#i could draw or read or doze off. for two years i would wear headphones in class. and only one teacher stopped me.

[felikatze]

that poll reminding me. not so secret feli lore i'm sure i've talked about this before. but one time in school a guy confessed his love to me as a joke (i knew it was a joke because he was part of a clique that Could Not Stand my autism swag) and he did it in front of my friends, with his friends watching from a distance, and the scenario was so absurd i started laughing at him.

Like full on fucking ojou-sama hand to my face laugh. For several minutes. It was the funniest shit to ever happen to me I just did not know how to react.

Obviously this embarrassed him and he went back to his friends. Idk how they reacted to this but over the next few weeks he would try to confess several more times. I would still laugh at him but then it got annoying. So I'd just start kicking him. Every single time he got near me and opened his mouth I would kick him in the shins. Guy was a football player but I still did it. If it came to a fight he could've kicked my ass easy i am a twig but my sheer ferocious moxie scared him.

One math teacher fucking hated this guy for being the "class clown" (read: calling everything gay and autistic as the height of comedy) so she sat us next to each other on purpose and actually gave me permission to kick him if he was being annoying.

This all came to a head on the day my best friend whom I'd had a secret crush on got rejected by HER crush, and she was crying. So to stop people from badgering her I made a distraction. I challenged my nemesis to a duel in the hallway in front of the chemistry rooms. The entire class could hear. Everybody focused on me over my crush trying to wipe her eyes around the corner.

I kept calling him a coward as he ran away from me (presumably out of fear, or because he knew that if he did fight me, he would win, but i would 100% kick him in the balls first). When the chemistry teacher arrived she made us apologize to each other and I no longer had permission to kick him publicly but the damage was done. I had a Reputation. I was Feared. I was the quiet nerd teacher's pet until anybody fucking looked at me wrong.

At the end of that school year, that entire clique decided to graduate early (which you can do, since minimum school attendance is 10yrs, and we were in 10th grade). So many students left and/or changed schools that the principal personally asked the rest of us if everything was okay. This was probably because they all had shit grades and wanted to go to an easier school, but I hated them and choose to believe my warfare efforts were also a cause for this.

[korra-the-red-lion]

Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 2: Let the Good Times Roll.

When I woke up the next morning, my eyes were achy and itchy. Falling asleep after spending most of the evening crying might have had something to do with that. I groaned as I reached for my glasses, deciding that I definitely needed a shower. I grabbed my soaps, shampoo and conditioner, flip flops, towels, and headed towards the communal shower area.

Luckily for me, there was no one here when I got there. I turned on the water, letting it heat up as I set up my things. I pulled the curtain across and got to washing all the eye boogies off my face. The warmth of the shower was very much needed as it ran down my body. I started feeling more like myself again as I scrubbed all the night grime off. I spent a few extra minutes, just enjoying the feeling of the warm water against my skin. If I closed my eyes, I could convince my mind that I felt great about this whole thing.

Then my stomach rumbled. I realized that I really didn’t have much of an appetite after my chat with dad and emotional break down with mom. I hadn’t eaten much of anything since lunchtime yesterday. The allure of food was more than enough to convince me to leave the comfort of the shower. I quickly wrapped a towel around both my body and hair. I gathered everything up and shuffled out of there. I peeked my head around the corner, feeling self-conscious of the fact that I had to go back to my room practically naked. I dashed back to my room and closed the door as quickly and quietly as possible. Sarah was still sleeping, thank God.

I got dressed and towel dried my hair the best I could. I didn’t bother with anything fancy today, since I was going to be spending most of my day standing in line to get my textbooks. I wasn’t going to wait around and end up spending hours of my school time there, so I planned to do it today.

I checked myself in the mirror before leaving. Just plain black leggings and a over large t-shirt that read ‘how-to pick-up chicks’ with a picture of a stick figure picking up a baby chicken. I adjusted my glasses to make sure they were straight, and I tossed my hair over to one side, trying to give it some style. I said I wasn’t going to be fancy, but I’m also not going to go out looking like I woke up from a rager.

I grabbed my purse, student card and my phone, and left the room. The sun was shining brightly overhead once I got outside, trying to squeeze out those last few days of summer. It felt good on my skin, and I thought about maybe eating outside. That would be nice.

Yawning as I made my way to the meal hall, my thoughts of my new classes and the new people I would meet wormed its way into my head. I knew I would do well in most of my classes, except for maybe some of the science ones. The issue was making friends. It’s not like I had hard a terrible time making them or anything, but my disposition ended up pushing away a lot of people. Then of course, the conversation I had with my dad popped up like an unwanted house guest. Dammit, he really knew how to get in my head.

I was practically storming as I walked into the meal hall. It was actually nicer than I thought it would be. There was quite bit of space, with nice large tables. It was also clean, which was a huge plus. Of course, move in day was literally yesterday. Maybe give it a week or so, and it would change. I walked down the stairs, letting the smell of food knock me out of my foul mood.

I loaded my plate up with hash browns, two fried eggs, bacon, and toast. I was starving and couldn’t wait to eat. I was about to head outside when I saw familiar strawberry blonde hair and I found myself walking towards it.

Shyly I approached the table where Lyn sat by herself. She was nearly dozing off in her seat, her plate empty in front of her. I tapped her shoulder, causing her to jolt awake.

“Wha’?” she blinked a few times and looked over her shoulder, smiling when she saw me. “Oh, hey Ally, wassup?”

“I was hoping I could sit with you?”

“Be my guest,” she said with a yawn. Her hair was tied up in a loose bun today, instead of that tight ponytail she had yesterday, and she wasn’t wearing the paint either, revealing all her freckles that were splashed across her nose and cheeks, like I suspected.

“How’d you sleep on your first night? Any crazy parties for you, or was the noise enough?”

I shook my head. “I’m not really a party girl, honestly. And I mean, the noise was definitely something I need to get used to. But my roommate seems really cool and at least that’s something. I was worried I was going to have a horrible roommate, like some of the horror stories I read about.”

Lyn cupped her chin and was leaning against the table as she listened to me. I wonder if anyone ever told her she had an intense stare. Even in her sleepy state, I know her focus was entirely on me as I spoke. It wasn’t uncomfortable or anything like that, more like an observation. She smirked into her hand and said, “I had one of those in first year.”

“What? Really?”

She nodded, still not taking her eyes off me. “Oh, hell yeah. She was so strange. She ironed all her shit in the room, told me I wasn’t allowed to cross the line she taped to the floor unless it was a necessity, and legit told me that I couldn’t listen to my music too loudly with my headphones in. Like, this girl was on something, I swear. Eventually, I broke down and requested to be switched out. Thank God, they moved her into a single dorm, and I got to stay. That’s when Nura moved in, and she’s awesome. We get along like PB and J, you know? I’m rarely in there anyhow, with practice and work, but still. Gotta feel welcome in your own home, you know?”

She ends with that a lot, I noted. It was endearing. I nodded in agreement. “I get that. Sometimes it was hard to um…go home after school. I don’t always get along with my dad, so it was awkward to go home.”

Lyn winced. “Shit, sorry. That’s crappy, not feeling like home is a safe place.” She sat up and leaned back, staring up at the ceiling. “Dammit, Hart, you ruined the mood.”

“No, no! You didn’t do that at all,” I said quickly. “I was the one who brought it up in the first place!”

“I was the one who was all like ‘feel welcome in your home’,” she groaned. “Listen, I’ll make it up to you, yeah? You can ask me one thing, anything you want.”

“That seems really extreme…”

She shrugged. “I’m pretty much an open book.”

I bit my lip in thought, not really sure what to ask her. I didn’t know her all that well, but the offer to get to know her better was intriguing. Still, nothing really came to mind, and I ended up shaking my head. “Can I cash it in later?”

Lyn laughed, “Sure thing, Ally.”

We ended up talking for awhile longer about general things, like what majors we were taking and our favourite bands. Just simple stuff. Talking to Lyn was really easy. She laughed for no reason and had an infectious smile. When she was excited about something, she ended up bouncing her leg under the table. I’m not sure what it was about her that calmed me down, honestly. But she did. Maybe it truly was just her easy-going nature, but she seemed like a genuine person. Eventually, I had to get going to grab my books, much to my disappointment. I knew that once school started for real, I wasn’t going to be able to hang around her as much. It sounded like she had a lot more on her plate than I did.

As we both stood, I worked up the courage to ask for her number. That way, I could at least keep in touch with her by text. When I did, her eyes narrowed as a smirk appeared on her face.

“Sure, totally, Ally,” she took my phone from me, her fingers brushing against my hand as she did. “I don’t usually give my number out to anyone, but I will for you, since you’re cute and all,” she handed my phone back with her smirk still firmly in place.

Damn, that something I wasn’t expecting. I know I was blushing, but I tried to play it cool. I got the feeling yesterday that Lyn was a flirty kind of person, but I’m not entirely sure what her whole situation is.

“Thanks. I just know once school starts, we’ll both be pretty busy,” I said, looking away. Yeah, play it cool.

“Totally, just playing, you know?”

“Ha, totally.”

She pulled out her own phone and checked the time. “Yikes, gotta head out for real, though. Let’s try and hang before classes start, yeah? I’ll see you around, Ally!” With that, she left. But not before giving me her signature wink on the way out.

I tried to stop myself from smiling, but it was so hard. She really did have an infectious nature to her.

XXX

As I had hoped, there weren’t that many people at the bookstore. The line was a little long, but not so crazy that I would regret my choice in footwear. The bookstore itself was small, with not a lot of room to navigate. The lady behind the counter seemingly was 100 years old and was certainly moving like one. The only reason why this was taking a long time was literally because of her.

I tapped my foot along to the song I was listening to. I have to say, while I don’t love the lyrics, drivers license was a pretty catchy song. I missed the days of women writing songs telling men who did wrong by them to eff off. There was something cathartic about it all. Still, can’t deny a good song when I heard it. I was pretty content to stand there idly until someone tapped my shoulder.

I looked over, but there was no one there. Maybe the guy behind just hit me by accident? Shaking my head, I went back listening to the music when I felt the tap again. Again, there was no one there. Slowly, I take one earphone out and can hear the sounds of someone whispering around me. My eyes widened in understanding horror of what was happening.

There’s a freaking ghost trying to get my attention.

Inwardly I groaned, but I kept a neutral face on the outside. Well, except for the frantic look around I did with my eyes. There, in the corner. I turned slowly, trying not to draw too much attention to me as I did.

There is a ghost, looking no older than me, with some fancy hair cut and a nice suit on. He’s got a wicked grin on his face as we made eye contact. He floated over to stand directly in front of me.

“So, you can see me after all,” he said. All ghosts have this tinny tone to their voice, as if they’re talking through a bad phone call or something.

I nodded slowly but don’t dare say a word. There are way too many people around right now.

He tilted his head in a mostly human way, until it creeps a little bit past his shoulder, like his neck was broken. “Can’t you speak? You’re not one of those mutes, are you? Not that that’s an issue, but I was hoping to get someone who could share my story.”

Sighing through my nose, I pulled out my phone and typed out a message. I can talk, just not here. Too many people. Can it wait?

The ghost squinted at the screen, clearly able to read what I wrote. He frowned as we make eye contact again.

Oh Christ. I didn’t like the look in his eyes. He looked like he didn’t agree with me one bit. Some ghosts understood that most people can’t see them and that it makes a person look insane if they just start talking to thin air, while others just didn’t care. I had a bad feeling that this one fell in the second category.

He reached over, his hand going through my face. I felt the cold sliminess as he pulled his hand back through, and it takes my entire will power to not shudder or vomit on the spot. I really hated when they did that.

I wasn’t sure if it was normal for them to be able to touch people. I honestly never looked into too deeply, as it was best to avoid talking about it at all. But not for the first time do I regret that decision from 14-year-old me. I should have just used public library sources and at least had a better understanding of these things. But nope, I didn’t want to do anything out of the ordinary. Stupid.

“Human, all I want is for someone to listen to me and tell them what happened,” he said snootily. He reminded me of some popular guy who was used to people doing what he wanted on the drop of a hat.

I shuffled forward in the line a little. There were only three people ahead of me. I turned my head slightly, pulling my earphones up, hoping to God it looked like I was talking into the mic. “Listen, buddy. I am very happy to listen to you, but after I get out of here!” I hissed as quietly as possible.

Now he looked pissed off. Once again, he reached for me, as if that would make a difference. Except this time, it does. I can’t help but violently shudder as I stumbled back, reeling from the sudden shock of falling to my death. I don’t know if it was murder or suicide, but regardless, I feel the impact as my body hits the ground. My books tumbled out of my arms as I began to hyperventilate.

Oh my God, breathe Ally, BREATHE!

How could I breathe when I feel my neck snapping, but I don’t die right away? How can I breathe when I feel my skull leaking my brains all over the pavement? My vision is getting narrow as I trembled on the floor.

Okayyoujustneedtotakeadeepbreathlikemomtaughtyouinandoutinandoutcountto7holdfor7right?

My thoughts were racing and jumbled, my breathing definitely not slowing down in the slightest. We make eye contact one last time, me and the stupid selfish ghost. He was looking down at me with absolutely no pity or guilt at all. The look he was giving me suggested that if I had just done what he wanted, everything would have been fine.

I closed my eyes and forced myself to take a deep breath, but it didn’t work. I was still hyperventilating, my vision getting spotty. There is someone next to me, maybe another student. Quite frankly, I don’t really know much at this point. I felt someone, someone alive that is, take my hand and help me towards the door.

Yup, this is exactly how I expected my trip to the bookstore to be.

XXX

I woke up in my own bed, my mouth dry. I remember going outside and telling them to give me my purse. I took my Ativan and got back to my residence with the help of someone. I seriously can’t tell you who. Judging from how dark it was, it must be nighttime. Groggily, I sat up and reached for my glass of water instinctively. Except, it’s not there. Because I’m in a dorm, not my house. So, there is no night table with my water. I forced myself to get up and head towards the bathroom.

I washed my face and mouth, taking sips of water as I do. When I looked into the mirror, all I saw was my own pathetically pale face staring back at me. Day 2 and already I failed dad. Goddammit, the school might call my parents to tell them I had a panic attack at the bookstore. How humiliating. Not even a day away from home and I fall apart.

I can’t stop the tears as they fall down my face. I feel like garbage and I know I look like it too. I break down, using the sink as support. I feel like such an idiot. My mom wanted me to take a year off, maybe do some traveling. She probably knew that the stress of being away from home wasn’t going to be great for my stupid anxiety. As the sobs rack my body, someone’s timid knock draws my attention.

Sarah pokes her head into the bathroom, a look of worry on her face. She walked right in and pulled me away from the sink, embracing me.

“I’m here for you, Ally.” That’s all she said, but it strikes me deeply. This girl barely knows me but is here in this stupid bathroom, holding me tightly. Goddamn, how were some people just that good?

So there we stood, in the bathroom. She just held on to me, whispering into my ear and rubbing my back. I couldn’t say or do anything, so I just rested my head on her shoulder until I finally felt okay enough to head back to our room together.

XXX

As expected, I had a voicemail from mom when I bothered to check my phone in the morning. Well, more like afternoon. I stayed in bed all day, wearing my sloth covered PJ bottoms and my favourite hoodie. I basically watched one movie after another, just to keep my mind off things. Sometimes you really needed to take a ‘me day’.

Sarah left after checking to make sure I was feeling better. She said something about getting some good food and better desserts to cheer me up. I gotta do something nice for her after I was feeling better.

I stared at the screen, wondering if I should listen to the voicemail when a text appeared there. I was confused for a minute until I saw it was from Lyn. Then shame filled me, stopping me from opening it. She probably thought it was so lame that I had a panic attack in the stupid bookstore.

So, I ignored it. I didn’t want the only other person on this campus who I knew to think I was some pathetic loser.

Well, that only worked until my phone lit up again, this time with a phone call. I really didn’t want to answer it, so I declined the call.

Sarah walked into the room, holding two huge bags. “Okay, so like, I got some super yum food to help you feel better.”

“You really didn’t have to do that,” I mumbled into my hoodie.

“Sorry? Can’t hear you when mumble like that,” said Sarah. She plopped down on the bed and opened the first bag, pulling out a bunch of Taco Bell. The second bag had cupcakes and mini cheesecakes in it. I couldn’t believe that she did all this just for me.

She handed me a handful of Taco Bell things. I wasn’t even sure what most of it was, since my parents and I rarely ate fast food like this. But my God, it smelled amazing. I opened one up and took a tentative bite. It was so good right now. It was like Sarah knew I just needed some junk, just salty goodness.

“Yas! I like, was hoping that would work,” she said triumphantly. She noticed my phone was vibrating and picked it up, staring curiously at the screen. “Who’s Lyn? She’s called you like, 3 times. Is she your sister?”

I shook my head, stuffing more in my face. With some difficulty, I swallowed and took my phone back from her. “I just met her the other day. I guess she heard about the whole bookstore incident and wanted to check in…”

“But?”

“But I don’t want her to think less of me…”

Sarah made a disgusted face. “Ally, if someone thinks less of someone because they have anxiety, then they need to like, check themselves. So many people have mental health stuff going on. Like, seriously girl. I think she honestly just wants to make sure you’re okay.”

I stared at my phone, knowing that Sarah was probably right. Still, I wasn’t sure I was ready for that conversation. What was I going to say anyway? Hey, everything is totes fine now. Just had a panic attack because some jerkass ghost demanded I see how he gruesomely died, except didn’t bother to tell me who I was supposed to tell. So yeah, basically went through something extremely traumatic for absolutely no reason at this time. How was your day?

Yeah, that wasn’t going to fly. Instead, I fired off a text that just said, I’m doing okay now. Thanks for checking in. I don’t really feel like talking about it right now.

There. Straightforward and easy. When I got a message from Lyn, this time I opened it. Ok, let me know if u do wanna talk. I’ll be here.

“I guess I should call my mom, huh?” I said, looking over at Sarah, who was attempting to stick a whole mini cheesecake in her mouth.

She smiled unabashedly at me and swallowed. “Oh, I think you like, should, but no pressure. If you need to take time, then like, take your time.”

I gave a little laugh as I handed her a napkin for her face. It felt good to laugh. Sarah laughed too, as she wiped whipped cream off her lips. She handed me a mini cheesecake and we both attempted to shove the whole thing in without making a mess of ourselves. I giggled as I tried very hard not to make a mess, only to end up smearing a whole streak of chocolate sauce on my face somehow.

Sarah wasn’t much better off, with whipped cream on her nose this time. We ended up taking silly photos of each other and drank a ton of the pop she brought from Taco Bell. We ate and joked around for the next little while, until I finally worked up enough courage to listen to my mom’s voicemail. I excused myself and told her I was going to make the call.

I sat outside, the afternoon sun warm on my face. I don’t love the idea of making this call out in the open, but I didn’t want to kick Sarah out of her room either. It is what it is, I guess. I opened up my voicemail and listened to mom’s message.

“Hey, baby. How are you doing? Dad and I got the call and I just wanted to make sure that you’re doing better? Was there something that triggered it? Or did it just happen out of the blue? Either way, just call me back so I know you’re doing better now. Love you, Alexandra. Bye-bye.”

I scrolled to my mom’s name on the call list and hit call, listening to my phone ring in my ear. She picked up after the third ring. “Hello? Alexandra, is that you, baby?”

“It’s me, mom.”

“Thank goodness! Are you okay?” I could hear the concern dripping from her tone.

“I’m doing fine, yeah.”

“Okay, I’m glad to hear it. Can you tell me what happened?”

This was the part I wanted to avoid but knew I couldn’t. I shifted to get more comfortable and told my mom everything that happened. I wanted her to understand that everything about the whole situation was basically non-consensual. If I had the choice, I never would have spoken to that stupid preppy ghost in the first place. I wondered if my dad was listening in as I explained it all. I honestly hoped he wasn’t.

There was silence at the other end while I waited for mom to take it all in. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until mom said, “Okay.”

I sighed in relief.

“It sounds like that was…different? They’ve never done that to you before, right?”

Kind of think of it, no. That was different. Of course, when I was younger, I would just speak to them normally anyway. But that? I’ve never had a ghost do that to me, ever. I’ve never felt so violated before. It was strange…

After talking to mom a bit longer, I finally hung up and laid in the grass, looking up at the clouds. Was there something about this area that made them stronger, maybe? I really shouldn’t be thinking too much about it, but I also didn’t want that to happen again. Maybe I could walk down to the store tomorrow and see if they had anything that warded off spirits. I might also do some research, just to make sure.

So much for being ‘ordinary’, huh?

[kpop-choco]

tagged by: the lovely @sly-merlin, thanks for the tag, hun!! (sorry it took so long >.<)

tagging :  @defnabeom, @actuallythatwaspromise, @softforqiankun, @bogeymanpop and anyone else who wants to join in the fun ^w^ (if any of the people I tagged - or anyone else- are curious what I would bold on your 20 aesthetics feel free to retag me  (o･ω･o) )

rules: bold the aesthetics you relate to and add twenty of your own aesthetic qualities for others to bold

soft ♡

baby pink | iridescent | glitter is always a good option | no bra | minimalistic tattoos | cherry patterns | sweet scented perfumes | wearing generous amounts of blush | doodling hearts | getting excited to pet an animal | fun nails | rewatching old barbie movies | hair sticking to glossed lips | heart shaped sunglasses | taking pictures of the sunset or sunrise | stuffed animals | protecting nature | stickers everywhere | teen movies | the light rain that falls from a clear sky at the beginning of the night |

dark academia ♡

neutral tones | masculine outfits | studying languages | worn down copy of books | grey skies | turtleneck sweaters | loose fitting pants | hair tied with a silk ribbon | trying to remember a cool difficult word you read somewhere to use in a convo | thick belts | minimal makeup | windows fogged by rain | vintage jewelry | blouses with cuffed sleeves | reading a murder mystery and trying to solve it | oxford style shoes | sweater vests | subtitled old movies in a language you don’t speak | leaves crackling as you walk | annotating books to express your emotions about the story(but i don’t have the heart to write on beautiful pages) |

edgy ♡

closet full of dark clothes | fishnet tights | makeup sweating off | neon signs | searching for unknown songs | chokers | band tees | doodling on old converses | finding smoking aesthetically pleasing but not doing it | weird humor | accidentally very dramatic (not always accidentally!) | dim lights | layered outfits | chain belts | chipped nail polish | messy hair | low quality pics | piercings | combat boots | scribbling on desks |

seventies ♡

colorful wardrobe | doodling flowers | wearing short shorts | using a bikini top or bra as a normal top | listening to ABBA | flowers in your hair | DIYing everything | jamming to songs alone in your room | drunkenly telling your friends you love them | patterned bandanas | mid heeled shoes | messy braids | flared sleeves | walking barefoot on grass or sand | bold sunglasses | the good kind of tired you get after doing something you enjoy for hours | feeding stray animals | fun patterned socks | room decorated with succulents and other plants | likes to go roller skating or skateboarding |

preppy casual ♡

collared clothes | drinking juice out of a champagne glass | getting excited to see the met gala looks | thick headbands | small pastel cardigans | making your friends take your ootd pics | plaid mini skirts | tweed two pieces | watching reality tv to pass time | frilly tops | watching old hollywood movies | academically driven | long manicured nails | new year’s eve fireworks | colorful tights | layered golden jewelry | yearns for luxury brand items | decorating your room with fairy-lights | cursive and neat handwriting | lace details

jaesmintea ♡ dia

oversized everything | painted nails | fairy lights | dozing off in the middle of class | tying hair up into a ponytail | round glasses (tho i dont wear glasses)| laughing so hard you can’t breathe | late night study sessions | tender hand holding | impromptu photoshoots | drowning in moondust | bathing in the light of the sunset | strawberry flavored lollipops | polaroid pictures | eagerly tugging someone down the street | handwritten love letters | smell of coffee | living with reckless abandon | crinkled pages of a journal | replaying the same part in a song over and over

naptimetea ♡ helena

everything black | rewearing your favorite outfit | drawing late into the night | rewatching favorite shows | the bread isle | minty lip balm | falling asleep anywhere and everywhere | making green tea | useless questions when it’s 2 am | forehead kisses | sleeping in till the afternoon | love of pink | staying up to watch the sunrise | dancing in the bathroom | messy handwriting(lol i hv both neat and messy parts) | pile of sketchbooks | talking for hours about interest | old sentimental stuff animals | hanging out on the bed and doing nothing | thick fluffy blankets

jeonginks ♡ eiko

the thrill of leaning your body way over a balcony’s edge | the suffocating feeling when the strong wind blows down your lungs | tip-toeing barefoot | hair ruffling and cheek pinching | hugging a body pillow at night | facing the sky with closed eyes | the whimsical silence when it’s past midnight and you’re the only person awake | when you can physically feel your eyes soften when you look at someone | dancing alone with only an oversized shirt | when your sweater falls over your thighs as you stand up | humming scary but memorable lullabies | vivid imagination | w-sitting with a mini skirt and thigh high socks | heated laptop on your lap | cereal at 3 am | gliding your fingers across your thighs | bittersweet melancholy | withdrawn and distant eyes | very tight belts | wanting love but not believing in it | not cruel but not kind

hae-sicheng ♡ kara

an organized mess l stepping off the escalator at the last moment l basketball shorts and sweatpants l the cool touch of jewelry l snoozing your alarm l cringe-worthy memories at 3am l chilling in your bed with your laptop screen as your only light source l dozing off in the car l the push of the wind l the sinking feeling in your stomach when the rollercoaster drops l skipping over cracks l sticking up your arm when you’re laying down l the dip of the bed when your loved one lays down l ‘this reminds me of you’ l buttery popcorn from the theaters l inside jokes l back hugs l stolen sweaters l eye contact l closing your eyes while on a swing l linked pinkies and broken wishbones l observing l vague yet specific l sleepy rambles l the melody of people l raised brows and hidden smiles

the32ndbeat ♡ qiu

solo movie dates | hunting for fun, cryptic riddles to indulge in | hot showers | headphones almost always on | loud typing on the computer keyboard | dark circles under eyes | letterman jackets | the scent of crispy toast | playing with your hair | chapped lips | screaming into your pillow | dipping your toes into a cold pool | iced tea in plastic bags | ‘lol no’ | folded arms | late night phone calls | resting bitch face | piercing stares | taking random quizzes just to pass the time | walking very fast

sly-merlin  ♡ simmi

black journals | taste of chocolate in your mouth even after hours of eating | hardbound and classic book covers| late night writing ideas | agatha christie | expensive fountain pens | antique items | middle part hair down | smell of mud after rain | attitude of superiority | how could you not know that? | disney sing-alongs | same playlist daily | pastel highlighters | black and green | whole white outfit | no makeup | be the one that rescues you | formal suits | kindness all the way

kpop-choco  ♡

old music | feeling like you grew up in the wrong era | random humming | girly things | melancholy emotions | introverted | pastel everything | gel pens | crossbody bags | mary-jane shoes | “food has never wronged me” | multiple notebooks of poetry | cotton candy | long cardigans | closing your eyes and biting your lip to hold in a laugh | sitting on a swing and reminiscing | ombre | cooking videos | quirky sense of fashion | closet gamer 

@sly-merlin thanks so much for the tag I really enjoyed doing this!! ヽ(*⌒▽⌒*)ﾉ

[leonawriter]

Fox-Faced

Read it on AO3

Fandom: Bungo Stray Dogs/Mononoke

Characters: Dazai, the Medicine Seller. Others mentioned. SKK implied.

Summary: Dazai is taking the time to contemplate how much has changed in so short a time, and his bench gets a visitor.

Notes: Dazai-typical suicide references.

(Part five of the “Not All Kitsune Have Nine Tails” ‘verse. Follows “Home Territory.” Contains important context for the previous stories.)

...

The brisk sea air is as familiar and as comforting as it always had been, even if it is deeper, more rich, and full of scents that Dazai had never known to be able to sort through or notice before. It isn't, at least, overwhelming - the city with its streets and cars and hundreds of people and all of its food and perfumes was harder for him to handle on that first night and the following day than this, which is, comparatively, peaceful and calming.

He can hear shouting in the distance, children playing with their parents and tourists from both further inland and far abroad talking about the sights in adequately amazed tones, because it is Yokohama after all, and no matter what else happened, it was still his city. Their city. The city that he and Chuuya and Atsushi had fought to protect, that he had protected even when he'd been in the mafia, that he was proud of.

He closes his eyes to focus on the sound of the waves and the cries of the seagulls, and he loses track of time. Perhaps he'd even started to doze off in the warmth of a bright, sunny day with clear skies. Normally, by this time Kunikida would be wondering where he was. Now that everyone at the Agency knew he was living with Chuuya, he won't have to worry about that... at least for a while yet.

Tap.

Tap, tap, tap.

A breath of air comes out of him in a sigh, and he neither move to create space, nor turns his head to watch, when he hears someone coming close to his bench. Heavy steps, wooden sandals. 

Ah, he thinks instead. You.

There are sounds as if something heavy is being shifted, and then let to drop onto the ground. Then, the rustling of clothes. Only after that, Dazai feels the weight of the bench shift, and a presence actually sat beside him.

If this had been an enemy, they would have had ample time to draw a gun or a knife, and his life would have been over as easily as that. In broad daylight, no less.

But it isn't, and instead of tensing - or relaxing - into the potential threats, he lets his arms drop from behind his head, and opens his eyes to acknowledge the not-quite-stranger.

Dressed in brightly-coloured traditional clothes from head to foot, with a bandana holding back pale hair that didn't - always - quite hide the earrings he wore, and only brought out the likewise pale colour of his face, the bold markings around his eyes, his nose... the man who had introduced himself as only a mere lowly medicine seller looked straight ahead, toward the Yokohama bay.

If the world made any sense, they both would have attracted a lot more attention than the few looks that were aimed their way - Dazai's illusion still held, suggesting to anyone looking their way who didn't know any better to see him as completely human and disregard the ears, the tail, the numerous other small details that marked him out as not human, but the medicine seller next to him simply... was what he was.

In a way, he was entirely on display. There wasn't a single thing about him that wasn't completely true, nothing that was hidden if someone wanted to look and actually see. 

In another sense... Dazai could still remember the other, and looking at him now felt odd, as if everything was still there, but dimmed, somehow.

He wondered, in some distant part of him, if that was how he had seemed to anyone who had seen through him and known.

"So." The world carries on around them, and if Dazai hadn't known that the word had been aimed at him, it could have been aimed at anything. The wind. The sea. Some invisible thing that a form and a reason and a truth, but no unnatural twist to its nature. But he heard it clearly enough, and there is a tilt to the medicine seller's lips. "How is life, Dazai-kun?"

All of his years, and he still doesn't know the answer to that question. He doesn't know how a normal human being should answer something like that-

He stops that train of thought in its tracks. Laughs, and if it comes out sounding odd and a little bit harsh, then it isn't as though anyone else is paying attention to them, is it?

"I woke up to a dog drooling all over me again," he says airily. "There's fur all over the house, and I need to cat-sit again later on."

"And what of Nakajima-dono?" The way that the man says Atsushi's name makes Dazai stop and blink, because he's not used to such a level of respect to his younger protege. "And Nakahara-dono?"

Hearing Chuuya referred to in such a way is only slightly less odd. Executives took respect the way most people expected to be able to breathe, after all. He knew that from personal experience, although it had never been something he had worn with comfort, much the same as the coat he had preferred to shrug off, eventually.

"Atsushi-kun is doing well enough, I think. Sometimes I find myself myself worrying, but..." I think that by this point, he can make up for his mentor's failings. Atsushi isn't so dependant on me that he needs my example, or my praise. He'll do just fine. "Chuuya is - well. We're adjusting."

"Adjustment is only natural. One hardly expects treatment to cure ailments instantly. Just as the body has its own way of healing itself when given a little help, the spirit isn't truly all that much different."

"You think living with Chuuya is like that?" Dazai tilted his head, and made a face. "I'll have to tell him when I get back. He isn't even a dog any more. He's just a medicine that I've been prescribed. One course of Chuuya per day. See how he likes that."

"What it is or it isn't is something only you can decide for yourself, Dazai-kun. Although you do look a lot better than the last time I saw you," the medicine seller added, a certain glint of amusement in his eyes. "And I would almost like to be there when you do tell him that."

No, not just amusement -  spark of mischief. Dazai went back over his own words, and found himself blushing, hard, and looked away.

For someone who seemed to spend most of his time chasing down and exorcising mononoke looking the way he did, the man next to him was far more down to earth and crude at times than he had any right to be. Perhaps this was what most people felt when they were around him too long.

Not that Dazai was going to change, not at all.

"And there I thought you respected Chuuya," he says, letting a little bit of grumble out.

Not that he minded people making fun of Chuuya. That was Chuuya, and this was- well. If any of their sleeping together had gone further than sleeping then it might not feel as self-conscious of the unspoken potential getting brought up by someone who wasn't, well, him.

The laugh he gets in response is almost startling in its honesty, ringing barks of laughter that remind him of kon kon kon, painfully familiar.

"Too much respect is just as unhealthy as too little," the man says only moments later. There's still a smile lingering on his face.

Dazai thinks of Akutagawa, whose deep respect had never grown into anything capable of seeing his mentor as a fallible person and he's glad, knowing that he hadn't been present or involved in anything to do with either of the mononoke. The first one, or him.

He thinks of Atsushi, who he sometimes worried looked to him with those same eyes, but in the next breath the weretiger would berate him for not working, or fuss over him for not eating.

Atsushi, who had once sat in this exact spot, looking out at this exact view.

"When you look out at them... what do you feel?"

For a moment, Dazai almost feels that those must have been his own words, his own question, thoughts he had wondered about and circled around for so long yet had needed to recontextualise along with so much of his life in the past week.

"Humans..." he leaned back, and thought of his conversations with Fyodor, with Shibusawa. The things that he had lived through, remembered, forgotten. "They are truly destructive, and cruel, and thoughtless creatures. I do not think that I will ever truly understand them, either." He sighed. "And yet..." He thought of Chuuya, who despite his circumstances was so very, very human. Of Atsushi, who'd had his true nature as a tiger hidden from him for so long, and Kunikida. Of others that he had met. Odasaku, even Ango. "The same can be said for even the very best of them... searching for their reason to live, like stray dogs. It is at the same time terrifying, yet awe-inspiring, the feats that they can accomplish." He smiled, wryly. Neither bitter nor sweet. "And I live balanced in the middle. But - I think I'll be able to manage."

In the distance, a child screamed as they ran. Conversations carried on.

"Oh...? I see."

A fog horn blared out at sea, coming into port. A couple not far away shared food over by the railing, with guitars on their backs. A teenager passes them by wearing headphones, and Dazai's newly sensitive ears pick up on the beats of the music.

Human, youkai, hanyou... no matter what any of them were, it was still Yokohama. It was still his city.

"It... truly is a beautiful city. More than anything else... that's what I feel." He closed his eyes, and leaned forward into the breeze coming in from the sea. "Does that answer your questions?"

"You're the one who thought that was what I must have been saying. Do you feel better for having said it?"

I hate them - I hate them, and more than that, I want - I don't understand - why wasn't I-  wasn't I... worth...

Those feelings. He remembered them, and they had been his. 

First, destroy everything that comes close, before it can touch me. Then... destroy me, for having done so.

He had felt the culmination of twenty-two years' worth of an inability to understand, which had its source in something that he had not been able to affect.

You have a choice, Dazai-kun. 

If you wish to die, then it is only a simple matter of choosing to stay. The Mononoke will be slain, and so will you. But-

But, if for any reason you should wish to hold on to even one thing...

It is impossible to both slay the monster and to take it with you.

(Kitsune, Chuuya had said, accepting him even as he stared in shock. Come, love, sleep, Chuuya had said, and his heart had wavered. They had called, and he had answered, because there was too much- he had too much- that he couldn't let go of.)

"I suppose... I simply find it hard to find the words to..."

He feels his heart beat. And another. He breathes in the salty air, and it still feels terrifyingly new. 

And yet, the idea of not being here to experience it, the idea of having vanished without a trace somewhat over a week ago - no trace of fur in Chuuya's house, not having the honour of knowing Ranpo's own secret, or of having felt how relaxing it was to have his own fur stroked as he curled up on the sofa whether he was at home or at the office...

He thinks, perhaps, it might have been a beautiful death.

But at the same time... there is only one thing he can think of, the words catching every time he tries to put them on his tongue, for what he feels about still being alive.

"Me?" He hears and feels more than sees the fact that the man next to him is shaking his head. "There is nothing to thank me for. As a mere medicine seller, there was honestly very little I could do. At the end, I was powerless. You were the one who did all of the work. All I did was give you the ability, and the means." He stood, and Dazai could see the slight smile on his face even before he turned. "If anything," he added, bowing at the waist, "I should be the one owing a debt of gratitude to you. From the moment I understood your Katachi..." The medicine seller turned his face up, eyes closed into the upturned slits of a true smile. "Come now. Kits who are blessed with so many who care for them shouldn't need to make those sorts of faces."

...

AN: There's a stealth crossover (crossover-ception? triple crossover?) near the end. I'm just gonna hope someone catches on to what and where the reference is, haha...

If by the end of reading this it isn't clear - in order for Dazai to still be alive in these stories, he had to make the active choice to live and stay alive in the moments before the Medicine Seller's sword cut. This was inspired by several of the endings of the actual Mononoke storylines, although there are elements that appeared in none of those stories that I had to work out for myself.

What this means for Dazai is not that his suicidal ideation is 'magically cured', but that he is less likely to actively seek out death. It also isn't 'knowing his past' that enables him to move on, but understanding *what* he is, and that his feelings of 'not fitting in as a human being' don't just come from nowhere. In short - he was validated.Does anyone know that one poster with the owls on it, about "I just need a stick"? That's what the Medicine Seller's getting at there.

And do I mean to imply that I see the Medicine Seller himself as a kitsune...? Well if you read it with that in mind, just... imagine being him coming to that moment of realisation of just 'what' he's up against. As said and implied in the previous fics, due to the nature and longevity of kitsune, Dazai's still considered a child at twenty-two by other youkai, more than just being seen as "barely out of his teens", so... have that for a bit of adult fear, and why the Medicine Seller is saying what he does here.

All that said, this [was] my first time writing the Medicine Seller, and I'm still nervous over whether I've got his voice down properly or not. (And given how important he is to it, you see why the previous events aren't written yet.)

[artbysarah98]

Part 2 What the f*ck is going on?

When we're young...series

Masterlist

Part 1 An unexpected turn

A/N - I've never been on an airplane before and also have no idea how a flying works or an airport. So not everything may be accurate.

Ella

"Dear passengers, this is your captain speaking. We're a half-hour away from our destination Seoul, Korea. We are starting our descend to Incheon International Airport soon. So we would like you to fasten your seatbelts, please. We hope you enjoyed your flight with Korean Air, and we wish you a pleasant stay. Upon exiting the aircraft, please take all your belongings with you," announced the pilot over the intercom first in Korean. He repeated himself in English for international passengers like Ella. This alerted Ella to sit up straight in her seat and fasten her seatbelt.

She looked around her. As far as she could see, the other passengers were of Korean nationality or at least an Asian one. A few other people stood out because they looked closer to her citizenship. She felt a little bit out of place, being one of the only passengers with a different nationality. The man on her left was one of these passengers. A middle-aged baldheaded man, around 45 years old, yet a prominent black mustache. On top of his head were a pair of glasses.

'Those must be for reading. He hasn't worn them at all during the flight. I would have put them in my carry-on baggage to not lose them, but then again, I lose almost everything with how clumsy I am,' she thought while her eyes glided down to his expensive-looking suit, 'He looks like a businessman on his way to make a new deal. I wonder where he's going.'

The man looked very tired as if he hadn't slept in days. He looked like he could fall asleep any second. He nodded his head as he started to doze off. However, a sudden gust of air caused some turbulence shaking the plane. This caused the man to straighten up, looking around for what was happening. Ella saw his eyes also falling on her. They held each other's gaze for a few seconds before she decided that this interaction became too awkward.

Ella looked over to her right shoulder. On a row behind her sat a young girl with long blond hair braided into one thick braid. The end of this braid rested on her left shoulder. Ella's eyes fell on the hair tie that held it in place. The color of it was red and had a red heart charm with a silly face on it. A smile crept on Ella's face, 'That looks cute. I wonder where she got it. Maybe I should ask her? No, that would be awkward.'

The girl looked around her age, maybe a little longer 16 or 17 perhaps. Ella saw the girl happily swaying her head along to the music she was listening to on her earbuds. She was also singing along to the music, but Ella couldn't understand what the lyrics were aside from some English words that clearly had something to do with the main title. Ella had a feeling that the chorus was playing again as the words 'Fake Love' started falling from the girl's lips once more.

The girl was wearing a shirt of some group Asain looking men called BTS, as that was the name plastered onto it in huge letters together with a logo that looked like doors being pushed open, and a pair of bleached shorts. Ella had no idea who or what BTS was, but she wanted to find out. Maybe that had to do with the strict rules the Young Boarding School had on the use of mobiles and the internet. Those rules always caused her to missed new things becoming popular. That included celebrities like this BTS probably was, or else, their faces wouldn't be on a shirt. Her curiosity being ignited caused her to grab her phone, a Samsung Galaxy S7, maybe not the latest edition, but sufficed its primary job.

'I lived under a rock,' thought Ella as the hits with articles related to this BTS group started showing up, 'These guys have millions of fans, apparently called ARMY, won multiple awards. They performed during the AMAs in 2017, making history for other K-Pop idols and K-pop music industry and yet I still managed to miss all of this somehow. Mom, Dad, why are your rules so strict?'

Now updated on who they are in general after reading some articles, she still didn't who was which member. Although she managed to learn the names, Ella still had to combine them with the right face. On top of that, she still had to discover what they sound like. Ella decided to look up their performance from the AMAs. The song was titled DNA. She plugged in her headphones and pressed play what she heard in the next 4 and a half minutes blew her away.

Their introduction was done by the Chainsmokers, and even they acknowledged the fact that called them international superstars was an understatement. The fans were chanting the name and screaming during the entire song. From the first note, until the very last, the boys did not lose her attention once. That meant a lot as Ella did not get into a different music taste smoothly, especially one she couldn't understand the language off. There was just something magical about the performance. The one with the silver-brownish hair gained her attention the most. Something kept telling her to keep looking at him.

'How have I never seen or heard anything about BTS before?' Ella thought in amazement, 'Let's save it in my favorite songs for now, and then I can look up more songs later.'

Ella put her earbuds away as she decided to look up some more about BTS. She ended up on the website from BigHit Entertainment, the agency BTS was signed under and clicked on the menu. This showed not only BTS but two other acts licensed under BigHit, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, and LEE HYUN. She was tempted to click on TOMORROW X TOGETHER, but clicked on BTS and then profile since that is what she originally came for. Ella quickly learned that BTS consists out of 7 men; Jin, Jimin, Suga, j-hope, Jung Kook, V, and RM, RM being the leader of the band. She managed to combine V to the man with the silver-brownish hair from the performance video that attracted her to him but wasn't any closer to learning which faces belonged to which of the remaining members. Despite that, she learned more about BTS. Ella noticed that she was being drawn in by the beauty of all the members and shook her head.

'Okay, this is enough BTS for now, and this is not beneficial for my phone's percentage,' thought Ella, 'I guess this is how it starts. You look up one thing about them and want to know more and more as if you're pulled in by a magnet.' She put her phone back in her pocket.

For the remaining time of the landing, Ella decided to take in some more of the passengers. Her awareness settled quickly on a Korean looking man to her right on the other side of the aisle. The man was wearing a black hoodie, dressed warmly for the time of year as Ella looked down at the green spaghetti top before looking back, and a black mouth mask covering almost his entire face except for his eyes and a few blonde locks peeking out underneath his hoodie. Ella couldn't quite see what his eye color was, but something about him attracted her to keep looking. The man looked a little older than her, maybe 25 or 26 years old. He was in a lively conversation with a man just a captivating a he was. His talking partner wore a plain black shirt, a white Nike cap, and a red mouth mask covering his entire face, just like the man with the black hoodie. A little of his blonde-brownish hair could be seen from underneath his cap.

Suddenly the man with the black hoodie turned his head looking around for a bit before he looked straight at her. Their eyes locked for a few seconds. Ella's face flushed crimson and quickly turned her head away. 'Om my god, this is so embarrassing. He caught me observing him,' Ella thought, 'At least I finally know what his eye color is.' Those eyes are probably one of the darkest she has ever seen. They are such dark shade of grey that they almost look black. Ella looked outside of the airplane window or at least tried to and noticed that they started their descend.

Baron

Baron and his bandmates from VAV are on their way back to Korea. They had just wrapped up a music video in the Phillippines. Their new music video 'Give Me More' is going to be released on July 23. This is the first time they made a music video featuring a different artist since their debut.

For this collaboration, they attracted the attention of a Latin American artist. For 'Give Me More' the band worked together with De La Ghetto and Play-N-Skillz. He hopes that their fanbase VAMPZ is going to be as enthusiastic as he is about their new song. He loved the more exotic vibe that was going on in the music video. Baron and his bandmate ACE are in an animated conversation talking about their new mv and what the reactions of the VAMPZ are going to be.

ACE said with a twinkle in his eyes, "I can't wait until we can tell the VAMPZ about our new mv. I'm so excited that I want the release date to be sooner."

"Me too," Baron responded with a smile gracing his hidden lips, "I think this mv will be received very well by VAMPZ, but we can't say anything about the mv yet. A Team will not be happy if you spill something, ACE."

"I know, Baron, but I still can't wait," ACE said, suddenly he noticed the girl on the other side of the aisle looking at them or specifically at Baron, "Uhh, Baron, I think someone is staring at you," nudging his head to someone on Baron's left side.

Baron turned his head in the direction that ACE pointed out. He searched for the person ACE was talking about. His eyes landed on a girl directly on the other side of the aisle. He looked straight in her eyes. The eyes he met were big bright blue-greyish, and for about 15 seconds, they looked at each other. The girl then turned crimson and quickly turned her head away. Now Baron couldn't look away from her. Her beauty, drawing him in, wavy shoulder-length brown hair with blonde outgrowth, a little bit of lipgloss on her lips, her different nationality, and of course, the bright blue-greyish eyes that he couldn't get off his mind. The way that they held a sadness despite looking very lively intrigued him. He was glad he was wearing a mouth mask, or else the girl and ACE probably would have seen him turn crimson too. ACE tapped on his shoulder made Baron cut off his stare.

"You're doing the same thing as that she did. I can see she is beautiful too, but you probably won't see her again after the flight, and on top of that, you haven't even spoken one word to her yet. Not during the entire flight or just now when you crossed eyes. I would relax now if I were you. We're going to reach the terminal soon," said ACE. Baron looked one more time at the girl and did just that knowing what ACE was probably correct.

Ella

Ella nervously peeked to her right and left out a relieved sigh, 'He isn't looking at me anymore.'

She decided to put her thoughts somewhere else when she felt a strong urge pull on her. It was her bloodthirst, one of the downsides to being a vampire, or partly vampire, in the way she saw it. No matter how much she drank, she was never truly satiated. Ella let out a frustrated grunt placing her hands on her stomach, 'I fed before the flight. This flight is taking too long. Why do I have to be on this plane for 10 entire hours?! Guess I have to find a new person to feed form when I have found a place to stay for the night.'

Bloodthirst feels the same way as hunger feels to a human. It's an urge to get something in there and gets more demanding the longer you wait. It slowly eats you up on the inside until you give in to it. Sometimes this can result in brutal massacres caused by one vampire. Ella tried to calm herself and ignore her hunger. The fact that she was on a plane with over 100 blood pumping hearts wasn't making that any less hard. She was glad that the aircraft was lining up at the terminal entrance and that the doors were going to open soon.

After what seemed like an eternity, Ella was finally of the plane. She was now on her way to the exit of the terminal. Her desire teased her the entire time that Ella stood in the row to exit the plane. Even now, the sound of thumping hearts that seemed to increase by thousandfold as she got closer to the terminal exit. Ella saw her blue suitcase labeled with her name in red letters passing by on the baggage claim and took it off.

Packed with all her belongings, she made her way to the terminal exit. The moment the doors of the terminal opened, Ella was met with a sea of people. Paparazzi with their camera's at the ready and very excited looking girls. Most of them were wearing mouth masks, and many girls were holding signs with Korean phrases, Ella couldn't understand, and weird names.

'This explains why the sound of heartbeats increased so much. It doesn't explain, however, what is going on here. What do those signs say?' thought Ella as she felt confused, but panicked at the same time. Her PTSD started kicking in by the screaming and amount of people. Ella tried to calm herself down as she looked at the signs, 'Those names are so weird. Are that Korean names or stages names like the members of BTS also have? Can you even call those words names? I don't know. Whatever the signs say to me, it looks like a children's drawing with all those strange symbols.'

Ella had never seen anything like this before. Experiencing this unknown feeling increased her bloodthirst and sped up her breathing. For a second, her eyes flashed golden as she felt trapped. She knew people often had family waiting for them at the terminal, but this was insane. Her hunger for blood almost took the better of her at that moment, but she managed to hold back. Seeing that the crowd wasn't going to part any time soon, she let out a sigh as she needed to get away from that place. So in complete conflict with what her therapists always told her, Ella ignored her PTSD. Otherwise, she would really attack somebody out of hunger combined with panic and a flinch of frustration. No other option left Ella started pushing her way through, but that wasn't easy seeing that they weren't, exactly, cooperative in letting her through. She took a moment to catch her breath, something she rarely needed to do as a hybrid and looked around, seeing that she was not the only one having trouble with this. Ella sighed and continued her way through the sea of people.

As Ella struggled to get through the sea of people, the crowd suddenly got even more lively. Cameras were flashing, and girls started screaming.

"Ayno." "Ziu." "Please marry me, ACE!" "Baron-Oppa, please notice me!" "VAV!" Though looking men in black suits started separating the sea of people so that the group of men called VAV could pass. This resulted in her being pushed out of the way roughly by one of the men in black. Ella was getting kinda pissed. Her pupils dilated, and veins started to show underneath her eyes. Realizing that her face was showed its true colors, Ella tried calming herself down. Her expression morphed back to her normal one. She waited for the so-called VAV to pass. One by one, seven men with bodyguards passed by, but she recognized one of them. It was the man who sat on to her right on the other side of the aisle. By the shocking impression on his face, it looked like he recognized her too. He almost stopped in his tracks, but a bodyguard ushered him to keep walking. He passed her but looked back at her one more time before leaving her eyesight. The crowd of people started to drip away following VAV giving Ella a chance to breathe and calm down.

'What the f*ck just happened? Who is that man who sat on the other side of the aisle?' thought Ella, 'Well, it doesn't matter for now. I need to find a place to feed before I attack somebody at the airport.'

Part 3 A encounter that she didn't see coming

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How to Survive the Longest Flight in the World

Earlier this month, Qatar Airways took the prize for longest Flight path while in the World, it debuted its 17-hour, 30-minute flight to Auckland and Doha.

Now not to be outdone, Qantas has announced plans to begin flying a 9,000-mile nonstop between Perth and London in 2018, and Singapore is eyeing a relaunch of its nonstop Newark-Singapore path if you want to take just under 19 hours. (Sure, you read that efficaciously.)

Whether or not you’re on this kind of crazy-long-hauls or really dreading your subsequent ride halfway around the arena, we’re here to assist. From reserving to boarding and deplaning, right here are coping techniques from frequent travelers who rack up hundreds of hundreds of miles every yr.

Aircraft kind matters: “The Boeing 777 is a stunning Aircraft,” stated Brian Kelly, founding father of the famous travel blog The Factors Man, who logs about 1 / 4-million miles each year, “however the Airbus A380 is considerably quieter in the cabin, and the experience is so easy you barely experience it.” Routes with frequent service are frequently flown on a couple of varieties of aircraft, so test before booking.

So does newness: Present day-technology aircraft have made big upgrades with cabin humidity, noise degrees, pressurization, and lighting fixtures. As an instance, Kelly mentioned, “The air on the Airbus A350 is recycled each 3 mins so it’s No longer that stale, disgusting Aircraft air we’re all familiar with.” The models to search for right now: the A350 and Boeing 787.

Double-test seating configurations: Keep away from waking up your dozing neighbor (or getting woken up yourself) by way of booking all-aisle-seat premium cabins. Configurations can range within a fleet—For example, Qatar Airlines’ 777s don’t have all-aisle commercial enterprise-elegance seats, but its 787s, A350s, and A380s do—so take a look at the cabin maps earlier than you make a decision, both direct with the airline or with services like SeatGuru.

Purple-eyes are not always first-rate: Pick midnight flights best in case you think you’ll sleep well. “I’ll usually Pick out a nighttime flight when I have a lie-flat mattress,” stated Ben Schlappig, who runs the loyalty program blog One Mile at a Time. “In any other case, I will shoot for a daylight flight. It is less miserable to be uncomfortable while I am No longer painfully tired as nicely.”

White noise tolerance: The seats nearest the engines are going to be the loudest, so sit down a long way far from them for a quiet flight.

Bulkhead before going out row: Why? go out-row seats will have less padding, said Kelly, which (to a few) may be a bigger inconvenience than sitting near galleys or bathrooms.

Rethink the lower back row: Seeing seat 84A in your boarding pass isn’t as horrific as it appears. Consistent with Schlappig, you’re most probable to get an empty seat subsequent to you by way of “choosing a seat toward the very back of the cabin, in a row with as a minimum 3 seats.”

Do your homework: Consult sites like SeatGuru and Routehappy to influence clean of dud seats. “I’m obsessive approximately using seat maps to ensure I get the Modern-day interiors, attempt the most recent seats, and am sitting as ways from the lavatories and galleys as viable,” explained Mike Lundberg, a senior counsel with Miami-based totally Global services Gas Corp., who frequently flies 13-hour-plus flights for paintings.

Dress for comfort, No longer looks: All our specialists agreed on this point. Lundberg focuses on layers, “seeing that no airline, airport or Uber driver has ever managed to maintain a steady temperature.” Schlappig will wear sweats when flying internationally, even in first and enterprise elegance—sideways glances are damned. A minimum of, in case you are given the pride of airline pajamas, use ’em.

Exercise earlier than flying: Healthy in a preflight Workout to counteract the outcomes of being sedentary. Your exercising high gets you thru TSA, and it’ll fade in time for smooth in-flight snoozing.

Hack your legroom: Even if you’re Now not 6-foot-7 like Brian Kelly, you must make each half-inch of legroom be counted. “Every now and then the seat-back pockets are complete of magazines that take up space,” he stated. His restoration: Use them as a foot relaxation for the better move.

Reset your intellectual clock: Get beforehand of jet lag through converting your watch or telephone in your destination’s time sector as soon as feasible. (Then observe those other tips to beat jet lag.)

Take control of your environment: do not like that stale Plane smell? Spray your favourite fragrance, aromatherapeutic or No longer, on a scarf or blanket. Kelly swears via his noise-canceling Bose QC35 headphones; right here are some others. Leila Janah, chief govt officer of natural skin-care enterprise LXMI, places on earplugs as quickly as she forums her normal daylong flights from San Francisco to Uganda, in which she sources components. The extra you are in control, the higher you’ll experience.

Do devour: Despite the fact that plane meals may be saturated with sodium, you shouldn’t starve yourself. Plus, says Schlappig, Plane food are a pleasing manner to skip the time. (some airways with sturdy culinary cred: Turkish, Emirates, Singapore, and Air France.)

don’t awaken for breakfast: “aircraft breakfasts are almost always disappointing. In place of waking up an extra ninety minutes before you land, bypass it and get the more relaxation instead,” advised Kelly.

Do speed matters up: Jonah pointed out that many airways provide top class passengers a lighter, brief-carrier meal (like a salad or sandwich) at the beginning of the flight in lieu of a complete meal. Cross that path, and also you’ll get to bed quicker.

Do order in advance: You’ll get served first—and be assured your desire—if you request a unique meal when you ebook, Whether or not that means vegetarian or halal.

don’t consume all of the salty snacks: Two phrases: dehydration and bloating. alternatively, Jonah packs uncooked nuts and Numi tea luggage, which hardly ever take in any area.

Do suppose twice before you drink two times: Caffeine and alcohol are both dehydrating and disrupt your sleep styles. Limit your self to at least one—that is enough that will help you loosen up (or perk up). Then stability it out with twice as a whole lot water.

Look at the scenario: “I try to pick airways like Lufthansa or Etihad that have reasonably priced with out costly statistics caps,” said Schlappig.

do not rely solely on in-flight leisure: earlier than your experience, browse your airline’s website to determine what number of films you ought to load up on your iPad—maximum providers have lists of what is playing on board. For binge watchers, Netflix these days changed the game by means of letting you down load an expansive selection of movies and Television indicates for offline viewing.

Power up: “I make sure all my electronics are absolutely charged earlier than I fly, simply in case the in-seat Energy ports don’t work—you would be surprised how frequently this happens,” stated Schlappig. He also advised bringing backup batteries or chargers, like the Anker PowerCore 20100, that could simultaneously recharge Two devices—multiple instances.

Permission to disconnect: “Being on a Aircraft is one of the best instances I don’t experience guilty for Not operating,” stated Jonah, who reads fiction or draws while she will be able to sleep. additionally useful to bypass the time: iPad Seasoned coloring e-book apps like Colorful and all-you-can-examine magazine apps like Texture.

Spritz each few hours: the use of a sinus spray will let you fight viruses and bacteria, preserve you from feeling dry, and make it less difficult to regulate to stress.

Wipe that tray: Your seat-back tray desk is stated to be extra germ-infested than the airplane bathroom, so smooth it off with a child wipe or a squirt of an alcohol-primarily based hand sanitizer before settling in.

Rethink the amenity kit: Jonah says vacationers can be greater reactive to new or artificial elements while dealing with the stress of tour. alternatively, she stated, “Use products with only some natural elements like coconut oil, shea butter, or almond oil.”

Make It all Appearance clean

Stepping proper off the Aircraft and right into a meeting? Choose an airline with a full-carrier arrivals front room so you can get an espresso and a shower earlier than heading into the metropolis. Valets at British Airways’ Arrivals front room at London Heathrow’s Terminals 3 and five can even press up to a few gadgets of apparel for you whilst you’ve got a shower so that you arrive at your appointment wrinkle-unfastened.