#very tired bc we went on a tour earlier today and ended up staying for like an hour after to just talk to the woman whos renting the room

[isa-ah]

man on top of having to get ourselves ready to move we have to help our youngest roomie find a place to go and with literally a week left to sign a lease and move her stuff shes still being highly picky about where she goes, who she lives with, how much rent is, etc. like im sorry queen but you are no longer in a situation where you get to take your time to find your forever home, you are going to be sleeping in your car in 7 days if you dont Pick Smtn.

[watchmegetobsessed]

Eunoia - Harry Styles

a/n: i’ve been meaning to write a piece filled with just fluffy, domestic moments through a relationship, and that’s when i created Flora in my mind. wrote it with an OC bc i had very specific traits and stuff in my mind about her and it didn’t feel right to write it with y/n but feel free to read however you’d like it! but i think Flora is a delightful girl, she is a teacher and a free spirit, i think you’ll like her!

pairing: Harry x OC (Floortje ‘Flora’ Hoven)

word count: 9.5k

masterlist

Eunoia (n.) Beautiful thinking: a well mind.

Harry is always looking forward to times when his days aren’t filled from morning to midnight, traveling all around the world, meeting dozens of new people at various new meetings. Don’t get him wrong, he loves the buzz his life comes with, but one can drive this lifestyle only for a while before getting tired. He now appreciates his calm periods, when he is not living out of his suitcase, he has the time to drop by a café and enjoy his morning coffee sitting down instead of grabbing it in a go-to cup and chugging it down in his car. When he can just take a walk when the weather is nice enough and his favorite is when he has the time to just look at things without a rush and appreciate them.

He has built up a habit of going to the same coffee place since he got off tour and jumped right into his well-deserved months off filled with meditation, resting and focusing on himself after giving so much for the world. It’s just two corners down his place, falling perfectly into his way to the gym and now he even has a favorite table in the corner, because it gives him a great view of the place but the vines hanging from the ceiling masks his presence enough that people don’t often notice him there, providing some privacy for his morning coffee.

It was his third day here when he first noticed her. She was sitting at the table by the window, near the door, deep in a book, another pile waiting for her on the free seat next to her as she intensely made notes of her reading. She had her wild, curly hair in a puffy bun on the top of her head, clearly just thrown into it haphazardly when she started working. Her ivory frame glasses kept sliding down the bridge of her nose and thy seemed a bit too big for her face, but they overall fit perfectly with her knitted sweater and dungarees. And Harry couldn’t look over the fact that she had little sunflowers painted on her nails. That instantly made him smile as he adorned her from afar.

As the days passed and Harry spent almost all his morning at the same spot, he started seeing or more like noticing her more often. She always sat at the same table and Harry figured it was because of the natural lighting coming through the windows that came in handy, because she was always either reading and making notes, or doing something crafty, mostly origami, he noticed. She often had her laptop open with tutorials on different origami works that she was trying to make herself, not always succeeding, but she got it right most of the time, a triumphant smile plastering across her face every time she finished a piece, her dimples digging deep into her round cheeks. Harry couldn’t stop herself from smiling whenever she held up the finished work and adorned what she just created. He often wondered what happened to the little creations afterwards, but she just usually shoved them into her backpack before leaving.

By the fifth or sixth time he has seen her, he already knew her order. Vanilla latte with a sprinkle of cinnamon on top. Large sized, of course, so she has something to sip on while she typed away on her laptop or finished reading another book.

Harry caught himself looking for her on mornings when he didn’t see her, which were usually Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, but one Wednesday, when he had an early meeting for a change with his team, he arrived before 8 am into the place and for his biggest surprise, there she was, sitting at her usual table, drinking the same drink as always. Later, Harry found himself coming earlier on those days just to find her there yet again and he figured her work schedule must start earlier on those days.

As the days went by Harry started to play with the thought of walking up to her. He wondered if she has noticed him as well, but it seemed like even if she did, his presence didn’t impress or bother her at all which just irked his curiosity about her even more. But every time he thought about finally talking to her, he decided against it, feeling like he would just be an intruder in her morning sessions. Until one day, the chance was handed to him on a silver plate.

She is doing origami once again on this particular day, making little cranes, one after the other, using different colored papers to make them form out a mess rainbow on her table. It’s a quiet morning, only a few more people sitting around at place. It’s been quite windy the past couple of days and today seems to be the worst, the trees are being tossed around by the howling winds outside, but it just makes it even cozier to sit inside in the warmth, enjoying a nice hot drink.

Harry finds himself watching her intently as her delicate fingers work on the paper, one crane following the other, she is starting to have a whole army of them.

An older man walks into the café and as he opens the door wide, the wind is quick to run into the place, knocking over everything that’s not heavy enough to stay still and the paper cranes are the first ones to start flying off the table.

“No! Darn it!” she gasps, her hands grabbing after them, saving just a few, but most end up on the floor, somersaulting away from her table. Harry is quick to jump to his feet and come to her rescue, lending her a pair of helping hands as she gathers her creations. “Oh, thank you!” she breathes out softly, her eyes meeting his and for his biggest surprise… she doesn’t seem to be stunned or even surprised by him, as if she doesn’t know who he is.

Maybe she doesn’t, it’s a possibility, he tells himself, smiling at her as he collects the cranes from the floor.

“Guess they wanted to be free,” he jokes, setting them on the table with the rest.

“It wasn’t my brightest idea to do it on such a windy day near the door,” she chuckles, looking over the bunch she’s been working on for the past thirty minutes.

“May I ask why you need so many paper cranes?” Harry inquires, leaving out the part that he’s been watching her do her origami for weeks now.

“Oh, I want to make decorations out of them, hang them up in my classroom. I’m a teacher,” she adds smiling.

That’s the most fitting job he could ever imagine for her, she is definitely the cool and adored teacher every kid is obsessed with.

“Wow, and how many do you need?” he asks, the stack of paper at the edge of the table looks quite a lot and he wonders if she wants to use them all for the cranes.

“Well, as many as I can make before my fingers fall off,” she jokes. Harry notices her freckles from up close that have been hidden behind her glasses until now. Her hair is in two space buns today and she is wearing a striped shirt with light-washed jeans and colorful sneakers. The sunflowers are gone from her nails, replaced by tiny daisies, but Harry likes them just as much as the previous flowers. They fit her well.

“Do you… I would love to help, if you want,” he finds himself offering, not even thinking about the question before it slips his mouth.

“You sure?” she asks, seemingly surprised but she definitely doesn’t find it weird that he just offered to help her.

“Yeah. Looks really calming and I haven’t made one in so long. Want to see if I still remember the steps,” he smiles.

“Take a seat then,” she nods, returning his smile. Harry goes back to his table to grab his stuff and join her.

“I’m Harry, by the way,” he introduces himself as he takes the empty chair at her table, holding out his hand for her that she gladly takes.

“Floortje, but everyone just calls me Flora,” she smiles.

“Never heard that name, what’s the origin of it?”

“It’s Dutch. My dad is Dutch, he came up with the name as well and my mother liked it. It means little flower, nothing grandiose,” she chuckles, reaching for another paper to start her next crane.

“Do you have a Dutch last name as well?” he asks, but then realizes she might not feel comfortable sharing her full name just yet. “You don’t have to tell me your last name though, if you don’t want to.”

“It’s alright,” she chuckles. “It’s Hoven, which is Dutch, but you pronounce it pretty much the same as you’d if it was a simple English word, just with a softer V in the middle,” she explains, her fingers working easily and fast on the thin paper, the crane is already starting to form. Harry reaches for a paper himself and tries to recollect his memory of the steps.

“Were you born in the Netherlands too?”

“Yes, I was born in Eindhoven, but we moved here when I was five. But my Dutch is still just fine, luckily. My dad refused to talk to me in English when we moved, he said he won’t have his daughter forget her mother tongue just because he is getting paid more here,” she explains with a soft chuckle as she finishes up the crane, putting it to the pile.

“I always envied bilingual people. Must be great to speak two languages that easily,” Harry wonders, eyes fixed on the paper as he is trying his best with the crane. It’s slowly coming together, though it’s not as pretty as Flora’s.

“It’s not that fun when I suddenly forget a word in one of the languages and then spend twenty minutes trying to remember when I know for a fact I know the words, it’s just stuck on my tongue.”

Harry laughs, finishing up his creation, holding it up and Flora looks at it as well. It’s a little crooked and one of its wings is longer than the other, but overall, it’s a decent first one.

“You don’t have to use it if you don’t want to,” he chuckles, putting it to the others.

“What are you talking about? It looks great!” she smiles, taking it into her hand, looking at it from all angles, smiling widely as she places it back to its peers. “It’s a nice one, and after all, it’s not your job to make cranes, so you’re fine,” she jokes.

Harry reaches for another paper as he thinks about if she knows him. Does she know what his job really is? Not that he expects everyone to know him, but she seems his age and it’s been quite impossible for him to meet someone close in age to him and not know a thing about him.

“Yeah, origami is definitely not my job,” he hums and then adds: “You… know what my job is?”

Flora glances up at him, a small smile tugging on her lips.

“Is this your way of trying to find out if I know you or not?” she smirks, tilting her head to the side, and it’s already a giveaway that she is very much aware of who she is sitting at a table with.

“I know, it was lame,” he huffs awkwardly.

“No, it was alright. And to answer your question, I do know what your job is, Harry Styles,” she replies.

“Sorry for asking around about it, you just seemed so casual and unbothered when you saw me, I thought you have no idea who I am.”

“I’m a teacher, my job is to treat everyone the same, I take equality very seriously. I don’t want my kids to think I put any of them above the rest, but I do the same outside of school too. Or do you want me to gasp and stutter now that you are sitting here?” she teases him making him laugh.

“That’s not needed at all.”

They work on their cranes in a comfortable silence and just as Harry thought, it’s quite relaxing, his thoughts slowly clear out, only focusing on the little birds he is creating. Then he glances up at Flora and suddenly his thoughts are filled with her once again. Now is his chance with her, he doesn’t want to leave this café without at least asking for her number even when he knows that he will surely see her around, just like always.

“Can I ask you something?” he speaks up as they both keep folding the colorful papers.

“Of course.”

“I hope I won’t sound creepy or something, but I’ve seen you around a lot and noticed how much you read. Is that just your hobby or…?”

“First of all it’s not creepy that you have noticed me, it’s flattering, because I have noticed you as well,” she smiles, paying him a quick glance.

“Really? I had a feeling you haven’t even seen me.”

“I did, but I thought you come here for the same reason as I do; to have some peace for yourself.”

“Ah, I see,” Harry nods.

“But to answer your question, I’m working on my second degree.”

“Oh, what’s that about?”

“Special education, speech therapy to be exact,” she tells him and Harry is even more stunned by her. Education is already a field not many can handle and then there is Flora, who didn’t just take up on it, she jumped right into it, pursuing a second degree in special education, a hard and challenging part of this job.

“Any particular reason why you chose it?”

“I have a younger brother, he is ten years younger than me, so he was already born here, but he was taught Dutch too. However, it wasn’t as easy for him as it was for me to speak two languages at the same time and he has developed some speech errors. Nothing major, but it was enough for him to be bullied in school. I saw his face every day when he came home and lied to our parents that everything is fine but then he cried to me in my room when they weren’t around. I don’t want any other kids to go through that, I’d love to be the one to not just help them come over their speech errors but also make sure they are treated the same way as everyone else.”

Harry hasn’t even noticed that he stopped working on his crane, he is now staring at her in awe, completely stunned by her. The more he learns about her the more he thinks she is a literal angel sent from above and that he can’t let her slip from his hands.

Flora looks up at him and finds him staring, a blush appearing on her full cheeks.

“Sorry for staring, but I just… this is so beautiful. Your passion about education is just one of a kind, truly. And the way how you made it your whole career and everything, I’m just… blown away,” he admits.

“Well, you made a career out of your passion too, didn’t you?” she chuckles softly.

“I did, but your story is just a little more touching,” he smirks. “Flora, I’m gonna be honest with you. I’ve been meaning to come up to you for a while and now that we officially met, I just—I would love to take you out on a date and get to know you better.”

She blushes again and Harry notes how well the pinky shade fits her even if she probably wishes she could control it more.

“That would be lovely,” she smiles shyly and grabbing a crane from her pile she grabs a pen from her bag and writes her number to the wing of it before handing it over to Harry.

He loves that she could have easily just typed it into his phone, yet she chose to do it this way. He smiles down at the crane and puts it into his bag, securing it as if it was his biggest treasure.

When Flora opens her door for Harry she is still wearing her apron that’s filled with tulips, a pair of simple jeans underneath it with a bright yellow shirt. Harry smiles as he leans down and greets her with a soft kiss. Ever since their first kiss he has been obsessed with stealing one whenever he has the chance. Their first one was nothing grandiose, such a simple and mundane moment but for him, it was perfect. They were visiting a gallery, he chose the exhibition hoping she’ll be a fan of it since the theme was botany, all paintings connected to flowers, gardens and plants and he was right. Flora was stunned, fascinated by each painting as they stopped at one after the other, taking their time to adore the works. They were looking at a painted garden filled with colorful wildflowers around a small cottage in the distance. Flora’s eyes wandered over all the tiny details as Harry stood close to her. She then leaned closer to point out her favorite flower and once they realized just how close their faces were, he just easily closed the gap and kissed her softly, surrounded with art, but he was convinced she was his favorite masterpiece he has ever seen.

“Hi, sorry, I’m a little late, dinner is not ready yet,” she huffs letting him inside. “Had to stay at the school a little longer than expected.”

“Don’t worry. Can I help with anything?” he asks following her into the kitchen, putting the bottle of wine he brought into the fridge to keep it cool until dinner.

“No, it’s fine. I just need about fifteen minutes to finish up the veggies,” she smiles at him and tiptoeing she steals a quick kiss. Harry hasn’t been the only one obsessed with kisses. “Make yourself home.”

Harry leaves to use the bathroom quickly and on his way back he finds himself wandering into her bedroom. He has been in her home just a few times before, only spending short minutes here when he was picking her up but now he has time to actually look around, hoping she won’t mind him snooping around.

Her whole place is just as colorful as she is always, each piece of furniture a different style and color, yet fitting so well when you see it as a whole. The quilted patchwork blanket over her bed is definitely homemade, each patch has a different flower on it while the left lower corner has Floortje embroidered into it. Harry wonders if it was made by a friend or family member, either way, it’s surely a special piece.

Her dresser is cluttered with rings, perfumes and endless amount of hair ties. She has complained before that her hair stretches her elastics out so fast, she keeps buying new ones every month. The little armchair in the corner is covered with a few of her used clothes, ones she’ll wear once more before putting them into the laundry basket.

As he walks over to her nightstand that’s filled with books, at least seven piled on each other, his eyes stop over something that makes his heart flutter.

A crooked little paper crane is sitting on the edge of the nightstand, the one he made the first time they talked, to be exact. Harry takes the bird and looks at it in awe, surprised that she kept it to herself. However he doesn’t find it odd, not even a little bit, since he has also kept the one she wrote her phone number onto, it’s sitting on his desk in his study.

“Found something interesting?” Flora walks in and Harry’s head whips towards her, feeling like he was just caught. But the warm smile on her lips is a telltale sign that she doesn’t mind him looking around.

“You kept it,” he states matter-of-factly, holding up the paper bird.

“Of course I did,” she nods, walking closer. “It’s a special one.”

“Thought you treat everyone and everything the same,” he teases smiling as he puts the crane back, his hands finding her waist.

“I guess there are a few exceptions,” she smirks slyly, her hands running up on his arms until they reach the base of his neck.

“Am I an exception?” The corners of his mouth curl up as he places the bird back on her nightstand and circle his arms around her waist.

“Did I say that?” she teases him. “I think I called your work a special one.”

Harry narrows his eyes at her, pretending to be hurt at her words, but he can’t push the growing smile back from his lips. They’ve been seeing each other for only over a month, but it was enough time to make him completely hooked on her. He is amazed by her in every possible way, feeling like he could never get enough of the ray of sunshine that Flora is. His favorite thing is that she makes him feel so normal, just an average guy dating a girl he met at a café. Not once did she treat him any different because of what he is and it’s just the feeling Harry has been looking for for such a long time.

“Come on, dinner is ready,” she smiles, pecking his lips before peeling his arms off of her frame, taking his hand as she pulls him out of the bedroom, however they surely end up in there again sometime after dinner, but with way less clothes on.

Harry watches as Flora plays with the bubbles in front of her, picking some foam up into her hair, watching it move around on her wet palm before blowing on it gently, her delicate fingers poking at the small bubbles that escaped from it. His hands are caressing her sides under the warm water that was once hot when they first got into it about an hour ago.

It’s been a lazy Sunday, Flora arrived early in the morning and went plant shopping. Her home has always been filled with plants and Harry has grown a liking to all the greenery, wanted some more in his house as well and Flora was more than happy to help him pick out the ones that are the easiest to take care of. Then they cooked lunch together, watched a movie and cleaned up the mess they made in the kitchen before running the bath. Harry has been loving these domestic days, lounging around his or her home, wearing comfy clothes and not caring about much of the outside words, just enjoying each other’s company.

“Remind me to buy peanut butter the next time I’m going grocery shopping,” she speaks up, leaning further back against his chest while Harry rests his chin on her shoulder, his arms tightening around her waist under the layer of bubbles.

“What do you need it for?” he hums, nudging her hair with his nose, her curls ticking his face, but he doesn’t mint it.

“I want to make cupcakes for the kids next week.”

“What for? Is there gonna be a special occasion?”

“No, they’ve just been super nice lately, we set up some new rules in the classroom and they’ve been really good following them.” Harry hums, loving how she is so eager to treat her students, he is convinced she is easily the best teacher he has ever came across.

“So peanut butter, huh? I think I need some too. Been dying to eat a good burger with some peanut butter.”

“I cannot believe you put peanut butter into your burgers,” she chuckles, peeking at him over her shoulder.

“Don’t bash it when you haven’t even tried!” he defends himself, kissing her cheek softly.

“The Aztecs would be so disappointed,” she sighs turning back forward, so she doesn’t see the puzzled look on Harry’s face.

“The Aztecs?”

“Yeah, they technically invented peanut butter,” she nods, as if it was common knowledge.

“Do I want to know why you know this about the history of peanut butter?” he chuckles softly.

“Well I had this kid last year who was obsessed with it and I started looking up fun facts for him for mornings when he looked a little moody. Then the others started enjoying it too so it became our morning thing that I told them a fun fact about anything.”

“Oh really? Tell me one then!” he asks smirking, pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

“Okay, um…” she thinks to herself. “Do you know what the Olympic rings stand for?”

“I do not,” he shakes his head.

“The five rings stand for the five inhabited continents of the world, united by Olympism.”

“Sounds logical,” Harry nods. “Tell me another one,” he asks.

“Are you going to make me tell you all my fun facts?” she chuckles, turning a little so she can look into his beautiful green eyes.

“Maybe. I like it when you talk like this,” he smirks playfully.

“Like what?”

“Like… smart. I love how you know all these little things about the world and teach it to not just the kids but to me as well.”

“You don’t think I’m a smartass?”

“Why would I?” he questions, eyebrows furrowed.

“I used to be picked on in middle school because I liked to learn, more than what was required.”

“That doesn’t make you a smartass, baby. You don’t go around, correcting every tiny mistake around you. You use your knowledge to educate, like you should.”

Flora smiles softly at him, his words bringing the sense of reassurance she’s been seeking for so long. She pecks his lips shortly before turning back forward.

“Do you know how many days a billion seconds make up?” she asks, smiling to herself.

“I don’t.”

“11 574 days. That’s a little over 31 years.”

“So I haven’t lived a billion seconds in my life just yet,” Harry states, doing the quick math.

“No, you haven’t,” she smiles, mostly at the fact that he didn’t just listen to her little fun fact, but also thought about it a bit deeper.

They stay in the bath until the water gets cold and Harry keeps asking for fun facts and Flora gladly tells him whatever comes to her mind.

Harry finishes up the fresh salad, filled with Flora’s favorites: cherry tomatoes, feta cheese and corn with some kale, baby spinach and garlic dressing. He even sprinkled some sesame seeds on top, now he is pretty proud of his work, it looks like something influencers would snap in an aesthetic photo to their Instagram feed.

His bare feet tap against the hardwood floor as he makes his way to Flora’s bedroom where she is still curled up on her chair in front of her computer, her hair in a mess on top of her head, glasses perched up on the bridge of her nose. She hasn’t moved much from the spot in hours, intensely working on her thesis that should be finalized within the next two weeks. She has been gradually working on it over the last few months, in no mean she is behind, but she’s been extra nervous about making it as good as she wanted it when she started and Harry has been nothing but supporting about it, knowing how much it means to her. So he’s been her moral support, making sure she eats, gets some rest and doesn’t get herself too worked up about her research. She appreciates his efforts and though she often feels bad for neglecting him lately, he made sure to assure her, he’ll be right here when she is finally done with it.

Harry walks around the mountain of books on the floor she has piled up from the library these past two weeks as he walks up behind her while her fingers type away on her computer so fast he can barely believe she even understands what she’s typing.

“Hey,” he softly calls out, leaning down he kisses her cheek, holding the bowl of salad in front of her, drabbing her attention, making her gaze move from the screen to the food in front of her.

“Oh, hey! Is this for me?” she asks with a soft smile, lifting her head so she can look at him. Even with the circles under her eyes, the messy hair and worn out t-shirt that she’s wearing, he thinks she is the most wonderful creature he has ever seen.

“Yeah. Come take a break, yea?”

She doesn’t protest, just saves the file before moving away from the desk to the bed along with Harry. She props herself up against the headboard, a tired moan escaping her lips as her spine rests against the pillows under her back. Harry hands her the salad and she digs right into it, only just now realizing that she’s been feeling hungry for the past two hours, but ignored it entirely.

“How much do you have left?” Harry asks nodding towards the computer.

“I’m finishing up the last part, then I just have to write the abstract and then…” she explains, popping a tomato in her mouth. “It’s just gonna be the formatting. I think I’ll be done by Wednesday.”

“That’s great,” he smiles proudly. He has always admired how hardworking she’s been when it came to school and her profession. He could never imagine himself do the same, especially because he didn’t even finish high school. He used to feel a little self-conscious about it when they first started dating, afraid that she might think less of him because he didn’t finish his education properly, even though it was never something that bothered him. But Flora assured him that it makes absolutely no difference in her opinion about him.

“It’s not about the papers or how many schools you’ve finished. It’s about how you see the world and if you are willing to learn when it changes around you. And I think you are perfect in that department, your curiosity and openness makes you an excellent learner,” she told him without even thinking about it.

Harry lies on his side next to her, one hand propping his head up while the other one wanders to her thigh, massaging it gently. She hums to herself, enjoying the food he made and he can’t help the smile that creeps on his face. He loves taking care of her, especially because most of the times it’s her that takes care of him. Cooking for him after a long day at the studio, putting his laundry away while he is in an online meeting or writing him a list for when he goes grocery shopping, Flora has been watching out for him through these little things, but now it’s finally his turn to give it all back.

He’s been thinking about asking her to move in with him for a few weeks now, he just hasn’t been brave enough to bring it up, thinking that she might find it too early for such a big step, seeing that the two of them have been dating for a little over nine months. He’s been playing with the thought of coming home to her every single day, waking up next to her in the mornings, watch her form his home more to her liking, creating a space for the both of them, making it a home not just for him but her as well.

As she finishes up her salad, completely oblivious to what Harry is thinking about, he decides to bring it up once she is done with her thesis, not wanting to bother her in any possible way until she is finished.

“Mm, this was lifesaving, thank you,” she sighs, leaning over she kisses him softly as her appreciation for the sweet gesture. “I’ll finish up this one paragraph I’m in the middle of and then we could watch a movie. But strictly without subs, because I’m done with words for today,” she jokes, making him laugh as he takes the empty bowl from her hands.

“Sounds good,” he nods. “I’ll clean up in the kitchen and find something to watch while you finish.”

“Thank you.” As they both get up from the bed, she pulls him down for another kiss, Harry’s free hand finding the small of her back right away. “I love you,” she whispers against his lips, his heart fluttering in his chest at the words he has heard before, but it never fails to stun him.

“I love you too. Now go, finish it so we can cuddle,” he smiles, smacking her bum gently before they let go of each other.

“Ja, pappa. Dat klinkt fantastisch. Ik zal het hem vragen. Ja.” Yes, dad. That sounds fantastic. I’ll ask him. Yes.

Harry listens to Flora talk to her father on the phone as she applies her lip balm, the one she uses every night before going to bed. He loves it when she talks in Dutch, many tend to criticize the language, but not Harry. Or maybe it’s just because he only hears Flora talk it and he loves everything she does.

“Ja, dat is goed. Dank je. Tot ziens, pappa, ik hou van je!” Yes, that’s great. Thank you. See you soon, dad, love you!

She ends the call and switches the light off in the bathroom that’s been not just Harry’s but hers since she officially moved in with him just last week. Harry finally built up the courage to ask her opinion about the possibility of living together in the near future once she was free from the worries of her research and thesis. For his biggest surprise, she was on the exact same page as him, definitely a fan of the idea. So three weeks later they started slowly moving all her stuff over to his until her apartment completely emptied out. Now all her belongings are splattered across Harry’s home, they haven’t found the perfect place for everything just yet, but it’s slowly starting to feel like home for the both of them.

“Dad called, asked if we would go over for dinner this weekend,” she tells him, moving around the bedroom as she takes her little hoop earrings off, placing them in the shell she uses as a jewelry holder on top of the dresser. She is wearing a pair of yellow sweatpants with one of Harry’s shirts, nothing underneath them, just how Harry loves it.

“It’s cute how you always tell me it was your dad, but he is the only one you speak Dutch with,” he chuckles lowly as she climbs to bed, pulling the covers over the both of them.

“It comes so naturally, I don’t even realize I’m switching languages,” she admits smiling.

“Dinner sounds lovely,” he nods, getting back to what she was talking about before.

“Arnold is bringing his girlfriend too,” she smirks, her eyes sparkling from excitement.

“Your brother has a girlfriend now?” he hums, eyebrows rising at the new information.

“It’s the girl I saw him with at his basketball game last month. They made it official like two weeks ago.”

“And he is already bringing her home? He is not beating around the bush,” he chuckles. “Is it going to be the first time the girl meets your parents?”

“Yeah, so it’s gonna be exciting,” she nods, cuddling to his side.

Flora is playing with the little cross pendant on Harry’s chest and he is watching her delicate fingers flipping it over, her fingertips tickling his chest a little in the process.

“When we have kids, will you also teach them Dutch?” he suddenly questions, the words just blurting out of his mouth. Flora lifts her head, resting her chin on his chest as she looks into his curious eyes. She stays silent, but a small smile is tugging on her lips for sure.

“What?” he asks, feeling a little nervous. It’s the first time he is bringing having kids up, but he definitely has been thinking about it, especially since she has moved in. They haven’t been dating for that long, but Harry is one hundred percent sure he is in the long run with her.

“I just… love how you said when and not if.”

“Well, it’s a question of when for me. What about you?”

“Same goes for me,” she smiles warmly. “And yes, I do want my children to speak Dutch. It’s important to my family and me as well. How does that sit with you?”

“Totally fine. In fact, I always envied kids growing up who were taught another language so early in their childhood. Would love that for my kids as well.”

“Dan is het geregeld,” she smiles widely at him.

“What’s that mean?” He furrows his eyebrows.

“I said that, then it’s settled. We’ll have some cute, bilingual babies,” she chuckles, half jokingly, half seriously.

Today has just been one of those days that were doomed from the moment Harry opened his eyes. He has been overwhelmed with stress lately, working on new music, but his studio sessions haven’t been as successful as he wanted them. He is also flying out to LA for two weeks in just a couple of days and he has to miss Flora’s mom’s birthday this weekend, which has been torturing him with guilt ever since he found out he can’t push his trip back.

This morning it felt like the universe just plotted against him. He slipped in the shower, broke a glass in the kitchen and successfully ripped one of his favorite jeans when he was getting dressed. He had a one way ticket cranky city, turning Harry into a moody little child. It didn’t take him long until he started a fight with Flora over the smallest, most ridiculous thing. It started with how Flora misplaced a bowl in the cabinet and took him two moments longer to find it than usual, then they ended up disputing about every little thing about each other they’ve been finding annoying, but neither of them voiced their feelings about them.

Flora, on the other hand, was not in the mood to argue with Harry so early on a Tuesday morning and she chose to just walk away and let him stew in his own anger. Harry knew the moment he heard the front door shut that she was mad at him: she didn’t kiss him goodbye like she does every day before she leaves.

He took a cold shower to cool him down and clear his head, get his thoughts straight so he can apologize like she deserves. Getting into his car he drives to the florist he usually goes to when he needs flowers for whatever occasions. The old lady greets him with a warm smile and upon describing what he envisioned, she immediately knows what to create for him this time. The result is a giant, colorful bouquet that reminds him of Flora in every possible means.

Driving down to her school he is met with an extreme amount of nostalgia even though it’s not even the school he went to as a kid, but it still brings back some memories.

The security guard immediately stops him when he walks into the building, but once he has explained him the situation, the old guy gladly tells him which classroom is hers so he can go and surprise her. His footsteps echo in the empty hallways as it is the middle of the second period, all students are locked up in their classrooms, lucky for Harry, because he surely can’t deal with teenage girls recognizing him right now. Holding the flowers in one hand he stops when he finds room 414 and he can hear Flora’s voice coming from inside, enthusiastically explaining something about penguins and it makes Harry smile.

Even with such a horrible morning behind her, she is still giving one hundred for her students. He brings up his hand and softly knocks on the door, interrupting her speech.

“Come in!” she calls out and Harry opens the door, popping his head inside first, then holding up the bouquet of flowers, making the kids start chattering in excitement at his arrival while Flora is staring at him shocked.

“Miss Hoven, do you have a moment for me, please?” he asks with a shy but charming smile. She quickly gains back control over her features before turning to her class.

“Please start working on task two and five, I’ll be right back,” she orders, but the chatter doesn’t die down so she raises her voice at them. “This is not how we act when we have guests, guys!”

The kids are quick to quiet themselves, eyes curiously switching between their teacher and the intruder at the door.

“Miss Hoven, is this your husband?” one of the kids, a little blond boy asks.

“No, Michael, he is not. Harry is my boyfriend,” she answers calmly, heading towards the door.

“Wait, I know him!” a girl exclaims gasping. “He sings the watermelon song!”

“Lilian, no discussion now. Do the tasks!” Flora tells her before walking out, but keeping the door open so she can hear what’s happening inside. Her cheeks are flushed and eyes wide when she finally looks at Harry again. “What’s—What’s this?”

“These are for you,” he clears his throat, handing her the bouquet. “And I came here to apologize for being such an arsehole this morning. It wasn’t your fault, I’ve just been crankier lately and I took it all out on you. I’m very sorry.”

Flora’s eyes soften on him as she takes one of his hands with her free one, giving it a squeeze.

“I said some nasty stuff too, so I guess I’m sorry too,” she sighs, her anger and frustration from earlier now long gone.

“I brought that out of you, so I’ll take the blame,” Harry chuckles softly. “But the point is that I’m sorry.”

“Well, you are forgiven. You were even before you came here,” she assures him smiling warmly. “Why don’t we order something tonight and just get lazy on the couch?”

“You said you have some tests to go through.”

“That can wait. You’re leaving in two days so I want to spend time with you.”

“So we won’t get our tests back tomorrow?” they both hear a muffled voice coming from inside and Flora chuckles shaking her head as she opens the door wider and steps inside. A small group of kids run back to their seats, but not fast enough to not get caught.

“Lilian, would you mind telling me why you left your seat without permission?” Flora questions the girl who just rolls her lips into her mouth, pretending like she hasn’t even moved all along. Flora sighs stepping outside once again. “I gotta go now, but thank you for this. They look beautiful,” she tells Harry.

“I love you,” he murmurs and leaning down he kisses her quickly, feeling like he is breaking rules even though he is not a student or a teacher here.

“I love you too,” she smiles back before walking back inside and shutting the door. Harry stays for a minute, just out of curiosity to hear if the kids ask her some more questions about him.

“Miss Hoven?” a girl calls out and Harry bets it’s the same nosy girl who recognized him.

“Yes, Lilian?”

“You have a nice boyfriend,” she exclaims, earning a soft chuckle from Flora.

“Well thank you, Lilian, but let’s get back to our new unit. Let’s see the tasks you had to solve!”

The splashing sound of vomit arriving to the toilet hits Harry’s ears once again as he is rushing up the stairs with a glass of water and the Emetrol his hands that he dug the kitchen cabinets through for. Arriving to the master bathroom he finds Flora just where he left a few minutes ago, kneeling in front of the toilet, arms on the rim as she is taking a deep breath, hoping to calm her stomach and stop throwing up finally.

“Oh baby, here. Found you some Emetrol, this should help,” he coos gently, sitting down to the marble floor next to her he places the water beside him as he pours some of the liquid medicine into the cap for her. She lifts her head, skin pale as the wall, the dark circles under her eyes make his stomach churn, he hates to see her in this condition and wishes he could just help her.

“Thank you,” she mumbles, her shaking hand takes the cup and she downs the medicine before taking a few sips from the water. “Harry, I’m so sorry for ruining our date,” she sighs in defeat.

“Oh shush. Don’t you dare apologize for being sick,” he shakes his head, putting the Emetrol aside before he towers above her to redo her hair so it doesn’t fall to her face. Today marks their one year anniversary and though they only planned to go out for a nice dinner, nothing extra, Flora still feels bad they had to cancel on their reservation when she started throwing up this afternoon. She’s been feeling nauseous ever since she ate that leftover casserole for lunch. She had a feeling she should have just gotten rid of it, but she hated wasting food so ate it. Big mistake.

Harry’s fingers delicately work on her curls, piling them on the top of her heat before he secures the bun with professional movements using the elastic he tends to wear on his wrists, just because Flora always loses hers. He likes to keep one on him as well. His long haired days trained him well, her hair is neatly kept out of her face as she frowns, feeling her stomach churning again.

“Can I do anything else for you, baby?” he gently asks, pressing the back of his hand to her forehead to make sure she doesn’t have a fever, but she feels alright. She probably just has to get rid of the bad food.

“Can you please get me a wet washcloth?” she asks faintly. Sitting to her butt she leans against the wall beside her with her eyes closed.

Harry nods and he is on his feet in a blink of an eye, grabbing a washcloth from the cabinet and wetting it in some cool water. He kneels in front of her and starts gently tapping it against her cheeks, forehead and neck, wiping off the thin layer of sweat.

“This is not how I planned to spend our anniversary,” she groans with a frown, making him chuckle.

“We agreed, the anniversary is postponed. Don’t even think about it.”

“But I wanted to look nice for you, even bought a new dress.” She pouts her lips at him, eyes opening narrowly, glistening from the tears that watered them while she was throwing up.

“You always look nice, baby,” he softly tells her, letting her take the washcloth before she places it over her forehead.

“Even now? After you saw me throw up four times? We have very different versions for the word nice, H,” she jokes with a soft chuckle and Harry is thankful to see her smile, even if it’s still very faint and tired.

“Even now, baby,” he nods smirking and he is not lying. Though the situation is saddening, Harry still enjoys taking care of her, being the one she can rely on even on her worst days.

They sit on the bathroom floor as the medicine slowly works and she finally gets rid of the urge to throw up. Then Harry scoops her up and undressing the both of them, he helps her take a nice shower before dressing her in clean clothes, tossing their dirty ones into the laundry basket, noting to do them sometime in the morning.

When Flora is settled under the cover, head comfortably sinking into the pillow, she immediately feels her eyes closing, the strenuous afternoon has successfully sucked all her energy right out of her body. Harry brings her another big glass of water for the night and just to be sure, puts a trashcan next to her side, if things go south again. When he gets under the covers she is already half asleep, but she hums when his fingertips dance down the side of her face.

He allows himself to shamelessly admire her as she finally falls completely asleep, her lips parted as she slightly snores, but she looks so peaceful, the painful frown he saw on her face all afternoon is now gone from her beautiful face. He hasn’t fully wrapped his mind around how an entire year has passed with such a wonderful creature by his side. As their anniversary was coming up, he caught himself thinking about what the future is holding for them more often. There were so many things they needed to experience together, so much to see and do as partners and Harry couldn’t wait for it all to come.

As he lies in the bed next to her, a smile tugs on his pink lips at the thought of the possibility of spending the rest of his life with Flora. His future has never seemed brighter than in that moment.

“This is harder than I thought,” Flora admits, focusing on the instrument on her lap, trying to figure out if she is holding down the accords the right way, but a moment later Harry’s hand covers hers on the neck of the guitar and he fixes her fingers on the strings until they are in the right position.

“Like this. Try it now,” he murmurs, his chin resting on her shoulders as she is standing between his legs, back leant against his chest. Flora has been begging him to teach him a few accords on the guitar and today finally brought the moment Harry would turn into her master.

The two of them are sitting on the bed, Harry only in his underwear while Flora is in one of his hoodies with only her panties covering the lower parts of her body. Harry came back from a week-long trip to New York and they haven’t left the bed too much since he set his feet inside the house, only emerging from the bedroom to fulfill their other physical needs.

Flora’s fingers strum against the strings and the instrument comes to life, giving her a clear accord finally, bringing a triumphant smile to her lips.

“You are a natural talent, baby,” he smirks, giving her hips a gentle squeeze before kissing into her neck.

“Don’t tease me, I’m trying!” she warns her playfully, playing the chord again, loving how she can create such a beautiful sound with the instrument.

“Mm, you’re coming for my career?”

“Oh, surely. I think I would make an excellent rockstar,” she nods confidently, making him laugh.

“You are so not the rockstar type. More like the chill indie singer who dances barefoot on stage.”

“Yeah, but I could spice it up a little and make it rockstar-y,” she explains and glances back at him over her shoulder. “Don’t you think I would look hot in one of your stage costumes? Sparkly suit and all?”

“Oh I know you’d look amazing,” he nods eagerly. He has spent quite some time imagining her girl in one of his suits and he quite liked the thought. Flora chuckles as he puts the guitar aside before she turns around and straddles him, her knees on each of his sides.

“Yeah? I would need a better name, mine is not too fitting for a star,” she explains. “Easy for you, your name is basically the most perfect name for a rockstar.”

“You think so?” he cocks an eyebrow at her, his palms coming to cup her bum as he tilts his head backwards since this position makes her the taller one for a change.

“Harry Styles? Oh please, it’s like Anne knew she would give birth to a legend,” she scoffs making him laugh.

“I’ve been told it’s a nice one,” he shrugs smugly. “I think it’s the surname.”

“It’s pretty cool, yeah.”

“What if you had the same? Flora Styles? Sounds pretty badass,” he suggests and at first, she doesn’t even realize the hidden meaning behind his words, tasting the name so obliviously.

“Flora Styles? You might be right, the surname sounds very cool,” she agrees and it amazes him how easily it went over her head.

“You like it?”

“Mhm,” she nods, her hand reaching for the guitar once again, but Harry stops her, taking it between his as he blindly finds her ring finger that is now ringless.

“Do you like it enough to actually take it?” he questions, hoping she would get the hint now where this is heading. She blinks at him a little puzzled but it’s until she realizes that his fingers are fidgeting with her ring finger, more specifically where a ring would sit on it, his fingertips gently caressing the skin around it.

“Harry?” she gasps with wide eyes as she just watches his grin grow wider. “This is not… Are you--?”

“What?” he chuckles, feeling entertained how she lost all her smug confidence all of a sudden. “What’s it that you’re trying to say?”

“No, what is it that you are trying to say?!” she snaps back, still in shock about what he just implied. “Was this your sneaky way of… proposing?” she asks, whispering the last word as if it was a curse word.

“Why do you act like we have a forbidden love and marriage cannot be even mentioned?” he chuckles at her.

“Because I was shocked! Not that bad now though, you haven’t pulled out a ring so I guess it was just a cruel joke.” She narrows her eyes at him, kissing his smug grin shortly, but Harry is definitely not done with her just yet.

“I wouldn’t be that sure about it, baby,” he warns her before gently pushing her off her lap to get off the bed. Flora’s eyes widen as she follows him walk to his suitcase that’s still lying on the floor next to his dresser, waiting to be unpacked. He digs under his clothes before pulling out a small velvety box, making her gasp immediately. Harry gets back on bed as he holds out the box in front of her on his palm, not opening it just yet.

“Did you buy that in New York just this week?” she asks with her mouth hung open.

“I didn’t. I’ve had it for about a month, I just took it with myself because I was afraid you’d find it,” he chuckles as he plays around with it between his fingers. “Have been planning on it for a while, but I couldn’t come up with anything so then I just decided to wait for the right moment and go with the flow,” he explains.

“And this is the right moment?” she questions, her heart beating in her throat as her gaze is switching between Harry’s green eyes and the box in his hand.

“Felt like it, yeah,” he nods, the corners of his mouth curling up.

Silence settles between them as they both just wrap their heads around the weight of the moment. Harry’s heart flutters in his chest, a little afraid it’s too early. They’ve been dating a little over two years now, marriages have been tied way earlier in a relationship before, but Harry feared Flora would feel it too rushed just yet, however the question is out there now. Or is it?

“Well, are you gonna ask it?” she questions and as Harry’s eyes flicker up to meet her gaze, he is met with that playful challenge in them that he adores so much.

“I just asked,” he mutters.

“No, you asked if I would take your name. That’s not a proposal,” she reminds him and he realizes she is right. He never actually asked the big question.

So he finally pops the lid open revealing the vintage diamond ring he bought a month ago when he was just out and about. The moment his eyes laid on the jewelry, he knew it’s the one he’d like to see on your finger and bought it right away.

“Floortje Hoven, will you marry me?” he simply asks, his dimples digging deep into his cheeks as he smiles widely at his lover.

“I will,” she nods, her heart hammering in her chest as she watches him take the ring out of the box and carefully put it on her once empty ring finger. Still holding her hand, he brings it up to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to the ring before leaning in he connects his lips with hers.

-

Thank you for reading! Please like and/or reblog if you enjoyed!

[autumndesert]

BTS WINGS TOUR JAKARTA FANACCOUNT

I’m sorry for neglecting my page for so long but this time I want to share this because I'm so happy that I want to write it all so I don't forget x'D I probably miss a lot of things, so there might be different things happening than those that are recorded and posted on net. I can't remember all, but ALL THE EFFORT I PUT. ALL THE THINGS. IT'S ALL WORTH IT. NOTHING IS WASTED. IF THEY MAKE A CONCERT AGAIN, I WILL DEFINITELY WATCH IT.

Okay, so first I'm gonna call out on the promotor. They're kinda shitty :( A lot of mistakes and a lot of unclear things happened :( I hate that they don't even clear up the lining. We ARMYs are neat and civil but they kept telling us to stop pushing and running but there's actually no clear information from the start :"( A lot of (almost all) of the ARMYs were disappointed with the promotor's service.

BUT AT LEAST THE CONCERT WAS WORTH IT.

I came with my friend and we both got Sound Check benefit. IT WAS GREAT. AWESOME. MAGNIFICENT.

Imagine a place that can hold 15.000 people. In a section where there should be 3.000 people. Only 500 was selected. Only about 450 got in (poor 50 people :"( blame the promotor). IT FEELS LIKE AN EXCLUSIVE CONCERT. They were all very relaxed. And actually they seemed kinda tired but they still smiled for us :")

The moment we got in, we're greeted with someone saying "Selamat siang, tidak usah dorong-dorong ya," [Good afternoon, please don't push each other, okay? --- in Bahasa Indonesia]. I thought they must have brought a translator, but it turned out that NAMJOON was the one saying that. Let me tell you that the sentence wasn't something you pick from a book. It's conversational language. THEY MUST HAVE REALLY STUDIED INSTEAD OF JUST GOOGLED OMG I LOOOOOVE THEM SO MUCH. 

THEY WERE ALL BAREFACED, IN CASUAL CLOTHING, AND WERE COMPLETELY STUNNING. OMG. YOONGI EVEN LOOKED SLEEPY AF AND TAEHYUNG WORE HIS USUAL LOOSE OUTFIT BUT THEY ALL LOOK SO DAMN H A N D S O M E .

The camera catch them close up and their bareface wasn't smooth x'D They have acnes and such but they're STILL BEAUTIFUL WTF AAAH. I CANT WITH THEM. But there's strictly no camera allowed at the soundcheck so you probably can't find the footage everywhere :") 

Tbh it made it feel so much more special because ONLY US got to see them like that x'D GOSH IT'S WORTH IT.

Jimin wore sunglasses and I wanted to laugh so much because he looked so ridiculous bc the venue was very dark and he wore sunglasses like why bro x"D I know he was probably insecure about his bareface but still, it looked funny to us because the sunglass was very big and square that it's flooding his face x'D he looks cute tho.

Then some of them started talking in Korean. The mic wasn't that loud yet that time, so between the screams we couldn't really hear what they were saying. (I couldn't catch anything) But they murmured things here and there. And since none of us understood, we just kept screaming x'D

They played Baepsae first. They just stood and walked around without dancing it xD They went around everywhere and say told us to sing. I really liked it. The fans were SO HYPE. They kept NOT SINGING AND GAVE US THE MIC AHAHAHAH. Taehyung gave us the mic and HIS EXPRESSION when we sang along was sooooooo proud and smug like "Oh yeah, that's my ARMY~" OMG I'M SO PROUD TO BE AN ARMY. 

Then they got to Dope, and they still didn't dance. xD Jin moved as if he wanted to dance but the others didn't so he just fidgeted around SO CUTEEEE.

DOPE WAS DOPE AF WHEN HEARD LIVE. JUNGKOOK'S VOICE WAS SO AMAZING. I CAN'T.  

But they were worse than when in Baepsae x"D They didn't even sing that much because they kept telling us to do it. And daaaaaamn they were so happy we did. Gosh it's the best thing <3

And then they performed 21st Century Girl. This time they danced it. XDDD I really liked it, they clearly told us to have fun and WE DID. The song was really fun to scream into and THEIR DANCE IS EVEN MORE PROMINENT LIVE. I got to see Taehyung's dance style and it's true that he really does dance ANYWAY HE WANTS. I LOVE HIM SO MUCH OMG. 

In between the songs, the members talked Korean in which we didn't understand. We kinda hoped Namjoon would translate but he was blissfully ignoring the others like okay mon, okay :") We only understand when Hoseok said "Next song~!" to indicate the next song :") 

I HOPE I UNDERSTAND KOREAN GOSH

After 21st Century Girl, Hoseok told us, "See you next song," but then they left and we were ushered outside :") such a tease. I forgot when in the checksound this happened but.

TAEHYUNG NOTICED ME. He went to the side stage and crouched, and then SMILED THEN CLOSED ONE EYE AND SHOOT A FINGER GUN TO US OMG. I'M DEAD. MY BIAS NOTICED ME MY LIFE IS COMPLETE. 

Jimin also teased us. He crouched and pushed down his sunglass a bit and WINKED AT US HOW DARE HIM. BLESS HIS PURE SOUL. Jungkook played around and bouncing all the time omg such bunny. Seokjin and Hoseok played around with each other A LOT X'D it was really cute. Seokjin even MADE POUTY-KISSY FACE in which the others made fun of but he was like "Whatever imma do what I like" X'DDD

Yoongi was so inactive, like he was still sleeping and would appreciate it if he could be back asleep lol THE LAZY IS REAL. Namjoon was being really chill too but he was smiling a lot and HIS DIMPLE OMG IT'S EVEN MORE BEAUTIFUL REAL LIFE AAAH.

Okay the soundcheck part is ending. Then we had to wait outside while they rehearse and practice again :") We literally could hear the music from outside and their voice when they were training. Such hardworker, such love put for us :") They practiced Cypher pt 4 a lot. Like a looooot. Since we first waited, they only practice other song for like once or twice on some song but they practiced Cypher pt 4 for like 5 times :") I'm so touched the rapline were working so hard for us.

Okay skip to the actual venue.

We got in at about 18.00 and they played the MV on big screens but in low voice xD We sang and chanted to it anyways because by now the ARMYs remembered the MV by heart so they all know when to sing what even when it wasn't audible lol. Then it switched to black and we all got impatient xDDD Then it went into safety explanation. I was so impressed that the ARMYs generally stayed quiet and paid attention, despite being so hyped just a moment earlier :") ARMYs are so good mannered I love them <3

After that Indonesia's National Anthem was playing. We all stood still and sang it even though no one told us to. X'D I was so impressed by this OMG. I secretly hoped that Bangtan would hear that and be proud that we sang it so beautifully :") I hope they came to know our national anthem as well.

THEN THE VCR VIDEO. I got all the videos jumbled so I didn't really remember but all the VCRs are about all the stories before Spring Day. On one moment it showed Seokjin holding a video camcorder, recording 7 bangtan lined up, but then zooming in to Jungkook close up in the middle, but when it zoomed out JUNGKOOK WAS ALONE QAQ It's like RUN but they were all just standing instead of partying and it was clear that JIN was the one recording them. What is this mystery again omg. They really liked to make us confused. At almost the end of the video, I could see the sillhouette of the members standing in white outfits and I screamed like "BANGTAN IS THERE!!!" and I think everybody realized and started screaming as well. xD

The first song was NOT TODAY and it was literally ON FIRE. They put on fire at the front stage and IT WAS REALLY HOT. I stood so close to the stage that I could feel the incredible heat OMG IT MADE THEIR STAGE FELT EVEN HOTTER. It was fun, we screamed along to "TODAY WE FIGHT" and I think they didn't expect it x'D

Then they played the same song as the rehearshal (Baepsae, Dope, 21st Century Girl). But this time they danced it all xD They looked SO COOL AND THEIR VOIZ DAYUM OMG OMG AND THEIR SWEAT AHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAH I COULD SEE THEIR SWEAT IN HIGH DEFINITION OMG IT'S A BLESSING.

Then at some point they stopped and greeted us xD

I forgot the order, but they all introduced themselves IN BAHASA INDONESIA. OMG. It was just "Halo," and their usual greetings but it was very sweet x'D As I said, they must have REALLY STUDIED because their language wasn't stiff, it's really almost slang, to be honest xD The last one to introduce was Hoseok, and he said, "Harapan, J-Hope" [Hope, J-Hope, it doesn't sound special in English but the way he pronounced it, the way he even KNOWS the word, that was so sweet and we SCREAMED SO MUCH] x'D

Then they performed Am I Wrong. And I forgot the rest and probably got the order mixed up but then they moved to the next stage performance. NEXT WAS SOLO PERFORMANCE. 

VCR was shown before, but I couldn't remember much x'D The first to go was Jungkook. We all expected it since Begin was the first line up of the solo stage. He sang it in jazz-style, with beautiful dance and sparkly suit. He's so cool. I can see for myself his determination to be number one, his full intention towards making the song perfect. The backup dancers are cool too, and the stage was emotional it was beautiful :")

Next up is Lie, Jimin. We screamed so much when we realized the song. There is actually a beautiful transition between all the solos, but I kinda forget what this one was x'D I guess it was a little VCR and just getting the backup dancer ready. I know Jimin said he couldn't have sing this in live because the note is too high and the dance is difficult. Let me tell you that IT'S ALL LIE. Jimin SANG AND DANCED so BEAUTIFULLY. I mean it. His voice was like flowing water, so emotional and heartwrenching, and his dance was LIKE AIR ITSELF. It's really really really beautiful. He didn't sing the 'caught in a lie' part but he sang everything else and if anyone ever accuse him of lipsync FIGHT ME HIS VOIZ IS SERIOUSLY LIT. The backup dancer created echo around him and making the performance grand :") Then there's a moment where he PUT ON A BLINDFOLD AND CONTINUED DANCING OMG. We screamed so much because lfkasjdlfakjsldkfj reference to BST adkfjalksjdf. And then he removed it again but then he was being LIFTED while there was a CANDELABRA GOING DOWN OMG I swear Jimin is so extra. The stage ended soon after but it was really beautiful reallllly.

The next one is VCR and melody about Suga. It's like all of his best scene in previous videos, compiled. It's really emotional and aesthetic, moreover when we see that there's scenes of Yoongi playing piano with metronome on top of it, slipped in between his best scenes. The metronome remind me so much of Rap Monster's solo mixtape, Do You. And it was emphasized as the Yoongi scene ended, the metronome got bigger and became animated, playing as the back ground over and over. Then the violinist that had previously prepared themselves there got spotlight, and Yoongi appeared from the middle WITH A PIANO. It's a beautiful piano, brown and tiny, like the one he played in the video, like the description he got in the song, like the one he got his first love with :") He didn't play it and didn't even stay on the seat for long, but it's seriously so emotional and aesthetic. It's so heavy with story and emotion that I was almost suffocated. Suga is so INTENSE I can't.

After being heavy with Yoongi, the song switched to VCR of psychedelic butterfly. To be honest I think Hoseok's story is the most painful ones. The VCR showed distorted butterfly with a lot of changes, then J-hope in butterfly wings, which got distorted and broken. Then J-hope in short film setting, with brick wall behind him and a lot of "placebo" appearing and disappearing behind him. Okay so I CHECKED. There's a reason I used PSYCHEDELIC and the word PLACEBO appeared. Psychedelic means "Of, containing, generating, or reminiscent of drug-induced hallucination, distortions of perception, altered awareness, etc; (of graphics, etc) Having bright colours, abstract shapes, etc." and Placebo means "(medicine) a dummy medicine containing no active ingredients; an inert treatment" and additionally, Placebo Effect means "(pharmacology) The tendency of any medication or treatment, even an inert or ineffective one, to exhibit results simply because the recipient believes that it will work."

THIS IS A BIG REVELATION. Because we know that since I NEED U, J-Hope was so close to drugs. But the words PLACEBO itself just appeared on WINGS TOUR (or I’m the only one being left behind lol). IMAGINE THE SIGNIFICANCE. ALL THE MEDICINE HE TOOK. ALL THE THINGS THAT HE THOUGHT MADE HIM CRAZY UNTIL HE EXPERIENCED THE PSYCHEDELIC IN SHORT FILM AND BLOOD SWEAT TEARS. THOSE ALL ARE INERT TREATMENT. THOSE DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE ANY EFFECT AT ALL. HE JUST BELIEVES THAT IT WORKS AND IT aCTUALLY WORKS. IMAGINE HOW FUCKED UP AND TWISTED THAT WAS.

IRONICALLY, his song is Mama, a serenade song for his mom who have raised him to be the Hoseok he is now. Isn't it strange? Of all the solos, Yoongi's and Hoseok's are probably the only two that got the least relevance to the story BUT. WHAT IF his mom itself is an illusion. What if all of his happy memory is just an illusion? JUST AN ALTERED PERCEPTION?? Isn't it strange that J-hope's the only one with cheery-themed song? The only thing I can imagine is that he's HIGH.

Okay so I didn't think about this at the concert lol. I just got the word placebo on my mind and looked it up when the concert was over. IT BLEW MY MIND :") His stage itself is AMAZING. It started with the dancers appearing on the center stage. They played around as if saying, "Where is Hoseok? Where will he appear?" It was cute af and adorable, and then suddenly Hoseok appeared between the dancers, and they placed white jacket and white cap to him xD it was cute. The performance is full of cheerful dance, and it's soooo cute, just as expected of J-hope. And while he danced, the screen portrayed his YOUNGER PICTURE. FROM HIS NEWBORN PHOTOS TO SCENES OF PREDEBUT JHOPE TO HIM UNTIL NOW. It was touching, and at some point he removed the white jacket to reveal sparkly jacket inside. It's cute, really, like he really wanted to put on a show. xD I really like it tbh. 

When the performance ends, Lost started. The four vocals appeared in the center stage with casual red and white outfit combination. Lost was beautiful, I still prefer they sang House of Cards but honestly Lost is beautiful too :”) 

Then they sang SAVE ME. There was a project that was distributed before the concert. It is to hold out a handbanner with part of SAVE ME lyrics, "In this pitch black darkness, you still shine this much" during SAVE ME. I was so proud that all the ARMYs did it very beautifully. That moment, I really think that all ARMYs are family, and that we really want to make Bangtan happy :") Because of the banner, I couldn't see much, but I knew the members were kind of distraught and touched. They were distracted when singing and dancing, and from my spot, I could even see Jimin looking at us (ME!!!! XD) holding our banner and covering his mouth, like he wanted to cry but couldn't. All the members looked around to see us all really holding the banner, it was so sweet :")

I forgot if they said something directly after the song, but I think they didn't. The song continued into medley of N.O, No More Dream, Boy in Luv, Danger, and RUN. Then, they performed I NEED U. In the medley, the members run around so much and we all sang and had fun xD

Then it's back to solo songs. There's VCR about Rap Monster, and the interesting thing is, aside than him between glasses and reflection, is the visual of him approached by whale, which is WHALIEN 52. GOSH WHAT IS THIS AGAIN. DOES THIS MEAN THAT NAMJOON'S ISSUE IS LONELINESS??? There were a lot of props going around, and there was three section of stage being lifted, with the rightmost containing a phone box littered with writings. I suspect it's either quotes from Catcher in the Rye or Demian, or even their own translated lyrics. It's beautiful, Namjoon appearing with the background screen showing night stars, so beautiful. His outfit is simple patterned white shirt and loose-taehyung style black pants x'D In Indonesia, his style is so similar with "remaja masjid" (mosque youth), so my friend and I got hysterical for awhile because he looked SO HANDSOME IN IT. In the instrumental interlude, we chanted "Kim Namjoon! Kim Namjoon! Kim Namjoon!" over and over and I swear I saw his expression was so at peace :") Namjoon is one of the member that receive fewer love than he deserved so I was SO PROUD that ARMYs show them that much love. Then, when Namjoon sang "I wish I could love myself" we all sang, "WE LOVE YOU", and at that moment I really wanna cry, it was so touching :") I think Namjoon wanted to cry too but he didn't, he finished the song and ENTERED THE PHONEBOOTH....

ONLY FOR THE UPLIFTED STAGE TO SHOW VANDALIZED ROLLING DOOR AND TAEHYUNG SINGING FROM INSIDE THE PHONEBOOTH. This once again emphasize the significance of Namjoon, Taehyung, and the phonebooth that connected them. There is no "Liar" writings like in the short film, but seriously, Bangtan's theory fucked me up. 

Taehyung sang STIGMA so beautifully. It was so. BEAUTIFUL. I mean. His voice. I can't. It's so emotional live. IT'S SO DAMN SOULFUL I GOT MY SOUL SUCKED OKAY. I LITERALLY STOPPED SWINING MY ARMY BOMB AND JUST STARED AT HIM FOR THE DURATION OF THE SONG. Then he came out of the phone booth, down, towards the center AND SANG HIS HEART OUT. He's so concentrated I really love him so much :") Everytime the monologue appeared we SCREAMED SO MUCH OMG HE'S SO SEXY There's a stand mic appearing and he put the mic there and continued singing until the end. HIS HAND IS LITERAL SEXINESS OMG. But then a stupid thing happened x'D He came forward, leaving the stand mic in favor of stage gimmick, and went back, but then he HIT THE STAND MIC OMG TAE :") I CAN'T WITH YOU. But then he just acted like there was nothing happening and stayed cool, like, okay, bruh, scool x'D

Then the violinist came up again, and the phonebooth was removed. The stage came a little up, and I think there was VCR but I forgot. Then Seokjin came forward with AWAKE. It was beautiful. When he entered the chorus, there is five parts of the stage, with him in the middle being the lowest, while the others beside him rose higher, forming a wing, with the background screen as feathers and sky :") It's like a representation of flying, that even if he says he can't fly for real, but he flied in the stage, he's floating, he had wings :") It's probably also a satire to his song's implication, that he himself doesn't rise, but he let the others beside him rise up :"))) He's so sweet. I can't. AND HE'S SO HANDSOME OKAY ALSDKFJLAKSJDF

Then the rapper line came up with Cypher pt 4. It's really cool if not for the outfit x'D Namjoon wore sunglasses that really made him look like a lame nerd and he looked hilarious af. All of them wore thick colored oversized robe and Suga's was so large that it looked like pajamas x'D He looked like he was about to sleep here and there. But then at the chorus he SPRAYED OFF WATER TO US ALSKDJFLAWLKLSJRIU I GOT SUGA'S HOLY WATER OMG I'M BLESSED LAKJSDLFKJALSKDJF THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE. Okay I didn't get it, the water just reached the ones at the frontmost and I got back for better viewing pleasure but still x"D

Then VCR again. I think I omit a lot of things but okay x"D This VCR is the most beautiful thing here. Let me tell you. It is scenes of all the videos before but with proper storytelling and NARRATION. IN INDONESIAN. THE LANGUAGE IS BEAUTIFUL. LIKE. I AM SURE THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY TRANSLATED FROM KOREAN BUT IT'S SO DAMN BEAUTIFUL. TOP NOTCH TRANSLATION. 

My friend recorded the whole thing and I'll put what I can get here :")

Sekolah, rumah, jalan kecil, lautan Menutup langit masa muda, sia-sia Jalan buntu ini jalan masuk ke jalur berliku Bagai stigmata berlumur darah, di telapak tangan Sakit yang menusuk merambah sayap yang membentang Mimpi yang menjulang tinggi Mencari lautan yang tak kunjung ditemukan Sang anak berjalan Sang anak dengan bukan satu tapi tujuh jantung Tujuh detak dan Satu langkah ke depan Perspektif baru dan Satu adalah Tujuh Berlari akan terjatuh Menantang tebing Di dunia yang penuh rayuan Apa yang dicari dengan mata tertutup? Ketika tirai terbuka untuk memecahkan cermin Munculkan jalan setapak menuju serpihan Luar ke Dalam, Dalam ke Luar Dunia bertautan Persimpangan jalan untuk semua Dua dunia satu di balik yang lainnya Tanpa henti menyatu menjadi satu Kini Tujuh anak lelaki di perjalanan Tujuh, tapi Satu Tujuh anak lelaki dengan Satu jantung Satu anak lelaki dengan Tujuh jantung Satu dan Tujuh, refleksi satu dengan lainnya Berapa banyak jalan harus dilalui sebelum anak lelaki menjadi dewasa Jalan adalah nama lain untuk dunia Siang dan malam, persimpangan jalan dan terowongan Jalan dengan persimpangan tanpa akhir Dan selalu sendiri saat mengambil keputusan Berbelok di pojok Dan apakah bunga merah masa muda masih merekah? Kemana mimpi ini melangkah? Ketakutan adalah nama lain untuk harapan Air mata adalah cara lain untuk tersenyum Sang anak lelaki tersenyum Dia bisa tersenyum bila dia utuh satu Sang anak lelaki terus berjalan

School, home, narrow street, sea Covering the young sky, in vain This dead end is an entryway to sinuous road Like the bloody stigma on your palm The piercing pain reaching your stretched wings Dreams rising high up Looking for a sea that can't be found The boy walks The boy with not one but seven hearts Seven beats and One step forward New perspective and One is Seven Running will get you hurt Againts the valley In the world full of temptation What will you find with closed eyes? When the curtain opens to crash the mirror Outside In, Inside Out The world coincides Intersection to all Two worlds one aside the other Keep colliding into one Now Seven boys is on their way Seven, but One Seven boys with One heart One boy with Seven hearts One and Seven, reflection of each other How much path should be passed before the boy can mature Road is another name for world Day and night, intersection and tunnel Road with a neverending intersection And always alone when you have to decide Crossing the corner And does this red flower of youth still bloom? Where does this dream lead to? Fear is another name for hope Tears is another way to smile The boy smiles He can smile if he's whole The boy keeps walking

(original Indonesian that I saw at the concert and rough translation that you probably will get when the DVD is released)

GOSH THIS EXPLAINS A LOT. alkdjflaksjdlkfjalskdjf seriously I wanted to cry. I know the tour VCR is made BEFORE Spring Day was out and ISN'T IT BEAUTIFUL THAT THE LAST SENTENCE IS "The boy keeps walking" and the title of the next album is YOU NEVER WALK ALONE. It's so aflksjdlfkajlskdjf alksdj bangtaniswear.

Then they performed Outro: Wings. We're still in shock and in emotional roller coaster so we weren't as loud but we still screamed from the top of our lung :") At the instrumental break of the song, J-Hope told the members to dance x'D I didn't remember all but they either did sexy dance or ridiculous dance. Suga did his grandfather dance and Jin attempted proper dance (he didn't look like a disaster live HAHAHAHHA).

Then it's talk time. THEY ALL SPEAK IN INDONESIA LAKSDJFLAKJSDF I CAN'T. IT'S NOT EVEN FORMAL INDONESIA OR GENERAL PHRASES. WE ALL COULD TELL THAT THEY LEARNED TO SAY WHAT THEY SAID.

Okay I forgot a lot but here's what I remember:

V: Akhirnya malam ini sudah hampir selesai. * Kalian pasti berharap malam ini tidak pernah berakhir, kan? * Aku juga!! * Apakah kalian suka (konsernya)? * Aku sukaaaa!!! * Aku cinta kalian! [Finally this night comes to an end. You must have wanted this night to never end, right? Me too!! Do you like it (the concert)? I liiiikeee it!!! I love you!] * is for ARMY’s scream lol

Jin: Aku pernah ke Sulawesi tetapi.... A: HAAA??? Jin: Tetapi Jakarta juga indah! Aku cinta Jakarta! [I've been to Sulawesi but.... but Jakarta is beautiful as well! I love Jakarta!]

Suga: Karena kalian, kita bisa menampilkan Not Today PERTAMA KALI di Wings Tour Jakarta. Ini semua berkat kalian! Mantab! [Because of you guys, we can perform Not Today for the FIRST TIME in Wings Tour Jakarta. This is all because of you guys! Great!] When he said Mantab, it actually was a slang and it's kind of appropriate translation to the phrase he likes so much, kkaepjjang x'D We were so excited he knew our slang

RapMonster: Ini adalah Episode terakhir dari Tour kita. Dari Episode II: The Red Bullet, Episode I: Begins, dan sekarang, Episode III: Wings! Kita tidak bisa melakukannya tanpa kalian! [This is the last episode of our Tour. We can't do it without you!]

I forgot what Jimin, J-hope, and Jungkook said x'D but both Jimin and J-hope said something cute and Jungkook stuttered like he didn't really memorized his part (but succeed anyways) it was so cuteee. 

Then Namjoon talked about the project, RM: Do you guys remember the small paper, the one you raise during Save Me? (he said it in English) A: YEAH! *some raised the banner JM: *sings that part i kkaman eodum sogeseo, neo neun ireohke bitnanikka A: *sings along geut soneul nae mireojwo Save Me Save Me, I need your love before I fall RM: It's very beautiful! We were very touched, it was very beautiful A: AAAAAAA RM: But sadly we've come to the last songs. (basically he praised our projects and said farewell)

Then they performed FIRE (cue real fire coming out again!!!) and then Boy Meets Evil. Boy Meets Evil was only performed for a short time, but JHope was dancing and wasn't rapping. He danced up to "too bad," and then the instrumental switched to Blood Sweat Tears and the venue EXPLODED. I think us Indonesian ARMYs still like this song SO MUCH xD They were SO SEXY LIVE ALKSDJFALKSJDF too bad Jimin didn't do his "accident" but then again they're already TOO SEXY I CAN'T. After that, they exited the stage, and the screen turned to WINGS LIVE TOUR text.

We were shouting for encore and of course, we got it after awhile xD They came out with Spring Day outfit, the oversized shirt and plain tshirt. They sang I NEED U and we all did our projects again xD The festival ones which are the nearest to the stage covered their lightstick with pink plastic bag, and the seating created the color of red and white, our national flag. We celebrated the one year anniversary of HYYH so we used pink x3 I could tell that they were touched as well x'3

And then they talked again, they basically told their farewell again and I thought they wanted to address the project but didn't know what to say (I don't think they know what it means but whatever x'D) And then they told us that it's really the last and at the end, they sang 2!3! and we all did our projects (again! We had 4 projects, honestly lol). We chanted "Saranghae!" instead of "Gwaenchana", and the real chant included sentences that answered Bangtan's doubt in that song, but we couldn't pronounce it well so I think Bangtan only recognized the "Saranghae" :"D I could tell, they were puzzled but I know they recognized the word saranghae. Then we kept singing even at the end of the song, even when the light dimmed and they got ready for Spring Day formation. I think they waited until we finished singing then started Spring Day. :")

Then they performed Spring Day, and, as per the project, we lifted up the yellow rose x'3 I didn't know what this one meant, but Bangtan was touched as well :") I think they were speechless because we did so much projects. Their expression was NO JOKE THO. Their sadness filled up the venue :") Maybe that's what the yellow roses were for.

At the end, we kept singing the uoooh oh part and that's the part when they said their goodbyes :") They went around the stages a lot, all of them. I got noticed by Jin, Rapmon, and JHope the most. During the whole concert, I got a lot of Jin blowing kisses at us and dancing in front of us; Namjoon smiling around goofily and danced too; Yoongi pushing out his mic telling us to dance; Taehyung walking around and dancing and crouching; Jimin and Jungkook just walking around and JHope TEASING US, smiling at us and winking and generally becoming a horrible human being that doesn't have mercy on our heart. At this encore JHope came SO CLOSE to where I stood and reached out to pick the banner. He picked it with SUCH GENTLE FACE I CANT. He read it, POSED IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA WITH IT, AND GAVE IT BACK OMG SUCH ANGEL. He did it again with the yellow rose I CAN'T. Jungkook picked up fans with Jin's and Jimin's derp face and put it on his shirt HAHAHAHA. He did it SO PROUDLY and he was happily jumping and showing it around LIKE A CHILD OMG THIS BUNNY. Jimin crouched down CLOSE TO US but then he was like, "Okay, I'm near, no need to push around, hello, it's okay" Taehyung went SO NEAR the camera and did aegyo and picked a box with V on it OMG this cutie x'D Namjoon picked a pink dolphin stuffed animal and happily played with it. At the end of the farewell every member had came to the stage (AND TAE NOTICED ME AGAIN MY LIFEU IS COMPLETE) and went around. When they gathered again at the stage, I saw Namjoon struggling to put the dolphin on top of his head and was so proud that he finally did it and crossed his eyes x'D it's so cute. Jin played with Jungkook's collection and blew kisses with his derp-fan-face lol. Jimin just looked 100% done with maknae like always but he played with the fan anyways lol. 

In the end, they all bowed and left the stage.

There was one more VCR, about the backstage and practice, and they are were sweet basically :")

In the end, we all went home safely, I think. My friend and I were so tired that we slept right after. We met up with our other friend at the airport and we ended up CRYING A LOT at the plane :") because of Bangtan omg. It's an emotional trainwreck, honestly.

WINGS TOUR JAKARTA IS MAGNIFICENT. GRANDIOSE. AWESOME. DEFINITELY WILL COME AGAIN TO BTS CONCERT. ALL THE MONEY I SPENT WERE WORTH IT. NOT A SINGLE MOMENT, NOT A CENT, WASTED.

[rtwlovers]

Our China Crash Course

Our adventure through China was an absolute whirlwind that covered almost 3,000 miles in 10 days. To see China in that amount of time is like taking a 10 day trip to see New York, D.C., LA, and Seattle. It was absolutely insane.

But we had a good reason for the quickness—Blakely’s family came to join us and they only had a small window. We enjoyed the company (and the upgrade in accommodations!).

We started in Hong Kong, which is a great gateway into China since it is much more connected to the outside world. Reminder: the Chinese government significantly limits news flow of its citizens, and this makes them culturally cut off from the rest of society. While Hong Kong technically falls under Chinese jurisdiction, it was a British colony until 1997 when the Brits returned it to China. Hong Kong maintains a separate political and economic system from China, but the mainland significantly influences the legislation. China continues to broker more influence, and unfortunately protests don’t make much difference despite making international news.

Blakely and Ryan arrived 2 days earlier than the rest of the group, which was best as we were VERY dusty from our time in Nepal. We stayed at the Kowloon Shangri-la Hotel, which, as could be expected, were MUCH better accommodations than our norm.

We enjoyed the hotel then headed to explore the city. Of course, a highlight for us was the spectacular architecture. As city folk we really appreciate a good skyscraper, and Hong Kong has plenty of those! Hong Kong has a gorgeous skyline, with more skyscrapers than anywhere in the world, and Victoria Harbor elevates the view further. Ryan’s favorites were the HSBC Building, International Commerce Center and Bank of China Tower. Then we went to Man Mo temple, which is dedicated to the gods of literature and war. The incense and atmosphere make it a calm and gorgeous stop.

That night, we headed to the fabulous SoHo neighborhood (not to be confused with the SoHo in NYC, this stands for South of Hollywood Road) which has one of our favorite features: escalator sidewalks. First we hit a wine and cheese bar, and then one of our favorite restaurants Little Bao. So fun, so delicious, and everything we needed.

Finally, the rest of the group arrived. We didn’t pause long before taking them on a walking tour the neighborhood. Then for dinner, we headed to the world renowned Din Tai Fung restaurant for delicious dumplings and noodles. Finally, we headed to Temple Street Night Market for a bit of chaos and shopping! Unfortunately the market is MUCH more glitz than glamor, and as many things in China, focused on the shiny quantity over quality!

The next day was a big one. We started on a tram up to Victoria Peak to see the sights,. Due to the crazy fog, the view half-way up was better. Then we took a boat tour to see the floating village of Aberdeen and the temples there. Afterwards, a little tea time at the Peninsula hotel, then cocktails while watching the harbor light show.

Next, we jetted off to Guilin and immediately went to the gorgeous Reed Flute cave. In case the natural structure isn’t enough, the gorgeous light displays make the cave even more mystical and impressive (though a few thought they were tacky and preferred the natural landscape!). In Guilin, we stayed at the beautiful Guilin Shangri-la Hotel.

Next on the itinerary was a drive out to Longji, with hiking to see the gorgeous rice paddies. Absolutely worth the hike (to say nothing of needing to work off those dumplings!), this was a trip highlight for all of us.

That night we took a light cruise around the lakes of Guilin. The Chinese LOVE a light show, and we were pretty impressed ourselves!

The next day was a highlight: A boat cruise along the Li River. This site has inspired painters and artists for centuries, and it inspired the artwork on the 50 yen note today. Blakely couldn’t resist the beauty recreated by a local artist on rice paper, which is now hanging in our house!

After the day’s craziness, we took a flight to Xian and settled into the Wyndham Grand Xian hotel, another fabulous place!

Xian attracts visitors from all over the world with the incredible Terracotta Warriors. Even with all of the hype, they do NOT disappoint. Here’s the skinny:

When the first Emperor of China Qin Shi Huang died around 210 BC, he was buried with an army he commissioned to protect him in the afterlife. There are approximately 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots, 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses. Additionally, there are officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians. All of the statues are life sized, uniquely carved and painted, and buried in different sized pits. The largest of the pits is housed in the museum for viewing. It is INSANE to see.

Even cooler: the army is just a portion of the remains left to be discovered. Excavation is ongoing, but ground-penetrating radar detects a larger city resembling the emperor’s imperial palace and court. Next we gobbled down some delicious beef noodle soup!

The next day we had a gorgeous bike ride around Xian’s ancient city walls, which were built in the 14th Century and form one of the best-preserved fortresses in the world. After earning our treat, we had a walk through the Great Tang All Day Mall and celebrated with Popsicles and BBQ. This is a market of which we all approved!

After Xian we flew to Shanghai and got to visit the historic and beautiful Zhujiajiao village. We felt like we stepped back in time! We had a canal cruise, did a little shopping (of course) and went to see a historic mansion with traditional Chinese gardens.

Shang Hai was absolutely our favorite city in mainland China, with a gorgeous skyline and metropolitan atmosphere. As discussed, we love cities. We walked along the river and had a fabulous dinner before enjoying one of THE most bizarre and fantastic shows we’d ever seen: The Amazing Acrobats of Shanghai. We will never be able to see another acrobat show again.

The following day the boys and girls separated, and the boys took a tour of the mind blowing Shang hai port. Afterwards we all flew to our last stop (WHEW) Beijing.

The next day was a highlight and it started with Tian’anmen Square. According to our official guide it is “the largest city square in the world” (it is actually only one of the top 10) “and the spiritual heart of China, where the national flag is raised exactly at sunrise every day.” Of course, what isn’t mentioned in the paraphernalia is that this square is infamous for the horrendous massacre of protestors in 1989. Troops with automatic rifles and tanks killed hundreds of demonstrators who were trying to block the military’s advance to the square (where a student protest was happening).

Today, Tian’anmen is a heavily regulated area and indicative of Chinese policy in general. Before entry, visitors and their belongings are searched and IDs checked. Protests are strictly forbidden, and discussion of the massacre nonexistent. Furthermore, in the 70s the square held ginormous portraits of 6 dictators (including Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, and Joseph Stalin), but upon the death of Mao Sedong (founding father of the People’s Republic of China) the other portraits were removed and only his remains. Don’t worry, the other portraits are still brought out in a parade around the square on Labor Day and National Day.

For all its dark past, Tian’anmen Square allows entrance to one of the coolest places in China: The Forbidden City. The Forbidden City is a palace complex in Central Beijing and housed the imperial palace from 1420-1912. Now, it is a Palace Museum and provides an excellent snapshot of gorgeous Chinese architecture, artwork, and artefacts. Our personal favorite was the Hall of Clocks, a display of 200 clocks and watches from the imperial collection.

Last stop for the day, we visited the Temple of Heaven, a complex of religious buildings that was visited yearly by emperors to ensure a good harvest.

Ok. Now for the part we’ve all been waiting for. The famous symbol of China, an architectural wonder of the world, stretching 6,700 km and over 2,000 years old: The Great Wall of China.

The wall was constructed over many different dynasties to protect the ever-changing empire borders. The most extensive and modern construction occurred as recently as the 14th Century. Effectiveness of the wall varied, and our guide informed us that bribery decreased the walls success. Unfortunately, with the invention of air invasion, the wall was largely unproductive in modern era. That said, it is magnificent to see.

Though it can’t be seen from the moon (common misconception), it can be seen from space at a low orbit when the conditions are right.

Maybe one of our favorite parts was the ride down. Take a look.

To get to the wall we enjoyed the Sacred Path, which is lined with animals, mystical beasts and officials who serve the emperor in his afterlife. Sitting emperors perform rituals there for the ancestors once a year.

Our last stop in China was one of our favorites: The Summer Palace. This was an imperial summer resort of the Qing Dynasty and it has gorgeous grounds that are the recognized as the most splendid classical gardens of China. The incredible decoration on the buildings made us constantly look up, and we loved finishing our trip with such a gorgeous example of Chinese art. Our only complaint was that we visited on a holiday so we felt like all of China was there with us! One thing is for sure: China has a LOT of people!

So ended our blitz through China, and if you’re tired from reading it you can imagine how tired we were for doing it! The only answer: a blissful vacation to Bali.