#but yeah. It’s not that boyfriend. I broke up with him very beginning of 2022. one of the best decisions ever

[percabethfangirl]

Boyfriend just told me that I’m a very cuddle-able person and give amazing hugs… 10/10 one of the best compliments I’ve ever gotten 🥹

[baileys-writing-desk]

Gulliver’s flashback (excerpt from “summer vacation”- chapter 2: “Old Friends”)

full fic on my AO3. i’m writing a new one about the time he remembers and lemme just say, poor gulliver. :(

…

Summer 2022

It’s not until they turn onto a new road that his surroundings begin to click; it feels like he just stepped back in time. He slows down a bit, since he is at the back of the group anyway, to take a closer look. First is a small library, the one where he spent hours reading in a soft bean-bag chair…and where he bought loads of books that cluttered his room afterwards, most of which he barely opened. Second, right across the street, is a seafood restaurant he went to a couple of times; he figures it was when he and Lemuel were crewmates, before he moved here. He had eaten a plate of fish one night that his stomach didn’t agree with, and he doesn’t remember returning after that. A few more places catch his eye, like a souvenir shop full of mostly useless trinkets and a mini food mart, but a couple are either boarded up or completely different businesses now. It surprises him that most of it is still there; after all these years he would have guessed the shops he remembered would be long gone.

When he notices the final building before the intersection, his heart skips a beat and his legs stop walking, freezing him in place. There, right in front of him, is the place where he spent the most miserable time of his life: Tiny Lily’s Tiki Bar. After his horrific breakup with Lizzy when he was twenty-six, he went there very often for a while…almost every day. He recalls living in despair for many months, maybe even a year or two, either drinking himself to sleep at the bar or locking himself in his apartment. Thank goodness I don’t live like that anymore… His chest aches as it all comes back to him.

“I can’t believe this! After FOUR YEARS together, this is what it’s come to?”

He stood in the living room of their apartment, red in the face and fuming. Lizzy stood across from him, arms folded across her chest.

“Gulliver, I’m so sorry…” she pleaded, “I can explain…”

To him, her begging was meaningless. They were just empty words, nothing that would cover up what she’d done.

“No, you can’t! You’re betraying me, Elizabeth! So, I guess I mean NOTHING to you now. Everything I did for you…for what?! So you could just abandon me?!”

He could barely contain himself, for at that moment he broke out into sobs. Lizzy couldn’t do anything to comfort him…what did it matter anyway? His life was already ruined. He would never be able to trust anyone ever again…

“Gulliver! Hello?...Are you listening?”

The sound of Wilbur’s voice snaps him out of the memory. He turns his focus away from the bar and over to his boyfriend, standing right in front of him with a puzzled expression.

“Is everything alright? I couldn’t reach you for a second there.”

“Yeah, it’s fine. I, uh…just had…well, a horrible reminder of my past.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry.” Wilbur glances over his shoulder, where Mia, Orville, and Daisy are all waiting. “Well, you got me worried there, baby. We crossed the street and you didn’t follow. Are you okay to keep going, or do you need a minute?”

“No, I think I’m okay. I want to leave this road anyway.”

Wilbur agrees, gently grabbing onto one of Gulliver’s wings. The two slowly cross the street together and meet up with the others. Fortunately for Gulliver, he doesn’t need to explain the whole story; Wilbur already knows about his thing with Lizzy, so he just says that the bar triggered the memory. After a brief apology and a ‘no worries’ from Mia, they continue on toward the park.

[merakiaes]

Movie Night - Xavier Plympton

Pairing: Xavier Plympton x reader

Requested: Yes. 

Prompts: None. 

Warnings/notes: Very bad smut ahead!!! It’s not proofread so I apologize in advance for any possible mistakes. I get really bored and impatient when writing smut for some reason so I’m sorry if it’s bad and short. I had to cut it off at the end because I just couldn’t find the inspiration to continue😅 I hope you like it anyway and please request more for Xavier. Preferably non-smut.

Wordcount: 2022

Summary: Movie night takes a pleasurable turn. 

Your eyes scanned the pile of VHS tapes on the floor in front of you with an unimpressed stare, your tongue smacking against the back of your teeth to further prove your sour mood.

“Xavier, you didn’t get any of the ones I asked you for.” You complained, tearing your eyes away from the crappy excuse of a movie collection to look at your boyfriend who was currently keeping busy by setting the channel in on the VHS player beside you.

He didn’t look at you, simply continuing to press away on the remote. “They were already rented, what was I supposed to do?” He asked, clearly annoyed. “Hunt the people down and tell them it was our turn?”

You glared at him, but nonetheless went back to looking at the tapes in front of you. “All of these suck.” You kept complaining, your face instantly pulling into one of disgust as you picked one up. “Like, Night of the Lepus, really, Xav?”

“What?” He asked, aggravated, and turned to look at you, throwing his arms out in exasperation. “You always go for the creepy stuff, I thought you’d like it.”

“Yeah, nothing as scary as killer rabbits.” You muttered under your breath, rolling your eyes.

Xavier sighed, going over to the coffee table in front of the couch and putting the remote down, finished with preparing the TV for the movie. “I tried, alright?” He said, defeated. “You’re not exactly easy to satisfy. You treat movies like they’re one of the Seven Wonders in the world, or something.”

You sighed and slumped slightly where you sat, taking one last disappointed glance at the collection of films before dropping the tape in your hand and standing up, walking up to your boyfriend.

“I know, baby. A for effort.” You mumbled, taking the collar of his shirt in your hands and straightening the fabric out slightly before looking up to meet his eyes. “We’ll just have to watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

He groaned, letting his forehead fall against yours. “I’m not watching that movie again.” He said, but you knew better. He always did what you wanted, no matter how much he said he wouldn’t.

“You should have thought about that before you chose the worst movies to ever be produced.” You chuckled, bringing your hands up to the back of his head. “And besides, it’s a classic.” You shrugged, rubbing your fingertips against his scalp.

Weaving your fingers through his hair, you stayed silent for a moment, before pushing away from him again and taking a step back. “Now go get me my Nerds and I’ll put the movie on.”

He grumbled under his breath, obviously disappointed when your fingers disappeared from his hair. But a smirk quickly made its way onto his lips and he took a step closer to you to make up for the one you had taken back.

“Have I ever told you how hot you are when you’re bossy?” He mumbled, circling his arms around your waist and pulling you into his chest, burying his face into your neck.

You smiled at his words and affectionately horny behavior and rolled your eyes when his hands slid down your waist to grab at your behind.

Slapping his hands away, his head came back up from your neck, looking into your eyes smugly.

“Nerds. Now.” You ordered, and he chuckled, letting go of you.

“Fine, fine, I’m going.” He said.

“I want the-“

“The blue ones.” He interrupted you, bending down to place a chaste kiss to your lips. “I know, babe.”

You smiled and shook your head as he retreated into the kitchen to bid to your wishes, doing as promised and starting the movie you had seen more times than you could count on two hands.

Xavier came back into the living-room only a minute later with the Nerds and two cans of coke, setting them down on the coffee table and making himself comfortable on the sofa while waiting for you.

Once you had successfully started the movie, you put the case down on the TV stand and went to join him in the couch, plopping down on his lap into which he welcomed you with open arms, wasting no time in hugging you into his chest and beginning to feed you your beloved blue Nerds.

Xavier attempted to chat through the first then minutes of the movie, but was quickly shut up at every try when you would forcefully turn his head towards the TV and tell him to be quiet.

He shut up from then on, and you were about halfway through the movie when he spoke again, his fingers poking your side slightly. “Hey, babe.” He whispered right beside your face.

You hummed, eyes stuck to the TV screen for another moment before you slowly turned your head to look at him, your eyes questioning. “Hm?”

When he caught your eye, he smirked, and stuck his tongue out at you, revealing a bright red color from the Nerds he had eaten. “Want to make purple?” He asked, already knowing the color of your tongue.

His question instantly brought a smirk to your lips, and you hummed, pretending to think for a moment although in reality, it was just that simple for him to steal your attention away from the movie.

He nudged his nose against yours playfully, and after a moment of just smirking at him, you turned around in his lap so that you were straddling him.

“This movie is boring me out, anyway.” You admitted lowly, bringing your hands up his chest and along to his jaw.

His hands found their place at your sides, squeezing the soft flesh gently to bring you further down on his lap. “I thought you said it was a classic.” He challenged, quirking a brow.

Leaning in closer to him, you chuckled. “It was. The first twenty times.” You agreed, letting your lips brush against his, teasing him. “But I’m currently at time thirty-two.”

Your words brought a snicker from your boyfriend’s lips, but still, he played along, teasing you right back by slowly starting to inch your shirt up. 

“You’re keeping count of how many times you’ve seen a movie?” He asked lowly, amusement evident both in his voice and his darkened eyes.

You took a firmer grip of his face in your hands and surprised him by grinding down on his already hardening length. 

“I’m starting to think you don’t know me at all.” You teased, and the sudden pressure caused him to suck in a long breath, his head lulling back against the backrest of the sofa.

“Oh, I know you, baby.” He answered in a breathy voice, his chest heaving up and down and his hands squeezing your waist harshly in a desperate attempt to calm the building anticipation.

You chuckled at the effect you had at him. Teasing him was something you would never get enough of. He took a moment to collect himself, before bringing his head back up.

This time, it was his turn to take you by surprise, hastily flipping you over so that you were lying down and he was hovering above you. You squealed with laughter at the sudden movement and wasted no time in getting comfortable, circling your arms around his neck.

He stared into your eyes, trailing his hand up your bare thigh and under your skirt. “I know you better than anyone.” He smirked down at you, and finally closed the gap between you, pressing his lips to yours as his fingers made contact with your core.

But he broke the kiss almost instantly, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise as he looked at you. “No panties?” He questioned slyly, and all you did was smirk in response.

“A girl can always hope.”

He laughed, shaking his head as an evil grin overcame his face. “Oh, you’re bad.” He commented, and you returned his smirk with twice the amount of devilishness.

“What can I say, you’ve rubbed off on me.” You replied, and pulled him back down to you before he got the chance to say anything else, crashing your lips together again.

And he did nothing to protest, melting into it at once, and wasting no time in getting to work underneath your skirt.

You gasped against his lips as his thumb grazed over the sensitive bundle of nerves, your head digging into the pillow underneath it and your head automatically tilting upwards, once again breaking the kiss.

This time Xavier simply moved along down your jaw and to your neck, where he latched himself into your sweet spot, licking and kissing and sucking at it the way only he could.

You moaned at the feeling, your chest tingling, and he chuckled against your skin as he let one finger trail down your slit to your entrance, rubbing the wetness around.

“Oh, you’re really bad, aren’t you?” He mumbled against your skin. “Already this wet.”

“Mhmm.” You hummed excitedly, drowsy with arousal, squeezing your eyes shut as he slowly slid a finger into you. “All for you, baby.”

He moaned at your words, bringing his head up from your neck and re-attaching his lips to yours. 

“You know you drive me crazy when you talk like that.” He spoke against your lips, and you could only moan in response as he slid another digit in, slowly moving them in and out of your head while rubbing your clit with his thumb.

Your heart increased in speed for every pump, and your hands moved almost as if on their own, leaving the back of his neck to start working on the zipper of his sweatshirt. You pulled it down quickly, and let out a whine when his fingers slid out of you to help you get the shirt off.

At this point, you were both too eager to take your time, hurrying out of your clothes. Once you were stark naked and pressed against each other, you let your hand wander down to his length as he re-attached his lips to yours once more, and it only took one simple touch to feel that no more foreplay was needed.

You used your thumb to spread a bit of precum over the slit of his hardened member, and he moaned, his head falling into your neck as he was unable to focus on the kiss at the sensation.

“Shit…” He cursed into your ear, a sound that was unlike no other and only managed to set your body even more on fire.

Without wasting time, you lined him up at your entrance and then let your legs circle around him, drawing him closer and slowly easing him into your heat. At the feeling, your head fell back with pleasure, and both of you moaned in sync.

Within the next second, he was snapping his hips into yours with hard and rhythmic thrusts, the two of you a moaning mess. Your hands automatically found their way to his hair where they wasted no time in beginning to tug at the strands, just like you knew he liked it.

Too busy concentrating on the pleasure at hand, you completely missed the way his hand slid down between your bodies, only realizing where he was going when his thumb once again made contact with the throbbing bundle of nerves.

You moaned out at the intense feeling rocking through your entire body, tugging even harder on his hair.

“Xavier.” You moaned his name, to which he responded by increasing his pace, moaning into your ear at the sound of his name falling from your lips.

The two of you fooled the rest of the night away with Breakfast at Tiffany’s playing in the background, but as you might have guessed at this point, Holly Golightly was long forgotten. 

All you could focus on was each other and the pleasure you created together until you had no energy left to use and fell asleep in each other’s arms.

You may not have gotten lucky with the movies, but you could still say it was a very successful movie night.

[burritodetodo]

Burrito’s Guide To Survive Coronavirus Quarantine

We got to keep social distance (1 or 2 meters each other) or stay home during coronavirus outbreak so I thought I can share with y’all some things I’m gonna watch or do doing quarantine (this is a very long post, REBLOGS ARE VERY MUCH APPRECIATED!).

BUT FIRST SOME RULES:

Wash your hands: do it for 20 seconds or a while, but ALWAYS do it. It prevents the virus from spreading. If you don’t have sanitizer, water and soap! The cheapest and best ally against the disease.

Buy everything you need: if you can, try to buy stuff so you can stay some days at home. If the place is crowded, go back home and come later when it’s more empty. Same as medicine.

You can go for a walk: stay at home all day can be overwhelming for your mental health, but unless the goverment puts a curfew or gets strict about it you can go walk outside for a while always respecting the 1 or 2 meters from other people and without making contact (chatting) with other people. This ain’t my rule, a CDC professional says. DON’T go visit your friends or to crowded places such as bars, restaurants, shoppings, etc. If you want to buy something, ask for delivery or take away.

If you have coronavirus sympthoms (high fever, diarrhea, cough, feeling tired, breath difficulties) DON’T GO TO THE HOSPITAL YET, CALL TO YOUR PUBLIC HEALTH ORGANISATION OR WHATEVER YOU GOT AND THEY’LL TREAT YOU.

(credits to whoever made this meme)

SO YOUR LIFE IS ON QUARANTINE

Let’s say your boss or your school told you can stay at home. Okay then, you gotta prepare for some days inside *Isolation by John Lennon plays in the distance*. The first thing you think is you have to prepare a batch of series and movies to watch in order to kill some time. I’m gonna recommend you some you can find on VOD or cable, if you don’t have it don’t worry because I got you covered!

Infinity Train: a yet two seasons saga about people who got to face their problems aboard an endless train. The protagonists are joined by creatures who have different nature and help them, or not, to acknowledge their issues and leave the train. It’s on CN, it will continue on HBO Max.

The Owl House: a teen girl who daydream a lot was going to be sent to a down-to-earth camp but then she crosses a portal to the Boiling Isles, a magical world where she is taken care by a powerful Owl witch/saleswoman and her adorable demon. Lots of fantasy, some action scenes and many many puns. It’s on Disney Channel, it’ll be on Disney+ in some weeks.

Primal: Genndy Tartakovsky delighted us with the alliance of a caveman and a dinosaur, two rivals in a wild world who ally after facing a devastating event. It IS brutal and beatiful, has no dialogue and keeps you watching closely. Five final episodes are set to premiere this year. It’s on Adult Swim, maybe on HBO Max.

Tuca and Bertie: for the critics, one of 2019 best shows. For Netflix, a show that had to be cut off because the studio unionized. Two friends in their late 20s face changes in their lives: from living with a boyfriend and plan a life to look a way to stay sober and get a job. Deals with trauma, ptsd, anxiety and more harsh moments very well. In fact, the creator is a vital part of Bojack Horseman! It’s on Netflix.

Aggretsuko: red pandas are cute eh? But what about a antopomorphic red panda who releases her anger and frustrations by singing at a karaoke? This awesome comedy by Sanrio & Netflix is one of anime’s big hits lately. Like T&B, has a good handle of adult problems but not going too deep just to not break the comedy. You can watch it on Netflix.

Regular Show: yeah-uuuuhhhh! Eight seasons, a movie, five Halloween specials and some others. The adventures of a racoon and a blue jay with their co-workers/friends that relies on psychadellia and 80s and 90s nostalgia. It begins good, gets better, then lowers the quality (they were producing the movie at the same time tho, give some credit) and with and after the movie ends awesome. It’s on CN web, dunno if on Hulu (US only) and proably on HBO Max.

Evangelion: it’s a classic at this point, but addictive to me because I end rewatching the series or the final movie many times. A post apocalyptic future where the world has to deal with strange creatures known as the Angels and a boy with lots of traumas has to get on a mecha to save the humankind. All the characters have traumas and issues, the interaction between them or the action makes it worth. The End of Evangelion is a movie that ends the unfinished series. Warning: at some point it becomes very twisted and there are scenes which are too much violent. Viewer disclosure etc. It’s on Netflix worldwide.

Steven Universe & SU Future: this is the tale of the gem boy who ends a galactical tyranny and brings democracy to the universe. A acclaimed show that broke through many topics like gender, identity, ptsd, relationships and many more. Besides it’s got the best scores of the Milky Way and beyond thanks to the talent of Rebecca Sugar, Aivi Tran and Surasshu. And the actors and acrtresses! I don’t forget the movie, a musical that is an introduction to the epilogue: Shippuden Future. The show is available on CN and will be on HBO Max. Worldwide? No news.

Adventure Time: something that began as an innocent boy and a magical dog having adventures in a post apocalyptic world turns into the journey of Finn Metens from childhood to almost adulthood. There is a lot of fantasy and comedy you enjoy, but there are dark moments and serious ones through S6 that find a balance with early seasons form S7 to the finale. It also has great music, memorable moments and colaborations. And guess what? There is going to be a special set to premiere on HBO Max in some weeks! You got plenty of time to catch up or rewatch before that on CN or only (!!) S5 on Netflix.

Final Space: a dude tries to save the universe with their friends, where we can find his love interest, a cat-man and his kitten son, a intersexual alien, an AI then robot that is the best of them, two particular siblings and an annoying bot that prevents insanity that makes you insane. Crazy adventures in space, lots of situations, sadness, an evil smol bean who is a space emperor, a dude who looks for revenge, space deities that can destroy the universe. Is this a lot or info? It is not, because there is more and you can watch it on TBS, Adult Swim and Netflix (the world except US).

Rick and Morty: the most powerful, smartest human in the universe has adventures with his grandson. It’s awesome, but has a very toxic fanbase. Anyway, you can enjoy it on Adult Swim or Netflix (which is up to date!) and the rest of S4 is set someday.

Bojack Horseman: a Hollywood satire about human relationships, fame, traumas with a pour of comedy. Alongside the previous series, the best adult animation of the decade. Sadly cut by Netflix because the studio unionized (see T&B), said by both the creator and Aaron Paul. You can watch the six amazing seasons on that platform.

I’m not an animated movies guy, but here are three I really like and you can watch:

Porco Rosso: a handsome Italian combat aviator turned magically to a pig has a face off with an American pilot hired by pirates to get rid of him before WWII in Fascist Italy. It’s entertaining and, like every Ghibli movie, nice to watch. It’s on Netflix and will be on HBO Max for US.

Lego Batman Movie: Batman is depressed and has to get over it. It’s wacky and has lots of comedy. Plus Will Arnett is top 3 Batman. On Netflix (Latinamerica).

Spiderverse: Oscar winner movie about your friendly neighbour Peter Parker Miles Morales. Miles sees Spiderman die and feels bad after being transfered to a private school. Then a radioactive spider from a Fisk compound bites Miles and he’s Spiderman... among other dimensions’ Spiderpeople: Gwen, Peni, Peter Parker, Noir and Peter Porker. It’s visually amazing. On US it’s on Netflix (I guess), on Latinamerica on HBO.

Some interesting live actions I watched lately

Atlanta: Donald Glover is Earn, a dude who struggles to find a job for her baby girld and sees an opportunity when his cousin, Paper Boi, has a hit and uses him to make his cos famous. Sometimes a comedy, sometimes a social satire with touches of drama. And all protagonists are now big shots, like Zazie Beetz, Brian Tyree Henry or Lakeith Stanfield. There are two seasons and two seasons set for 2021 (2022 possible beacuse of coronavirus). It’s on FX, Hulu (US) and Netflix (world)

Avenue 5: this is brand new. On 2060 space cruises are a thing, and one cruise (the Avenue 5) has an accident that leaves the crew and passangers stranded for years. The captain (Hugh Laurie) has to solve this shit with a bunch of incompetent crew, bosses like Judd (Josh Gad), except one female engeneer who is very smart. Lots of crazy things happen in this series from the creator behind Veep. It’s on HBO (it’s free in the US!).

Peaky Blinders: it has some years but damn it’s epic. A gang from Birmingham makes their way to the top during the late 1910s after the Great War and extends through the 1920s. S5 is right in the ascension of fascism in Britain. ALL THE CAST acts spectacular, names like Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy, Anna Taylor-Joy and a long etc. But my fave is Paul Anderson, that ultra violent junkie Arthur Shelby is splendid, then is Tommy and aunt Pol, the baddest badass woman in Britain. Blinders is going to have seven seasons, there are two left. You can watch it on BBC or Netflix.

Sex Education: speaking of Britain, excellent teen comedy. Horny, doubtful teenagers going through those hard years. Stories of sex (duh!), abuse situations, abortion, there are gay relationships either, Gillian Anderson! It’s on Netflix, go go go!

Watchmen: despite not having Alan Moore on board, Damien Lindeloff did a tremendous job with the comic. Way better and less misleading than Zack Snyder’s 2009 film, Watchmen is again at the gates of the world’s end (like today) and handles the problem of racism and white supremacy quite well. Just 9 episodes, but worth to watch. On HBO.

CAOS: Sabrina the Teenage Witch is over. Warner and Netflix made a revival of the Archie Comics character and brought her to XXI Century. But gorier, hornier, dark and magical than the nice 90s sitcom. Sabrina Spellman goes from a doubtful teen who has to decide if she has to be a witch or a powerless woman to rule Hell. How she does it? Find out on Netflix! Note: S1 and 2 take some episodes to start properly. Don’t get bored too easy.

There are A LOT MORE to recommend and I make a list: Harley Quinn (DC Universe), OK KO (Hulu -US only-), House MD, Young Justice (DC Universe/Netflix), Ken Burns’ documentaries (Netflix), Titans (DCU), Over The Garden Wall (CN), Seis Manos (Netflix), Thundercats Roar (CN), Easy (Netflix), GLOW (Netflix), Star Trek Discovery (CBS, Netflix) and Picard (CBS, Amazon Prime), etc.

- You named cool shows, but I’m not from the United States or I don’t have a subscription to (insert VOD here) because I can’t afford it

- Glad you asked, I have the answer here

Introducing Stremio. It’s an open source platform where you can watch shows, movies or even live TV on Windows, Linux, Apple or Android. You create an account, install some addons and start looking for what you want to watch.

Stremio is based on torrents, you should install addons from many known torrent sites. So maybe you find an old show, but there aren’t many seeds to watch. And it could be frustraiting, so make sure there are people sharing so you can watch it.

You can download Stremio here and check the FAQs which is very clear.

NOTE: Stremio is note quite “clean” way to watch, but if you do please support the shows you watch by posting, commenting about them, making memes, thanking the creators and crew for their work, buying merchandise if you can. They put a lot to make the shows we love, let’s give ‘em back that love and effort.

You’re tired of the same music, the same movies or need to leave something to make company? There is Vaughn Live, a streaming page where are lots of channels with movies and series on strem (not VOD). For example, there is a channel that streams Adventure Time, other Regular Show, other Sci-Fi shows, another with DBZ and so on. Take in count that if the channel has +70 viewers, the free access is cut and if you want to watch it you have to pay.

En Vaughn también hay canales en español, como Simpsonmanía, Dragon Ball, Futurama, dibujos viejos y muchísimo más. Anyway, go to https://vaughn.live/ and enjoy yourselves!

Y hablando de canales en español, pueden ir a SeriesLan donde está el mayor reservorio conocido de series animadas de entre 1960 a 2010 en español latino. Pueden encontrar tesoros desde Don Gato, los Halcones Galácticos o Street Sharks a Flapjack y Mechas XLR. Otra alternativa para que pasen el rato.

Some interesting facts:

Epic Games releases a free game per week in their store. This week will be two games. You can check in https://www.epicgames.com

Steam has good prices on games and some free ones. There even is the latest Football Manager for free until March 25th. Check on https://store.steampowered.com/

If you’re interested,

I got this playlist I made on Spotify

with songs I liked in more than one year. More than 1200 songs.

And that’s pretty much it! You got resources for a lot of days, 14 initially since that’s the quarantine time in my country. Remember: obey the indications of the Health authorities, this is no time to play the “fuck the goverment” game. We will overcome this pandemy together, helping and caring for each other. That’s why I did this guide, to keep your minds busy in these tough times! Wash your hands, keep social distance, stay at home, go outside if necessary and have some patience please. This has been a PSA.

Stay strong!

Burrito

[itsyourgirljewls]

Painted in Blue

Chapter 9:

March 4, 2022

Jake Gosling has been spotted! He wore suspenders and white shorts. He also had spiked hair and sunglasses. He took a picture with a fan and the photo reached five thousand likes in one day and it has more to come!

***

The final bell rang at the end of PE and I hurried out of the gym and ran to my locker. I had to be at Nicholas Harrison’s store by 5:00 pm at the latest. I didn’t want to work by any means. I especially, did not want to go to work when my mom’s boyfriend was the owner.

I still couldn’t believe that my mom dated him because she actually liked him. She had to have dated him because he was rich. There had to be a catch to this whole thing.

One of my mom’s girlfriends’, Nona I think her name was, was a model and earned $500,000 a year. I wasn’t so sure as to why my mom dumped her so fast. Typically, when my mom was in a relationship, she’d dump the person real quick even though she was the one who initiated it.

I felt a tap on my shoulder as I finished grabbing my books and putting them in my bag. I turned around and saw that Mike was standing behind me. He smiled and said, “You want to hang out today?”

His shoulders were raised and his smile was from ear to ear. I glanced down at his feet as subtly as possible and noticed that his toes were pointed towards me. I bit my bottom lip and ran my hands through my hair.

God I wanted to hang out with him. I really did. But… I needed the money. I did not want to be living with my mom when I turned eighteen and graduated. As soon as I graduated I was going to move out and quite possibly, live out of state.

I frowned and shook my head. “Sorry Mike…”

Mike’s shoulders sagged forward and his smile turned to a frown. It broke me a little seeing him so upset but I had no choice. Mr. Harrison offered me a job and I wasn’t going to say no.

“Why not?” Mike said solemnly.

“I have work,” I said with a shrug. I closed my locker and we began to walk out of the school building.

“Really? I didn’t know you had a job.”

“Yeah um… I just got it a few days ago,” I said.

I pulled out my car keys and as we walked to my car, I noticed he was still following. Which, I didn’t mind. I wanted to be around him. I liked being around him. He had… a calming presence that I admired and wished that I had. But… I knew that he couldn’t come with me to work, even if he wanted to.

When we got to my car, I opened the back door to throw my bag in the back seat and as I closed it, Mike said, “Where do you work now?”

“I’m not too sure. My mom’s boyfriend owns a business and offered me a job there,” I said.

“Oh. Well you should hook me up with a job. I kinda need one right about now.” Mike elbowed me and I laughed.

I sighed and said, “Well I should probably go. See you tomorrow?”

“See you tomorrow!” he said.

I waved goodbye and got into the car. Mike pulled out his phones, went on his phone and walked away, with his head looking down. I sighed, started the car and then received a text from an unknown number. I arched my eyebrow and opened up the message.

Hey Sawyer. It’s Nicholas Harrison. Here is the address to Diamond Alley. If you have questions on getting there, let me know.

-Nicholas Harrison

I put in the address for the game store and began the drive. So, I guessed he owned a video game business? Well, at least perhaps I’d get discounts for the games.

The drive to Diamond Alley was just god awful. Afternoon traffic was always the worse time to drive on the road. Pollution was clear in the air and it was very hot, considering Spring time was nearing. Though, it was always hot in California no matter what time of year it was. So Christmas, never really felt like Christmas.

Cars honked at each other and just didn’t give a car in the world about speeding through the yellow lights. The roads were filled with cars and it was as though I could touch the other car with my hand, if I just reached outside the window.

It took a good forty minutes to get from Johnathan Rowell High to Diamond Alley. I knew what I was getting myself into, but the money was worth it.

At last though, I arrived. However, finding a parking spot took me fifteen minutes and when I pulled into the parking lot, there was a huge line that wrapped around the building. Why was this place so popular? I didn’t understand, but now I understood why my mom was dating Mr. Harrison. He was rich.

I finally parked my car and quickly got out. I checked the time on my phone and saw that it was 5:00 pm when I got there. I ran over to the building and as I made my way past the customers, an older man with white hair, grey eyes and white skin said, “Get in line asshole!”

I flipped him off and said, “I’m an employee man!”

He folded his arms over his small chest and said, “Oh yeah? Where’s your boss then and your name tag?”

I rolled my eyes, ran my hands through my hair and said, “It’s my first day asshole.” I walked inside before he could finish his comment, but I did hear the other people in line protesting about my entering the store building and supposedly cutting in line.

When I walked inside, there was a woman with light brown skin, curly hair and square black glasses was at the register. She glanced at me with her brown eyes and said, “Can I help you?”

I walked over to her and said, “Hi. It’s my first day. Is Mr. Harrison here?”

She nodded and was about to respond until Mr. Harrison came from the back of the store. I saw that there was a door there, so I assumed he was coming out of his office. Mr. Harrison smiled at me and said, “Hello Sawyer. Glad you came.”

I shrugged and shoved my hands in my pockets. “Ready for your first day?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said.

He cleared his throat and pointed to the back. “Follow me,” he said.

The woman working the register waved as I walked away. Mr. Harrison took me to the back of the store. There were two doors on the farthest wall. One of them, I knew, lead to his office. Mr. Harrison turned to me, set his hands on his waist and pointed to the door next to the office door. “This is the break room where you will be clocking in every day. Your number is 8886624. Remember that to clock in. Your shifts on Saturday and Sunday are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm and your shifts Monday to Wednesday are 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm,” he said.

I nodded and he opened the door to the breakroom. Inside, there were ten tiny lockers, one long table and two vending machines. One for water and soda; the other for snacks. I ran my hands through my hair and he took me to locker number 9. He then pulled out a lock and a key from his pocket and said, “Each lock and key are personalized for the person.”

He then pulled out a sticky note and said, “Here is your code for the lock.”

“Thanks,” I said.

Mr. Harrison cleared his throat and scratched the back of his head. There was a moment of silence as we stood in the breakroom. He knew I didn’t like him. He also knew that I didn’t want to get along with him in the slightest. However, I had a feeling he was doing this for my mom. I didn’t understand why he liked her in the first place. She didn’t stay with anyone for a long period of time. She was lazy and all she cared about was money. So why bother being with her?

Then Mr. Harrison released a breath and said, “I’ll be right back. Feel free to look around.”

I nodded and he left the breakroom and headed to his office. I wasn’t sure if I was going to stay. The only thing that kept me there, was the money. Though wasn’t that every job? People worked mainly to survive. Not because they actually liked the job.

I exited the breakroom and began to look around the store. There were tons of older games and modern ones too. There were even gaming systems for sale and old-fashioned gaming systems too.

As I made my way over to one of the glass counters, Nicholas Harrison came back and held a badge with my name on it: Sawyer B. I took it and pinned it to the right side of my shirt. Then the door opened and Nicholas Harrison said, “Ah Toni. Good evening. Meet our new associate Sawyer Brown.”

She was rather tall, which surprised me. Nearly as tall as me. She had dyed red hair and pink nail polish as well. She wore bright looking eye makeup and red lipstick like Taylor Swift. Toni walked over to the time clock and clocked in before coming back over to me and said, “Nice to meet you Sawyer.” she held out her hand and I shook it. She smelled like vanilla scented perfume and I did not mind it.

“Nice to meet you,” I said with a wink.

She rolled her eyes and said, “Don’t flatter yourself. I have a girlfriend.”

I nodded and she turned to Nicholas Harrison and said, “Are you wanting me to train him Mr. Harrison?”

Mr. Harrison. I had only heard him be called Nick or Nicholas by my mom. I guessed he did own a company and had to use a professional name so it made sense.

Nicholas Harrison nodded and said, “He’ll be here till 8:00 pm today so I think you should be fine.”

She sighed, nodded her head towards the register and said, “Follow me.” I did and she took me to the register.

The lines were not something I expected, despite seeing the lines when I entered the store. An old man came up to the register and threw the game at the counter. He pulled out his wallet and chucked his credit card at me. I groaned and picked it up. “The game is forty dollars and sixty-nine cents,” I said.

“Fuck this shit! I’m not paying that much for a 1999 game!” the old man said. He grit his yellow teeth together and folded his hands into fists.

Toni stepped next to me, folded her arms over her chest, furrowed her eyebrows together and said, “Sir. We are not the ones who created the price. If you want the game buy it. If you don’t care leave it.”

“I’m not paying forty damn bucks for a stupid first-person shooter game!” he slammed his hands on the table but Toni didn’t budge.

Some of the people outside were beginning to shout in annoyance. Some people left while others stayed and pulled out their phones in case there was a fight. First day on the job and I was already dealing with a shitty customer.

“Then sir, I’m gonna have to ask you to leave or buy another game that’s cheaper,” Toni said.

“Where is your manager?” the man asked.

“My manager is not available at this time and my coworker is new. I am the person in charge.”

The man was about to grab the game until Toni pulled it out of his reach, tucked it under her arm, pointed to the door and said, “Sir. I’m gonna have to ask you to leave or I will call the police.”

“You cannot call the police on me!” he argued.

“Yes, I can.”

He slammed his hands against the table again and stormed out of the building. I released a sigh of relief and ran my hands through my hair. Toni shook her head, gave the game to me and said, “Will you put it away while I grab the next guest?”

I clenched my jaw, nodded and put the game away. When I came back, I saw a familiar face in the store. I cleared my throat, scratched the back of my head and walked over to him. I adjusted my name tag and when I stood in front of him and said, “Hey Mike.”

Mike grinned and said, “Hey Sawyer.”

He glanced over his shoulder and said, “What was that all about?”

I shrugged and said, “Some guy didn’t want to pay for a game.”

Mike tucked his thumbs in both pant pockets and said, “I guess he didn’t realize the price of the games.”

I laughed and as I was about to say something, Toni shouted, “Ay Sawyer! Mr. Harrison isn’t paying you to talk.”

I rolled my eyes and said, “I got to get back to work.”

Mike frowned and nodded. “Well… good luck.”

He then leaned forward and said, “She’s cute by the way.”

I glanced over at Toni and said, “I guess. But she has a girlfriend you know.”

“Oh. Whoops,” he said.

I laughed and said, “See you at school.”

“Yeah… see you… tomorrow.”

Mike waved goodbye and left the store. I cleared my throat, rubbed my hands together and walked back over to the register. Toni gave me a teasing look and said, “Who the hell was that?”

“Just… a friend from school,” I said as I stepped behind the register.

Toni began to help the next person and then said to me, “He seemed more to be more than a friend.”

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I’ve known him since eighth grade when he moved to California from Washington. We had been in the same class each year. We started hanging out junior year of high school. But I only considered him a friend. Just a friend.

***

It was now eight o clock at night and I had just got off work. I walked over to the time clock and when I was about to clock off, someone had just walked into the store. I looked over my shoulder and said, “Sorry man. We’re closed.”

The boy released an exasperated breath and said, “I work here.”

He walked over to me, held out his hand and said, “I’m Adam.”

I shook his hand and said, “Hey.”

Toni walked over to us and said, “Hey Adam!”

“Hey Toni! You still on for tomorrow night?” Adam asked as he clocked on.

“Definitely!”

“What’s happening tomorrow?” I asked.

“Oh nothing. We’re just hanging out. Her girlfriend is coming too,” Adam said.

Toni smiled and clocked off. “Good luck tonight. It was crazy busy!” Toni said.

“Really?” Adam flicked his blue eyes over at me and gave me a questioning look as though I were the one who caused all the problems.

“Yeah. A guy was trying to fight with me about the prices,” Toni said. She ruffled her hair through her fingers and Adam and her walked towards the front door.

I followed them and Adam said, “Damn. I’m honestly glad I don’t work the day shift.”

Mr. Harrison then came out of his office and said to me, “How was your first day on the job?”

I shrugged and said, “Fine.”

“Great. So, I’ll see you tomorrow then?” Mr. Harrison seemed genuinely happy that I had an alright time at the job. I didn’t know why he was trying to impress me, other than to show my mom we were getting along.

“Sure,” I said.

“Alright then.” Mr. Harrison turned to Toni and said, “You’ll be training him tomorrow too.”

Toni gave him a thumbs and said, “Got it sir.”

“Adam, got everything for tonight?” Mr. Harrison asked.

Adam nodded and Mr. Harrison said, “Matthew will be coming at 9:00 pm so I think you should be fine.”

“Thanks.”

“Alright then. Have a good night everyone.”

Mr. Harrison left and after Toni said goodbye to Adam, we exited the store. Toni pulled out a vape pen and said, “Do you want one?”

I shook my head and said, “I’m good.”

She nodded and breathed in the Vape smoke. I cleared my throat and said, “See you tomorrow.”

She waved and I left, heading to my car. God I couldn’t wait to go home. However, when I entered my car, I realized that my mom had texted me. I opened up the message and her text message was in all caps with a bunch of angry emojis. I sighed and read the text message.

Why the fuck did I swipe right on your history teacher Sawyer? I have a boyfriend!

-Mom

I chuckled and rolled my eyes. This really was my only form of entertainment in life. Messing with my mom’s dating life.

I don’t know. Maybe you were drunk? Why else would you keep Tinder on your phone if you have a boyfriend?

-Sawyer

She didn’t answer back.

***

When I arrived at home, the lights were all out, including the front porch light. I unlocked the door with my house key and headed to my bedroom. I released a breath, closed the door behind me and tossed my bag onto the ground. I removed my shirt and pants switched into sweats. I walked over to my bed, plugged in my phone and shuffled my iTunes playlist, which landed on Let Her Go by Passenger.

I then opened up my text messages and decided to text Lucy. I didn’t want to go bed, but I also did not want to do homework.

Hey. You up? Want to hang out?

-Sawyer Brown

A few minutes later she responded.

I’m up. But I’m at Jake’s. See you at school.

-Lucy Moon

I groaned, turned off my phone and lay flat on my back, staring up at the ceiling while the chorus of Let Her Go began to play.