#they look like those squishy memory foam squishies.... i love them......

[masoena]

Trust Fall Right Onto Sam's...

Trigger warning: This is a consensual non-consent story that with extreme breathplay and extremely rough oral sex. There are safewords, gestures and non-verbal safewords in place, at no point is either participant unwilling.

Note that the scene described in this fic is exactly that fiction, please do not attempt to recreate any of this in real life.

Prompt filled: Face Fucking for Kinky Sam Winchester Week hosted by SPN Kink Events

“Are you sure about this Dean?”

“Yeah with you I’m sure, I trust you.”

Sam had come home after a fairly uneventful day of researching at the library while Dean apparently had been busy planning out a sexy evening for the two of them, wanting to try out something they’d never done before.

Long gone was the memory foam mattress on a simple bed frame that Dean used to love so much. Now the room boasted an extra long king size bed that had a proper head and footboard that they loved to peruse on the regular for many unbrotherly things.

Dean was presently kneeling up at the foot of their bed, back flush against the footboard of the bed from butt to the back of his head. His wrists were securely bound behind his back with leather cuffs connected with a quick release carabiner. In this position Sam’s groin was at the exact same height as Dean’s mouth.

Once this romantic, sex thing started between them their communication improved and opened up and Sam was no longer annoyed when Dean left porn sites open on his laptop but took great pleasure in putting Dean through some of the scenarios featured on them. He had become quite adept at Dean porn interest sleuthing though sometimes Dean would look at things just to see if Sam would go for it.

Sitting on the bed rather innocently was a long leather belt purpose-bought for this experiment.

Sam moved it so it was within easy reach for him and undid the fly of his well worn denim jeans so that his cock and balls were framed by a triangle of washed out blue fabric. Dean licked his lips unconsciously at the delicious sight of Sam’s semi-hard cock.

“Get to it pet, make me hard, let’s see what those gorgeous lips of yours can do.”

Sam felt exhilarated as he slipped into the role that Dean had asked him to assume for this scene, his exact words were toppy bastard who made him take it all. All of this was previously discussed in much detail, safewords, sounds and gestures firmly in place and Dean had insisted on there being a consensual non-consent element, wanting to play it like this was his first time blowing another man. He had carefully checked that Dean had the squishy soft and jingling cat toy in his hand as his safeword in account of not being able to vocalize much of anything for the next little while.

Sam pointed out that it would indeed be his first time and asked once more if he was sure he wanted to go this extreme. It would feel more real was all Dean answered. Sam at first refused the idea until a couple of nights later he came home earlier than planned from a supply run and caught Dean deepthroating a rubber dildo suction cupped to the shower wall and the sounds he was making coupled with an entirely absent gag reflex nearly had Sam cream his boxers on the spot. He managed to bring the subject matter up, as naturally as one could bring up CNC and face fucking your own brother. The long short of it was, Dean’s fantasy would become a reality.

Dean didn’t move and looked up at Sam defiantly. “I see how it is, bratty already, I’m going to have so much fun making you choke on my cock.” Sam gripped Dean by the hair on the top of his head. The dirty blond hair was just grown out long enough to make a perfect hand-hold for Sam to guide him where he wanted him to go while he aligned the leaky head of his cock and deliberately smeared it all over Dean’s pursed lips.

“No asshole, I don't want thi…mphf.” Sam waited for Dean to open his mouth around another vowel in his sassy little monologue and pushed in all the way down to the root, forcing Dean’s throat to stretch around his cock. Dean looked up at him, green eyes tearing up reflexively, his lips spread obscenely around the massive cock that stretched his jaws out wide and nearly took his breath away with its sheer girth. He realized that he couldn’t close his mouth even if he tried, he carefully kept his teeth from making contact with the velvet-soft hot column of flesh.

“Mmm…. that’s better nice and plugged up, should keep you like this all the time, huh? Perhaps I’ll get a deepthroat gag for you so that whenever we’re in the bunker you can practice and train your gag reflex. Would lock it with a small padlock that only I have a key for and make you sleep with it?”

Dean did a futile thrust with his hips because as much as Sam’s suggestion was preposterous the fantasy of it had his cock go impossibly harder than he already was and made him blurt another bead of precome to the floor below him.

“Hmm… you sick puppy you’d like that wouldn’t you, you’d probably crawl around on all fours and start rutting against my leg just to get off?” A shuddering groan vibrated all along Sam’s dick at that which had him choke down a deep groan of his own, working hard to stay in character.

Dean still managed to hold eye contact, swallowing around the erection in his throat, moans muffled by Sam’s magnificent size while his own dick stiffly bobbing against his belly painting sticky streaks of precome all over. The light and inconsistent touch of his cock to his own abs were the only friction and touch he was getting and with his hands bound there was precious little he could do about.

“Now let’s see what you can really do, huh gorgeous.” Sam dragged almost all the way out leaving just the head of his cock on Dean’s tongue. “Keep your tongue flat and out, yeah just like that pet.” Sam drove back in, the clenching heat of Dean’s throat felt amazing and he started pumping in and out languidly moving a little bit closer to Dean so that his head was flush with the bed and pinned him there with a rough grasp on his hair while he started fucking into the willing mouth. He was mesmerized by how his length disappeared one thick inch at a time with little to no resistance.

After the third time he leaned forward instead of pulling out, his hands supporting himself on the foot end of the bed. The sensation of Dean’s desperate puffs of air in and out of his nostrils against his pelvic bone, nose half smushed against Sam were utterly delightful. The longer Sam held himself down like that the more jittery Dean’s movements got, he could feel him trying to open his mouth wider to breathe around his cock but there simply was no way to get any air that way.

In his near futile quest for oxygen he swallowed over and over around Sam which caused mind blowingly stimulating contractions around Sam’s cock while he continued to hold himself there; Dean’s throat owned and his to control, his brother’s life completely in his hands right now.

“How are you doing down there pet, could literally make you pass out from sucking cock, your life in my hands pet?”

Dean moaned around Sam, his tongue shifting side to side trying to articulate pleas for mercy an entirely inefficacious effort. Sam had been silently counting down from 20 in his head this entire time, knowing exactly how long Dean could hold his breath and finally pulled out with one swift yank that had Dean coughing, spit drooling and dripping down his chin and onto his chest.

“Please…. please master no more.” Dean’s voice was completely shot rough like low grade sandpaper, his eyelashes moist with tears from the strain of it and the skin on his face red from the lack of air.

“Nuhu…. you still talk too much.” Sam thrust back in roughly and deep, his balls heavy against Dean’s chin while he started rolling his hips. His movements were shallower this time, his shaft never leaving Dean’s throat entirely, just moving about an inch of length in and out of him. He could see Dean’s shoulders flex and move, struggling against the inescapable bindings the carabiner well out of his reach with his wrists facing outwards. If anything the Winchesters were good at it was escaping being tied up. Unfortunately for Dean that also meant Sam was an excellent rigger in the bedroom. He wasn’t getting out of anything until Sam deemed it time to let him or if Dean called an end to things with a safeword or gesture.

Dean’s hips flexed and thrust in time with Sam’s rolling movements, needy little moans vibrating up the length of Sam’s cock on every forward push.

“You look gorgeous like that, yeah use that tongue and those lips, no more sass, no lip just a submissive good boy taking care of his master, aren’t you? I bet you wish you had a leg or even a pillow to rut against right now.”

Dean’s reaction to that statement didn’t disappoint as he whimpered in helpless arousal around the dick in his throat, looked up at Sam with puppy dog eyes pleading wordlessly for Sam to make true what he just insinuated.

Bratty boys don’t get rewards like that. Maybe once you’ve made me come I’ll help you out, if only you could rub against my leg right now, rough worn denim of my jeans, I bet that’d feel mighty nice on your needy cock huh?” Sam’s pace increased with every syllable of filth directed at Dean. Sas was certainly not unaffected by the debauched puddle of arousal he’d turned his brother into, kneeling at his feet, his lips swollen and pink from use.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen gorgeous, I’m going to pull out and you’ll keep your knees exactly where they are but you’ll have to reach my cock hands still tied behind your back and when you finally lose your balance and tip forward your beautiful mouth and throat will be helplessly impaled on my dick once more. If I feel generous which I’m not you may come at that point before that fuck your throat, tie you to my hips with the belt while I paint the inside of you with my cum.”

Sam had to pull back then because in his effort to sell the part Dean had asked of him, he had gotten himself so close to coming he curled tight fingers around the root of his erection to stave off the orgasm that nearly blindsided him just now.

He cleverly covered it up by pretending to hold his cock ready for Dean to envelope again with his mouth. He pulled the chair he’d positioned by the bed for this exact purpose behind himself and then got ready for the kinkiest trust fall of all time.

Dean stared at the rock-hard shaft and slowly leaned forward, Sam the fucker, he noticed, kept moving a little bit further back everytime he got close and when Dean reached the point of no return toppling forward with a panicked yelp without hands to catch his own fall Sam had him. His strong hands wrapped around Dean’s biceps and his mouth was plugged up with his cock the way it should be. Sam was sitting comfortably on the chair, sighing with contentment at how soft and hot his brother felt around him.

Dean’s body on the other hand was pivoted forward at his knees, his abs working overtime to keep his body in a straight line and without the chance to lift himself off of Sam’s dick even if he wanted to; gravity, Sam’s hands and his restraints working against him.

“Fuck… that was so hot Dean. Trust falling right onto my cock, you really are desperate for it aren’t you sweetheart? Put that tongue to work.” Sam leaned forward running warm palms up and down Dean’s back the movement pushed his pelvis against Dean’s nostrils flattening them in the process and Dean once more tried and failed to Sam’s complete benefit, to drag in air around the younger Winchester’s cock which created amazing and desperate stimulation around Sam’s length in the process.

Sam unhurriedly continued his pets and gentle affections while he could see Deans’ fists flex and pull against his restraints, his throat spasming around him as his air reserves slowly depleted. Sam only counted down from 15 this time and pulled Dean’s torso into a more vertical position to allow him a few hurried breaths of air through his nose. Dean tried to plead around the obscenely large prick in his mouth but other than garbled noises he didn’t manage much.

“Sorry darlin’ what was that? Oh, you want me to repeat that?”

Dean shook his head which was comical because his face was bracketed by Sam’s thighs on either side and all he achieved was more stimulation for Sam. Sam carefully observed every noise and movement of Dean to make sure he wasn’t safewording and the jingling cat toy was still fisted in his hand.

“Let’s see how long you can hold your breath pet and keep on licking or I’ll go longer, I still haven’t come yet so you better up your game and remember only good boys get to come.”

Dean outright whined at being called a good boy, his tongue running along Sam’s girth as best he could, curling his tip along the underside of it and tracing the prominent vein there.

“You like praise don’t you pet? Wanna do good for your master don’t you? Here we go, breathe in deeply for me.” Sam waited Dean out and pinched his nose shut before folding one of his legs over the other creating a headlock around Dean’s that made it impossible for him to move off his cock even a little bit. Dean didn’t look pretty like this but is sparked a fire in Sam’s gut to have him so utterly under his control, completely incapable of fighting back and he wasn’t even sure Dean did it consciously but the fact that he incessantly jutted his own hips into thin air only served to add fuel to the fire that slowly started gaining momentum within Sam.

The younger Winchester never had been a gentle, soft lover but this side of him at first scared him a bit until Dean’s compatible masochistic and submissive tendencies showed him that there was a highly compatible yin and yang connection between them. They had come to realize that it left them both more satisfied in the process.

Dean’s eyes were locked on to Sam’s with laser focus as Sam counted one-mississippi, two-mississippi upwards this time around, he made it all the way to 25 before Dean gave the safeword and dropped the toy. Sam immediately released him. He firmly pushed up on both of Dean’s shoulders to pivot him back into an upright position.

“So good my beautiful boy, fuck you have no idea how hot that was, the trust and gift you’re giving me by letting me be your first and don’t think I don’t know that you practiced. It shows, you’re gonna ruin me for everyone from this point forward.”

“I’m gonna bite your dick off if you’re letting anyone else near what’s mine master… Respectfully.” Dean added hurriedly, his voice rough and strained from the abuse his throat had so willingly taken.

“Oh you think this is yours, well then get back to it and scoot forward so you can rut against my pant leg and get your reward.”

Dean didn’t hesitate and knee walked right in between Sam’s legs fitting perfectly between his spread thighs, gently taking Sam back in his mouth which was harder than it would seem with how slick he’d made him. When he finally sank down all the way to the root once more they both groaned with how amazing it felt, Dean’s eyes fluttering closed as he started rutting against Sam’s leg the well-used denim felt heavenly against his sensitive cock that had been rubbing against nothing but thin air since all this started.

His hips pivoted up and down as he sucked on Sam’s cock like it was the best popsicle he’d ever tasted, moaning, grunting and groaning around it, deliberately letting his vocal cords and the sounds they made vibrate along the thick length. Sam all the while watched him with half-lidded eyes feeling as desperately if not more aroused than Dean. After a while Sam leaned back, strong column of his neck arched as he gently rolled his hips along with Dean’s efforts, it took herculean efforts on his part not to take and fuck into Dean with abandon.

Feeling him fuck his sticky slick hot length against his leg and the green lust blown eyes directed up at him whenever he looked down to met them was swiftly turning his own sparks of pleasure into more. His rope of control was down to the last strand when Dean slammed his hips up against his leg one last time before he could feel the hot wet spurts of Dean’s load drip down his leg soaking the fabric.

His patience was shot and his need desperate, so close to bursting Sam pushed the chair away from himself, hearing it clatter noisily a few feet behind him while he stood up tall and kept Dean wrapped around his cock both palms with cupping the back of his head fingers laced for leverate. He set a swiftly increasing pace pushing Dean down on himself over and over. The resulting squelching and glug sounds that emanated from Dean, his panted desperate gasps and struggling inhales through his nose filled the room and created an explosive harmony that rushed right into Sam’s tight coil of arousal that was about to spin out at any moment.

He pulled the leather belt around his hips while Dean kept bobbing his head as if Sam was still guiding his movements and when he felt the leather cinch tight around the nape of his neck he tried to pull away. A futile struggle against Sam’s overpowering strength in that moment had Sam’s lust unwind with a feral roar that ripped out of his throat as he buckled the belt around his hips and tied Dean’s face to his groin, one hand so tight in Dean’s hair the older Winchester worried about losing hair follicles in the process.

Sam came explosively and generously down Dean’s throat who barely even tasted him because Dean’s lips and nose were flush with Sam’s pelvis with the sparse hair tickling his nose. Sam rolled his hips stretching and using the pliable throat he was locked into. He pushed his hips forward taking Dean with him in the process.

Dean was struggling against him, not safewording but flailing wildly with his arms behind his back his cock already half hard again because he loved every second of this, his mind hazy and floaty from the mindblowing orgasm he’d had. The reason he was struggling was because he wanted to taste Sam, wanted him to mark him inside and out. Sam however did not care for that at this moment and kept pulsing down Dean’s throat which flexed and spasmed around him dragging every last bit of release from him without any deliberate effort on Dean’s part.

“Fuck look at you nothing but a human flesh light for me, could just keep you tied to me like that. Would never need to rub one out in the morning anymore, could just let it go, would you like that good boy? Warm your master’s cock when we’re between hunts, suck me off while I eat dinner, perhaps even do it in public sometime, side of the road against the Impala, would be easy enough to pack the belt when we go on hunts?”

Sam loosened the belt a few notches and started corkscrewing his hips in and out of Dean just a few inches as he’d done earlier. Dean heaved breaths of air through his reopened nostrils, nodding along to every suggestion Sam made, needy whimpers was all his brain could cobble together right now and Sam knew it too.

“So beautiful for me, so good at this. Are you still good to go all the way handsome?”

“Yes Sammy all the way, only for you.”

He tightened the belt once more and kept Dean there breathless, helpless and desperately horny again despite having just come, he held fast through the moments when Dean struggled violently against him for real and even tried using his legs to pull away from him. Sam also kept him there when Dean pleadingly looked up at him and only let go when those beautiful green eyes rolled up in his head and he melted against Sam completely insensate.

When Dean woke he was no longer bound but wore his favorite oversized “borrowed” T-shirt from Sam’s dresser and a pair of soft pajama pants. He was also cleaned up, knowing full well that Sam would have wiped him down with the softest of washcloths and carefully dressed him in his favorite aftercare clothes.

“Welcome back handsome. How are you feeling?”

“No you weren’t too rough, I loved every second of it and the ending was absolute perfection. You didn’t hurt me and you gave me exactly what I asked for and more. How are you feeling?”

Dean knew full well how Sam felt after playing up the dominant alpha side he had in him, always worried he was being too harsh with Dean, too reckless, too demanding and too vocal. He would reassure Sam as many times as it took for him to believe it.

Also their aftercare routine was something they both couldn’t imagine living without, abound with soft touches, appreciative words and a delectable selection of treats and drinks to bring them back from the intense head space they often reached during a scene like this.

“Love you Sammy.”

“Love you right back back Dean.”

[provider-of-pronoun-checks]

That tagging system sounds good! Also i got excited abt all the questions so i wanted to answer them!

My main favorite is cool-tone pastels, especially right on the border of purple and blue. Lilac? Lavender? Very big good.

And for the soft things, big fan in both aesthetic and texture! We have some plushes, i think my personal fave is this one lamb toy that we got to stuff ourselves at an event!! But in general all plushies are good, those memory foam type ones that are smooth n squishy tho? Ooooo i wish we had some 🥺 and for blankets, we have a bunch of rlly soft blankets between what we and our partners brought to our apt, so we get to layer them up a lot. (Also in typing this i remebered our Favorite stuffed animal, we have a jack skellington pillowpet and he is our prized possession)

And i think im too easily impressed to have a specific favorite scene or character in SU, i like too many, but off the top of my head maybe Lion? He’s just a big pink lion! He presses his nose on things!! A funny lil guy!!!

-💜 🍊

Ok cool!

Oooh lilac and lavender are really pretty!!!

Awww the lamb sounds so cute!

I think I have one of those! It's a narwhal my brother got me for christmas!!!

Oooh!!! I love soft blankets!!! Plus, layering up? Perfect!!!

Jack skellington!!! I love the nightmare before christmas so much!!

Awwwww!! I looked him up and I just, mmm /pos Lil funky guy :3

[sp00kworm]

Silence (Part 2)

Part 1 - A Bar Brawl

Part 3 - The Star Goddess (Bloodhound’s Ending)

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Pairing: Revenant x Gender Neutral/ Non-specified Reader

Warnings: Threats of Violence. 

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A Totem to Remember - Revenant’s Ending

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Loba’s debut seemed to attract more customers than you were ready to deal with. On the night of the test match, you had to refresh the beer kegs twice and you were almost out of a brand of whiskey known as the Red Devil. It was annoying, but you knew you had to refresh stock as you stacked freshly cleaned glasses back under the bar for the next day. Your bot in the back chimed happily as he opened his great washer stomach and offered you another tray of red hot, freshly cleaned glasses.

“Thanks buddy.” You cooed at the robot before taking the tray and patting his head with one hand. Spinning back around, you headed back out into the bar and hummed to yourself as you started moving towards the cabinet of tumblers. You held the tray on your hip as you plucked open the cabinet before carefully putting the glasses into their correct places, in order of size and shape. Mindlessly, your fingers moved on muscle memory as your little washer buddy moved to plug himself back in for the night, waving before he powered down and his battery began to charge. You patted him softly as you placed the tray away for him and turned to lock the kitchen for the night.

 The lights flickered. You looked at the ceiling before a gravelly voice spoke above you.

“You’re oblivious, skinbag.” Revenant purred from the ceiling.

You looked up and realised his face was close to your own, his arms extended, and his legs pinned into the metal of the ceiling. His body contorted monstrously before his head twisted and he dropped from the ceiling with a soft thump.

“What the hell are you doing on my ceiling, Revenant?” You tried to keep calm, but you were quick to fly into fury with the Simulacrum, “You don’t get to just waltz in here after…”

“You don’t get to waltz in here after what you’ve done.” He mimicked back at you with his hand snapping in your face, “Tell me something I haven’t heard before.” Revenant drawled as he looked at the whiskey behind you. He pointed a sharp finger at it, “Give me that.”

“Uh, no.” You gave an exasperated huff and snatched the liquor, “I suggest you pay for it first, plus, we’re closed.”

“I think you’re forgetting just how much money I’ve given you already, squishy.” Revenant purred, “I gave you a thousand credits last time I was here, that pays for more than seven of those whiskey bottles, I know they’re not that expensive.”

 With another hum, his metal fingers reached for a glass, snatching it before you could rescue that from him too.

“Okay. I don’t think you understand that you literally killed a man in my bar, and that your hush money doesn’t just sweep that under the rug.” You pointed a finger in his face angrily, “You pay, or you get out.”

The threat made him laugh. Revenant threw back his head and laughed a deep metallic noise, his mouth opening slightly to reveal the sparking copper inside of his mouth, “I like you. Not just anyone gets away with pointing a finger in my face.” He purred but his hand snapped up and grabbed hold of your wrist. Slowly, his cold sharp fingers crawled down your arm before they grabbed hold of your fingers and pushed, “But point it at me again and I’ll take the nail and skin off and pin your eyes open to watch.”

“This is not the way to get a free drink.” You uttered, in shock at the severity of his threat.

Revenant hummed again before his electronics whirred and he released your hand back to you, “Sure. You’re something odd, skinbag. Get me that drink, I need something to do.” It wasn’t polite nor happy, but you relented and opened the cabinet to retrieve his drink. The expensive liquor was strong, and you turned back around with it in your hand before undoing the screw cap and pouring it into an icy tumbler.

 Revenant eased himself into the bar stool, ignoring your disgruntled look as he took the tumbler and admired the dark colour of the whiskey. He swirled the liquid for a while before taking a small amount into his mouth and swallowing, his neck jarring with the pumps before he gave a small hiss.

“Nice burn.” He commented as he slumped over the bar and looked at the clock on the wall, hardly fazed by the lateness of his visit or how inconvenient he was being to you, “I see you’ve been making a killing with the games broadcasts.”

You didn’t know whether he was being genuine, “Well…I guess that money came in handy.” You shot back at him, “Blood money seems to have made my business flourish.”

“Sometimes money buys happiness.” Revenant drawled, “I got plenty of it. Just ask.”

“I don’t want your money.” You scoffed, “I’ve had plenty of that already.”

Revenant growled, “Then just what do you want from me?!” His fingers rapped along the bar top.

“If you didn’t get it, Revenant, I want you to get out and leave me alone!” You shouted.

 The Simulacrum watched you, his black and orange eyes bright before the orange went small and he snatched his drink back off the bar. He lifted it to the separation in his face where the skull like white met red and opened the hinge to dump the rest of the alcohol inside. Before you could snatch the expensive bottle away from him, he had it in his hand. Revenant said nothing to you as he held the bottle by his leg, his long arm popping upwards with a shrugging readjustment before he whipped around and headed to the door, stalking on long legs. He didn’t glance back as he stormed away, slamming the door behind him with a grunt before disappearing beyond the bright LEDs of the streetlamps and into the night. You looked at the bar and scoffed at the scratch marks down the wood, running your finger over them before you locked the door and shut off the lights to head up to your room above the bar for some well-earned rest.

 Revenant didn’t show up for the next few days. You were glad for the peace again as you ran through your normal daily routine, until it came to cleaning day for you little dishwasher friend. The robot unit chirped happily as you slapped at his dishwashing compartment and watched it open, the cogs and pistons whirring as the racks and doors stretched to their full capacity. Carefully you took a spanner and went to carefully unscrew the back of the water pipes from his back and laid them over the counter and into the sink to avoid any gross water dripping through onto the floor. The pipes smelled. You coughed as you reached for the cleaning fluid and whistled gently as you opened the back of the washing compartment to expose the hose outlets. The robot chimed a whistle as you poured the cleaner inside his belly and started scrubbing, whistling back softly as the suds started to foam up.

“You love cleaning time huh buddy?” You asked.

The robot chirped with a smiley face appearing on the screen which acted as its face.

“Hey, I know, I won’t be too long!” You promised as you took a wire wool to a particularly rough spot of dried grease. You continued to hum as you worked and poured the cleaning fluid down the water pipes to clean them.

 “Okay buddy, lets get these back attached to you.” The washing bot chirped and span for you again as you held his water pipes up and reached for your spanner to crank the bolts back into place.

“And…” You cranked the bolt one last time, settling it in place tightly, “There!” You declared, “Right, go and set yourself for a full rinse and you should feel like brand new!”

The robot chirped and tugged himself into the corner again before starting his cycle. A happy face trundled across his screen as he started the timer for his cycle and plugged himself back into to the charging point to continue the wash in sleep mode.

“See you in a bit buddy.” You patted his washing compartment and headed back into the bar, wiping your hands on a towel before you looked at the empty place and the bright sunshine outside. You weren’t open just yet. It was too early for serving and you felt tiredness seep into your eyes as you looked for the coffee machine. It was usually only used for Expresso Martinis. It needed water and you took the coffee jar and filled it before pouring it into the machine and looking through just what you fancied to drink. If anything had come out of the war, it was the new, expansive range of hot drinks. Tea from far off planets you had never heard of. You plucked free one box with a curious looking fruit on the front before taking the strainer and filling it with the leaves and letting the hot water drip through into the large pot.

 As you watched the water drip, you heard a noise above you. The clink of metal. The barest noise of a scrape of metal over plaster. Slowly, you peered upwards. Nothing. The ceiling was its normal, usual painted colour, the metal support beams poking out of the plaster. You frowned but looked back at your tea. There was another noise. Metal scraping over each other. The noise was coming from behind the closed door to the kitchen. You left the tea unattended and reached for the door handle, pressing the pad to open it with a whirr of mechanical locks. It clunked open. Nothing. Your washing robot chirped at you in confusion his screen flashing with a question mark across his face before you smiled, trying to ease his nerves.

“Hey, don’t panic. I just thought I heard something…” You trailed off as you looked past your washing robot and into the room. Nothing was out of place.

It was then that your washing bot gave a strangled beep and danced away from where he was attached to the wall, pulling the water pipes tight as he beeped in upset.

 “Pah.” A silver clawed hand retracted up back on top of the fridge after taking a rude swipe at your friend, “Stupid tin-can.” Revenant hissed from the giant chrome refrigerator, flashing his claws back at the robot once more.

“How the fuck did you even get in here?” You asked as you looked up at the Simulacrum, “I told you not to come back.”

Revenant’s body contorted on the top of the fridge, his head twisting to the side as his orange eyes span and swirled in the shadows, “I know.” He rumbled, “I…” He went silent as his pistons clicked and he slid over the top of the furniture and down onto the floor with a click and a hiss.

“You what? You needed another bottle of whiskey?” You challenged.

Revenant stood to his full height, looming over you, the joints of his fingers clicking before he gave a grunt, “Something like that.” He rumbled as he looked down at you before he looked back at your washing bot and flexed his shoulders, “I didn’t know you had company.”

 Suddenly, that tension was gone, and Revenant stepped past you to flash his hand at the other robot again. It was a threat perhaps, but your washing robot chirped unhappily again.

“Stupid bag of bolts.” Revenant grumbled at it.

“Hey.” You intervened, “Leave him alone. He’s just a washing bot.” You grabbed Revenant’s arm.

It was like the Simulacrum froze in time, his eyes glaring down at the place where your fingers wrapped around the metal. With a snort, Revenant tugged his arm free from your grip.

“It’s just a washing bot, like you said.” Revenant stalked from the kitchen, his mechanical legs thumping softly as he went. As he left you made sure your friend was safe. Beyond a small nick at the base of his neck he was fine. You nudged him back into his power station to continue his cycles in sleep mode.

 You followed Revenant into the bar to see him picking through your cabinet again, his metal fingers tapping along the labels of the liquors as he decided back to pluck from your reserves.

“What happened to the rest of that posh stuff?” Revenant asked with a hum as he looked through the back of the cabinet.

“You had the last bottle. The supplier hasn’t been in a while.” You watched him look back before he selected another expensive looking bottle. This time it was tequila. You didn’t say anything as he took it out and eyed the label before disappearing into the corner of your bar, slinking into the booth farthest away from you in silence. The Simulacrum didn’t glance back at you as he cracked open the bottle and placed the glass neck between his metal jaws before tipping his head back and emptying a good portion of the alcohol into his synthetic stomach. You watched with a small cringe as he seemed unfazed by the burning liquor. His orange eyes snapped to you as you watched him from the bar.

 His gravelly voice carried well across the room, gracing your ears with the deeply pissed off timbre, “What are you looking at?” Revenant asked with a roll of his optics, “I’m not going to steal anything.” He rumbled.

You watched him for a moment before replying, “I’m more concerned why you want to be here.”

Revenant looked you dead in the eyes as his mechanical thumb stroked the label of the bottle, “Call it a whim, whatever. It’s quiet and there isn’t that annoying Andrade brat. Don’t go thinking anything different. You tell them where I am, and I’ll take great pleasure in making you squeal like the little meatsack you are.”

“You know. There’s no need to threaten me with a good time every time you come in here.” This was a new tactic, and you watched his optics twitch from his bottle to your face.

“Are you making fun of me, skinsuit?” Revenant growled, his two metal jaws parting slightly to reveal the sheen of copper in his mouth with an angry snarl.

“Hardly.” You scoffed, “Fine.” You relented as you headed for the light switch, “Stay here, but I’m going to bed. Enjoy your pity party.” With a snap of the lights, you walked back into the kitchen and to the back staircase to your own apartment. You made sure to lock the door firmly before stripping off for a shower and heading to bed.

 Revenant peered into the darkness with a hum, his fingers tapping along the table before he tugged the bottle of liquor closer and snapped on the holoscreen in the corner, searching for something to fill the noise in the dark bar with outside of his own memories playing over and over again behind his eyes.

 “Skinsuit.” There was a grunt before the bed shook and dipped either side of your body, “Skinsuit!”

With a jolt you woke up, just to come face to face with the skull-head of Revenant and a sneer.

“Finally. I thought I was going to have to choke you awake.” Revenant grumbled as he peered over you, his legs splayed like a spider either side of you as he looked down at you tucked into the covers. His hands pulled back from either side of your head and you watched him flash his claws as he sat back, still perched over your legs, looming like a deranged killer.

“Do I need to ask why you’re up in my room?” You asked groggily, wiping sleep from your eyes as Revenant watched you sit up with great interest. The Simulacrum purred, a low rumbling from somewhere in his throat, as you met him face to face, glaring at his orange and black eyes.

 “Your little washing bot is screaming downstairs. It sounds horrendous.” Revenant didn’t move away, his skeletal nose rushing with air as he inhaled the smell of you.

“If you did something Revenant…”

“You’ll what? You’ll kill me?” He wheezed a great laugh as his claws dragged at your sheets, “Good luck with that, skinsuit. There’s millions of bodies just waiting for me to be reuploaded into them.” He snarled before rasping again as his arms and legs whirred into downwards positions, allowing him to snap, flip and crawl off your bed in one, bizarrely fluid motion before he clicked back into place and stood over the side of your bed with another, odd, calculating rumble.  

 You decided to ignore his snide remark and bitter tone, “Is he malfunctioning?” You asked as you threw back the covers and climbed out of bed to face the Simulacrum. He was intimidating at nearly seven feet tall but slim and streamlined with the ability to move silently at will despite being made from entirely heavy bulletproof metal. He looked down at you, his metal lips parted, unimpressed with your pyjamas covered in small Nesse prints.

“Not a clue.” His orange eyes looked you up and down before he strolled over to look through your desk.

“Hey, asshole.” You snapped at him as he tugged a thick looking document from a fat wad of paper, “No one invited you to look through my things.”

Revenant chuckled, “No. They didn’t…” He pulled open one of the drawers underneath him and hummed at the pens and random assortments of stationary in there, “A penis pen.” He held the phallic pen between his fingers, “Practical.”

 You ignored his taunting swaying of the pen back and forth and hastened down the stairs towards the sound of your screaming washing bot. As you opened the door to the bar kitchen you ducked as a pot came flying towards your head. It clattered against the wall and smashed into several pieces. You avoided the shards as you pushed into the kitchen and saw the pipes spraying water down onto the floor and the robot trying to slam his front closed.

“Oh my…” You didn’t finish your sentence as he caught sight of you and screamed again, the screen in his stomach covered with crying faces as he rushed towards you, holding the severed and burst pipes in one hand and his drawer closed with the other. He screeched again waving the dripping pipes in front of you before shrinking behind your form, ducking as low as it could get as Revenant filled the entrance way into the kitchen.

 His raspy laugh made you scowl. Revenant slinked in through the doorway and set about scratching his claws along the tiles, making a noise that was so ear grating you had to clench your teeth.

“I didn’t expect for him to piss all over your floor, I’ll admit.” The Simulacrum laughed, harshly and entirely mean.

“I knew you had something to do with this!” You pointed a finger in his face, “Why can’t you just leave me alone?! Why do you have to insist on being foul for a reaction?” Your anger seethed out of you as you hid your little robot behind you.

Revenant sneered, “You’re no fun, skinsuit.” He snarled before he snagged the pipes from your robot’s hands and grabbed the mechanical washing bot along the floor, kicking and screaming. His claws crunched into the metal of the washer bot’s shoulder as he pulled it towards the wall it had previously been stationed at. It wiggled violently before Revenant heaved it up and held the pipes up before driving them together with a metallic thunk. The connectors clicked back together easily, and the washing robot beeped confusedly as Revenant stood him against the wall and banged on the front of his tummy, slamming the door closed with a vicious thump of his metal palm. The door remained closed and the washing robot chirped in confusion.

 You looked at the floor and then back to Revenant as he trudged back through the puddles of water and loomed over you again. He gave a long, low, robotic chuckle as he spun his hand and curled the claws towards his palm.

“I fixed your issue.” He stated with a look at his claws before he snapped them into a spike and made sure to push you back against the door, “Your welcome, skinsuit.”

You felt anger boil in your gut, “What? Do you want me to thank you or something?” You spat as you looked up at the unnatural orange optics. They span, the robotic pupils clicking as he focused on your face and the anger that painted your expression.

Revenant’s fingers curled into the wall, “Something like that.” He whispered as he stared at the anger on your face, “I didn’t do this, before you blame me.” With a scoff, he released you from the wall and sauntered through the puddles of water towards the back door, “Nice seeing you…” He turned to look at you, his headscarf rippling in the breeze, “You look nice when you sleep.”

“FREAK!” You screamed after him as he disappeared up the smooth concrete wall and over the next building with a hiss of pistons.

 Your washing bot chirped sadly and held out his hands to you with a shake. You looked and spotted the spanner in his hands as he sheepishly rubbed his washing compartment.

“Well. At least I don’t have to bill him for this as well…but maybe I will to spite the bastard.” You considered as you carefully took a towel to your friend and then grumbled, wading across the kitchen to find the mop to get rid of the rest of the puddles.

 Revenant seemed to lurk in the corners of your vision after that, always sat in the back of the bar, with some bottle of hard liquor and a deadly, judgemental gaze turned on the rest of the patrons. Those who knew him from the Apex Games did not dare approach him. He took great pleasure in launching a young man over the table once from a handshake, laughing as he stalked over to him and signed his name on the boy’s cheek in his own blood. You had promptly doubled his price for drinks that night, but the Simulacrum did not complain, he paid at closing and disappeared into the night. Sometimes he lurked after closing time. More often than not, you found him glaring down at your washing bot as the robot thrust a mop at him to try and get him off the cupboards or fridges. Angry beeps were then met with your angry glares. For some reason, Revenant adored the look. Anger furrowing your brows and a snarl on your lips made him feel smug, almost joyful. He was positively gleeful when he was tormenting you.

 However, the bar was shut for the workers day, a holiday for most of the city, and Revenant was left without his normal activities to entertain himself. He stalked around his room for a while, jumping and reaching for items he had hung from his ceiling as exercise before he looked at the charging port and bed. There was nothing else in his room. A spare scarf was hung in the wardrobe along with the scraps of a suit he had taken great pleasure in peeling apart in front of the other legends before a conference. With a huff he opened the ventilation shaft and rotated his spinal column before his shoulders snapped and tucked in close underneath his arms, allowing for him to fit into the vent and scuttle along to the next room. Noxious fumes made him pause, but with another slow filtration of air he scoffed and opened the grate on the other side.

“Mercury won’t rot my insides, Nox.” His head turned one hundred and eighty degrees before his body followed in a contortion of metal, spilling out and rotating on top of Alexander’s glassware cabinet.

Caustic looked at him with vicious cold green eyes, “I’ve yet to find anything but charged copper dispersals that will have an effect.” He uttered softly, clinical and effective as he opened his filtration systems and watched the mercury vapours swirl away into the chambers above, “Why are you bothering me, Simulacrum?”

Revenant lowered his head over the side of the cabinet, “I smelt rotten eggs. Sulfur. But maybe you just passed gas.” He jeered as he watched Caustic cork the rest of the reaction and pull another yet of heavy metals from a rack alongside various acids.

“Maybe hydrofluoric acid will make you quieter?” Caustic hissed, “I’m working.”

“I know.” Revenant hummed from the cabinet, “But you’re not that busy.” He dragged his claws over the top of the metal with a laugh.

 Caustic closed the arm opening of his experimental chamber with a slam as he peeled free his gloves in order to point a scarred finger at the Simulacrum, “You never come in here unless you’re bored.” He observed as he removed his goggles and respirator, “And that isn’t often…Not after you found that little toy to play with. Did Bloodhound not warn you off enough with that slice to your oil recycler?”

Revenant growled from the cabinet as he leaned over the top, leering at the Chemist underneath him, “It was fucking ugly bleeding shit down my legs but there’s always another body for me…Bloodhound didn’t heal to quickly from my blow I think.” He flashed his claws and hummed as he tucked himself back on the unit, far out of Caustic’s reach, “Besides. That feral brat doesn’t tell me what to do.”

“No but they might be inclined to give you another cut for harassing a…what do you call them…skinsuit?” Alexander’s eyes lit up with silent glee as he watched Revenant click and adjust on top of his glassware cabinet.

“Carry on old man and I’ll show you just what I did to Bloodhound.” Revenant hissed as he laid over the top, his metal legs hanging down over Caustic’s head.

 Caustic binned his gloves and hung his goggles after washing them before he turned on the air conditioning and moved back towards his desk, “I have no desire to taste steel today. So,” He span in his chair, his rectangle frame glasses perched on the end of his nose, “Are you going to tell me what you’re here for? Evidently your little toy isn’t around to entertain you today.”

Revenant propped his head up on his arm, tapping a claw against the metal beneath his eye before he rumbled, “Its…boring.” With a small sigh he looked down at Caustic, “I didn’t think I could feel but its exciting to watch them, like a little rat running around. A little angry rat.”

Alexander was turned back to his desk, working over something before he replied, “You might be an illegally made conscious robot but you will still carry humanity…even if your programming was once to kill.” He shrugged up at the robot, “Perhaps you are having a mild fascination? Infatuation if you will. I can’t say I have felt it myself… The idea of such intimacy disgusts me, but perhaps you are more human than you originally thought?” Glee laced Caustic’s tone as he smirked up at Revenant.

Anger churned in Revenant’s processors, “Human am I.” He slipped from the cabinet and slid in one movement, grabbing for Caustic’s throat.

 His fingers were cold, but Caustic let him grapple from the chair. The Chemist was far shorter than him but was large, bulky and strong despite his love for poisonous gases.

“Did I hit a nerve?” He asked with a laugh and a wheeze which was followed by a cough.

Revenant looked down at him, orange eyes swirling before he leaned close to Caustic’s face, “Compare me to you soft bellied sacks of skin again and I’ll slice you from groin to neck just for the fun of it…Then maybe I’ll show your little apprentice what you look like.”

“I dare you to try Simulacrum.” Caustic whispered before he pried the robotic hand off his throat and sat back down in his chair, slicking his hair back with a huff, “Why not just ask to see them?”  

“Pah.” Revenant’s joints clicked as he climbed back onto the cabinet, “Like I want to see them.” He hissed, “They do nothing but tell me to leave.”

“Have you considered that is because you are foul?!” Caustic shouted as he leaned back to see Revenant disappear back into the vent, “Idiotic fool.” He cursed softly before erasing the measurements for the next reactions he had planned.

 Days suddenly past without Revenant in the corner of the bar. Your washing buddy seemed quiet and contemplative without having to beat him off the countertops, and you found yourself slowly relaxing until it was concerning. The Simulacrum was never gone for long. It was a week since before you knew it and you knew they were still in the downtime between seasons. He had no reason for being gone. You caught yourself one night as you worried about where he had gotten to.

“Probably finally got what was coming to him for that big mouth.” You whispered as you took the cleaned glasses from your robot and began to place them away.

The door opened with a creak and you huffed, “We’re closed!” You shouted over your shoulder, “I swore I turned the sign around…”

There was no one in the bar. You scowled as you opened the bar door and walked towards the entrance where the door was propped open an inch or so, letting the warm air into the bar.

“Hello?” You asked quietly as you opened the door and peered outside.

“Skinsuit.” Revenant hummed from above you.

 You peered upwards and felt a sense of relief wash over you as you gazed into the orange eyes of the sour looking Simulacrum above you. His head turned, much like a bird, as he regarded you.

“You’ve been gone a while.” You commented idly as you stood outside the door. Your foot hit the pavement and the Simulacrum held up one silver finger.

He pointed down at your foot, “I think you just stood on something.”

You jumped when cardboard crumpled and something rattled around in the box, sending it shooting towards the taxi rails. With a rush you grabbed for the box and frowned at the largeness of it.

“Why did you get me an animal?” You asked as you heaved the box to the front door, eyeing the air holes stamped in the side.

“Call it an investment.” He grunted as he dropped from your roof and stood behind you, watching with eager eyes as you carefully opened the lid.

 A growl sounded from within and you jumped back at the sight of the small Prowler cub pacing back and forth in the box.

“REVENANT, WHAT THE FUCK?!” You screeched as the Prowler cub scrambled from the box and hissed, flaring the bare bones of its frills at you, trying to appear intimidating.

“No need to shout. You’ll scare the little guy.” Revenant insisted as he closed the door, “I found him is all. Thought you might like it. Kings Canyon…well its not great but if you head into the jungles of Leviathan there’s still some of these things that survived the purging of the planet.”

“How did you even find one?” You asked as the cub rushed underneath a table, quivering and hissing sadly, “They’re…endangered.”

“It was stuck in a pit. Probably game hunters. I nabbed it. Its weedy and pathetic looking so I thought you might like it.” He shrugged, “I can’t keep animals in the tower so he’s yours.”

You stood silently for a moment, trying to figure out just what the gift meant. That Revenant trusted you? That he thought about you? You didn’t know what to make of it.

 “Are you going to pay for the food?” You asked with a smirk aimed at the Simulacrum stood over you.

The seven-foot robot gave a single, dry laugh before he held up a large bag, “Way ahead of you, skinsuit.” He reached in and pulled out a heavy looking metal dish, “Don’t give me that look.” He gestured to your face, “So happy, doing that thing with your little beady eyes. Its revolting.” With a scoff he pushed past you and headed towards the cowering cub before plucking it from the floor, ignoring the black teeth snapping at him as he pulled at its frill and admired the deep blue and orange colours along his back.

“Hey.” You cautiously approached, “Put him back on the floor, I have a good idea on how to win him over.” You gestured to Revenant who rolled his eyes but dropped the cub with a huff and grabbed a bottle of liquor to watch from the bar as you took off your sweater and gently eased it under the table.

 The Prowler ignored you, mouth agape and dark under its neck. Next you took the food bowel and pulled out the food Revenant had gathered. A small amount of cubed beef was enough, and you placed it in his bowl before filling the other and leaving for the bar.

“Really? That’s it?” He droned, “How boring. I thought you might wrestle it and get eaten alive.” He trailed his fingers over the wood, “Now what?”

“We leave him alone. He needs to settle in. Its all new and traumatic.” You insisted as the cub took a sniff of your sweater and laid in the mass with a sad whimper.

“How dull…Maybe he’ll chew through a pipe in the night.” Revenant wondered as he tipped his head back and poured some liquor into his mouth.

“Hopefully not…but thank you. I didn’t think you were capable of being nice.” You whispered as you watched the Prowler bed himself down.

“Don’t get used to it.” Revenant snapped, but without as much of his usual bite, “It might come back to bite you.”

“Well, it very well might. Look at his teeth.” You joked, for once feeling at ease with the murderous robot in the room.

Revenant only gave another series of dry laughs.

“Demonio.” You cooed at the small cub as he attacked a hunk of meat with talons and teeth. It chewed on its back teeth before its ears pricked behind the frill around his neck.

“Demonio.” You cooed once again and the Prowler looked at you with a grumbling chirp, licking the blood from around its mouth as it eyed the small, marrow filled bone in your palm, “Come on boy.” You wiggled the bone back and forth as the orange eyes tracked your hand along its course.

“Do you like making fun of me?” Revenant grumbled from his seat at the edge of the bar, “That damn brat is the only one who calls me that.” He hissed.

Demonio eyed the bone before he got to his feet and prowled over before licking at your fingers. He took a nip before waiting for the bone.

“Good boy.” You reached with your other hand and touched his frill, gently running your hand down his nose before you gave him the bone and stood up to head back to Revenant.

 “He seems fonder of you.” Revenant observed with a hum, “Almost like a soft little dog.” He spat at the cub, “How delightfully boring.”

“Maybe, but I appreciate not being bitten by him anymore.” You answered as you looked back at the Prowler. He was already growing, and you were more than happy to look after him, but he was going to get large, “Even if he might outgrow me one day…well and maybe try to eat me at any moment.” You huffed.

Revenant snorted, “Ha. Maybe he will, but I’m sure Predators are less inclined to eat people they like.”

You looked at the Simulacrum, “Is that why I’m still alive?” It was barely a whisper, “Because you like making my life miserable?”

 Revenant looked taken aback, his orange eyes turning into pinpoints as he considered his next words, “Miserable…No.” His metal jaws clicked, “You’re the only person that can make me laugh.”

Those words were heavy, and you watched him struggle for a moment with himself, “I don’t understand anything. I was programmed to kill for…I don’t know. A long time. This is new for me and I have hated every second of feeling more than I did being nothing but a slaughter machine.” He growled.

“You should call me by my name then.” You smiled as you said it for him, and the Simulacrum nodded once before repeating it back to you and turning to watch Demonio gnaw on his bone.

“Oh,” Revenant looked back at you and you poured him another drink, “For the record, I like you as well Revenant.” You smiled as you sat down next to him and watched Demonio work on his bone a little longer.

 “Demonio!” You rushed after the Prowler as he launched himself at a customer. He was now a juvenile, and the hound like beast was quick to dislike anyone that touched you over the bar. You kept him behind the bar, but the creature was quick to jump at people that took hold of you. Revenant laughed from the end of the bar, tucked in the shadows of the wall as he ran his claws back and forth over the bar, “He knows people shouldn’t touch what isn’t there’s.” The Simulacrum sneered as the patron whipped around to look at him.

“Oh yeah, you metal fucker? What are you saying?”

“That your disgusting little skin sack hands don’t deserve to be near ‘em.” Revenant’s fingers snapped together, the fusion metal slamming together as he raised himself over the bar, spun and stuck up against the ceiling over the man, “Maybe I’ll take more than your hand like the hound would.” He ran the sharp spear of his hand down the man’s cheek, “I think your innards would make a lovely adornment to my mantle.”

“Revenant.” You tugged the hand away, “Enough.” You hissed at him, “Sir, I’m sorry for the drama…”

“Save it. I’m out of here.” He shoved his drink over the side and rushed to the door, “Bunch of fucking weirdos.” He snarled as he left.

 The night drew to a close and Revenant spent the rest of the opening hours sulking in the back of the bar, alone on a table, with his feet propped up on the metal, his drink untouched as he watched the patrons with a vicious glare.

“Revenant.” You uttered as Demonio pattered along behind you, his frill flared as he dragged his tug rope for play time, “Are we going to talk about what happened, or are you going to sulk forever?” You asked as you sat across from him, pushing his feet to the side in order to see his gaunt metal face.

The Simulacrum snorted, “There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Oh, there is.” You huffed, “You threatened to kill a man tonight who grabbed hold of my hand.” You sat back as Demonio pushed his head into your lap and you rubbed the scaley skin around his ears.

“Is there? I wasn’t aware that it was a problem.” Revenant moved his feet from the table, “He was an asshole. I won’t apologise for my actions.”

“I’m not…”

“And I sure as hell won’t be giving you money for his drinks..”

“Will you shut up and listen?” You snapped.

 Revenant felt anger threaten to spill over, but he slumped back in his seat as you pushed your finger down against the wood and scowled. He watched you with a huff.

“You’re lashing out and I want to know why.” You demanded, “From day one you were horrible. A cruel and mean machine that wanted nothing but to inconvenience me every day, but now you’re…giving me gifts. You’re here constantly and you just…You stopped me from getting a very horrible string of abuse. So, explain this to me, because I’m at a loss.”

Revenant was silent. His chassis was still and his wiring and pistons clunked as though he was being jolted back to life. He opened his hand on the table and dared to reach for one of your own. Smooth, cold metal fingers grazed your fingertips before they gingerly moved up and over your palm to stroke the soft skin. His orange eyes watched the pulse in your wrist before he linked the fingers once, squeezing tightly before he moved away again and guarded himself, crossing his arms out of your reach.

 “I…” He paused again, “I care for you.” That was it, he was silent again, his eyes watching you as you took in the meaning of the words he had dared to utter.

“Care for me?” You whispered back at him.

Anger laced him once again, “Yes, you stupid skinsuit! I might even feel something like love or joy!” He hollered as he flashed his claws and scraped them against one another, “Its infuriating and…And it hurts!” He threw his hand at the wall, “It hurts because I know I’m nothing but a giant killing machine! I’m stained in so much blood I could swim in it and nothing can ever make you love a disgusting creature like me!” Revenant heaved, almost like a human, his spinal column lurching as he screamed in frustration again and moved to stand up.

Like a viper, you grabbed at his hand and tugged, hard enough to jolt his fingers, but he was unfazed. He towered over you and watched, looking down at you with lonely eyes as his fingers dared, once again, to wrap around your own, seeking the heat they no longer possessed. He uttered your name, once, softly, as though he wasn’t allowed to say it, and then he looked you in the eyes.

 “That week you didn’t show up was like torture.” You said carefully, “For the first time, I was actually worried about you. It was then that I realised I liked having you around. Everything you did it was not to piss me off… well it was, but you haven’t had to speak or make friends with someone in so long, you just forgot how to do it anymore.” You felt your hand begin to shake in his, “But then the gifts started, and you thought about them. I said I wanted a dog one day, and well Demonio isn’t a dog but he’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever been given…So,” You smiled at him, “What I’m trying to say is that I think I might love you too.”

Revenant’s hand fell from your own and he looked to the wall for a moment before replying, “You really think you can love me?” He whispered, appearing small despite his towering height.

“Yes, I think I can.” You affirmed before leaning up to wrap your arms around him. The Simulacrum flinched before wrapping his thin, cold arms around you, taking in the warmth of the hug before pressing his face to your neck and humming at the gentle sensation of a kiss against his cheek.

“What was that for?” He asked quietly.

“Because I love you.” You whispered as you hugged him tighter.

[sunkist-scientist]

idk what problem solverz is but i love that benrey so much. he looks like he has the consistency of memory foam. personification of the primal childhood memory of squishing those school dodgeballs flat and letting them reinflate

thats probably for the best <3 but yesss this guys just squishy you can squeeze his head and itd slowly regain shape and hed be completely unaffected

[tfwhynoy]

YES!!! THOSE FICS ARE SO GOOD!!! PLEASE COULD YOU WORE ON FIRST CONTACT? LIKE WITH ANY CHARACTER???

Thought you said “whore on first contact” and was questioning my sanity 

For those who don’t know first contact au is where the war never happened so Cybertronians were never on Earth. Depending on how far in the “timeline” of this au you are you can go either from “cybertronians literally just discovered humans” to “humans and cybertronians are interacting and things are going well but neither know a huge amount about the other”. Either way, humans are considered at least somewhat cute by most to the point humans are doted on like puppies since they are so small and squishy. There are even some illegal pet trades on cybertronian once the au starts going.

Anyway, I’mma go with… Tfp Soundwave

Soundwave had been with only Lazerbeak for a long time with the trend of getting pet had him tempted. It was technically illegal to own as a pet but it certainly wasn’t hard to get around that. After all, you just have to claim them as a roommate and no one would question you for it.

He built the small room for a human slowly over time. He didn’t want to rush in and change his mind later. He bought several language packs so he wouldn’t be limited to getting only ones who spoke specific languages.

Soundwave looked at several places for adoption so he could find the most well cared for. The one he settled on was somewhat expensive and had the smallest selection but had advertized that all humans were here willingly so would bond easier and be taken care of easier. 

Soundwave had filled out a form a deca-cycle ago, what he wanted for in a human and how he usually acted. It was a way to match a couple of humans with their possible owner now. It was annoying but at least gave Soundwave time to prepare the final touches to their room.

When the day he finally arrived he was led to a room which served specifically for humans to be introduced. He had been matched with three humans whose attention were on him now that he had entered the room.

“Hello,” He spoke with his usual splice voice clips “My name is Soundwave.”

---------

You had been in the adoption center for about three months. It was nice but each room was impersonal. It made sense, especially since most adoptees weren’t here for longer than a month. The bots who ran the place said it was just because you weren’t what most buys wanted. They wanted a cuddly human who would be chatty and friendly but that they’ve seen bots who wanted quieter ones like you before and it was just a matter of patients.

Most humans agreed to come here so they could live on another planet for free or not have to worry about things like money again and just be cared for by someone else. As a result, they tended to be more open to their possible owners and the facilities caretakers. You decided to come instead just due to a lack of ties and you just kinda forgot to consider how terrifying giant robots were. Ya, you weren’t so scared of them as your first day but they sure as hell were still intimidating.

You were paired with another for the sixth time week. You had the sneaking suspicion they were just throwing you at anyone who’s wants vaguely matched you. You waited in the room on one of the couple padded benches. There were two others, a boy who looked he couldn’t be any older than nineteen and a kind-looking old woman. The boy was wringing his hand and attempting to make chatter, asking the woman what this meeting them would be like. She shrugged her shoulders.

“Every mech is different. I’ve been in more meetings than I can count and it’s nothing to be nervous about. Either they’ll love you are their attention will be on someone else.” You tuned out the nervous boys fretting and simply waited for the door to open, staring off into nothing in the meantime.

The door opening was startled you. When the Cybertronian spoke it was strange. Not one voice but several ones spliced together. With no face and next to no variation in paint color this bot seemed like he should constantly hiding in another's shadows instead of on his own. The only thing betraying this was the purple bio lights that ran along his body.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you soundwave. My name is Beatrice.” The boy shoved his hand in his lap and tried his best to smile. He ended up more like someone who failed tried telling a funny joke.

“This young man is Jaden. He’s just a little nervous.” She turned towards you with a soft smile. “You never said anything to us though. Why don’t you introduce yourself.” You let out a small sigh before telling Soundwave your own name. 

His only response was a quiet nod. His face, or lack thereof, felt too intense to look at for longer than a moment. His quietness certainly didn’t help. You just looked at his chest instead but you could still feel his gaze boring a hole in you.

“How are you today Soundwave?” Jaden’s voice was shaky and dripping with anxiety. 

Soundwave’s response “Of little interest” let you know this session would be rather boring. You began to tune it out mostly. Soundwave only responded when asked something and while the Beatrice tried to keep a decent conversation going it was in vain. 

You left the introduction figuring that the Beatrice would be adopted. An hour later and you’re proven wrong when you're told to pack your few belongings. Soundwave had chosen you and you would be leaving with him today. 

Soundwave carried you carefully across the city. You had to guess that his alt mode didn’t have any way to carry you comfortably if he was riding trains and walking where he needed with you. He lived far too considering how many time he switched routes and how long the trip was. The whole time he would keep taking glances at you. It should be expected but with no discernable expression and no speaking from him, everything felt unnerving.

You were thankful when he finally entered what you assumed to be his house. Soundwave went walked down a long corridor off the main room before stopping to finally say something.

“My room,” he pointed at a door that the hallway’s end before kneeling down to the floor. “Your room.” He pointed at a much smaller door. Even if you weren’t on the ground you could still tell it was rather large for a human but in comparison to the rest of his house reminded you of a mouse whole from a cartoon. “A key to booth doors and a comlink. If you need anything to message me.” He reached for something in his side before handing you what looked to be a large phone and what looked like a clicker used to train dogs. You guessed the clicker was the key, it had two buttons. The one on top having your initials on it while the one below had an S and W which you assumed stood for Soundwave.

“Would you like to stay with me or explore your room?” You thought for a moment. His servo was clearly low enough for you to step off if you wanted. 

“I’ll explore my room first. Maybe spend some time with you a bit later today.” He gave a nod as you climbed off and clicked the door open. You felt the ground shake as Soundwave left to his own room.

Your room was still large for a human, almost everything was. A bed larger than any you had seen on Earth and a soft press revealed it was rather soft but bounced back when you pressed on it. Maybe some form of memory foam? The dresser had cloths of several sizes and in many styles. Sadly all of which is darker and mute colors but you guessed that was just his taste. The brightest color of anything seemed to be a deep purple. Still beautiful but only looked darker against the blacks, navy blues, and deep browns. You had a bookshelf stuffed full with everything from comics to nonfiction to kids books. A desk with a vanity mirror and papers and pens in the drawer. Even an empty shelving unit for use later.

It wasn’t hard to see that Soundwave had certainly tried to make a room that could appeal to any human he could get but it all came together to feel to spread out and cold in a sense. You’d definitely find some way to fill so much empty space. Maybe a couple of pictures on the walls or a throw rug? Just something to break up the sea of black that the metal walls were colored in. At least the lights were interesting. Several small lights dotted the ceiling, none on their own bright but all together lighting up the room pretty well.

You wondered if they had anything like the glow in the dark plastic star stickers you had on the ceiling as a kid on Cybertron.

For now, you settled into the bed beneath the soft covers and tried to imagine what your new life with soundwave would be like.

[survivingsusac]

Link, my Alinker

ALINKER!

Well, you guys did it! You helped me fundraise enough to order my very own Alinker! If you recall, I learned about this mobility aid through Selma Blair’s transparency about her fight with her own autoimmune disease, Multiple Sclerosis. She and I like the same things about it: It provides a way to move about when your body just won’t. Do. It. On. Its. Own. The height keeps you just about your normal walking height. Trust me, I spent most of my life as a person who was of normal physical ability and then spent quite a while being pushed around in a transport chair after a disabling disease kicked in. Being the height of peoples faces (like when standing) instead of their butts (like when in a transport chair) is MUCH. APPRECIATED. Because an Alinker is directed and moved by me to where I want it to take me instead of requiring another person to move it when they are available, it gives me drastically more independence than the transport chair did. No knocks against you, transport chair, you did me a solid when I needed you. I just am moving on to Alinker. I’ve been calling him Link. So what’s it like to use Link, you ask? Well pull up a chair, grab a drink or a snack and I will tell you a story.

Alinker Assemble

So Link shows up in a box that my daughter, Abigail, immediately claimed as her new playhouse. It was a big box. I assemble him according to the instructions and complete the warranty activation forms online. Link’s looking spiffy and I’m dying to try him out so I pump up his tires and Ab and I go for a little walk. I’m juiced and I love Link right away. I adjust the saddle (that’s the seat portion that your butt is on) height because I am short, and the placement to be right for my weight.

The State Fair

My mom/rock, Ab, and I use Link at the state fair, where he draws attention and admiration from security guards, strangers, and friends we ran into. Every now and then I caught a teen saying something along the lines of ‘I wanna ride one of those things!’ or ‘Where can I rent that?’ People in wheel chairs were fascinated and one county display attendant explained how the Alinker would be helpful to her on days when her fibromyalgia renders her body useless. She wrote down the Web site. It is so helpful that the Web site is just ON the Alinker! I noticed that by the end of the day the saddle was making my bum bleed from the semi-firm cushion rubbing my flesh raw and that one of my legs was scratched on the inside from frequent contact with the frame. I made a mental note: ask the Alinker help desk how to avoid that and/or get a replacement saddle. Once home I asked the Alinker folks my question and got instructions for optimal saddle positioning. I made the adjustment and tried it out. I could feel the difference.

Disneyland

My family and I took Link with us to Disneyland so we could all survive a day at the park. Me so I could play without being exhausted. My mom so she could play without her hands and other parts of her body aching from pushing me in a transport chair around the park, and Ab just cuz Disneyland makes her happy. Period. And she wanted me to be there with her via Link. Like at the state fair, the Disneyland security team was enamored with the Alinker and wanted to know all about it and how long I had had it. They labeled it with this blue tag f officialness so that other park security people would know that it was already approved to be used in the park. I even had a couple of the original security guards see me on later days entering the park and come up to me to talk about it some more. Then we get in the park. That’s when things took a turn for the worse. Turns out the turn radius on Link is much too wide for the line cues at Disneyland. You know the zig-zaggy switch back type turns and folds the lines make? Yeah, Link doesn’t do well with those. I learned this when I took him with me through the line for the Smugglers Run at Galaxy’s Edge. There was a lot of back and forth happening to make turns. After that experience Link was parked in stroller areas and I just walked the line cues without him. And guys, look, I know it’s described as a walking bike. I got SO tired of people telling me ‘sweet bike,’ ‘I like your bike,’ ‘how much was your bike?’ ‘Did the park give that bike to you when you got here?’ It’s a mobility aid bro. Not just a bike. I need it to live with a decent quality of life. I may just make a shirt or sign that says “Alinker: Not Just A Bike” and wear it when I use Link.

Flat Tire

It was the morning of our third day at the park, which was technically Link’s fourth day out in the world because he had spent a day at the state fair. We get back from breakfast and I hop on Link and my mom says something like, ‘How pumped is the back tire supposed to be?’ Long story short, it was flat. I stop by the wheel chair station and fill the tire with air according to the instructions (which I had brought with me because I try to be a responsible adult). The back tire then goes flat within five seconds. It’s got to be the tire tube we say. The tube must be shot for it to go slat like that so quickly. Something my mom said after the cue turn radius and the flat tire had culminated, “The Alinker is not for family outings.” It was said in frustration and I feel, is not true, but I see where she was coming from at that time. I also see how to avoid that sort of frustration in the future. We fly home later that day. I contact Alinker to share what happened and ask for a copy of the warranty that I activated. I receive it and tires aren’t covered. So I pop on over to my local bike shop.

Bike Shop

Five stars for the local bike shop. They measure and order Link a replacement tube. When the tube arrives turns out it’s the wrong one because of how the inflation valve lines up with the frame. So they patch and reinstall the ruined original tube for me to use until the correct one is shipped and arrives. The guys said they caused the delay, so they won’t charge me for it. They also didn’t charge me for installing the new saddle I had ordered. Which is excellent, BTW. Nose free saddle so no flesh being rubbed raw, my hips sit wider apart than on the original one so my inner leg doesn’t get scratched by the frame any more, and it’s memory foam so it’s nice and squishy comfortable. They did this for me at no charge, too. They also ordered the right tire tube, and gave me a call today saying that it had arrived and I can get it switched out so Link will be up to 100%. For this second surgery I am going to insist on paying them.

Reflection

So circling back to when Link arrived and I assembled him, a hand pump for the tire and a replacement tire tub for a front tire came with him. I think it may be wise for Alinker to offer replacement tire tubes for sale on their site, especially considering that that smaller rear tire is an atypical size tube with a valve that needs to be at a specific angle so it doesn’t conflict with other parts of the Alinker structure. That last sentence is pretty much just me parroting what the bike guys told me about the tire tube, I honestly have no extensive personal knowledge about tires or their tubes. I give Link the Alinker a huge high five and a hug for being the mobility aid that he is, I give Alinker the company a firm, vigorous hand shake and a smile for being professional and prompt in their responses to my many queries, but also a disappointed shake of my head for providing a warranty that doesn’t seem to serve a purpose when the product arrived with what appears to have been a defective tire tube. I mean, come on Link. You walk with me for three days and on the fourth day your back foot is broken!? Puh-lease. Five stars to my local bike shop though, they are coming through big time for me. Will try to update after Links second surgery this weekend!

[appendicitusdolan]

the one with the break up // egd

summary: after deciding to call it quits on your relationship with ethan, you run into him at a party and he asks you to come home with him

a/n: ummmm let’s pretend like the for you tour happened a lot later than it actually did. like let’s make the twins like 22? 

           It had been three months since the boys left for tour and they had already been back in town for one, yet you hadn’t seen either one of them.  On purpose. While they were gone, you spent most of your time with your girlfriends shopping for yet another sundress you really didn’t need, meeting for lunch at the cutest corner cafes, having movie nights with countless pints of Ben and Jerry’s, and going to parties at a friend of a friend of a friend’s house.  Honestly, it had been the best summer you’ve ever had, minus the one looming distraction hanging on the back of your mind: Ethan.  But since the day you knew he was coming home, you intentionally avoided places that you thought you might run into him in hopes that you could eventually move on and Ethan would do the same.

            It was a short-lived, four-month relationship that you shared with Ethan before he left for the tour of a lifetime with his twin brother.  But during those four months, you spent countless nights at his house and waking up in his bed as well as he in yours.  Sometimes you’d show up at his house unannounced with take out dinner and he’d send you short text messages reminding you just how much he missed you while you were busy at the office.  He’d take you to the best lookout spots where you’d sit and talk for hours about nothing in particular, but everything all at once, as you looked at the stars.  You’d go to your favorite ice cream shop at least once a week where you’d pick out a new ice cream flavor with the toppings of your choice for the other to try without question.  There were many late nights at the warehouse in the editing room where you’d lay on the couch and work on your take-home projects for the office while Ethan edited videos for his channel and afterward, sometimes he’d tackle you into the foam pit.  He thought he was pushing your buttons and you hated it, but it was secretly some of your favorite times with him because he’d kiss you for what felt like hours as an apology while you laid on the squishy cubes.  The most love and care that those months could hold was shared between you two.

           With Ethan, you never had to worry.  He made you feel important, safe, appreciated, and beautiful. He was someone you could share everything with.  There were nights you were up until two in the morning talking about the various topics in life.  You’d often fall asleep mid-conversation with your head on his chest and he’d turn off the lamp on the side table and pull the comforter up around your face and hold you until he fell asleep.  Clothed or not, he always made sure to take care of you in the most loving of ways. There was nothing better than coming home after a stress fest of a day to Ethan’s arms with hugs that only he could deliver.

           When they boys left for tour, you and Ethan mutually decided to call it quits.  You talked about how you both were so young and still had so much to figure out about life and what you wanted out of it.  There were absolutely no fights or harsh words thrown at one another, just simply the conversation that you didn’t want to hold each back from the potential of what could be.

           “You hold a special place in my heart, Ethan Dolan,” said said as you clenched onto Ethan while standing in his bedroom for what would be the last time.

           “I’ll always love you, pretty girl,” Ethan softly spoke in your ear.  You blinked away the giant tears that threatened to fall as Ethan cleared his throat and released from the embrace.  In that moment, you physically saw his heart burst.  You dropped your head and moved around Ethan for the door behind him.  He didn’t move as you turned the ice cold doorknob and the door creaked open.

           “Until the world stops turning,” you whispered to yourself, hoping Ethan didn’t hear.  It was what you said every time you knew you’d be spending some time apart. Saying goodbye made it seem so permanent, so you adopted this phrase from when Ethan first told you he was falling in love you.  You looked back over your shoulder hoping Ethan would turn around and flash you one of those smiles that used to melt your heart, but he still stood with his back to the door, hands on his hips, and head angled toward the floor.  You dropped your head and took the first step through the threshold.

           “And then even after that,” he spoke softly. It made your breath catch in your throat and your skin crawl, but you forced your legs to carry you out of the house and into your car in the driveway.  Fifteen minutes passed as you sat in the driver’s seat with tears steadily flowing down your face, head rested against the head rest, hands folded in your lap, trying to regulate your breathing, but you finally managed to pull yourself together enough to see through your cloudy vision and drive home. You took the longest route back to your apartment as your mind wandered around the memories you shared with a boy that changed your entire life without even trying.  You smiled to yourself when you remembered the way he’d always manage to make you laugh, even when you’d been in the worst moods.  The way he’d tangle his fingers in yours while you laid in bed with him after a long day made your hands tingle through your grip on the steering wheel. His voice telling you he loved you played in your head over and over again like a scratched record that did nothing but skip.  When you finally made it back to your apartment, nothing but Ethan and what you shared with him clogged your mind as you tried your hardest to fall asleep. That night was the loneliest night you’d ever experienced.

           As much as you wanted to, you kept yourself from making any sort of contact with Ethan after he left for tour and he did the same.  Although you kind of wished he’d said at least something, you knew that it would’ve been so much harder to let go if you kept in contact.  Still, you wondered about him everyday.  How was he doing?  Was he still as broken as you were?  Did he wonder about you too?  Was he also constantly scrolling through his camera roll looking at all of the memories you had together?  Did he still listen to the Spotify playlist you made together?  Were his nights as lonely as yours?

             The sound of a red plastic cup slamming on the counter broke you from your reminiscent trance.  Ella, your best friend, had just finished chugging another drink for some bet that you just knew she made the offer for.  This was one of the many Friday nights spent at someone’s house with an easy hundred other people.  Suddenly, the air around the island counter in the kitchen became too thick and you crossed the room to the sliding glass doors that lead back to the patio.  

           A few feet away from the door, you noticed a small group of people standing around a small pit with a fire burning inside. You recognized most of the people from other parties you’d been to, but you weren’t on a first name basis with anyone. However, they all looked too preoccupied with their own conversations as you walked over to join the circle.  Once you got closer and could make out the silhouettes more vividly, your heart fluttered hard.

           “Hey Grayson,” you said as you entered the circle. He looked up from his stare into the flames and a wide smile immediately spread across his face.

           “Oh my god, hey!” he said as he opened his arms for a quick hug to which you accepted. “I’m sorry I haven’t called since we got back, everything’s been blowing up since tour and we’ve just been so busy trying to stay on top of everything,” he explained.

           “Oh, don’t worry about it, I’m sure you are, Gray,” you assure him.  You knew he wasn’t exaggerating.  Their channel had been gaining thousands subscribers consistently every day since the tour and you honestly couldn’t be happier for them, but they must feel an immense amount of pressure to deliver.  Suddenly you wished you could ask Ethan how he was doing with everything that’s been going on.

           “How’ve you been? I feel like it’s been ages since I’ve seen you.”

           “Oh you know, I’ve been alright.  Busy with work during the week.  Busy with this on the weekend,” you motioned to the house full of people behind where you stood then continued to watch the flames.

           “That’s good.  I’m glad you’re good,” Grayson said with a small smile and returned his gaze to the fire.  You could tell he wanted to say more, but you were glad he didn’t.  A few quiet seconds passed before either of you spoke again.

           “Look, don’t tell him I’m here,” you said with your eyes still fixated on the fire.  You couldn’t bring yourself to look him in the eyes.  Although his were so much different than Ethan’s, he and Ethan were still twins and they were just similar enough to make it hurt to look at.

           “I won’t,” was all he said but through your peripheral vision, you saw his head tilt to the side in empathy as he let out a small sigh and touched his hand to your back for comfort.  You stood in comfortable silence with Grayson and watched the fire burn as the people around you carried on and on with their own conversations.  You’d grown quite close with Grayson when you dated Ethan, as they lived together and didn’t go anywhere without the other.  You may have formed a fast friendship, but he was always the one to laugh at your bad jokes and never made you uncomfortable when he’d occasionally third wheel on your dates with Ethan.  You wanted to ask Grayson all about the tour but you knew every answer would involve Ethan and that’s just not something you could hear yet.  Looking down at your cup, you noticed it was suddenly empty.

           “Well, I’d better go get another drink,” you said to Grayson as you turned to head back inside.

           “Okay, well, it was really nice to see you, I’ve missed you,” he said with a small smile that unusually looked a little too much like Ethan’s.

           “Missed you too,” you managed to say without allowing your voice to crack and you turned to leave back to the house.

           When you made your way back to the bar in the kitchen, you made another drink, this time a little more liquor than mixer, and watched Ella take a couple more shots at the island as you healthily sipped your drink from across the room.  

           “Best friend! Come take a shot with me!”  Ella shouted over the music and the people when she spotted you.  Hoping to forget the person who could possibly come around the corner at any given moment, you smiled and met her at the counter.  She poured a generous shot of whatever vodka was on sale this afternoon at the grocery store.  You cheers’ed the tiny glasses, drank the shot like a champ, and chased it with what little was left of your drink.

           “One more?” you almost choked out at Ella with your recognizable devious smile that let her know you were ready to have a good night.

           “One for you, I’m good, that last one gives me five shots in the last hour,” she said as she poured more clear liquid. Another burning sensation spilled down your throat as you drank the shot and Ella handed you her cup of kool-aid when she noticed yours was empty.

           As time passed, you felt the alcohol make it’s affect on your body.  You became gigglier and a little less steady on your feet.  You stood with Ella in the kitchen along with about a dozen other friends you’d been hanging out with all summer.  Everyone told their most embarrassing stories from childhood and soon your stomach started to ache a little from all of the laughter.  Too preoccupied by all of the banter, you didn’t even notice when Grayson came through the door from the patio and walked through the kitchen.

           A good amount of time had passed and you decided that it was time for you to call it a night.  Ella still seemed to be having a good time, so you told her you’d see her tomorrow, pulled out your phone to order an Uber, and started to make your way to the front door.  When you came around the corner from the kitchen to the main room, you collided with a large, toned body.

           “Oh my god, Grayson!” you squealed as you realized who it was that you just ran into.

           “Oh my god, you again!” he mock-squealed back at you with a light laugh.  You laughed with him and did your best to remain steady on your feet.

           “Had a couple more drinks since I’ve seen you, yeah?” Grayson asked with a grin on his face.

           “Only a little,” you said with squinty eyes and pinched fingers to indicate how little you’ve had to drink, which was obviously a lie.

           “Y/N?” a familiar voice sounded from behind you. Your whole body instantly froze and your heart dropped all the way to the floor.  When you turned around, you literally could not form a single word as you looked at Ethan standing about ten feet away as he emerged from the bathroom in the hallway.

           He looked so good, but also terrible at the same time.  His hair was a little bit longer and lot messier than normal and his skin a little tanner.  He was wearing a plain white t-shirt and ripped black skinny jeans that let his tattoos peak through.  You noticed there were a couple you didn’t recognize that must’ve been recent additions. When your eyes met his, his face looked like he had just seen a ghost but you noticed the faint dark circles under his eyes that indicated he hadn’t been sleeping well lately.

           “Hi,” was all that could come out of your mouth.

           “I-I didn’t know you were here,” he said quietly, a little confused.  He cautiously took a couple steps towards you as you took a couple steps backwards in unwarranted self-defense and bumped into Grayson’s chest causing you to lose your balance a little.  Grayson grabbed your shoulders to steady you as Ethan stepped closer to come face to face with you.  Suddenly, the decision against leaving as soon as you knew he was at this party seemed like the worst you’d ever made in your life as a wave of nausea washed over your body.  You continued to stare at him in shock and your brain couldn’t have formed a coherent sentence even if you were stone cold sober.

           “How’ve you been?” he asked.

           “O-Okay,” you stuttered.  You noticed his hand twitch at his side like he almost lifted it to touch your cheek like always used to do when he comforted you after a bad day.

           “Good,” he replied, eyes still locked on yours. You could feel Grayson’s eyes burning a hole in the back of your head and you knew he was concerned for how this run-in would affect the both of you.

           “Yeah,” was all you could say.  You felt the familiar sting in your eyes and knew that tears would be forming any second.  Ethan must have noticed because all at once it was like his brain reset and the panicked expression subsided.  

           “Oh my god, no, don’t,” he said as he quickly pulled you in for the tightest hug he’d ever given you.  He knew you too well.  You easily melted into his arms and the tears started flowing heavily. He held you as you cried and ran his fingers through your hair down your back.  “Baby, no, please don’t cry,” he cooed in your ear and you could hear his own voice waiver.  He pulled back and took your face in his hands.  You missed his soft hands.  His tired eyes were now bloodshot and you noticed tears brimming in them.

           “I miss you so fucking much,” you finally choked out with tears still falling and you tightly closed your eyes in attempt to clear your cloudy vision.  When he came back into focus, you noticed a single tear fall on his face as he looked at you with the saddest eyes you’d ever seen.  He then pulled you back in and you snaked your arms around his neck and held on for dear life.  You could feel his unsteady breathing in your hair and his familiar scent invaded your nose. Pulling away again, he raised his hands and wiped away the tear streaks on your cheeks with his thumbs.

           “Come home with me,” he said with pleading eyes and you wanted nothing more than to fall asleep with him like all of the nights you did before.  You nodded your head and sniffed your nose as the crying started to subside.

           “I’m gonna hang around here for a bit longer, bro. I’ll catch a ride with James and Ian and let you know when I’m heading out,” Grayson told Ethan and you knew that he didn’t really want to do that, but he knew you and Ethan needed time alone together.  He looked down at you and smiled again.  “It’s good to see you,” he said like he hadn’t already seen you only a few hours earlier.

           “You too, Gray,” you replied as your eyes had a silent conversation with his, thanking him for not telling Ethan you’d already ran into him because you knew Ethan would be upset that Grayson didn’t say anything.  He winked at you and made his way down the hallway towards the keg in the kitchen for another beer.

           Ethan drove with his right hand resting on your thigh the entire way, not wanting to lose physical contact with you.  He had never been much of a drinker and only came to parties with Grayson for the good times with his friends.  As he made the familiar turns in route to the home he shared with Grayson, you wondered if you were doing the right thing by going home with Ethan.  You felt like the whole purpose of going your separate ways was thrown out the window without taking into consideration that it had only been three months since you’d been apart.  There was no way you both had figured out life in those three months.

           When you finally arrived at his house, he cut the engine but didn’t make a move to get out of the car so you sat in silence. You waited for him to speak first because were afraid that if you tried to talk to him that nothing but sobs would come out and you’ve done enough crying in the last three months for the both of you.  Your mind was spinning thinking about what was going through his. After a couple of minutes, you felt his eyes looking at you.  It took all that your drunk self had to turn and meet his gaze.  When you did, his hand raised to your cheek and he let out a sigh of relief.  You let your head fall into his palm and closed your eyes in comfort.  Before you could open them again, his lips were on yours. You felt yourself melt together with him and ran a hand through his hair as you tried to pull him closer to you, if that was even possible.  You missed this.  Connecting with him.  You missed being with someone without the worry if they were silently pitying you. He pulled away after a few long seconds and rested his forehead against yours.  His eyes looked straight into yours and you could’ve sworn you saw the smallest grin appear on his face.  A wave of sobriety crashed over your body.

           “Ethan,” you whispered.

           “Don’t,” he closed his eyes and pulled away to rest his head on the head rest of the driver’s seat.  He must’ve heard the warning in your voice.  “Not yet.  Please don’t take this away from me yet.”

           “E, you can’t kiss me like that and expect me not to say anything,” you said quietly.  Although it was a mutual decision to go your separate ways, in the back of your mind you knew it was much more of a you decision than an Ethan decision.

           “I know,” he said with a heavy sigh.  “But you can’t expect me to not be in love with you anymore either.”

           “I know,” you said, voice trembling.

           “I don’t know what to do, Y/N.  I tried moving on after we left.  I tried so fucking hard,” he said closing his eyes as a tear fell again.  You knew this would be hard for him, but he was so strong you thought it would’ve been easier for him than you.

           “Ethan-,” you started.

           “No, you don’t understand,” he spoke in a louder tone, almost like he was getting angry.

           “Don’t be dramatic,” you tried to joke.

           “I’m not being fucking dramatic! You have no idea how hard it was for me to be a world away from you and not expect you to be waiting for me when I got back.  Tour was a fucking hell, Y/N.  I mean, I went all over Europe and Australia, just me and my brother, and it should’ve been the best fucking time of my life, but it was literally the absolute worst,” he said even louder than before.  But you knew he wasn’t yelling at you. He was angry with himself.  He thought he would’ve been able to get over you just as much as you thought he would.  In fear of enraging him even more, you stayed silent.

           “I must’ve hugged a million fucking girls on that tour and I hated every single second of it.  I mean, I love our fans.  I really do.  They’re the whole reason I got to do everything I’ve done in the last three months. But I couldn’t let go of the fact that no matter how many people I hugged, none of them would be you again,” he turned his head to look at you for a second before closing his eyes, tears flowing freely down his face.  “It’s never been this hard for me to move on.  Never.  I’ve always bounced right back within a week or two.  Grayson practically had to force me to get out of bed every day.  I thought the feelings would subside eventually but they didn’t.”  

          He was broken. In the relatively short time you’d known Ethan, you’d seen him cry a few times.  Only for superficial reasons, like a sad movie or a cute animal compilation on his twitter timeline.  He never cried hurtful tears, or at least you never saw it.  Seeing him cry this way broke your heart all over again and you started to cry with him.  You knew his love for you was deep and true, but you thought he’d get back up and move on after a bit.  Everything he just said to you came as a shock, you honestly assumed he’d be over you by now.  You never saw him as the guy to dwell on things, he was always such a ‘live in the now’ type of person.  Still, you didn’t know what to say to him and that confused you.  You knew you still loved him as much as the day you said goodbye. So why was it so hard to tell him that your feelings were still there?  

          “Ethan, I-” you finally started, still not sure where your words were going to go, but he interrupted.

          “I’ll always love you, pretty girl,” was all he said as he opened his eyes and connected them with yours.  A million butterflies filled your stomach as the words left his mouth and that night in his bedroom before he left for tour replayed in your head in a flash.  You remembered how hard it was to walk out of his house alone, and a forgotten memory resurfaced.

           “Hey,” Grayson’s voice on the other end of the phone was familiar, but worry was an underlying tone.  It was two weeks after the boys left and you had just gotten home from work after a long day of working on your biggest project yet at the office.

          “Gray?” you said, shock evident in your voice.  Too preoccupied with unlocking your apartment door while simultaneously balancing take out dinner, you missed the caller ID before answering your phone.

          “Listen, I’ve been up for the last three hours looking for Ethan and I can’t find him,” Grayson said quickly.

          “What?”

          “He left after the show tonight and said he was going for a walk and wanted to be alone, so I let him go, but when he didn’t come back after an hour, I called him a few times and couldn’t get through to him so I just went out to look for him myself. But fuck, Y/N, we’re in London.  I have no idea where he is,” Grayson panicked.

          “What time is it there?” you knew that wasn’t important right now, but it came out before you thought about it.

          “Almost two in the fucking morning, Y/N, and we’re supposed to be up at six to go to the airport for our next flight,” he says.

          “Gray, calm down.  I’m sure he’s fine.  You know he likes looking at the sky at night,” you assure him.

          “Okay, sure, but we’re in a foreign fucking country.  He can’t pull this shit here.  It’s not like LA where I know all of his secret spots.”

          “Grayson, I’m not sure how you’re expecting me to help you right now,” you say calmly. You didn’t want to get him even more worked up by expressing your current worry.

          “Fuck, Y/N, I know.  I just didn’t know who else to call.  I’m just freaking the fuck out and I guess I was kind of hoping you’d heard from him,” he says with a sigh.

          “Gray, you know I haven’t,” your voice is so quiet you almost think he didn’t hear you.

          “I’m sorry. I know.  I shouldn’t—E! I gotta go, Y/N,” he said quickly.

          “Grayson!” you shouted through the phone.  You heard the panic in his voice, but he had already ended the call.  Your phone didn’t leave your side for the rest of the night in hopes that Grayson would call back or at least text and let you know that everything was okay.  But he didn’t, and you fought the urge to call him for the next couple of days, until you saw a post in your Instagram timeline of the two of them on the canal in Amsterdam.  Everything seemed to turn out fine, so you fought to forget about the phone call entirely. Suddenly, now you wanted an answer.

           “What happened that night in London?” you asked Ethan.  His head snapped up off of the head rest and his eyes went wide.

          “What are you talking about?” he asked nervously.

          “When you were in London on tour, there was a night that Grayson called me freaking out because he couldn’t find you and thought maybe you had contacted me, but I told him you didn’t and then he must have found you because he shouted at you and told me he had to go and hung up and never called back,” you told him.

          “It was nothing,” he turned his head to look out the window.

          “Ethan. It wasn’t nothing, I know you better than that,” you said as you moved your hand to rest on his thigh.  You wanted him to know you weren’t accusing him of anything, but that you wanted to be there for him.

          “It’s stupid. I was being stupid,” he said as he dropped his head.

          “E, it’s just you and me.  You know you can tell me anything, regardless of the situation,” you assured him. There was a long pause in conversation as you waited for Ethan to tell you what happened.

          “We were playing unreleased clips all tour and each night had different clips.  In London-,” he stopped for a few seconds and swallowed hard before he continued.  “In London, we played a clip from that video that you helped us film.” You knew exactly what video he was talking about.  The plan for the video had been a sit down video where they didn’t need a cameraman to follow them around or to shoot extra shots, but as they started filming, ideas of extra bits came up and they needed someone to help out.  You had just been hanging out at their house that day and were watching Netflix in Ethan’s room while they were filming.  It was the only video you had ever helped them with because you didn’t want to insert yourself in their creative process and they already had a good team working for them, anyway, but since it was a last minute bit, Ethan came in and asked for your help and you happily obliged.  

          “The clip that we played was a cut that I could hear you laughing at me.  I don’t think anyone else really noticed because all three of us were dying but that’s not the point.  The point was that the only reason that blooper got cut from the video we actually posted was because I could hear you laughing and we hadn’t been seeing each other that long and I wasn’t ready for the pandemonium I knew would blow up if one of the fans noticed,” he said and it had never been spoken outright, but you never thought twice about why that bit never made the final cut until now.

          “Okay, that doesn’t seem so bad.  I was never offended that my laugh never made it in the final cut,” you joked and laughed a little.

          “Let me finish,” he said and grabbed the hand that you had rested on his leg.

          “I’m sorry, go on,” you encouraged.

          “You know I haven’t had a public girlfriend since Gray and I started YouTube.  And until that night in London, I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to be public with anyone.  I know we talked about it and you said you were fine with just being us in private and I took that for what it was and we kept us a secret,” he continued. “But watching that clip back and hearing your laugh and looking back on why I cut it from the video really threw me through a loop.  I know that sounds so minuscule, but after the show was over and I left for a walk, so many insecurities starting going through my head.  I was questioning why I was so scared of being public with a girl. I always just thought it was the smartest move.  Like if I remained single to the public eye then I would be more appealing to our audience, more fans would like me, we’d gain more of a following and less hate would happen and all that jazz.  But when I really sat down and thought about it, it fucked me up.  I mean, why would I want to hide such a big part of my life? If my fans were really there for the entertainment and not just because they think I’m attractive, then why should it matter if I’m dating someone or not?  And then it hit me that I was getting all too caught up in the fast life. It started to dawn on me that I had been thinking of all of the ways Grayson and I could grow our channel and make more money off of it.  But when we started our channel way back in our parents’ basement in New Jersey, Gray and I swore to each other that we’d never let the monetary value of our career get in the way of our happiness or our love for creating.  I felt like I had let so many people down.  Like I let Grayson down because I was just cranking out content with the obsession of how well it would do.  I let our parents down because I hadn’t been back to visit in months due to the fact that I was so caught up in the next best thing.  I let our subscribers down because I wasn’t being honest with them by portraying this single guy vibe.  But what really fucked me up is the fact that I let you down,” he said as he looked up at you.

          “Ethan you’ve never let me down.  I’ve always been so proud of everything you’ve accomplished,” you told him, and it was true.  You never felt let down by Ethan.  He seemed to be having the time of his life creating videos with his brother and the fact that he never included you in his social media life didn’t bother you, but the longer you were together, the more the hope grew that he would eventually want to be open about your relationship.

          ���And I love you for that, I really do.  But the longer I sat on that bench in the middle of the night and thought about it, the more I started to feel like such a fake asshole.  Like, the whole reason I was so happy was because I had you.  You inspired me in ways that I didn’t know I could ever be inspired.  You were so patient with me.  I knew you didn’t understand why it was such a big deal that I didn’t want to tell anyone outside of our friends that we were together, but you went along with it because you knew it’s what I wanted.  I never really asked you how it made you feel to be in the dark like that. And then when you told me that you thought we should break up when I left for tour, it damn near cut me in half. I felt like the single most important person in my life was leaving me because I kept you a secret.  Like, if I had just grown a pair and told everyone then we’d still have been together while I was on tour.  I wanted nothing more than to call you every night and tell you everything.  I pulled up your contact so many times while we were gone contemplating if I should just call you or not.  But I knew that’s not what you wanted.  You wanted freedom and I’d give you anything you wanted.  So I just agreed with everything you said.  We're so young.  We needed to figure out what we really wanted in life.  And yes, that’s all true.  But it fucked me up to think you were out here moving on.  We were only together for four months, but to me it felt like a lifetime.  You told me you wanted to see everything that life had to offer and in my head, I thought we would be doing that together.  When you left after that night in my room, I couldn’t remember what life was like before you were in it.  

          “When Grayson found me in London, I was a mess.  Crying my eyes out like a little bitch over a girl who presumably didn’t want to figure out life with me.  We had four hours until we had to be ready to get on another flight, but Gray sat there with me while I cried and we didn’t talk, but we didn’t really need to.  Just him being there was enough, as cheesy as that sounds.  When he told me he called you, I almost punched him in the face because I didn’t want you to know that I was so fucked up.  I begged him not to tell you what happened and that’s why he never called you back.  He wanted to. Even when we got home, he asked me, ‘you think I should call Y/N? see how she’s doing?’ and I told him not to. I didn’t want to interfere with what you wanted to figure out on your own and I knew that if you were talking to Grayson again that it’d just be a distraction,” he scoffed, “and now saying that out loud makes me sound even more like an asshole.”

          “E, you’re the farthest thing from an asshole,” you said while your brain processed everything he’d been telling you.  “But don’t for one second think that what happened between us before you left was at all about the fact that we were a secret.  Did I want to be open about our relationship?  Of course I did.  I wanted to tell everyone about you and how happy you made me.  But I get it.  Millions of people watching your every move is a lot to handle.  I don’t even know how I would’ve handled everything if the roles had been reversed.  But since we’re being honest,” you started as he looked at you with terrified eyes, “I thought not being in your life was the best thing for you.  I didn’t want to distract you from the tour.  I wanted you to give it your all and make it the best experience.  I wanted you to have fun with your brother and see everything you could ever want to see in the world.  I didn’t want you to feel obligated to talk to me every day when I knew you’d be busy living out one of your biggest dreams.  I thought that if we broke up, you wouldn’t have anything to worry about me being back at home.  But don’t ever think that I didn’t want to figure out life with you because honestly, I couldn’t want anything more.  Being alone for the last three months has been miserable.  Like, yeah, I’ve been with Ella for the most of it and we’ve had so much fun this summer, but there wasn’t a single day that I wasn’t wondering how you were doing or what you were doing.  I wanted to know everything about the tour and the thought of seeing your face light up as you talked about it made me feel a little bit better knowing that you were out having the time of your life while you were gone.  Not once did I think it’d be this hard for you. You were always my strong guy.  The guy that lived for the now and not what could be.  Now I kind of feel like an idiot thinking that we’d be better apart because there’s never been anything but love for you in my heart, Ethan.”

          “Well I can’t argue that you’re not an idiot because I’ll never be a better man than how I am with you by my side,” and he pulled you in for another kiss.  But this one was different than earlier, deeper, more passionate, almost desperate.  You let him kiss you like how he used to before he left for tour.  All that was on your mind in this moment was how you never wanted to live a life without Ethan again.  Suddenly, the thought that you and Ethan would be better off separate seemed like the biggest joke in the world.  You felt like it should be you and him against the world.  Figuring out life together, even if that meant in secrecy until he was ready to be open about everything.  Thinking about how the rest of your life could be with Ethan made you smile into the kiss, earning a smile back from him.  Pulling away, he took your face in his hands and asked a single question, “stay with me tonight?”

“I can’t imagine sleeping anywhere else.” 

[stimtoybox]

does anyone know anything about plushies that have like,, a slow rising foam stuffing/core? or any suggestions for tutorials/materials to diy a simple (say round or tsum-tsum style) plush covering but for memory foam instead of stuffing? i like to stim both with squishies and by stroking plush fabric and i was wondering if anyones tried combining them before

Oh, anon! I’ve never heard of anyone trying this before, but what an idea! Do you mind if I add this to my list of things to try crafting?

(I’ll just say that I have a memory foam pillow and the relationship I have to said pillow is stronger than I have to certain people. I’ve had said pillow for a couple of years now and I’m still not quite over the lovely, lovely combination of softness and firmness when compared to all the dreadful, normal pillows I suffered through growing up. If other autistics are like me and can’t stand stuffing-type pillows and the way they lump and flatten, do try a memory foam pillow. They’re perfection.)

I went to Google to see if I could find any good tutorials for DIY Tsum Tsums. I do have a dismantled/unpicked Tigger mini plush Tsum Tsum that I’m planning to trace and make patterns from (I want to make myself a duck from yellow minky fleece I have) but I think this sort of thing might be even better in the medium size (so you can wrap your arms around it and squish). I didn’t really find these, however, but if I can cobble together a good pattern I’ll see about enlarging it.

(By the way, if you’re like me and super tired of Pinterest results making it hard to find crafting tutorials and not folks’ pins, add “-pinterest” to the end of your search terms. For example, “cylinder pillow tutorial -pinterest”.)

The least-Tusm-Tsum-like tutorial I found was for these sock sheep on Craft Passion, but their bodies are such that they’d be easy to stuff with a rounded piece of foam pillow. (Tutorial has alt text but does not describe the individual picture, rendering it useless.)

Another variation on the sock theme is this sock Eeyore Tsum Tsum video tutorial by Pink Sugar Cotton. (Annoying music but no voice over and the instructions are captioned, so easily muted. No transcript, so inaccessible for folks who need screen readers.)

Continuing on the sock theme (apparently everybody is using socks to make these) is another light-on-the-sewing video tutorial for an Olaf Tsum Tsum by Budget Hobby. (Identical concerns to the previous video.) Blog The Dorky Din (no alt text) showcases more Tsum Tsums made by using Budget Hobby’s tutorials.

I’ll also mention there’s a child-aimed official Sew Your Own Tsum Tsum kit available at The Entertainer in the UK, currently on sale for £5.00GBP. May be good for figuring out patterns!

For those who can crochet (I absolutely cannot from chronic hand pain) there’s a tutorial for a DIY crocheted Marie Tsum Tsum by @mybackyardmonsters. Their patterns page has links for even more. (Everything is undescribed.)

For tube or cylinder pillow tutorials, you might want to check out a fancier machine tutorial on Pretty Prudent (no alt text), a really simple bolster pillow tutorial on WikiHow (alt text doesn’t describe image, but the text under each image may be enough) or a middling-fancy tutorial on A Beautiful Mess (alt text that repeats the page title, which is a thousand shades of pointless).

Half-moon cylinder memory foam pillows exist (Amazon link for example) so I would look for a memory foam pillow base for a larger version and sew a cover using the above tutorials as a guide from minky fleece (Lincraft link for example) because minky is lovely and soft. For the mini Tsum Tsums, I’d look at cutting up a pillow to shape (note that I have no idea how difficult one might be to shape).

This isn’t the best answer, anon, but I hope it gives you somewhere to begin. Please let us know how you go if you try it, because I’m willing to bet we’re not the only ones who think this an awesome idea!

[optforrvliving-blog]

What you shouldn't do in an RV Living?

Do Watch Your Money

Just because you’re living in an RV and don’t have the typical monthly expenses of living in a stationary house doesn't mean you shouldn't be frugal. While we don’t have rent or a mortgage, utilities, or other monthly expenses like that, there are still costs that come along with this lifestyle. The biggest cost is typically fuel, but a close second in our life is food. We have found that we love to find local restaurants around the country, much more than we enjoyed eating out when we were in Arizona, but we’ve also discovered that grocery prices vary significantly from city to city. We also spend a chunk of money on sightseeing that we never had to budget for before.

Regardless of how you are spending your money, you need to make sure you are keeping a tight watch on your budget. We’ve met more than one couple who has had to make a more permanent home in a town because it’s where their RV broke down and they were out of money to fix it. Always make sure you have a rainy day account for fixes, and make sure you have money coming in quicker than you spend it. Related Articles : https://www.rvlivingusa.com

Do Have a General Idea of Where You’re Going

Living in an RV allows for a lot of flexibility in travel plans. At any point in time, you can pick up and move to a new location. This is amazing, but it can also be overwhelming because there are so many great places to see. Plus, the more people you meet on the road, the more recommendations you get for amazing places. What we’ve found helps is having a general idea of where we are going, and goal dates to arrive in certain cities. It keeps us on track, and helps us prioritize the places and things we really want to see, but it gives us flexibility to deviate or stay longer if we really fall in love with a location.

Don’t Freak Out When Things Go Wrong

Notice I didn’t say IF things go wrong, rather WHEN, because things will go wrong. Ask anyone who has been on the road for longer than a month, and they can tell you a list of things that have gone wrong. From leaks to engine trouble to accidents, there are so many things that can go wrong when you are driving your home down the road every day. What we’ve found helps is to get to an RV park or campground and start talking to the other RV owners. Chances are high that someone has had a similar challenge and can offer you advice or a helping hand. Stay calm and know that you’ll be able to work through almost any problem you encounter.

Do Check for Leaks EVERY TIME It Rains

Every time you move your RV, it’s like taking your home through an earthquake. Things shift, and seals can come unsealed, especially if you have an older unit. Whenever you get to a new location, we’ve found it’s a good idea to take a quick peek at the roof and make sure that everything still looks good. Then, every time it rains, we check around for leaks. Leaks are pesky, and they are elusive, disappearing as soon as the rain stops, so check every time to figure out where the water is coming in. Catching leaks early is key to preserving both the integrity of your RV, as well as your sanity! rv wall mount toothbrush holder https://www.rvlivingusa.com/best-wall-mounted-toothbrush-holder-for-rv-bathroom-that-never-fails-to-impress/

Don’t Sacrifice Comfort or Style

Just because you’re living on the road doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice on comfort. In our RV, we added a plush memory foam topper to the mattress and use a great set of percale sheets. We also have nice towels, real dishes, and our favorite cooking pans and utensils. While it may be tempting to set up your RV like you are on an extended camping trip, think of this as your home on wheels instead of your camper. Having nice dishes instead of plastic ones, good towels instead of the ones that are almost rags, and luxury sheets helps make an RV feel like a real home. Don’t skimp on these items, but also know that you need to take care of them a little differently when you’re on the road.

Do Secure EVERYTHING Before Moving

Speaking of caring for your items, the most important thing you can do to care for 90% of the things in your home on wheels is to secure them when you move. I’ve talked with people who have lost every dish in their cabinets when they took a corner too quickly. We’ve found that the squishy foam type of shelf liner works great for helping to make sure things don’t move or break during a move. We have all our shelves lined with it to prevent things from sliding, and we also use strips of the liner in between all our dishes to make sure they don’t rattle against each other. Whatever you choose to use in your RV, make sure things are secure, or you’ll be cleaning up messes each time you arrive to a new location.

Don’t Stay Inside All Day

One of the greatest things about this lifestyle is the ability to get out and see different parts of the country (or the world). At almost every stop we get to though, there is a couple who appears to hunker down in their motor home the entire day. We were recently at a beautiful beach campground, and there was a family there who spent almost every hour inside watching television. There are going to be days where the weather forces you to stay inside, so take every advantage you can of the sunny days and get outside and explore.

Don’t Buy in Bulk

When we moved in to our RV, I thought it would be smart to stock up on a few things that we use frequently. That’s what we had always done in our home, so why wouldn’t we do it in the motor home? Well, space is a very limited commodity in an RV, so those stashes of toilet paper, paper towels, and rice have taken us months to work through. The whole time we’ve been on the road, these bulk items have been taking up precious storage space. The lesson we’ve learned is to only buy enough items to keep you stocked for a few weeks at a time. vertical toilet tissue holder https://www.rvlivingusa.com/rv-bathroom-accessories-you-shouldnt-do-without/

Do Think Multipurpose

When stocking items in the limited space of an RV, it’s important that things have multiple uses. For example, we use our salad spinner to wash and spin greens, but also as our large serving bowl. We have a stick blender that has a food processor attachment to grind coffee beans and cheeses. We even recently changed out our plastic food storage containers for glass ones so we can use them in the oven as well. The more things that can have multiple uses, the less clutter you have in your tiny home on wheels.

[chapelchat]

My Favorite Christmas Presents

This year got some really cool Christmas presents. Here are some of my favorites.

1. This Macbook Air that I'm posting this on right now. This was definintely a great present. I have gotten to do so much with this gift. For example I am learning how to make better blog posts, or write more stories, all on my new laptop. I am hoping to buy a laptop case using some money that I got from another family member. 2. Trip to Disney World. On Christmas my parents gave me and my brother a present. It was four magic bands to get into Disney World. Three days after Christmas we took an aiplane from the Bahamas to Orlando, Florida, which is where Disny World is located. As right this I am in Orlando. This experience has been so much fun, and I loved all the rides. I know I will never forget this trip. 3. Pill boxes. I love collecting pill boxes. This year, I expanded my collection by two. One of the pill boxes I got was a sterling silver heart shaped one. I ove this one alot! The second is a light green one that has a snail that is different shades of green on top. 4. Two sets of bath bombs. I love bath bombs. If you don't know what they are, they are balls that you put into your bath. They disolve and make the water in the bath different colors (depending on the bath bomb) And make your bath smell super good! This year I got four bath bombs from my secret santa at school. They are berry sented. The second set I got was from my cousins. There were four, and they were all Christmas themed. They look so cool, for example one looks exactly like a present! 5. Squishies. Right now squishies are a very big thing. They are these different things made of memory foam that help with stress relief, hand exercising, or just for fun! I got a watermelon squishy in my stocking, and I am going to buy one or two more with some money I got from a family member. 6. Earrings. In my stocking I got a set of twenty earrings. They are all so cute! The earrings all can be high-end, or casual. Right now I am actually wearing a pair of those earrings! From my grandmother I got some really nice pearl earrings. Last year I got a pearl necklace from the same company, so now I have matching! 7. Bathing suit and pajamas. This year I got the cutest bikini ever! I have already worn it so much between Christmas and right now. It is white with a really cool design on it. I also got two pairs of pj's. They are both really cute. One has pigs on it and the other has cute dogs. I love them!

[readbookywooks]

It was thicker than any normal staff, mainly because of the carvings that covered it from top to bottom. They were actually quite indistinct, but gave the impression that if you could see them better you would regret it. Albert brushed himself down again and examined himself critically in the washstand mirror. Then he said, 'Hat. No hat. Got to have a hat for the wizarding. Damn.' He stamped out of the room and returned after a busy fifteen minutes which included a circular hole cut out of the carpet in Mort's bedroom, the silver paper taken out from behind the mirror in Ysabell's room, a needle and thread from the box under the sink in the kitchen and a few loose sequins scraped up from the bottom of the robe chest. The end result was not as good as he would have liked and tended to slip rakishly over one eye, but it was black and had stars and moons on it and proclaimed its owner to be, without any doubt, a wizard, although possibly a desperate one. He felt properly dressed for the first time in two thousand years. It was a disconcerting feeling and caused him a second's reflection before he kicked aside the rag rug beside the bed and used the staff to draw a circle on the floor. When the tip of the staff passed it left a line of glowing octarine, the eighth colour of the spectrum, the colour of magic, the pigment of the imagination. He marked eight points on its circumference and joined them up to form an octogram. A low throbbing began to fill the room. Alberto Malich stepped into the centre and held the staff above his head. He felt it wake to his grip, felt the tingle of the sleeping power unfold itself slowly and deliberately, like a waking tiger. It triggered old memories of power and magic that buzzed through the cobwebbed attics of his mind. He felt alive for the first time in centuries. He licked his lips. The throbbing had died away, leaving a strange, waiting kind of silence. Malich raised his head and shouted one single syllable. Blue-green fire flashed from both ends of the staff. Streams of octarine flame spouted from the eight pouits of the octogram and enveloped the wizard. All this wasn't actually necessary to accomplish the spell, but wizards consider appearances are very important. . . . So are disappearances. He vanished. Stratohemispheric winds whipped at Mort's cloak. 'Where are we going first?' yelled Ysabell in his ear. 'Bes Pelargic!' shouted Mort, the gale whirling his words away. 'Where's that?' 'Agatean Empire! Counterweight Continent!' He pointed downward. He wasn't forcing Binky at the moment, knowing the miles that lay ahead, and the big white horse was currently running at an easy gallop out over the ocean. Ysabell looked down at roaring green waves topped with white foam, and clung tighter to Mort. Mort peered ahead at the cloudbank that marked the distant continent and resisted the urge to hurry Binky along with the flat of his sword. He'd never struck the horse and wasn't at all confident about what would happen if he did. All he could do was wait. A hand appeared under his arm, holding a sandwich. 'There's ham or cheese and chutney,' she said. 'You might as well eat, there's nothing else to do.' Mort looked down at the soggy triangle and tried to remember when he last had a meal. Some time beyond the reach of a clock, anyway – he'd need a calendar to calculate it. He took the sandwich. 'Thanks,' he said, as graciously as he could manage. The tiny sun rolled down towards the horizon, towing its lazy daylight behind it. The clouds ahead grew, and became outlined in pink and orange. After a while he could make out the darker blur of land below them, with here and there the lights of a city. Half an hour later he was sure he could see individual buildings. Agatean architecture inclined towards squat pyramids. Binky lost height until his hooves were barely a few feet above the sea. Mort examined the hourglass again, and gently tugged on the reins to direct the horse towards a seaport a little Rimwards of their present course. There were a few ships at anchor, mostly single-sailed coastal traders. The Empire didn't encourage its subjects to go far away, in case they saw things that might disturb them. For the same reason it had built a wall around the entire country, patrolled by the Heavenly Guard whose main function was to tread heavily on the fingers of any inhabitants who felt they might like to step outside for five minutes for a breath of fresh air. This didn't happen often, because most of the subjects of the Sun Emperor were quite happy to live inside the Wall. It's a fact of life that everyone is on one side or other of a wall, so the only thing to do is forget about it or evolve stronger fingers. 'Who runs this place?' said Ysabell, as they passed over the harbour. 'There's some kind of boy emperor,' said Mort. 'But the top man is really the Grand Vizier, I think.' 'Never trust a Grand Vizier,' said Ysabell wisely. In fact the Sun Emperor didn't. The Vizier, whose name was Nine Turning Mirrors, had some very clear views about who should run the country, e.g., that it should be him, and now the boy was getting big enough to ask questions like 'Don't you think the wall would look better with a few gates in it?' and 'Yes, but what is it like on the other side?' he had decided that in the Emperor's own best interests he should be painfully poisoned and buried in quicklime. Binky landed on the raked gravel outside the low, many-roomed palace, severely rearranging the harmony of the universe.[8] Mort slid off his back and helped Ysabell down. 'Just don't get in the way, will you?' he said urgently. 'And don't ask questions either.' He ran up some lacquered steps and hurried through the silent rooms, pausing occasionally to take his bearings from the hourglass. At last he sidled down a corridor and peered through an ornate lattice into a long low room where the Court was at its evening meal. The young Sun Emperor was sitting crosslegged at the head of the mat with his cloak of vermine and feathers spread out behind him. He looked as though he was outgrowing it. The rest of the Court was sitting around the mat in strict and complicated order of precedence, but there was no mistaking the Vizier, who was tucking into his bowl of squishi and boiled seaweed in a highly suspicious fashion. No-one seemed to be about to die. Mort padded along the passage, turned the corner and nearly walked into several large members of the Heavenly Guard, who were clustered around a spyhole in the paper wall and passing a cigarette from hand to hand in that palm-cupped way of soldiers on duty. He tiptoed back to the lattice and overheard the conversation thus: 'I am the most unfortunate of mortals, O Immanent Presence, to find such as this in my otherwise satisfactory squishi,' said the Vizier, extending his chopsticks. The Court craned to see. So did Mort. Mort couldn't help agreeing with the statement, though – the thing was a sort of blue-green lump with rubbery tubes dangling from it. The preparer of food will be disciplined, Noble Personage of Scholarship,' said the Emperor. 'Who got the spare ribs?' 'No, O Perceptive Father of Your People, I was rather referring to the fact that this is, I believe, the bladder and spleen of the deepwater puff eel, allegedly the most tasty of morsels to the extent that it may be eaten only by those beloved of the gods themselves or so it is written, among such company of course I do not include my miserable self.' With a deft flick he transported it to the bowl of the Emperor, where it wobbled to a standstill. The boy looked at it for some time, and then skewered it on a chopstick. 'Ah,' he said, 'but is it not also written by none other than the great philosopher Ly Tin Wheedle that a scholar may be ranked above princes? I seem to remember you giving me the passage to read once, O Faithful and Assiduous Seeker of Knowledge.' The thing followed another brief arc through the air and flopped apologetically into the Vizier's bowl. He scooped it up in a quick movement and poised it for a second service. His eyes narrowed. 'Such may be generally the case, O Jade River of Wisdom, but specifically I cannot be ranked above the Emperor whom I love as my own son and have done ever since his late father's unfortunate death, and thus I lay this small offering at your feet.' The eyes of the court followed the wretched organ on its third flight across the mat, but the Emperor snatched up his fan and brought off a magnificent volley that ended back in the Vizier's bowl with such force that it sent up a spray of seaweed. 'Somebody eat it, for heaven's sake,' shouted Mort, totally unheard. 'I'm in a hurry!' Thou art indeed the most thoughtful of servants, 0 Devoted and Indeed Only Companion of My Late Father and Grandfather When They Passed Over, and therefore I decree that your reward shall be this most rare and exquisite of morsels.' The Vizier prodded the thing uncertainly, and looked into the Emperor's smile. It was bright and terrible. He fumbled for an excuse. 'Alas, it would seem that I have already eaten far too much —' he began, but the Emperor waved him into silence. 'Doubtless it requires a suitable seasoning,' he said, and clapped his hands. The wall behind him ripped from top to bottom and four Heavenly Guards stepped through, three of them brandishing cando swords and the fourth trying hurriedly to swallow a lighted dog-end. The Vizier's bowl dropped from his hands. 'My most faithful of servants believes he has no space left for this final mouthful,' said the Emperor. 'Doubtless you can investigate his stomach to see if this is true. Why has that man got smoke coming out of his ears?' 'Anxious for action, O Sky Eminence,' said the sergeant quickly. 'No stopping him, I'm afraid.' Then let him take his knife and – oh, the Vizier seems to be hungry after all. Well done.' There was absolute silence while the Vizier's cheeks bulged rhythmically. Then he gulped. 'Delicious,' he said. 'Superb. Truly the food of the gods, and now, if you will excuse me —' He unfolded his legs and made as if to stand up. Little beads of sweat had appeared on his forehead. 'You wish to depart?' said the Emperor, raising his eyebrows. 'Pressing matters of state, O Perspicacious Personage of —' 'Be seated. Rising so soon after meals can be bad for the digestion,' said the Emperor, and the guards nodded agreement. 'Besides, there are no urgent matters of state unless you refer to those in the small red bottle marked “Antidote” in the black lacquered cabinet on the bamboo rug in your quarters, O Lamp of Midnight Oil.' There was a ringing in the Vizier's ears. His face began to go blue. 'You see?' said the Emperor. 'Untimely activity on a heavy stomach is conducive to ill humours. May this message go swiftly to all corners of my country, that all men may know of your unfortunate condition and derive instruction thereby.' 'I . . . must . . . congratulate your . . . Personage on such . . . consideration,' said the Vizier, and fell forward into a dish of boiled soft-shelled crabs. 'I had an excellent teacher,' said the Emperor. ABOUT TIME, TOO, said Mort, and swung the sword. A moment later the soul of the Vizier got up from the mat and looked Mort up and down. 'Who are you, barbarian?' he snapped. DEATH. 'Not my Death,'said the Vizier firmly. 'Where's the Black Celestial Dragon of Fire?' HE COULDN'T COME, said Mort. There were shadows forming in the air behind the Vizier's soul. Several of them wore emperor's robes, but there were plenty of others jostling them, and they all looked most anxious to welcome the newcomer to the lands of the dead.