnily enough, Logan comments 'thanks mom' on the post.

Just two weeks after this, her water broke. Sebastian got her to the hospital. He stayed by her side, holding her hand through the hours of excruciating labour.

Leon Vettel didn't cry when he was born. He was so quiet, that it actually scared his mother. But the doctors and nurses assured the new parents that he was perfectly healthy.

He was their perfect little man.

She insisted on asking Logan to be Leons godfather. They had grown so close over the last few months that it seemed fitting.

Logan accepted. As soon as the Vettels could, they were taking Leon to races. Or, Sebastian took Leon to races, to watch his mother race. Of course he was wearing a Williams hat and McLaren shirt.

"Papa," Leon said at four years old after watching the Australian Grand Prix qualifying session.

"What is it, my little man?" Asked Sebastian as he sat Leon on his lap.

"I wanna be like mama and Uncle Logan," he said, and Sebastian couldn't stop himself from grinning.

[alonetimelover]

pairings: Harry Styles x tennis player!reader (fem, she/her)

summary: who would have thought that Harry is a tennis fan?

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harryupdates

liked by ynsfan, harrysmoustache and 9 201 others

harryupdates Harry just followed YN YSN on instagram and twitter! YN is a tennis player, currently no. 1 on the WTA ranking.

view all 3 201 comments

ynsfan well, I hope she'll teach him how to properly hold the racket

ynupdates YN did not follow back!

⤷ynsthebest Queen behaviour 👸

fan81 what does it mean?

fan291 are they together?

⤷ harryupdates they've never been spotted together nor somehow connected. YN is getting famous now as a quite young player already holding a no. 1. it could introduce harry to tennis.

⤷ ynsmybestie why does everything need to be about relationship?

⤷ harrysfan1 maybe because it's unusual that he's following people that are not very famous in the hollywood

⤷ harrysbtch are you a new fan? he's literally following some random meme accounts. let him follow whoever he wants, yn's a great girl

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ynupdates

liked by harryupdates, ysfan012 and 4 201 others

ynupdates YN via IG stories! it seems like she's celebrating the Roland-Garros triumph!

view all 1 001 comments

ynsfan92 so proud of her. all the hard work did pay off!

harrysmoustache scrabble? i have my eye on you, girl 👀

⤷ynsfan92 why? is there sth wrong about playing scrabble?

⤷ ynshands harry's fans believe that yn is his newest girlfriend

⤷ harrysbtch i mean... there are a few clues. scrabble is harrys favourite board game for example

⤷ helloitsharry not to be a creep but it looks a lot like harry's house, too

ynsmybestie despite the rumours i love that our talented girl is getting the recognition she deserves

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harryupdates

liked by ynupdates, harryshoee and 24 201 others

harrysupdates Harry and YN were seen together at the car dealer in Los Angeles!

view all 3 201 comments

ynupdates oh, she's finally getting her dream car

harrysmoustache money money money

⤷ harrysmoustache you guys think i can be their sugar baby? i can bake and clean 😇

hArrysbtch so they're rich RICH... damn

ynsfan92 so the rumours are true?

⤷ harrysmylife nothing is confirmed but it seems more true with each day

lucycardealer Hey guys! i work at this car dealer and saw them today!

⤷ harrysbtch girl! spill the tea!

⤷ lucycardealer they came together, had a scheduled meeting with a big boss. they were shown some of our most prestigious cars (and most expensive really) and after a test drive, they both chose one each - the ones seen in the photos.

⤷ ynshands since you've seen them, do you think they're together?

⤷ lucycardealer oh, absolutely! most of the time they were very close to each other. harry had his hand on her lower back most of the time. they looked very happy and cute!

⤷ harrysbtch CONFIRMED! he's taken guys, he's taken...

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harrysmylife

liked by ynupdates, harryshoee and 18 101 others

harrysmylife well, this happened today... you know, i started taking tennis lessons after seeing the tennis queen (YN) play. im walking to my practice and out of nowhere HARRY is passing by with a little 'hello, excuse me' because im a dumbass taking over the whole sidewalk... he saw my amazement, probably recognised that im a fan and started TALKING TO ME???? rest in the comments

view all 1 201 comments

harrysmylife i of course stumbled over my words and could not articulate like the grown adult that i am. he was so sweet, asked me how long I'd been playing tennis. i answered him that i just started because of watching yn and being inspired by her. and let me tell you guys, the way this man SMIRKED when i said her name???

harrysmylife 2) he was like 'that's incredible, I've seen a few of her matches'... he must've wanted to laugh out loud at my shock face. then he said 'do you have tips for the first lesson? im just heading to the one and im quite nervous.' i said some things blah blah blah and what i see while walking on the courts??? Harry playing tennis with his coach, his coach that is YN gucking YSN...

harrysmylife 3) im dead, but don't worry - my life is complete

harryupdates that is one of the best fan stories that ive heard!

ynsupdates our girl instead of preparing for the Qatar tournament is teaching her boyfriend how to play... 💀

harrysmoustache he's learning how to play tennis??? with yn??? im fucking melting

harrysfan82 sleeping on the highway tonight, see you guys on the other side 🫡

ynsmybestie and they say romance is dead...

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ynupdates

liked by harryupdates, harrysmoustache and 7 101 others

ynupdates YN's message after winning the semi-final today in Qatar! that may be some kind of a confirmation????

view all 1 208 comments

harryupdates what a lovely gesture to show your support!

hArrysbtch GIRL??? we down bad, huh? i love it.

harrysmoustache the heart at the end? the hs?

harrysfan82 why did she ruined this camera's lenses?

⤷ ynsmybestie it's a tradition. tennis player write a message after winning the match!

harrysfan20 and he probably watched the whole match before going to bed.... crying, screaming

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harryupdates

liked by ynupdates, harryshoee and 29 101 others

harryupdates Harry via his IG stories! edit: deleted!

view all 7 201 comments

ynupdates THIS IS SO SWEET!

harrysmoustache im so happy for them! *jumping of the bridge*

hArrysbtch 'my love'????? the cat????

⤷ hArrysbtch i can't take it ... he is so in love with her

ynsmybestie time square finally has some quality!

harrysmylife i love how he can't use instagram... this time it took him much more to delete though

⤷ hArrysbtch a grandpa!

⤷ user11 yeah, he's too old for her

⤷ hArrysbtch it wasn't about his age but more about the way he deals with technology. but also, how is he too old? they're seven years apart, it's not that much.

⤷ user101 i agree with user11, and she's probably with him for the money!

⤷ ynshands her net worth is literally $16 million...

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ynsmybestie

liked by ynupdates, harryshoee and 9 101 others

ynsmybestie YN and Harry playing soccer during her practice!

view all 981 comments

ynupdates some way to start a practice!

harryupdates i wonder who won 😅

⤷ yourinstagram i did!

⤷ harrystyles liar.

⤷ ynshands harry you're telling me you won with no. 1? can't believe you.

ynsmybestie did it really happen???

ynshands hoping she'll be ready for the next match, Indian Wells is a tough competition!

⤷ ynstennisfan she's ready, easy way towards the final, and then reclaiming her title

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playerstribune

liked by harrystyles, yourinstagram, ynupdates, harryshoee and 2 101 202 others

playerstribune 'It is not all about tennis in my life. I love it, it's my job but it is my passion as well. I'm a 21 year old, trying to navigate her life, having people watch it like hawks. Being with someone that has been dealing with it for years helps. No one else would understand the frustration that comes with all of this.'

Click the link in our bio to read what YN YSN - WTA no. 1 - wrote for all of you. 'To understand me more, YN.'

view all 49 201 comments

yourinstagram thank you for letting me voice my thoughts❤️

ynupdates tell me why i cried while reading it?

ynupdates day after day i learn what a great role model you are, yn. truly exceptional

⤷ yourinstagram ❤️

ynsmybestie i need to give this woman a hug. losing is a human thing, a learning experience. there is nothing shameful about it. happy yn has people close to her telling her that.

⤷ yourinstagram thank you, lovely

harryupdates 'for him i was the best' jeez... he really is the best boyfriend on the planet, huh?

harrysmylife excuse me when i cry to this - 'I noticed that I was losing my identity. I tried to be universal so more people would like me, respect me and cheer on me. I was losing myself, a people pleaser that I've been since my early days. Then I met him, and it really turned my world upside down.'

⤷ harrysmylife 'Besides my family he was the only person I didn't feel the need to be that [universal]. I could be myself and he would appreciate it. Love it. That was even more important for me than winning US Open [laughs].' SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP WTFHSISN

hArrysbtch 'I could talk about him for hours. I'm still young and those feelings are often overwhelming for me but, you know, I'm happy. I'm very happy and he's one of the most important reasons for it. He made me believe I could be myself without feeling any guilt over it.' what in the actual fuck...

ynsfan 'Biggest dream right now? Winning Olympic gold would be nice. Getting a dog.' people only yn could put Olympic gold and puppy as her biggest dreams 💀

harrystyles 🎾🐐

⤷ harrysbtch she literally spent the whole interview speaking of you, say something more, harry

⤷ harrysmoustache let's bully him to say more

⤷ harrysfan82 more

⤷ harrysbtch more

⤷ harryupdates more

⤷ ynupdates more

harrystyles GLASS SHATTERING [CAR CRASH] [VROOM VROOM] [PEOPLE SCREAMING] EXPLOSION "MY LEG... MY LEG... [BABY CRYING] WAAH... WAAH... [HELICOPTER NOISES] [SIRENS] WEE WOO... WEE WOO [SOBBING] [YELLING] FLAT LINE

harrystyles Talented, Brilliant. Incredible. Amazing. Showstopping, Spectcular. Never the same. Totally Unique. Completely not ever been done before.

harrystyles yourinstagram 🧎🏻‍♂️

⤷ yourinstagram well...

⤷ ynshands man, oh man. 🥵

⤷ hArrysbtch what in the actual fuck???? Harry??? you know it's your official account???

⤷ harrysmoustache see kids? bullying works!

⤷ ynupdates I'd never thought it would work...

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harryaustralia

liked by ynupdates, hArrysbtch and 37 201 others

harryaustralia Harry's reaction to the whole stadium chanting YN's name and seeing posters with her face!

Thank you to everyone that prepare it, it was a blast!

view all 3 201 comments

harryupdates 'woah, so that's what it is? you like her more now? same.' what a sweet boyfriend

⤷ harrysbtch yeah and then 'it's about me!'

harrysaus22 i love how he took the time to answer questions about her 'where's yn? she's in Indian Wells, defending her last year title. you should watch the stream, i will!'

⤷ ynsmybestie and then 'can i have yn's number? *judging face* nope, absolutely not.'

ynshands 'are all of you here to learn more about my girlfriend?' crowd screaming yes 'okay, you want me to call her?' AND HE DID!

⤷ ynupdates 'baby, they came to see me so i would talk about you. they don't want me.' and the zoom at his phone to show yn laughing like crazy 'sing medicine, it'll solve the problem' YN, YOU KNOW US TOO WELL

⤷ hArrysbtch and he did sing it! 'it wasn't on the set list, so everyone say - thank you, yn! three, two one THANK YOU YN' she's got him wrapped around her finger, i love it!

harrysfan04 why is nobody talking about the 'i shaved for this sign'???? that man answered with 'would it be inappropriate to say, so did i?'

⤷ hArrysbtch YAS! my mouth went open wide after hearing it, dirty dirty man

⤷ ynsmybestie was yn still on a ft with him?

⤷ ynshands i think so!

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ynupdates

liked by harryupdates, hArrysbtch and 19 301 others

ynupdates YN and Harry at the restaurant in Indian Wells, California!

view all 2 047 comments

harryupdates this man has only four free days and he came from the other side of the world to support her...

hArrysbtch i love being single, i looooove being single *cries*

ynshands he's going to watch the final!!!!

harrysfan92 with him in the audience she's going to be a very very tough opponent

ynsmybestie oh she's gonna win WIN

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yourinstagram

liked by harrystyles, annetwist, ynupdates, harrysmoustache and 3 101 302 others

yourinstagram This last week was an absolute dream. Thank you to everyone watching me play and believing in me. It feels surreal to win here, in Indian Wells second year in a row. Thank you, H for being my no. 1 fan and cheerleader. I'm going to rest for a couple of days, see you in Paris!

view all 192 392 comments

harrystyles i love you 💓

annetwist Congratulations dear! xx

ynupdates so proud of you!!!!! you deserve it like nobody else!

harryupdates the match was beautiful, you left your heart on the court

yourcouch hard work pays off! proud of you!

hArrysbtch the way harry was cheering on her??? the best

harrysmoustache do you guys see the note??? 'you are the cave from Prometheus that I found & been lost in for days' THE POET THAT YOU ARE MR STYLES

[meazalykov]

redirection II

esmee brugts x barcaplayer!R

last chapter: redirection I

next chapter: redirection III

Walking into my apartment, I shut the door and place my black nike sports bag on the bench in the foyer. There was a light breeze in the kitchen because I left the balcony doors open when I left this morning.

I didn't want to do anything right now since I had a busy morning. I had to wake up at 6am, eat breakfast, get to Ciutat at 8am, complete paperwork and contracts, do medical tests, take pictures for my first day, and have my first training practice with the team.

The excitement in my body wouldn't go away though. Barcelona is the best club in the world currently, I had high hopes for this season and just want to contribute to the team.

Turning on my phone that was in my back pocket, the time read 1:23pm. Well, in Europe it's 13:23. However, it would take me a while to get used to that as an American.

I saw a few texts from a phone number I didn't recognize too.

Hi y/n!

What time are you free later?

We should go to La selva. It's a restaurant in the city. I haven't been there before but Ingrid recommended it :)

I blushed as I remembered the conversation with Esmee earlier. I appreciated the idea of going out to eat with her, I want to build bonds with my new teammates the same way I had with my old teammates back in Washington.

Considering that I've meet her today, I couldn't say that I had a crush on her (yet). That would be too fast. However, I thought about her on the drive back to my apartment. I'm excited to spend time with a new friend and teammate.

y/n: Esmee!!!!

y/n: I'm free around 17:00/5pm. I have to do some things for my apartment and I'll be ready.

y/n: I just looked up the location to La selva restaurant. It's not too far from my apartment. Its 6 minute walk from me :)

I added Esmee's phone number into my phone as "Esmee :)" before I clicked off of iMessage to go on instagram. Clicking on my notifications, I saw "esmeebrugts followed you 5d" meaning that she followed me five days ago.

Going on her profile, I see that some of my friends back in america follow her and she follows a couple of them back. Everyone kind of knows each other in this sport so I am not surprised.

I don't go on instagram when I am not posting, so I felt bad when I saw that she followed five days ago. I followed her back immediately.

s/n went back to America earlier with our mom and I miss her already. We walked on the Barceloneta Beach before dinner last night, celebrating my new life in Spain. She took pictures of me and I feel happy enough to post them on Instagram.

(pretend this is you in the pictures)

y/n.l/n

barcelona, catalunya, españa

liked by esmeebrugts, sscofff, and 41,375 others

loving barcelona already 🌞💙

comments

y/nhive THE PRETTIEST

ingrid_engen So cool 😍

malpugh obsessed with you 🥹

woso21 when she scores in her debut I will be there

leahwilliamsfan8967 ME TOO!

randomuser267 Golden girl '23 ❓

janafernandez3 🥰

trinity_rodman 🔥🔥🔥

-

When I told Esmee that I had to do things for my apartment before the dinner, I wasn't lying. Throughout the past week I've been decorating my apartment so it felt like home. I know it will take a while to get used to this place, since I am across the Atlantic Ocean in a new country away from my old home.

three hours had passed and I've finished completing everything for my apartment. I picked up my phone from the coffee table and the time read 4:12pm/16:12. I saw I've received 5 text messages from different people:

Esmee :) 2hrs ago: La selva isn't far from me as well, see you at 17:00!

Trinity R 2hrs ago: Heyy girl! How's Barcelona?

Emily F 2hrs ago: *sent 2 TikTok attachments* you at camp 😭💀

Unknown number: Hi its Ingrid!

The first person I texted back is Ingrid, I gave her my number before she left training earlier with Mapi. I changed her contact name to just "Ingrid E".

y/n: Hi Ingrid!

I texted Trinity back as well, saying that Barcelona is great and asked her how she's doing back in Washington. I reacted to Esmee's message with a like and Emily's with the "haha" reaction.

I had about 45 minutes until I had to meet Esmee at La sevia, so I quickly went into my bedroom and changed into a different outfit than what I had on this morning.

Deciding to do my usual hairstyle (imagine whatever you want, reader <3), I placed on a bit of brow gel concealer mascara blush and lip balm as apart of my makeup routine. I constantly checked the time on my phone, making sure that I am not late to meeting Esmee. I promise this obsession over the time just isn't due to my interest in her, with friends I'll try not to disrespect their time by being late to an event.

After putting on my outfit (photo above^), I checked the time and it's finally 4:45/16:45. I grabbed my purse, put on my sandals, made sure to lock my apartment door, and followed my phone GPS towards LA sevia.

Stepping outside, the warm weather with the nice breeze made me smile. My white oversized button up shirt flowed with the soft breeze. Usually, my social anxiety would plague my thoughts about hanging out with someone new in my life. I used feel shaky and hesitant about these situations. However, I promised myself that I would be more open with others once I came to Spain.

I turned the corner away from my street, heading to walk straight for about a quarter of a mile. Suddenly, I saw a group of girls. One girl had box braids with a nice orange sundress on. Another girl was a redhead with freckles, she wore a pair of jeans shorts with a green shirt. The third girl, who was closest to a restaurant door they were standing out of, was brunette and wore a 22/23 barcelona kit with a pair of light washed jeans. These girls were a few years younger than me, if I had to guess.

When the girl in the Barcelona shirt saw me walk by her, she gasped before coming up behind me and tapping me on the shoulder. I didn't walk past her to ignore her, I figured that since I'm new to Barcelona I wouldn't be recognizable yet.

"Are you y/n l/n? You look so pretty in person. Sorry I- um- wow I am such a fan of your talent." The shy girl spoke with a Spanish accent. I smiled at her as her two friends stood behind her, looking at me with admiration too.

"Thank you so much! I appreciate your kind words." I responded.

The girl pulled out her blue cased iPhone to give to her friend, "I can take a picture with you?" she asked. I responded yes kindly.

After taking pics with the three girls, I continued to walk to the restaurant. Turning onto the street were La sevia was, I heard my imessage notification go off in my back pocket.

I clicked on my lock button to see that I received a text message from Esmee, the time is currently 4:57/16:57. The restaurant is in view from where I am walking so I wasn't late.

Esmee: I am here! I got us a table already so I am inside

Y/n: I am right outside. Heading in now :)

As I approached the restaurant, I stopped and took a deep breath as my nerves started to increase in unfamiliarity. My social anxiety won't ruin this potential friendship I want to have.

I smiled in awe when entering the steakhouse . The place has beautiful lighting, nice vinery, and was pretty spacious. There was nobody up front at the hostess station, so I continued to walk into the restaurant to find Esmee.

As I turned the corner, I see the Dutch girl sitting. She had her familiar braids with her back facing towards me. She's looking down towards her lap so I know she is on her phone.

If I knew her well enough, I would've scared her from behind. A "boo!" could've been funny. Oh well, next time I will.

"Esmee!!!" I said going to sit down in the seat across from hers. The chairs in the restaurant were hanging from the roof, the whole area was pretty.

"Y/n hey!" Esmee clicked off of her phone and placed it upward on the table. I placed my bag in the chair beside my left leg before I fully acknowledged Esmee's appearance.

I cannot deny it. I found her attractive since seeing her at training this morning. She had this shy and sweet aura to her. Don't get me started on her adorable smile...

She wore a black nike hoodie and had on a nice gold necklace. I can't see her pants from below the table but I believe I saw black cargos when walking towards her from behind.

"I'm sorry I am a little late, a fan recognized me and asked me for a photograph." I giggled. I knew I didn't have to apologize because it was exactly 5:00/17:00 when I arrived, I just hoped that she didn't wait long.

"It's totally okay! I just sat down when I saw your message about you being outside." Esmee responded. The dutch accent when she speaks English is pulling me in, emotionally, as I look at her with a smile.

Be cool, y/n. I thought to myself.

"Okay that's good. I didn't want to keep you waiting." I commented.

"You're fine no worries... so I see a fan recognized you already." Esmee said with her recognizable smile.

I laughed lightly and was going to respond until a waitress came up to our table.

"Hi I'm Maria, I will be your server tonight. Can I get you started with any drinks?" The brunette, who had French braids in her hair, smiled at us.

I looked at Esmee, seeing if she wanted to answer what she wanted first. She nodded her head at me, offering for me to go first, we nearly laughed before I said to Maria, "I'll just take a water." Esmee wanted the same thing and Maria smirked at us before walking away.

"Yeah a fan did recognize me. She had on a Pedri shirt and stared at me walking by her before she stopped me for a picture. She had her friends with her and they were so kind." I said.

Esmee nodded her head, "That's good. I'm glad they were kind to you."

"Same, the last thing I need for the end of my first week in Spain is a mean person coming at me." I shook my head at the possible thought.

"Have you had any fan interactions here since Tuesday?" I asked Esmee. It's Monday today so Esmee arrived to Barcelona before I did.

"I had a few actually. A few Oranje fans saw me and asked for a picture. I went to Mexico with the team for a friendly on Thursday and was able to meet more fans there too." Esmee commented. The Barcelona team had a friendly in Mexico against Club America from what I saw on their Instagram pages. My contract wasn't signed until a few days ago, when they came back to Barcelona, so I wasn't able to go.

"You're so lucky! How was Mexico?" I smiled.

Esmee looked up, thinking about her few days for the Club America friendly, before looking back at y/n with a smile.

"Mexico was fun. We didn't walk around or do much. However I saw an old teammate from PSV that plays at Club America so that was nice. uh---- it was nerve-wracking too." Esmee said.

"I understand, it was your first time playing with the team. Friendly or not. Being nervous and excited is normal" I validated her feelings.

"That's true. I did good in Mexico so the worry was for nothing." Esmee lightly laughed as I looked at her with a blush.

Maria came by with our waters and asked what we wanted to eat. Realizing that we spent most of our time talking instead of looking at the menu, we asked for a few extra minutes. The waitress accepted it and smiled before walking away, giving us time.

Esmee and I look through the menus deciding what we want. Most of the menu was in Spanish, so we had to flip to the English part of the menu. While looking through the menu, Esmee and I didn't talk. The silence between us wasn't awkward since there was a nice jazz song playing throughout the restaurant.

"Have you ever had salmon?" I asked Esmee. The girl looked at me with a smile before nodding. I smiled back before saying, "I never had salmon before. The salmon with pineapple and avocado sounds good though." I say.

"You never had salmon before? You should try it, it's good." Esmee said as she looked back at her menu.

"Okay, I'll try that." I closed the menu and placed it in front of me on the table. Esmee looked at the menu for a couple of more seconds before closing it as well, "I'm going to get the same thing." she smiled.

"Copy cat." I joked.

"I am not copying you.... you just have good taste." Esmee rolled her eyes playfully which made me laugh.

"I'm just kidding Es. You can copy me as much as you want to without me feeling annoyed." I smiled before freaking out internally, "oh my god, I hope she didn't take that as flirting. I don't want to freak her out already." I thought. My face still had a smile and Esmee lightly laughed so I dropped the thought.

After Maria came back and we ordered our food, Esmee and I took the opportunity to talk a lot more. We discussed our soccer/futbol journey before coming to Barcelona, our families, our upcoming game with Madrid CFF, and our love for video games. We have a lot in common.

The Dutch girl never mentioned having a girlfriend while she talked about the people close in her life, I took note of that.

Maria came back with our food around 45 minutes after we ordered. Esmee and I didn't talk much as we had our food but it's okay. Again, the silence wasn't painful or awkward to me. Other conversations from people around us and the light music kept my mind occupied.

I didn't want to stare at Esmee, since that would be weird for our first time hanging out, but she looked so pretty. Sometimes when I looked at her, she already looked at me with a shy smile. This made me blush, she noticed it but didn't say anything.

The check came back and the price wasn't expensive at all. Esmee and I forgot to ask if we could split the check but we didn't want to bother Maria who is helping with other tables.

"I can pay for it!" I say as I place my sliver credit card on top of the receipt on the table.

Esmee shook her head no as she placed her credit card on top of the receipt, handing me my card back.

"I offered to take you here so it's on me." The dutch said. She wasn't lying but I didn't want to make her feel obligated to pay for my food when I can.

"Yeah but-"

"Y/n, it's okay." Esmee spoke softly before Maria took her card and walked away. I blushed knowing that couldn't debate with the girl.

"Okay but next time I am paying."

"There's going to be a next time?" Esmee teased, her eyes filled with admiration.

"Oh absolutely!" I said enjoying her company.

Next Chapter: Redirection III

a/n: long chapter, hope you enjoyed :)

[dotster001]

I'm not sure if requests are open, but if they are, could I request Leona, Vil, and Jamil with a fem s/o who's very sweet and gentle in nature but is actually the daughter of a Mafia boss?

(Thank you for your patience my beloved Anon 🥺 I know this has been sitting in my inbox for a while and I adore you for not yelling at me. A million kissies for you!)

Summary:Fem!reader x Leona/Vil/Jamil

CW: Mafia stuff (poison, hitmen, etc), fem reader

He starts out thinking that the only reason you're still alive is because of him, especially after his overblot, where you didn't flee the danger. You're just so sweet and naive, you're begging for someone to take advantage of you. That's why when he starts dating you he's a little overprotective. He'll pass it off as "defending what's his", but really he's just worried about you. (Mans respects women too much to really think like that. He's not fooling anyone)

Then one day, you're missing home, and telling him about your family. And….you start just saying the most concerning things, not even thinking about it. He's given up napping a long time ago when you start talking about the time your driver rear ended someone, changed your license plate quickly, and threw a wad of cash at the person he hit before driving away. 

He just outright asks you, "Is your dad a Mafia boss?" 

And you answer, "yeah" with that bright smile he adores on your face. He starts asking more questions, to figure things out…and you don't seem to understand the implications of it. You've always just been daddy's little princess, no questions asked.

He doesn't actually mind, especially once he finds out that you yourself have never been hurt or in danger (though he takes that with a grain of salt, considering you don't seem to have noticed). He's a member of a monarchy that is who knows how old. He one hundred percent has relatives who have done worse. But if you ever find a way to go back and forth between worlds, he will be extra vigilant to make sure nothing happens to you.

Vil has never once questioned why you were so quick to adapt to his celebrity lifestyle. You don't question the body guards, you're okay wearing disguises, you're not uncomfortable with his expensive gifts/skincare/restaurant visits. In a word, you're perfect, and need little help adapting. And his fans adore you. They love how sweet you are and adore how you take care of Vil for them.

However, when you spot that jealous fan before his bodyguards do, and subtly move Vil to safety, he decides to question things.

And quickly finds out your dad was a Mafia boss, and a rival boss had put a hit on you once.

While you are sweet and naive, and don't quite seem to understand why it happened in the first place, a part of you is constantly on alert, and checking people's body language to protect yourself and your loved ones. 

For a while after that, Vil beefs up his security. He doesn't want you to even have to think like that. You should be able to believe that both him and you are safe! He will not have his precious apple blossom going prematurely gray over this!

As always, you are able to soothe the constant simmering rage he has inside him, and reassure him that you do feel safe, you just happened to notice the fan that one time. You knew the body guards could handle it, you just wanted to help.

Soothe him with soft cheek kisses. He needs to relax, and that'll help.

So you've managed to lull the ever on guard Jamil Viper into a place of happy complacency. Congratulations!

He worries sometimes you are too much like Kalim. But at least you help him with his chores, and work very hard not to make more work for him. So he can handle the naivete. (Also, unlike Kalim, you're his girlfriend, so he can get cuddles and kisses from you. It's a major improvement in his book, but he'll never admit it)

When you spend summer break in the Scalding Sands with him, he becomes surprised when you flip a man who was about to poison the food Jamil was about to taste test for Kalim.

After that's dealt with, he sits you down and asks where the fuck you learned that.

You tell him about the self defense classes you got from your bodyguard.

Which leads to more questions.

He knows that you aren't the member of the Mafia. He of all people understands how you can't choose what family you are born into. But he is conflicted. The Mafia equivalent in the Scalding Sands wants Kalim dead…and as Kalim's protector, if they succeed it means he is dead as well.

Honestly, he's trying not to think about it. It doesn't affect your relationship, but if he ever does meet your family, he is going to have to work hard to get past those thoughts in his head about your dad wanting him dead. It's become a mantra, They aren't the same mafia, They aren't the same mafia, They aren't the same mafia

....

Tag list-@stygianoir @shytastemakerthing @lleoll

[wonijinjin]

thinkin’ about you

author’s note: inspired by the song ‘thinkin’ about you’ by seventeen. also, this fic will probably get a second part, because i just cannot leave this on a cliffhanger without a sequel, that would be a shame

update: second part of this fic can be found here.

synopsis: you drinking a little too much and calling joshua to take you home wasn’t the best idea, or was it?

word count: 1.2k | genre: fluff, mutual pining, kinda slowburn, the tiniest bit of hurt/comfort and angst, close friends to something more | pairing: joshua x gn! reader | warnings: mentions of alcohol and being tipsy/drunk, the curse word ‘fuck’

your exam season at university was finally over, and to celebrate passing your tests you and your friends decided on going out to party at a club in the city. it was already past midnight, the party going on for several hours at that point, when you started to get really tired, having had multiple shots and cocktails, but your friends insisted on staying a bit longer. you could feel yourself get tipsier by the minute so you thought the safest option would be going home before you did something stupid or embarrassing you would regret in the morning. you took out your phone and dialed the first number that came to mind, your close friend’s, joshua’s. while waiting for him to pick up the phone your messy thoughts wondered to your long existing not so platonic feelings for him. he made your heart jump every time you thought about him, which was almost always, not just due to your feelings, but because you spent a lot of time with him on a daily basis as he was a very dear person to your heart. you have known him for as long as you can remember, and he was truly the most amazing friend you had, always being there for you, always treating you with so much care. he was like this with most of his friends, he cherished people around him and never took them for granted, you really admired him for this. you sometimes hated loving him, because it was so difficult to keep your emotions to yourself for this exact reason. who could blame you though? he was all anyone would wish for in a partner, kind, intelligent, considerate, caring.

“hello? y/n? what’s up?” he said as he picked up, voice hoarse, laced with sleep. “ah were you sleeping? sorry, should’ve known you need your beauty sleep to be this handsome.” you slurred, clearly more drunk than you thought. “were you drinking?” he questioned “are you hurt or something?” his voice sounded concerned. you laughed at this “nooo silly, i am perfectly fine, i had so much fun” there was a moment of silence before you continued “…but i need a favor, all my friends want to stay here longer, so i need a ride home. no way i’m getting into a car driven by a stranger, plus i don’t even have enough money for a taxi.” you expected him to say no, after all, it was in fact the middle of the night and he clearly had better plans on how to spend his. he sighed on the other end of the line “fine, i would much rather drive you home than letting you ask a stranger from the club to do it when you are clearly wasted as fuck.” he said while shuffling echoed in the phone, indicating that he was already getting up and changing. you knew he was right; you were not in the best shape. maybe the last margarita was a bit too much? “thank you shua baby.” the nickname slipped out on accident and if you were sober you would’ve gasped and started apologising right away, saying that he should forget about this, but you couldn’t really care less in that moment. you could hear the hitch in his breathing and the tension in his voice when he said goodbye over the phone, asking for your location and saying he would text you when he was there. you wondered; maybe drinking was a good decision, maybe getting a bit bold with words is what you needed as encouragement to tell him the secret you’ve been hiding for quite a while now, maybe you should really confess to him while you are not scared of the consequences.

20 minutes later you got the text from him and you were ready to leave. your confident march from the entrance to the car failed though when you tripped over your own feet, almost breaking half of your bones in the process. “oh my god y/n how much did you drink?” someone asked while helping in restoring your balance. you knew it was joshua right away, that voice cannot be mistaken for anybody else. “a little too much, i think?” you giggled. joshua took you to his car and opened the door for you to climb into the passenger seat. “wow thank you this is so fancy i feel like royalty.” you commented, still grinning. “well i do feel like a personal chauffeur now, coming here just to be taking your ass home. let’s go, put that leg inside so we can go, your highness.” he demanded while grabbing your leg, tired of waiting for you to clumsily get into the vehicle.

after he shut the door and got in himself to start the engine you two sat in silence for a little while before you spoke up. “i’m really sorry you have to take me home, i know i was selfish for asking, but i really didn’t have a better plan. i didn’t feel like i was this drunk when i was inside, but sitting here made me regret having the last drinks.” he looked at you at the red light. “look, i don’t mind this, really. you are one of my best friends, i would do this a hundred times if it meant you got home safely and some weirdo didn’t kidnap you or something. also, you thinking about me first when asking for help is quite flattering too you know.” he smirked. you nodded, eyes getting heavy suddenly from all that partying. “i can see you almost falling asleep. there’s a jacket on the back seat if you want it as a makeshift blanket. i will wake you when we get there. go to sleep y/n.” you didn’t bother to search for the jacket, just closed your eyes, letting sleep overtake you. “what you said is true. i do think about you a lot, shua. probably more than a close friend should.” you mumbled, already half asleep, still not sobering up enough to control and censor your thoughts before saying them out loud. “what do you mean?” his eyes went wide and he looked in your direction as if he misheard what you had said, only to see you knocked out cold, sleeping soundly like a baby. on the way to your house he couldn’t stop himself from replaying your words in his head over and over again while he checked on you from time to time to see if you were alright. he couldn’t believe what he had just heard, that you might’ve felt something more for him, something friends don’t feel, something he had been suppressing for a long time, a warm feeling in his chest. when you arrived he turned off the car, however didn’t have the heart to wake you. he knew you were exhausted, so he draped his jacket over you, and let you sleep for a bit longer, watching you rest so peacefully after shaking up his heart with your drunk monologue. he didn’t know if he should believe you, if he really had a chance of being more than friends with you after all these years. he got comfortable in his seat, facing your form, eyes looking at your still face.

“i know you are sleeping, but just so you know we will definitely have to talk about this little sentence of yours in the morning y/n. i do think about you a lot too, you know? you need to be more clear next time, because you cannot do this to me, driving me crazy and leaving me to chase false hopes.”

[genderflu1dwh0r]

For @yoitsmano

Little Jori oneshot. I am sleepy and probably should be sleeping, but nopeeee. Hope you enjoy!!

Jade was having a bad night, the yelling from her parents in the living room to the pain in her lower back from helping Sinjin carry boxes and lifting the wrong way. Trina was being loud and obnoxious the whole day and Beck took Robbie's side instead of hers when she was trying to tell him that Robbie groped her. When she tried to study at home, she could hear her parents stomping upstairs, since she lived in the den of the house. Nothing was going her way. She tried headphones with music blasting, she tried turning her TV on, she even tried going out on the porch and smoking. Nothing helped.

She decided that she just needed to leave the premise of the house, just being in it was harmful. She told her parents she was staying with a friend and grabbed her keys, wallet, phone, leather jacket and bag with her homework inside. She knew that she wasn't staying with a friend, but her parents didn't know and didn't care, they were too busy arguing. Jade got into her car and started it up, figuring she could drive around and eventually stop at a park or something and get her homework done.

When driving, she couldn't stop thinking about what Tori said to her when she got into a bad fight with Beck. She told her that she could stay with her whenever she needed for whatever reason, she then followed up with "I probably shouldn't have said that" but Jade knew that she was being truthful about the staying over part. Jade kept thinking it over, she knew that she would have better light and a person to talk to, but also Trina would probably be there. She didn't want to hear or talk to Trina, but Tori was there, and she made life bearable. She could probably eat there, and also Mr. and Mrs. Vega were definitely better than her parents.

Jade decided fuck it and quickly did a U-turn, heading towards the Vega's household. After awhile, when getting on the street they lived on, Jade got nervous, she was doubting all of this. She didn't know if she should actually go through with it. All that went out the window when she saw Tori taking out the trash and spotting her. Shit. She grit her teeth and parked, waiting for Tori to make a big deal out of this.

Tori quickly stopped the trash bin and jogged over, smiling with her perfect teeth showing. Jade hated it, it made her feel stupid and hot and she didn't want to accept the truth. She got out of the car with her bag and didn't make eye contact. She didn't want Tori knowing that she was getting to her. Tori spoke first, smiling. "Jade, what a surprise! Is everything alright?" She asked, her eyes scanning over Jade and her bag, making sure she was okay.

Jade huffed, nodding. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm staying over, by the way." She said walking past Tori and to the front door. She really tried to keep cool, but hearing Tori ask her if everything is fine made her feel good. She opened the door and saw Trina on the couch watching TV, Celebrities Underwater. "Of course you like that show." She muttered as she set her bag down. "Hey, I like that show too." Tori said shutting the door behind them.

Jade looked back at her. "I know." She smirked, sitting down on the couch. Tori scoffed, but Trina spoke. "If you don't like it, then you can leave. By the way, why are you even here?" She asked, tilting her head and making a mocking face. It didn't take much for Trina to get into an argument, and she could see something was up with Jade. Jade crossed her arms and set her feet up on the coffee table. "Maybe watch better shows." She huffed, looking at the clock. It was 7:09PM. "And for your information, I'm here because Tori and I have to study for science." She lied through her teeth, she knew Tori would go with it.

Trina smiled wide before looking back at the TV. "I already know that I'm gonna pass my test, and I don't even have to study." She said confidently, flipping the remote in her hand and catching it. Tori walked past, behind the couch and over to the kitchen. "Trina, I've been telling you, you have to study to pass. You being confident doesn't make you suddenly know how to explain how energy is transferred through an ecosystem." She said cleaning the countertop and tossing the garbage in the trash.

Trina furrowed her brows and looked back at Tori. "I so know how to explain that, but I can't tell you cause you'll cheat off of me." She said getting up and tossing the remote to Jade. "I'm going to my room, because I don't wanna hang around nerds." She said going upstairs. Tori and Jade looked at each other before smiling. "Yeah, like I'm such a nerd." Jade said looking at the TV and scrolling through the options. Tori joined and sat on the other side of the couch. "Oh, you so are a nerd." She said crossing her leg over the other.

Jade scoffed, looking at Tori. "I am not, does it look like I have an A in math?" She asked before picking Parks and Recreation as the show they were going to watch. Tori smiled, turning with her arm on the back of the couch. "You so are, being a nerd doesn't only mean math, you can be a nerd by just being really into something. Like, The Scissoring, you really love films and scissors. You can tell me any fact about that movie." She said pointing at her.

Jade rolled her eyes, holding the remote in her right hand. "You're a fuckin nerd." She said looking at the TV. Tori rolled her eyes, but more lovingly than annoyance. "Yes, yes I am. But you are too, and you shouldn't feel ashamed of it." She said grabbing a pillow and loosely hugging it as she looked at the TV.

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Jade stood up, Tori looked over at her. Jade looked like she wanted to say something, but couldn't decide whether to actually say it or not. Her eyes kept kinda darting and her hands were messing with the end of her jacket. "You alright? Can I get you-" Tori got cut off. "I'm gonna go use your bathroom, don't change the channel." She said quickly before heading upstairs. Tori didn't mind, just giving an okay before watching the show again.

Jade went down the hall, and instead of going to the bathroom, she headed to Tori's room. She quietly opened the door and started to look around. She saw a half used pack of spearmint gum and took a piece, she unwrapped it and put it in her mouth before crumbling up the wrapper and putting it in her pocket. She kept looking around and eventually came across some glitter pens, she took a light pink one and uncapped it, looking at the tip before drawing a smiley face on one of Tori's homework pages on her desk. She quickly turned around when she heard the door creek slightly.

"What are you doing?" Trina asked, crossing her arms and leaning against the door frame. Jade furrowed her brows. "None of your business." She said capping the pen and putting it into her pocket. "Bullshit. Tori never lets you into her room alone." Trina said, before looking towards the hall. "Oh, Toriiiii!" She called out, making Jade scoff. Trina smirked at her before going down the hall and stairs. "What is happening?" Tori asked, getting off of the couch. "Jade is in your room." Trina said going into the kitchen.

Tori heard that and immediately went upstairs, going into her room. She saw Jade sitting on her bed, holding a picture of Tori as a toddler. "Jade, what are you doing? I have told you before, don't go into my room." She said walking over, she stood in front of Jade, who slowly looked up at her. "You look very happy in this picture." She said looking back down before setting the framed picture back on the nightstand. Her demeanor had definitely darkened, she wasn't upset or yelling at Trina for telling on her, and she wasn't worried about Tori finding her.

Tori tilted her head, confused, before sitting down with her. "Yeah, well, I was at Disneyland, I was about 5 or so in that picture. I had my favorite red shoes on." She said smiling softly, watching Jade's behavior. Jade didn't look at her, just stared at the wall. She took a breath before talking. "Am I just unlovable?" She asked, looking over at Tori. "My parents never took me to Disneyland, they never really took me out or made me smile. Did I do something wrong to never get my parents validation?" She said staring at Tori.

This was a lot to hear, but Tori was ready no matter what. She reached over and held Jade's hand, gently rubbing it with her thumb. "You aren't unlovable, you have a lot of people who love you. No, I don't think taking someone to Disneyland means you necessarily love them, but it is a very nice thing to do. Do you think if they took you to Disneyland, you'd feel any better?" She spoke softly. Jade took a few seconds before responding. "No, nobody gives a shit. I'm a mean person. But I think I'd at least have a memory of happiness if I got to go to Disneyland with my parents." She said, clearly her voice cracking.

Tori frowned slightly, she let go of Jade's hand and grabbed her, pulling her into a hug. She didn't like seeing Jade sad, it wasn't really like her, she would get angry and frustrated, sometimes happy, but it really hurt to see her sad. Jade latched on to Tori, pressing her face into her collarbone. She couldn't help it, she felt tears start to fall. Tori rubbed her back, trying to figure out what to say. "I care about you a lot, Jade. I really do, and before you say anything, yes, I do, I do care and I do adore seeing you smile. I like watching your eyes light up every time Robbie gets hurt, or whenever I smile at you. You mean so much to me." She sniffled, trying not to cry.

Jade tried hard to not show that she was emotional, but there was no use, Tori was crying and it wouldn't matter. She let herself cry, she felt comfortable in Tori's arms, whenever she cried in her room, she always felt a sense of danger or unease, but in Tori's arms, she felt safe. She felt more comfortable with Tori than at her house. She felt at home. Tori was her home. She loved her. Jade lifted her head, looking into Tori's eyes, she stared at her for what felt like hours.

Tori looked at her, sniffling. Her brown eyes slightly sparkled against the tears. "Jade, I-" she got cut off, Jade leaned in and kissed her, pressing her body against her more. Tori kissed back, holding her close, she had already come to terms with her liking Jade, but she didn't know how good it would feel to actually kiss her and embrace her. Jade had tried to hide her feelings as much as she could, at least from herself, she hoped that kissing her wouldn't feel good, she hoped that she was all wrong, but here she was, kissing the girl she hated oh so much.

When Jade pulled away, it was for air, she wanted to spend hours kissing her, but she had to breathe at some point. They both looked at each other dazed and out of breath, Jade quickly went wide eyed when Tori broke out into a smile and blew a bubble with the gum Jade was chewing. "Freak." Jade said sitting up, wiping her tears. Tori kept smiling. "Well, you kissed a freak, how do you feel?" She asked, tilting her head slightly. Jade didn't answer, just kept smiling as she stared at the wall. She could get used to this.

I hope you enjoyed reading!!

[ofoceansandtombsanew]

Calathea.

tags: f!reader (she/her pronouns), medium angst with a happy ending, established relationship, knight of favonius!reader, childhood friends

tw: reader is recovering from an injury sustained on a patrol, blood mention

a/n: after kaeya popped up briefly in the newest archon quest, it got me thinking about the persona he puts on and his loneliness and it somehow got me thinking about peacock calatheas and thus this fic was born. my fellow plant people know how much work and love it takes to maintain a calathea and it kinda just fit kaeya in my mind. this is lowkey highkey very self indulgent + part of my yay me celebration thing

“Kaeya, can you settle down? You’re driving me crazy,” when your boyfriend ignored your annoyed hiss in favor of accompanying you in your shared home, you sighed in defeat. “Can’t you go and bother Lulu for an hour? I don’t need you to babysit me.”

“Lulu?” Kaeya chuckled, amusement dancing in his eye. Of course that’s what gets him to grace you with a response. “That’s not something I hear every day.”

“I know a grumpy bartender who’d love to be in your place,” you can’t hold back a snicker of your own. 

Diluc hated the nickname you continuously referred to him as since you were 3. He didn’t mind it at first. That went out the window when the old nickname slipped when the both of you were on duty with a handful of new knights present though. Even now that he was gone from the Knights of Favonius’ ranks, Diluc would shoot you dirty looks when ‘Lulu’ fell from your lips.

“Now get off your leg,” Kaeya motioned his hands for you to back away. “You shouldn’t be on it for too long, remember? I can take care of the rest.”

He’s more like a mother hen than a peacock. Your lips can’t help curling into a smile despite the roll of your eyes.

“Barbara said a little light movement would be good for me,” you protest, shooing the blue-haired man away from you once more. “Walking around our house to take care of my plants isn’t going to land me back in Barbara’s healing arms.” The young deaconess healed what she could. Now the rest was up to your body’s own natural healing. "With how restless you’re acting, you’d think you’re the one Barbara put on lockdown.”

“Me? Restless?” Kaeya’s looked at you with an eyebrow raised in mock surprise. “Perish the thought.”

“Little Kaeya is the last plant I have to tend to and I promise I’ll rest on the couch and let you serve me to your heart’s content, alright?” Exasperating as his behavior was, however, you appreciated the amount of attention and care Kaeya displayed since you were injured. He even asked Jean to move his schedule around to allow him to be home in order to help you.

“Just don��t overwork yourself,” you warned him when he announced he’d be working odd hours until your recovery.

“Do what you love and you never work a day in your life, they say,” was all Kaeya replied with a teasing smile. “Taking care of you is something that I love. So I can’t overwork myself in the slightest.”

He’s lucky I love him so much, you huff silently but your chest is warm. You move to wipe your damp cloth against the leaves of Little Kaeya, your peacock calathea, when the next words come from Kaeya’s mouth: “Has Barbara told you when you’ll be able to return to duty?”

You took your time responding to his question, wiping the next leaf of your plant tenderly. “Maybe this suits me better,” there’s no surprised look or sound that escapes from the man and you know he’s suspected your thoughts for a while. You’d been worrying how to bring it up and you find yourself thankful he allowed an opening. “I’ve never been the best Knight of Favonius. I only joined because I was chasing after you and Lulu.” It was a miracle you passed the selection test in the first place. But with no real idea in mind of what you wanted for yourself and the fear of being left behind by your friends, you decided to become a knight.

Then Diluc left your ranks, never looking back, and only yourself and Kaeya remained. Crepus’ death had shaken all three of you. The days playing among the vineyards of Dawn Winery were a far off memory, lost in grief-tinted nostalgia.

"I think you were quite the fine knight,” Kaeya replied so smoothly you almost believed him. 

"At least if I got in, Noelle should know she’ll make it at some point too.” With a final few wipes, Little Kaeya was pristine and as vibrant as ever. “Looking handsome as always, Little Kaeya,” you beamed with pride.

Kaeya held his chest as if he were in pain, “I’m hurt, I thought I was the only Kaeya in your life.”

“Well he is a peacock,” you pointed at Little Kaeya’s leaves, exact replicas of a male peacock’s feathers. Calling it ‘Kaeya’, the icy peacock of Mondstadt himself, seemed very fitting to you at the time. “And I have enough room in my heart for the both of you. Maybe I’ll work at Flora’s, she and Donna mentioned needing a new helper.” You nod at your Dendro Vision, resting on the bookshelf nearby. “They want me to help keep the flowers preserved longer since I have the capability to do so. And it helps I can speed up the growth process of any blooms they want to start growing themselves.”

He’s smiling but you could tell it was bittersweet. “Flora and Donna, huh?” Kaeya sighed audibly. “That’s who’ll be taking my [First] away from me?”

"Don’t be a big baby, you’re in your 20s now,” you poke Kaeya’s cheek softly.

A gloved hand held your own before kissing it tenderly. “Sorry, sorry. I’ll just miss my favorite partner.”

It occurred to you, not for the first time, there were more similarities to the Kaeyas that stood before you than he’d ever care to admit.

Calatheas are beautiful, that was attracted you to them in the first place. The patterned foliage pulled you in the first moment you saw them. Beautiful as they were, however, calatheas were one of the divas of the plant world.

The water needed to be just so. 

The humidity in your home needed to be just so. 

The sunlight filtering through your windows needed to be just so.

Anything that upset that balance even a little and the plant would react with a fragility that surprised you the first time you saw your plant’s leaves curling. You maintained a stable system for it since, despite your busy schedule.

Kaeya is beautiful, he had been since the first day you met him. I’m gonna be his wife some day, the younger you thought with a surprising amount of confidence for a 6 year old.

He was beautiful when he shyly hid behind Diluc who introduced you both after Crepus took the boy in.

He was beautiful when he laughed. 

He was beautiful when he developed the cocky yet observant attitude the whole of the city knew him for today. The flare he held was so vibrant it was sometimes easy to forget that Kaeya was a lonelier person underneath it.

I’ll never forget that day. It rained hard after Crepus’ death; it felt like the heavens themselves were mourning.

“Kaeya?!” You rushed out your door the moment you spotted him from your window, not caring about the icy rain pelting your skin. “What are you doing here, you’re getting soaked!” You dropped the towel in your hand when you noticed the cut down his right eye and the blood pouring down the side of his face.

You weren’t able to get out another word before he pulled you into his chest.

Kaeya held you so tightly you thought you would bruise, fingers digging into your back to ground himself. Yet in that moment, all you could do was hug him back just as fiercely. The warm water rolling down the side of your neck was the rain and the sobs racking Kaeya’s body was the thunder.

To this day you weren’t sure how long you’d stood out there before you pulled Kaeya into your home to tend to his wound. When he placed a wet Cryo Vision on your table, you pursed your lips before continuing your movements. It was a miracle that he hadn’t been blinded.

Neither Kaeya or Diluc ever divulged the full extent of what happened that day and you had long since stopped asking. If Kaeya ever planned to tell you the truth, he never hinted at it. That was fine. He could tell you whenever he was ready. You could only hope that one day the two brothers would rekindle their old relationship, you knew that would make Crepus smile warmly from the other side.

You’d been hesitant to tell Kaeya your thoughts of leaving the Knights. It had been on your mind even before the attack happened. Four years ago it terrified you to think what would happen to Kaeya if you left his side in the Knights along with his brother.

Four years later in the present, the hilichurl attack you survived taught you that that alone wasn’t enough reason to stay in a profession you were unsuited for. You could support Kaeya in other ways while you stayed true to yourself.

You cupped Kaeya’s face in your hands, thumbs caressing his cheeks. “I’m always gonna be your partner, whether I’m a knight or not,” you promised firmly, staring into the diamond shaped pupils you’ve known since you were a child. The two of you like this was never a matter of ‘if’ but always a matter of ‘when’. “Even if it isn’t on the field, I’ll be here for you to come home to. You can’t get rid of me even if you try.”

“I’m holding you to your word,” Kaeya’s breath tickled your forehead before you lightly tugged him down to kiss his lips firmly.

[12romy]

Hi I know this I cheeky…but I failed my driving test and have had food poisoning this week. Is there anyway I could ask for a little Chewis prompt to be written? ANYTHING you like? It would cheer me up so much!

Hi darling!!! It's no problem at all, don't hesitate to ask! It always makes me happy to write prompts, and never hesitate to ask for specific stuff, too, if you want to!

I'm sorry you had such a back week, I hope you're feeling better... And I'm sure you'll pass your driving test next time!

I didn't really know what to write so, this is in the change of habits verse, end of season 2023! No real plot, just a fluffy slice of life ahah

Charles steps inside the silent house, dropping his bag and suitcase in the hall, and goes to faceplant on the couch as soon as he's out of his shoes and coat.

The season is finally over, thank god. Of course, he'll have to go back to Maranello, soon. Back to work, back to a shitty car and a shitty team. He'd rather not think about it right now.

He's tired. He hates himself for wishing he were in another team next year.

He doesn't know how long he stays on the couch, brooding, but soon enough the door opens. He perks up immediately, like an eager puppy when his owner gets back.

He rushes to the door, and literally throws himself in Lewis' arms. His boyfriend catches him, dropping bag and suitcase to do so, and makes them spin as Charles wraps his legs around his waist.

"I missed you!" Charles exclaims. He tries to kiss Lewis, but aims wrong because of the motion, and only catches the corner of his lips. Lewis stops spinning them around, and allows Charles to kiss him properly.

"It's been three days, darling," he chuckles.

"We've seen each other from afar in the paddock, it doesn't count," Charles pouts. "We didn't have any time for ourselves since Vegas!"

"I did miss this," Lewis nods, kissing him again before putting him down - or rather, tries to. Charles doesn't want to let go, and Lewis giggles at the way he's gripping onto him. "Fine, fine, I get the message, we're gonna cuddle. Can I just take my shoes off, first?"

"Fine," Charles agrees, sulking a little as he lets go of Lewis.

"How about we take a shower before cuddling? I smell like sweat and the inside of the airplane, not the best combo," Lewis suggest, and Charles has to admit he has a point.

"We can take a bath, instead," he offers. "That way we can get clean and cuddle at the same time."

Lewis has always been a pro at self-care, and so he draws them a warm bath, adding all sorts of products in it - all 100% plant based and organic - that smell amazing. He also lights up candles and incense sticks, and even adds actual rose petals to the water. Charles has no idea where they come from.

In the meantime, Charles prepares them some snack. Nothing too grand, just some fresh fruits and an assortment of dry nuts. He then puts on some jazz, a kind of music neither of them listens to much except when taking baths, and they settle in the tub. Lewis is resting his back against him and his head is on his shoulder, which allows Charles to wrap his arms around him.

The next couple of hours, after the bath, are used to undo each of Lewis' braids while distractingly watching a movie.

Charles realises Lewis fell asleep once he's finished, and smiles to himself. He manages to take a selfie with Lewis sleeping against him, and make it his new wallpaper.

He wonders what to do, then. Whether he should get up to make dinner, or maybe wake Lewis up.

He decides to do neither. He stays right there, half-sitting-half-laying on the bed, with Lewis pressed against him. They both could use the rest. They'll figure out dinner later.

He thinks distantly that going back to the factory will be even more painful, since it means leaving all this behind.

Better not to think about it, he still has a few of weeks in front of him. They're going to celebrate Christmas with their families, first in Monaco then in England. After that, they're going to America for the new year, before coming back home for Lewis' birthday.

He should look forward to it. So why can't he stop the anxiety rising in him at the thought of going back to Maranello?

Lewis makes a small noise in his sleep, and Charles is pulled out of his own mind immediately. Right. Lewis is here, with him. As long as they'll be together, he will be fine.

He can face anything.

[good-wizard2]

THIS IS ALL OOC I JUST NEED TO VENT (Below the cut) DO NOT FEEL OBLIGATED TO READ THIS

Please don't reblog this but instead comment on it, I don't want it to pop up on my main accounts feed

Tw: Death tw: Alcohol abuse tw: Drugs

My mom is sick with grief right now, like seriously, physically sick, she's been throwing up at work all night and the only thing I can do is send her text messages, I have a lot to do in the morning before I go to school, like get ready for photos, pack all my stuff and so on. I have to watch out for my younger sibling because they're not getting enough sleep and are forgetting things in the morning so I have to remember things for them too now. I'm still a fucking teenager even if I'm an adult I can't drive yet even good gods I need to get my license. I feel like I keep letting people down because I'm failing tests and shit and my teachers love me and know what's going on but I just can't do shit.

My life is so stupid right now and it's only getting more difficult, it was my birthday the other day and I genuinely hardly saw a purpose to celebrating, I went to my step dad's favorite restaurant and as you could imagine I was bombarded by memories there. And everyone around me was too, but they all smiled and laughed about the good times and it made me sad because Im having more trouble remembering those. I just want to remember the good times but all I can think about are what led up to his passing.

I'm begging anyone who reads this to please read the full details on your medication. And please, for the love of anybody you care about don't mix drugs and alcohol. I miss my dad.

[inkycherie]

I have had the most amazing summer. In July, my best friend came to visit. I brought her to Paris (her first time), showed her around my town and other neighbouring cities around Geneva, and we drove to the south of France. I made different meals for everyone to enjoy, danced to the loveliest music, and drank the best wine(s).

The third week of August, I went back to the Philippines. We had a long overdue family reunion. Our uncle from Canada also came to visit with his family, and my cousin who works for months at a cruise ship extended his vacation.

We all flew to Zamboanga del Sur to surprise my grandma and our extended family whom we haven't seen in 13 years ! We spent a week there living the simple life, eating pandesal for breakfast, and singing karaoke kahit brownout.

The first few days of September, I spent back in my hometown. I saw Bowie again. I didn't let any minute pass without cuddling him. Whenever I'm in the PH and everyone else is back home, my sisters and I stay in one bedroom with our parents (and Bowie), chatting away until we all fall asleep. These nights were even more special because we were all cooped up in one room while there was a storm outside. Felt just like the good old days when my sisters and I would spend nights holed up in our parents room trying to pass the time until electricity was back on.

I was also sooo happy to walk around the malls with Christmas music already playing in the background ! We bought surprise presents for our parents. My sisters and I chipped in to buy papa his dream TV, and mama a new iPhone. The rest of my money I spent on groceries, more presents for the fam, pasalubongs for Jon, books, Cheetos, Spicy Century Tuna, Vienna sausages, and Spam. lol

We spent my last week in Manila. Took mama, my sisters, and our aunt on a date - brunch in Wildflour and shopping at Rockwell, and then continued to shop in MOA. I wanted to make dinner for everyone, so I made sinigang na baboy which was perfect for the stormy weather. We had drinks with our cousins before bed (red horse, spicy Oishi, and isaw at bbq).

The next day, I brought my parents to IKEA so I can buy them stuff for the house. I could tell mama was so excited to drive back home so she can start using everything we got. Uncle flew back from Zamboanga later than everyone else so the day after he arrived, he went straight to the condo so we can spend more time with him. We asked him to make lola's bistek Tagalog as he is the only one who can make it exactly the way lola does. I am glad to report that I watched him closely as he was making it - even volunteered to be the sous chef - so I will make it for dinner tomorrow.

The day before my flight, the entire family celebrated my aunt and cousin's birthdays. I made some of my specialty meals, and we ordered a bunch of other food. Of course, there was cake.

I flew back to Switzerland on the 7th. I arrived on Friday at 8 in the morning, unpacked my stuff, ate pancit canton, and fell asleep at 16hr. I woke up at 3am still tired, but I managed to clean up and do all the laundry. I was hanging clothes at the balcony even before the sun was out. I found it hilarious. The rest of the day, I spent on the couch still feeling quite sluggish and brushing off the fact that I was having chills, and my nose wouldn't stop running.

Jon and I went on a quick café date and I couldn't taste the coffee nor the pastry I ordered which I found strange but thought nothing of. We did errands and bought groceries but I started feeling sicker as the hours passed. As soon as we got home, I checked to see if I had covid. The test came out positive. Dinner wasn't much fun. I was much sicker so I couldn't enjoy the food Jon prepared for me - he made me the perfect steak which I couldn't taste hahaha and some soup to make me feel better.

This morning, I woke up at 5am and called my family right away. The symptoms are getting worse, and now I have chills, body pains, and constant headache. I will rest more so I can feel better by tomorrow. I just find this to be a silly end to an incredible summer.

[icybreaths]

Rules, tag 10 followers  you want to get to know better!

Tagged by: @burdenedreverance (thank you~)

Tagging: @sunniestshark , @nildov , @characternerdocs , @ichigokurosaki , @sylvctica , @territorialii, @fallesto , @desuetmort , @midnightactual , @galeforged (no pressure tags, feel free to ignore!)

Name: Just call me Chicky

Star Sign: Taurus sun (Virgo moon / Scorpio rising winkwonk)

Height: 5'8

Middle name: Nicole

Put your itunes/spotify/youtube on shuffle. What are the first 6 songs that popped up?

Crazy in Love – The Eden Project Feat. Leah Kelly

Death and Humanity – Sewerslvt

Psychonaut – Mr. Gnome

The Key – Black Stone Cherry

Dark Clubbing / Dark Electro / Industrial Bass Mix 'TECH NOIR' – Aim to Head Mix

Krwlng – Linkin Park (Reanimation)

Ever had a poem or song written about you: No, I don’t think so.

When was the last time you played air guitar: I don’t remember :’D

Who is your celebrity crush?: Hmmmm James Marsters, esp circa BTVS era. Hamsome

What’s a sound you hate; sound you love?: I cannot stand the sound of gritty textures, especially on metal. I always feel like I can taste it as I hear it and it makes me want to 4th dimensionally reel into myself I fucking Hate It lmao. I looooove the sound of rain. I feel an instant sense of calm and peace when it’s raining.

Do you believe in ghosts?: 100% I have stories!

How about aliens: Bro. We’re aliens bro.

Do you drive?: Noooo. It’s not out of a lack of trying either! I’ve failed the driving test twice and just barely failed last time. I think I was two points from passing it? My anxious ass was like, right maybe this isn’t for me I never wanted to do this anyway bye forever, and cried a little. But I’m over it now. Almost 30 btw, love that for me.

If so have you ever crashed: There were a couple of instances when I was younger but they were minor incidents luckily (also no I was not driving lmfao side-eyes previous question.)

What was the last book you read?: Couldn’t tell ya.

Do you like the smell of gasoline: No.

What was the last movie you saw?: Pretty sure it was Men in Black 2.

What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had?:  Several years ago I got really drunk and accidentally stepped on this creepy dude’s teapot with my bare foot, shattered it, and wounded my ankle. I Could Not walk on it omfg it hurt so bad. I was so drunk though that I was laughing about it, and then crying because I ‘couldn’t get the wound or shards out of my foot’ no matter how much I dug at it. There were no shards it was just a bloody pit and I was dumb drunk, don't perceive me.

Anyway skipping ahead a little bit because that was an awful night-- couldn’t walk on it properly for about two weeks, had to use crutches and people's shoulders as leverage so I could hobble around, and now I have a little crescent scar on my ankle to this day.

Lied to my family about it and told them it was from stepping on glass at a spring (because I was on vacation in another part of the country at the time. Didn’t wanna worry them. What a way to start off my 20s LOL)  I don't drink anymore btw. I don't enjoy the feeling of being drunk.

Do you have any obsessions right now?: Getting My Shit Together while also roleplaying on tumblarg, and doodling.

[twistsandtwizzles]

Stars on Mars: The Finale

Holy shit, y’all. We made it.

After twelve weeks of watching “celebrities” pretend that they are astronauts on Mars, we have come to the final episode. Tonight we will learn, at long last, which one of them is “The Brightest Star in the Galaxy.”

Shatner kicks us off with a series recap, and I had honestly forgotten that Richard Sherman was on this show. Then we get a brief moment with each of our final five crew members, starting with:

Adam: “In my sport, it was: become a National champion, go to the Olympics,” he tells us, over footage of him twerking with Porsha, running through a dark cave, and riding on a rover. “And these are the tools that I’m going to be counting on to go all the way.” Then a hero shot in slow motion of Adam in full space suit, walking down the hab hallway.

Cat: “When I am in a competition, there’s something that clicks in my brain,” she says as we see her driving the rover and high fiving Lance. “I always have in my mind that I am going to win.”

Porsha: She walks down the hallway in full glam. “I came here to do some things I’ve never done before,” says her voiceover. Clips of her celebrating with Tinashe after a mission, rappelling down a cliff, and pretending to wrestle with Ronda. “You don’t make it this far and not be a warrior.”

Paul: “I went from the poor house to the penthouse,” he says. “Bottom three to Base Commander.” Most of his clips are just him standing at the airlock door? Sorry Paul, but you really did just kind of stand around a lot. “The simple fact that I’m still here is saying a lot.”

Tinashe: “I’ve always kind of felt like an underdog in my life, maybe because I’m quiet sometimes. But I think I’m going to surprise everyone.” She smiles at the camera and I have to say that I have really become fond of Tinashe. She gives us our last slo-mo hero walk before we cut to the show logo.

“Sol 19 - Second to last day of experiment,” reads the text on the screen, as we find Shatner just . . . sitting on the edge of his bed, in his leather jacket, appearing to be waiting for instruction. Lady AI obliges, and tells him that it is time for him to go address the crew. Shatner has some trouble with the door latch on the Base Commander suite, but eventually makes it out and summons the crew to the kitchen.

On his way he passes a big red button on the wall that says “DO NOT PUSH” that I swear to God we have never seen before but apparently it’s been there the whole time?? We even get a bunch of flashbacks of crew members pushing the button as Lady AI tells Shatner that the button controls all the hab life support functions, and was placed there to test the crew’s self-control. “That did not go well, and I disabled it on Sol Day 1, but it has now been reactivated,” she says.

Shatner tells Cat that he really, really wants to press that button.

Adam and Porsha are hanging out in the living room and Adam tells Porsha that he has really loved getting to know her: “You’re such a good person.”

“Aw, thank you,” Porsha says, touched.

“It will be so sad when you leave the competition,” Adam continues, grinning. They both dissolve into giggles.

The group gathers and Shatner tells them they are at the “moment of truth.” This morning, they are going to reduce the five remaining contestants to three. And then tomorrow, those three will be reduced to one, who will receive the “Brightest Star in the Galaxy” patch. (We see a picture of the patch here, and I just have to note that it only says “Brightest Star” on top and then on the bottom it says “Stars on Mars.” I would demand to have one that specifically says “Brightest Star in Galaxy” as Shatner promised.)

Shatner goes on to say that the winner of that patch will then have the opportunity to “speak to the world.” You can tell that the group was sort of hoping that the additional prize might be like, cash. Or a vacation somewhere that is not the Australian desert. “A message coming from your heart,” Shatner continues. “It could be the biggest and best thing you’ve done with your life.”

Porsha and Cat play along and tell Shatner that it is an amazing prize. Adam meanwhile is trying really hard not to smirk.

Shatner says the process starts now - they are each going to get to ask the other players one question, and then they will vote for the three people who will continue on in the game. The group splits up to write their questions.

Adam tells us that he loves Porsha, but he’s still kind of stung that she chose to be in a group with Marshawn instead of him last week, and that he feels like the dynamic between the two of them has changed.

Cat says she wants to be strategic; Tinashe says that Cat has been playing the game and seems to be the only person who wants to win “by any means necessary, and I think that makes her a threat.” Tinashe also says that she’s noticed Porsha and Paul bonding and that they may be playing a bit of a game as well. Porsha tells Paul she thinks it’s shady they have to ask their questions in person and would prefer that they were anonymous.

Shatner has Tinashe ask the first question. Tinashe asks Cat if she made every decision here “for the right reasons” or if she was more focused on strategy. And honestly I am THRILLED that we did not let a full season of a reality competition go by without someone pulling the “right reasons” card. Cat says that she came in knowing that alliances had already formed, and she’s tried really hard to focus on what was fair in all of her decisions. Then we get flashback footage of Cat telling Paul that she’ll nominate him for Base Commander if he makes her Mission Specialist and her getting mad at Andy and kicking him off of Mars, and I LOVE when the editors get shady. Cat also adds that she cooked for the group, which wasn’t really part of the question but okay.

Adam asks Porsha who she thought would make it all the way to the end at the beginning of the experiment. Porsha says she thought Tinashe would.

Porsha asks Adam if he truly thinks that he is the “Brightest Star” over everyone else at the table, and why. Adam says that he thinks he’s proven that he shouldn’t be underestimated and that he can be a serious competitor. We see a flashback of Adam promising Tinashe and Porsha that there is no way they’ll be in the bottom three if he’s Base Commander, followed by footage of him talking Andy out of putting the two of them in the bottom. We also get a clip of Adam winning the challenge last week. “And I’m so proud of myself that I made it this far,” Adam continues. “And in my own eyes, I feel like, yes, I am a bright star.”

In his voiceover, Adam says, “I’m going to be honest. At this point, I don’t know if Porsha sees me as a serious contender or a serious crewmember.”

Paul asks Tinashe how she deals with failure. Tinashe says that she’s faced a lot of moments that she could have taken as a failure, but that in those moments she chose to be resilient. 

Tinashe asks Paul if he feels like he deserves to win over people who have been there longer. Paul responds by telling a story about getting stabbed and almost dying in his early twenties, and then William Shatner asks him if that experience helped him on Mars. (Yes, Captain Kirk. Surviving a murder attempt definitely carried over into pretending to be an astronaut for a week and a half.) Paul says his life has always been about starting at the bottom and rising above.

Question time over, Shatner tells them that they are all wonderful. He instructs them to go put on their spacesuits, because the time has come to cast their votes for the most mission critical crew members, and the two people with the fewest votes will immediately be extracted. 

Adam says in his confessional that when push comes to shove, he will fight for what he wants, and that he’s stronger than he looks. “People are going to have these subconscious biases about keeping their friends in the experiment,” he continues. “But here’s the thing: at this point, it’s just about who has played the game the best.”

When the crew gathers again they are all pretty nervous. (“I’ve peed 100 times today,” Adam tells the others.) Cat is feeling confident which seems silly because she’s clearly outnumbered by the Porsha/Tinashe/Adam faction. Lady AI tells them to rank the five remaining players, including themselves, from 1-5 (most critical to least).

Shatner collects their ballots and pretends to do the math in .5 seconds but you know we had a cut while the producers figured out the tallies. Anyway, he announces the first person who is safe: Tinashe. Not a surprise at all. Girlfriend made it through this entire experiment without ever being in the bottom three!

The second person who is safe is Porsha. She’s thrilled.

We’re dealt an excruciatingly long reality tv pause before the next name. (Adam: “I feel a little like I might have diarrhea, but I think that I’m going to hold it in, because I’m wearing white.”)

And the third and final person advancing to the final part of the experiment . . . is Adam!!!! Yay! 

“OG Three! OG Three!” chants Tinashe. Adam gives everyone hugs, as his voiceover says that it just feels right that the final three are all original crew members, and how happy he is that he gets to be there at the end with two of his closest friends from the entire experience.

Cat and Paul say their goodbyes. Cat says she really thought she was going to go all the way, but gives credit to Adam, Tinashe, and Porsha for a game well-played. Paul says it’s been a fun ride.

The final three embrace, grinning from ear to ear. 

“It’s so dumb, I’m so excited,” Adam says, pretty much summing up the entirety of the Stars on Mars experience.

Shatner tells them that what he didn’t tell them earlier is that all three of them got the exact same score when the votes were tallied.

“Look at that,” Tinashe says. “Teamwork.”

Later that evening, the remaining three are having drinks and celebrating together. Tinashe says she suspected it would be the three of them at the end. Porsha says she knew it too: “I wrote it down so fast I had to slow myself down.” 

Porsha does add that she put Cat above Paul, Adam says he did too. Tinashe says she had them reversed: “I saw what I needed to see earlier. I respected the fight, but . . . even picking Lance as her mission specialist. I was like, ‘this is a strategy, because this doesn’t make sense.’” Tinashe also says it rubbed her the wrong way that every time Cat cooked she made a big deal of letting them all know how lucky they were she was cooking for them.

The group says goodnight to Lady AI and Lady AI tells them that she is very happy to have the three of them there.

After commercials, the crew is waking up on Sol Day 20 and the very final day of this lunatic experiment. Tinashe and Adam are shown working on their message “to the world.” (LOL.) Adam asks Porsha if she’s done hers yet. She says no, it’s just thirty seconds, and Adam is APPALLED that she is apparently just going to wing it.

We get another montage of the final three walking in full glam and slow motion down the hallway in their spacesuits. Porsha has put her long wig back on. Shatner is making them wait, and they pace nervously in the command center until Shatner appears with three tablets under his arm.

“It’s a big day,” Shatner begins, running down all the things they’ve endured to get to this point. And then, the final mission assignment. Out there in the “Martian desert” there are two satellites, which will be used to broadcast their message to the world. The first person to assemble their satellite and transmit their message will be the Brightest Star in the Galaxy. But before they can get to the satellites, they have to take a quiz about Mars facts. The first two people to answer enough questions correctly will proceed out of the hab to the satellites, and the last person will be eliminated.

Adam says that he read the Mars manual “every chance he got” but that the facts might be a little muddy.

Shatner passes out the tablets, and then leaves - punching the “Do Not Push” button on his way out with a “WOO!” He really is charming and I cannot get over the fact that this man is in his nineties. He saunters out of the hab with a “good luck!” as the hab begins at countdown to the end of life support systems. The group has five minutes to complete the quiz.

“Damn,” Adam says. “That’s what that button did?”

“Yeah,” Porsha replies. “I pushed it the first day.”

Everyone laughs.

The quiz starts: “I feel like I’m taking a written test at the DMV,” Adam tells the others.

I’m not going to run down all of the questions that are on this quiz, because listen, you can just google Mars if you want to learn about it. But five questions in, everyone is tied with three correct answers. “I really thought I knew this stuff,” Porsha says.

“Me too,” Adam replies.

Adam takes the lead with the sixth question, and needs just one more question correct to advance. He gets the next question wrong and Porsha and Tinashe get it right, so now everyone is tied again. Everyone is VERY NERVOUS.

The next question is “Who was the first person to see Mars through a telescope?” with the choices Copernicus, Galileo, and Johannes Kepler. Galileo is correct. Tinashe curses.

“Mission complete!” Adam shouts, excitedly. The other two cheer for him as he sets his tablet down and hustles out of the hab. Adam leaps on his rover, saying, “Let’s go, baby!” and he looks like a little kid in his glee. It’s cute.

The next question is about the diameter of Mars. Tinashe gets it right. “I love you!” she yells to Porsha on her way out the door. “I’m on your ass, Adam!” she shouts as she gets on the rover.

Porsha heads out of the hab for her extraction, saying that she’s ready to go home and conquer some stuff. “For my daughter to see this, it would be such a positive and motivating thing for her.”

Adam is racing through the desert on his rover. “I want to win this experiment so badly,” he says. “Because I love patches.” LMAO.

He pulls up next to the satellite assembly station, where Shatner is waiting. Shatner tells him that there’s a brief with instructions in the back of his rover. Lady AI informs us that each contestant needs to hook up a series of cords and wires to the satellite, but each cord goes in a specific spot. The instructions illustrate what goes where. After the satellite is assembled, they will insert the disc with their message to Earth. The first satellite to begin broadcasting will be the winner.

“In my entire life I have avoided all instructions,” Adam tells us, as we see him start to unload cables and plug them in. “And I thought, ‘why would I start today?’” 

As someone who has watched literally every season of The Amazing Race, I know that not reading the instructions ALWAYS comes back to bite you on the ass. So this is not a great start for Adam here.

Tinashe is still driving. She says she’s feeling very zen as she pulls up to Shatner, who congratulates her on her driving and cool skidding stop.

We watch them put together their satellites for a while. Adam pulls out to an early lead, but we do see Tinashe actually reading her instructions which she says was “very helpful.”

This is when Adam realizes that the cables have to go in specific places. “Oh, Adam,” Shatner says as one of the satellite pieces falls over. “You have to have the right length cable!”

“Got it, mister,” Adam says, sounding annoyed, and I wonder if this is also how he responded when Raf gave him a correction that he had already identified himself. 

“Am I having a lot of trouble?” Adam asks us. “Uh, yeah. The issue is that I didn’t read the directions and I really should have.” 

So Adam starts redoing his cables, and Tinashe begins to catch up. Shatner alternates between heckling and encouraging them both and I desperately wish he would have said “Come on, buddy!” just to make the world’s most niche joke for fans of The Runthrough. Adam is spinning in circles looking for one of his cables. “Where is this bitch?” he mumbles to himself.

“Oh Adam, for God’s sake,” Shatner says, his head in his hands, as we go to commercials.

When we return, Adam is explaining that he was feeling frazzled. “Some of my cables were in the wrong place. William Shatner was yelling at me. And now Tinashe is going to win!”

Tinashe says she knew right away that the cables went in specific places, and that she could tell she was catching up. Tinashe connects her final cable and officially pulls ahead of Adam, and moves on to connecting her wires.

Shortly after, Adam gets his last cable connected. Tinashe is struggling figuring out the wires, and so is Adam: “Are we still using wires?! It’s 2023!” (“Go the *bleep* in!” he tells the wire he’s working with, trying to get it to connect.)

Adam takes the lead again and Tinashe says she was disappointed she couldn’t hold her advantage. She’s frustrated and finally asks Adam for a hint. “Just flip them around, you’ve got it!” he tells her. She gets her first wire connected.

All three of them - Tinashe, Adam, and Shatner - are sweating. Shatner has more flies landing on his face. “Oh my god, I’m doing all this for a *bleeping* CD-ROM!” Adam exclaims, as Tinashe laughs.

They are neck and neck until: Adam gets his final wire connected. Triumphant music swells and at this moment my friend messaged me, “Oh my god is Adam going to win Stars on Mars?!”

The answer is yes, yes he is. And Adam is as incredulous as we are: “I can’t believe it.”

Adam inserts the DVD with his message on it into his satellite. He pumps his fist as Tinashe and William Shatner cheer. Then - and this is so freaking funny - we see the message he has recorded, but the producers have CGIed it so that it appears like the message is playing to packed crowds in Times Square, Red Square in Moscow, Vatican City, and Sydney Harbor.

Here is his message in full: “From Mars, this is Adam Rippon. When I began my journey here on the Red Planet, I had no idea what to expect. I quickly learned that being hot doesn't make you a great astronaut, which feels like it should a little bit. More importantly, I learned that life is all about the journey and the connections you make. So let the ones you're close to know how much they mean to you as often as possible. I'm sending you so much love and I can't wait to see you back on Earth.”

I appreciate that Adam opened and closed this series talking about his hotness. Never change, Adam.

“You have won,” Shatner says, as Adam and Tinashe high five and celebrate. “Adam, my darling. You are wonderful.” He hands Adam his grand prize, which is literally just . . . a patch in a little plaque. I need you to understand that on first viewing I did not stop laughing for basically the last ten minutes of this episode because it is, forever and always, just. So. Dumb.

Tinashe says, “Honestly, I’m so happy that Adam won. He’s had so much growth over this competition - I’m really happy for him.”

Adam spins in a celebratory circle, and gets the final word of the series: “I’m Adam Rippon, and I’m the brightest star in the galaxy.”

But the final shot belongs to one of the robot dogs, who has wandered to a billboard welcoming us to Coober Pedy, Australia. Banjo music swells as we pan back to see a highway. GASP. You’re telling me we’ve been on Earth this entire time?!

And so that’s it. We have reached the end of our Mars adventure! Adam shared some behind the scenes pictures on his instagram that made me laugh, below, and he also gave this great interview to Entertainment Weekly that I’d encourage you to read if you haven’t.

The funniest thing about this entire stupid show? I’m actually going to miss it. Who saw THAT coming??

Thanks for coming along with me on this dumb ride, all two of you who read these. 😂 I can promise that if there is a season two of this show, you will not find any recaps here.

[mowerewolf1550]

Mornings

As I sit in the bathroom, I find my eyes have fallen on a very old steel step. It folds out into 3 steps, and has a handy seat on the top step. The seat is fake leather, and I know it over 35 years old. It was my wife's when we started living together. I see splashes of paint, and I remember each one, the color, the room, and yes even the house. It takes me back a bitter road of love. The first color come from our first house. I can't say it where we fell in love, because we leaped into love. We were perfect together.I learned when people say a relationship takes a lot of work, they have no idea what they are talking about. We were married 29 years, and never had one major fight. We were like 2 perfect gears together. Another color is from our second house in Colorado. We moved there because she missed her mother. We found that even though she lived across the alley from her son, she was unable to take care of herself. She was messing up her meds and had fallen and broken her collarbone. We decided to find a house to suit both mom and us. We found a home that we loved. It was quite a drive from where I worked, about 120 miles round trip, but it wasn't about me. We moved mom with us, and my new barn became a home for a lot of junk, and my 1968 Chevelle convertible. I didn't drive it much, because it sucked gas like a vacuum cleaner. I drove back and forth to work everyday, until she was diagnosed with cancer. She had been feeling run down for almost a year. Finally her doctor had a bone marrow test, and a pet scan. It was non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and it was stage 4. I turned in for retirement to take care of her. We could not make the mortgage payment, and decided to move. Mom had passed in 2013, her last years in a home for people with dementia. Enough said. We put the home on the market. It took almost a year to sell it. I had researched other places to live. She had live in Colorado all her life except the time she lived with me in California. She told me that she wanted to move out of Colorado, because this wasn't her Colorado anymore. We ended up selling and buying very quickly. One home that I had looked at was the one I am sitting in right now, although not in the bathroom anymore. We got moved and she found a fantastic doctor. He said she needed another round of chemo, and we had a meager Christmas that year, facing another round of sickness, loss of hair, well, you get the idea. She went through 4 treatments. She wasn't that sick, and lost little hair. After the treatments she was declared cancer free. We celebrated, but I had reservations. I knew this type of cancer comes back from experience.

It did. It came back 4 times. She went through chemo, having her spleen out, septic shock from an UTI, and the death of her best friend. The 4th time she had started chemo, and got infections through her PICC line, put in for the chemo. She went into the hospital again with infections. She had done this 3 times already. I didn't know this was the last. I watch as she had ups and downs, 18 days in ICU. About 5 days before she lost the fight, she told me she was so tired of fighting. I knew in my gut I was going to lose my bride. She rallied about 3 days before the end, but I knew this happens sometimes. The doctors tried one last treatment to fight the bacterial, fungal, and yeast infections in her blood and lungs. I agreed, but the drug killed her already weak kidneys. The last 2 days I told her she could go. I prayed for her to go, as terrible as that sounds. I knew she had a fear of dialysis, and told me many times she wasn't going to live like that, having watched her first husband died from kidney failure. Everyday I go up and sit by her bed, once she was sitting up, but had to have help even to stand. The last few days as she went in and out of reality, I'd sit and quietly sing to her. When I sang "Nights in White Satin", she'd smile, except the last 2 days, but I sang to her anyway. I was called to the hospital because they said she was going. I cried all the way there. I sat until 3 am on 5/5/2022. I had to go home and take care of our animals. I intended to come right back, but like an idiot, I sat down. I woke at 8:30 am, and got in the truck. At 8:45, the nurse called and said she had passed at 8:40 am. She had told me many times she didn't want me to sit and watch her die. Well Angel, I never denied you anything. Rest in Peace my Love.

[oforthetaintedsorrow]

Tag game to better know you

Thank you @tiffanylamps @b1uetrees and @ettelwenailinon for tagging me! Sorry it took a while :’) life has been busy but I’m finally on leave babyyyy

what book are you currently reading?

I recently finished small things like these by Claire Keegan. It’s short but impactful story. I’m going on holiday soon so I’ll be starting this island of the missing trees by Elif Shafak on my flight

what’s your favorite movie you saw in theaters this year?

I’ve only seen one so it’s going to have to be across the spiderverse - I’m happy with that being my fav

what do you usually wear?

High waisted mom jeans, T-shirt, denim jacket and trainers. It used to be skinny jeans until I switched and now I can’t go back 😔 they’re just too comfy

how tall are you?

5”3/160cm but recently my friend told me I might not be (she’s taller and apparently measured 160) so I’m currently in denial

what’s your star sign? do you share a birthday with a celebrity or a historical event?

Aries, babyyy. I share with Robert Downey Jr and Thomas Jefferson?! The American Civil War ended on this date in 1856 (I’m learning new things today!)

do you go by your name or a nickname?

My name online is Lin. But I don’t really have a nickname so everyone irl calls me by my real name.

did you grow up to become what you wanted to be when you were a child?

God no, but sometimes I wish 🥲

are you in a relationship? if not, who is your crush if you have one?

No and no 😂 But I’m taking gf applications and I’m open to applying! 😭

what’s something you’re good at vs something you’re bad at?

I’m great at remembering things for work but terrible at remembering things when concerning my personal life

dogs or cats?

I like both but I prefer cats. My sister has a cat (and a puppy) and he’s the loml, my nephew. He’s beautiful and I love him so much.

if  you draw/write, or create in any way, what’s your favorite  picture/favorite line/favorite etc. from something you created this  year?

I haven’t been writing anything this year, sadly. It’s been quite hard to put anything on paper after spending hours writing the most mundane emails at work on outlook. But I’ve been making edits on capcut when I have time. Cutting a scene down and placing them to the beat just tickles something in my brain. My most recent one - the jwds Francesca, Hozier edit - is my favourite.

what’s something you’re currently obsessed with?

Trigun stampede!! It’s brainrottingly good. I can’t get over vashwood and the rare pair kniveswood has me in chokehold. If you’ve watched it, please talk to me about it 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

what’s something you were excited about that turned out to be disappointing this year?

I wasn’t excited about doing my driving test, it was something that I just really needed to get out of the way because I’ve left it for too long, but I failed and I’m kind of gutted about that because I almost passed!

what’s a hidden talent of yours?

My talent is so hidden that even I don’t know what it is.

are you religious?

No, but you don’t need the fear of god when you’ve grown up in a traditional conservative Asian household…😭

what’s something you wish to have at this moment?

Happiness. If we’re going for something a bit more attainable, I’d say a new job and finding a space of my own 😂

Tagging: @ashcrow @aaryadesu @diachia @yohussy if you want to!

[oursweetlife]

The Great Food Excursion Part 1

Welcome back lovely Foodies!!!

I’m celebrating today!!! I‘ve passed my licence test and am driving us right into a food excursion!  

That's right, we gonna eat our way through two of my favourite spots here in Durban! Next stop ....‘Lupper’ (lunch and supper) as my family likes to call it. 

First up, the trendy Vapor Cafe. Reputed as the Godfather of Prawns, this cafe sells the theme of an easy, casual vibe. Their food takes it up a notch. Awesome flavours and today couldn’t have been better because my family was there to celebrate with me  

This trendy, must-visit spot is home to multiple separate dining areas, each with its own identity and style. Today, my family and I visited the Chicago Underground. We traipsed through the diner, down the stairs. The walls were covered with bright and happy coloured graffiti. Its edgy and inviting at the same time. 

We even sat under a sign that set the atmosphere for our meal! 

For starters, we had potato samoosas. Honestly, we were mildly peckish at the time. These babies delivered!! They arrived piping hot ! Crispy with just the right amount of spiciness! 

No diner visit is complete without a deep fried chicken wing. We couldnt decide on the bbq or the thunderbird sauce...so we took half of each. It was the perfect choice for both the kids and adults to indulge. 

The kebaabs with roti were flavourful with the right amount of spice. 

The diner-style setup and menu mean that all the food is going to be hearty and delicious. Vapor Cafe delivers hearty portions packed full of flavour. The presentation lends u to feast with your eyes before your taste buds.  

Our mains included The Dons Choice sandwich (gloriously tender steak piled on top of masala chips and cheese, layers of crispy salad and then toasted to perfection.) This is comfort food done to perfection. 

There were 2 sensational pizzas. My favourite was the creamy Mississippi. With its tender and juicy prawns, a big sprinkle of freshly sliced chillies and covered in their House Brand peri peri sauce and a good dollop of cheese..... I was in SLICE heaven! (it's easy to pick off the chillies for a milder slice of heaven) 

The second pizza was the Michigan Pizza. Spicy chunks of spicy steak. Not gonna lie. This pizza isn't for the faint hearted!! 

Earning the title of Godfather of Prawns...say hello to the juiciest prawns you’ve ever had! This Prawn and chicken platter is ramped up a notch with the to die for sauce that accompanies it! Hands down, this is my favourite item on their menu!! The prawns are cooked to perfection and (no lies) if this was a chicken only dish...that chicken would be standout perfection! Succulent and juicy. The portions are fit for Kings and the quality is above par. 

Following through on the diner style ...take a look at this baby. The Godfathers choice. Mmmmhmmmm... Sink your teeth into that badboy and the flavours assault your senses! A patty topped with steak and cheese and decadent garlic polony. All layered over a crispy toasted bun with fresh lettuce, tomato and onions. Juicy yumminess in each bite. 

Alright Foodies, that's not all from me yet! Hop on over to Part two to check out dessert!

Want to visit Vapour Cafe? These are their current details: 

Address: 514 Lilian Ngoyi Rd, Morningside, Durban, 4001 

Phone: 031 303 1515 

Order: ubereats.com 

Or check out their website here:

You can depend on me for great food and great vibes. I’m always serious about food. Lets Eat, Drink and Love. 

Find me at the grub hub, and get a taste of Our Sweet Life.  

Love, 

Saaliha 

[firespirited]

Visit went really well, L is very nice with solid sense of self and determination. She's a carer on the local hospital alzheimers/dementia ward and has a refreshing positive approach that's neither infantilising nor pitying. I straight up told her how rare and special that is, psych carers who don't see their patients as full people piss me off so someone who actually enjoys their job and likes the patients? Yeah, gonna celebrate that.

She hates paperwork, keeps close ties to home though daily video chat but lockdown was rough until they found a place that had a garden, smaller space but less confining. Her husband's doing great, he's found a niche hooking up local restaurants and businesses with local produce. His psychosis was high level cannabis induced and waned as he detoxed in long mental hospital stay to make sure it wasn't the beginnings of something else. He was going through a depression found weed and got groomed by extremists in his paranoia. He's very lucky to be white, well spoken and have a mother who went to bat for him to not be criminalized but get mental help instead. I can't help but wonder how many second chances he got that my ex neighbours his age and less messed up didn't get for being poor and half north african though nearly passing physically, they never nailed that proper 'respectability' tone and body language.

Elisa, 4, was utterly adorable, whip smart, self assured and very at ease. She spends a lot of time with her grandma our friend J and is thriving. Baby Jack fell asleep a few minutes in, he's huge for 5 months and both kids have the most gorgeous big dark brown eyes. Elisa had insisted on the visit so she could meet the doggies and another Elisa(beth). This was Talia the chihuahua's first encounter with a child on home turf in close quarters and it went well until things got a little loud and Talia snapped just the once at Lily the dog as a way of releasing stress so I lifted Talia out of the little girl's way so she could refocus and come back if she wanted to engage. Within 10 seconds the wild fearful look was gone and she gradually returned to look at Elisa and let herself be petted but keeping an eye on an exit. Lily is the most chill dog I've ever had so she just lay next to the little girl and had a fisher price phone put to her ear and her back lump palpated just completely unbothered.

With L we were able to talk about culture shock and switching languages (mostly because i was thinking in English again and having to mentally translate which is the stupid way instead of brain switching to full french), island culture... though her island is considerably larger and more complex than the UK obviously. Then her and sis bonded over being little sisters and the joys of annoying big sisters. She's considerably younger so we're not really the right peers, I do hope she meets some nicer folks her age, maybe at kiddos preschool.

It's hard to tell if it was a pity visit or curiosity or if she made a new point of contact in town. Kiddo had a great time and our full attention. It's hard to tell when you're disabled until people follow up.

Talia passed the "multiple people including an inquisitive child" test without having a freak out so that's an excellent sign, it's odd seeing her wrestle with her very strong protective and fearful instincts. I've had dogs fight their prey drive, Lily is food obsessed to the point she'll forget everything else which is why I still have to test her on food theft regularly but Talia's natural state is like fight or flight and you can see her little brain whirring about all she's missing out on by being fearful.

We decided to unmask since we were all vaxxed and the windows were open and I'm really glad to have been able to lip read as L's french was dialectical (dialectic?) Keeping an eye on dogs and listening to lil Elisa chat away made it very hard to tune in properly to her mum. It helps the plague anxiety that her work took PPE and distancing very seriously from the start. I felt less uncomfortable than I have with most neighbours who have a "qué séra, séra" approach to illness (except for the three months after Granny M got covid and realised it was as nasty as her former husbands emphysema... then forgot) . I don't want to live in fear but I can't shake the memories of putting sis on the cpap 24/7 for a week and the first time I looked at myself and was yellow. Oh I had fructose sugar and real sugar today, we made low sugar gluten free chocolate cake - we'll see how well that went tomorrow.