#last seen running 15 minutes behind my girl Laura

[rulesforthedance]

My crazy Alaskan wilderness sports cousin who wants me to run Crow Pass Crossing just finished a 100-mile snow bike race that also has running and skiing divisions and I was looking at the live tracking and uh. I'm now obsessed with this 63-year-old Alaskan woman I know nothing else about who is currently running in second overall at mile 80-something

[girlsbtrs]

How Being a Woman in Hardcore Helped Me Learn to Love Myself

Written by Jen Moglia. Graphic by Laura Cross. 

Since this is my first piece written for Girls Behind the Rock Show, I figured that I should introduce myself; hi, my name is Jennifer, but most people call me Jen. I live on Long Island in New York, and my favorite things include my cats, the color pink, giving gifts to my Animal Crossing villagers, and watching sports. Above all else, however, I love music.

I frequently refer to music as the love of my life. It somehow plays a role in everything that I do. I got my first iPod when I was five years old, stacked with everything from Miranda Cosgrove and Avril Lavigne to Tool and Deftones. Some of my favorite memories growing up are sitting in my pink and purple bedroom singing and dancing along to Paramore’s crushcrushcrush and Fall Out Boy’s Thnks Fr Th Mmrs on the local alternative radio station. I danced for 12 years, played cello for seven, and am currently a wannabe ukulele rockstar after buying one on impulse and starting to teach myself how to play four years ago. Even on the simplest, barely noticeable levels, music has been everywhere in my life for as long as I can remember; even now, I can’t complete a basic task without a song playing in my headphones.

Music became an even bigger part of my life when I started attending live shows. I went to my first concerts at age 10, seeing my two favorite artists - Nickelodeon boy band Big Time Rush and classic progressive rock band Rush - within one month of each other. By the time I was 15, I had been to my fair share of arena/seated shows with one or both of my parents, from Fifth Harmony to Fitz and the Tantrums to Alice in Chains. My first general admission show was seeing the Foo Fighters at Citi Field with both my mom and dad when I was 12, but my first pop-punk general admission show (yes, they’re different) came a few years later. I had the typical list of favorite bands that you would expect from a young teenager getting into alternative music: Neck Deep, Knuckle Puck, Real Friends, and State Champs. 

In late 2018, I was able to see all four of these bands for the first time, and I am a firm believer that it changed the course of my life. I met, cried-during, and eventually got the setlist for Neck Deep at Stereo Garden on Long Island in September. I sang all of “Untitled” at the barricade for Knuckle Puck at SI Hall at the Fairgrounds in Syracuse in October. I had my first minor concussion scare (yay!) before Real Friends’ set at Irving Plaza in New York City in November. Finally, I crowd surfed for the first time during State Champs’ anniversary show for The Finer Things at House of Independents in Asbury Park in December. After just a few shows, I had fallen in love with this new brand of live music that I had just been introduced too. There was something so magical to me about skin covered in sweat and Sharpie marks, feet hurting from dancing in the pit all night, and meeting strangers on line outside the venue who would become your best friends and know your deepest secrets by the end of the night.

After making some friends at all of the pop-punk shows I was going to, they started to tell me that I should get into hardcore music. I was hesitant at first - the heaviest thing I had listened to at that point was nowhere near the snippets of hardcore that my friends had played for me - but, eventually, I decided to give it a chance. I was bored and home alone with nothing to do one night over the summer of 2019 when I listened to my first hardcore album, Laugh Tracks by Knocked Loose. Immediately, I got that gut feeling that you have when you know you’ve heard one of your favorite bands for the first time. I knew that this was something special that I was meant to find at this point in my life. For the rest of the summer, I worked my way through the rest of my friends’ hardcore and hardcore-adjacent recommendations, with Cost of Living by Incendiary, Stage Four by Touche Amore, You’re Not You Anymore by Counterparts, Time & Space by Turnstile, Springtime and Blind by Fiddlehead, Smile! Aren’t You Happy by Absence of Mine, Bad to my World by Backtrack, and Reality Approaches by Harms Way being some of my favorites. By the time the next school year started, I was hooked, and I already had tickets to my first few hardcore shows in the fall.

My first hardcore show was in November 2019, seeing Knocked Loose at Webster Hall in New York City - fitting, right? They were on tour supporting their new record A Different Shade of Blue, which I had become obsessed with the minute I heard it for the first time. Although I was ridiculously scared of getting stepped on and breaking all my bones (yes, that was an actual fear of mine), I had the time of my life at that show. There was something about this newer kind of live music that prompted a cathartic release, one that I hadn’t found anywhere else before. As soon as the show was over, I was counting the days until my next one.

My love for live hardcore music (and live music and hardcore music in general) has only grown since then, and that story sort of ends there. However, I want to go back to that first hardcore band that I listened to, Knocked Loose, and the album they put out that first summer that stole my heart. I was taken by storm as soon as the first notes of A Different Shade of Blue rang through my headphones, but something was different about the third track, A Serpent’s Touch, particularly the ending; I heard a voice that sounded a little bit more like my own.

This song features Emma Boster, who does vocals for one of my favorite hardcore bands right now, Dying Wish. When I heard A Serpent’s Touch for the first time, though, I had no idea who she was. I was used to the aggressive vocal delivery of frontmen in hardcore, particularly that of Knocked Loose’s Bryan Garris, but hearing it come from her changed my perspective on a lot of things. It’s not like the song was super angry and changed its tune to be lighter once the token girl came along; in her verse, Boster sings, “I watched the venom / Overcome your spirit / Jealousy holds you now / Distorting your appearance / Bleed out.” These were lyrics that held the same intensity that the lines screamed by the men held, and they sounded just as cool coming out of her mouth. As cheesy as it sounds, it had never even occurred to me that women had a place in this new world that I had discovered. The audiences in the live videos I watched (and eventually at the shows I attended) were made up of mostly men who looked bigger and older than me. When I did start going to shows, most of the non-man population consisted of my friends and I. Emma Boster, along with so many others, began to open my eyes to the fact that a place for people like me existed in this community. It didn’t matter that I had bright red hair or liked butterflies or wore pink - I was just as much a part of this magic as the men multiple feet taller than me with tattoo-covered arms, and I belonged there just as much as they did.

As time went on and I got more involved in the genre’s music and community, I discovered more bands with women in them, and it only fueled this fire of empowerment inside of me. When I felt insecure, I’d watch live sets from Krimewatch, a hardcore band from New York City, just half an hour away from my hometown. They have multiple women as members, including their energetic badass of a vocalist, Rhylli Ogiura. Year of the Knife became one of my all-time favorites, and their bassist Madison Watkins became a serious inspiration to me; the way that she can balance killing it on stage and running the cutest, most pink apparel brand I’ve ever seen (aptly titled Candy Corpse) amazes me. Even some of the bands I’ve found more recently have had an impact on me. I started listening to Initiate last year when their EP Lavender came out, and their beautifully colorful cover art caught my eye before I had heard any of their songs. Their vocalist, Crystal Pak, is also a woman, and she’s insanely talented. Discovering this kind of representation in this new universe that I had come to feel so at home in introduced me to a world of confidence and determination that I had never known before.

When people ask me why I love hardcore so much, I often give the easy answer; “the music sounds good.” If the person allows me to ramble on for a little longer, the answer becomes much more emotional and cheesy. Hardcore taught me that speaking up for what I believe in is important, and if there’s something I’m passionate about, it’s worth shouting about. I became familiar with this when listening to one of my favorite bands ever, Incendiary (the second hardcore band I ever checked out), before quickly realizing that politics are a pretty common topic within the genre - it’s what this music was practically built on. The first time I heard their vocalist Brendan Garrone singing about police brutality and injustice on songs like Force of Neglect and Sell Your Cause, I realized that there is so much more to music than just sounding good.

However, at its core, the thing I love so much about hardcore is what it taught me about being a woman. Growing up, I was the loud girl with the personality bigger than the room who always had something to say and had a never ending supply of excitement about just about everything. As I got older, I was taught that this was not okay. People didn’t like how enthusiastic I was about everything, or that I constantly had new ideas and new discoveries I wanted to talk about. As cliche as it sounds, I felt like everyone around me was trying to dull my sparkle, especially some of the men that I was encountering on a day-to-day basis. Even when I started to come to terms with my big and bright personality, in turn also coming to terms with my own femininity, I was told that this wasn’t how girls acted. I had to pick one - I could watch Disney princess movies and wear Hello Kitty hair clips, or I could be outspoken about my beliefs; but never both. The women that I mentioned earlier, along with so, so many more, helped me unlearn these toxic mindsets. Seeing someone like Emma Boster take the stage and scream ferociously for a full set helped me see that I could be a girl and still be a powerhouse. Following Madi Watkins around on social media showed me that I could love bands like Year of the Knife and also love heart-shaped purses and wear pink from head to toe. My aggression and passion didn’t make me any less of a woman, and my femininity didn’t make me any less of a force to be reckoned with. 

So, at the end of this love letter to hardcore and the women who run it, I say this; thank you for teaching me that I don’t have to shrink myself anymore. It has made a world of a difference.

[hockeylvr59]

Secret Love Part 15 || Cale Makar

Requested: [ ] yes [x] no

Authors Note: So we’re back in Calgary folks. I’m just cranking away at this story lately and all of your thoughts are so appreciated. If anyone has any predictions for things, I’d love to hear them. 

Warnings: smut (oral/other foreplay/risky/semipublic), cursing

Word Count: 3,192

~~~~

Just like that, it was all over. You’d spent ten days in Iceland with Cale. Ten days that you were never going to forget. After spending your last morning visiting some lighthouses, another black sand beach, and a bridge spanning a rift valley, you were climbing back on a plane to fly to Calgary. Your little oasis with Cale was about to be broken by the harsh realities of the real world. 

Your bed being cold without Cale sleeping beside you. 

Your work email overflowing to the point you didn’t even know where to start.

Having five days to plan a Canada Day party which you’d forgotten you’d agreed to host.

Oh...and your parents coming to stay with you in two days. 

_______

The fact that you were able to stand in your backyard surrounded by friends and family July 1st was something that would never have happened without help. 

You hadn’t heard from Cale all day Saturday, but when your phone buzzed with a text on Sunday morning you couldn’t help the warm feelings that rose inside you.

Please tell me I’m not the only one sleeping like shit…

He certainly wasn’t. But at least he could nap after training...you weren’t nearly that lucky and you told him so. That led to a conversation about the million things you suddenly had to do in the next few days and how you weren’t sure you could get it all done. 

And because he was legitimately the best boyfriend, item by item, Cale volunteered to help you check things off your list. He went to the grocery store with a list of all the food needed. He went to the liquor store for beer, wine, and other spirits. He and Taylor came over to do yard work so that you didn’t have to worry about it. He even picked your parents up from the airport when you had a last minute showing pop up. 

Needless to say, you weren’t overstating it when you said Cale literally held your sanity in his hands. 

For the first time since the plane home, you were able to steal a kiss as your parents made their way into the house after Cale dropped them off. 

“Add this to the tally of things I owe you for.” You’d declared. 

“I accept payment in kisses.” Cale teased. A quick glance around revealed you were alone for at least the moment, and you pressed up onto your toes letting your lips seek out his. 

“That’s all I can do right now…” You murmured, looking over your shoulder again. “But I’ll make the rest up to you later I swear.” 

“It’s fine, sweetheart.” Cale grinned. “I’ll see you in a couple days. Enjoy time with your parents.” 

You’d given your parents the grand tour of the house, setting them up in the guest room. Your mom hadn’t even sat down before she was asking what she could do to help prepare for the party. 

Yeah...you had some good helpers. As your yard started to fill up around lunchtime, you grabbed a wine cooler, starting to mingle. Your parents were there, Cale’s parents and brother were coming as were his grandparents, some of your parents’ friends were planning on stopping by, and quite a few of Cale and Taylor’s friends had also been invited. It was definitely the kind of party you had envisioned when you first stepped foot out here. 

“Happy Canada Day!” Cale greeted, appearing suddenly behind you and pressing a quick kiss to the top of your head. 

“You guys are here!” You exclaimed, twisting to wrap him in a quick hug, careful not to let it linger too long. 

“Yep. The whole crew is here.” Cale agreed, motioning to where his mom was eagerly engaged in a hug with yours having not seen each other in quite a while. “And I see you’re trying to make me pop a boner in front of everyone.” He whispered, his eyes raking up your body quickly. 

“It’s just a dress Cale.” You whispered back, eyes teasing. “Nothing special.” 

“Except your legs look a mile long.” He grumbled, causing a laugh to spill from your throat. 

“Oh suck it up buttercup.” You said, shaking your head. 

“Suck what up?” Gary inquired, moving over to hug you, your dad right behind him. 

“I told Cale he was in charge of setting up the lawn games and he’s whining about it.” You declared, excuse spilling from your lips on the fly. The look on Cale’s face was priceless and you struggled to keep your expression level as he looked at you. Gary quickly shook his head, chastising his oldest son and you mouthed the word ‘sorry’ at Cale as he shook his head and moved to grab Taylor to help him. 

Playing hostess kept you quite busy and with so many people around you really couldn’t sneak much time with Cale. It had already been a couple hours and you hadn’t even spoken to him beyond the brief conversation when they arrived. Watching as he played spike ball with his brother and some friends across the yard caused that familiar ache to spread through your body telling you that you were going to combust if you couldn’t at least properly kiss him. 

After a few more minutes, Cale disappeared inside and you excused yourself from conversation declaring that you needed to bring up some more drinks from the basement. 

Closing the back door, you waited at the top of the basement stairs for Cale to return and when you spotted him you gently tugged him toward you. 

“Come ‘ere.” You murmured quietly in case anyone else was in ear shot inside. Pulling him all the way down into the basement, you guided him around the corner before stretching to kiss him deeply. “Hi.” You greeted your forehead resting against his when you finally pulled away. 

“Hey sweet girl.” Cale replied, his hands easily settling along your hips. 

“Needed to kiss you.” You mused. “I miss you.” 

“Miss you too...but you look like you’re enjoying yourself. This is one of the things you wanted.” Cale acknowledged. 

“It is and I am.” You agreed, your fingers running down his stomach feeling his muscles constrict under your touch. “You look like you’re having fun too. You look pretty sexy out there.” 

“Don’t start something we can’t finish.” Cale groaned, quickly responding to your tone of voice. 

“Who said I can’t finish it?” You questioned. “We just have to be quick.” As you spoke you were already sinking to your knees, your fingers dipping down to Cale’s shorts. 

“Y/N...you don’t….shit.” Cale breathed, his hips bucking as you took him into your mouth after sliding his shorts and boxer briefs down just enough. Taking everything you had learned from the last time, you bobbed your head up and down Cale’s length, your fist stroking what you couldn’t take. It was a quick and dirty blow job, Cale’s cheeks flushing a deep crimson as you ran your tongue along the veins of his cock each time you pulled off to breathe. 

Sucking the tip of his cock you peeked up at him, watching as his head fell back against the wall behind him. 

“Gonna cum…” Cale whispered. 

“That’s what I want handsome. Cum down my throat.” You mumbled, sinking back down on his length. As you pushed the limits of your gag reflex, you felt Cale’s cock twitch before ropes of semen spilled into your mouth and throat. Swallowing as quickly as you could, you tried not to gag or choke before finally pulling off him, a mix of saliva and semen linking your lips to his dick. 

Wiping your lips, you gently worked Cale back into his clothes as he stood panting above you. 

“You’re insane.” Cale mumbled as he finally leaned down to kiss you. “Our parents are just outside...my grandparents are outside.” 

“Like the risk of getting caught didn’t just make you cum harder than usual down my throat.” You sassed, fixing your dress to make sure it didn’t look too rumpled. Cale couldn’t fight you because he knew you were right and as you moved across the basement to grab another six pack of beer you felt his eyes linger. 

“Now make yourself useful and grab that case of drinks. I bumped into you on your way back outside and made you come help me. Cover story.” You winked, biting your lip as you made your way back upstairs. 

You had barely got the new beers stuck into the cooler when your mom grabbed you. 

“You haven’t showed us those vacation pictures yet. Laura and I are dying to see them. Grab your computer and we’ll meet you in the living room.” 

Not being given a choice, you nodded and watched as your mom crossed the yard, grabbing Laura and Cale’s grandma. Looking back toward the mixed drink station you saw Cale standing with one of his buddies pouring shots. 

A few quick strides had you at his side.

“Pour me one of those?” You insisted. 

“Everything okay Y/N?” Cale asked, tone neutral though his eyes showed a hint of concern. 

“Just pour me a drink Cale. I’m about to go sit through the vacation slideshow with our moms…” Cale’s friend moved a few steps away but you lowered your voice further before continuing. “...And I’m not doing that with the taste of your cum in my mouth.” 

Cale nearly sputtered, but quickly recovered, pouring you a shot before clinking his glass against yours as you downed them. 

“Wish me luck.” You murmured, shaking your head just slightly as you moved from his side and into the house. In your bedroom, you made doubly sure you had pulled up the correct photo album before you carried your laptop into the living room, hooking it up to the tv. 

For the next half hour you explained the photos when necessary and listened as all of the women in your lives raved on how beautiful they were and what a wonderful trip it must have been. While these photos stirred up so many memories, this wasn’t the album that you’d found yourself looking at repeatedly. No...it was the other album that you loved most of all. The one full of pictures of you and Cale looking so completely head over heels for each other. For now though, that album was something just for you, even if you were looking forward to the day you could print some of the pictures and hang them in your bedroom. 

As you finished, your dad and Gary came barreling into the house wanting to know where everything was to start grilling up dinner. Taking your laptop back to your room, you got the guys everything they needed before leaving them to it. Meanwhile, you finished off the few remaining things that needed done to the sides, pulling those and condiments out of the fridge. 

“What do you mean after everything that happened between Cale and Y/N.” You mom’s voice slowly grew louder and your stomach dropped as you brain raced to catch up with the pieces of conversation you’d missed. 

“Y/N didn’t tell you about Cale’s pregnancy scare with his ex? It caused major strain on their relationship.” 

“No…” You mom insisted as she stepped into the kitchen. You hadn’t mentioned it assuming Laura would and apparently Laura had expected you to and hadn’t herself. 

“Can we not bring up old wounds?” You said, not realizing the snap behind your words. “She was an idiot who really hurt him and we should just be glad that it all worked out the way it did. Things are finally getting back to normal so can we please not drag this out any longer than we already have?” You were done and over with having to think about Cale’s ex… you knew it still hurt him a little even if he pretended it didn’t and you couldn’t help but be defensive and protective. 

Your mom and Laura shared a look, but neither said anything in response, instead asking if there was anything they could do to help. 

“No. I’ve got it. Thank you.” You assured them. You remained in the kitchen, your chest heaving until dinner was completely ready and all of your guests had been told to dig in. Then you slipped into your room, closing the door behind you as you tried to calm your raging emotions. 

After a few minutes, a knock sounded and you expected it to be your mom on the other side. Instead Cale popped his head in before stepping inside and closing the door. His hands rubbed at the back of his neck and his body language drew a sigh from your lips. 

“How much of that did you hear?” 

“Enough.” Cale responded, sitting down next to you on your bed, his arm draping around you. “You okay?” He questioned. 

“I should be asking you that.” You replied flatly. “I’m sorry.” 

“I have no idea what you’re even apologizing for..so don’t.” You couldn’t help but lean into Cale’s body as his fingers traced up and down your arm. “If I kiss you will that help you calm down enough to get some dinner?” He teased, lifting your chin up so that he could ease his mouth over yours gently. Slowly your body relaxed under his kiss and when you broke apart you certainly felt a little bit better. 

“That’s my girl.” Cale grinned, seeing the soft smile reappear on your face. “C’mon.” He prompted, offering a hand out to pull you up off the bed. 

“Hey Cale.” You stopped him, pulling him back toward you. “I don’t think you were wearing this lip color before...probably should fix that.” You smiled, reaching out to rub the makeup off his mouth from your reapplication shortly before. “I’ll be out in a minute.” You assured him as you leaned against your bathroom door wanting to make sure that you didn’t look too out of place. 

No one spoke a word of what had happened during dinner and as the sun started to set the majority of your guests left, leaving just your family and Cale’s as the guys started a small fire in the firepit. You’d stepped inside to use the bathroom and when you returned the only seat left around the fire was on the loveseat beside Cale. 

Settling in beside him you smiled as he widened the spread of his legs so that his thigh was pressing against yours. It was a subtle move but the skin to skin contact was beyond welcome and you were grateful, knowing he worked the seating so the two of you could share. Having grabbed another drink, you felt the pleasant hum of alcohol starting to build after awhile. Around the same time you started to shiver as the outside temperature dropped. 

“Anyone else need a refill?” Cale inquired when he moved to stand up, his own drink empty. A chorus of yeses and nos followed him and when he returned he not only had his arms full of drinks but also the blanket from the back of your couch. Draping the blanket over your lap, Cale handed you a fresh drink making you smile. 

“Your son is trying to get me tipsy Laura.” You joked. 

“You’re already tipsy sunshine.” Cale declared as he dropped back down beside you. “And you’re allowed to be. You worked really hard to pull this together and today’s been pretty awesome.” Cale’s praised was echoed by everyone else and you took it as best you could considering compliments weren’t your thing. 

“I had some help...let’s be fair.” You shrugged. 

“Oh my god. You and my brother are the two most humble people I have ever met.” Taylor groaned. “No wonder you’re best friends.” 

Grinning over at Cale, you let your eyes fall shut after a moment, just enjoying the sounds of your families spending time together. Feeling Cale’s hand slide under the blanket to your inner thigh made your eye pop open and you eyed him carefully. 

‘Just relax.’ He mouthed before jumping back into the conversation. As he spoke, his hands slid under your dress until his fingers were brushing against the fabric of your panties. Laura asked you a question about something, honestly you were too focused on Cale’s hand to remember your answer, but once you had finished Cale’s fingers slid under your underwear. Nimble fingers stroked over your clit and your eyes fluttered shut again. 

Hopefully it just looked like you were sleepy, because you weren’t sure you could pay full attention to what was going on around you when Cale’s hand was doing things like that. 

“Oh.” You gasped, drawing everyone’s attention to you. Cale’s hand stilled as your mom asked if you were okay. 

“Yeah. I’m fine.” You insisted. “My ankle is still tender and I shifted it wrong.” Your excuse turned the attention to Cale’s heroics at the cave in Iceland and as your families talked about it and how they would have reacted so far from medical attention, Cale’s fingers shifted to curl inside of you. 

Though he couldn’t move much, this was the first time he was touching you since he made love to you that last night of vacation. Considering you were wound tighter than a spring, Cale’s fingers curling inside you as his thumb rubbed against your clit were quickly pushing you toward an orgasm of your own. 

Thankfully the darkness masked the subtle nuances of your face as Cale’s fingers made you fall apart. As you came down from your high, Cale wiping his fingers on either your dress or the blanket you weren’t quite sure, you took another long sip of your drink. Cale had just finger fucked you feet from both of your families who could both see and hear you! And to think he’d said you were insane for going down on him with your families outside! 

Your brain was spinning trying to process what the fuck had just happened and how much you had enjoyed it. The two of you were seriously taking the whole ‘sneaking around like teenagers’ thing to the next level. It was a miracle you hadn’t gotten caught. Lost in thought you missed the fire starting to die out and Gary mentioning that they should probably get going. It wasn’t until Cale pulled you to your feet so his family could hug you that you caught up with reality. 

“I’m gonna help this tipsy one inside real quick and then I’ll meet you at the car.” Cale insisted once hugs had been exchanged. His arm swung under your legs, picking you up bridal style and after weaving through doorways, he gently laid you down on your bed. 

“We’re gonna talk about that later.” You mumbled, yawning softly. 

“Whatever you say sweetheart. Get some sleep.” Cale replied, kissing your forehead as he tucked you in. 

Your bedroom door creaked shut with Cale’s departure as the words fell unconsciously from your lips. 

“Love you.” 

Dress: 

[horanghaechan]

Wicked Games (Johnny) pt.1

pairing: Demon!Johnny x Dancer!You (female character)

word count: around 9k

synopsis: Oh, the things you do for money...  NCT had a reputation: filthy rich and handsome. Their parties were known to be god tier and they used to pay extremely well to have girls dancing in them. However, when some weird rumours start to spread, all your colleagues backed out... But not you. 

Inspired by Wicked Games - The Weeknd. 

(Part 2/final here)

[a/n]: i actually had a side-blog once and posted it there but i got author’s block and deleted everything. anyway, i’m rather proud of this scenario so i decided to post it again lol ~ also, english is not my first language so any grammar/etc mistake please tell me!

Let me see you dance I love to watch you dance Take you down another level Get you dancing with the Devil Take a shot of this But I'm warning you I'm on that shit that you can't smell, baby So, put down your perfume (…) Listen, ma, I'll give you all of me Give me all of it, I need all of it to myself

 Youngho opened the door to the main room and smiled. It wasn't the first time that everything went wrong, and probably wouldn't be the last. He pushed a wooden stool to the side and walked to Yuta, wondering exactly what had happened.

“The rumours about us are getting more and more frequent.”

“Humans.” He snorted. “And this is preventing the party from happening, I suppose?!”

“The strippers don’t want to come... I mean, except for one.”

“Oh.” Youngho smiled. “Why?”

“It seems that she doesn't believe in God, therefore, doesn't believe in us.” Yuta made a gesture with his hand, pointing to them. “Fortunately, she said she has four more friends that are willing to come, but we're going to have six less dancers.”

“Fuck it, bro. That's more than enough. We promised strippers, didn’t we?”

“You're right.” He nodded. “Well, I will report to Taeyong that we can still host the party.”

●●●

After receiving confirmation from her boss, Y/N entered the van with her friends. She didn't understand why the other girls had dropped out at the last minute… She would never do it, the payment was just too good to ignore. However, she was kinda happy that they did, because now she could receive their money instead.

“You know what they say about there, don't you?” Laura wondered.

“That it is a huge house full of billionaire, drop-dead gorgeous men.” She lifted an eyebrow.

“No, silly. About it being haunted!”

“Nonsense.” Y/N shook her hand. “This only exists for those who believe in it.”

“But a friend of mine was at a party there and said he saw some weird stuff...”

“Your friend was probably drugged and had a ‘bad trip’. Get over it, Lau.”

“You are so sceptical that it drives me crazy, Y/N!” Laura rolled her eyes.

“And you're too deluded, but that doesn't mean I lose my patience every time.”

Despite being best friends, Y/N found it hard sometimes to live with someone like Laura. You could hold her hand and say ‘Lau, the sky is black, actually. However, because of a curse, we are forced to believe it is blue.’, and the girl would (probably, 70% of chance) believe it. She was very naïve for 25-years-old woman; which made it all extremely worrying. 25-year-old girls were not so innocent. Y/N was 23 and she knew more than enough.

“How's uni, Y/N?” Inez, another friend of them, changed topics in order to calm down the mood.

“Good, as far as the last semester can be. And yours?”

“Dentistry is wonderful, I couldn't be more pleased!”

“You can ask me too, Inez.” Pelinsu, the youngest of the group, raised her hand as if to show she was there. “In fact, I'm going to tell you anyway.”

“Nobody is interested to know how things in the college prep course are.” Inez mocked, making girls laugh. “When are you going to quit it?”

“Even if I need to stay there for 15 years, I won’t give up.” Pelinsu sighed. “It’s my dream to become a doctor.”

“You can do it, dear.” Laura tried to cheer her up.

The way to the mansion where they would dance was filled with laughs and loud conversation. The four of them meeting and spending time together was rare, because they all had busy lives. It was a miracle that they all had a “free” day and could work together. 

The house was located at the top of a hill. Y/N was amazed at the view, lots of green trees and abundant nature. It was always so healing and special to be at places like that. Looking through the window to the road behind, she didn't notice her friends getting off the car and greeting a group of guys at the mansion’s gates.

“Excuse me?” An unknown voice brought her back to the present. She turned to where she thought the voice came from, and felt a shock through her spine. She had seen beautiful men before, but... That was different. He was different. With dark hair, a beautiful nose, puffy lips and the sharpest of the gazes, he emitted a mysterious and charming aura. She couldn’t stop staring at him; it was like she was hypnotised. Oh, boy, that was a dangerous thing to do.

Y/N didn’t fuck with business.

Literally.

“Sorry.” She cleared her throat. “I got distracted.”

“No problem.” He smiled and she swore the sun shone stronger. ”Your friends are already inside the house. You must be…?” Stretching his hand, the handsome man offered help so she could come off the van. Well, in addition to his killing looks, he was a gentleman.

Dangerous. Extremely dangerous.

“Y/N. Just Y/N.” She responded lethargic, accepting his hand. Despite the typically hot weather of summer, the man was cold. She felt a sudden dizziness, but decided to believe it was because she spent a lot of time sat down. “Mr. Totti said that if we stay until the end, we can get the other strippers payment. Is this true? Because if it is, I need to talk to the girls so we can make shifts and not get too tired.” Y/N stared at the mansion, looking up and smiling. “What a beautiful structure.”

“I agree.” Youngho replied. “I'm Seo Youngho, by the way. But everyone calls me ‘Johnny’.”

“Johnny?” Y/N questioned, and he gifted her a small smirked.

What a beautiful structure, indeed.

Tall and handsome. Just like a fucking castle.

“It seems easier to remember.” He shrugged. “Anyway, what Totti said is true. But, I don't think you girls need to work until the end; after all, a lot of people are going to be so drunk they will barely notice what is happening. We can set an ending hour, if you want.”

“Of course. How late, then?”

“3:30AM?” He smiled again, mesmerising.

“3:30AM.” She nodded. “To where should I go now, sir?”

“Go up the stairs and turn right, it's the first door.”

“Thank you, Johnny.” Y/N gave him a small bow, smiling, and rushed into the house.

“You’re welcome, Just Y/N.” Johnny sighed, strangely relaxed.

 The house was decorated like an oddly but good mix of Greek and Iberian palaces. Y/N liked it, because the fusion made her have another perception of both styles. When she arrived at the floor that Youngho told her, Y/N got surprised as she looked out in one of the large windows of the hall: near the end of the huge garden, she found another road, but it disappeared into the forest. Were they that high?

“How tall is this mountain?” She asked while entering the room.

“Y/N! Why?” Inez dropped her makeup bag in one of the dressing tables.

“I saw a road behind the garden and it ends in the woods. I thought there was only one way to get up here, but I guess I was wrong.” She shrugged. “I talked to Youngho and he said that if we work until 3:30AM, we win the payment of the other girls.”

“I could never be as thirsty for money as you, Y/N.” Lin laughed. “I’m up for it, though.”

“Do I need to answer?” Inez smiled with satisfaction, doing an “ok” sign.

“I need this money.” Laura agreed. “How is this going to work, then? Do we do shifts?”

“I think it’s easier that way, because later we will be tired and then we won’t have much energy to dance correctly.” Y/N opened her backpack. “Who wants to be the first?”

 Doyoung grimaced upon hearing the girls’ laughter. He didn't like noisy humans, but he couldn't deny that they were very beautiful ladies, so it made up for the mess. At least Y/N and her friends were not afraid of them and crying nonstop.

“Are you the bodyguard of the group?” Youngho smirked when he found Doyoung in front of the room’s door. “I didn't know we had hired one.”

“Go to hell, Johnny.”  Doyoung rolled his eyes. “I'm here to make sure that no one will escape.”

“Hell?” Youngho laughed quietly. “They are being paid – a good amount and above average, to dance. Why would they run away?”

“The rumours...”

“Get over these rumours, Doyoung.” Youngho shook his hand. “There’s nothing that a good party and a few drinks won’t make them forget.”

“Taeyong will be mad if we do this again.”

“Taeyong gets mad about everything.” The tallest one shrugged. “And between losing his way of life here or being mad for some minutes, I guess he'd rather be pissed.”

“Your arrogance never ceases to surprise me.”

“No wonder I died because of it.” He laughed.  “I'm going to talk to Yuta.”

“Wait.” Doyoung held his arm. “You have noticed Y/N, haven’t you?”

“How could I not? I almost went blind.”

“It's been quite a while since we've seen such a light.” Doyoung crossed his arms. “It's going to be an interesting night. Do you think Taeyong have seen it too?”

“I don't know if they met, but I assume he already knows. The energy in the house is weird.”

“Good. We have everything settled to go wrong.” Doyoung smiled excitedly.

 Giving one of the most exclusive parties of the city was an easy task, and in them, finding people willing to sell their souls was easier. Renewing their strengths on the sins of others resulted in a common way for demons to remain in their human form, but finding the right sin to catch was a bit complicated. Youngho used to search for drug dealers and criminals, but he was interested in something much better right now: corrupt a being of light. He had heard two or three stories of demons who corrupted beings of light and it looked extremely tempting. It was a divine blessing (no matter from which “side” it was coming) that Y/N had crossed his path. The fact that she did not believe in God or Demons was just a bonus.

When Johnny came down, already dressed up for the party, he found the four girls working on their stages.

“Ladies, you look all delightful.” He smiled charmingly. “If you want to have a drink before we get started, just to relax, don’t hesitated to ask.”

“It would be wonderful.” The tallest of them, whose name was Inez, smiled.

“Thanks, but I don't drink before working.” Y/N dismissed it with a hand gesture.

“Water, then?”

“I don't want anything for now, thank you.” She went back to testing the pole dance, ignoring him. Johnny could smell the excitement pouring from her, but he didn't know exactly for which reason.

Having to attend to guests and strike small conversation with some “friends”, Youngho forgot about his smalls problems. He spent a big part of the night overseeing everything from afar and keeping the house in order, so Taeyong wouldn’t snap.

Around 2 A.M., many people were hammered, but not enough for him to try buying their souls. Youngho had just let Yuta in charge of the drinks when the lights shone in flashes, bringing the attention to the main stage. Y/N stood up in the middle of it, wearing a Burlesque style burgundy set, looking as beautiful as an angel could. Extremely tempting and untouchable. He was sure that Lilith would’ve wept in pride if she saw her.

A very calm melody began to play and she moved within the rhythm. Y/N was keen on showing how well she danced, how good she could twirl around and seduce. The audience made a sound of surprise as she snapped an unseen whip, and used it up on her body, snapping again close to her leg, giving the illusion that she had whipped it in herself. Youngho approached the stage, feeling the need to appreciate it from a closer place. She knelt on the floor – a submissive pose that used to drive men crazy –, then crawled to the edge of the it, letting everyone see the outline of her breasts. Youngho giggled despite the discomfort in his trousers. He was a sexual being, he had no doubt about it, but he had never felt so horny about a stripper. Y/N just needed to keep up with those daring moves and pin-up style that he would consider finding someone to have sex with as soon as the show ended... And he hoped she was willing to play that role.

“This girl dances very well.” One guy commented near him.

“At the moment, I really want to use that whip and erase her overbearing smirk.” The other replied. Youngho raised an eyebrow, smiling.

“She has a boyfriend.” Johnny couldn’t help himself from replying.

“Well, what an imbecile boyfriend she found, then. I wouldn’t let my girl do it!”

“You see, I’m sure he doesn’t even know she's a stripper.” The first guy laughed. “Those girls with these innocent faces are the most dangerous. He probably thinks she's sleeping now.”

“In fact he knows she's a stripper, he even encourages her to do so.” Youngho felt his stomach clench in disgust. He hated mortals, that was undeniable, but he liked women. It was no doubt that the world’s Lord and Saviour came from one of them. “What is beautiful was meant to be seen.”

“Even so! He's giving his woman in a tray for other guys.”

“I’m really confident in myself.” He smiled as he noticed their eyes widening.

“Good God, we didn’t know! Really, we’re sorry for saying that!” The one that wanted to whip Y/N wilted. Youngho wanted to laugh, but he had to keep his pose.

“Relax, you were not the first ones.” He shrugged, holding back the laughter.

Another song started and Y/N approached the pole dance. Youngho stopped caring about the audience and focused on the girl who passed a glorious leg by the pole. He caught a sigh as she turned around and paused with her butt facing the public. Youngho thought about several things, especially spanking and biting. The thought intensified as soon as they exchanged a glance by mistake. She was probably looking atound at people and her gaze fell on him... Not that he was complaining; he could feel how she had changed minimally when they faced each other. Johnny licked his lips and Y/N felt a pang in her heart.

She did her best to keep the dance level professional, but with every twirl or choreography move, Y/N knew Youngho was watching her and his attention was simply too good to ignore.

 After returning to the room and showering, Y/N was ready to call her friends and leave. She just needed to get the money from... Youngho. She let out an unrecognisable sigh, something between resignation and debauchery. Of course, she would have to talk to him after their little… Thing. Armed with her finest femme fatale pose, she opened the door.

But Youngho was expecting her first.

“Just Y/N.” He smiled politely.

“Johnny.” She squeezed her hands, for she had nowhere to put them but the pocket of her shorts... And that would be weird.  “I was going to look for you.”

“And I was expecting you to do so.”

“Uh... About the payment...” Y/N cleared her throat uncomfortably.

“Can we discuss this in my office?”

“Yes, of course. Wherever you feel better with.” She took a deep breath.

“Your performance was wonderful; I have heard many compliments.” Feeling that Y/N was tense, Youngho chose to take it easy. Her light was so tempting, it looked so delicious, that he could not afford to make a mistake and lose it.

“Thanks.” Y/N forced a smile.

The two of them went up to the third floor of the mansion, where Youngho had his office and bedroom. Y/N was surprised by the elegance of the place, because she did not expect men to be organised and to have good sense at that age... Well, she did not know how old he was, but it should not be more than mid-twenties?!

“Please sit down.” Youngho pointed to a leather chair in front of his mahogany table.

“Thanks.” She swallowed hard. It seemed strange and wrong to be there.

“How about we drink something?” He suggested. “Liquor? Whiskey? Vodka?”

“I don’t drink alcohol, Youngho.” Y/N shook her head. “But a glass of water would be great.”

Youngho smiled. Since she did not drink, it would be difficult to make her feel relaxed, but he wouldn’t give up. Opportunities of that magnitude appeared only a few times in his... Life? Death? Existence?

“Well, I wanted to know if you'd prefer cash or...” Giving her the water she asked for, Youngho sat down in front of her.

“Whatever is easier for you, sir.” Y/N shrugged. 

His eyes flashed mischievously.

Sir.

It was cute, though. Being near him made her aura shine brighter and it kept alluring him. If only he could drug her… It wasn’t playing fair, surely, but when did demons play fair, to begin with?!

“So, here it its.” Johnny stood up, opening a small door in one of the cabinets and taking a faux leather handbag from inside it. “Here’s all the payment, as if we had ten girls in total. You can share with your friends the way you want.”

“Oh, alright. Thank you so much, sir.”

“Drop that ‘Sir’ thing, princess. I’m way too young for it and it’s way too sexual for me.” He smirked, sitting next to her. “Wanna count?”

“Yeah, that’d be reasonable.” She opened the handbag and her fingers grazed against his skin for just a tiny second, but she felt the same dizziness and coldness.

They counted together, just so she could make sure she was receiving everything. Johnny noticed how interested Y/N was in money, and started plotting. Maybe he could bribe her into being corrupted? Maybe he could pay her to have sex with him (which would make him twice as happy)? Maybe he could use money to convince her to commit a sin or something? However, as soon as she finished putting the cash back, she stood up.

“Thank you again, Youngho. It was a pleasure dancing here.”

“I assure you we feel the same.”

“Good.” She cleared her throat. “Goodbye, then. Have a great… Dawn, I guess.”

“Can you spare me a minute, please?”

When Y/N looked at him, she knew what he was going to say. She received the same offer a thousand times. It used to be offensive, but now she was alright with it. What pissed her off, though, was that she was tempted to accept it this time. He was different from the other guys. He had charms, smooth talking voice, those pouty lips and silky hair. Youngho was broad and tall, making her wonder how sexy it’d be if he caged her in, occupying all the space between them. His eyes had a amber glow she didn’t notice before, looking like hot cognac, and her mouth dried. It’s been years since she last drank alcohol, and brandy was her favourite beverage.

She was thirsty for cognac.

Or was it for Seo Youngho?

“Yes, sir.” She replied automatically.

“There you go again.” He smirked, but it had a pinch of humour in it. As if he thought she was, somehow, cute. “Well, Y/N, I’ll be really blunt since I hate tiptoeing around things.”

“Good, because I hate it too.” She thanked her amazing self-control because her feet stood their ground, not shaking with the anticipated offer.

“Do you have a ride back home, right?”

“Yes, I do. We all do, actually.” Y/N frowned.

“What about a place to put all this money?”

“Yes, Youngho, I do.”

“And a boyfriend? Do you have one?”

She couldn’t believe it at first, but then she grinned.

“Smooth as fuck, sir.” Y/N felt goosebumps all over her skin. “But no, I don’t have one yet.”

“Yet?”

“It’s not that I’m looking around, but one may come eventually, don’t you think?”

“I’m surprised he didn’t arrive sooner.” Youngho blinked, his eyes shining even more. “But it makes things easier for me. Would you like to hang out any time? Maybe have dinner…”

Y/N gulped, a bit shocked. She hoped he’d be like “I can pay you around 3k, so maybe you can suck my dick and let me fuck you?!”, because that’s what she used to hear from the guys that wanted to sleep with her. Being a stripper, sometimes and for some people, meant she was also a prostitute. It was “common knowledge”, even though it was wrong. But at least Johnny seemed interested in having dinner with her first.

That was too dangerous.

“Sorry, Youngho, but I don’t fuck business.”

To her surprise, he laughed. A relaxed, full of humour and sweet sound. Nothing erotic nor offensive. He laughed as if she really told him a good joke.

“You don’t accept drinks, don’t accept dinner offers… Then you don’t fuck business. What do you do, Y/N?” Johnny crossed his legs. His trousers were thick against his thighs, she noticed. Oh, it was torture to acknowledge his strong muscles since she wasn’t able to sit on them.

“I accept payments and pretend I have some sort of power over men.” Y/N smiled. “Excuse me, then, Youngho. The girls might be tired and wanting to go home.”

“I’ll see you again, Y/N.” He said.

“Yeah, maybe.” She shrugged, opening the door.

“It wasn’t a suggestion, princess.”

Y/N swore she’d never forget the diabolic shine he had in his eyes.

●●●

And she never did.

During two whole months, Y/N felt as if Johnny was observing her, even though it was impossible. They never met after the party. Not even once. No one talked about him either. Totti had five more jobs for her, in exclusive parties, but no Seo Youngho in them.

However, every time she arrived in university it was as if someone was following her. When she went home, until she locked up her door, she felt eyes on her. When she was sleeping, she had glimpses of those golden eyes although Johnny had nothing to do with her dreams. Every once in a while, she felt the coldness of his skin.

He was slowly driving her crazy.

On that specific Wednesday, Y/N had had the worse of days. First of all, her teacher made her re-do her paper because she didn’t used the theory she (her teacher) wanted. Then, her job was shit since one of the new interns fucked up a project and she had to clean up their mess. So, thinking that her evening would end better, Y/N had the worst part: her tennis coach cancelled the class because his wife was giving birth.

Capital!

No good grades. No productive day on her job. No “stress-relieving” sports night.

It was indeed amazing.

To top everything, she received a call from Totti when she had just arrived home. Sad days like that reminded her of the only antidote to sadness: Arabic food from the Lebanese food-truck two blocks away from her building. One of her favourite cuisines was the Arabic one, and she was the luckiest girl ever when she found out about that food-truck.

“Hello Kashir!” Y/N smiled when she saw the middle-aged man. “Today I’m exceptionally hungry, so let’s make it a huge order: one large Lebanese beef schawarma, fattoush and baba ghanoush dip, please. Also, I want two attayefs with extra cream.”

“Wow, you’re really hungry. Two desserts in one night?!”

“Attayefs are my weak spot, Kashir.” She shrugged.

“Alright, little lamb.” He smiled. “It’ll be ready in a minute.”

Y/N sat down to wait for the food, and while at it, she checked up her Instagram. Lin had mentioned her in a picture of a celebrity they liked. When Y/N opened it, she decided she was actually overrated. Her smile seemed fake, her eyes had no expression and the way her arms were wrapped around Seo Youngho only made her look like an attention whore.

She closed her phone as soon as she zoomed in his face.

Those eyes – kinda gold even in pictures – had that hint of cognac that drove her mad. How was that possible?! Y/N never met anyone with eyes like his.

He said that they’d see each other again, but turns out he had other things to do.

Or girls…

“The incredible Johnny Seo.” Y/N mocked the actress’ subtitle. “What’s so incredible about him tho? Being good-looking is nothing nowadays.” She scoffed.

Oh, for fuck sake! She was getting jealous over him!

Could the day get any worse?

 “You smell like Arabic food.” Totti smiled.

“Yeah, I ate some for dinner.”

“Good, so you’re happy.”

“Yeah, Totti, I am. But I have this feeling that my happiness won’t last…”

“Nah, don’t say that.” He waved a hand. “The thing is: I got this huge, huge deal.” He waved again, stressing how ‘huge’ it was. “And they want you.”

“They?”

“Actually, him. But, of course, I told him that it didn’t mean you’ll sleep with him. Also, that if he makes you uncomfortable you’re free to leave without finishing your performance. And, if he touches you without your consent, he’ll have to pay twice the price.”

“But who is he?”

“This I can’t tell you, it’s part of the contract. However, we can call him ‘Devil’.”

“Oh, fuck, Totti.” She rolled her eyes. “You’re really selling me to someone I don’t even know?! What makes you think I’ll accept doing it?”

“I’m not selling you, Y/N! You know I’d never let you go to some creepy dude! You’re one of my golden girls, for fuck sake! What do you take me for?!” He frowned, offended.

“The thing is: I have no idea who the fuck ‘Devil’ is.” She mocked the nickname. “And I have to re-do a fucking paper because my teacher is a cunt. Literally. Also, Janet, this new intern, fucked up a building renovation and I had to clean up her mess the entire evening. I’m so exhausted I can’t even think about dancing to some unknown weird guy.”

“Y/N, Jesus Christ, he’s willing to pay 14k for you. Can you fucking imagine?! 14k just for you to wiggle around and whip him in the thigh.” Totti almost screamed. “I mean, 14k is what you’re gonna receive after I take my part.”

Her eyes grew at the payment.

“14,000 pounds? You swear?!”

“On my mom’s life. 14k, girl!”

“W-what the fuck.” She was shocked.

No one ever offered so much money to have her. No one ever seemed interested in only having a private dance for 14k. If this guy wasn’t crazy, he was obsessed about her.

“I’m in.” She gulped, replying as fast as possible. She couldn’t back out when so much money was on line. The things she could do with that… The places she could go! “I’m so in.”

“Oh, girl, when money talks…” Totti smirked. “Get ready for Friday, 9P.M. I’ll get a car to take you there. Don’t worry, it’s in a hotel.”

“People can still get murdered in hotels, Totti.”

“Yeah, but not you.” He winked. “Relax, really. He’s a VIP member of my club and he’s extremely respectful towards women. If anything bad happen, he knows I’ll have his head.”

“Good; it’s good that you pretend to care with so much confidence.” She joked, but her heart was beating fast. She’d definitely tell the girls about it, so they could just be aware.

●●●

Y/N finished her second cognac glass, thriving on the hot and sweet syrup. She paid the barman and walked to the lobby again. Breathing in and out, slowly, she gathered up enough courage to go to the hotel room her “guest” was in. Pressing the 24th button, the last floor, she waited for the elevator to arrive in there.

The 2402 room had its door a bit open, an invitation to her just walk there, without knocking. Her stomach flipped with anxiety, since she had no idea with whom she’d deal with. It was moments like those that she wished she had faith to lean on and ask for protection, since she was afraid. However, her religion was money and she’d get down on her knees and do whatever it wanted. Y/N blinked twice, taking a deep breath and stepping in.

It wasn’t a regular hotel room, she noticed. The wide space had glass windows that faced the city lights instead of walls. On the bed space, it had an amazing black brick wall; two medium yellow light lamps illuminated the silky grey bed sheets and gave it a sensual atmosphere. Next to one of the window-wall, a round dinner table was set. Y/N felt a strange comfort in being there… Minimalist decorations were her weak spot, honestly.

She left her purse on the dining table, amused that it really had food in it. Before she could restrain herself, one of her hands grabbed a strawberry.

The door made a locking sound.

Devil had arrived.

“Oh, you’re already here.”

She turned around only to find Seo Youngho dressed in a silky red suit, his black hair parted in the middle, his dark, cognac eyes shining in a low glow. And she knew, in that very specific moment, that they would sleep together.

“So it was you.”

“I said we’d see each other again.” Johnny smiled.

“I thought you were too busy being The Incredible Johnny Seo to remember me.”

He frowned for a small second, and then smirked – his gaze turning into something more predatory. So she saw the picture and she felt slightly jealous about it... Wow, his day just couldn’t get any better. He had it all schemed in his mind, prepared for a battle, but Y/N was making it so easy.

“And I thought you were too busy not fucking business to remember me.”

She scoffed.

“What does this even mean?!”

“This mean that I paid for a lap dance and I’m eager to have it.” He said, relaxed. “And, maybe, just maybe, if you behave like a good girl, we can dine together.”

Y/N scoffed again.

“You’re so arrogant, sir.”

“Yeah, they tell me this all the time.” Johnny pointed to the bed. “Should we do it there?”

“No, just grab a chair and… Ugh, put it anywhere.” Y/N gestured vaguely.

Deciding she’d make a mess of that arrogant face, Y/N prepared herself to the best lap dance she could give someone. Having created a new performance, she didn’t bring the whips and the Burlesque lingerie she used to wear; instead, she had this emerald velvet and lace set – with a triangle bralette, together only with a black velvet choker and her black heels. Turning on the song, Y/N sighed, getting rid of all her stress. It was time to get into character.

Youngho was sitting in the middle of the room, but somehow right in front of the bed. Playing the music, Y/N walked slowly towards him. Her eyes focused on his figure, taking in how gorgeous that man was. It was weird that she still couldn’t get over his beauty, it was like he awakened all her hidden lust… Like he was always trying to find a way to seduce her.

Touching the hem of her dress, Y/N started her performance. She could feel his eyes boring into her, totally interested by what she could offer. A mutual interest, if she was being honest. Y/N wanted to register every reaction he had, savour them, just like she did at his party. She twirled and wiggled, her butt always near his hands, provoking, tempting. Every time she would do a lap dance, Y/N reminded herself from what the pole dance teacher had once said: “Men don’t really care for clothing and how you take it off; all they want to see are your tits and – if you’re feeling generous, your pussy –, ideally, as soon as possible”. That’s why she was always quite quick in getting undressed. Things in lingerie were absolutely more fun.

Pulling her dress straps aside, Y/N got rid of the fabric, revealing herself in her new undergarments. Youngho saw the velvet set and his mind went blank. Y/N was truly ethereal. She was an art piece and he wanted her locked in in Louvre, Prado or whatever museum she’d prefer. His hands ached to touch her smooth skin, to feel every piece of life she had to give. In that moment, he was grateful God created humans.

He licked his lips when she knelt in front of him, her small and warm hands touching his thighs while she leaned forward, obviously showing him her breasts.

“Oh.” Johnny wanted to curse, but his breath got caught in his throat. “It tickles.”

Y/N smirked like she was the personification of lust. Her aura changed slightly, only showing the effect Johnny had on her. He wanted to kiss her, eat her open. Then, without the inconvenience of clothes, she approached him again – a burst of courage running through her blood. She faced away from Youngho, her ass barely touching in his lap as she slowly pressed it into his knees. He swallowed hard, excitement jolting through his body. Due to their agreement, Johnny kept his hands out of equation, but he had to fight the urge to grab that pretentious butt. She slowly leaned back in, her shoulders touching his chest. Surprising him, Y/N turned around smoothly, opening her legs and bending down for less than a second, then walked away. Johnny felt one arm slowly gripping his shoulder, her nails scratching his suit slightly. She pulled his jacket off, leaving him in his black button-down shirt. Feeling his muscles, Y/N forgot for a moment what she was doing – hypnotised by his strong body. Caressing his chest down, she purred, loving how it felt on her fingers. Johnny bent his head backwards, his smooth hair grazing her skin and making Y/N shiver, bringing her back to reality. And that was when Youngho realised he had a lot of power over her, too. The look in her eyes were like pleads of pure lust. For a brief moment, she gave him a sweet, subtle grin, sitting on his lap with one leg at each side. He was shocked. Enjoying it, of course, but shocked.

What happened to the “No touch” rule?

“Is this part of the performance?” He heard a low chuckle. “Honestly, I wasn’t expecting this.”

“Neither was I.” She confessed. “But I’m doing a new dance.” Her mouth was so close, her body so warm, her light… Oh, boy, her light!

Thinking fast, Youngho decided to put his evil nature to good use.

“I doubt you can ride my thigh for 4,000 pounds.” He breathed out, the hot air hitting her and making her shiver. “You’re already seated, mei fortuna.”

Y/N’s lip suddenly went dry, her body tensed up but she knew it was ready to do whatever he asked for. She wasn’t used to being aroused by just a single sentence, let it out by a strange petname she had no idea about the meaning. However, it somehow seemed so right. Besides, with more 4k, she would have 18k. That was a shit ton of money. That was perfect.

“Alright, sir.” Cocking her head to the side, she looked right into his eyes, needy for something.

The smug smile Johnny had on his face deserved to be on an art gallery. Having her saying “Sir” while she started to rock her pussy against his leg was just out of this world, Hell and Heaven. He felt – ironically – like a god. Y/N moaned lowly, her fingers digging into his shoulder while she looked down to his mouth, licking her lips again. That made him use his last trick:

“I dare you to kiss me for more 8,000 pounds.”

Her eyes sparkled in pure desire: for both kisses and money. Johnny had no doubt she’d do it… And he had no doubt it’d be glorious.

Y/N reached for his mouth eagerly. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, her head bent down because of her position. They met in a sensual tongue dance, his hands grabbing her hips and making her move while he drank every sound from her. They were hungry for each other, but decided to keep things slow. She pulled at Johnny’s hair, moaning slightly from the softness – and from the pressure his thigh made on her clit –; the kiss became wet, more desperate. Johnny could feel her light starting to give in to his darkness, his vitality increasing by every second… And he never felt better. 

Bribing her was his best idea.

His fingers hooked against the velvet bra, pulling it to the side and getting a better touch of her boobs. Youngho heard her purring again and felt her body heavy against his. Y/N was totally seduced by him. Devouring her, he started stroking her nipples, pinching it a bit and swallowing her moans. He sucked on her tongue, motioning what he would do with her neck, her beautiful breasts, and luckily – her pussy.

“Do you,” Johnny left her mouth for a second. “like it rough?”

She panted.

“Damn, I do.”

His lips met her neck while he unclasped her bra. Throwing it away, he left a trail of kisses from her base to her nipple, then coming up again.

“Good, ‘cause I don’t do it any other way.”

He seemed so confident that they’d end up having sex that Y/N also bought it. She could feel his muscles against her – while she rocked her hips in search of some relief, they were flexing as if they knew the right amount of hardness that could drive her crazy. One of Youngho’s hand came to grab her breast, the other one still helping her to keep on moving. He squeezed the round surface, then moved to her neck, wrapping around it but barely making any pressure. Moaning defeated, Y/N closed her eyes, her body numb. How did he guess her most secret kink?! Without warning, he clenched his fingers, chocking her slightly.

She trembled against his thigh, her nails sinking into his left arm and right shoulder. He mimicked the move, earning another shaky hip thrust. He put some more pressure, adoring how she quickened her pace – now truly hoping for an orgasm.

“Do you wanna cum?” He asked, cocky. Y/N shook her head. “Mhm… Don’t think so.” He stopped her hips. “First you gotta ask, mei fortuna. It’s not that easy, you know?”

Y/N opened her eyes, quite annoyed. She wanted to scoff and tell him to fuck off, but she knew her mouth would actually say ‘Fuck me, please’.

“Can I cum, Youngho?”

“Hm… That’s not really my name, princess. Try again.”

She growled, now more annoyed then before.

“Can I cum… What the fuck am I supposed to call you? Devil?”

He laughed at her angry spat.

“That’s also what they call me, even though it’s not what I’m looking forward hearing from you. Although I asked you not to, you’ve called me that a hundred times, if this may help.”

Y/N recalled the day they first met, a word surging on her mind on the spot.

“Can I cum, sir?”

Johnny’s smile would’ve made all city blind.

“Behave yourself and then I might let it happen.”

She opened her mouth to protest, but he bounced his leg and she shut up.

“Move.” He said in a low voice.

Grinding back on him, Y/N noticed what made her so angry: that man was stupidly handsome, sexual and was about to make her cum in a short time. It wasn’t fair at all. Leaving his shoulders, her fingers started unbuttoning his shirt, each hole revealing his bare chest. Toned, slightly tanned and delicious. Without asking, Y/N leaned forward, kissing his neck while her hands went through the fabric to touch his skin. Youngho growled in pure satisfaction, and the sound was enough to push her to the edge. Swirling her tongue, she copied the motion with her hips, in a lethargic rhythm, just because she loved suffering.

“Choke me again, sir.” She whispered in his ear, lust filling her voice. “Please.”

Johnny’s hand caressed her whole body before stopping on her neck, wrapping it and squeezing it stronger than last time. Y/N’s eyes flew shut, a wave of pleasure washing through her as she felt herself come undone. Rocking her hips with more strength, Y/N rode her orgasm just thinking about riding Johnny for real. If he made her cum with only his thigh, she couldn’t imagine what he would do to her with his dick.

The went room silent for a brief second as the song ended.

“Are you done or is it part of the show?”

“I’m done.” She spoke, opening her eyes to find those devilish yellow orbits looking at her.

“Capital.” He kissed her hungrily.

Y/N took his shirt off, her mouth rough against his. She felt his strong back, grazing her fingers against every inch of skin she could touch. He was so cold even in a heated moment, and that was weird, but she only felt more aroused by him. Johnny touched her legs, putting them around his hips as the kiss came to an end.

“We’re going up. Hold tight.”

“Oh my God, it’s happening.” She whispered to herself, but due to their proximity, he heard.

“Well, I’ve never heard you calling God, I’m quite surprised you’re doing this while we sin.” He chuckled; having in mind he indulged her to commit two of the seven deadly sins.

“It’s my first time doing it, to be honest. But I have this strange feeling I’ll be calling Him a lot today.” She felt the mattress on her back. They were on the bed.

“Poor lad, having you calling him in such a dirty situation.”

“Then whom should I call? Satan?”

Johnny grinned. “That would be reasonable, but he might be quite busy, don’t you think? Why don’t you just call me, instead?”

“But shouldn’t I call you ‘Sir’? It’s weird to moan ‘Sir’.”

“I can’t decide whether you’re being sarcastic or really confused.”

“Maybe I was being sarcastic…” She smirked, her fingers touching his collarbones. “Your skin is so cold, sir. Why’s that?”

“Youngho.” He pecked her lips, pulling himself over her and hating the fact that she noticed how cold he was. It was time to capture her total attention. “Call me Youngho now.”

“So we’re dropping the ‘Sir’ thing, sir?” Y/N blinked innocently.

“Are you mocking me?”

“Maybe.”

Johnny smiled, getting up and sitting on the bed. He patted his lap and looked at her. “Come here, mei fortuna. You should’ve known better than this.”

“Do I get to sit on your lap again, sir?”

“No, princess, you get a good spanking session for being a brat.”

“Oh, so you like brat taming?” She laid down on him, her belly pressed against his knees.

“You got way too comfortable with me. Minutes ago you were trying to put out a femme fatale facade, now you’re all talkative and making fun of my kinks.” He chuckled, caressing her bum.

“You gave me an orgasm, sir. This actually means a lot to me.” Y/N held on the bed sheets, anxious for when he’d start the punishment.

“Hm… So now I mean something to you?! Did I go up a level? Am I no longer ‘business’?”

“You were never business, sir.”

One slap.

She jumped out of surprise, her butt aching and a scream caught up on her throat.

“If you lie again, I’ll have to double the slaps.”

“Jesus Christ, Youngho! You could at least have warned me you were starting!”

Johnny grinned with immense pleasure. Only Y/N would use his name along with Jesus in the same sentence. Yuta would laugh for days if he knew about it.

“Why? You want to count how many slaps you’ll get?!”

“No. Just so I can prepare myself.”

“Then it’s no fun, Y/N.” He slapped her again.

“Fuck.” She spat, still feeling it ache. How many slaps should she take until the pleasure arrived?

She got 12, in total. Around seven, Y/N’s eyes were filled with tears, but every time Johnny’s cold skin touched her, she could feel her pussy getting wet. Again. But when she thought he was over, Johnny pushed her panties to the side and slightly touched her, coating her juices on his fingers and stroking up and down. Y/N moaned softly, completely doomed.

Johnny started finger-fucking her, going in and out in a slow motion just to push her over the edge. His bulge was aching, but he knew better than to go to the main act right now. He loved taking things slow and he’d savour every piece of her… He’d savour every second of totally corrupting her and taking over her entirely. That delicious light, oh, he’d have it all. Y/N propped up on her knees, still being fingered by him, and started undoing his belt.

She palmed his hard member, pulling his trousers plus underwear down a bit to reveal it. Y/N chuckled, quite nervous but quite satisfied, and leaned downwards, licking the tip of his cock. Youngho stopped his movements and growled, making Y/N look up to find him watching her with hungry eyes. She used one hand to stroke all his length, moving it back and forth, just warming up. Knowing that sucking it or masturbating it weren’t everything, she used her free hand to pay extra care in his balls; she held one of them and squeezed it gently. Almost at the same second, Johnny pulled on her hair, forcing her head down. Y/N licked his shaft once again, increased the pressure on his testicle, swirling her tongue while she blinked fast, adjusting him in her mouth. His dominant side made an appearance again, because he started bobbing her head in his desired rhythm, hips thrusting in as she came down.

“You’re so eager to please, mei fortuna. I’m so lucky.” Johnny purred.

Y/N scratched his thighs at the sound of the petname, strangely flattered. She kept sucking him, concentrated in giving him enough space to fuck her mouth. A loud slap echoed in the room and she realised he had smacked her butt again. Stopping on track, she looked up at him.

“Keep going, Y/N.” He breathed out, looking tortured.

She left the bed, getting on her knees in front of him. That way, she had more stability to suck him off and he could control her better. Focusing on the tip, Y/N dragged her tongue around it, sucking slightly and making a “pop” sound, repeating it all over again until Johnny gave in, thrusting back on her mouth in a quick pace. He growled, hips fast and hands tightening around her hair, pushing her face down with every thrust. She gagged a bit, eyes tearing as he kept mouthfucking her, searching for his own release. Johnny was careful not to suffocate or hurt her in any way other than pleasurable, but when he felt his orgasm arrive, he couldn’t help but hold her head with a bit more strength than needed, pulling at her hair tighter.

He suddenly stopped, making Y/N frown due to the small pain in her scalp and abrupt pause. However, when she looked up, she didn’t know whether she was crazy or very enchanted. Youngho’s eyes were a shade brighter than amber, like liquid gold she so much loved on jewellery.

Jesus Christ, the man was stupidly handsome.

Without saying anything, she stood up, pushing her panties down and crawling back to his lap. Wrapping her arms around his neck, Y/N kissed him eagerly. Mouths colliding in tongues and teeth, their hands grabbing any skin they found on the way. Youngho started to get familiar and enjoy those delicious sensations that any miserable touch of Y/N made him feel. The kiss began to slow down, but still extremely charged with lust. Her lips touched his neck, biting hard on the sensitive flesh as she lifted her hips to grind him. He could feel her warm body tensing, her heart beating too fast; and he decided he had dragged it for too long. Pushing her to the side so she could lay on the bed, Youngho took his trousers completely off, grabbing the condom before throwing the fabric somewhere in the room.

“On your back, ass up, face down.” He told her, his voice raspy.

Y/N got on all fours, anxious. She heard the plastic ripping and a soft grunt – probably because he was putting the condom on. Y/N closed her eyes, waiting. She felt a weight on the mattress and then Johnny’s cold skin. The tip of his fingers ghosted around her butt, brushing against her wet pussy and slipping in, while he gave her another slap. She only moaned, too tense to move or argue with him. He fingerfucked her for a brief moment, then positioned himself behind her, moaning a husky ‘Fuck’ when he entered her warmth. It was amazing how with Y/N he didn’t feel so cold, just more alive. She clenched around him, and Johnny felt her aura wave, as if it was fighting against something.

“Let me in.” He murmured, knowing she wouldn’t understand at all.

But Y/N did. Her body was hectic, her heart beating too fast for her liking. Her head felt heavy, her limbs going numb, and with every thrust it was as though Youngho wanted to crawl under her skin, as if he was colonising all her cells. As if he was taking everything from her. She was sweaty, tiring out, but she couldn’t stop. Youngho kept going rough, hitting all the right spots and taking her to a spiral of pleasure, one she would never forget, one she always only heard about, but never experienced. Even if his pace was slow, Y/N felt everything. It was intense, raw and lustful. 

Devilish, indeed.

Another slap made her stiffen, this time grabbing some of the bed sheets to muffle her scream. He pulled on her hair, bringing her up so her back was touching his chest, and then she felt his teeth on her shoulder, biting hard, ready to mark her. Johnny’s pace got quicker, their bodies making noises when their flesh met. He loosen the grip on her hair completely, only to wrap his hand around her neck. Jesus Christ, she was about to convulse. Y/N gripped on his arm, trying to stay still while he restlessly thrust in her… Until she felt the pressure on her lungs. She could barely function, the choking way too much for her to ignore the pleasure. Y/N clenched again, on the verge of a powerful orgasm. Youngho started whispering in a different language, something a bit archaic and hard to decipher; it sounded like Latin, yet, kinda unique, and it had a strange effect – like a curse being said, hypnotising her. Her eyelids got heavy and she gave herself in, falling right into nirvana.

Y/N understood clearly the meaning of “Le petit mort”. She could feel her heart beating so fast while her whole body gave up shaking. Her body hit the mattress and she opened her eyes, feeling herself suffocate in a sweet but agonising sensation. Gasping for air, she found nothing but Johnny’s intense gaze on her, as if he was mesmerised with her struggle.

Then she realised… She was really dying.

●●●

A loud thud on the room made Yuta roll his eyes.

“You really can’t stop yourself from being noisy, can you?”

“I was trying hard, mate.” Lucas sighed. “Did she wake up?”

“Nothing yet. However, her pulse came back and her heart is beating.”

“It’s been three days already; her friends are going nuts.”

“Well, I’m doing my best here, but I honestly have no idea of what happened. Johnny won’t talk and she won’t wake up.” Yuta spat. “I’m not a healer of any kind.”

“It’s alright, let’s not worry too much. If corrupting beings of light were this problematic, no one would bother doing so. Maybe it’s because she doesn’t believe in us…”

Youngho entered the room before Lucas could finish his thought. Yuta and he had shifts on taking care of Y/N, since they were the most skilled on weird stuff. He never expected her to die, neither to revive. He expected nothing but getting more powerful and earning more fame for corrupting a soul like hers. Then again, she was like that: cold, slightly lifeless and ethereal.

“How’s babysitting?’

“Good now that it’s over.” Yuta stood up. “She didn’t wake up.”

“I figured it out.” He sighed. “Her friends are sleeping over again.”

“Yay, another night with humans.” Yuta was grumpy. “I have no idea what you told them, but it would help me a lot if you really tell me what the fuck happened on that night.”

“I’ve told you already, bro. We fucked, she collapsed then died.”

“This isn’t right, Johnny. Things weren’t supposed to happen like this.”

He shrugged, offering his friend a smug smile.

“What can I do? It already happened.”

“You should find a way to fix it! You’re now powerful enough to do so.”

“Oh, all saints and demons out there, please help me!” He rolled his eyes. “Yuta, I have no idea what the fuck happened to her, I can’t feel her soul anymore and I don’t know how she’s still alive.” He looked at the girl on his bed. “I don’t think I can help in this since I don’t understand it. Let’s wait for her to wake up, and then I can try to figure something out.”

Johnny sat down next to her, opening a book and totally ignoring Yuta. He was in the middle of a chapter when he heard something moving on the bed sheets. Looking to his side, Johnny got startled: Y/N was sitting, her back straight and her head turned to him. When she blinked, he couldn’t ignore the yellow glow on her eyes.

“Mei fortuna?” He tried. “Are you ok?”

“What the fuck happened?”

“Fuck, you sound like Yuta.” He sighed.

“Youngho, honestly…” Her eyes went fully yellow.

Then he realised.

Jesus Christ, he turned her into a demon.

[aboysbestfriendishismum]

Chapter 53 - Captain Kirk, the talk and the ex talk

In the previous chapter: Eddie and Angie talk every day on the phone. The day of the concert in Portland is near, Meg will go with Grace and Laura, whereas Angie won't be there. Cornell's going back home at dawn when he finds Eddie sitting outside Angie's door. He tells him he's hitched a ride and travelled during the night because he wanted to go back home. Angie and Eddie finally see each other again after the kiss.

**

“What the fuck have I just seen?” Meg's right here next to me, laughing and clapping her hands, together with the small group who rallied around our friends in the parking lot.

“Need bleach to disinfect your corneas?” Stone stoops to talk to her, keeping his arm around my shoulders “Want me to go inside and ask for some?”

“They're admirable though” I remark.

“For their courage and total lack of shame or restraint? I couldn't agree more” he said seriously.

“No. I mean, that too. But I meant their artistic choice”

“Artistic?” Meg eyes me suspiciously, then Jeff and Laura drag her away and they all walk up to the champs who've just given the performance.

“Well, yeah, they could have played it safe without taking any chances and go for an easy WMCA or In the navy. Yet they chose a niche song”

“Well, I wouldn't call it niche...”

“You gotta admit it's not the typical Village People party tune” I shrug and turn around and start walking back to the club.

“Now that I think about that...” Stone follows and reaches out to take me by the hand.

“They even had to make up a dance routine”

“Hehe that's true, you're right” he smiles and gives a little squeeze at my hand and I just snap.

“WHAT?”

“Huh?”

“What the fuck are you talking about Stone?” I plant myself pretty close to the entrance.

“Did you take any drugs that are kicking in now?” Stone studies my face with a perplexed look and a badly hidden smile.

“Come here!” I change direction and drag him back into the parking lot but towards the back, actually towards the band's van.

“Did Village People give you subliminal advice on how to spend the night? Well, the rest of it...” he asks as I gesture for him to open the door of the van.

“I see you've still got some sense of humour for me too!”

“Gracie, what's wrong?” he opens the van and flails his arms, while I walk around to get on the passenger seat.

“Get on and I'll tell you”

“So?” we're sitting and we're locked in and that fucking grin is still there.

“What's happening to you, Stone?”

“To me? I should ask you this question...”

“You haven't even made fun of me once since I got here!”

“What?”

“Being tender and sweet is ok... although I have to admit that sometimes while we were talking on the phone I wanted to yell 'Leave this body!' because I don't know you anymore”

“I can't... I don't understand”

“But at least you were joking with me, I mean, it was always you, though covered in a thick layer of … candy? Tonight you just keep on... fucking agreeing with me!”

“Should I not?”

“NO!”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I'm sure, I want the good old... well, the old Stone, not his pale copy. If this is the way you are when you have a girlfriend, you know, I'm not sure I want to take on that role”

“Oh. Well, that's curious” Stone looks surprised and he's not even trying to hide that grin anymore.

“I mean, I want that role, I like you, I really do... It's just, I can't understand what's wrong with you lately”

“That's curious because all my exes preferred the pale copy”

“Your exes?”

“Actually, they required it”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that girls usually get with me, then regularly try to change me... 'Did you really have to make that joke?'... 'Don't embarrass me!'... 'You said you'd call at 7. It's 7:01, what the fuck are you doing?'... 'Do you need to spend the whole night of your concert with your bandmates?'... 'Do you really have to play tonight?'... 'How could you make fun of my dress? My record? My mother? My dog?'... And each and every time I was like, you know, where have you been? Who have you been dating? Don't you know me? I thought you wanted to be with me and this is literally who I am”

“I don't wanna change you, you're fine to me the way you are”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, you can call me 15 minutes later, sleep with your guitar or... with Jeff! And you can easily insult my whole wardrobe”

“Even 20 minutes later?”

“Even one hour!”

“Really?”

“Sure! This is bullshit, stupid little things, nothing to focus on”

“Ok in that case... it looks like you passed the test” Stone holds his fingers up to his chin as if he's pondering something, then gives me a peck on the nose and gets out of the vehicle just like that. He walks around the van and opens the door for me.

“What?”

“And with flying colors!”

“What test?”

“Stone Gossard's Stress Test”

“And what the hell is it?”

“A kind of stress you couldn't stand for... mmm... not even five hours” Stone looks at his watch to calculate the time spent together tonight and I get out shocked from the van.

“Are you telling me... you did it on purpose?”

“Sure”

“And the cheesy phone calls?”

“Those too.” he's about to lock the van and my puzzled face tells him he needs to elaborate more “Oh that was to figure out if you're a clingy psycho. And you're not. You're a normal young woman with normal insecurities and doubts about the guy she's just started dating”

“So, what if I had given in and gone along with you?”

“I'd have dumped you on the spot” he finally locks the van and circles my shoulders with his arm once again, kissing me quickly on the lips.

“On the spot?”

“Well, no, of course I'd have waited for us to at least meet in person so we could talk” we walk up to the back entrance of the club and I can't help burst into laughter.

“Hahaha shut up! You'd have broken up with me on the phone with no remorse. Actually, you'd have probably asked Jeff to do the job for you!”

“God, you really do know me” he stops in his tracks, grabs me by my hips and pulls me in a tight hug, amused.

“Yes. And I still want to be with you, isn't it crazy?”

“Well, when I called you normal I was clearly putting it mildly”

“What are we then? I mean, are we a couple, are we dating or what?”

“What do you want us to be?” he asks as he rests his forehead against mine.

“Well, I want to be with you... but I want to take it slow”

“Uh what a coincidence! That's exactly what I want as well” he suddenly pulls away and takes me by the hand as we resume walking.

“Anyway, considering we already had the talk, I'd say we're well on the way”

“The talk?”

“The ex talk”

“Uh, that!”

“Well, you didn't give me the details but...”

“We can easily skip those” he shakes his head.

“And then there's the part about my ex boyfriends that still remains untold”

“Can't we skip that too?”

“You're not jealous, are you Gossard?”

“Nuh, it's just pathetic cases make me sad”

“Ha-ha”

“You said you liked my sense of humour, now enjoy it” he jokes as we walk hand in hand and he delicately rubs the back of my hand with his thumb.

“Can I reconsider it quickly?”

“No. You've even just called me by my surname to act as the funny alternative girlfriend, you can't go back”

“Any other remark before we get in?” I question when we're at the door.

“Yes, one thing. How many M&m's did you kill to make that skirt?”

“HA! I KNEW YOU HATED IT”

“You can't imagine the struggle to keep my mouth shut the whole time. And I did it for you, you should appreciate that”

**************************************************************************************************************************************

“Hey, did you see Mike?” Eddie runs into me in the parking lot and asks the wrong person.

“Mmm no, the last time I saw him he was mimicking tango moves with Cantrell along that railing, while the other Village People were doing the wave”

“That was... intense”

“I don't know now. Oh you know what? You should try and find the coordinates of the spot where I'm standing right now and calculate the one that's exactly the antipodes on the earth's surface 'cause that's were he probably is. Most likely” I spew my bile on poor Eddie, who remains confused.

“Ok”

“That or... he's, you know, inside” I add as I calm down.

“Ok, thank you Meg.” Eddie smiles and is about to leave, then waits “Mike's got nothing against you, he just wants to be by himself for a while so he doesn't fuck anything up”

“Yeah, well, I can't wait for him forever” I flail my arms then fold them back against my chest, buttoning up my jacket. It's cold tonight, fuck.

“Don't worry, he knows” Vedder nods at me and gets in the club, leaving me standing here like a lemon.

Sure he knows, he knows pretty well. Maybe that's what he hopes for. He wants me to get tired of waiting for him. I just need to find someone else and he wouldn't be in trouble anymore, right?

“Hey? Hey girl!” I hear someone yelling behind my back so I turn around to see if by any chance they're talking to me.

Two guys, apparently intoxicated by alcohol or something else. They come close smiling and elbowing each other. Yeah, unfortunately they're talking to me.

“Yes?”

“Hi! Excuse me, my friend and I are right in the middle of... of a...” the blond guy can't find the words, his friend with the dreadlocks comes to the rescue.

“A dilemma”

“Yes! A dilemma. You're the only one who can help us”

“You can't decide who's the biggest jerk between the two?”

“Hahahaha that's a good one!”

“I told you she seemed funny”

“We can't decide what's the worst cover version between Hotel California by Al B. Sure and Under my thumb by Sam Kinison. Do you know them?”

What. The. Fuck.

“The first one, for sure”

“Yeeeeeeeeeeeah! See? What did I tell you, I won!” blondie growls and beats his chest like a gorilla.

“Fuck you always win, that's not fair”

“And what did you win?” I ask 'cause I wanna see where this nonsense is going.

“The chance to hit on you, sweetie!”

“Don't you have a friend?” his buddy asks, still disappointed.

“Fine. Well you had your chance. It didn't work. Sorry. Bye!” I make wide gestures with my arms and hands and quickly step off.

“Aw come on! Why? Where are you going?”

“Guys, you need to change your technique because I swear this isn't just the worst pass ever done at me, it's the worst I've ever witnessed in general”

Sorry, Mike, given the available men around, I'm afraid the solution to your problems is still way too far.

I get back into the club right when Vedder's exiting, together with two friends of Mike's. That's why he was looking for him.

“Good night Meg!”

“Night”

Is he leaving? Where? Huh. The hall seems even bigger now that the show is over and there's a little less people on the floor, dancing to the dj's setlist.

“Baby here I am, I'm the man on the scene!” a Mike, but not the one I was looking for, sings aloud into my ears, dancing and skipping behind my back.

“Hey Starr, I've been told from a very believable source you're not a bad dancer at all”

“That's right! Your roommate was very satisfied with the performance”

“Yeah, despite your quick hand!” I retort as I jokingly squeeze his asscheek.

“Shhhhhh don't say it too loud! If Jerry hears us, he will get all upset and want to beat me up once again” Mike stops in the middle of the hall, looking around and gesturing me to shut up.

“Did he beat you up?”

“Nuh, he's all talk and no action, he never does it in the end. But there's a first time for everything”

While Starr describes his fears, I inspect the crowd and at some point I spot a Stevie Ray Vaughan style hat I know too well. Two girls are talking to that hat.

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHA you're killing me!” I give him a small nudge but he doesn't move.

“Ok. It didn't seem such a brilliant joke to me though”

“Hahaha no it wasn't but just laugh all the same, ok? Laugh! Would you please fucking laugh?!” I grab him on his shoulders and literally shake him.

“Are you high?”

“Just pretend we're having very much fun, ok? HAHAHA!” I throw my arms around his neck and maybe this dumbass finally understands something.

“Aaaaaah I see! Mikey's looking this way, isn't he?” he understood but doesn't uderstand that if he turns around he's gonna ruin the whole thing.

“Don't look!” I grab his curly head and straighten it forcefully up so he looks back at me.

“Hey, relax... I just wanted to check if he was with any girls”

“I can tell you: yes, he is. Happy now?”

“Well, yes, because if there's girls around, you get mad” he smirks and he almost gets me more mad than the girls themselves.

“Oh thank you! And why would that make you happy exactly?” I grasp his neck again but less gently.

“Because the more upset you are, the more you'll be seeking for revenge. And I can take advantage of the situation!” he wiggles his eyebrows and tries to cop a feel.

“You're such an asshole” I shake my head and let go of him, leaving him alone in the middle of the dance floor.

“Meg, where are you going?” Mike, still the wrong one, follows me as I make my way through the dancing people and catches up with me at the bar “Come on, I was just kidding! You know me, we're friends, aren't we?”

“Ok”

“But if you want to do what that chick with the bandana is doing to Mike, I'm in. Anything to help a friend in need!”

I frown and turn around and see the girl has just pulled up her shirt right in front of Mike, who just stands there in the middle of a group of howling men without batting an eye. First her friend laughs at the scene, then imitates her and pulls her top up as well.

“Fuck you, Mike” I hiss after I down my whiskey shot.

“Who? Me or him?”

“Both”

**************************************************************************************************************************************

Monday. Weird day choice for a concert, especially for the last gig of a tour. Actually, as far as Eddie told me, they were initially supposed to play last Friday. Then there were problems and it all slipped to today, so the guys had a long free weekend. This kind of gift is even better when it's unexpected. Just like the cancelled class this morning. I spend the morning running errands and doing all the chores I needed to do, I had a slow lunch, I studied for a couple of hours not to feel guilty, I even baked a cake, which would actually make me feel partially guilty, and now I'm free. Free to make a small change in my plans with Eddie. Luckily I manage to park just outside his condo, I grab the cake, enter the building thanks to a guy that's perfectly dressed for a bike ride who holds the door for me and I run up the stairs.

What if I disturb him?

You don't.

He must be resting after his shift.

His shift ended hours ago, he's got nothing to do.

Maybe I'm about to show up right in the middle of the writing of a new song and he'll lose inspiration because of me.

Well, if he really tells you he's busy-

He'd never tell me, Eddie's too sweet.

If you actually notice by yourself that he's busy, you can just give him the cake and leave, after all you'll see him at the show tonight.

That's not the same.

You can see him whenever the fuck you want, Angie.

What if he's not at home?

If he's not, nobody will open the door.

What if Jeff's there?

Then Jeff will have the whole cake, just stop with the drama.

What if he's with another girl?

Please! Who?! Eddie's so antisocial you're the only girl he found.

I get to the aparment and through the closed door I can hear the unmistakable voice of Ian MacKaye. This is Eddie, for sure. I ring the doorbell and the music is turned down a little. The door opens almost immediately, in a tiny crack.

“Hey!” Eddie greets me, quickly closes the door to unlock the chain, then opens it again.

“Hi E-” he pulls me towards me and without realising it, I find myself inside his apartment, in the middle of a hug and a kiss.

“What are you doing here? What time is it?” Eddie glances at his wrist but there's no watch on it, then clumsily walks backwards, dragging me within.

“It's almost half past four, Eddie”

“Wait, were we supposed to meet now? Sorry, my mind's kinda confused” hi little lines on Eddie's forehead! I missed you.

“Hehe no, we said tonight at the show, don't you remember?” this morning I saw him at the mini market and went there for a quick hello before going to class. He almost got us caught by Hannigan as we were kissing beside the ice cream department.

“Right! Weren't you busy today?”

“Yeah, but once I got to the university I found out two professors weren't there, so I got some free time” I put the cake on the small table at the entrance to keep it safe.

“Great!” he exclaims maybe with a little too much energy as he hugs me once again.

“And I thought... well, I could drop by and... surprise you”

“Even greater!” I takes me by the arms and loops them around his neck before kissing me.

“Didn't I disturb you?”

“Pfffft no”

“Are you sure?”

“I was just chilling a little”

“Chilling? With Fugazi?”

“You know, I'm weird.” Eddie rubs his nose against mine and his dimples are way beyond the alert level “You look so beautiful”

“Did you smoke pot?”

“Can't you just... like... take a compliment?”

“Sure I can. But that doesn't change the fact you've been smoking” my nostrils don't lie, neither does his face.

“Yes. But pot's got nothing to do with the fact you're beautiful”

“Ok. Do you have any left?”

“Sure, my princess!”

I realized I like hanging out with Eddie. Wow, what a huge discovery! I've always liked it, obviously. It's just, well, after... what happened, I was afraid things would change, that we wouldn't be us anymore, that nothing would ever be the same. Yet it's exactly the same. We're friends, we laugh and joke together, we talk about anything, we go out together, everything is the same. Since he came back, we met every day. On Friday afternoon we played basketball at the court, on Saturday he came to the diner at closing time, yesterday we did another tour of Pike Place. I mean, it's all like it used to be. Kisses, cuddling and make out sessions are a plus, lovely interludes that take nothing away from the rest. Everything's going just right and I'm sure it'll stay like that. As long as none of us talks about the whole matter, of course. Meg can't believe we didn't say anything to each other, whereas I think that's why this thing works. I mean, sure I'd  like to make sense of all this, to figure out what we are: we are together, we're not together, we're a couple, we're friends... I don't have much experience about relationships: with Sean, well, we both set up what we would do together, whereas Martin asked me with a card (Do you wanna be my girlfriend? Cross Yes or No); then came Drake and Dave that were, in two totally different ways, actual non-relationships, nobody said anything, nobody knows if they even started, we just know they ended by themselves; and finally, Jerry, well, no need to explain that. I mean, I went from school boyfriends to adult relationships, there's nothing in between and I have no idea how you know as an adult wether you're in a relationship or not. Do you have a talk specifically about that? Or one of the pair simply starts addressing the other spontaneously calling him or her my boyfriend or my girlfriend and you just start considering yourselves a couple by implication from then on? Nobody says shit and if you haven't told each other to fuck off after N months then you're a couple? Do you automatically become a couple after a minimum time-span of exclusive sex? How do I figure out if I'm with Eddie or not? Is it so necessary to figure it out? Uhm probably yes, if you don't want to get shafted like with Jerry Cantrell. I have the right to know what's happening and decide if I’m ok with it or not. The truth is, I'm so very ok with this situation, with Eddie, the way it is, that I'm scared stiff I'll do or say the wrong thing and fuck it all up. Eddie's the best thing that's happened to me in a long time. I loved Jerry, and I somehow still do, I can't deny it, 'cause I care for him and everything. Anyway I never had the same connection, the delicious complicity, even the intimacy I have with Eddie, although we haven't done anything actually intimate... What if he wants to do it? SHIT, WHAT IF HE WANTS TO DO IT NOW?! Lounging on a small couch with Eddie listening to post-punk, eating chocolate cake and smoking substances that remove inhibitions: not exactly the best recipe for abstinence.

“Hahaha this was a particularly good idea” Eddie grabs two more squares of cake, he eats one immediately and places the other on his leg, his thigh that keeps rubbing against mine.

“And I had no idea about your induced appetite”

“It's a great idea regardless of the munchies. Take another bit” he suggests chewing.

“No, I'm fine, I ate a quarter alone!”

“So what? I ate half of it, there's another quarter left” Eddie gets all serious as he shows the different fractions of cake on the plate with the knife.

“That's for Jeff”

“But... Jeff's not here now” he whispers seductively, as if he was suggesting to cheat on a boyfriend with him and thank god I don't have a boyfriend because Eddie can be so convincing. Even now that his eyes are two thin slits and he can't stay more than ten seconds without laughing. Actually, when he laughs it's even worse.

“But if he still finds some when he comes home and eats it, that will make me happy”

“So selfless” he moves a lock of my hair away from my face and it falls back in the same place right away, he gives me a small kiss, then another, then one more, and he keeps smiling so wide that I'm afraid he'll gouge my eyes out with those cheekbones.

“Err Eddie?”

“Yes?”

“The cake” I point at the chocolatey square that's about to crumbe between our legs.

“Oops!” he lets go of me and takes the piece of cake, eating it in one bite.

This couch is a mess, there are crumbles everywhere.

Luckily it's not your apartment and it's none of your business. Focus on something else!

The B side of 13 songs has come to an end and this time I decide to go and turn off the stereo. I need a diversion.

“I... gotta go to the bathroom!”

“Ok”

My interior monologue goes on, both on the toilet and at the sink, as I wash my hands.

Why am I like this?

Because you're stupid.

Why do I freeze? I'm comfortable with Eddie... so why do I have these totally awkward moments?

Because it's a new thing, you still have to get used to it.

Get used to what? To making out with a hot guy? That should be the easiest most natural thing in the world! I should be in the living room with him now, not here, fixating on my face in the mirror.

The joint you smoked may be responsible for the fixation, the rest is just insecurity. Try and act normal, relax and don't think too much.

Easier said than done...

I get out of the bathroom and walk back into the living room. Eddie's not here. He must have gone away. And he probably left a message with FIX YOUR FUCKING PROBLEMS written on it.

He can't leave, you dork, you're at his place.

Oh. Right.

“Hey, here you are! I was looking for something to drink. There's a bottle of red wine I really wanna open with you but not today. With the show and all the rest, I'd better not, what do you think?” Eddie comes out from the kitchen with a carton of ACE juice and two glasses.

“Hehe yeah, maybe you'll better not” I answer as I take my glass from his hands.

“This is Jeff's stuff, healthy and vitamin filled” Eddie fills my glass then does the same with his, puts the carton on the coffee table then seats on the armchair.

On the armchair. Sure.

Well done, Angie. Congratulations. You sent him the message to stay away. I drink a sip of juice and place the glass on the table, Eddie makes gestures and mumbles something I can't decipher because he does it as he's drinking.

“What? Do you need something?”

“Mmmhh”

“The cigarettes?” I ask pointing at the pack.

“The remote. Let's watch some tv, do you want to?” he finally explains himself. Eddie wanting to watch tv? I guess my message was too strong.

“What's up with the tv? Do you wanna take a nap?” why don't I just keep my fucking mouth shut? He gets close and you push him away, he finds something to do to pass the time and you have to pick on him. Nothing is ever good for you.

“Hehe no, no napping, just relaxing a little” he replies stretching out a little to put his empty glass on the edge of the coffee table. I move it towards the center so it doesn't fall down, then I get the remote for Eddie.

“Here”

“Thanks” I'm about to go and sit down on the couch but Eddie grabs me first by the arm, then by the hips, and in a couple of seconds I find myself sitting on his lap .

“Eddie! Come on, what are you doing?”

“Where did you think you were going?”

“On the couch, I can't sit here... like this...” I pry up the backrest of the armchair to turn around and look at him as I speak.

“No? And why?” he reaches between my knees and pulls up one of my legs so it lies across his.

“Because I can't be... all sprawled out on you like this” he does the same with the other leg and now I am indeed in his arms.

“Who said that?”

“I'm heavy, Eddie, I'll crush you...” we'll end up falling asleep and I'll suffocate him.

“I can't fell any burden at all” liar.

“It's the drug, it numbed you”

“Haha Angie, it takes much more than a couple of joints to numb me, trust me” Eddie squeezes my hip and with the other hand is still caressing my knees over the jeans.

“But... you're uncomfortable”

“I've never been so comfortable in my whole life” he states and rests, well, actually drops his head against my chest.

“If you say so...”

“Are you comfortable?” he asks looking up. Hi again, Eddie's frown!

“Yes...”

“Great,” he kisses me in a way that I almost fall off this fucking armchair, then gives me the remote “turn it on then”

“Ok, what do you want to see?”

“You choose”

I start zapping through the channels and hope to find something that can give us a prompt of conversation and thank god I find it amost immediately.

“Uh! Star Trek reruns! Do you like it?”

“I used to watch it as a child. I'd say I was more into super heroes and sitcoms rather than science fiction, but I do remember it”

“So you haven't seen the new series? The Next Generation?”

“Uhm no”

“No big deal, I prefer this old one too, but the new one is not bad at all, you know?”

“Hehe ok”

“If you don't like it we can watch something else”

“No Angie, it's good” he steals the remote, turns up the volume a little and sticks it somewhere between the armrest and the pillow.

“OH MY GOD, IT'S ARENA!”

“That is...?” Eddie gives me a perplexed look for my sudden excitement.

“It's a memorable episode! Captain Kirk against the Gorn, have you seen it?”

“Err it's not like I remember it all, as I told you”

“Oh if you had seen this episode, you'd remember, trust me” I adjust myself better on Eddie's knees.

“Is it good?”

“It's one of the best episodes ever!” I let go of the backrest and clasp my hands behind his neck.

“Cool!”

“And it has the worst fight scene in the history of American television”

“What?”

“Maybe even world television but I don't have the instruments to venture a guess”

“How can it be one of the best episodes if it's got a scene that literally sucks?”

“It's something I can't explain, you wouldn't understand”

“You mean that it's so bad that it's good?”

“Yes, but no. Not really. All I can say is that Star Trek is made of this too”

The episode has already started, although not long ago, so I do a quick summary for Eddie. The attack on Cestus 3, the space battle between Enterprise and the enemy ship, Metrons getting upset because fuckers invaded their sectors.

“Isn't it basicallly some kind of fight trial?” Eddie asks as he's still holding me firmly. When his limbs start tingling and losing feeling and I crash down on the floor, I'll say I TOLD YOU!

“Exactly! A trial by combat. As in, you came here fucking around in our space, now we're gonna take your two captains and put you in this desert planet so you can take this shit elsewhere and sort it out between you two, until one of you dies”

“Who lives, wins”

“Yeah and the one who dies condemns his crew to death too”

Eddie watches the episode in silence, either he's very focused or he's stoned. Now it's me resting my head against his shoulder. All in all, it's just Eddie, why should I freak out? I don't know if I owe it to Captain Kirk or if it's because of the forced contact on the armchair but I feel much more relaxed now.

“I think I smoked too much, I see it all in slow motion” he points out after a while and try and I hardly stifle a laugh.

“It's not you, that's the scene”

“What do you mean?”

“This is the terrible fight I told you about, it's at normal speed”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Hahahaha no”

“What the fuck was that two-handed punch?”

“That's Captain Kirk signature move! He uses it often”

“Yes but it's totally useless”

“Details”

“And why is that alien so slow?”

“He's big, he can't be too sleek”

“He couldn't even kick him! Here, now he's crushing him”

“But Kirk reacts and tries to strangle him”

“He'll never make it”

“Oh he will, with the powerful move of the-”

“Head slap?! Hahahaha”

“See? He stunned him”

“Run away!”

“He can't, he has to fight him to save himself and the Enterprise”

“What the fuck is he doing now?”

“He throws a rock at him”

“That guy's big, the rock won't do him anything”

“Metrons told them they'd find all the resources on the planet”

“If he kills the alien with that pebble, I swear I'll scream”

“It must weigh a lot. Look, look at the elegance of the throw gesture”

“There it is hahaha! As I said, he didn't even move”

“He managed to make him even more upset”

“Where is he going? Jesus Christ yes! Now that is a rock”

“He wants to respond by throwing an asteroid at him basically”

“Such a poor figure for the Captain of Enterprise”

“Shut up, heretic! Kirk is not up for debate”

“Come on, you can't deny he sucks at fighting right now”

“But he's good at dodging asteroids”

“If they go on like this, this fight could last for ages”

“Hehe luckily, it ends at some point”

“Are you sure they're not still fighting right now?”

“No no, I swear”

“Thank god”

And the end of the fight finally comes. Kirk builds some kind of mortar with bamboo, diamonds and colorful dust he found on the planet. He fires it and hits the Gorn.

“So MacGyver didn't invent anything new?” Eddie says and I giggle.

“Hehe no, he didn't”

“Won't he kill him?”

“No, he won't. That's the best part of the episode. Rhetoric, I know, but I'm a sucker for the Federation's moral culture”

We watch the episode till the end: Kirk spares the Gorn's life because he realizes he was just trying to defend his corner of space. The Metron shows up and he's touched by Captain Kirk's pity, a trait he wasn't expecting to find in humans, and saves both him and the Gorn.

“A positive moral in the end”

“Yeah, there's still hope for humanity”

“Anyway... that fight really sucked, I can't” Eddie lets go of my legs and covers his face with his hand as he laughs.

“I can't deny it. But you gotta understand it was 1968”

“Yeah, sorry, you're right. That's how people fought lizard aliens at the time”

“Hehe yeah, now we know much more about lizard aliens but at that time that's how it was done”

“We should have recorded it so we could watch it again in slow motion. I didn't really understand what was happening during the fight, they were too fast”

“Hahaha”

“How can they broadcast such a violent thing at this time of the day? Don't they think about children?”

“You're funnier when you watch Star Trek, I'll take a mental note”

“It's got nothing to do with Star Trek”

“Oh right, it's pot. I'll take a note anyway”

“It's not that either”

“What is it then?”

“It's you”

“Oh...”

**************************************************************************************************************************************

“Did you hear that too?” Angie abruptly breaks our kiss and looks around.

“What?”

“That noise”

“What noise?”

“I don't know, some kind of thud”

“I didn't hear that... I don't know, I must have left a window open” I shrug and kiss her again.

“When I went to the bathroom I didn't see any open window from the hallway” she insists.

“No noise then” I nip her nose gently and try again with the kissing.

“But I'm sure I heard something” it seems there's nothing to do.

I thought she was calm now. She was so tense... I can't see why though. I'm trying everything to make her comfortable.

“Maybe it came from outside?” I cup the side of her face, lean in and...

“I don't know, it seemed more like it came from round here” she explains generically pointing at the entrance and the hallway.

“As I said, maybe someone has just got home and shut the door”

“Yes... it can be... you're right” she finally smiles at me and I can pick up where we left off.

At least until someone rings the door bell. Unlike the previous imaginary sound, we both can hear this clearly.

“Someone's at the door” Angie slips away from my arms and stands up in the middle of the room.

“Yeah, let's see who the fuck it is.” I reluctantly get up from the armchair and walk to the door “Jeff?”

“Sorry man, I forgot the keys” my roommate enters and throws his backpack on the floor.

“It's ok. But what are you doing here? Didn't you have to work until six?”

“Yeah. It's almost seven o'clock, Ed” Jeff laughs as he takes off his jacket and hangs it on the rack.

“WHAT? Already?”

“I see you couldn't stand Violet but if I were you, I'd wear the watch she bought you as a present, you'd need it” he pats me on the back a couple of times, folds his arms and looks at me. A huge grin on his face.

“I'll buy another one...” I nod and walk to go back to the living room, then turn around expecting to see him right behind me, following me. No. He's still there, standing near the door, laughing. Why the fuck is he laughing?

“I'm gonna go and take a quick shower, we're supposed to do soundcheck in half an hour” he finally breaks from his position and makes his way through the hallway.

“HI JEFF!” Angie calls him from the living room and Ament turns tail.

“Angie? Hi! I didn't see you!” I join them and see Angie, holding her bag with her coat on. I can't say I was expecting to see her like she was five minutes ago, stretched out on the armchair with her shirt unbuttoned, but...

“Eh you were walking fast...”

“What are you doing here? Wait, don't tell me you're not coming to the show!” Jeff pretends to get mad and Angie doesn't buy it.

“Don't get all worked up, I'm coming tonight! I just popped by to bring you something” she barely points at the plate and the bass player basically throws himself on the cake.

“Chocolate! Great. Well done, Angie, especially since you brought it to us and not to the other losers”

“I wanted to. But bringing a cake to the Off Ramp was kind of impractical”

“Extremely impractical, totally agree” he adds with his mouth full of cake.

“Weren't you going to take a shower? Aren't we late?” I ask as I walk up to them.

“Oh well, whatever, the acoustics always suck at the Off Ramp”

“Ok, so, gotta go now” Angie dribbles Jeff, and me.

“Already?” I complain.

“Yeah, I can see you're busy”

“Why don't you just wait and come with us to the club?” Jeffrey has the best idea of the century.

“Sure! A little patience and we can go all together” I chime in.

“Thank you but... I can't, I've got a couple things to do that I can't postpone hehe. See you tonight!” Angie dashes my hopes and heads for the door.

“Bye Angie, thank you for the cake” Jeff shrugs and sits down holding the plate in his hand, cutting another slice. I'm surprised he's not splitting the cake with his bare hands. Maybe it's because she's still here. Not for long though.

“Bye guys!” she stops and looks back at us one last time, waving her hand, then disappears. I can barely make a move to catch up with her and I already hear the door open and close.

What the hell...?

“Did I interrupt something?” I'm still trying to process what's just happened when Jeff asks me.

“No”

“Are you sure? It looks like there was a nice party going on in here...” my friend points at my shirt randomly abandoned on the coffee table, the stubs in the ashtray, the glasses.

“Sure. Ehm... I'll be back in a minute” I take a few steps back.

“Where are you going?”

“I gotta... I forgot I had something to tell her”

“Really? And what is that?” Jeff crosses his legs on the couch and keeps on cackling at me.

“Work stuff... I'll be right back” I clear out and dash down the stairs.

I didn't tell anything to Jeff but I have the feeling he sensed something. Well, it's not like he didn't know before, he's not stupid. Anyway, I'd tell him. But obviously Angie doesn't want anyone to know. How can I tell? Well, let me think... maybe the fact that on Friday, after we had spent a great afternoon together, when we met with the whole gang at the Scottish Pub to celebrate the end of the tour, she barely talked to me and sat as far from me as she could? And what about Saturday night, when I went to Roxy's to see her and we were holding hands and she dropped mine in a second as soon as Meg appeared? I see it's been only a few days but I can't see why we should hide.

“Angie!” I draw up to her between the second and first floor and she looks particularly confused when she sees me.

“Eddie? What's up?”

“What do you mean, what's up? What was that?” I stop a flight of stairs higher.

“What was what?” she asks and it looks like she really doesn't understand.

“That” I reply, mechanically waving my hand at her and going down a couple of steps.

“A universal greeting gesture?”

“And didn't you forget anything?” I roll my eyes and keep walking down.

“I don't know... what did I forget?”

“I don't know... something like this?” I get right next to her, cup her face with both hands and kiss her.

“Oh. You meant this” she awkwardly answers.

“Yes, this.” I add with another quick kiss “Why did you leave like that?”

“Well, Jeff was there...”

“So what?”

“He could see us”

“I repeat: so what?” Angie and I haven't talked about it yet. Actually every time I try and talk about us, she changes the topic of the conversation and I didn't want to push until now. After all, it's only been a few days. But maybe now it's time to finally do the talking.

“Eddie...”

“What's wrong if he sees us? He'll find out sooner or later”

“Yes but... I don't know” Angie drops her gaze down to the floor.

“You don't want anyone to know, I get that. I just can't see why”

“Just for now”

“I didn't ask you how long, I asked you why”

“Because... you know how it is with the guys... they never mind their own business” she starts bantering and gesticulating.

“Angie”

“You're in my friends' band and if something happene-”

“Angie, I'll tell you a secret: they really don't give a fuck about us. Sure, they can tell a couple of jokes, make fun of us, gossip a little. Then every one goes back to their own lives and their own problems”

“Hehe I know!”

“So?”

“I just want to wait before telling them, that's all”

“We don't need to actually tell them, we don't have to make big announcements, we can just... stop hiding. And our friends will sniff that out”

“Can't we just wait for a while before having them... sniff?”

“You're ashamed. Of me”

“What?! Shut up, what the fuck are you talking about?!”

“What's the matter then? Don't you trust me?”

“It's not that, Eddie”

“'Cause if you don't, just tell me what I have to do so I can be trusted”

“You don't have to do anything”

“I am not Jerry” if she doesn't want to talk about the elephant in the room, then it's up to me.

“God, I know!”

“Are you sure?”

“Sure I know or I wouldn't be here with you”

“I'm not... shit, I don't want to hide 'case I've got nothing to hide, ok? What am I? The new non-boyfriend? The secret boyfriend of the week?”

“What... what did you just say?” Angie finally looks up at me, only she does it like she had just seen a ghost.

“That I don't want to hide and-”

“No, after that” Angie leans against the stair railing, holding on to it with both hands.

“That I've got nothing to hide?”

“Right after that”

“Secret boyfriend?”

“Yes. That one. What... what is it supposed to mean?” she asks wide-eyed.

“Well that's something I don't like. Being your boyfriend and nobody knows. I can't-”

“You... are you my boyfriend?”

“Well yes... am I... not?” I thought I was. Maybe I got it wrong.

“YEAH! I mean, I don't know, we never talked about it...” she looks down again and I get closer to her.

“I never talked about that because you didn't seem at ease, every time I tried and say something...”

“I know, it's true... it's my fault”

“Fault? What fault? There's no fault. It's... this new thing started between us and it's a beautiful thing and we're spending time together. And it's great but you're kind of embarrassed because it's fresh, there's nothing strange, it's perfectly understandable”

“So... what are we... you and I?” she asks and I can feel it's really hard for her to be so upfront.

“What do you want us to be?”

“I asked... uhm, I asked you first” she retorts with a little smile. Her well known irresistible smile.

“We're together”

“Ok”

“And what do you think?”

“I think we're together too”

“Great” I take her hands off the railing and kiss them one after the other.

“So... you haven't been seeing other people?” she asks and my eyes roll so hard I can see my brain.

“No, Angie, I haven't been seeing anyone else...” then suddenly, a suspect as I drop her hands “Wait, are you seeing someone else?”

“What? No!”

“Tell me if you have” what if all this secrecy and embarrassment are only because she's been dating another guy? After all, we never talked about it, so we never decided how exclusive this relationship was. Who the fuck is going out with her? I swear I'm gonna beat the shit out of-”

“Who do you think I'm going out with?”

“I don't know, you tell me”

“Nobody, Eddie. Only you” this time she takes my hand, delicately holds it caressing the back first, then the fingers and the palm, carefully studying it, without looking at me.

“Ok”

“So... we're a couple”

“Yep... let's go tell Jeff the good news!”

“Eddie, please”

“Just kidding”

“Let's keep this between us, for a few days... ok?”

“Ok, princess”

[zecarbonmage-blog]

Mayday

Prologue

I smiled as I looked down at the clouds whizzing by. This was the life! A supersonic jet airplane cruising 60,000 feet above the ground. My dad, a world famous military pilot, turned back to me.

“This is the life, Jack! Just you and me and the missle tailing us. Wait. WHAT?!”

“A MISSILE?!” I asked excitedly. “REALLY?!”

“This is no joke, Jack. This is a real, live, armed, missile.”

“I know! That makes it so much fun!”

“Jack Agustus Greene. Listen to me. Missiles are not a game. They’re dangerous killing machines.”

“But I thought that you were a master at dodging missiles!”

“I was,” my dad sighed. “But not anymore…”

“How can you lose those skills so quick?!”

“The war was 15 years ago. That’s 5 years before you were born. Don’t ask me how I know that. I just do. Over the years of practice, I have developed the skills of quick maths. But yeah. I lost my piloting skills due to my math skills.”

“But…”

“But nothing! You need to get out of here! NOW!”

“Why?”

“The missile is going to hit us in 30 seconds. Get in the escape pod!”

“What about you?”

“They want me! Now go!”

“I’m not leaving you, dad!”

My dad stood up, stormed over to me, and grabbed my shirt. My excitement about the missile morphed into fear. Fear of my dad. “Jack Augustus Greene. I’m am your father. I’m in charge. You do what I tell you to do. And I’m telling you to get in the escape pod!” With all his might, he threw me into the escape pod and slammed the door. “I’m sorry, Jack.” And with that, he released the escape pod.

“DAD!” I yelled as the escape pod fell down to Earth. I saw the sleek, black, missile close in on the plane. My dad suddenly dived straight down and the missile curved sharply after him. The gap closed. My dad twisted to the right, but the missile darted after him. My dad hadn’t even widened the gap at all! The missile closed in to the plane. I screamed as the missile pierced the jet and exploded.

As I fell down to Earth, tears streaming down my face, I stared at the smoldering debris falling past me on my decent. Nothing mattered anymore. There was no point in anything. My dad… was gone. Forever. The parachute for my pod deployed, but I didn’t even notice. I just stared at the empty void where my dad, the only person that cared, had left me.

Chapter 1

I stared down at the ground, hood over my head, hands in my pockets. There’s a lot of interesting things you can find on the ground. Shoes. Lots of shoes. Coins. Dollars. Litter. Puddles. Cool rocks. But I wasn’t interested in any of those things. I was still thinking about the day I lost my dad. The black missile. Its pinpoint accuracy. The explosion. A tear ran down my face and hit the ground. Another one came down. Suddenly, I heard a gentle voice behind me.

“Hey… Are you alright?” The voice was so gently, so sympathetic. But I knew that it wasn’t for me. Who would feel bad for me? I kept walking. “Hey. I’m talking to you, hood guy!” I continued to walk. Plenty of kids walked around with hoods. I felt a tap on my shoulder. “I said, I’m talking to you!” I stopped. Did that person… tap… my… shoulder?

I was used to people ignoring me, acting if we were the same poles of a magnet. I repelled them. I slowly turned around. I saw a tall girl with sky-blue hair, and green eyes. “Me?” I asked.

“No, I was talking to the father of a friend of mine. He likes to stalk his son. Of course I’m talking to you! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” I said before turning around and continuing my walk. She grabbed my shoulder.

“No. You’re not fine.”

“Oh, since when were you in charge of my emotions?”

“Never, but I can see that you’re not fine.”

“Then why did you ask me?”

“I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“But I thought you already knew that I wasn’t okay.”

“Aha! So you admit it! You’re not okay!” Her face softened. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Everything’s fine. Everything’s fine and dandy.”

“Liar. Come on, you can trust me.”

“I have no idea who you are. You’re a complete stranger. How can I trust a stranger? My dad told me not to talk to strangers.”

“Uh, I’m pretty sure your mom’s supposed to tell you that.” “Well, my mom died shortly after I was born. I was raised for 10 years by my dad.”

“Oh… I’m sorry…”

“I never knew her really. So… it doesn’t mean that much. It probably meant a lot to my dad.”

“Wait. You don’t look like you’re 10 years old.

“Did I say I was 10?”

“No, but you said your dad raised you for 10 years.”

“Exactly. He did.” I spun on my heel and walked briskly away.

“Hey!” The girl ran after me. “I’m not done talking to you!”

“What do you want?!” I yelled at her. “Why, after 5, long, painful years, with everybody treating me like trash, you decide to be Ms. Nice Girl and talk to a social outcast?!”

She flinched. “Well… I thought you were depressed or some-”

“Well I am! Deal with it! I watched my dad get blown up and had to deal with the pain for 5 damn years! I had to watch my dad try to dodge a missile and fail! I had to watch my dad sacrifice himself for me! A WORTHLESS KID!”

The girl stepped back a bit. “Look, I’m really sorry you had to go through that. I know how that pain feels. But please, don’t hurt yourself. Let’s start at the beginning. Hi. I’m Laura.” She held out her hand.

I hesitated. This was my first actual contact with another human being for 5 years. I sighed and shook her hand. “Jack. Jack Greene.”

“Wait. Are you, by any chance, related to Blake Greene? Famous World Discussion 5 pilot?”

“Yeah… he’s my dad. Or was my dad…”

“Oh my god!” she squealed. “I’m such a big fan of him! He was incredible! His unbeatable piloting skills, his unbreakable speed math record, I have his card!” She pulled out a card with my dad’s face on it. I gasped, and started to cry. “A-are you okay?” Laura asked.

“I-I’m fine. It’s just… I haven't seen his face in years…”

“Here.” She handed the card to me. “You should have it. It’s your dad after all.”

I gingerly took the card. “Why are you being so nice to me?”

“What do you mean? It’s duty to help someone that’s depressed.”

“That didn’t stop people for treating me like trash for the last 5 years.”

“Look. Just ignore those people. They’re jerks. Pay attention to the people that care about you.”

“Ok. Sure. As long as you don’t have any appointments, I think I can handle that.”

“What?”

“You’re the first person to pay attention to me in five years.”

“Oh.” She chuckled a bit. “I forgot about that.”

Suddenly, I heard a loud whoosh. A strong wind pushed me forward and I looked up. A supersonic jet had just made a low pass over the market I was in. What was that guy thinking? I shook my head in disbelief before I heard a low hum. That noise… It sounded so familiar…

I whirled around and my suspicions were proved to be true. Streaking after the jet was a sleek, black, missile.

Chapter 2

I stared at the missile for a moment before sprinting after it. I knew I couldn’t catch up, but this was a huge lead to my dad’s death. I heard footsteps behind me and turned around. To my surprise, Laura was following me.

“What… why are you... following… me?” I gasped.

“I think you’re pretty interesting.”

“Heh… a depressed kid… interesting?”

“Yeah!”

“Okay… whatever. That’s... the missile that... killed my dad.”

“I figured.”

“How?”

“Do you find missiles interesting? Do you chase them?”

“No… How… can you be running… while taking… and not be gasping… for air…?”

“I run a lot. It’s good practice.”

“Jeez… you sound like… a classmate… of a guy… I knew… He did… daily runs…”

“Weak. I do hourly runs!”

“Wow… just wow…”

We were losing ground on the missile, when suddenly, the jet made a risky move. It made a quick 180 degree turn and flew towards the missile. I stopped and started running the other way.

“What are you doing?!” Laura called after me.

“It’s turning.. Around… We can… get a head… start…”

“Alright. If you say so.”

We started running as fast as we could. In my head, I admired the pilot. It was a risky move, but it gave a huge lead on the missile. The jet would streak past the missile, and the missile would need to make a 180 degree turn. But the jet would have a good lead on it.

I heard another woosh as the jet flew over our heads, followed by the missile. The missile gained on the jet, closing the gap. The jet tried to turn, but was hit on the side by the missile. It exploded, the huge ball of fire licking the sky.

I stopped. No evidence. We were too late. I hunched over, gasping for air, while Laura stood upright. “Why are you gasping?” she asked.

“I was sprinting for 2 minutes straight.”

“That was your sprint?”

“Yes!”

“That was a slow jog for me.”

“A slow jog?!”

“Yeah.”

“Oh jeez. Who have I met?”

“You met me!”

“It was a rhetorical question.”

“You know what rhetorical means?”

“No, I just heard it before and decided to randomly use it.”

“That’s not really what you should do.”

“I heard about this thing called sarcasm. What is it?”

“Can we stop talking about this and focus on the burning paper airplane flying towards us?”

“Okay. Wait what?” I looked up and saw a smoldering paper airplane heading in our direction. “Oh. Cool.”

“How do you propose we catch it?”

“I don’t know.”

“I thought your dad was a mathematical genius.”

“I don’t think knowing the value of Pi will help us here.”

“Why not?”

“Think about it. Isn’t 3.141592653589793238462643383279502 pretty useless in this situation?”

“You know that much?”

“Yeah. Deal with it.”

“Okay. But what do we do about the airplane? Let it burn your hair?”

“WHAT?!” I ran over to a conveniently nearby lake and jumped in. As I resurfaced, I could hear Laura cracking up.

“Your face!”

“Not funny. I don’t enjoy being set ablaze by a paper airplane.”

“Well, I find the scene funny.”

“I don’t…”

“Well that’s your opinion. My opinion is that it’s hilarious. We have freedom of speech here in America.”

“Well, that’s why I kinda hate this country.”

“Why don’t you just move to another country?”

“A lone 15 year old can move to another country by himself?”

“You don’t need to move there by yourself.”

“Great. A girl that thinks me getting my hair burned is funny can keep me company.”

“Yeah!”

“I’d rather find out why someone threw a burning paper airplane at us.”

“So you enjoy my company?”

“I never said that. I’m just acknowledging that you’re in my company. I don’t necessarily enjoy it.”

“Oh. Ok.”

I gingerly picked up the soggy airplane and unfolded it. The burnt edges and smeared ink made it hard to read, but since I have bad handwriting and am used to it, I could make it out. “Black Thunder.”

“That’s weird,” I said.

“What’s weird?”

“There’s this weird symbol. It looks so familiar.”

Laura took the paper from me as I tried unsuccessfully to get out of the water. “Black Thunder… That itself seems familiar. I remember my parents were saying something about this…” Her voice trailed off.

I finally was able to make it back onto land, but Laura, the jerk stranger she was, pushed me back into the lake.

“What was that for?” I complained.

“I felt like it.” 

“Seriously? Do you know how hard it was to get out of here?”

“It’s easy! Look I’ll prove it.”

Laura dove into the lake. When she resurfaced, she grabbed onto the dock and hauled herself up, doing a backflip as she went.

“It is obvious you are hacking.”

“Yeah!”

“Hacking is bad.”

“Oh…”

“You seem disappointed.”

“I am.”

“Why?”

“I like hacking.”

“Well hacking is bad.”

“You already said that.”

“I know but…”

“Look.” Laura extended her arm to help me up and out of the water. “Let’s just get back on track.” She handed the paper back to me. The symbol was a black lightning bolt in a circle with spikes protruding from the sides.

I tried to think about where I had seen that before. Then it hit me. Before, when I was walking down the street, I passed a building with that logo. I frantically looked around, looking for the direction I had came, before locating it and taking off at top speed. Laura was soon beside me.

“I think I know where to go!” I said while we ran.

“Great!” she replied with a smile.

We made it to the building. It was all black with tinted windows.

“Apparently, whoever these guys are, they love black,” I joked.

“No kidding…” Laura looked up at the insanely tall building. At that moment, a wall rose up, revealing a hanger containing a huge fortress of an airplane. I recognized it immediately. It wa a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress. With a howl of wind, it rose and flew off into the sky. A jet streaked by it. The Stratofortress turned and followed it but was rapidly losing ground.

The bomb doors opened and 3 missiles dropped from it. They closed in on the jet, causing a gigantuous explosion, piercing the blue sky with orange flames and black smoke. The Stratofortress continued on, with Laura and I gaping at the carnage.

“Welp, we found the jerks that are behind all this. That’s good and bad at the same time.” Laura said.

“Yup. It’s good that we found the criminals. Sadly, we are just random teenageres who can do absolutely nothing at all. They could probably destroy us just by clapping their hands.”

“So I take it we shouldn’t sing If You’re Happy And You Know It Clap Your Hands?”

“Not unless we make them depressed first.”

“Got it.”

With a sigh, I pushed open the door to the building and entered, followed by Laura. The lobby was empty and quiet. Too quiet. I cautiously walked further into the hall. At the end of it, we discovered tubes.

“I think these are transport tubes. You get in them and they take you to a certain place,” I whispered.

“Maybe. Look, they’re labeled.” Laura was right. On each tube was a different sign. Launchpad. Command Center. Lab.

“Which one should we take first?” I asked.

“Control center. That should be the place where we can get to the bottom of this.”

“Alright. Do you want to go first?” Part of me was being polite, while the other part of me was letting Laura go first because I was terrified.

“Of course!” Laura gave me a quick hug before leaping into the tube that would take here to the Command Center. I stood there in shock. What was this? A hug? Heck, even my dad didn’t hug me. I shrugged. I guess that was what everyone did before jumping in a transport tube.

The next slot slid up to me. I was about to walk in, but then I felt a huge object slam into the back of my head. I crumpled to the floor and and the room faded into deeper darkness.

Chapter 3

I don’t usually talk about my dreams, but when I got knocked out, I dreamt about some pretty messed up stuff. I opened my eyes internally and entered my dream. I was sinking deeper and deeper into dark, murky, and cold water. I tried to swim up, but something was pulling me down.

I screamed. Water flowed into my lungs. Naturally, that only made me scream more. Wait. How was I screaming underwater. That’s when I realized that it was a dream. I tried to wake myself up, but couldn’t. I screamed again.

My dream shifted. I was falling down in the escape pod again. All around me, I saw my dad’s plane getting pierced by the missile and exploding. I screamed again.

My dream shifted from horror to horror-A group of flaming paper airplanes. The Black Shadow’s headquarters covered in blood. Laura falling down into the void. For whatever reason, that scared me the most.

I kept screaming until I felt my body being shook. I opened my eyes shakily to see Laura staring into my face.

“Jack? Jack, are you alright?”

“I’m not dead,” I replied, sitting up

“Jack!” Laura lunged forward and hugged me tightly.

“Why are you hugging me?” I looked around. “I don’t see any transport tubes anywhere nearby.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Isn’t the definition of hug something you do before jumping into a transport tube?”

“No! Why would you think that?”

“Because that’s what you did.”

“Well, the definition of hug is to squeeze someone in your arms to show affection.”

“Isn’t the way of showing affecting punching someone in the face?”

“What gives you that idea?!”

“That’s what my dad taught me.”

“I used to think your dad was cool. Now I think he’s a huge idiot.”

“Hey, he’s my dad!”

“Well, that doesn’t stop him from being an idiot.”

“Can you just shut up about my dad?!” I yelled, face blurred with tears. “My dad may have been wrong at some times, but he’s the only person that actually cared about me!”

“Calm down,” Laura said softly. “And that’s not true.”

“Are you calling me a liar?! You don’t even really know my dad!”

“I’m not calling you a liar. But your dad wasn’t the only one that cared about you. I know we barely met, but there’s something about you that I care about. You’re funny, smart, interesting, and…”

There was a long pause. “And…?” I prompted.

“It’s… nothing,” she replied hastily.

“Alright…”

“Anyways, I should probably let you in on the situation. When I arrived at the Command Center, I was ambushed by a group of hooded figures. They said something about taking us to the stratofortress. I think we might be heading there now!”

Laura was probably right. I could feel the floor rumbling.

“So… now what?”

“I guess we wait here until they take us to where they want to take us?”

“FYI, I’m the guy who gives up. You’re supposed to be courageous and stuff. You think my hair burning is funny. You run after missiles.”

“I just followed you.”

“Yeah. That’s pretty courageous.”

“How is following you courageous?”

“Well, I could’ve mistaken you for a stalker and punched you in the face.”

“I would’ve blocked the punch.”

“I guess you’re right… But I can’t really believe that you’re giving up after all we’ve been through.”

“But I’m not giving up. I’m just beginning. Just wait until the guards come. You’ll see.” She winked at me, then ran over to the side of the room. She rummaged in the corner and returned with a platter of food. “They brought this when you were out. Maybe ten minutes before you woke up…”

“Hold on,” I said. “Were you trying to shake me awake for 10 minutes straight?”

“No! I was trying to shake you awake for half an hour straight. When they brought the food, I ate my portion, then went back to trying to shake you awake.”

“Wow. You must’ve been dedicated to waking me up.”

“I was!”

I sighed and shook my head. Suddenly, I heard footsteps. Laura, sensing them too, motioned for me to be quiet. She tiptoed over to the door. It opened, and a tall, hooded figure entered. Laura kicked the figure in the side of his leg and he collapsed, grunting in pain.

“Run!” Laura yelled before streaking out the door. I started to follow her, but lost a lot of ground. How was she so fast? Oh yeah. Hourly runs.

Laura turned a corner. When I reached it and turned, she was gone. I sighed. Of course she would ditch me. I was slowing her down. Suddenly, an arm reached out and pulled me into a nearby room.

“Took you long enough,” Laura said with a smirk. She put on a pair of sunglasses “Boom.”

“Where did you get the sunglasses?”

“Just shut up. We don’t want to be found.”

“Where even are we?” I asked, lowering my voice.

“I have no idea. Hopefully it’s not a common place like a cafeteria because otherwise, we would be screwed. Now where are the lights…?” Laura groped around for a bit, before flicking on the lights. “Crud.”

In front of us were rows and rows of picnic tables. Somehow, I guessed that they weren’t for playing cards.

“Hey,” I said nervously. “It might not be mealtime or any-” I was cut off as the doors slammed open and a wave of hooded figures streamed in, screaming one word in New York accents. “BREAKFAST FOR DINNER!”

“Don’t notice us. Don’t notice us,” I whimpered under my breath. And of course, they noticed us.

“Hey. Aren’t those the kids that the boss wants?” one of them asked.

“Nah, I think they’re Chris’s kids.”

“Which Chris?”

“Chris P. Bacon.”

“Ah. Hey Chris? Those your kids?”

“Nah. Try Johnny.”

“Johnny Jacky?”

“No, Johnny Johnny.”

“Oh. Hey Johnny!”

As the hooded figures were trying to figure out who exactly we were, Laura and I slowly backed out of the room.

“So where even are we going?” Laura asked.

“To the boss,” a deep voice said behind us.

“Cool.”

Rough hands grabbed my wrists and pulled them behind my back. They pushed me forward, and I had no other choice but to walk.

“Well, this is fun,” I said to Laura.

“I know right? Being captured by two people after being surrounded by at least a hundred.”

“Well, those people were pretty much idiots.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Laura smiled at me.

“Shut up,” said the guy pushing me forward. “We’re here.”

The sliding doors in front of us opened to reveal a huge cockpit. Huge technical stuff was laid out. In my opinion, it looked stupid. But the controls, the controls looked so amazing. I felt like I could pilot this to the moon and back. I suddenly felt a huge longing for my dad. He had taught me how to fly any plane when I was only 5 years old. But I had become a professional. I was pretty sure I still had my skills.

The people shoved us in and the door shut. I could see a door to the left. Somehow, I knew that it was of importance. It opened. In walked a hooded figure.

“Ah, Jack Greene and Laura Stupidton. I’ve been expecting you.” He looked at me and pulled off his hood. “Jack… I really missed you.” I gasped. The person standing before me was none other than Blake Mortimer Greene. My father.

Chapter 4

I stared in shock. There was no doubt about it. This was my actual dad. Or his incredible doppelganger.

“D-dad? Is that you?”

“No, I’m his incredible doppelganger,” he replied, as if he had read my mind. I sighed in relief.

“Well that’s great. I thought my dad was suddenly some magic supervillain for a second there.”

My dad’s incredible doppelganger walked up to me and slapped me in the face. “Of course I’m your dad you idiot!” I stepped back in shock. What was my dad doing? And more importantly, how did he survive?

“H-h-how did you survive?” I asked.

“I-I-I used skills,” he mocked. His face turned serious. “I have this teleporter device.” He held up a small purple computer chip. “It saved me.”

“But… why?”

“I needed you to be depressed.”

“Thanks a lot, dad.”

“No problem! Anyways, I always wanted a sidekick. Will you join me?”

“Will I join you?” I asked incredulously. “After you fake your own death, make me depressed, and hire a bunch of New York idiots who don’t even know who we are and eat breakfast for dinner?!”

“Well… yeah!”

“Well, then… sure!” I said with a smile. “Why not?” I walked forward and embraced him. “Hey, guess what?”

“What?”

“I still know where the self destruct button is,” I said with a smile. I reached passed him and pressed a gigantic black button. My dad paled.

“Well, it was nice seeing you, Dad, but I think that Laura and I should get out of here before this stratofortress goes kablooey. Good day!” I strolled out of the cockpit and down the hallway. When Laura didn’t follow me, I went back into the cockpit and dragged her out.

I followed the signs to the launchpad for fighter jets. I chose a blue one and stepped into it. “Buckle up,” I told Laura. She did so and I sat in the pilot’s seat. I tested the controls. Yeah. This would cut it. I pushed the throttle forward and the jet streaked out of the stratofortress. About 10 seconds later, I could hear the stratofortress going kablooey behind me. I smiled. Now that that was over with, I could carry on life remembering that I killed my idiotic traitor dad.

“Well that’s over with!” I said with a smile.

“Wait, but what about his teleporter device?”

I held up the purple chip. “I can pickpocket people while hugging them. My dad’s dead!”

“Great!” Laura hugged me.

“So…” I said. “Wanna get breakfast for dinner like those New York guys?”

“Sure,” Laura replied. “Maybe we’ll find a survivor.

“That would actually be nice. Hold on. Where exactly are we?”

“I have no idea,” Laura said. “But let’s just screw it.

“I agree,” I replied. We continued to fly across the desert we were above, looking for civilization, New York guys, and breakfast for dinner. And for once, I was at peace. My traitor dad was dead. I was going to get breakfast for dinner with New York guys. And I actually had a friend. Someone who cared about me. I was on the road to being an actual person with an actual life. And happiness. I had scrapped my old life. I had gotten rid of the foul world my dad had made for me and made my own one, where I could be actually happy. I mean, really. What more could I possibly have?

[mulderbabe77]

Partners

Mostly just shameless fluff with a little angst mixed in. Set during season 6’s Arcadia.

Warning: this is a period fic! Periods/tampons are mentioned. If that scares you, then turn back now!

Tagging @today-in-fic

—————————-

She’s running, as fast as she can. Or rather she’s being chased. It’s dark and damp; she thinks she’s in the woods somewhere. She looks to her left and then her right for Mulder, but he’s not there. He’s not anywhere. She can feel whoever is behind her gaining speed, can hear the sound of their ragged breathing. A tree root springs up suddenly from the ground in front of her and she stumbles and falls, hard. Her hands and knees scrape against the rough ground. The chase is over, she has lost. She turns to see who is behind her, heart thumping loudly in her chest, so hard she can feel it -thump-thump-thump- in her ears. She sees Duane Barry’s face coming towards her. Then it morphs into Donnie Pfaster. Then the Smoking Man. He’s come to take her away for more tests.

She awakes with a start, sitting straight up in bed, short of breath and soaked in sweat. She puts a hand on her chest, willing her racing heart to slow. It was a dream, just a dream. She takes in a few shaky, deep breaths.

For a few moments she’s disoriented, can’t place where she is. This isn’t her bedroom, or her house and her heart starts to speed up again. Her brain feels foggy, still half asleep. And then she remembers, Rob and Laura Petrie. They’re undercover in The Falls. In the Klein’s house.

She tries to calm herself again, deep breaths in and out. Her rapid heartbeat begins to slow to a more normal pace. Besides the dream, or nightmare she should call it, something else is wrong. A familiar cramping deep in her abdomen. Menstrual cramps. Her period was coming, or maybe had already arrived, she couldn’t tell yet. She couldn’t think of a worse time for her period to unexpectedly arrive. It wasn’t due now, at least she didn’t think it was, but she should have known better. Her periods are rarely regular since the abduction, coming and going as they choose. And then even more irregular after her cancer treatments, even more than a year or so later they’re sporadic at best.

She heads to the bathroom. Yep, tampon definitely needed. She’s relieved to find an emergency one in her suitcase, but that’s it. She’ll have to hit the drugstore in the morning, which is still a few hours away. It’s only 3am. She balls up her pajamas into a bag of her other dirty clothes. She’ll need to wash them in cold water in the morning.

She re-dresses in fresh pajamas, lays down and tries to go back to sleep. She’s drifting off and straight back to the nightmare she left. This time she sees Eugene Tooms hovering over her. She wakes up panting again 10 minutes later, body broken out in a cold sweat. Her head is pounding, the migraine already taking up residence in her skull, pulsing relentlessly behind her left eye. She’s cramping hard and she feels awful. Ibuprofen. Need ibuprofen, is all she can get her brain to register. She slips out of bed.

The click of the bedroom door wakes him immediately and his eyes flick open to see Scully quietly tiptoeing down the hall trying carefully not to make any noise.

He hears her in the kitchen, shuffling through a box as quietly as one can. He hears the pop of a pill bottle and her shaking some pills out.

He’s on his feet and shuffling into the kitchen. She jumps about 10 feet when she looks up to see him standing in the doorway.

“God, you scared me!”

“Sorry,” he says quietly.

“No, I’m sorry, I was trying not to wake you,” she says shakily. She tosses the pills into her mouth and takes a big gulp from the water bottle in her hand.

“It’s ok, not your fault really. I haven’t been able to get into a deep sleep yet. I keep thinking I’m hearing things. You ok?” He asks, nodding towards the pills. He looks her over carefully, something seems off. She’s pale, and the little tendrils of hair right at her temples are curling and damp with sweat.

“I, uh, I had a nightmare. And I’m not feeling that well,” she stammers, avoiding his eyes.

“Do you have a fever?” He moves to take a step towards her but she shakes her head no and steps back further out of his reach.

“No, it’s not that, Mulder. Go back to bed, I’ll be fine,” she insists and starts to make her way around him.

He doesn’t quite believe her, but it’s 4am, so he’s not going to push it.

“Ok,” he nods, retreating back to the couch.

She heads back to the bedroom, wanting desperately just to curl into a ball and sleep, but sleep won’t come. She lays there in agony for an hour, maybe more. The minutes tick by slowly. She feels sick to her stomach, her body is rejecting the pills she stupidly took on an empty stomach. She wishes she had nibbled on a cracker or something. A little while later she’s heaving into the toilet.

“Scully?” She hears him knock gently, just outside the bathroom door.

“Go away, Mulder,” she pleads.

“I’m not going anywhere if you’re sick.”

He peeks his head in through the door. She’s sitting with her knees drawn up to her chest, leaning heavily against the wall. She reaches up to flush the toilet before he comes any closer and then crumples down onto the floor again holding her stomach.

“Is it something you ate?” He thinks back to everything they’ve consumed in the last 24 hours. He feels fine.

“No, Mulder,” she sighs. “It’s my period, ok? I feel like shit.”

“Oh.” He’s not sure what to say. I mean logically he knows she has periods (he thinks, based on past observations), and because she’s obviously a woman. He’s somewhat aware of female reproductive health, though he’s never given it much thought and they’ve never talked about it in the six years they’ve been partners.

“Is it always this bad?” He can’t imagine her being this sick every month and him never noticing in six years, but then again, he knows that he can be a bit of a self-absorbed prick at times, though he hopes not to that extent.

“No,” she shakes her head carefully, trying to keep the thumping in her skull at bay. “Only sometimes.” She sighs again. She doesn’t want to be having this conversation.

“I need to go to the drugstore. I didn’t bring anything with me. This was....unexpected.” She doesn’t feel like moving a muscle.

“I’ll go,” he offers.

“No, Mulder. You don’t need to do that. I’m a big girl- I can buy my own tampons. I’ve been doing it the past 20 or so years.”

“Scully, don’t take this the wrong way but you don’t look like you’re in any shape to go anywhere right now. Please just go lay down and I’ll be back in 15 minutes. There’s a CVS just up the main road.”

She hesitates. “Please?” He wants to do something for her, anything to make her feel better.

“Fine,” she concedes. She doesn’t have it in her to argue, just climbs to her feet, walks slowly back to the bed and collapses into a ball under the covers.

He strokes her hair softly, “I’ll be right back.”

Somehow Mulder has survived his entire life without ever having to visit the feminine hygiene aisle of a drugstore, or any store for that matter. He mulls over the vast number of choices and ends up seeing a familiar looking box. He’s fairly certain he’s seen this blue and yellow Tampax box in Scully’s suitcase and bathroom before. He grabs the box off the shelf and hurries towards the register hoping not to run into anyone, but today is not his lucky day.

“Rob! What’re you doing out this early on a Saturday?”

Mulder turns and plasters on his best fake smile.

“Win! Hey... buddy.”

“Cami sent me up here to pick up some treats for Scruffy. I like to get an early start to my days. What are you- ahhhh,” he eyes the box Mulder is carrying. “I see the Mrs sent you on an errand as well,” he gives Mulder a reassuring smile.

“Umm... yep. You know how it is,” he smiles awkwardly, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

“You bet I do. Ten years later and I’m still not used to the mood swings, and all that other stuff that goes along with it. Well, you know - it’s like a roller coaster. One minute they’re happy, next thing you know they’re bawling their eyes out, or screaming at you. Then there’s the cramps, backaches, headaches, bloating, fatigue.” Wow, he sure does know a lot about this, Mulder thinks to himself. Win continues on, “But anyway, I’m sure you know all about it yourself.”

“Sure, sure,” was all he could say. Sure he knew Scully could be a bit moody from time to time but he had never attributed it to her menstrual cycle before. He usually attributed it to him being an ass, or to him ditching her.

“Well I better get going, Win. Got to get back to the Mrs,” he says, hoping for a quick escape as he turns on his heel to head toward the register.

“Good luck!” Win calls after him.

Mulder nods and waves goodbye.

He slips quietly back into the house. Scully is still right where he left her, curled up in bed, but not asleep. He sets the bag on the nightstand and perches on the side of the bed next to her, taking her hand in his.

“Is there anything I can do?”

She shakes her head no, eyes closed. “Didn’t bring my heating pad, wish I had,” she mumbles quietly.

“Would that help?”

She nods.

“Hold on, I have an idea,” he gets up and heads towards the kitchen.

A few minutes later her returns with a giant stuffed warm sock. One of his dress socks. He puts it in her hands and she moans at the warmth coming off of it, immediately pushing it down onto her aching abdomen.

“What is this?” She sighs, already feeling some relief.

“A little something my mom showed me years ago for muscle aches when you don’t have a heating pad. Just throw some rice into a big sock and microwave for about a minute and a half and voila- instant heating pad. We just happened to have some rice in our pantry of staged food.”

“This is amazing. Thank you.” She gives him a small smile and squeezes his hand.

“Get some sleep ok?” He squeezes her hand back. She nods, already feeling her eyelids drooping. The warmth on her stomach lulling her to sleep.

He tiptoes out of the room, decides to go shower in the guest bath, start breakfast and look over the case some more.

——————-

She appeared downstairs late morning, showered and dressed and seemingly ready for whatever the day would bring. But he could tell by the way she moved that she wasn’t quite feeling like herself yet. Each thing she did he could tell was precisely planned to use as little energy as possible and every ten minutes or so she would stop to rub her temples or massage her lower back with her hands.

He knew she wasn’t exaggerating when she had so willingly admitted to feeling like shit earlier that morning. It was rare for her to actually admit to feeling poorly. He could count the times on one hand, three of them being during her cancer treatments which had made her feel so sick and weak that she had called in and taken a sick day. There was one other time when she had an awful case of the flu that lasted a week, and then today. So he knew it was serious. She was not one of those people who milked any illness under the sun for sympathy- she was the exact opposite, never admitting or giving in.

Their conversation was limited - she didn’t seem in the mood for small talk or their usual chit chat or playful banter. He was careful to give her space and not hover.

By evening and a few more doses of ibuprofen she seemed to be feeling a bit more like herself. They ordered in takeout for dinner- soup and sandwiches. She had asked for something light.

They were cleaning up when Mulder started a conversion, against his better judgement.

She was standing at the sink washing the silverware from dinner.

“How come you never told me it gets this bad sometimes?” he asked.

“Because, Mulder. It’s just not not something I talk about.”

“You don’t talk about anything with me. Especially anymore,” he says the last part quietly, almost to himself. It sounds like an accusation to her. But it’s true, she’s been very closed off from him lately. She’s put a wall up. He’s noticed and he hates it.

She glares at him across the counter, and he continues on.

“Why is it so hard for you to open up to me?” he pushes.

“You really have to ask that, Mulder?”

“What does that mean?”

He didn’t mean for this to turn into an argument, and she doesn’t want it to be, but that seems to be where it’s headed.

“Sometimes, Mulder, I feel like I just don’t matter to you at all.”

Ouch. That one felt like a dagger through his heart.

She continues on, he’s gotten her fired up.

“You chose her over me, Mulder. Even after all the proof I gathered. Actual data that the Gunmen and I dug up to show you just how sneaky and secretive Diana Fowley has been since you knew her all those years ago. How do you think that makes me feel? How do you expect me to open up to you about anything when you turn around and take her side over mine and just dismiss everything I have to say?”

And she’s crying. She doesn’t want to be, but she is. Too many emotions combined with hormones swirling around everywhere. She can’t help it. Big fat tears are falling down her cheeks and her shoulders are starting to shake.

She’s been holding this in for weeks. Trying not to act hurt.

“Scully...” he takes a few steps towards her and she falls into his chest. Wanting to seek comfort there but furious at herself for doing so. “It’s not like that at all. You have to know I would never choose her over you. Never,” he whispers into her hair.

“Then why does it feel like you did?”

“Scully, listen to me when I say this. Diana is my past and that’s all she’ll ever be to me. If I gave you any idea otherwise, I’m sorry. I reacted poorly when you came at me with all that information. You are the one who has stood by my side all these years. I’ll always choose you over her. Always. Please, don’t ever shut me out. We’re partners,” and she knows he means more than just work partners, though it’s unspoken.

“I know, it just- it hurt Mulder.”

“I’m so sorry,” he murmurs into her hair, placing gentle kisses along her forehead and temple.

She’s able to slow her tears after a few minutes and feels a bit foolish when she pulls away from his chest.

“God, Mulder, I’m sorry,” she wipes at her eyes. “I’m just... kind of on an emotional roller coaster today. This is so unlike me.”

“Well I hear that happens during that time of the month. Or at least that’s what Win tells me.”

“What?” She’s really confused now.

“Yeah, I ran into Win at the drug store this morning and he saw what I was buying.”

“Oh God,” she blushes a little bit and winces. “Sorry, Mulder.”

“It’s fine, Scully. That’s what being partners is all about,” he squeezes her hand reassuringly.

“God, I can’t believe we’ve been partners six years and this is the first conversation we’ve ever had about periods,” she remarks and they both laugh out loud.

He secretly hopes it isn’t the last intimate conversation they share. Maybe her walls are coming down.

End

[words-writ-in-starlight]

I'm in love with your tags about Logan and Trans!Laura, just,,,, so you know I appreciate your tag stories!!!!!

anonymous said:

I would absolutely love it if you wrote some trans Laura content tbh. Even just your tag essay made me feel some kind of emotions

The original tag essay is here, and I’m operating in a functional AU of this thing I wrote one time, but that doesn’t matter unless you want the deleted scene of Laura trying to take Logan’s head off.

X-23 is one of thirteen…brothers, for lack of a better word.  The lab staff call them brothers, a little tongue-in-cheek, and X-23 learns to hate the word, learns the taste of being called brother like the taste of blood, learns it as thing and copy and weapon.  All of them do, but X-23 hates it the most.  

X-23′s brothers die one at a time–some of natural causes.  There were ten of them who never made it out of the ex vitro tanks, and X-14 dies at a year, X-11 at nineteen months, X-19 at three years, X-17 at five.  X-13 falls during training and the three broken ribs ‘heal’ straight into lung tissue, and the doctors usher the rest of them away.  X-13 never comes back from the medical bay, and neither do X-15, X-12, or X-22–broken leg, crushed hand, and cracked skull, in order.  Healed to death.

When X-23 comes looking for X-22, there’s a doctor sitting alone in an office with her hands clutched so tight the knuckles are bleached.  X-23 has always been a wanderer, more than the other brothers, and given to getting into trouble, often punished and all the more furious for it.

The doctor looks up when the door opens and scrubs the back of one hand over her face.

“Where’s X-22,” X-23 says flatly, and the doctor comes over to crouch down, on eye level.  X-23 is short.  They’re all short.

“I’m really sorry,” the doctor says, and she sounds sincere, her eyes red and her scent washed with something X-23 doesn’t recognize.  “He–he died, Veintitres.  We did everything we could to save him.”

If it was any other doctor, X-23 would snarl and storm off, retreat to the others.  They’re never reprimanded for their tempers, only for disobedience.

This doctor, though.  This is the nicest doctor.  She never wears anything that makes them sneeze, and she brings chocolates when they have to get blood drawn, and she never told a soul when X-23 carefully removed one of her earrings, a plain silver hoop on X-23′s palm.  X-23 gave it back, but–

“Pretty,” X-23 says dully, reaching out to touch one of the hoops.  “He liked them too.”

The doctor’s eyes spill over and that smell pours off her skin as she carefully–very carefully, there are limits even for the nicest doctor–wraps one arm around X-23.

“Come on.  Let’s take you back to your brothers.”

There are five of them who make it to ten years old–X-16, X-18, X-20, X-21, and X-23.

There is one of them who makes it to ten years and one day.

X-23 doesn’t have any brothers anymore, just heavy bones and anger.  The word brother is less dirty now that they’re all gone.

“What do we do with him?” X-23 hears a lab tech ask nervously as the newly silvered claws rip through another bed frame.  X-23 has destroyed two so far.  They’re an effort–metal frames intended to survive their rough treatment–but the claws are stronger.

X-23 hears him and thinks hate and decides then and there that she will be something else.

She destroys the fifth bed frame–she’ll sleep on the ground before she takes one of her brothers’ beds, and they never kept track of whose was whose, same scents, same bodies, same everything–and she stands there and looks at her new claws.  They’re brighter silver than the nicest doctor’s earrings, but bloody.

The nicest doctor disappeared last year, after X-22 died.

She sheathes her claws and storms out of the room and past the lab tech without a word.  She is a thing and a weapon and the last X clone and she will keep the secret that she is not him until they kill her, too.

X-23 is fourteen and terrifying when she hears that they’re thinking about doing a new set of clones.

She burns down the lab three days later and leaves with nothing but her tactical uniform.  She steals a hat when she realizes that her buzzed hair is drawing attention, and breaks into a library to google Wolverine based on a slip from a doctor, and starts walking north east.  

Her hair grows fast.  It reaches chin length and keeps going, scruffy and wild, and she takes off her hat one day and shakes it out in a house she broke into, and her face starts to ache.  X-23 puts both hands up to her cheeks and tracks out the smile in surprise, and gives her head another shake, and her hair, freshly cleaned with someone else’s drug store shampoo, tickles her shoulders and her cheeks like the glint of light on silver earrings.

She stops wearing the hat the first day someone sees her hair and calls her miss with the kind of bow you sweep to little kids.  She forgets to snarl at them.

X-23 is halfway through walking from Mexico to New York when she gets asked what her name is, where her parents are.

“I don’t have any parents,” she tells the man in the uniform, squinting suspiciously at him.  He’s crouched down, well outside arm’s length, but she’s thinking about whether she can put a claw through his hand before he can grab her anyway.

“Okay,” he says calmly.  “What’s your name, honey?”

Weapons don’t have names.

She runs before he can stop her.

When she reaches New York, and Westchester, she has a good old try at taking Weapon X’s head off.

It doesn’t work.

So when she’s done screaming wordless rage into his chest, and Weapon X is done deducing how she got there, they sit side-by-side on the ground and X-23 tries to imitate the way he clasps his arms loosely around his knees.  It feels natural, supports the weight of the adamantium in her arms without effort, and she scowls at him when he notices.

“So, kid,” he says after a few minutes.  “You said there were twenty-three of you, right?”

She nods stiffly.  “All the rest of them are dead.  They were going to make more brothers, but I stopped them.”

“Good,” Weapon X says grimly.  “If I’d known, kid, I’d have done something for you and your brothers.  You did good.”

“Do you have brothers, Weapon X?”

“No idea,” he says with a shrug.  “Don’t remember much before the experiments.  You call me Weapon X again,” he goes on in the same equal tone, “I’m gonna leave you out here.  My name’s Logan, kid.  You got a name yet, or haven’t you got that far?”

“They didn’t give us names.”

“Weapons don’t get names,” Weapon X choruses with her, and he sighs.  “Well, you gotta have a name, I’m not callin’ you Twenty-three.”

“Sometimes they called me Veintitres.”

“That’s just ‘twenty-three’ in Spanish, kid, nice try.  Uh.”  He scrubs both hands back through his hair and laces them behind his neck.  “I’m shit at this.  Stole my name off a movie poster.  You seen any you liked?”

X-23 thinks about it.  She’s seen movie posters.  Most of the names are either desperately boring, like Tom, or unfamiliar and unpronounceable, like Charlize, and she doesn’t really know what she’s supposed to look for.

She remembers a poster of a woman with earrings, and the old black and white ink didn’t make them glitter any less.  She didn’t see the woman’s name, but she remembers the title.

“Laura,” she says.

Weapon X blinks at her for a moment.  “Nice name,” he says at last.  “Don’t think I asked, kid. You a boy or a girl?”

“I’m a clone.”

He actually grins at that.  “Yeah, I got that.  But, uh, you like he or she?”

X-23 stares at him and thinks.  She’s kept this secret, this sole scrap of a person under all the metal, for four years, give or take a few months.  But Weapon X gave up his name to her without even hesitating, didn’t lay a hand on her except for a few bruises that are already healing, isn’t even fidgeting while she studies him, just letting her look her fill.

“She,” X-23 says firmly.  

“Okay,” Weapon X says, and unfolds himself with a sigh.  He’s short, she notices.  He offers her a hand and catches her wrist and pulls her to her feet, then drops a hand firmly on her shoulder and steers her out of the woods.  “Let’s go get some lunch, Laura.”

[tattooednursewrites]

Yep, Sure Am Speechless - Ch 15

Elizabeth (OFC) returns to her place as healer on the Avengers team after taking time off after her mom is diagnosed with cancer. In her absence, the Avengers have gained some new members, including Bucky Barnes. Heart eyes and flirtation abound.

Masterlist

Ch 15

There was a knock on the door as I finished zipping my bag shut and tossed it on the bed. I opened the door to find Clint, again holding Nathaniel on his hip, with a phone in his other hand. His face looked grim. “What’s up, Clint? I was just about to head down for dinner… promise.”

“Nat just called. They need you on a mission. She and the others will be here on the jet within the hour. She said it’s her and the twins. The others were already out on a mission… they left yesterday. So even with you she’s not sure there will be enough of you guys.”

My hands start flying… cursing. Nate isn’t old enough yet to copy the gestures so I don’t feel too guilty about it. And my hands continue to sign as I talk, emphasizing my words. “No. No, Clint, don’t you dare even think it. You are not coming with us. No way. I won’t allow it. Neither will Nat. We’ll be fine. You’re staying with your family. Retired. You’re retired.”

Clint waited until I finished. He quickly signed ‘ok’ before adding “but I don’t have to like it.” I followed him back downstairs. I ate quickly, the mood at the table dour. There were many hugs as I said goodbye to the kids and Laura. Nate gave me a sloppy kiss on my cheek. Clint squeezed me tightly and whispered in my ear. “Thank you, Elle. Please be safe.”

I nodded at him as I pulled back, giving him a small smile. With one last goodbye I walked toward the field where the jet had just touched down, my bag over my shoulder. I waved to the Barton clan, who had assembled on the porch to see me off, and I stepped onto the jet.

Natasha was up front with Wanda, teaching her the controls, reminding me of my many lessons with Clint. Pietro was pacing slow enough that I could see him. It looked more like powerwalking than normal pacing, but at least he was visible. I dropped my bag on a seat and headed toward the front. I sat in the jump seat behind the cockpit and leaned forward.

“Hi y’all. Missed you. It’s good to see you, but I wish it was under different circumstances. What’s the mission?”

“I’m a bit shocked you convinced Clint to stay put,” Natasha said by way of greeting. “Oh, and good to see you, too,” she added as an afterthought.

“He wasn’t happy about it, but I used my loud voice, and he conceded. Clint may not like being sidelined, but he’s at home with his family so he’ll be okay.”

“I missed your presence, Ella,” Wanda said, squeezing my hand lightly. I gave her a squeeze in return.

“So what are we doing?” I asked, hoping it wasn’t another rescue mission.

“We got word of a new suspected Hydra base,” Nat started. “It should just be recon. If the intel is confirmed, we should try to take the base out if we can. If we can’t handle it ourselves, we’ll observe it and wait for reinforcements. I should also probably tell you this *might* be a trap. We got the same type of intel yesterday, and the location was on the opposite side of the world from our destination. I’ve been in contact with Cap’s team, nothing hinky yet, but I - *we*, think it’s suspicious that we’re being called away - as far away as possible from their current location. Vision is staying at home base, that way he can quickly get to either team if needed.”

“A trap, huh. That gives me the warm and fuzzies. Okay, well at least we can be extra cautious. I brought coffee. Clint loaned me his thermos. Y’all want a cup?” I got nods from Nat and Wanda, and turned to Pietro. “You want coffee?”

“Please,” he said, pausing his power-pacing.

I poured coffee into paper cups and handed them out. We were silent as we drank. Pietro was the only one showing obvious nerves, but I could see Nat’s tension, and Wanda’s magic was flickering without her realizing it. “Is there something you aren’t telling me?”

Wanda looked at Natasha, who gave a minute shake of her head, before turning to me. “The Hydra base the other team went in search of… the intelligence included information that a disciple of Dr. List’s was there. Steve said that you were familiar with him,” Wanda hesitated again. “His name is Dr. Pyre…”

I froze. I felt all of the color drain from my face. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuckity, fuck. I swallowed. “Yeah. Yeah, I know him. He’s the one that had me taken from my home. He *suspected* that I could be ‘special’ and wanted to see if his theory was correct. He finally began to believe I was ‘normal’ after… well… after he - let’s say ‘tested’ me. Extensively. Thankfully I was able to endure the tests. And I had enough control over my power to make myself heal at a regular rate, instead of at my usual speed. Luckily Steve found me before Pyre discovered my powers, or gave up and disposed of me. Steve got me out of there while Nat and Clint placed some explosives to destroy the base. I thought Pyre died when the team detonated the charges,” I closed my eyes, hugging myself lightly. “I guess not.”

Nat’s jaw was clenching over and over. She saw how I looked when Steve brought me out. I think that was why she warmed to me more quickly than expected. I looked at Wanda, whose magic was dancing angrily between her hands. Pietro had resumed pacing, this time he was a blur. I put a hand on Wanda’s, making her look up. “I’m okay, Wanda.” She arched an eyebrow.

“We all need to calm down a bit,” I said, standing. “More coffee? I think we have just enough for another round.”

Nat shook her head, but smirked and said “Sure.” Wanda smiled and handed me her cup. Pietro stopped pacing and watched me walk to my bag and grab the thermos. He walked over and squeezed my shoulder.

“Another cup would be lovely. Thank you.”

I nodded and filled his cup, before bringing the girls their cups. As I sipped my coffee a thought occurred to me. “Did Steve share any of my history with Pyre with the other team?”

Nat cut her eyes to me and they widened slightly. “No. Tony knows, because he was there. Sam knows only what you told him, but as far as I know, he doesn’t know this is *the* doctor. Bucky doesn’t know any of it... unless you told him.”

I shook my head. “Not anything detailed or specific, no. Not yet.” I went back to my bag, pulling out a thin hoodie, and pulling it on. When I went back up front Wanda looked at me.

“Cold?”

“Not really… Pyre, the ‘tests’ he did… it should have scarred me. My power prevented it. Hell, I’m lucky my power lets me get tattoos. The point is, if he is out there somewhere, I don’t want him to draw conclusions from my lack of scars. So, for this mission at least, long sleeves all the way.”

Nat shifted, her jaw clenching again. I expected her to insist I stay in the jet. Instead, after a minute, she turned to me with a small smirk. “So, Clint said you got the letter today.”

I winced. Crap. “Yep.”

“What letter?” Wanda asked, turning in her seat to look at me.

“Bucky wrote Elle a letter. Had me send it to her, since I wouldn’t share where she was.”

“Ooh! What did it say?” Wanda asked, excited.

I glared at Nat. “He just… apologized for avoiding me. Said I should come home.”

“That’s,” Wanda sighed. “Sweet, but disappointing. He should’ve written you a love letter.”

Nat laughed. “I think for Barnes, what he’s been through, that is a love letter, Wanda.”

I looked between them, my eyes narrowed and arms crossed. “It was a perfectly nice letter. Y’all leave Bucky alone.”

Pietro was just looking between us all. Finally, he shook his head and resumed pacing… this time at a more sedate speed.

The jet’s comms started beeping and Nat answered. Cap’s face popped up. “I just wanted to check in with you. I figured you’d have picked up Ella by now,” Steve said. I leaned forward and waved. He smiled. “You holding up okay, Ella?”

“Yeah. It was a surprise, of course, but I’m okay at the moment. How are y’all doing?”

“Still no movement at the base. I have a bad feeling about all this.”

Nat nodded. “I do, too. Something isn’t right. I don’t like it at all.”

Steve frowned. “Keep your guard up. Be careful. I’ll check in with you again soon,” Steve finished, giving us a chin lift before cutting the call.

“Lovely,” I said. “Two of the only people whose gut instincts I trust, and they both think this is bad news.” I sighed.

Nat chuckled lightly. “Yes, but we’re going to listen to our guts, and not do anything stupid. We’ll be okay Elle.”

*********

Steve turned to Bucky after he cut the transmission. Bucky was still staring at the screen. She was there. He saw her for a second. She didn’t see him, but he saw her and she was okay. Bucky sighed. He really didn’t like being this far away from her. Steve and the others seemed increasingly worried about her since yesterday.

When he’d asked Steve about it, Steve had said that it had to do with Elle’s run in with Hydra, but that it wasn’t his story to tell. Bucky understood, but it didn’t help the worry at all. Neither did her getting further and further away from him. He wondered if she got his letter before she left. Comms during a mission was definitely not the time to ask, but he couldn’t help but be curious. Originally he wasn’t planning to come on this mission, but Steve had asked him to, and he couldn’t say no. Especially not when he realized it had something to do with Ella.

Bucky and Steve walked out of the jet and headed back to the makeshift home base. He, Steve, Sam, and Tony were holed up in an abandon building not far from the base they were watching. Tony had somehow managed to get the power and plumbing to work, so it was more comfortable than it could’ve been. Bucky had never seen Tony so reserved and worried. Quiet. He had a feeling it had to do with Ella, and that concerned him.

When he and Steve entered the building Sam was napping, while Tony paced. As soon as Tony saw them, he approached Steve. “Is Ellie okay? Is she with Nat?”

Steve nodded. “Yeah, she’s with Nat and the twins. She seemed shaken, but okay. I could tell Nat wasn’t able to keep it from her like she wanted to.”

Tony shook his head. “And she calls herself a spy? Ellie must be so frightened. Maybe I should…”

“Tony, we’ve been over this. We need to stay in teams of four, just in case this is a trap. We can reevaluate if anything changes, but you know I’m right. We’re all worried about her. There isn’t anything to indicate that she’s in any more danger than usual. She’s okay. She’s strong.”

“I know. But she shouldn’t have to be, not about this,” Tony sighed. He shook his head and went back to pacing.

Bucky looked between the two, knowing he was missing some big piece to the story, and wanting to know what it was. It hurt thinking that Ella had gone through anything at the hands of Hydra, but not knowing what actually happened was worse. He knew what Hydra was capable of. The thought of Ella being subjected to their… talents… it was terrifying. Steve looked at Bucky and moved to stand beside him. He squeezed Bucky’s shoulder. “She’ll be okay, Buck,” Steve said softly. Bucky nodded and closed his eyes. He hoped like hell that Steve was right.

[rmuldrake-blog]

Twin Peaks Part 14 Coffee Time

Well here we are we are now 4 hours away from twin Peaks finishing “the return” story, the pile driver punches just keep coming.

So the episode kicks off with Cole calling the sheriffs department in Twin Peaks he is returning Frank Truman’s call, Truman is providing Cole information on the missing page of Laura’s diary. There a wonderful little scene between Lucy and Cole. I can only imagine was Lucy and Andy’s trip to Bora Bora would of been like.

We stay with Cole and the team for an explanation of the first Blue Rose case

Olympia, Washington, 1975

2 field agents investigate a murder in Olympia, Washington. (Cole and Jefferies)

They arrest Lois Duffy at a motel.  They kick the door in after hearing a gunshot, there are 2 women inside. One on the floor dying the other holding the gun then drops it whe  the agents entewr

The wounded women is Lois Duffy on the floor she speaks

“i’m like the blue rose” and then smiles then dies and disappears

The other woman is also Lois Duffy she doesnt have a Twin sister Albert comments. 

While awaiting trail Lois Duffy swears she didn’t commit she hangs herself.

Tammy is asked what question should she ask she returns with 

“whats the significance of the blue rose”

“blue rose does not occur in nature its not a natural thing, the dying woman was not natural, conjured,  whats the word a tulpa”

Tulpa (Tibetan: སྤྲུལ་པ, Wylie: sprul-pa), nirmita (Sanskrit: निर्मित), or thoughtform, is a concept in mysticism of a being or object which is created through spiritual or mental powers. The term comes from Tibetan "emanation" or "manifestation".

“Good” Albert retorts.

This scene plays out very much like X files, so its probably why I liked it so much, The tulpa has also appeared in X file law in season 6′s Arcadia (the one where Mulder and Scully play house) and in season 10′s home again (the band aid man)

Cole enters the room with his thumbs up  Coffee time

Diane is on her way but before that we get the window cleaner, Moving on quickly...

Then we get the bombshell, On the last night that Diane saw Cooper did he mention Briggs Cole asks, she doesn’t want to talk a bout that night, but Cole pushes her. She confirms that he did, Albert then spells out what has happened to Briggs and the ring that was found

The next part I was shouting at the screen over and over again in Doctor who fashion.

Diane’s half sister is Janey-E and is married to Douglas Jones everyone calls him Dougie. Shes estranged but last heard they were in Las Vegas.

So my initial thought straight away hit me, Cole Albert and Tammy have now asked about Vegas, Diane got that text basically asking as much, We don’t know which side of the fence she is sitting on but she did seem genuinely shocked when they asked about Janey-E could it be that things are starting to make sense to her now the pieces are falling in line?

Cole calls the Vegas office there are 23 Douglas Jones in the area, (why did they not mention Janey-E is anyones guess surely that would of narrowed the search a bit.)

“How are we going to find the right one”

“WILSON HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU THIS IS WHAT WE DO IN THE FBI” 

Brilliantly funny my x file fandom also struck a chord albeit in a slightly different way.

““Thats why they put the I in the fbi” Xfiles pilot.

So were no more than 15 minutes in wow, so much stuff to mull over already,

After Diane leaves we get Cole bringing everyone up to date with the missing pages of Laura’s dairy, with the revelation of 2 coopers but after Cole’s first case I can see now why this may be more low key than I imagined it to be, A footnote in another Blue rose case. There are 2 coopers we now know what we are dealing with, but suspicions were probably already there this acts more of a confirmation to them, 

Monica Bellucci dream, “Oh boy” Albert sighs and Tammy... well her look say’s it all.

So the dream:

Paris Cafe, the music is deliberately tense and suspenseful. Cooper was there but no face could be seen only his chin, 

Monica was pleasant and had brought friends. While having a Coffee Monica quotes the phrase 

“We are like the dreamer who dreams and then lives inside the dream, .... but who is the dreamer”

Monica looked beyond Cole while he was feeling VERY uneasy. As he looks back we see scenes from Fire walk with me.

Cooper says it 10:10 February 16th. Cooper was worried about the day because of his dream, Jefferies appears and points at Cooper asking 

“who do you think that is there”

Cole and Albert both hadn’t remembered that. Its seems to be a running theme I am picking up on at the moment. more on that later.

I don’t want to theorise too much but dreams are a kin to the lodges, are we seeing a guiding force to the final act or a we seeing some very timey wimey stuff going on.

So back in Twin peaks the boys are getting ready to go into the woods, sandwiches are laid on the table and Andy is having just cheese, Reinforcing the fact that he is a simple standard guy very plain non corrupted. well thats the way I see it especially with what happens shortly, 

They arrest Chad and I can pretty much imagine the whole fandom punching the air, screaming yes. I did. I can only assume that because they all were leaving for the mountain that they wanted him out the way now.

Up in the mountain I had a very uneasy feeling, we had the hum but we also had Andy at the back and a bit behind them in a couple of scenes while they are walking, it gave us milliseconds extra screen time but it did feel like something was about to happen. 

The listening post is gone Bobby remembers lots of machines and then we arrive Bobby laughing on seeing Jack rabbits palace. One thing to note here 

The pan up the trunk is VERY reminiscent of the purple place before we see the Giant/Fireman and the birth of the golden Laura Orb.

253 yard due east with soil in their pockets we find Naido, Andy comforts her a vortex appears and he ends up sitting across from what we now know is the fireman. Andy is basically shown the entire history of the twin peaks story the explosion, Convenience store, GOTTA LIGHT, Laura’s death, Coopers ganger and even some future events (Lucy being shown something by Andy it would be funny if this was only a self fulfilling prophecy and there is nothing to the scene whatsoever ) Also included is the post where the kid got killed and the number 6 I have a feeling this post has been in the show before i’m guessing fire walk with me but not sure.

I feel that Andy must of been picked as he like cooper is not corruptible he is pure, plain like the sandwich no additions just who he is.

We return to planet earth, Andy is as confident as we have EVER seen him, he now has a purpose and he will do everything he can to complete his destiny. Naido must be protected and no one must know where she is. 

Truman and Hawk are struggling to remember what happened, its a running theme throughout then whole show with Cooper, Cole, Diane, People in the bar, anyone who may of been close too or in contact with the otherworldly beings or supernatural vortex's etc, 

We get an Andy and Lucy scene in the cells, a dog got lost and Lucy must have stayed the night Andy remembers that night too, Please don’t tell me Wally was conceived there Ha Ha.

Chad gets a lecture from Andy and we get a really bizarre guy mimicking everything, With blood or some other substance coming from his mouth, its a genuine WTF moment. I need to know more. 

We find ourselves at the Great northern with Freddie cracking nuts with his distinctive green glove and finding out its James birthday.

It appears James is after another married woman (sighs), Renee, could that be the girl who was at the bar when he was singing. Also I have had the thought that is this scene prior to our first bar scene, James doesn’t know who is on. Surely you would know if Lissie was on? No?

We then get the green glove Iron fist story, Where did he start bleeding? it must of been terrifying to the doctor  We also hear a lot of what the fireman had said, he has never spoken so much (off screen obviously), Freddie says London Town, when was it last called London Town the Victorian ages?? The fireman tells him that he will possess:

“the power of an enormous pile driver” we get the Jobsworth story and the cockney slang (i’m not a fan) of snapping his Gregory, (Gregory Peck=Neck), There is also a red card metaphor just in case you didn’t realise he is English, The fireman tells him to go to Twin Peaks to for fill his destiny.

James heads down to the furness’s we get the same noise down hear from up above in Ben's offices and a door, The whole scene seems to call back to Bob we see him in an area very much like this one i think in Fire walk with me if memory serves me right.

SOOOOO we come to Sarah Palmer, I can only guess it leads on from her boxing scene, no more drink needs one goes to bar. 

An obnoxious guy tries to hit on her, which turns out to be a HUGGE mistake, once Sarah takes off her face we get spikes clawing out of her face a hand which has a blackened spirit finger (as discussed on the plane by Cole to Tammy) and then a smile worthy of the cat from Alice in Wonderland, once the face is back on we get a devastating chomp on his neck. Is Sarah aware is she possessed or is she in complete control, does she have that creature in her from episode 8, is it as i have been educated recently Babylon from the box has it taken her over, Is it even Sarah soo many questions its left deliberately ambiguous. Her final remarks, “sure is a mystery huh” is just chilling.

So we are back at the bar another 2 random people talking about getting high, (Twin peaks seems to have a really big drug problem), Then we come to Billy, This girl is supposedly the last one to see him, she goes on to tell the story in the kitchen she thinks her uncle was there she is not sure, Billy jumped over a 6ft fence got into the kitchen blood coming from nose and mouth, he’s looking really strange, they don’t tell anyone? (did they remember it at the time my guess is it just left there mind as these things keep happening.) and we also find out that he has been having a relatioship with her mom TINA, The moment we get her name ominous music comes over.  The girl looks down and then asks “and then he just ran out again” its almost as if the previous question didn’t happen like she forgot, its all links in thematically. She also now doesn’t know if her uncle was there, where as before she thought he was. 

There are Probing questions here “have you seen Billy”

“ive heard you were the last person to see Billy”

“Whats your moms name” 

All these questions feel deliberate the others are lighter in tone. 

To me this probably was the most intriguing part of the whole episode. what an episiode it was.

Who is Billy? Is he having multiple affairs, Audrey, Tina etc, Who’s the dreamer, Is it Cooper, Is it Audrey in a COMA, Whats that thing in the CELL near Naido and Chad? Who’s after Naido is it the experiment? Whats happening with Sarah? Is she polar opposite to Laura now? Is the fireman creating a force to protect the white lodge? There is a plan in place it seems.

We have a lot to get through in 4 hours, and its going to be glorious.

[le-regard-au-caire-blog]

‘Clash’ of the Lacans

I attended the public screening of “Eshtebak” (Clash) at the downtown Malaki campus this past week.

It was my first chance to watch a movie in a theatre in Egypt. It was a wonderfully surreal experience that did not disappoint. The unique setting took a bit of getting used to, as I had never personally encountered a movie audience that chatted and reacted so strongly throughout a movie. Ultimately, I found it to be a very enjoyable experience that allowed me, albeit in a limited capacity as a foreigner, to comprehend the reality of the events depicted by the film through the myriad of varied audience reactions. It was quite obvious that everyone in the audience was personally affected by the revolutionary moments depicted within the movie.

The experience reinforced my contention that the Lacanian theory of gaze is appropriate for better understanding the movie and the reactions it inspired. The master of Lacanian movie making, Alfred Hitchcock, further reinforces this notion:

“Watching a well made film, we don’t sit by as spectators; we participate,” (Manlove, Cinema Journal Vol. 46, No. 3 (Spring, 2007), pp. 83-108)

If Hitchcock is correct, then Eshtebak is a well-made film because the spectators at this particular screening were definitely participants.

However, for those who may not have seen the movie, an effective way to gain a foothold to understanding my contention that the Lacanian theory of the gaze is apt, would be examining the movie poster.

However, before I jump into Lacan, I want to employ Laura Mulvey’s theories involving gaze. Mulvey was a successor to Lacan and built upon his theories of psychoanalysis/gaze in her seminal work, “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.”

The image can be viewed in a multitude of ways, but the striking appearance of a small, seemingly unimposing and attractive female surrounded by a vast sea of 20-to-30 year old men in military uniform is unmistakably patriarchal. Literally, the Egyptian military machine is surrounding Egypt’s feminine in the form of the character named Nagwa. She is pointing in the direction of the camera and is almost calling to the viewer, demanding their assistance. The image serves to hail the viewer, in a form of interpellation, because every human being, male or female, have women in our lives that would cause us to run to their aid if we were personally presented with the particular scenario depicted in the poster. Further, it serves to provide the viewer with a sense of identification given the fact that Egypt, particularly government forces, has been the locus of a great deal of harassment or worse.

One does not need to stray too far from contemporary times to identify images that could conceivably be the scene that occurs directly after the image depicted on the poster. For example, the iconic image of a prone and helpless “Girl in the Blue Bra” being dragged by Egyptian policemen, in the exact same uniforms as those worn in the movie poster. Although the image is from 2011, not 2013, it is still from a moment of recent social upheaval in Egypt and will forever haunt anyone who has laid eyes upon it, which can only serve to reinforce gaze interpellation and identification.

The widespread dissemination of the above image can only reinforce the interpolation and identification with the “Eshtebak” (Clash) movie poster.

During the movie, the only other female character amongst a large cast of men is Aisha. She is a pro-Morsi supporter who, against her father’s wishes, takes to the streets in support of the Morsi-led government. Interestingly, her faithful decision ultimately results in the death of her father. In shock, Aisha says very little after her father’s untimely demise. Only through coaxing does she reveal the devastating secret to Nagwa, the only other woman character, that her father accompanied her because she threatened to go without him. 

Aisha’s attempt to act, by taking to the street and protesting the military, results in her father’s death underscores the notion that ‘men act and women are seen’ in film. As a result, she becomes understandably quiet and does very little in the way of acting out throughout the rest of the movie. 

It is also important that Aisha divulges this secret to Nagwa, because Nagwa’s son is the only other character in the movie that is a similar age to Aisha. As a young man, he immediately takes an interest in her at the beginning of the movie, only to be rebuffed while her father is alive because she is advocating for Morsi and Nagwa’s family is on the side of the military.

Around the same time that Aisha’s father dies, Aisha is forced to abandon her hijab to be utilized as a bandage. Once her hijab is removed and her full-facial and hair features are on display, which are remarkably well manicured for someone who has been stuck in the back of a ragingly hot metal box for quite some time, the son’s level of sexual interest in Aisha becomes increasingly palpable. At this point, Aisha firmly embodies the female subject of his male gaze. This continues throughout the remainder of the film as she becomes less emphatic in her advocating for Morsi. 

Mulvey would view this form of male gaze as the film playing on “cinematic codes (that) create a gaze, a world, and an object, thereby producing an illusion cut to the measure of desire” (Mulvey, Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, 1975:67). The illusion is in the form an attractive and surprising well manicured young woman during such an incredibly difficult experience, which takes place within the confines of an exceedingly hot police van. The reality is this situation would normally create a haggard looking human being with tussled hair, puffy bloodshot eyes with bags underneath, etc. The image of the women in the movie does not match the reality involving the physical toll and emotional turmoil she has just experienced.

Taking a step back from Mulvey, who anchors her theories within Lacanian psychoanalysis/gaze, we begin to see Lacan’s theory of gaze throughout this movie...and even more evidently within the reaction it elicited.

Interestingly and not surprisingly, the movie was at the center of a socio-political storm within Egypt. Widely discussed on television prior to its national release in theaters, the critics yielded very little middle ground, which resulted in either a resoundingly negative or positive reaction to the film.

The film’s producer, Moez Masoud, mentioned during last week’s Q&A that both he and the film’s director, Mohamed Diab, “were labeled traitors on television…those were some difficult times, very difficult times.”

I believe he was referring to the state-owned Nile TV program Ana Masr, which is hosted by Amany El-Khayat. The television anchor was not shy in blatantly attacking the film, and those who worked on it, including Diab. She accused the Cannes Film Festival of having a political motive in screening the film and hinted that Diab received funding from foreign entities to undermine the international image of Egypt.  

However, the interesting aspect that points to a Lacanian gaze lies in the fact that a state-owned television station broadcasts the program that heavy-handedly attacked the film. The state literally berated a movie that attempted to cover a historical subject, which the state played a primary role within, while specifically implying the movie is attempting to slander Egypt and its government. The state, through the mouthpiece of the television program, was hailed to view the movie and yet was left unsatisfied with the resulting film. 

Yet, from another point of view, many Egyptians attacked the film as being too sympathetic to the state and the military. Accordingly, these people, much like the state, saw a film that hailed them to look and yet were disappointed and unfulfilled by what they saw,  including one woman who was quoted by the Egyptian Daily News.

“I almost cried in the first 15 minutes of the film,” said moviegoer Mohammed Nada. “This film represents nothing of the clashes that took place in 2013; it totally supports the ruling regime and shows nothing bad about it.”

“Nada spoke to the criticisms of many others who saw the film as a beautifying tool for the Ministry of Interior. From their point of view, the film presents police in an unrealistic way that only focuses on the good side of them.”

I believe the reasoning behind the strong reactions from both sides of the aisles is strongly indicative of the reality that, “the gaze is a process in which the object functions to make the subject look, making the subject appear to himself or herself as lacking” (Sturken & Cartwright, Practices of Looking, 2001: 122).

Ostensibly, the film hailed the audience, especially Egyptians, through interpellation and identification. After all, anyone who lived through 2013 in Egypt, myself included, can relate to these characters and the depicted events on many levels. I believe that both sides, pro-government and pro-brotherhood Egyptians, in a Lacanian manner have cultivated a sense of the other via strongly polarized points of the view.

The moviegoer who disliked the film’s depiction of the police, Nada, illustrates this fact quite plainly. Nada states that the movie specifically features, “the good hearted police officer that cares about women and children and the honest sergeant that would have risked his life for the sake of saving the detainees is nothing close to the reality I saw and lived at that time.” In other words, Nada saw himself among those who were confined within this Egyptian police truck and suppressed by the same government forces (i.e., the police) while protesting but his “gaze is part and parcel of a desire for completion of oneself through the other. But this completion is never achieved” (Sturken & Cartwright, Practices of Looking, 2001: 122).

It is ironic that Eshtebak elicited so few reactions from the middle ground, which points to interpellation and identification taking place within the audience members, because the movie attempted to take a politically neutral stance. One of the film’s producers, Moez Masoud, highlighted this fact during Wednesday’s Q&A.

“The polarized extreme feedback we got from two sides, the ultra-nationalists and the brotherhood, was very telling, it was testimony to the fact that something was wrong. The way they reacted was a self-fulfilling prophecy and just proved our point. (To me) it was so obvious because I couldn’t be a traitor to both sides at the same time, it is just logically impossible. Yet, there it was. We wanted (this movie) to go beyond the hysterical mindset, which desensitizes you to the other and prevents you from recognizing the humanity on the other side…humanity is the key word. The whole idea is co-existence. First of all, this truck is an Egyptian truck, the (film) is about the social fabric of Egypt and the key identifying factor (among the characters) is (their) Egyptian-ness.”

This espoused middle of the road approach, which attempted to humanize Egyptians from all sides of the political spectrum, reveals the myriad of social, political and religious differences that exist within Egyptian society.

Is it a perfect movie? Probably not, but while dealing with such a complex and emotionally charged subject, I believe the film does a good job of humanizing individuals that are often viewed as “the other”…especially in under such a politically charged environment. 

Further, the film is extremely entertaining, well produced, thought provoking and provides a visual aesthetic that is rife with Lacanian gazes.

[glassesofroses]

Chapter 3 // Picturesque

| Yo this is Max, Abbie's boyfriend, smokin' hot and totally a babe inside and out |

Warnings : Foreshadowing, terrible writing

Word Count : 2077

| Monday, 28th | Day 2

"Jocelyn? Joss? DOCTOR JOCELYN YOUNG!" Abbie yelled, trying to get her best friends attention and ask as to why the hell she was still in their apartment instead of at school teaching her class.

Jocelyn shot up, inherently waking Reid up at the same time.

"What time is it?" She groggily asked, standing up quickly and getting a head rush, almost falling over on the couch.

"It's 5 to 7:45, you have 5 minutes to get ready and get to school," Abbie sighed, checking her watch before watching her friend sprint into her room and come out in 30 seconds flat in a whole new wardrobe.

"Coffee's done right?" She asked before filling the brown water into her canister and chugging the scalding hot liquid, not even realizing that it was burning her tongue.

"Dammit, dammit," She mumbled, throwing everything together in her backpack and flinging it over her shoulders, grabbing her keys and running out the door in under 5 minutes.

"I'm sorry, what's going on?" Spencer asked, his voice husky from just waking up.

"Morning Doctor, I'm Abbie Smith, the most basic name ever, but I am not a basic person. If you hurt her in any way I will find you and I will kill you. Doctor Jocelyn Young is going to be late for school for the first time I've moved in with her because of you," She smirked, handing him a cup of coffee.

"Did you just quote Taken?" He mumbled ignoring half of what she said and gladly taking a sip of his hot drink.

"The more you hang around me the more you'll realize that I quote every movie in almost every sentence I speak," Abbie told him, smiling at her boyfriend who entered the room, giving Spencer a weird yet kind look.

"What's up man, I'm Max," Nodding his head in Spencer's direction before reaching for a banana.

"Doctor Spencer Reid," Nodding back, getting 'hip' with the person who could most likely beat him up the easiest.

"So you and miss Jocelyn had a date last night?" Max asked, wiggling his eyebrows, getting a blush from the younger man of only 2 years.

"It was just friendly pizza and catching up," He stuttered, placing his empty mug on a nearby coaster.

"It was definitely not just friendly pizza, you two were so into grading and emailing you didn't even hear us come in the apartment," Abbie laughed, turning her head to look at his face turn redder.

"I guess I should be going," Spencer stood up, grabbing his coat and started to make his way out until Max stopped him.

"She went through some tough shit a while ago, take care of her okay?" He asked softly, true caring in his eyes.

Spencer only nodded his head before Max let go of him and he walked out the door to his job a the BAU, awaiting the jokes that were to arise from his coworkers.

//

"Reid, are you wearing the same clothes from yesterday?" Hotch asked with a sly smirk on his face, shuffling some papers as Reid stepped into the room.

"I guess so, must have fallen asleep while working," He shrugged, trying to play it cool, but really his face was as bright as a tomato.

"Don't do it again," Hotch scolded, though in no way was he actually mad at Spencer.

Spence nodded his head and sat at his desk, diving right into his work.

"I think Spence scored last night," JJ whispered to Morgan and the others.

"With who?" Morgan laughed, not expecting Spencer to just have a date on any Sunday night, even though he did say that he had a date.

"I don't know, possibly the girl that he had a coffee with in the morning yesterday," Emily gossiped, glancing over at Reid who was hard at work.

"Who'd Reid have a coffee with?" Penelope popped in, her presence making the BAU a happier place.

"She's just an old friend that he hadn't seen for 15 years so I made him stop in because he was too chicken to do it on his own."

"What was her name?" Penny asked, getting thoroughly intrigued with wanting to do some hard core creeping.

"Jocelyn Young, goes by Joss for short," Emily told them, the whole team never taking their eyes off of Spencer, making his hair on the back of his neck stand up at attention.

Penelope nodded before walking to her cave, sneakily shutting the door behind her. Since the team didn't have a case today, everyone was working on paperwork, but not her. Penelope didn't trust anyone she didn't know, especially when they were coming mysteriously back into her families life. So, after doing a good half an hour's work, her eyes lit up.

"Oh my god," She grinned, taking a laptop, sending the link to herself and ran out of her cave and towards Morgan whose eyes widened.

"Baby girl what's up?" He asked nervously, noticing how she was out of breath with a light layer of sweat appearing.

"I found her," She gasped, full of excitement and wonder.

"Found who?" Getting up from his chair so he could set her down and have her blood flow slow down to a healthy rate.

"Jocelyn Young, prodigy from Las Vegas, Nevada. Best friend our one and only Spencer Reid, went off the wall for a while, after high school she completed one degree and disappeared for two then completed 2 more degrees! She also apparently traveled the world for 2 years and two more degrees to make a total of 5. After that she appeared on Broadway as Elle on Legally Blonde, obviously trying out everything she can before settling down at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School for two years now."

"Okay, 5 degrees, traveled, school teacher, Broadway? How'd you even find the Broadway part?"  Morgan asked in disbelief.

"Oh honey, that was easiest part, Laura Bell Bundy took a tumble and then quit so then she took over for the next 3 years, here, here's a video," Penelope shoved the video towards him, getting the attention of everyone on the team except Hotch and Spencer.

Everyone gathered around the computer screen and Emily pointed out that it definitely was the girl that Reid was talking with earlier. For Spencer, it was too quiet, he turned around to find everyone looking at him or at a screen, and when they saw that he was looking back at them they all scattered back to their desks. He stood from his desk and walked over to Penelope and Morgan and looked at the screen to see his best friend on the screen, singing and dancing, something she never did in public, but this was a very public.

"Garcia, what is this?" Reid asked, almost to the point where he was angry but didn't have the full story.

Garcia whipped around to find Reid staring at the screen flooded with song and cheers and exotic noises coming from the speaker.

"Um, you know, just doing some...research on Broadway performances," She stuttered, obviously not counting on Reid to find their dirty secret of looking up Joss.

"Why?" He demanded, getting the angriest that anyone has seen him, this was his best friend and he wanted to know why they were looking her up.

"It was all Emily!" Penelope pointed towards Emily's desk who looked up in shock and embarrassment, "She mentioned that you had a date, told me who it was and I did some research because I didn't want you going out with serial killer or something," She trailed off, looking more guilty by the second.

Reid whipped around to find Emily leaving her desk and walking over to the ladies room, somewhere where he wouldn't be able to get to unless he wanted to anger every single woman in their office.

"What is this?" He demanded, grabbing the computer despite Penelope's protests.

"I just started searching her name, Jocelyn Young and I basically found out her whole life when she wasn't with you, where she was for 15 years. She also just so happened to appear as Elle for Legally Blonde on Broadway for 3 of those years," Following Reid hurriedly towards his desk and peered over his shoulder, impressed with her performance.

"It's on Youtube?" He mumbled, typing some things into the computer and coming up with a whole page on his best friend.

"You didn't know what she was doing? You didn't try to contact her?" Penelope asked, knowing how dependant he is on constant people in his life.

"I was 12 Garcia, I was still getting beat up and going through college, going through it as fast as I could. But I still tried contacting her parents but they said they didn't even know where she was, there was just a constant need of money on her part since she was doing something," He grunted, watching the video of her singing with such intensity, Penelope was sure that the screen would break from his stare.

"So you didn't see anything on the news or on newspapers about her being on Broadway?"

"I didn't even know she liked Broadway, I just knew she liked Beethoven like I did, that's what we connected on, along with being the only 12 year olds in 12th grade," Slamming the computer shut and shoving it into Garcia's arms and ripping open his work, diving in with such vigour everyone was sure that either his pencil would break or that the pencil would rip through the paper.

/ Earlier /

"Sorry I'm late everyone! With grading your papers and...sleeping in a little bit I lost track of time, but luckily your papers are graded with a little bit of help so when I call your names come up here and grab it. Don't expect to be happy with your papers, be happy their all above 50%," She smiled lightly at her students, just happy enough that they wouldn't be angry at her since they all knew what they were getting into, all wanting to be writers, english teachers, or do something with English/writing.

"Donovan!" She called out, handing the young man his paper and he grinned, 68/100.

"What do you mean you had a little bit of help?" One of her other students, Maddie, asked with a smirk on her face, they all knew that Joss was just a normal person so of course she had to have some sort of romantic life right?

The normal desks in the school were in single line form, a way of teaching that was brought in back in the late 1800's to get the students ready for working in a factory for way less than minimum wage. Her desks were in curved rows, all facing the desk where Joss sat on, teaching them from sitting on her desk with such excitement it got everyone else excited. They always noticed that she came in with coffee, a muffin, and a bag lunch that they knew her roommate made her every night since she had a lot of work to do.

"Maddie, I don't know if you want to get into this, the whole writing thing, but good job," Joss laughed, handing the girl her paper 84/100.

"We have to know now!" Someone shouted from the back, her face turning red.

"Oh my god, you had a date!" Maddie laughed, everyone being really nice to her, no one ever made fun of her like when she was in high school herself, it was a nice change of pace for her.

"That, my students, is none of your business," Rolling her eyes and sitting on her desk, her shoes natural falling off.

"You keep denying it, but the more you deny it the more we know that you had a date, now spill," Every single one of her students leaned forward in anticipation.

"If I tell you will you be quiet for the rest of class?" And without hesitation, all of her students nodded their heads, they all loved her stories from when she was traveling and loved that she thought they were cool enough to let them into her life.

[moleasia4-blog]

Creepin' It Real-A Hallowe'en Party To End Them All!

Hello my pretties! It's time for this year's annual Halloween party and this year's was a doozy and the best yet! Held at a historic Cemetery Lodge the atmosphere was pure electric- from the wild thunderstorms above to the spooky 13 items to the party guests that dressed like it was the last hurrah! And check out some of these easy last minute Halloween food ideas for the big day tomorrow!

For the last 10 years worth of Halloween parties, it has never rained for my Halloween party - ever. But this year the rain would prove to be my nemesis as well as a blessing. If you were in Sydney at the time, chances were you were drenched in the rain or at least hiding from the flash foods and lightning.

It was all happening at Cemetery Lodge where I was holed up decorating and putting out food. There was a fire that blocked up the main street, the royal visit had closed off the harbour tunnel and the thunder grumbled outside the spooky little cottage.

"What if everyone cancels?" I said to Mr NQN. My phone buzzed constantly. Friends giving me weather updates-I'm sure trying to be helpful but only adding to the stress because I had been checking the forecast every 10 minutes myself.

Bloody eyeball punch

The messages read:

"Looks like rain...And thunder"

"We are running really late and Garth just dropped all the beers on the kitchen floor so now he has to clean it up"

"Headed your way! Had a bit of costume issue"

"I can't eat anything as I'm on an elimination diet" (that was an Elliott ;) )

Tarantula Cheese Ball

Voodoo doll hand pies

I pictured myself sitting in my outfit with Mr NQN at my side, just the two of us waiting for guests for an hour. But then people started arriving - early no less!

Werewolf cupcakes (recipe here)

Serpent Sandwich

Guests marvelled at lovely little cottage attached to cemetery. It was built in 1848 and was where the cemetery worker and his family lived-the side door is even where the bodies would be wheeled in to his office!

Ouija Board Cake (recipe here)

It has now been transformed into a cosy home by the lovely tenants and it is warm and full of colours. There's a community garden to the side and chickens that lay eggs as well as the world's oldest bunny.

Frog spawn drink

It has a kooky charm to it and I was honoured to have my party there. I transformed the space to become spooky with decorations from The Party People, my favourite party shop because their Halloween selection is incredible!

Face pie (recipe here)

Scared tacos

Food-wise, because I was warned that the oven was a bit dodgy, I kept to things that could be made ahead of time and didn't need to be heated.

Skull sandwiches that can be made and frozen ahead of time

Brain chocolate peanut butter truffles

I get so excited every year to make Halloween food that I have a little draft of items that I add to throughout the year. I've already got 3 Halloween food ideas for next year!

Marzipan teeth

This was my costume this year. I decided to match with an item that I had made and came as a voodoo doll. The added bonus is that the makeup was super quick to do and required just 5 minutes with eyeliner and eyeshadow. I drew on stitches with the eyeliner and made one button eye and I was done!

The first to arrive were the Day of the Dead family with Viggo, Louise and baby Henry. He was born on Halloween last year so we dubbed him Halloween Henry!

Then came Araluen and her daughter Aura who came as Miss Havisham and Estella. Araluen loves dress up and had most of the outfit already-the skirt she found at the local Vinnies shop!

Tuulikki arrived with them (by the way they caught a bus dressed like this and she reported no odd looks). She came as an eccentric witch. She, like her son Mr NQN hates photos and liked being behind a mask!

Oh and here is Mr NQN! He was a bit worried that nobody would recognise his costume. Can you guess who he is? Here's a quote to help you, "Oh hi Mark!"

My sometime vegetarian friend Laura came as a Day of the Dead skeleton and brought me some gorgeous dark red roses. She knows the way to my heart!

And then Ivy and Ryan arrived. I thought that they might come as Donald and Melania (because terrifying!) but she came as Carrie and he came as Pennywise with an absolutely terrifying mask that freaked out a lot of people. What is it about clowns?

Then JY and Ben arrived as Crazy Rich Asians-how inspired and current pop culture!

Then we had not one but two Egyptians arrive. The first was Tania who came as a regal Nefertiti. And then I got a message from Queen Viv. Now cemetery lodge isn't the easiest to find so I gave everyone a map and everyone found it just fine but you know who is going to be the person that gets lost finding it? Yup our dear Queen Viv.

"Lorraine, where are you?" she said worriedly on her voicemail. She entered wearing her home made mummy outfit that she made using strips of painting sheet. Hers was the outfit that everyone wanted to own and when she told people that she was taking it to the Salvos afterwards there was a mini stampede for who would get it.

One of the most spectacular entrances was Amaya, Laporello and their kids Jett and Finn who came as Star Wars characters. They always make such an effort for Halloween and I was so impressed at how much effort they had gone to. Finn's RED2 even had light up buttons and sound!

Nina and Garth were not too far behind. She came as a Evil Countess and he came as the Joker-because she loves anything Batman related and I think she liked the costume more than he did!

The last to arrive were Girl Next Door and Baz who came as Instagram hashtags. There were some notable absences-Miss America has started a new job doing shift work and he was upset that he couldn't make it because he was even more prepared with this costume than ever.

Others like Julie and Lou and her family couldn't come due to health reasons but I was so excited to have my nearest and dearest and most fun friends and family with me on the night.

Time really flew-it was as though it was going at warp speed. People devoured the food and talked-there is one common element to this Halloween party and that is everyone is so much fun and easy going and friendly. People that come alone still have a great time because everyone is so welcoming.

It then came time for Halloween charades, a tradition at these parties. We split into two groups and wrote our list of terrifying things which was a mix of horror films, current affairs and scary people (eg shirtless Putin riding on horseback). It was so much fun that JY started to get an asthma attack from laughing so much but Laura had a ventolin inhaler on her so that fixed it up straight away! Phew!

The Finn piped up. Could he have a go at charades? I think we might have a little ghoul in the making here!

Then the last hardcore people all adjourned to the nearby cemetery. It was perfectly still, traces of the earlier thunderstorm gone. It was deathly and surprisingly quiet given that busy King Street was just a couple of streets away. Laura took out star shaped sparklers and Tania told us stories about the first fleet graves that lay here.

It was almost midnight when Queen Viv said "I must disappear back into my crypt!" And with that we bid her and each of the party guests goodbye only to learn later that some of my gruesome party guests had to escape the cemetery by climbing over the walls (a sight which I would have loved to have seen!). Queen Viv reported the next day: "Passersby barely interested. So Newtown!"

And without further ado here are the recipes below!

So tell me Dear Reader, are you terrified of clowns? And could you guess Mr NQN's costume? And would you be scared if you saw someone scary climbing over a cemetery wall?

Brain Truffles

All Original Recipes by Lorraine Elliott

These were one of my favourite Halloween treats. They were easy enough to make but could sit shelf stable so they didn't always need to be refrigerated. I used cranberries as the sweetener instead of jam to make them shelf stable but also because the white chocolate was sweet enough as it was.

Makes a dozen brain truffles

Preparation time: 30 minutes plus chilling time

Cooking time: 20 minutes

700g/25ozs. pink candy melts

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Red icing gel pen

Silicone brain chocolate or ice cube mold

Step 1 - Melt the candy melts in a microwave at 50% power in 30 second intervals stirring. Spoon some into a brain chocolate or ice cube mold. Coat the inside thickly with chocolate as shown above. Chill until completely set.

Step 2 - Spoon in peanut butter and cranberries. Spread some chocolate on top and smooth over the top, making sure to remove any chocolate around the outer edge that may prevent them from coming out of the mold cleanly. If it is very hot where you are, you can always put it in the freezer between each step.

Step 3 - Place in the freezer for 15 minutes or until set. Unmold and repeat with the remaining chocolate and filling.

Pop out of the silicon mold

Ta-da!

Tarantula Cheese Ball

This cheese ball is super easy and effective to make and makes for great party food especially if you have vegetarians. You can use your favourite cheeses as long as you have a cream cheese base that will bind it all together.

250g/8.8ozs cream cheese (full fat, low fat isn't stiff enough)

50g/1.7ozs. gorgonzola dolce

1 cup cheddar cheese grated

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

2 teaspoons onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 cup poppyseeds

4 pipe cleaners for legs, cut in half

2 Pimento olive eyes

Crackers to serve

Step 1 - Blend all ingredients together until you get a smooth paste. Have a piece of cling film and empty out the cheese onto this and shape it into a ball. Place in the fridge for 20 minutes or so.

Step 2 - Place poppyseeds in a plate with a rim and remove the cheese ball from the film and roll around in the poppyseeds covering on all sides. Place on serving plate and add eyes and legs and surround with crackers.

Scared Tacos

These were a vegetarian and gluten free option that I also thought looked adorably cute. These are best made just before serving as the taco shells need to be heated in the oven but the rest can be made ahead of time. We served these around 8:30pm once people had snacked on the other food as I like brining out a hot option and everyone seemed to love them.

12 piece taco shell kit

Oil for frying

1 onion, peeled and diced

425g/15ozs. tin refried beans

salsa from kit

Taco seasoning from kit

Lettuce leaves

1 cup shredded Cheese

340g/12ozs. cherry bocconcini

Pimento olives, sliced in three for eyes

Step 1 - Heat oil in a frypan and then add the onion and saute until cooked. Add the refried beans, salsa and taco seasoning and stir until well mixed and cooked through.

Step 2 - Heat taco shells in the oven according to directions. Add some lettuce, refried beans and cheese to the taco. Then top with two cherry bocconcini eyes topped with sliced pimento olives.

Pâté Skull Sandwiches

Super easy and effective, not to mention delicious, these pâté skull sandwiches require minimum equipment and ingredients. These can be made a day or two ahead of time and then stored in a container and frozen. Thaw when needed.

1 loaf white bread

150g/5ozs. chicken liver pâté

A small amount of cranberry sauce or berry jam

Step 1 - Use a skull cutter to cut out the shape in the bread and divide into two even numbered piles of skulls. Use a large straw or an apple corer to cut out eyes in one half of the pile.

Step 2 - Spread the other pile of skulls with the pâté. Then spread the sauce around the eye area. Cover with the other half with the eyes cut out.

Slithering Serpent Bagel

This isn't a recipe so much as a guide as to how you might want to make this!

3 bagels, cut in half

Tuna salad or ham and cheese

Red capsicum forked tongue

Pimento olive slices and 2 slices cucumber for eyes

Step 1 - Arrange bagels in a S shape pattern alternating them but making the head at one end with 1/4 bagel. Top with tuna salad and ham/cheese and place olives for eyes and capsicum for the tongue.

Frog Spawn Drink

This drink was a real hit mainly because my friends are foodies and when I ask them if they like "slimy" things they answer yes. Basil seeds are similar to chia seeds-they swell up on cooking but the added advantage of these is that they look like eyes. This drink is similar to falooda which uses basil seeds. It's sweet, milky and delicious and I love the extra texture that the basil seeds give it.

1/4 cup basil seeds

500ml/2 cups water

500ml/2 cups milk

4 tablespoons matcha powder

Pandan extract

Sugar to taste

Buyer's tip: you can find these basil seeds at Indian and Asian grocery stores. They are called "wild starch pearl" but thankfully have a helpful pic. Pandan extract or flavouring can also be found at Asian grocery stores.

Step 1 - Firstly cook the basil seeds. Place them into a pot of boiling water and allow to expand for a couple of minutes. Drain and chill.

Uncooked basil seeds

Cooked basil seeds

Step 2 - Take 1/2 cup of water and mix with the matcha powder. Put the rest of the water and milk onto boil and then mix with the matcha mixture and some pandan extract. Dissolve sugar into this mixture (how much according to your taste). You can serve this hot or cold-I served it cold with the basil seeds on the side.

The pandan extract gives it the bright green colour

Eyeball Blood Cocktail

The real feature of this cocktail is the eyeball which is easily made with radishes. Keep the radish tail on so that it looks like the optic nerve that attaches the eyeball to the head!

500ml / 2 cups cranberry juice, chilled

100ml/3.5ozs. vodka

6 radishes

6 pimento olive slices

3 toothpicks, cut in half

Step 1 - Mix the cranberry juice and vodka together. Cut the ends off the radishes at the green end and cut out a hole to fit the pimento olives. Peel down the sides of the radishes.

Step 2 - Fit the olive into the hole and secure it with a toothpick and drop the eyeballs in the drink.

Source: http://www.notquitenigella.com/2018/10/30/halloween-food-party-ideas/

[clickwish2-blog]

Creepin' It Real-A Hallowe'en Party To End Them All!

Hello my pretties! It's time for this year's annual Halloween party and this year's was a doozy and the best yet! Held at a historic Cemetery Lodge the atmosphere was pure electric- from the wild thunderstorms above to the spooky 13 items to the party guests that dressed like it was the last hurrah! And check out some of these easy last minute Halloween food ideas for the big day tomorrow!

For the last 10 years worth of Halloween parties, it has never rained for my Halloween party - ever. But this year the rain would prove to be my nemesis as well as a blessing. If you were in Sydney at the time, chances were you were drenched in the rain or at least hiding from the flash foods and lightning.

It was all happening at Cemetery Lodge where I was holed up decorating and putting out food. There was a fire that blocked up the main street, the royal visit had closed off the harbour tunnel and the thunder grumbled outside the spooky little cottage.

"What if everyone cancels?" I said to Mr NQN. My phone buzzed constantly. Friends giving me weather updates-I'm sure trying to be helpful but only adding to the stress because I had been checking the forecast every 10 minutes myself.

Bloody eyeball punch

The messages read:

"Looks like rain...And thunder"

"We are running really late and Garth just dropped all the beers on the kitchen floor so now he has to clean it up"

"Headed your way! Had a bit of costume issue"

"I can't eat anything as I'm on an elimination diet" (that was an Elliott ;) )

Tarantula Cheese Ball

Voodoo doll hand pies

I pictured myself sitting in my outfit with Mr NQN at my side, just the two of us waiting for guests for an hour. But then people started arriving - early no less!

Werewolf cupcakes (recipe here)

Serpent Sandwich

Guests marvelled at lovely little cottage attached to cemetery. It was built in 1848 and was where the cemetery worker and his family lived-the side door is even where the bodies would be wheeled in to his office!

Ouija Board Cake (recipe here)

It has now been transformed into a cosy home by the lovely tenants and it is warm and full of colours. There's a community garden to the side and chickens that lay eggs as well as the world's oldest bunny.

Frog spawn drink

It has a kooky charm to it and I was honoured to have my party there. I transformed the space to become spooky with decorations from The Party People, my favourite party shop because their Halloween selection is incredible!

Face pie (recipe here)

Scared tacos

Food-wise, because I was warned that the oven was a bit dodgy, I kept to things that could be made ahead of time and didn't need to be heated.

Skull sandwiches that can be made and frozen ahead of time

Brain chocolate peanut butter truffles

I get so excited every year to make Halloween food that I have a little draft of items that I add to throughout the year. I've already got 3 Halloween food ideas for next year!

Marzipan teeth

This was my costume this year. I decided to match with an item that I had made and came as a voodoo doll. The added bonus is that the makeup was super quick to do and required just 5 minutes with eyeliner and eyeshadow. I drew on stitches with the eyeliner and made one button eye and I was done!

The first to arrive were the Day of the Dead family with Viggo, Louise and baby Henry. He was born on Halloween last year so we dubbed him Halloween Henry!

Then came Araluen and her daughter Aura who came as Miss Havisham and Estella. Araluen loves dress up and had most of the outfit already-the skirt she found at the local Vinnies shop!

Tuulikki arrived with them (by the way they caught a bus dressed like this and she reported no odd looks). She came as an eccentric witch. She, like her son Mr NQN hates photos and liked being behind a mask!

Oh and here is Mr NQN! He was a bit worried that nobody would recognise his costume. Can you guess who he is? Here's a quote to help you, "Oh hi Mark!"

My sometime vegetarian friend Laura came as a Day of the Dead skeleton and brought me some gorgeous dark red roses. She knows the way to my heart!

And then Ivy and Ryan arrived. I thought that they might come as Donald and Melania (because terrifying!) but she came as Carrie and he came as Pennywise with an absolutely terrifying mask that freaked out a lot of people. What is it about clowns?

Then JY and Ben arrived as Crazy Rich Asians-how inspired and current pop culture!

Then we had not one but two Egyptians arrive. The first was Tania who came as a regal Nefertiti. And then I got a message from Queen Viv. Now cemetery lodge isn't the easiest to find so I gave everyone a map and everyone found it just fine but you know who is going to be the person that gets lost finding it? Yup our dear Queen Viv.

"Lorraine, where are you?" she said worriedly on her voicemail. She entered wearing her home made mummy outfit that she made using strips of painting sheet. Hers was the outfit that everyone wanted to own and when she told people that she was taking it to the Salvos afterwards there was a mini stampede for who would get it.

One of the most spectacular entrances was Amaya, Laporello and their kids Jett and Finn who came as Star Wars characters. They always make such an effort for Halloween and I was so impressed at how much effort they had gone to. Finn's RED2 even had light up buttons and sound!

Nina and Garth were not too far behind. She came as a Evil Countess and he came as the Joker-because she loves anything Batman related and I think she liked the costume more than he did!

The last to arrive were Girl Next Door and Baz who came as Instagram hashtags. There were some notable absences-Miss America has started a new job doing shift work and he was upset that he couldn't make it because he was even more prepared with this costume than ever.

Others like Julie and Lou and her family couldn't come due to health reasons but I was so excited to have my nearest and dearest and most fun friends and family with me on the night.

Time really flew-it was as though it was going at warp speed. People devoured the food and talked-there is one common element to this Halloween party and that is everyone is so much fun and easy going and friendly. People that come alone still have a great time because everyone is so welcoming.

It then came time for Halloween charades, a tradition at these parties. We split into two groups and wrote our list of terrifying things which was a mix of horror films, current affairs and scary people (eg shirtless Putin riding on horseback). It was so much fun that JY started to get an asthma attack from laughing so much but Laura had a ventolin inhaler on her so that fixed it up straight away! Phew!

The Finn piped up. Could he have a go at charades? I think we might have a little ghoul in the making here!

Then the last hardcore people all adjourned to the nearby cemetery. It was perfectly still, traces of the earlier thunderstorm gone. It was deathly and surprisingly quiet given that busy King Street was just a couple of streets away. Laura took out star shaped sparklers and Tania told us stories about the first fleet graves that lay here.

It was almost midnight when Queen Viv said "I must disappear back into my crypt!" And with that we bid her and each of the party guests goodbye only to learn later that some of my gruesome party guests had to escape the cemetery by climbing over the walls (a sight which I would have loved to have seen!). Queen Viv reported the next day: "Passersby barely interested. So Newtown!"

And without further ado here are the recipes below!

So tell me Dear Reader, are you terrified of clowns? And could you guess Mr NQN's costume? And would you be scared if you saw someone scary climbing over a cemetery wall?

Brain Truffles

All Original Recipes by Lorraine Elliott

These were one of my favourite Halloween treats. They were easy enough to make but could sit shelf stable so they didn't always need to be refrigerated. I used cranberries as the sweetener instead of jam to make them shelf stable but also because the white chocolate was sweet enough as it was.

Makes a dozen brain truffles

Preparation time: 30 minutes plus chilling time

Cooking time: 20 minutes

700g/25ozs. pink candy melts

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Red icing gel pen

Silicone brain chocolate or ice cube mold

Step 1 - Melt the candy melts in a microwave at 50% power in 30 second intervals stirring. Spoon some into a brain chocolate or ice cube mold. Coat the inside thickly with chocolate as shown above. Chill until completely set.

Step 2 - Spoon in peanut butter and cranberries. Spread some chocolate on top and smooth over the top, making sure to remove any chocolate around the outer edge that may prevent them from coming out of the mold cleanly. If it is very hot where you are, you can always put it in the freezer between each step.

Step 3 - Place in the freezer for 15 minutes or until set. Unmold and repeat with the remaining chocolate and filling.

Pop out of the silicon mold

Ta-da!

Tarantula Cheese Ball

This cheese ball is super easy and effective to make and makes for great party food especially if you have vegetarians. You can use your favourite cheeses as long as you have a cream cheese base that will bind it all together.

250g/8.8ozs cream cheese (full fat, low fat isn't stiff enough)

50g/1.7ozs. gorgonzola dolce

1 cup cheddar cheese grated

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

2 teaspoons onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 cup poppyseeds

4 pipe cleaners for legs, cut in half

2 Pimento olive eyes

Crackers to serve

Step 1 - Blend all ingredients together until you get a smooth paste. Have a piece of cling film and empty out the cheese onto this and shape it into a ball. Place in the fridge for 20 minutes or so.

Step 2 - Place poppyseeds in a plate with a rim and remove the cheese ball from the film and roll around in the poppyseeds covering on all sides. Place on serving plate and add eyes and legs and surround with crackers.

Scared Tacos

These were a vegetarian and gluten free option that I also thought looked adorably cute. These are best made just before serving as the taco shells need to be heated in the oven but the rest can be made ahead of time. We served these around 8:30pm once people had snacked on the other food as I like brining out a hot option and everyone seemed to love them.

12 piece taco shell kit

Oil for frying

1 onion, peeled and diced

425g/15ozs. tin refried beans

salsa from kit

Taco seasoning from kit

Lettuce leaves

1 cup shredded Cheese

340g/12ozs. cherry bocconcini

Pimento olives, sliced in three for eyes

Step 1 - Heat oil in a frypan and then add the onion and saute until cooked. Add the refried beans, salsa and taco seasoning and stir until well mixed and cooked through.

Step 2 - Heat taco shells in the oven according to directions. Add some lettuce, refried beans and cheese to the taco. Then top with two cherry bocconcini eyes topped with sliced pimento olives.

Pâté Skull Sandwiches

Super easy and effective, not to mention delicious, these pâté skull sandwiches require minimum equipment and ingredients. These can be made a day or two ahead of time and then stored in a container and frozen. Thaw when needed.

1 loaf white bread

150g/5ozs. chicken liver pâté

A small amount of cranberry sauce or berry jam

Step 1 - Use a skull cutter to cut out the shape in the bread and divide into two even numbered piles of skulls. Use a large straw or an apple corer to cut out eyes in one half of the pile.

Step 2 - Spread the other pile of skulls with the pâté. Then spread the sauce around the eye area. Cover with the other half with the eyes cut out.

Slithering Serpent Bagel

This isn't a recipe so much as a guide as to how you might want to make this!

3 bagels, cut in half

Tuna salad or ham and cheese

Red capsicum forked tongue

Pimento olive slices and 2 slices cucumber for eyes

Step 1 - Arrange bagels in a S shape pattern alternating them but making the head at one end with 1/4 bagel. Top with tuna salad and ham/cheese and place olives for eyes and capsicum for the tongue.

Frog Spawn Drink

This drink was a real hit mainly because my friends are foodies and when I ask them if they like "slimy" things they answer yes. Basil seeds are similar to chia seeds-they swell up on cooking but the added advantage of these is that they look like eyes. This drink is similar to falooda which uses basil seeds. It's sweet, milky and delicious and I love the extra texture that the basil seeds give it.

1/4 cup basil seeds

500ml/2 cups water

500ml/2 cups milk

4 tablespoons matcha powder

Pandan extract

Sugar to taste

Buyer's tip: you can find these basil seeds at Indian and Asian grocery stores. They are called "wild starch pearl" but thankfully have a helpful pic. Pandan extract or flavouring can also be found at Asian grocery stores.

Step 1 - Firstly cook the basil seeds. Place them into a pot of boiling water and allow to expand for a couple of minutes. Drain and chill.

Uncooked basil seeds

Cooked basil seeds

Step 2 - Take 1/2 cup of water and mix with the matcha powder. Put the rest of the water and milk onto boil and then mix with the matcha mixture and some pandan extract. Dissolve sugar into this mixture (how much according to your taste). You can serve this hot or cold-I served it cold with the basil seeds on the side.

The pandan extract gives it the bright green colour

Eyeball Blood Cocktail

The real feature of this cocktail is the eyeball which is easily made with radishes. Keep the radish tail on so that it looks like the optic nerve that attaches the eyeball to the head!

500ml / 2 cups cranberry juice, chilled

100ml/3.5ozs. vodka

6 radishes

6 pimento olive slices

3 toothpicks, cut in half

Step 1 - Mix the cranberry juice and vodka together. Cut the ends off the radishes at the green end and cut out a hole to fit the pimento olives. Peel down the sides of the radishes.

Step 2 - Fit the olive into the hole and secure it with a toothpick and drop the eyeballs in the drink.

Source: http://www.notquitenigella.com/2018/10/30/halloween-food-party-ideas/

[deladane]

Day 18: Sunday, March 18 ~ Disembarkation Day

Day 18: Sunday, March 18 ~ Disembarkation Day

Two years and one day after originally booking this cruise (we booked it with a St. Patrick’s Day special on the Equinox in 2016), and after endless planning and anticipation, our cruise was officially over. They stopped serving breakfast at 8am in the MDR, so I had set an alarm clock for 6:45am to give us enough time to finish packing up our bags before going downstairs to eat.  We were already docked back in Miami when we woke up… before sunrise!!

After a lot of squeezing and smushing, we were able to get our carry on bags closed with the rest of our belongings.  We checked and re-checked that we hadn’t forgotten anything in one of the closets or drawers, then went downstairs to deck 3 for breakfast in the dining room.  I always like to eat breakfast in the dining room on the last morning of a cruise.  They have space at the front entrance to store the rolling carry on bags, and then we can sit for a relaxing and quiet breakfast at our leisure.  The other option is dealing with thousands of people squeezing into the buffet with all of their carry ons, and trying to balance a plate of food while rolling a suitcase through the buffet line.  No thank you!!  We were escorted to a table at the very far corner of the room… I had no idea the dining room went back this far, but if that was my assigned table for dinner every night, I probably would have asked to switch!  It worked out just fine for one breakfast though.

Breakfast menu

The menu is pretty similar to what we had for room service so we both ordered our usual:  omelets and bagels with smoked salmon and cream cheese.  I must have been feeling particularly lazy because I did not take a photo of my food this morning.  While we were eating, they walked around with a basket of breads and danishes, a tray of different fruit juices, and a carafe of coffee.  

We were assigned disembarkation number 15, so we listened to the announcements while we ate.  Conveniently, they called our zone just as we finished eating, so we collected our rolling bags from the front of the dining room, carried them up 2 flights of stairs (since there was zero chance of getting into an elevator this morning!), and followed the flow of traffic to exit the ship.  It’s amazing how excited we felt to walk through this gangway 2 weeks ago, and how depressing it was to be back here today.

There were quite a few people ahead of us in exiting the ship, so it took a few minutes to wind through the lines and down the escalator to the luggage carousel.  As opposed to every other cruise terminal I have seen where they line up all the suitcases in a big warehouse, labeled for each zone number, they use airport-style luggage conveyor belts at the Miami terminal.  I think there were 4 or 5 carousels, and each one was labeled for which zone numbers would be on it.  DH spotted our big blue suitcase immediately, so he grabbed it while I towed the 2 smaller bags.  The next step was to go through customs, where we waited about 10 minutes to reach the front of the line, but were then greeted by the friendliest government employee I have ever encountered.  She glanced at our passports and waved us on our way, and just like that, we were standing on Florida soil.  

It was kind of chaotic as we tried to figure out where to stand for ride share pick up.  DH requested an Uber to drive us from the Port of Miami up to Ft. Lauderdale, and it was due to arrive within 5 minutes, but there were so many people walking around with all of their luggage and it was hard to figure out where exactly to stand for the driver to find us.  Ultimately, DH stood out in the shoulder of the road to track down our Uber and waved him over to where I was standing with our bags.  We loaded our bags into his trunk, and then set off for FLL.  DH spent most of the ride napping while I scrolled through 2 weeks of missed posts on social media.  It was not even 9am yet on a Sunday morning, so traffic was light and we pulled into the airport 45 minutes later.

Out driver dropped us off at the departures door for JetBlue, but just as we were pulling up, I realized we should have told him to drop us at arrivals.  We were way too early to check our bags because our flight wasn’t until 6:30pm, so our plan was leave the suitcases in luggage storage for the day. I pre-booked a reservation for 3 bags online through Bagstogo.com for $7 per bag for the whole day.  It was very easy to arrange and I pre-paid by credit card. We were told to look for their booth near the baggage claim, so that meant we needed to get to the arrivals level (duh!  Too bad I didn’t think of that before we got to the airport so I could direct the Uber driver! Haha)  We took the escalator downstairs to the baggage claim level, and after asking the lady sitting at the help desk, we found the small white door hidden against the wall for the luggage storage.  They really need to make it more obvious because we didn’t see it without asking for help. This small sign was on the door to the office:

Notice how small the logo is for Bags To Go?  I was searching for a big sign with that logo… no wonder I didn’t see this sign!  There was a teenager sitting behind the door and she told us she had to look inside all of our bags before we could leave them in storage.  Ummm, really?  She pointed to the sign on the wall which said bags are subject to inspection. Normally that implies that they may inspect bags if they have reason to believe the bag is harmful, not that they need you to open every bag that is left there!  Our bags were packed and locked to take on an airplane… anything we had inside needed to get past TSA so surely it should be fine to leave in a storage closet for a few hours.  I wasn’t thrilled about opening up my suitcase in the middle of a crowded airport, but we had no choice as there was no where else to leave the bags this early. Once the girl was satisfied that our bags didn’t contain explosives or any other contraband, she stacked them on top of each other in the room, gave us a receipt, and told us we needed to pick up the bags before 5:30pm.  That is when their office closes and you cannot leave bags overnight, but it wasn’t an issue because we needed to check in our bags with JetBlue by then anyway.

Now that we were down to just our (extremely heavy) backpacks containing all of our electronics and valuables, we set off to find the Sun Trolley.  This is a free bus that runs between Ft. Lauderdale airport and the downtown riverwalk area.  They don’t let you bring luggage on the trolley, so that’s why we needed to check our bags.  They have a pick up location at each terminal in FLL- just look for this sign near the ground transportation pick up spot.

I didn’t catch this detail when I was reading through the information about the trolley, but they pick up from the airport once an hour, on the hour.  We were incredibly lucky that we got to the bus stop at exactly 10am, just as the trolley pulled up!  Had we taken even one extra minute dealing with the bag check girl, we would have missed the trolley and wasted an hour of our day, so we had extremely lucky timing!  You can’t miss the trolley- it is painted bright red and yellow and is a full-sized bus.

The trolley only operates on weekends, and there is only one physical bus that runs laps back and forth all day.  The ride downtown took about 20 minutes, and the bus driver talked the entire time, explaining the rules of the trolley.  He was actually very funny, although I don’t know if he intended to be!  When he dropped us off at the Ft. Lauderdale Historical Society, he said that he would pick us up at this location every hour on the :40, with the last bus leaving at 4:40pm.  He recommended we go inside the historical society as they can help direct us towards tourism points of interest, so that’s what we did.  

The lady at the front desk told us about the riverwalk and that there are 2 kinds of tourist boat rides.  One is a yellow boat called the Water Taxi and costs close to $30 per person for a 3 hour tour around Ft. Lauderdale.  The other one is Water Trolley that is a red, white, and blue boat, and is free, but only runs a short distance for a 20 minute tour.  She recommended the latter and told us where to find the first pick up location.  It was now 10:30am and the first water trolley started at 11am, so we decided to just go for a walk down to Las Olas Boulevard, and we planned to pick up the water trolley down there.

We wondered around the streets of Ft. Lauderdale and eventually found our way to stop number 4 on the water trolley route at the Laura Ward Riverwalk Plaza at 11:15am.  

It was a very pretty spot along the river, surrounded by high-rise condos and hotels, and with a parade of yachts floating passed us. We sat down on the curb and waited for the water trolley to arrive.

A few minutes later, this big yellow boat pulled up to the dock and we realized it was the more expensive 3 hour tour boat. I guess both boats share a dock since they come and go throughout the day.  I asked the guy who worked for the water taxi and he confirmed that we were at the right spot for the water trolley to pick us up.

That is when things went down hill.  After 30 minutes of waiting and not seeing the water trolley, we started to wonder what was going on.  If the trolley tour is only 20 minutes long, then surely it should have come by our stop by now, right?  We tried calling the phone number on the sign, but no one picked up the phone. Then we started to wonder if the water trolley only runs once per hour just like the sun trolley.  We decided to wait it out until 12:15pm as that would be one hour after we originally arrived, and if it runs once per hour then it would arrive by then… hopefully!

This tiki bar boat floated by at one point. I’ll bet it is a lot of fun, especially for a party or a big group of friends!

Do you know the feeling where you are waiting for someone to pick you up but you don’t know what car they drive?  Maybe it’s just an acquaintance or someone you don’t know very well.  You feel kind of anxious because you don’t know when or if they will ever come.  And you stare longingly at every vehicle that passes by, hoping it’s the one you are waiting for, but it’s not, and it just keeps driving by?  It’s not the best feeling, and it makes time seem to drag on extremely slowly.  Well, that’s how we felt right now.  The lady at the tourism desk hyped this trolley up like it was the best thing we could do in Ft. Lauderdale, and we waited over an hour but it never showed up!  At 12:30pm, we were tired, hot, and bordering on pissed off.  We had just wasted over an hour of our day, and clearly this mystery water trolley was never coming, so we cut our losses and left the riverwalk in search of lunch.

We were just a few blocks away from Las Olas Boulevard, so we walked over there to pick a restaurant.  We considered coming over here back in 2016 but we never made it, so it was fun to check out what we missed out on.  There were tons of different restaurants lining the street, most of which with outdoor seating, and many of which had a DJ or some kind of live music.  It was such an exciting vibe for a Sunday afternoon, and I can only imagine how crazy things must get down here on a Saturday night!  After standing around outside for over an hour, we really just wanted a quiet lunch inside an air-conditioned room.  We decided to go to Mango’s Restaurant and Lounge as they had one of the more affordable menus (many of the other restaurants were over twice the price for each item as Mango’s) and they were able to set us right away since we were willing to eat inside (there was a longer wait if we wanted an outside table).  

The restaurant was nearly empty as the hostess led us to our table.  The waiter came over with a large bottle of water, which he left on the table for us to refill our glasses as needed, and a basket of bread.  As an added bonus, there was a lady playing a keyboard and singing stripped down versions of pop songs, setting the tone for a quiet and relaxing meal. She is sitting in the lounge on the other side of the wall to the right, so you can’t see her in this photo, but we could hear her just fine.

We both ordered the chicken burger, which was a grilled chicken breast with caramelized onions, provolone cheese, and mushrooms, with a side of French fries.  It was simple but very good and we felt much better after our stomachs were filled.

After lunch, we walked back to the water trolley stop.  It didn’t look like the trolley was anywhere in sight, so we just decided to walk back to the historical society office along the riverwalk.  We didn’t realize it, but the whole walk was less than one mile! That’s not much of a tour, and had we known it was such a short route we may not have wasted so much time waiting for the trolley to never show up.  It was a beautiful sunny day, so it was lovely to walk along the river, watching the boats and the other people pass by.  When we were almost at the end of the path, we finally spotted it… the red, white, and blue water trolley was tied up to the dock, with no employees anywhere in sight!  We finally realized that the trolley must not be running today.  I’m not sure if the crew never showed up to work, or if the trolley was broken, or what the reason was, but clearly there would not be a water trolley today.  I was really disappointed that no one made any effort to announce that the trolley was out of service.  There are only 8 pick up stops over a route that is less than a mile long, so it wouldn’t take much effort to someone to go around and post “out of service” signs at all of the stops.  At the very least, they could have posted an announcement on their website (we did check that but saw no indication that it was closed today).  We went inside to tell the lady at the tourist desk what happened, and she explained that she had no idea they were closed today as it is part of a different company and she just recommends it to tourists but she does not work for them.  At least now she knows they’re closed today so she can stop telling people to look for those boats and wasting their time!

We went back out to the river and found a park bench in the shade to relax and people watch for a little while.  We were originally planning to take the 3:40pm bus back to FLL, but we were hot, tired, and bored, so we decided to go back on the 2:40pm bus instead.  If we needed to sit around for a few hours, may as well do it in the bar at the airport where it’s air conditioned!  The trolley pulled up right on time, and we headed back towards the airport to wrap up the end of our vacation.

Pay attention when the driver announces your stop name as you board the Sun Trolley at the start of your day.  Even though we got on at terminal 3, he told us to get off at the Green 4 stop when we returned to the airport in the afternoon. We went back into the terminal to pick up our luggage, and then brought it upstairs to the departures section to the JetBlue bag drop.  Amazingly, when we put the bag up on the scale, it weighed in at exactly 49.9 pounds! There was a short line at security, but that didn’t surprise me considering how many cruise ships disembarked today from Miami and Ft. Lauderdale.  We finished going through security by 3:45pm, so we still had over 2 hours to go before they started boarding our plane. Amazingly, we found 2 seats at the bar in Chili’s, and there was even an outlet right there at our seats so we could charge our cell phones.  It was too bad our seapass cards weren’t valid at the airport though because they charged $12 for a pint of beer!  CRAZY!!! I guess I shouldn’t be that surprised considering they have a captive audience, but $12 for a Blue Moon was a bit steep in my opinion.  We drank our beers verrrry slowly so we could hang out there for a while.  When our cell phones were sufficiently charged, we walked over to the food court to pick up a couple of sandwiches at Einstein Bagels to eat for dinner on the plane.  

You know how the rest of the story goes… we boarded the plane around 6pm, took off on time, kept ourselves entertained on the 6+ hour flight by watching TV and looking through photos on my iPad, and landed back at SFO around 10pm local time.  We still had an hour-long drive to get back home to San Jose, so by the time we walked in the door, it was after 11pm… which felt more like 2am on Florida time!  I’m not gonna lie… going back to work the next morning was rough!

Step Tracker Daily Total*:  15,215 steps; 6.25 miles; 3 flights of stairs

*My FitBit was set to Florida time so I made sure to check my steps while on the plane before it reset the tracker for the new day!  This total includes all of Sunday in Florida, plus the 2 hours extra because we went to sleep at 2am Florida time.

So that’s the end, folks!  Overall, it was a great vacation and we really enjoyed our time on the Celebrity Eclipse.  I do kind of wish we could have a re-do with some of those ports on a day with less wind. I feel a bit cheated that I have now been to Bonaire but did not get to snorkel there, and there were several other days when the snorkeling would have been significantly better without the strong winds churning up the water.  One of my photography goals on this cruise was to take a great photo that is half above and half below the water line, and that was completely impossible with all of that wind.  I guess that means we need to book another tropical cruise and try again, but for the time being, we are putting cruising on hold to take a few land trips instead. We will definitely cruise again eventually, and when we do, I promise to come back here and tell you all about it!