#we make 15 an hour now though which is Insane considering the area we are in

[wokeuplaughing]

they've been doing interviews at my job and we still have a massive stack of applications in the office despite interviewing 6 people a day for a week and I keep thinking about how when I got hired they basically hired me on spot

[chelseydavidson]

Week # 10 Business Progress

What is working?

My first "sales transaction" went rather well.

Last week, on May 2, I had my first session with a student whom, for the sake of anonymity, I will call Johnny Appleseed. Little Johnny has an upcoming exam for grade 10 French and, while his class is working on an ISU currently, his mother is concerned that he's forgetting all of the tenses he has learned earlier this year. It turns out that Johnny does see the value in being bilingual (members of his extended family are bilingual, for one, but he also sees it as a marketable skill from a career perspective, which is a mature way of thinking for a boy of 15). His issue is more along the lines of spoken French vs. written French. Johnny feels that learning within the classroom is stunting his ability to speak French because he's "just more inclined to speak it than everyone else seems to be." I acknowledged the value of conversational French, but asked him to consider the importance of knowing how to read and write it clearly and for him to self-assess his capacity to do so.

I think that helped because, by asking him not to tell me but to evaluate himself and to be brutally honest in that regard, he felt more empowered than the top-down experience in which he's been enmeshed. I think the relationship has been quite tense between parent and child over this particular point, but Johnny does not outright hate French so much as having frustrations about the pedagogy surrounding it at his school.

I count this as a win, because the problem is not with learning French. The problem is more complex than that and involves appreciating the need to understand and communicate with the written word. We reviewed using the past and present tense, including using negatives, for reflexive reciprocal verbs, which he self-identified as an area of trouble. Again, allowing him to tell me his weaker areas seemed to have an empowering effect where he felt more in control of his educational pursuit.

Over the next few weeks, we will move through each part of the curriculum; I will be able to then evaluate areas of strength and weakness and provide added support where I can see it is most needed.

The client, Mrs. Appleseed, thanked me profusely when we chatted after the session. Her gratitude was very kind and I gave Mrs. Appleseed a few business cards to “refer me to your friends.” (You have to try, right?)

She also mentioned in a week or two ramping up the number of sessions as we enter into his final exam period. We scheduled again, this time for tomorrow, Wednesday, May 8, another hour-long session. She e-transferred the funds for the first session immediately as well.

In an Excel spreadsheet, I am keeping track of all of the financials of the business, including cash flow, to ensure I am meeting my intended objectives. Like I mentioned last week, I’m also trying to absorb as much intel as I can from the Appleseeds, so I can understand best about what works well and what doesn’t with my current business model, and whether there are adjustments I can make to improve the business viability. 

What is not working?

More clients would be nice. Diversifying my clientele seems like a more sustainable way to move forward. I don’t want to put too many eggs in one basket. 

If bad news is your thing, though, then marketing will interest you. I am still getting absolutely nowhere with Facebook. My frustration with social media is insane right now. (Not that I would feel much better by getting set up to properly engage with it. But I digress.)

I did spend some money on business cards (and less than I'd budgeted, thanks to a coupon code), so I am relying, unfortunately, a little too heavily on passing these cards around wherever I can. I know word-of-mouth is absolute gold, especially in the tutoring industry, for netting more clients, but I am feeling a little desperate to supplement it with some social media or other kinds of marketing. (More on canvassing with flyers below.)

I truly expected the marketing process to be more organic than it has been, so I am genuinely surprised at the number of speed bumps I’ve faced along the way here. My goal by next week is to have something more concrete figured out, even if it means switching gears entirely and seeking out another paid marketing campaign option outside of Facebook. 

How do you feel the project is coming?

Can't complain.

Based on my metrics, I’ve met my goals so far. My natural personality doesn’t gel well with the “let it be” mantra I’m force-feeding myself, but I am trying to learn to let go a little and not try to jump the gun on my milestones.

There’s still much room for progress, but I also need to give it room to progress.  

What are you learning about running a business? 

It should come as no surprise that I have learned that I would really like to be able to afford the services of a marketing firm. The ability to know my weaknesses and pain points and being able to offload them to someone with the expertise and connections to get it done right the first time – what a blissful dream. 

Honestly, I'm starting to understand why Don Draper was such a big deal.

In the world of regulations and bylaws, I also made some strides in learning where I can hand out flyers. A terrific municipal law enforcement officer got back to me on April 29 stating that, in Ajax, no municipal bylaw exists prohibiting me from handing out flyers in public. However, I cannot hand out flyers or any other promotional materials on Town of Ajax property, any property classified as a park, and any Town of Ajax recreational facilities. By virtue of that, I might consider handing out flyers later this week; the weather is pretty nice right now and the foot traffic is increasing, so it might be wise to do that for a few hours. 

What are you learning about yourself?

I am learning a lot of four-letter words, but one of the most important ones has been “calm”... oh, here’s two more: “Slow down”.

Being as Type-A as I am, I have to learn to pace myself for a marathon, not a sprint. I have managed to seemingly get the most steps forward when I’ve stopped and smelled the roses. So, I am aiming to keep doing that, in spite of myself.

Quite honestly, rewiring that part of my brain would not necessarily be a bad thing. I understand there’s a difference between eustress (the good kind of stress that keeps us alert and alive) and distress (the debilitating kind that brings us to our knees and wreaks havoc on productivity and wellbeing), but I cannot always tell the difference between grit and grind.

In my experience, when you’re in it, you can’t see the forest for the trees. So, if nothing else, if this startup venture is an abject failure, I will walk away from it with a better sense of calmness. Nothing is ever a total loss, if we can learn or change for the better due to it.

[introvert--weeb]

Hello Can we talk about your talent girl you're shinning ❤💅💅

But seriously you're work is awesome

Tell me plz if I can request this:

Takemitchi coming back to the past not understanding what is missing for the future

He is in one of toman meeting waiting for the "talk" but he hear some noise behind the tree 🌳and when he go to see he find micky and his gf(s/o) kissing and being lovey dovey and then he understands that she is the reason of mickeys dark implusion (dk if i wrot it good)

Like her dying in his arms so like takemitchi want to save both of them (I'm sucker for this type of angst 🤧)

Sorry if this is too much 😅you don't have to do it just wanted to cry

Love 💘😻💜💛💚🧡💘😻💜💛💚🧡

Oh my god! I'm so glad you are enjoying my writing and thank you so much! You have just made my whole week with that! ❤️😭❤️

Of course! I am a sucker for angst (if you couldn't tell from my posts) and this is just amazing!!

Thank you so much for requesting and I hope you enjoy this @kimrena-stuff

--

Mikey X f!reader (fluff with angst)

TW: mentions of death, sadness, blood, violence, canon divergence, alternate timeline

--

The future still wasn't perfect in Takemichi's eyes. Sure, most of the people he tried saving survived but there still was no happy ending for any of them. And once again, Hinata had been killed.

It was confusing him. Surely he had made sure that everything was fixed in the past? What was he missing that could have caused another bad future. The blond had even asked Chifuyu about any events that could be coming up that would cause Mikey to turn out the same as he had every other future. Was it Kisaki? But Kisaki had been fired from Toman.

Chifuyu could not offer much information, after all, he did not know the future and Mikey hadn't declared a war on any other gangs since last time Takemichi had gone back. So there was no luck in that department. Maybe they were both overlooking something small that would be massive in the future?

Takemichi was sort of thankful that he had been called up about the Toman meeting that was happening that night. He could find his answer there, he was sure. After all, each meeting he had gone to so far had provided him with an idea of what was going to happen.

He had arrived at the shrine earlier than most other members. The only ones he really knew that had arrived were Draken, Mitsuya and Chifuyu considering that was who he hitched a ride with. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary except Mikey wasn't with Draken as he usually would be.

Curiosity had gotten the better of the young Toman, he had went to ask Draken where the captain was. Draken simply pointed over to a gathering of trees, explaining that Mikey could usually be found there before meetings start. That seemed to only make the boy's curiosity worse, wondering what Mikey could be doing in the cover of the trees.

He couldn't be meeting up with Kisaki still, could he? Is that why the future was not getting any better? Panic filled Takemichi as he approached the trees. If he was talking with Kisaki then that could be his only chance to stop it and create the perfect future he wanted!

It was as he was getting closer that he heard what he thought was two voices talking quietly. Not quiet enough where it could be considered whispering but enough where Takemichi couldn't make out the words being exchanged. He could tell one of them was definitely Mikey but the other could have been anyone. Had Mikey decided to ally himself with someone even more dangerous than Kisaki was proving to be? After all, nobody in Toman had been able to see Mikey in the future so it could be possible.

Trying his best to hide himself from Mikey, Takemichi peeked his head around to find a sight that made his cheeks flush a dark red. Mikey had both hands against a tree trunk with an absolute hottie between them. At first, it seemed a little alarming for the younger blond until he had noticed the soft smile and blush that dusted your features.

It was only when Mikey leaned down to press a kiss to your lips that Takemichi had felt he was overstaying his welcome. Especially since he wasn't really welcome in the first place. He was simply a creepy peeper at that moment. Why did he keep ending up in these types of moments that made him look like a creep?! First it was with Emma and now he was essentially watching his captain make out with his girlfriend.

"I love you, Mikey." Your voice was breathless from that kiss, your eyes sparkling as they stared into your lover's dark ones. It was obvious to anyone that you were both so in love with each other. Hell, you were sneaking off together at any moment you could find just to be all lovey dovey with each other.

"I love you more, Y/N."

Takemichi had caught that small snippet of your conversation as he was trying to silently walk away. He really didn't want to be caught by the Invincible Mikey staring at the loving exchange after all. But it did get him thinking. Had you ever been mentioned in the future? Surely if you were this in love, you would remain by Mikey's side forever?

The Toman meeting started as it usually did. You would be sat on the stairs while your boyfriend would address the issues related to the gang. Everyone knew who you were, you would always be at the meetings after all unless you had to attend to other business. That would explain why Takemichi hadn't seen you. You must have been attending to other things every meeting that the blond went to. All throughout the meeting, Takemichi could only try and recall if you're present in some way in the future. Surely you would still be hanging around with the same people 12 years later.

He would have to contact Naoto in the future as soon as he could. After all, if there was something big that was going to happen then he would want to find out as soon as he could. And so, as soon as the meeting was finished, he made his way to the Tachibana household to find young Naoto.

"So, how did it go? Were you able to change anything?" That was the first thing Naoto asked once Takemichi had woken up. It was the same routine each time. Naoto would ask if he had changed anything, knowing that it wasn't enough since Hinata was still dead. But maybe if something had changed, they were a little bit closer to finding out what was causing this chain of reactions.

Takemichi shook his head and then dived headfirst into his question. He had asked if you were ever mentioned in one way or another. Maybe if you were still alive, something must have happened between you and Mikey which he could prevent from occurring. Just thinking back on how in love you both were with each other, he was beginning to doubt that it was a simple break up.

It had taken the two males a full hour until your name had popped up in their searches. It really didn't help that Takemichi only knew your first name and that you would hang out with Toman. The news article had filled the computer screen, a photo of you smiling in the top corner of the page. It gave off a vibe that didn't match the contents of the article.

You had been stabbed 15 times in the chest and stomach during a gang brawl between Toman and a gang Takemichi hadn't heard of yet. You were rushed to the hospital but had died before the doctors could reach you. It stated that it was a boy named Manjiro Sano that had brought you in.

It all started to make sense now. You had been caught up in the brawl and had sustained injuries that had ended your life. So Mikey had lost himself when you had died in his arms as he tried his best to save you.

Takemichi checked the date on which you had died. 2 days from today. Why wasn't this brawl mentioned at the Toman meeting?! Did Mikey keep it a secret or was it a spontaneous confrontation? Takemichi could only guess it was the second option. Especially since the brawl would take place at Toman's meeting spot at the shrine.

"I need to save Y/N from dying. That is what we were missing! If she survives, Mikey won't lose another piece of himself." And with that, the handshake that activated the time leaping had taken place.

Takemichi had explained his plan to Chifuyu. Explained how there would be a brawl the next day at the shrine and how that is possibly the trigger for the bad futures. After all, Mikey might stay sane with you by his side. Chifuyu couldn't believe what he was hearing. A gang would have the balls to enter the meeting place of Toman just to start a fight? They must either hold a huge grudge against them or were just plain insane. No gang was to ever enter another gang's meeting spot as it was seen as sacred.

The blond had vowed that he would do anything he could to protect you from harm and ultimately save Mikey from his dark future. Even if he had to glue himself to your side, he would make sure nothing happened to you. He would make up for the time he had failed to save Baji.

You and Mikey continued with your routine. Enter the tree clearing and spend some quality time together. You both exchanged kisses, splitting the dorayaki you would keep on you for your boyfriend, and joking around. Everything a couple in love should do.

The day of the brawl had arrived and so had the rival gang. It was in the middle of Mikey addressing his gang that the opponent's had arrived. The shock was quickly erased as the fighting began. Mikey had made sure you stayed close behind him so he could keep you safe, even though you could fight. Maybe not as well as most of the Toman members but you were capable of keeping yourself safe.

Takemichi scanned the entire shrine area in search of you. Relief had briefly enveloped the middle schooler. After all, if Mikey was with you, nobody could touch you. Or that's what everyone had thought. You had been separated from Mikey as soon as the gang members discovered you were cared for deeply by him. They had thought that if they got you, they could win the fight.

It was if the world was entering slow motion. Takemichi tried to push his way to where you were being dragged, the determination to save everyone being his main driving force. Mikey had yet to notice you were no longer behind him, too focused on taking out the leader and winning the brawl so he could take you home where you would be safe. However, that plan was quickly becoming less likely.

"Shit! Move out of my way!" Takemichi had panic pumping throughout his veins. If he couldn't get to you in time, there was no second chance. It was times like this that made him realise just how human he was. He was one boy, not a God. He could only do so much. But he was sure as hell gonna try and save you.

"Y/N!" Takemichi's voice carried across the entirety of the battlefield. So much so that everyone had frozen, especially Mikey. He turned his gaze to behind him where he thought you were only to find you were missing. Frantic, his dark eyes scanned the area until they rested on you being held against your will. The boy who held you had his arm across your neck, squeezing so you couldn't call out to your boyfriend. However, it was the knife that he pointed to your chest that had Mikey scared.

Takemichi was the only person who didn't freeze, pushing his way past the bodies that stood like statues. He could make it! He could save everyone with this one action! He was convinced that this was why Mikey had given into his dark impulses and why no-one could get their happily ever afters.

He was too late. The knife had pierced through your chest, narrowly missing any vital organs. This had seemed to spur the younger blond to increase his speed, trying to keep in mind that you could survive if he kept the stabs to a minimum. After all, the news article had explained how you had been stabbed 15 times. One was fixable. One he could deal with.

Mikey couldn't seem to move. His love had been stabbed. For no other reason than they were there and sticking by him. This wasn't fair. You had nothing to do with what the problem was and you shouldn't be paying the price for it either.

It felt like an eternity for Takemichi to reach where you were. His legs were screaming at him to stop and his heart was beating a million miles a minute. In the time it took him to get to you, you had sustained another two stabs in your stomach and chest. The person doing it was nothing short of a monster. He didn't care that you were innocent or that you were a girl. He just continued his mission.

The sound of skin to skin contact echoed, a sickening crack following along. Takemichi had landed the hardest punch he could muster against the side profile of the monster. The crack was the jaw breaking underneath the force. You were released as the perpetrator stumbled backwards, falling as he lost consciousness. Takemichi had made it but he wasn't confident that it was in time. He couldn't help but watch as you smiled and fell sideways. Fueled simply by the adrenaline, he had carefully picked you up in his arms before starting his journey to the hospital.

Draken had been the one to snap Mikey out of his daze, telling him to get his bike. There was no way that Takemichi would get there in time if he was simply thinking of running. And so that's what Mikey did. He fired up his precious bike, ordering the young blond to climb onto the back before speeding his way to the closest medical facility.

Due to all of this, you had survived. Takemichi had succeeded in saving you and thus saving Mikey. There was a possibility that the future would be good this time.

Once he had heard you were alive and doing well, Mikey had finally let himself react. Tears fell one after the other down his cheeks and relief had lifted his heart. He wouldn't lose you. You were alive because of Takemitchy. That is something Mikey couldn't thank the younger blond enough for. He had saved your life when Mikey could do nothing but watch.

Everyone expressed their gratitude for Takemichi. After all, they couldn't imagine what Mikey would turn out like if he had lost you during that fight. Takemichi had an idea but wasn't about to spill what the future he knew was like. Speaking of which, he did wonder how this had affected his future. Would everyone finally have their happy endings? He sure did hope so.

As soon as Naoto had shook his hand, Takemichi had found himself sitting at a table with a can of beer in his hand. Confused on what was going on, he glanced around at his surroundings. He was currently in a home that looked nothing like his apartment. Photos of a couple he vaguely recognised littered the walls, there was the scent of takeout wafting in the air, and the noise was loud yet joyful.

A few days later, Takemichi decided to head back to where he belonged. 12 years in the future. You had been discharged from the hospital and probably on a date with Mikey as he approached the Tachibana residence. Thinking about it, Mikey had seemed to brighten up more ever since you had been allowed out of the hospital. Takemichi laughed as he recalled Mikey buried under a large bouquet of your favourite flowers and a giant plushie of your favourite animal on that day. You had simply laughed before peppering the Toman leader's face in kisses. You had also planted a peck on the younger boy's cheek as a sign of how grateful you were to him. After all, if Takemichi hadn't done any of that, you wouldn't be able to spend anymore time with Mikey. You owed him your life.

That's when Takemichi realised he had done it. Hinata was chatting happily with Yuzuha and Hakkai about their experiences in Europe; Mitsuya, Smiley and Angry were laughing about some inside joke no-one knew about; Pah-chin and Peh-yan were discussing business relating to the real estate agency; Kazutora and Inui were drinking in the corner, simply observing the festivities; and Draken was chatting away happily to Mikey, his arm around Emma's waist as she tried to soothe their baby. Takemichi had saved them all. They were all OK. Most of all, Hinata was alive.

"Anyone needing any refills?" your voice trailed in from where you stood in the doorway connecting the living room and kitchen. You looked almost the same except for a few features. Takemichi knew at that moment that this was the perfect future for everyone, especially when Hinata had come over and kissed his cheek. The discussion around the room had suddenly become one as everyone spoke about the upcoming weddings between you and Mikey as well as the one between Takemichi and Hinata. For the first time in a long time, Takemichi could let go of the weight he had carried around and enjoy his life with his friends and his fiancé.

[bangtan-madi]

All Of Our Lifetimes — Eight: Camera Shutter

Pairing — Taehyung x Reader

Tags — boyfriend!Taehyung, husband!Taehyung reincarnation au, lovers to strangers and to lovers again, established relationship, implied soulmate au

Genre — fluff, angst, crime (ish)

Word Count — 4.2k

Summary — Does love ever truly end, or does it simply take another form in a new life? The cycle is like clockwork: your lives end and you’re reborn again. You’ve lived it over and over. Each cycle, one of you loses your memories and is tragically unaware until the other finds and awakens their lover. After all these eons, all these lifetimes, is it possible to find each other again—even when neither of you awakens with your memories? 

Part — 8 / 15

Warnings — language, stalking

Previous — Next

The first item in the box a plastic bag. From the label of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on the surface, the Korean Eagle's wings spread over the mugunghwa flower, you sense that this item is from the very end of the story. The inside is full of clothing articles. Even without opening it, you see a suede trench coat, a dark sweater, and a purple scarf. Another bag has a pair of men's boots, dark slacks, and a button-down dress shirt. All of the items are covered in blood.

Taehyung takes the other bag, the one with the men's clothing, and closely inspects the label on the surface. Your eyes remain intent on the lavender scarf. Something about the item causes your heart to ache, and you replay your nightmare over in your mind in an attempt to identify it.

"Look here," he murmurs, pointing to one of the lines on the plastic. Glancing over, you see that a name is scribbled on the surface.

His name.

You should be shocked, but at this point, the number of odd coincidences that have come up the border on the insane. Instead, your gaze shifts to the bag in your lap. In your heart, you already know what name you'll see. The other Taehyung didn't reveal his wife's name in his portraits; he only referred to her as the sunlight through the rain.

Kim [Y/n].

Taehyung glances at the name, tilting his head slightly in the process. Heaving a sigh, he glances up to you. "I guess that settles it, then?"

You push the crime scene bag further away on the table, motioning for the box instead. "Let's keep going."

Between the two of you, the rest of the contents of the box are divided and browsed through in less than a half-hour. The box has everything from personal items to jewelry to documents and all sorts of things in between. It's surprisingly little for what Ms. Jwa stated it was, the entirety of Taehyung and [Y/n]'s life. 

Like everything in Seoul, there's a familiarity that envelopes you. It's more than just that, though. You feel as if these things belong to you. In some strange way, you feel like you've caught a little piece of home. As bizarre as it is, with Taehyung beside you and these belongings strewn across the table, you feel a sense of peace wash over you. 

Peace and closure.

Closer to the bottom, you find a handful of items that appear much older than the 80s and 90s memorabilia. A silver hairpin with an intricate swan on one end and a key-like appearance at the other, a series of handwritten notes dated around the time of the Korean War, and a pair of tiny shoes that look like they once belonged to a small child. The bottom of the shoes have the inscription of the name Kim Sung-ki, and the dates 1905 — 1909. Surely, these items couldn't have been the Kim's. Maybe they belonged to their parents or grandparents?

As you're occupied with the tiny, children's shoes, Taehyung retrieved the last item from the very bottom of the crate. It's a smaller, metal box sealed with a lock. The brunet looks around for a key, mumbling to himself under his breath.

You shake your head slightly and place the shoes to the side. "Here," you reply, picking up the oddly-shaped hairpin and offering it to Taehyung. "Try this? It looks sorta like a key at the smaller end, doesn't it?"

He tilts his head, eyes glancing over the item in your hand before he takes it. He places the pin into the lock, gives it a slight turn, and watches in awe as the lock pops open.

The silence continues as Taehyung removes the metal lid. Inside, you see two distinct items: a photobook and a film reel. Reaching first for the photobook, you scoot your bench closer to Taehyung's so that you can both peer inside at the same time.

The first page says that the book belongs to Kim Taehyung. It gives his address, an apartment not far from where you are now, and his contact information at work, aka the Museum you're under right now. The second page gives the first date, only the year of 1975. The handful of pages that follow are filled with polaroid photographs. Some blurry and out of focus, but always of the beauties of daily life. There are even one or two of Kim Taehyung himself.

The man in 1975 is young, probably not even twenty. Despite the different era, it's clear to both of you that he's the same man as the one sitting beside you. 

Half of the photobook is more of the same, covering the latter part of the 70s and most of the 80s. Daegu and the Korean countryside seem to have been his home for most of his childhood, teenage years, and early twenties. His art has a veil of innocence and peace about it. 

As the years progress, Kim Taehyung's photography skills become more refined and his camera quality improves. The digital era of the early 90s is when you truly see him start to take off. From 1985 onward, there are images of downtown Seoul; he must have moved sometime in that year. A plethora of urban photographs follow, as well as images of his work for the Museum.

In 1994, the images slowly shift from everyday life and scenic landscapes to a woman. Pieces of her are everywhere this year. Like the Museum, this private gallery has mostly aesthetic snapshots that make it hard to tell who she is. However, every few pages, there's a full portrait of this person, this woman who's caught Kim Taehyung's attention.

And she is you.

The last photograph is once again a polaroid. It's of Kim Taehyung and Kim [Y/n] sharing their first Christmas together. Snow flurries everywhere around Taehyung as he struggles to hang the lights on the small apartment window. His face is hidden by a familiar purple scarf, and it's turned in the direction of the camera. A hand adorned with a wedding band reaches out to him.

"Is this the person you've seen in your dreams?" Taehyung inquires, pointing a slender finger towards the last image.

Biting your lower lip, you nod once. "That's him, exactly like that."

Taehyung glances at you, dark eyes focusing intently on your face. "I don't think there's any denying it anymore. Too many things have added up. The timeline, the appearances, your dream...even finding each other in Seoul, at the Museum of all places, no one can convince me those are all coincidences."

"So...what does that mean?"

Your companion flips the pages back to the clearest portrait of the other Kim Taehyung and Kim [Y/n]. "I think—I know that in another lifetime, you and I were these two people." There's a pause as he takes a deep breath, nervousness filling his baritone voice. "What about you? What do you believe?"

Despite your shaking hands and quiet voice, you clear your throat and muster the courage to turn and return his gaze. "I've known you my entire life—and I think before it, too—so this feels more like a confirmation than a discovery."

Taehyung's hand flinches, and for a second you think he's going to reach for yours, but he pulls away and diverts his attention to the photobook. "Where does that leave us?"

"Maybe...Maybe we can see what's on the film? Maybe the Kims left us answers."

The brunet hops up from his seat, hair hiding his face as he pulls the reel from the metal box. "There's no projector. Do you think the Curator has one somewhere around here?"

Following his lead, you go back to the cabinets in search of the device. Finding nothing in any of them, you venture back into the warehouse. In the back, next to the cases of historical films, you find exactly what you're looking for. A huge grin spreads across your face as you trudge back to Taehyung, the surprisingly heavy device in your arms. 

"Will this—oof—ah shit, don't fall! Will this work?"

Taehyung chuckles as you try to balance the item in your arms, haphazardly trying to keep it from falling. "That's perfect." He quickly takes it from your grasp. "So long as you don't drop it."

Heat rises in your face, and you pat your chilly palms against your cheeks as Taehyung sets up the device. 

"Hit the lights," he asks over his shoulder as he places the reel onto the side of the projector. 

As darkness descends, the gears begin to turn. Images flicker to life, grainy and dim against the empty wall. Taehyung sits cross-legged on the floor, and you join him. The tiny date stamp in the corner marks December 8, 1993, 12:01 A.M.

A woman sits in front of the camera. Though the area around her is hardly lit, there's an obvious ambiance of a hotel room. There are two beds, and she sits on the one nearest to the large window. Travel guides are strewn across the bed, along with a small suitcase and purple scarf.

The lone figure appears to be distressed; her hair is in disarray and her clothes are rumpled. The bags under her eyes show her exhaustion, and the way the room is hardly set up tells that she's only just arrived. She bites her lower lip in anticipation, a small smile crossing her face as she stares ahead into the camera. 

There's no possibility that anyone could miss the resemblance between you two. Her hair is styled in a typical 90s fashion, and her clothes would now be considered retro, but the face is the same. Even if a bit more aged.

"I made it to Seoul," she sighs. "Finally."

Her voice even sounds like yours. It has an American lilt that's unmistakable.

"Shit, what timezone am I in? What time is it?" She glances down at her watch, which is no help due to travel. With an eyeroll, she turns her head towards an unseen clock on a nearby wall. "And it's my birthday. Happy birthday to meee." Though she draws out the last word sillily, her voice is quiet and disparate. 

"I'm thirty-seven today. Thirty-seven." The other [Y/n] stares up at the ceiling for a moment. "I don't know why I'm making this now. I just...turned on the camera and hoped for the best, I guess?" She turns back towards the camera. "I wanted—I was hoping to document my search in Korea. Going to Europe, to France, that did nothing. He wasn't there...he never is...but damn it. I was hoping something would be different this time around. And getting into South Korea was near impossible, and I'm only here for a few weeks at a time due to my job..." She trails off, then pats her cheeks in an attempt to get her to focus.

"I'm not making any sense. Let me start over." As she straightens, [Y/n] takes a deep breath. "I'm making this mostly for the one that comes after me. This means if you're watching this, then I've already died." A sad smile tugs at her lips. "Not a fun thought, but that's reincarnation for you. I wanted to film this lifetime as much as possible so that the next time around, you don't have to wait so damn long to find each other. Next time, it can be faster. Next time, you won't waste all these years looking for each other."

She adjusts her position on the bed as she continues. "Every time Taehyung and I die, we're reborn into new bodies and new lives. It's been this way for centuries, but I'll get into the origins and the why's later. For now, all you need to know is that when you—when we die, that's not the end. Never is for us. I don't know about others.

"The next thing you need to know is that it's never as easy as retaining your memories. When you're reborn, you forget everything. All about your previous life, all the lives you had before, they're all gone. That is, until one of you turns twenty-one. That day is special for reasons I won't go into; just trust me on this one.

"Every other lifetime, one of you will remember at age twenty-one. Taehyung and I have alternated this story for lifetime upon lifetime. Last time, he was the one that woke up and found me. He had to get me to remember who I was, who he was, who we were, and everything after that. Once you find each other, the memories will start to come back. Given time and self-discovery, you will both remember. And no, it's nothing as cliche as true love's kiss or some bullshit like that."

She laughs softly, and shakes her head. "Taehyung found me last time, so this time it's my turn. I got some of my memories back when I turned twenty-one, and they've been showing up in dreams ever since. Slow at first, always the same one—the events that led up to my death—and then they started piling up. I knew I had to find him; he won't reawaken without me. And if one of us dies without remembering?" She shivers at the thought. "I don't know what might happen. Will that break the cycle? What happens if we both die at the same time? I don't have those answers. All I know is that once I had a name a little over two years ago, I've searched the world far and wide. South Korea is the only place left to look. I have plans to get to Daegu one of these days, and Seoul is massive, but things are still tricky here so I can only stay for small spurts."

There's a long pause where she stares out the dark window, shoulders sagging and eyes downcast. "I have a name now. I can feel him so close. Everything about Seoul is terrifyingly familiar. He has to be here. He has to be. Otherwise..."

The camera turns black, and the film reel keeps rolling. New images appear, B-roll from [Y/n]'s travels around Seoul. The city in its late 20th Century splendor is a welcome sight.

The next lengthy shot is of [Y/n]. She's turned the camera towards herself, an awkward angle on such an old device. "I looked for two weeks. Didn't really come up with anything, but I'll be back next month. Maybe the new year will do me good." She forces a smile, and the camera turns towards Incheon International Airport. "Cheers to 1994."

The projector ticks on, and a black screen flashes before the next shot. The timestamp says January 15, 1994, 3:34 p.m. [Y/n] sits on the balcony of the same hotel. She turns the camera around to view the city before settling it on the table to film herself.

"I've decided to move to Seoul," she announces. "Quit my job last week. I'll be moving here permanently once my visa is approved. There's a much better chance of finding him if I stay for longer than a few days." She wags her finger in the direction of the camera. "Kim Taehyung, if you're watching this, you're damn near impossible to find. Maybe try making yourself easier to find next time?"

Both she and you give a small chuckle at the same time. Easier? That he most certainly did. 

The montage that follows is of the Seoul Museum of Art—the exterior, the interior, and the people. From behind the camera, [Y/n] says, "This view might be familiar to you next time. I got a job as a curator. Finally, a way to put my art degree to good use!"

Cut to a week later. [Y/n] records from a new location, one you assume is her new home in Seoul. Her face is drained of color, and her eyes are wide and watery. She stares ahead, not focusing on anything in particular, letting a small laugh slip out. 

"I...I finally found him. T—Taehyung. Holy shit, I can't believe it. After all these years, of all the places he could've been, he's been under my nose this whole time." 

Shaking her head, she tries to get a semblance of focus back. "Sorry, I'm not making sense. Taehyung's a curator and artist at the Museum I started working at yesterday. I didn't meet him my first day because he was out, but when he came in today, I just about collapsed. I couldn't believe it. I still can't."

A tear slips from her eye, and she wipes it away quickly with the back of her hand. A smile spreads across her face, one of relief and joy and peace. "He doesn't remember me, but that's okay. I didn't expect him to. That'll come in time. At least...At least I have him back. The rest can work itself out."

The clips that follow are sporadic and unplanned. Clips of [Y/n] and her companion at the Museum, at cafes, on the streets of Seoul. You never quite see either of their faces, but from the voice, you know it has to be Taehyung. From the laughter and flirty-aura around the various conversations, you realize that these videos—which span the time from winter to spring—are the months that they fell in love.

Towards the end of the last small clip in the montage, [Y/n] is filming the skyline from her apartment. The night is dark, but the buildings twinkle like stars. "Look how stunning Seoul is," she murmurs.

A voice from behind her says, "Not as stunning as you, Jagi."

[Y/n] gives a hearty laugh. "If you keep saying cheesy things like that, I might just film you."

"Against my will?" Taehyung gasps playfully.

His companion turns the camera towards the interior of the apartment. Reclining in the chair across the space, Taehyung holds a book in one hand. His attention is split between it and the camera. 

Once again, you're taken aback by the resemblance between both this person and your dreams, as well as with the man sitting silently beside you. Glancing sideways, you look at Taehyung for the first time since the projector came to life. He hasn't uttered a word, and his dark orbs are glued to the wall.

"You say you hate being filmed, but you're too pretty not to, Tae."

"I'm an artist. I prefer being behind the camera."

"But you're art, too!"

Taehyung scoffs, shaking his head as his gaze evades the camera. 

Another cut to black, then [Y/n] appears again. It's a month after the previous scene, and she breathes a heavy sigh from her usual spot in front of the camera.

"I told him everything," she murmurs, running a hand through her hair. "I don't think he believes me. He's remembering some things, I can tell that much, but he's still not quite there. It might take time, but I—I don't want to lose him between now and then." She shakes her head and lowers her face into her hands. "Did I speak too soon?"

Another pair of scenic shots later, and [Y/n] is all smiles again. The date is  June 21, 1994, 11:10 a.m. "Taehyung remembered something big," she states with joy. "He told me he's been having dreams of his past life, and he's seen me in them. The longer we're together, the more he's remembering. He says he's been putting things together since we met but that he didn't want to believe it. I think everything's going to be okay!"

The projector continues to roll. When you glance back at it, you see the film roll is more than halfway done. Nervousness fills your stomach. The summer of 1994 was the last your previous life had. Every filmed moment that passes only brings you closer to that death.

"At first, these films were to create a shortcut for my next self," [Y/n] states with a grim demeanor. The date is July 2, 1994, 11:23 p.m. "But now I think I need to film this because I want to preserve this life, this love. It's been over six months since I met Tae, and we started dating shortly after that. It's been the greatest half-year of this lifetime, but I'm terrified it's all going to come to an end."

She clears her throat and shifts her eyes away from the camera. "There was an incident at the Museum yesterday evening. A guy showed up with a knife. I don't know how he got it through security, but he went to Taehyung's office and threatened him, screaming something about the order of things and how off-balanced the universe was. I wasn't there. I didn't see it, but Tae looked shaken. He's tried to hide it, but I'm too good at reading him. He's sleeping here, at my place, for now. Just to be sure. I had to hold him to get him to sleep."

She glances back at the door behind her, one you assume leads to the bedroom where Taehyung slumbers. "It was such a great day up until that happened. We went out, Taehyung only had to run by the Museum to grab something, and..." She sighs, then holds up her left hand. There's a glittery addition to her ring finger. "It was the best day."

The next several minutes show a montage of scenes. A rehearsal. A wedding. A dance. A view of Paris from the air. A pair of newly-weds exploring the city that they both remember from lifetimes ago. For a moment, there's an aura of pure joy and happiness and hope.

Then the shot changes. The camera shakes in [Y/n]'s hands as she aims it towards the window of the Parisian apartment. From the second story, the silhouette of a man can barely be seen. He stands across the street, clothed in darkness, veiled in an ominous aura. Between the shaking hands and pitch-black darkness, you can't quite make out his face.

You don't need to. You know exactly who that man is.

And from the way Taehyung draws in a sharp breath, you sense he's starting to put things together as well.

"Get away from the window, [Y/n]," the other Taehyung whispers from a place behind the camera.

"He can't see me," she retorts, voice trembling. "I wanna get him on camera."

The man walks away, heading in the direction opposite the apartment, and [Y/n] drops the camera onto the nearest table. It doesn't turn off, continuing to film as the woman stumbles into her husband's arms. Her breathing is erratic as she buries her face into his shoulder. 

"He—He followed us to France," you murmur into his sleep shirt. "Why does he always find us? W—Why does he keep showing up all the damn time, and why us? Why you? Why—Oh, god."

Taehyung holds her tight, pressing constant butterfly kisses against her hair. "Shhh, love. You've gotta calm down. Just breathe. I got you." To put emphasis on his words, he clasps one hand on the small of her back while the other tangles in her hair. "You're safe; we're safe. He's gone. You're safe."

"Are we? Are we really, Tae? He could've killed you in June. He's been shadowing us for months. I never thought he'd follow us on our honeymoon, but he—shit, he was right outside!"

"I won't let anything happen to you," he reassures in a soft timbre. "Neither of us."

"You can't promise that," she whimpers, clutching him tighter. "Time has told me that. What happens if he finds you again? Or worse, what if he finds us both? What happens if we both die at the same time, Tae? Would—Would that be the end?"

A remorseful expression crosses Taehyung's face, but he quickly hides it as to not risk his wife seeing it. "I know I don't have all the answers. There's still a lot I don't remember, but I know this: I will protect you. My memory is getting stronger every day. I love you and it feels like we wasted so much time already, trying to find each other in a world that feels too big. And me putting up such a fight against the whole idea of past lives. We got through all of that. I won't lose you now. Not ever. Not in this life or the next. You hear me?"

[Y/n] offers a small nod as she pulls away slightly. Her eyes evade his, but when he cups her face in his hands, their gazes meet. Taehyung offers her a small smile, and she returns it. 

"I love you, too," she murmurs. 

Taehyung brushes his thumbs across her cheeks as his grin widens into a signature boxy smile. "That's my girl." Another kiss to the forehead, and he nods to the dresser. "Grab your things. We're leaving for the airport."

You hear a clicking as the last frame freezes. Both you and Taehyung look over your shoulders, seeing the film reel spinning to its end. He hops up to stop the machine, and the last picture disappears from the wall.

Taglist — @just-call-me-trash-can​​, @jaienn​​​, @happyhrsme​​, @butaes​​, @peter-pan​, @twoteen-yup​, @dreamcatcherjiah

[gh0stiegirlie]

Synopsis: You have been a pro-hero for the past three years, and a damn good one too (although, you don’t think so). When you and Ground Zero are assigned on a stakeout case together to capture a member of the Dark Akumu, which is currently Musutafu's most threatening Villain League, it changes the entire course of your career-- and your life.  

Length : 2.2k words

<- pt. 1                                                                                                  pt. 3 ->

You wake up. Go upstairs. You shower, do your morning skincare, brush your teeth. You go downstairs. Turn on the stove. Crack an egg, scramble the egg and eat the egg. The same as always.

 Except today, you have something special to look forward to. Something intriguing. Something exciting. Something new!

Your research on Ground Zero last night issued expected results; Bakugou is the same imprudent idiot he’s always been. In a way, it’s comforting, because you know what to expect. But how has he reached the list of top ten heroes with his hasty mannerisms? How will he climb up on that list, let alone remain on it? 

You spend the rest of your day checking out your fellow 3-A classmate’s careers. Unsurprisingly, Izuku is currently the number five hero with a heart of gold. Uraraka isn’t in the top ten, but she’s quickly rising to the top fifty. Considering she’s only twenty, that’s a feat. He and Uraraka finally admitted their feelings (you laugh at the image of how awkward it must have been for the two of them. They’ve never been the type to confront and thoroughly manage their emotions) and have been dating for two years, which is adorable. Todorki is approaching the top twenty, with Yaoyurozo, Kirishima, and Kaminari not far behind. Tsuyu is only within the top one hundred, which is discouraging; You know she holds more power than that. But being a hero at sea, she doesn’t receive much notoriety for her deeds. 

At 2:30 you’re on your way to the station, your stomach craving the promised spicy food. When you arrive, the station is flooded with civilians. As to not accidentally poison someone, you throw on a hoodie over your shirt and zip up a sweatshirt over that. You squeeze a pair of sweatpants over your leggings, pull up your hood, and walk into the building.

You move with the current of the crowd, though try avoiding contact with anyone by yelling "excuse me," and "sorry!" with every move you make. It’s a relief when you finally reach the conference room at 2:55, feeling comfortable enough to shimmy out of your sweatpants and take off your sweatshirt. 

 “Y/n! You sure found this place easily through that crowd,” Chief Sheriff Chie notes.

“I followed the scent of this sweet, spicy wasabi.” You eagerly grab a plate of sushi and promptly dip it into a small Wasabi bowl. After taking a satisfying bite, you look back up to Chie. “I’m surprised I made it through there and survived to tell the tale. Why is it so crowded?” You ask before shoving more sushi in your mouth.

“Did you not see the news last night?” she questions, and you shake your head. “Another Dark Akumu attack followed with multiple instances of robberies and looting all over the city.” Chie runs a hand through her thinning hair. Her undereye bags darken and her wrinkles grow more defined with every day that passes. “This is why we need your help, Ether. And Ground Zero--”

Chie is cut off by a crash of the door slamming open. You turn around, and there he is.

 Ground Zero. Katsuki Bakugou. 

A piece of fish slips out of your gawking mouth, though you quickly pick it up and shove it back in. Ground Zero completely disregards your presence, preferring to take the seat five chairs away from you that's closest to the food. He aggressively grabs a cup of donburi and sprinkles on shichimi togarashi, his biceps subtly flexing with every movement. He leans back into his chair, throws his feet up on the table and sighs dramatically.

“Let’s get this shit over with so I can kick some supervillain ass,” he grumbles before shoving chopsticks of rice in his mouth. Both you and Chie gawk at Ground Zero before meeting eyes with a gulp. Then you take another bite of your sushi as Chie starts the presentation.

She finishes rehashing the information she discussed with both of you yesterday in about a half-hour, which is enough time for you and Ground Zero to devour your meals.

“Now, the goal is for you to capture Youkai. Don’t bother with the other criminal; The Dark Akumu is our top priority. We don’t know when the deal is going to take place, but we do know where.” She clicks her remote, and a picture of the infamously beautiful forest in your area appears; The forest where you and the rest of class 3-A experienced your second villain attack, back when you were class 1-A. “A clearing in the Beasts forest.” 

“You two will stakeout until the villains arrive. When you capture Youkai, call me and I’ll immediately alert the police force. Your time starts,” the Sheriff looks at the clock. 4:45. She stares at the two of you with a wide grin that’s hungry for justice. “Now.” 

Ground Zero immediately stomps out the door, leaving his mess for you to clean up. Once everything is thrown out and you’ve grabbed your sweatshirt and sweatpants, Chie pulls you to the side. 

“You’re an amazing hero, Y/n. And the two will make an amazing team. Don’t doubt yourself, and don’t let emotion cloud your judgment. You can do this.” 

When you catch up with Ground Zero he’s leaning against his expensive-ass car, twirling his keys around his pointer finger. Before you so much as open your mouth, he announces you’ll be taking his car. Though you don’t object, as it’s very spacious, making it more than suitable for a nightlong stakeout.

When you climb in shotgun you close the door as gently as you can, as to not piss off the walking bomb you're being forced in a car with for several hours. At the same time, Ground Zero shuts the door with a slam that rattles the entire car. He keeps the radio off but turns on the AC to create white noise. Although, the monotonous buzzing drives you insane. 

“Can we turn on the radio or something?!” You moan after only ten minutes into the thirty-minute car ride. Ground Zero shakes his head. You groan and turn to face him.“Please! We have all night to silently bask in the AC, we can at least have some fun now.” He rolls his eyes and picks up his phone to start typing. 1“No texting and driving, Mr. hero.” You tease. He ignores you and passes you his phone with Spotify already open. 

“Fine. But my car, my music.” You could live with those terms. “Put on Together PANGEA.”

You type in his band selection and press play before putting the phone in a cup holder. You reluctantly lean deep into your car seat, getting comfortable without letting your guard down. 

You expect Ground Zero to be into headbanging, rave rockstar type shit. But surprisingly, you enjoy his indie punk selection. You smile and wiggle your shoulders a bit to the rhythm, and when the song ends, another by the same band follows. You giggle when you notice Ground Zero tapping his fingers against the car wheel to the beat. 

You rest your head on the window and gaze into the sunset. Maybe if you and Ground Zero weren’t so rigid and awkward, maybe if you were normal people (or possibly a normal couple), you would enjoy a sunset like this together. 

When you arrive at the forest, the car creeps between trees until it reaches a hidden area outside the clearing. At 5:15 Ground Zero brings his car to a halt and turns it off. Music, AC, and all. 

The two of you sit in silence for an uncomfortable amount of time. Ground Zero pushes his seat into a lying position and kicks his feet up on the dashboard, engrossed in his phone, while you stiffly remain in your seat beside him. This is the most intimate you have ever been with him. While six years ago you would’ve loved this and taken advantage of it, currently you’re fidgeting with the door handle and staring blankly at your phone. After a few more minutes of this, you decide to put your layers back on. You zip up your sweatshirt and slide on your sweatpants. Though with the AC off, you quickly grow hot. Ground Zero notices the perspiration dripping down your chiseled cheeks and looks at you for the first time in years. 

“You don’t have to keep all those layers on, you know. I can handle your quirk,” he comments, flicking his attention between you and his phone. 

You don’t look at him, instead choosing to focus on wrapping your sweatpants string around your finger. “I don’t want to take any risks. I’ve involuntarily hurt people before.” 

“I secret nitroglycerin sweat, Y/n. I can inhale some of your gas.” he retorts before he pauses. When he realizes what this really is about, he sets down his phone. “Plus, that nerd Deku’s forgiven you by now. And long forgotten about it.”

This is when you turn to Ground Zero in shock. He… remembers that?

“You were so wrapped up in wishing death upon everyone in the class I’m surprised you even remember that.” You admit. You mean for it to come off harsh, but a faint snicker escapes your lips. Ground Zero did spend a lot of time threatening to kill Deku and several other classmates. But he was just being dramatic. (Hopefully) 

He laughs menacingly, which you guess is the only way he knows how. Honestly, you’re not sure if he feels any other emotion other than passionate violence. “How could I forget? That all-powerful loser was stuck smooching with recovery girl for a week! I was mad I didn’t do that.”

You gasp, pushing yourself to the edge of the car seat to distance yourself from him. “Why would you want to do that? He was in a coma!” You clear your throat after taking a deep breath. “I put my friend in a coma.” You wrap your arms tightly around yourself to suppress a shutter from the memory. “Because I couldn’t control my quirk.”

“Oh, cut it with the emo crap,” he growls. “Your quirk is strong and he couldn’t handle it. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Because of my quirk, toxins are constantly leaking out of my body. For combat, I can concentrate the mass of the fumes into certain areas, but no matter what, they’re always oozing into the air. Everywhere.”  You stare at your hands, watching them steadily emit a nearly imperceptible gas. But you know it’s there; You know its harmful. You force your hands into fists, keeping the fumes entrapped in your clutches. “I have to protect others from myself. I’m toxic. I can’t hurt another innocent person.” You look up at Ground Zeroes' blurring body. Within seconds, all you can make out is the outline of his grenade gauntlets and signature spiky hair. That’s when you realize you’re tearing up. 

“Y/n--” he reaches out to you, but you slap his hand away. 

“It’s Ether, Ground Zero. Ether.” You snap, blinking away the tears before they dare spill from your eyes.

All of high school, he never so much as noticed you outside calling you an “extra”. And now he finally wants to address you by your name, like you’re friends. Like he ever treated you with an ounce of damn respect. 

No. He’ll call you by your hero name. So he’ll be forced him to refer to you as an equal. He’ll never call you Y/n. Not until he proves he won’t hurt you again; Which he won’t, because this is Bakugou you’re talking about. 

“What’s your problem, shitty breath?” he mocks. Even though that was just the cruel nickname he gave you in highschool, you blow into your hand and sniff in the air. Your breath smells fine.

“Who are you calling shitty breath, hothead?! It’s not even clever!” You bicker. “I’m a pro-hero now. We’re not at U.A anymore; You can’t call me shitty names and get away with it.” You squint your eyes at the ‘hero’ and cross your arms. “I won’t let you.” 

“Oh, you won’t?” A smirk spreads across his face, and you refuse to let him see how startled you are. Another perk of being a hero; You know when to put on a mask, and how to keep up that facade. “How do you plan on stopping me?” He places his hands behind his head and closes his eyes, maintaining relaxed, poised body language. “If I remember right, you were never able to beat me back at U.A. What makes you think you can now?” When he opens his eyes, fire dances within them. And that’s when you finally understand. Bakugou has learned to control his demeanor to appear composed and carefree. But on the inside, he’s the violently spirited fighter you’ve always known him to be. 

Embers that haven’t so much as sparked in a while ignite within you. You quirk an eyebrow.

“Are you challenging me, Bakugou?” You haven’t used his name in so long, and you love the way it feels on your lips.

Bakugou's smirk morphs into a shit-eating grin, but the determination in his eyes frightens you.He’s relentless, and he’ll fight until you drop if it means he wins. And you know its his unbreakable determination that will fuel him till the end. 

But you’re ambitious too. Your brain says you can’t beat him, but your heart encourages you to try. 

When Ground Zero gets out of the car, you follow. 

You won't let him treat you like shit without standing up for yourself.

Never again. 

[anika-ann]

Heart Too Cold, but Friends of Gold - Pt.10

Alone Is What I Have

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader     Word count: 2200

Summary: Avenger!reader AU. Part 2 of Melting Hearts series. Part 1 HERE.

Snowflake is hiding. And she’s good at it. Also, reportes suck (at least in this story and chapter)

Warnings: swearing, light angst,… eh

Story Masterlist

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Alone is what I have, alone protects me. (BBC’s Sherlock Holmes) …And what more, alone protects the people I care about the most.

Prague was an interesting city. You supposed it was not too much different from other European cities, the old buildings and a breath of history on every other corner meeting the modern steel and technology of today, but there was just some kind of an aura that got to you. The system of public transportation had been a bit confusing at first, but allowed countless different ways of getting where you needed, which also meant many different escape routes – you still were a pragmatic. And you liked it here.

What you not necessarily liked, but definitely appreciated for its convenience, was the anonymity and the nature of Czech people – it took them a lot of time to warm up to someone, no matter how warm-hearted they could become once they let someone in.

In the streets of Prague, you could easily recognize Praguer from a foreigner; unlike the foreigners, the habitants of Czech capital had developed an amazing ability of looking around and not seeing. They would meet the same person for the fourth time in the past hours and they simply wouldn’t notice. They were having their eyes for nothing; it always reminded you of Matt Murdock, the blind lawyer of Hell’s Kitchen who was the exact opposite.

Matt, despite not being able to use his eyes anymore, saw more than anyone. You had thought of contacting him many times, just to have some familiarity in your new world where friendship or any kind of a relationship was a luxury you couldn’t afford, but you always backed out. You were too scared of him getting in touch with the Avengers’ team. Not to mention his lawyer persona seemed busy enough even without your load of crap – you had looked him up few times, rather rarely and always within walking distance from the faculty of law of Charles University of Prague, so you wouldn’t raise suspicion about yourself. After all, a random person connected to public wi-fi taking interest in a very specific lawyer of Hell’s Kitchen could be much of a hint; if the random person was a law student though… you thought it was relatively safe.

So you only had acquaintances, people you met from time to time, but never for their friendship – they were more of business partners, really. You headed to a meeting to a café which one of ‘your’ people, Eva, frequented rather often and liked to hang out in.

You found a boot in the back. You pulled out your laptop and started it, automatically checking on your surrounding once more; it was a terrible and necessary habit of a person who was on the run. Since you were almost 15 minutes early, you decided to catch up with the world (read the Avengers) on free wi-fi.

The apartment you lived in had no internet connection and once again, you needed the anonymity; if people connecting in a café checked the news site and paid a lot of attention to news of New York City and the Avengers, no one could question it – and it wouldn’t pop out at Tony’s radar, because no one could tell the search was coming from one particular person repeatedly.  

When you opened the news site, your heart stopped. Your breath froze on your lips, your throat getting impossibly tight, your vision immediately blurring. You squinted at the screen so you could re-read the headline.  

‘Did our Captain die for nothing?’

You could feel the optical mouse crying under your palm as the frost covered it, but you couldn’t make yourself to care.

Your eyes were roaming around the article, desperately finding a prove of you being wrong.

Luckily, you were.

Seventy years ago, Steven Grant Rogers, a man we know as Captain America, laid down his life to save countless others. The serum-powered soldier’s mission was to take down HYDRA, Nazi’s science division, and all history books claim that he and his Howling Commandos achieved that. Yet, the events of past days are telling us a different story. Captain America and other S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives were fighting the very same organization everyone believed to be defeated. While in reality, HYDRA had been growing in their own rows.

The reporter went on, uncovering an enormous intel leak from S.H.I.E.L.D. following the discovery of HYDRA moles inside of the government agency, but there was no other word on Steve. You choose to believe he was alive – because they would sure as hell ‘mention’ if he wasn’t –, finally allowing yourself to breathe in.

You decided you hated reporters and their shocking headlines that were supposed to bait more readers. You almost had a fucking heart-attack.

Now, you had to believe Steve was alright. In addition, you learned he had found a new ally known as Falcon – a man with advanced technology in a form of fucking wings. Also, Natasha had been by his side.

Reading into details of the article – and multiple others – you were stressing over your parents again. Fury had told you there was no record of their current position in S.H.I.E.L.D. files, something he had taken care of when finding out there had been the leak about your identity in the first place. In theory, they should be safe – but all you had was hope.

There was a tiny voice in the back of your head, luring you back to US, back to the Avengers, back to Steve. Once again, the theory was he should be safer now – you believed now that Michaels was part of HYDRA, the organization he had been talking about to scare you off being nothing else but the group finding its origins in the thirties – yet, you were too scared to take that risk. If HYDRA had handled to infiltrate S.H.I.E.L.D. and figure out your identity, where was the insurance of some other terrorist group not being able to do the same? As convenient as it would be, Michaels hadn’t had to be part of HYDRA at all.

You couldn’t go back.

Not to mention you didn’t believe your family of choice would want you back and you didn’t think you could handle the rejection. Your heart ached at the image of Steve’s cold eyes, pushing you away. You dreamed of it sometimes, of you returning and him greeting you flatly, advising you to come back where you had come from; sometimes, he welcomed you with the warmest smile and ‘I missed you so much’ on his lips before letting them get familiar with yours again.

But in the cold reality, you knew your return was way too risky – for Steve and for your heart as well.

You focused on the lines in front of you, letting each of them get carved into your brain. You learned about Steve being in a hospital, fortunately with his life no longer hanging on a thread. You learned that S.H.I.E.LD. stopped existing, leaving a whole lot of uncovered secrets behind, including the last possible trace of you in Provence – you had left the area months ago after you couldn’t resist and had saved a little girl from getting hit by a car, sadly in a way that draw too many prying eyes. You had had to change the settings of your mask and run after that stunt.

That was how you had found yourself in Prague, building a completely new life once again. You were an English teacher now, a private one, individuals or little groups seeking you out for improving their conversation skills. It was ridiculous how much money people were willing to pay for it – luckily for you. It meant a very flexible schedule and not necessarily meeting the same people regularly, which was relatively safe.

“Brigit!” a voice called out and you jumped in your seat, realizing the woman was addressing you. Damn the fake names!

You looked up with a hasty smile, meeting Eva’s amused expression.

“Spaced a little, aren’t you?”

“Spaced out,” you corrected her automatically and she gave you a look that told you she was hundred percent done with you. You grinned in return. “Sorry. Just… interesting article. Let’s order some caffeine before we start?”

“Yes, please. I was working on my thesis for like… well, very long. I barely slept. I need caffeine.”

Your smile turned sympathetic. Late nights you knew too well despite never being a college student. Eva was majoring in biology on top of that, trying to improve her English so she could apply for her dream job, so you couldn’t even imagine the pain.

“You know what? I’m paying today.”

The woman honestly looked as if she wanted to kiss you on spot. Which was kinda ironic, considering how much money she paid you and how little the coffee cost in comparison, but you weren’t about to mention that.

“I’m choosing the most expensive one.”

“I’m sure you are.”

────── ·❆· ──────  

Life went on. Days seemed too long, so you had been adding new students to your flock to keep yourself busy with no time for gloomy thoughts. But the truth was, you were just terribly lonely.

You missed your parents.

You missed your team.

You missed Steve.

And as crazy as it sounded, you missed the insane world of avenging, because the people whose absence was killing you had been a part of that world. Not even starting on the rewarding feeling that would come when managing to save a life.

It was one of those days when you were drowning in loneliness when you learned about yet another adventure the team had been through – maybe it was why the news of Sokovia hit you so hard.

An artificial intelligence trying to take on the world with an army of super-bots under his command and starting with… sending a part of the country literally flying in the air. It ended with that, only thanks to the Avengers and the word was that three more enhanced individuals were seen on the scene, one of them laying down his life.

Three more enhanced. Had the world gone completely crazy? And the one who had died….

The urge to come back, maybe be forgiven, maybe even not being afraid for Steve’s life with what could be new faces on the team… it was stronger than ever. Your heart ached, the homesickness squeezing your lungs and not allowing you to breathe in properly.

You left yet another café in hurry, shooting Petr, the student you were supposed to meet, a quick apology that you were feeling very sick. You apologized for the extremely short notice. He was almost too understanding, but you were grateful that you could just curl up in a ball on your bed and cry for an hour. It cost you all of your strength not to give in to the calling of your powers and start a snowstorm. It would make you weak and you would be found. You kinda wanted to be weak and found, hopefully by your friends.

You didn’t take the risk.

The next day, you woke up with new determination to pick up as many new students as you could to wear yourself down to a bone. For the two following weeks, you were desperate to search for some new faces.

With Murphy’s luck, it seemed like too many of yours no longer needed your services and no newbies popped up. It was one of the reasons why you jumped after the opportunity; when Eva mentioned she had this Russian friend who had moved to Prague very recently and seemed so excited about the lessons Eva was still attending, you immediately said yes to a meeting set in an only three days’ notice.

You should have known better.

────── ·❆· ──────  

The woman – Inna, as you learned from Eva’s narration – came to the café with her friend; you had said it would be easier for her to be accompanied instead of Eva taking a picture of you and letting her find you on her own. The true reason behind your actions had been simple – you didn’t want anyone to have your picture, even when wearing the S.H.I.E.L.D. mask.

So Eva entered the Starbucks of your choice with a pretty blonde by her side and gave you a cheerful wave as she spotted you by the stairs; you waited for the blonde to order, while Eva disappeared again to run some errands since she was in the centre of the town.

You guided Inna to a table in a less busy corner of the otherwise crowded room upstairs and you both set your drinks down before shaking hands.

“I’m Brigit. It’s very nice to meet you!” you tried out, previously learning from Eva that Inna’s level of English was pretty good.

The woman, who had seemed rather nervous before, relaxed as she accepted your hand, her shoulders losing the tension in them.

“The pleasure is all mine. I heard a lot about you.”

You were almost taken aback by her voice, heavy with eastern accent; despite the fact you knew where she came from, you expected the accent being less thick. But maybe you were just oversensitive.

“Really? Good things I hope?”

The blonde laughed shortly, her face getting younger. It was easier to see how she and Eva could be friends now. “Oh yes, Eva wouldn’t shut up about you! Shall we start?”

“Sure,” you agreed, gesturing towards the chair. “Why don’t you tell me a little about yourself and then what would you like our sessions to look like?”

────── ·❆· ──────

Part 11

────── ·❆· ──────  

Tags: @mermaidxatxheart​, @murdermornings​, @elisaa-shelby​ @ask-hellbent-tweek​ @cxptain​, @kallafrench​, @smilexcaptainx​ @scentedsongrebel​, @orions-nebula​

────── ·❆· ──────

*Very discreetly shoves Czechia into another fic and smiles innocently* I need to use my knowledge, okay? :D

Also, BBC’s Sherlock is full of amazing quotes and I feel like re-watching it when I have the time.

And I’m aware this was a bit of a filler chapter. I’m preparing the ground for the next one, which hopefully will be more eventful ;) (I wonder who that new student might be :D )

[goodtimingz]

prompts 4+6 day jae?

prompt list

send requests here :)

4. “True love is when you bully each other, but you know, it’s in a funny romcom way” 6. “Ew, did you just kiss me? On the lips?”

AN: college!au jae, you two are neighbours in your mixed dormitory. ps: this is based on dorms in my country where we don’t share a room, it’s mixed gender and we share common areas ie dining hall, bathroom, kitchen etc.

1.6k / Young Love.

Ever since the first day of moving into the dormitory, you had always imagined having a cute neighbour who you’d say hi to every morning and get to know. However, that was supposed to exist only in your imagination. Actually interacting with a cute guy would be stiflingly awkward. You knew you’d see each other at your worst (coming home from a late night with make-up smudged and bed hair), and even worser (first thing in the morning in pj’s).

Whether it was unfortunate or fortunate, your neighbour happened to be a very cute boy. A loud, annoying, cheeky cute boy.

Every other night there was always something. On the first night it was loud music. The following days were filled with guitar playing - which is fine. However, it was the same riff over and over again and it drove you insane. Then it was his friends, loud laughter at 3am in the morning, 4 other boys would spill out of his room saying loud goodbyes across the hall. There were some good times though. Like sometimes he’d send you a cheeky wink whenever you met eyes, he’d always wave at you in the dining hall, and whenever you told him you had an exam he’d try to be quieter. But you hadn’t really interacted until one particular event.

On this particular day the weather was so nice. Your room was hot, even with the windows wide open. So, like you’d seen many others do you decided to prop your door open with a chair while you studied. Jae apparently took this as an invitation, because sometime after lunch he’d plopped down on the chair wedged between the door and decided to have a full on chat.

The two of you talked about many things, like what instruments he played and what your hobbies were, what you both thought about college so far and homesickness. You were surprised. He actually had an ability to be serious and real. At first you had been a bit blunt, not expecting him to want a genuine conversation. “I haven’t had the guts to actually talk with you before.” Jae commented shyly, pulling on his sweater’s sleeves. You bit back a surprised expression. That had been the last thing you’d expected from him.

“Let’s change that.” You’d smiled, rolling your desk chair closer to him and resting your head in your hands. Jae grinned, nodding before turning his head away to glance around your room again.

~

From that point onward you talked with Jae a lot. You two would text everyday about random things, and whenever there were loud sirens outside you’d joke that the police were there for Jae.

When it was dinner time the two of you would usually walk down and eat together, and he’d invite you to his room until the early morning just to talk about things while you both pretended to study.

Slowly but surely you grew closer and the end of semester one came quickly. You both decided to stay over the break and spent almost every day doing random things that weren’t related to college - for once. You’d hike together, go ice skating or catch a movie, just a lot of things that didn’t require studying afterward and it felt ridiculously nice. On a particularly frosty night, Jae had texted you at 10pm interrupting your usual lie-in-bed-and-think-about-everything hour.

Jae: surely we go to the lookout point tonight

Y/N: jae it’s literally -10 degrees rn, u wanna die??

Jae: we can cuddle to stay warm ;-)

Y/N: i’ll leave that for brian to do

Jae: nooo just me and uu :)) you don’t have a choice i’m coming over rn

Y/N: wear a scarf so i can choke you later for making me catch a cold

True to his words, Jae burst through your door before you could even find socks.

“Y/N! Long time no see!” Jae teased, star-fishing on your bed where you had just been lying.

You rolled your eyes, pulling on a coat. “What’s your plan anyways?” You questioned, turning to see him making sheet angels (like snow angels) on your bed.

“I don’t know, let’s just chill there.” Jae’s voice was muffled by his face in your comforter, and his hair was completely disheveled by now. You shrug in agreement, standing over the boy as he peeled himself off of your bed.

The walk was cold, as you’d expected. It was peak winter time at the moment, and the lookout was a steep 15 minute walk. Despite silence falling over the two of you for a bit, your brain worked fast in thought. Over the past few weeks, you’d been considering an idea that you weren’t really supposed to be thinking about. That idea being, liking Jae.

You had always considered him a friend, from day one. But seeing him everyday, hearing his laugh and his voice and learning so much about who he truly is, felt like soul food. Which brought on the idea that maybe you’d formed a slight crush on him that was being hugely muted by the heavy ‘friendzone’ blanket hanging over the two of you.

“We’re here Y/N!” Jae puffed, resting his hands on his knees, slightly bent over to catch his breath.

You laughed, walking past him and onto the lookout structure. This is the kind of place you’d want to be proposed to at. Not far out of town and yet far enough that there would be no interruptions. The night view was breathtaking. You stared out for awhile, not even noticing Jae walk up behind you as he placed an arm around your shoulder.

Your breath hitched. Play it cool, you thought while nervously forcing your shoulders to relax. Friends do this all the time, right? Maybe he’s just feeling sentimental.

“Y/N...” Jae mumbled, quietly almost like he didn’t want you to hear it. You bit on your lip, turning to look up at him cautiously. His face was close, closer than you’d expected it to be at least.

Everything kind of felt paused from then. When you met his eyes, the sound of the traffic in the distance silenced. Suddenly the cold didn’t bother you anymore. The slight breeze felt like nothing. Every part of you was focused on Jae, and more importantly what exactly what would happen next.

He glanced down at your lips and time stopped. His lips were wet and they looked too good not to kiss.

Jae bet you to it. Before you could process what was happening, you were leaning in to meet him in the middle. As expected his kiss was gentle, soft and warm. His arms moved to your waist, pulling you closer (which was quite difficult since you both wore big coats in attempt to keep out the cold).

When you pulled back, your mouth moved before your brain.

“Ew, did you just kiss me? On the lips?” You teased, watching as Jae grew bashful. That expression was too cute, you wanted to reach out and squeeze his cheeks.

“Don’t act like you didn’t like it Y/N.” Jae winked back, regaining his composure. He was right, except you didn’t just like it. You loved it and you probably loved him.

You two had passed around the ‘I Love you’s’ a few times, but it was always understood platonically. Which was partially still very true, but you knew that now there was definitely another level to it.

You sighed contently, a smile resting on your lips as you turned to admire the view again. (wdym, jae is the view) You felt Jae follow your acts, glancing over to see the same cute smile on his face. Even without words, there was a new mutual feeling shared between you and him.

~

When the two of you arrived back to your dorm, you were slightly dreading being a part from Jae. The night had been so nice with him and your new feelings that you never wanted the time to end.

“Thanks for tonight Jae, I love you,” You smiled sweetly, leaning onto your door to admire Jae. The ‘I love you’ was the same casual ‘I love you’ that it had always been. You two loved each other more than what the romance movies explained the phrase as. You loved each other’s company, each other’s personalities and just each other’s soul.

“I love you too Y/N.” Jae grinned, mirroring your stance across the hall. As you turned to open your door you couldn’t refrain from the scream that escaped your lips.

Jae.

Jae’s face was pasted all over your walls. You gazed around in shock at his efforts before spinning around to glare at the blonde boy who smirked behind the phone he held up. “H-how???” Is all you could stutter out.

“The boys helped me, just incase tonight didn’t go as planned.” Jae laughed, walking closer to fully capture your expression.

“I take it all back, I hate you Jae!” You grumbled with your arms crossed. (To be fair you secretly loving the sound of Jae trying to stifle his laughter in the hallway).

Jae slipped his phone away only to poke your sides until your folded arms dropped - to smack him. “Y/N!!! True love is when you bully each other, but you know, it’s in a funny romcom way.” Jae fell into a fit of laughter after you shot him daggers again.

“Looks like I’m sleeping in your room tonight.” You smirked, watching as Jae fell silent and a blush appeared on his cheeks.

No way would you let Jae get away with this. The prank wars began, but first you would show him who’s boss.

“Lead the way.”

[uswntpoet]

Love on the brain (Part 21)

Hey guys, this time I'm faster! :) I hope you're still alive after the last chapter. Enjoy the next part!

The chapter is also up on Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17576201/chapters/51380701

First Allie watched Alex nearly going insane while waiting for Kelley to come out of the ER and now she watches her pace back and forth in front of Kelley’s bed like a tiger ever since she was brought back from the ER. It’s 9 o’clock in the morning now. 5 hours since Kelley collapsed in the hotel room and Alex can’t seem to catch a break even though Allie reassured her that Kelley is in good hands for the past hours and the doctor told them that Kelley already was conscious once in the ER.  

“Two times in the span of a few weeks, Allie!! What am I supposed to do with her?!”

“I’ve always said she is insane, but nobody listens to me.” Allie jokes.

“Ugh and you know what’s the worst part about this?”

“That you aren’t even really mad at her?”

“Exactly.” Alex sighs.

“Please Al, do us all a favor and go grab something to eat.”

“I can’t do Kelley any favors since she is unconscious in a hospital bed AGAIN!”

“I think she would disagree. Can you at least do me a favor then?”

“Why?”

“Well, first of all you’re always in a bad mood when you’re hungry anyway, but most of all you’ve always been a disaster when it comes to worrying about this idiot and I can’t take it anymore.”

Alex looks at Allie and then at a sleeping Kelley skeptically.

“Don’t look at me like that. Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on her.”

“I’m not sure.” Alex grumbles.

“Good, then I’ll keep both of my eyes on her. Now go.”

“You call me when she wakes up?”

“Yes, I will. Now stop worrying for at least 30 minutes alright?”

“I’ll be back in 20.”

“20 it is.”

“And check if she’s breathing norm-“

“ALEX! I can handle it, okay? I promise.”

“Fine.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kelley stirs awake about 15 minutes later. Allie gets up quickly, eyeing her closely. Kelley slowly opens her eyes, but she seems to struggle to keep them fully open.

“Holy fuck.” she mumbles.

“Welcome back to earth.” Allie smiles.

Kelley squeezes her eyes shut repeatedly, trying to focus on the person in front of her. A few seconds later she seems to realize that it’s Allie.

“Duuude.” Kelley chuckles lazily, sounding like a high surfer dude.

“How are you feeling?” Allie asks concerned.

“Fucking awesome.” Kelley smiles dopily.

“Oh wow, I don’t ever want to see you take drugs.” Allie rolls her eyes.

“Yo, Allie?” Kelley asks with her eyes closed again.

“Yes?”

“Don’t you think my girlfriend looks hella good?”

“Kel, Alex isn’t here.”

“Don’t you dare to say she doesn’t.” Kelley is quick to warn, her eyes flying open for a second, before falling shut in slow motion again.

“She does, Kel.” Allie exhales annoyed.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Kelley remarks with a hint of an aggressive tone.

“My girlfriend is hella sexy.” Kelley brags with a smile on her face.

“Kel?”

“Mhm?” Kelley asks, looking up at Allie with a dazed look in her eyes.

“Alex is your fiancée. You proposed to her, remember?”

“DUDE!” Kelley yells all of the sudden, which startles Allie, “Siiiiiiick.” Kelley smirks proudly.

“Oh man.” Allie exhales and slaps her hand against her forehead.

To Allie’s relieve the door opens and Alex walks in.

“Holy fuck!” Kelley yells, freezing and quickly covering her eyes.

Alex looks at Allie shocked, who shrugs, “Don’t worry, she just woke up.”

“What is she doing?” Alex asks wide eyed.

“She is high on pain killers and by high I mean they apparently shot her in another solar system.” Allie chuckles amused.

“Hey Kel, what’s up?” Allie asks her, trying to get her attention.

Kelley drops her hands from her face, looking at Alex with wide eyes before quickly turning to Allie.

“Duude, I swear, I’m such a bad fiancée!”

“What are you talking about?”

“If Alex knows she’ll kill me man.”

Allie looks to Alex in panic, while Alex is furrowing her brows in concern.

“Eh, Kel-“

“Don’t tell her, but that nurse looks fucking hot.” Kelley says, pointing at Alex. Allie lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding and Alex’s face relaxes visibly, but her brows quickly furrow again.

“Oh boy, this is too good to be true.” Allie laughs.

“Stop laughing, this isn’t funny.” Alex scolds as she approaches Kelley’s bed to sit down next to her.

“Hey babe, it’s me, Alex.” Alex tries carefully, gently stroking her cheek.

“I know. I was just fucking around.” Kelley slurs, grinning at Alex foolishly.

Alex slaps her arm and rolls her eyes.

“Oh my god, you’re such an asshole. I thought you didn’t recognize me.”

“Baby girl, I would recognize those eyes from anywhere.”

“Drugged up and still a charmer. Why am I surprised?”

“I’ll inform a nurse”. Allie says.

“Thanks, Al.” Alex squeezes her hand.

A few minutes later the door flies open and the gray haired, good looking doctor in his 50’s, Alex already talked to earlier, walks in with two nurses in tow.

“Welcome back Miss O’Hara, I’m Dr. Bright.”

“Sup, Doc.” Kelley nods at him and Alex sends her a warning look, which Kelley clearly doesn’t seem to notice.  

The doctor starts explaining to Kelley that an inflammation in her ankle caused her high fever, which ultimately lead to her unconsciousness and that taking too many pain killers caused the other symptoms, however Alex is sure that Kelley doesn’t have one clue what the man is talking about. After Dr. Bright and the nurses did some checkups on Kelley, he turns to Alex again.

“So Miss Morgan, your fiancée is-“

“Dr. B.? Isn’t my FIANCEE-“ Kelley stops and winks at Allie, who just shakes her head.

“-the most gorgeous woman you have ever seen?”

“Babe.” Alex warns sternly.

“Doc, listen. I know it sounds impossible, but I swear on my life, her smartness outshines her prettiness. Crazy right?”

“Kel, shut up.”

“Come over here and make me.”

“Kelley!” Alex warns her sharply.

Kelley looks at Alex for a second, seemingly considering what to do next, but when she sees Alex staring her down, she quietly mumbles to herself like a child who's been scolded.

“I’m terribly sorry for that.” Alex apologizes to the doctor, who just laughs and waves it off.

“That’s alright. She is going to be like that for a few hours, however you can take her home. When the meds wear off, she might be a little disorientated and very tired, but there’s no reason to worry. Is it possible that someone checks on her like every hour?”

“Yeah, I’ll do that. What about the Advil?”

“Yeah, she certainly took so many, because the dosage wasn’t strong enough and she was in enormous pain. She might be in pain the next few days as well, but I’m prescribing pain killers that are certainly strong enough, so there isn’t going to be another incident like this. Again, they might make her a bit loopy, however if she’s looked after she should be fine.”

“When is she going to be able to train again?” Alex asks tensely, knowing that even though Kelley is not giving a damn about it right now, it is going to be the first question when she is off meds again.

“The good news is that the medications are anti-inflammatory, so the inflammation is going to be gone within a few days. However, the injury is going to last a bit longer, if she’s lucky and has a good recovery process maybe 8 to 10 weeks, if not she’s going to need surgery. She could be out for about 6 months then, we’ll have to see.”

Alex exhales loudly, rubbing her hands through her face, feeling her heart break for Kelley. She knows this is going to be a hard blow after just recovering from her last injury.

“Oh my god.” she shakes her head devastated and Allie puts a supporting hand on her shoulder.

“Miss Morgan, to be frank, in your case I wouldn’t worry too much. You’re working with the best doctors and physiotherapist in the country. It’s going to be crutches in the first weeks to strain her ankle as little as possible and I think she is going to be fine, but as a doctor it is my duty to inform you about the possibilities.”

“Yeah, I understand that.” Alex nods.

“If she is burning up again or there are any signs of side effects please call an ambulance.”

“Of course, thank you so much for everything.” Alex says honestly with a smile which doesn’t reach her eyes.

“That’s what I’m here for. We’ll stay in touch and she has an appointment in a few days.”

Alex smiles at him and turns around to help Allie and the nurse to get Kelley ready to leave.

“And Miss Morgan?”

“Alex is fine.”

“Alex. I have drugged up patients everyday ever since I became a doctor. You can imagine that I’ve seen everything from breakups because of terrible confessions, over crying, to aggressive behavior. But what I rarely see is someone talking about their fiancée in the way yours did when she first woke up.”

“Oh my god. I’m so sorry, what did she say?”

“You have no reason to worry. Take good care of her, you got a good one there. She’s a keeper.” Dr. Bright winks with an honest smile.

“Oh.” Alex blushes, looking at him speechlessly.

“Have a good day, Alex.”

“Bye.” Alex mumbles.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Babe?”

“Yeah?”

“I feel so goooooood right now.”

“That’s good, Kel.”

“I can’t feel anything.” Kelley gushes loudly.

“I can see that.” Alex mumbles embarrassed, since Kelley isn’t behaving like one should in a hospital.

Kelley is sitting in a wheelchair, so they can bring her to the car. Alex stops in front of the door to turn around to look at Kelley sternly, before leaving the hospital room.

“Alright, Kel. We are going to leaves this room now and I need you to be quiet for two minutes okay? Just until we’re at the car.”

“Like on what level quiet?”

“Like 'shutting your mouth tightly and not opening it' quiet.”

“Okay, captain.” Kelley winks, saluting Alex.

Alex looks at her unsure, but Allie opens the door nonetheless. To Alex’s surprise, Kelley stays quiet in the hallway and in the elevator. However, when they walk through the entrance area, Kelley is back to her bad behavior.

“Excuse me, Mr.? Have you ever seen such a pretty woman?” Kelley asks a random stranger, pointing at Alex when they pass him.

“Kelley, shhhh! Leave the people alone!” Alex whisper yells.

“I’m doing what I want, woman.” Kelley sasses loudly and Allie has to suppress her loud giggles.

“Kel, could you just shut up for another minute, please.” Alex begs to which Kelley complies.

When they are finally outside, Alex starts searching for her car keys.

“Maaan, it’s so fucking hot in here. I’m dying.”

“We’re outside. You’ll be alright.” Alex mumbles, looking up to answer.

“What are you doing?! Put your shirt back on!!” Alex yells at her.

“But I’m so hot.” Kelley pouts.

“NOW!” Alex orders while Allie can’t breathe from laughing so much.

“Are you jealous babe?” Kelley asks sadly.

“Yeah, very jealous.” Alex groans impatiently.

“Okay.” Kelley says, putting her shirt back on quickly as if she first needed a reason to do so.

Alex looks at Allie annoyed who is wiping her tears.

"I’m going to marry a 2-year-old.” Alex groans.

When they finally managed to get Kelley to sit in the back of the car, they make their way back to the hotel.

“Babe? Do you still think I’m attractive?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Alex sighs.

“But what if someday you are going to leave me?”

“I will not.” Alex answers annoyed, looking in the rear-view mirror to make eye contact.

“Allie! What am I gonna do if she’s leaving me?” Kelley asks panicked.

“She is not, Kel.” Allie reassures her.

“Babe? If I died, how much would you miss me?”

“Death can’t get you out of this relationship.” Alex deadpans, but drugged up Kelley is completely clueless to any sarcasm since her attention span is like one of a puppy.

“Would you love someone else?”

“No.”

“Good, because whoever is looking at you, I’m going to fuck up.”

“When you’re dead, Kel?” Allie laughs.

“I’ll personally climb out of my grave to royally kick their ass.”

“Kel, enough.” Alex warns.

There is silence for just a moment.

“Babe? Have you ever had sex with someone who was drugged up?”

“No, Kelley I haven’t.” Alex snaps.

“Wanna give it a try?” Kelley raises an eyebrow suggestively.

“Holy shit!” Allie laughs.

“Kelley!! I said that’s enough. I don’t want to hear another word until we’re back at the hotel, understood?” Alex turns around frustratedly when she stops at the traffic light. Kelley nods her head, pretending to lock her mouth and throwing the key away.

“Good.”

Allie looks at Alex with a pitying look.

“It’s official. My two biggest fears in life are failure and Kelley on any kind of drug, including too much sugar.”

The silence lasts exactly three minutes, before Kelley’s voice can be heard again.

“Babe?”

Alex breathes out heavily and decides to ignore her.

“Babe?”

“Babe?”

“Alex?”

“Alexandraaaa!!”

“What Kelley????? What could possibly be so important that you are talking again?” Alex asks, turning around furiously.

“I love you.” Kelley says truthfully, looking at Alex with puppy eyes.

Allie pouts at Alex, after looking at Kelley. Alex groans loudly, turning around again.

“Oh come on, look at her! You can’t be mad at her when she’s that cute.”

Alex shakes her head and looks in the rear-view mirror again, looking at Kelley who looks at her expectantly, not noticing that Alex is watching her in the mirror.

“I love you, too.” Alex says softly, watching her closely.

Kelley’s eyes light up at that. Her expectant expression changes into a bright smile and she leans back relaxed, closing her eyes. She doesn’t talk for the rest of the ride and Alex softly smiles the entire way home.

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The doctor was right. When they arrive at their hotel, Allie is so nice to inform the staff about the news while Alex quickly phones Kelley’s parents, who were waiting for news as well. After a 5-minute catch-up with the promise to call them in the evening again, she reenters their hotel room, only to find Kelley fast asleep on the couch. Lucky enough the couch is big enough so Alex carefully squeezes in behind her, holding her close.

A few hours later Kelley stirs awake again. Alex has been up for a while, just watching Kelley sleep peacefully, not daring to move, afraid that she might wake her up. Kelley turns around in Alex’s arms, yawning cutely. Alex looks at Kelley expectantly with something in her eyes that Kelley can’t read.

“Damn, Al I had the craziest dream.” she frowns.

Before Alex can say anything, she starts to stretch when sitting up and quickly convulses in pain.

“Fuck, it wasn’t a dream, was it?” she lets out pained.

“Unfortunately, not.” Alex counters tensely, sitting up as well.

“Oh no. Al, I- Are you okay?” Kelley asks, quickly looking at Alex again, putting her hand on Alex’s thigh, who is rubbing her hands through her face stressed.

“So much for ‘really really going to change starting tomorrow’, huh?” Alex lashes out, letting her hands fall from her face.

“God…I’m-“ Kelley starts fazed, but Alex interrupts her, jumping to her feet.

“You’re such an asshole.” Alex exhales shakily, standing in front of her aggravated.

“What?”

“You’re so dumb!” Alex complains.

Kelley stops talking and instead just looks at her helplessly, frowning. Alex bites her lip, staring at Kelley without saying a word. Kelley holds eye contact, observing her closely.

“Don’t look at me like that!” Alex yells pained, her lip starts trembling and Kelley closes her eyes in disappointment with herself, when sobs start escaping Alex’s lips.

“How could you do that to me?!” Alex yells, crying loudly, taking a step in her direction and hitting her hand in Kelley’s chest.

Kelley just takes the blow stoically.

“You promised!” Alex yells while Kelley takes another frustrated hit to her chest.

“I thought you were going to die!!” Alex sobs desperately, trying to shove Kelley.

Kelley has never heard Alex this distressed and it absolutely breaks her heart. So, before Alex is able to shove her, she catches her hands, holding onto her wrists.

“Let go of me!” Alex cries, but Kelley just pulls her down into her lap, putting her arms around Alex, who buries her head in Kelley’s neck, holding onto her as if her life depended on it.

“You scared me.” she cries, her body shaking.

“Hey, it’s okay, I’m here, I’m fine.” Kelley soothes softly.

“I need you, okay? You can’t just disappear! I need you so so much.” Alex sobs heart wrenchingly.

Kelley nods her head, kissing the top of her head.

“Please. Please don’t leave me alone, I can’t breathe without you.” Alex begs.

Kelley takes Alex’s face in her hands, pushing her forehead against Alex’s.

“I’m here.” she repeats intently, “I’m not going anywhere, I promise.” Kelley whispers, pressing a kiss to Alex’s lips and hugging her tightly again.

“I love you.” Alex mumbles into her neck, sniffling.

Kelley caresses her back comfortingly and strokes her hand through Alex’s hair, who snuggles into her.

“I love you so much, Alex. More than anything.” Kelley replies, laying her head on top of Alex’s.

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After that day Kelley never misses a treatment again. So while Alex is training every day with the team, Kelley spends every waking second to recover, watch her train and do what’s best for her ankle. Alex smiles brightly every morning when a freshly showered Kelley wakes her with kisses before leaving for an early treatment so that they can have breakfast together afterwards. Something in Kelley switched completely and Alex feels at peace because she can tell that a situation like that isn’t going to happen again. Five days post-accident, Kelley has another appointment at the hospital. She wakes up really energized, confident that her ankle is going to be a lot better than before since she only had light problems with it. When Alex is supposed to go to practice, Kelley also has to make her way to Dr. Bright, who they have been in close contact with.

“Don’t forget to tell him about-“

“The pain in the night. Yes, Alex, I won’t forget.” Kelley chuckles.

“And call me afterwards.” Alex insists nervously.

“Al, you’re going to be training, I’ll see you when you’re back.”

“But-“

“Babe, relax. I got this.” Kelley smiles.

“Right.” Alex nods.

“I have to go, see you at 7.” Kelley leans forward and kisses her goodbye.

“Bye.” Alex waves, watching after her when Kelley takes off, limping to the entrance on her crutches.

Alex flinches when a hand lands on her shoulder.

“Come on you clinger. We’ve got stuff to do.” Allie laughs, pulling Alex with her.

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In the evening they meet up at dinner. When Alex enters the room, their gazes meet immediately like magnets. Alex realizes right away that Kelley isn’t in a great mood. They have a silent conversation just with their eyes and the conversation is over by the time Alex arrives at their table. So instead of starting to interrogate her about her appointment, she just sits down next to her and places her hand on Kelley’s thigh. Kelley reaches down and intertwines their hands, looking at Alex with a small smile when squeezing her hand. The others don’t notice since Kelley hides it perfectly, making jokes and laughing with them. Still, Alex sees that she isn't feeling well.

Alex yawns right after finishing dinner, “Guys, I think we’re going to leave, I’m exhausted.”

Kelley looks at her amused, knowing that Alex was totally faking that yawn.

“Alex, I swear you’ve become so boring! You’re old.” Sonnett complains jokingly.

“If you’d be able to play like Alex, you’d be tired too.” Kelley defends her with a smirk, causing the others to laugh.

“Okay, that was mean, Miss Kelley.”

“Grow up, Sonnett.” Kelley winks teasingly.

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When they are in their hotel room, Alex opens Netflix and starts on one of Kelley’s favorite comedies she likes to watch when she doesn’t feel good. Kelley makes herself comfortable on the couch and Alex sits down between her legs, leaning against her. Kelley hugs her waist from behind and presses a kiss to her shoulder.  

“So, what happened?”

Kelley exhales heavily, pushing her forehead against the side of Alex’s head and closes her eyes. She stays silent for a moment before leaning back again.

“So apparently, I’m not recovering as fast as I’d like to think.”

“What does that mean?” Alex asks, anxiously drawing circles on Kelley’s thigh with her finger.

“As of now, I don’t know. He said he is giving me a few more days, but I thought maybe I should just tell him I want the sur-”  

“Surgery???” Alex akss, turning her head to look at Kelley horrified, “No Kel, you heard it yourself, Dr. Bright said it was too early.”

“Yeah, but-“

“No buts and no rushed decisions, Kel.” Alex insists, “You have to give yourself some time. It’s only been 5 days.”

“I don’t know, Al.” Kelley mumbles.

“Don’t be silly, I’m always right.” Alex smirks.

This puts the sparkle back into Kelley’s eyes, who looks at Alex challengingly, “Oh, are you now?”

“Damn right I am.” Alex winks.

“Good for me, huh?”

“Oh, totally.”

“So what’s your prediction of my chances of getting a kiss?” Kelley smirks.

“On a scale from 1 to 10? 12.”

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Alex is woken once again in the middle of the night. Her breath hitches and she looks around disorientated and panicked. She reaches out for Kelley and realizes that she isn't lying next to her. Alex shoots up in a flash, but relaxes a bit when she sees that the balcony door is open. She can see Kelley’s silhouette looking out into the distance, holding onto the balcony fence. Alex gets up quietly and makes her way up to Kelley. It’s a warm summer night, the sky clear and plastered with stars. Kelley stands on the balcony motionless, watching the waves crush onto the shore. Alex puts her arms around her waist from behind, hugging her around her waist. Kelley starts breaking down immediately, her body vibrating as tears roll down her face, but she’s not making a single sound. Alex holds her even closer, resting her forehead against the back of Kelley’s head.

“It’s okay. You’re going to be okay.” Alex whispers softly, every word full of conviction.

A sob escapes Kelley and she grips onto the fence so hard, Alex thinks she might break it. Alex lets go of her waist and crouches down to quickly slip into the spot between Kelley’s arms so that her back is up to the fence. She then loosens Kelley’s grip on the fence, taking both of her hands in her own, intertwining them. Alex puts Kelley’s hand to her mouth and kisses the back of it affectionately. Kelley looks up at her, a single tear rolling down her eye. Alex throws her a concerned, yet devoted look, that makes Kelley’s heart skip a beat in adoration. She leans forward and rests her forehead against Alex’s, closing her eyes.

“We’re going to get through this. I’m here. You’re not alone in this.”

Kelley nods her head.

“You’re going to be healthy until France.”

“How can you be so sure of that?” Kelley asks with a shaky voice.

“I just am. We’re going to France and we’re going to be on the pitch together. I promise.”

Kelley shakes her head, frowning. Alex grips Kelley’s face, holding it still, their foreheads still pressed together.

“No, listen Kel. Look at me.” Alex whispers intently.

Kelley opens her eyes and is met with her favorite shade of blue. The light that is hovering over the city, illuminates the sky enough to make Kelley see what she needs to see.

“I promise, okay? I promise you.” Alex stresses.

What Kelley sees in Alex’s eyes is safety, calming her like nothing else can, making her believe even though it seems impossible.

“Okay?” Alex whispers.

“Okay.” Kelley breathes.

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The next days everything only goes uphill for Kelley. When her appointment with Dr. Bright rolls around, he ensures her that surgery won’t be needed, but that she certainly should be very careful and consider every factor that will help her to recover. Kelley is over the moon and from then on even more determined to get better as fast as possible. They spend their off days visiting Alex’s family as much as possible and Alex finally feels like she doesn’t have to worry about Kelley. It’s the last day of camp before everyone will fly back to their club teams and Alex is waiting for Kelley, Christen, Tobin and Becky in the Whole Foods parking lot, since they wanted to grab some lunch for all of them. Alex is leaning against the wall a few yards from the entrance, looking at her phone after ending a business call.

“Alex Morgan.” a familiar voice calls her.

Alex looks up immediately, rolling her eyes at who is approaching her.

“Gosh, why??” Alex mumbles to herself, before she greets him with a short nod, “Tom.”

“Never in a million years, would I have thought to see you again. In LA of all places? What the hell are you doing here?” he smiles annoyingly.

“Well, I don’t know if you remember but first of all I’m a professional soccer player, which normally demands going to all sorts of places and second of all my whole family lives here.” Alex sasses, annoyed by his question.

He blushes and looks at her embarrassed, “Right.”

“Anyway, how is life going? Did you and that girl split up? I mean she was pretty rude.”

Alex looks past him and sees Kelley and her friends exit the store, not listening to a word he is saying and the memories from a few years ago come flooding into her mind.

FLASHBACK ON

“Ugh, I don’t want to go there.”

“Why though?” Kelley asks with a chuckle, pulling open her locker.

“Because there’ll be only people I haven’t seen in years and there is a reason for that.” Alex complains.

“But she’s one of your best friends Alex and normally you are never in LA for stuff like this. It’s a wedding, you’ll find someone to talk to.” Kelley smirks.

Alex pushes Kelley’s locker closed in front of her face.

“Hey! I wasn't finished yet.” Kelley frowns.

“You’ll come with me!” Alex exclaims excitedly as if she had a flash of genius.

“What? No.” Kelley laughs.

“Come on, I need somebody to safe me from my stupid ex, who is definitely going to be there.”

“Why do you need protection from your ex?” Kelley chuckles.

“Because he is an arrogant asshole. He’s always bragging with his job and his new girlfriend, just because he is super boring and jealous of me earning more than him.” Alex rolls her eyes.

“ What is his job?” Kelley asks amused.

“He’s an accountant.”

Kelley fake gags, which makes Alex laugh out loud.

“Why don’t you just bring a date?” Kelley asks skeptically.

“Because it’ll be more fun with you."

“Wait, is that also the guy who cheated on you on your birthday?”

“Yup. But I wanted to break up with him later that day anyway.” Alex chuckles.

“Fine, I’ll come with you.” Kelley agrees.

“Yes! You’re the best!” Alex exclaims, pressing a peck to Kelley’s cheek before taking off to shower.

Kelley just stands in the locker room frozen to the spot with a blush creeping on her cheeks.

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By now they’ve been at the party for over two hours, even though Alex told Kelley that they’d be leaving early, because the people were going to be lame. However, Kelley is great company as always and Alex somehow never had more fun at a wedding.

“I’m going to get us some more booze, alright?” Kelley speaks closely to Alex’s ear, due to the volume.

“Yeah, thanks. I’ll wait here.” Alex smiles, which Kelley returns before disappearing in the crowd.

Alex looks around happily, waving at one of her old friends from college when suddenly she sees the person she didn’t want to see. Alex curses under her breath and asks herself why this has to happen of when Kelley is gone. She ducks her head, but he sees her nonetheless and confidently walks up to her with his girlfriend in tow. The look on his face is determined and his intentions are clear, he wants to show off.

“Alex!! How have you been?” he smiles arrogantly, pretending to be nice.

“Uhm, quite good. Everything’s fine, thanks for asking.”

“Actually, I’m doing great myself. Do you still remember my girlfriend?”

‘Great, nobody asked you.’, Alex thinks to herself, but politely smiles at his girlfriend, who is actually quite nice and whom she knows briefly through a friend of hers.

“Hi Emma.” Alex smiles.

“Hey, Alex, how are you?” Emma smiles.

Before Alex can even answer her question, Tom intervenes.

“Yeah, Alex, how come a girl like you is still all alone?” he cocks an eyebrow, clearly meaning to attack her.

Suddenly Alex feels a glass being pushed into her hand and an arm around her waist, which pulls her in so that her body is pressed closely against another. Alex turns her head and is met with Kelley, who is unusually close to her face. She looks at Kelley helpless, who gives her a reassuring look.

“Hey gorgeous, I managed to get us the good champagne.” she smiles at Alex, squeezing her hip and clinking her glass against Alex’s before taking a swig of it.

“By the way, have I already told you that you look stunning in that dress?” Kelley compliments with a lopsided smile, before turning her attention to the couple in front of them.

“Oh hey, sorry. I tend to get too distracted by her beauty. Who are you?” Kelley asks outspoken.

“I’m Tom, Alex must have talked about me.” he says with a cocky grin.

Kelley looks at him with a frown, looking like she is roaming her mind.

“Tim?” she asks as if she didn’t understand him.

“Uh no, Tom.” he laughs uneasily, looking at Alex confused.

“Ahhh sorry, you mumbled a bit. Then no, I’m confident she never talked about you. I’m Kelley.” Kelley smiles confidently, giving him a very firm handshake while having a stare off with him, looking at him challengingly.

He looks more pissed off than Alex has ever seen him and the conversation only started. Kelley raises an eyebrow at him and turns her attention to his girlfriend.

“And who is your pretty friend?” Kelley asks charmingly.

“That’s my girlfr-”

“I’m Emma!” she interrupts him, eagerly holding out her hand for Kelley to shake, looking at her infatuated.

“Nice to meet you Emma, you kind of remind me of Kristen Bell.”

It’s a stretch. They might have the same hair, but that’s about it and Alex looks at Kelley quizzically.

"Thanks.” Emma blushes, “See that’s what I always tell you. Some people see it!” she snaps at Tom, who rolls his eyes.

If Alex wouldn’t have already been gawking at Kelley, she would have been by now. Kelley quickly looks at Alex and winks at her.

“You are Kelley O’Hara, aren’t you?” Emma asks shily.  

“Yeah. Do you like soccer?” Kelley smiles.

“I love soccer, actually I’m a huge fan.”

“Thanks, that's great.” Kelley says politely.

Alex notices a swagger to her, her energy cool and relaxed, giving off vibes that either would want you to be friends with her, or be with her.

“So Tim, what do you do for a living?”

“Tom and I‘m an accountant.” he says through his teeth, clearly aggravated.

“Dude. That sounds awful. I really am sorry for you.” Kelley grimaces, giving him a clap on the shoulder.

Alex almost bursts into loud laughter, but somehow manages to stifle it by hiding her face behind Kelley, however his girlfriend can’t contain it.

“Why would that be awful?” he asks offended.

“Come on Tom, don’t act like that. Your job is pretty boring compared to Alex and Kelley’s.” Emma laughs.

Tom shoots Kelley a malicious look and she just shrugs innocently. Alex eyes Kelley amazed. She has never seen anybody piss Tom off like that and she feels like kissing her for it. Wait. What? Her thoughts are interrupted by Emma.

“How long have you two been together?”

Alex eyes nearly pop out of her head, “Uhhh, we‘re not to-”

“3 years, right babe?” Kelley interrupts, resting her hand on her butt possessively.

Alex looks at her wide eyed and Kelley squeezes her butt, which makes Alex turn her head and nod at her quickly.

“Best 3 years of my life.” Kelley says, pressing a kiss to Alex’s cheek.

“Oh my god, you guys are so cute. I didn’t know that you were a couple. I could immediately sense your love for each other though. Alex your eyes are shining when you look at Kelley.” Emma gushes.

“Thanks.” Kelley grins brightly, turning to Alex, staring deep into her eyes, “She is the love of my life.”

Alex somehow feels mesmerized by the way Kelley is looking at her in that moment and she drifts off, not able to break eye contact. Alex knows that Kelley is just acting right now, but somehow it feels so real and natural.

“Alex what we’re you saying? You’re not together?” Tom interrupts, with an evil glimmer in his eye.

Alex turns to look at him and Kelley’s grip on her tightens.

“Uh yeah, what I wanted to say is actually we’re engaged.” Alex smiles brightly and Kelley looks at her with a smirk, which she then directs at Tom.

“I proposed last year. I mean dude, between us? Look at her. I couldn’t let this chance slip. And don’t get me started on her intelligence. Only a total idiot would miss the opportunity to marry a woman like Alex.”

“Babe, stop it.” Alex smiles, putting her hand on Kelley’s chest, who reaches up to intertwine their hands and presses a kiss to her hand.

“Awww. Tom, why are you never talking about me like this?!” Emma complains.

“Would you excuse us?” Kelley asks charmingly.

“Yeah of course.” she smiles at Kelley.

“Tim.” Kelley nods at him and pulls Alex away from them.

Alex can hear Emma gushing about her ring in the distance and Alex looks down at her hand, thanking god that she put on a ring that looks a lot like an engagement ring and was a gift when winning the Olympics.

“Oh my god.” Alex laughs loudly when they finally are outside, “Kel, you saved me!”

Alex hugs Kelley tightly.

“What a prick.” Kelley rolls her eyes, when they pull apart.

“That was amazing!” Alex gushes, “He was SO pissed off. How do you always do things like that?!”

“You’re exaggerating.” Kelley chuckles.

“Stop playing it down. Emma was totally into you and when you told her she looked like Kristen Bell it was over. What the hell was that about?” Alex laughs.

“I didn’t know that he was your ex, but they stood next to me at the bar earlier and she was complaining that he couldn’t see the alikeness.” Kelley grins.

“You’re amazing.” Alex gasps.

Kelley just waves her off.

“No, Kel, really. You’re unbelievable. I just love you so much. He’s never going to get over that.” Alex grins.  

“Why in the world did you date him?” Kelley asks disgusted.

Suddenly Alex becomes quieter than before. She nervously looks to the ground.

“Uhm, I don’t know. Initially, I just liked that he showed interest.” she admits sort of shyly.

“Alex, are you serious right now?” Kelley asks confused.

“What?”

“You don’t see it don’t you?” Kelley laughs frustratedly.

“Why do you sound so aggravated?”

“Because I am.”

“Why?” Alex frowns.

“Al. You’re- I mean- Have you ever seen yourself? You’re the most amazing person I know and you date that guy because he gives you a little bit attention? There is people falling for you left and -“

“Well, they’re not the right person though!” Alex almost shouts.

“But he was?” Kelley asks, not even phased by her outburst.

“No! That’s not what I wanted-“

“Then who is the right person?”

“I- I don’t know. I always make bad decisions when it comes to that. I just wish I’d meet someone who is even a bit like y-”

“OH MY GOD, ALEXANDRA MORGAN!”

Alex jumps in surprise and gets crushed by a squealing girl that clearly had a bit too much to drink. Alex throws Kelley an apologetic look.

“College.” she mouths, while getting squeezed to death.

Instead of answering Kelley just eyes her pensively. There is something unreadable in her expression and it’s so intense that Alex has to look away, because she starts blushing.

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Later that night and with too many drinks in their systems, they’re finally on their way home. In the taxi Alex lays her head on Kelley’s shoulder exhaustedly, drifting off into sleep slowly. Just before Alex is about to pass out, she speaks up.

“Kel?”

“Mhm?”

“What did you think about earlier?” she mumbles tiredly with closed eyes.

“When?”

“You know when.”

There is silence for a moment as Kelley considers her next words.

“You know, I think you should be with someone who treats you just the way you deserve to be treated. Someone who respects you, who cherishes you, who protects you and most importantly loves you for who you are.” Kelley reflects thoughtfully, her voice soft-spoken.

“I think I know someone like that.” Alex mumbles.

“Oh. Okay.” Kelley tenses, “Then why don’t you just talk to them I guess?” she asks uneasily.

“I don’t think they see me in that kind of way.” Alex shrugs.

“Impossible.” Kelley mumbles.

“Hmm?”

“That’s bullshit, Alex.” Kelley speaks up.

Alex is quite for a minute and Kelley thinks she might have fallen asleep.

“Do you think I deserve to be with someone who is the most amazing person on this planet?”

Kelley exhales deeply.

“I think you deserve the world, Alex. What I don’t think is that they are going to be more amazing than you.” Kelley tries to smile.

There is an unsettling feeling starting to build in her stomach, which she could only describe as some sort of jealousy.

“Well, they are.”

Kelley looks down at the soft smile that is dancing on Alex’s face and the feeling she felt before somehow is erased.

“Well, they aren’t going to be able to say no to such a pretty girl.” Kelley smiles softly, kissing the top of Alex’s head, who is too tired to answer and falls asleep.

FLASHBACK OFF

“Alex? Are you listening?” he asks unsure.

Alex averts her gaze from Kelley and turns to look at him again.

“Thank you so much!” she smiles.

“Uhm what?” he stutters.

“Bye Tom.” Alex waves as she leaves.

“Wait! Alex!” he calls after her perplexed.

“There you are! I brought you vegan chocolate chip cookies.” Kelley smiles excitedly as Alex walks into her direction.

Instead of answering Alex just walks up to Kelley and puts her arms around her neck, kissing her meaningfully. Overwhelmed by the passionate kiss, Kelley drops one of her crutches while reaching up to stop her baseball cap from falling. When Alex pulls away Kelley looks at her stunned, her lips swollen.

“Uh, wow.” Kelley breathes.

“God, you guys didn’t see each other for like 8 minutes! Why are you like this!?” Becky groans.

“Seriously, it’s just cookies Alex.” Christen agrees.

Tobin slowly lifts the bag of food she is carrying, looking at Christen cautiously.

“Don’t even think about it.” Christen rolls her eyes, making Tobin drop her arm instantly.

“So what? I love me some cookies.” Alex grins provocatively and Kelley just shrugs at them, still recovering from the kiss.

They know better than to question Alex and start walking to the car. Alex picks up Kelley’s crutch and they fall behind a few steps.

“What was that for?” Kelley asks with an amused smile.

“For being the most amazing person on this planet.” Alex smiles back.

[monstersdownthepath]

Spiritual Spotlight: The Pale Horse

True Neutral Psychopomp Usher of Duty, Revenge, and Beasts of Burden

Domains: Death, Repose, Travel, Water Subdomains*: Psychopomp, Souls, Exploration, Rivers

Concordance of Rivals, pg. 15

Obedience: Perform hard labor for 1 hour while focusing on your shortcomings and how to overcome them. Benefit: Get a +4 insight bonus on saves against death effects and effects which cause fatigue.

(*IMPORTANT NOTE: The Subdomains are my best guess; Subdomains are not listed in Concordance of Rivals. Anywhere!!!)

Our very first Monitor Demigod reviewed! Many Monitors jumped out at me, but the Pale Horse landed four hooves first with his gorgeous illustration and interesting backstory, so I had to. Not all of the Obediences are as simple as this one, nor are all of the benefits, but I appreciate a bit of simplicity now and then. And it’s fitting! The Lash and the Plough exemplifies the pain and the bounty that comes from servitude and difficult work being completed, and to prove your obedience to him you have to break your back for one hour while considering where you’re weakest. Sweat out your faults and failures!

I appreciate that the Pale Horse doesn’t specify what kind of labor, so long as it’s difficult and gives you enough mental space for self-reflection. Break rocks, dig ditches, haul wood, haul your team’s stuff, all that good stuff! You can even technically do something repetitive and non-productive, such as filling a bucket with water before walking around the source and dumping it back in, but that goes against the spirit of the Obedience and may get you in hot water with the Lash and the Plough. There is some difficulty in that this Obedience is annoying to do in areas where manual labor isn’t really available, but your work doesn’t HAVE to be for anyone but yourself. You don’t even technically have to finish your task, just hack at it for an hour. Pull out a shovel and work at digging a hole, or move around piles of junk you see, or work at picking up trash, things like that.

The unspoken side-benefit of this is that your consistent labor regime may earn you a healthier physique. You may not get one mechanically, but think of the roleplaying potential!

The more important portion of the benefit won’t see much use in the early levels, but as you level up and death effects cement themselves further in enemy repertoires? You’ll be glad you take the extra hour out of your day to beat yourself into shape.

Boons are gained slowly, gained at levels 12, 16, and 20. Servants of the Monitors, though, can enter the Proctor Prestige Class as early as level 8. If entered as early as possible, you can earn your Boons at levels 10, 14, and 16. You MUST take the Monitor Obedience feat, NOT Deific Obedience. Monitors grant only a single set of Boons.

Boon 1: Stalwart Rider. Gain Lock Gaze 3/day, Align Weapon 2/day, or Phantom Steed 1/day.

Lock Gaze is a rare spell, one I’d rarely consider actually preparing but certainly welcome the possibility of having. It forces the target to look at you and ONLY you, granting every other creature concealment against the target, meaning their attacks will miss 20% of the time. It’s a decent spell to throw on someone you’re 40 or so feet away from, forcing them to turn and look at you and potentially throwing them off of whatever they were fighting before.

Align Weapon is a bit too narrow in use, UNLESS you know what you’re going up against. Demons? Angels? Inevitables? Protean? If you know you’re facing that day, then Align Weapon will absolutely save you entire rounds of effort trying to hack through their Damage Reduction. Hell, you don’t even have to really know you’re facing specific Outsider breeds, just knowing you’re going to be up against aligned foes in general is enough to keep this spell tucked away.

Phantom Steed, as discussed last week with Desna, is a very nice spell for traveling about, but the fact it only carries one person at a time makes it kind of difficult to justify using if you’re still moving with a team, but it’s insanely useful if you find yourself on your own.

Boon 2: The Will Endures. Upon completing your Obedience, you gain temporary hitpoints equal to your Hit Dice plus your Wisdom modifier. These hitpoints last 24 hours.

Hope you didn’t dump Wisdom! This ability is probably the SINGLE most boring Boon I’ve ever seen, but it’s an extra 14(+Wis) HP for you that grows as you level up. It’s really, really not a whole lot, but it’s free hitpoints and 14~20 is enough to help you resist one extra attack from a powerful enemy, or a lot of attacks from lesser mooks, and it saves resources for your allies. There IS a bit of a ‘cheat’ built in here in that if you perform your Obedience multiple times a day you can refresh these hitpoints, but that requires you taking an hour out of your day to recover. What do you think this is, 5e???  

Boon 3: Peerless Defender. You can cast Transformation 3/day.

Transformation turns you into a mean machine, a hulking monster with +4 to Str, Dex, and Con (meaning +2 to attack and damage rolls, and +2 HP per hit dice), +4 AC (actually +6 due to the Dex increase), +5 to Fortitude saves, competence with all simple and martial weapons, and BAB equal to your Hit Dice. Even a wimpy Wizard can suddenly hulk out and start beating people’s faces in with this power, but its strength truly shines if you’re already a martial class. If you decided to class into Proctor, then starting your career as a Bloodrager or Magus (or Inquisitor or Investigator or...) makes this ability a beautiful addition to your kit, though the classes who reap the most benefit are actually the ones that don’t cheat with the Proctor’s accelerated Boon advancement; i.e. full martial classes.

Transformation rarely sees use because it’s restricted to Alchemist, Magus, Sorcerer/Wizard, and Witch, and while the Magus and some Alchemist builds can get great mileage out of it, the others are kind of screwed because Transformation also removes your ability to cast spells for its duration and, I’m not sure if you’re aware, spells are a pretty important class feature for the Wizard and Witch. That being said, while maximum BAB may be redundant if you’re already a Fighter or a Barbarian, a Rogue or even just a buffed Cleric can enjoy the benefits just fine.

It’s a good ability! And it can be used three times a day! And since spell-likes need no components, you don’t need to invest a Potion of Bull’s Strength each time!

So, while we wait for the Archives of Nethys to catch up (EDIT: Link now at the end of this post!), how about a bit on the Pale Horse’s personality? He started life as a daemon, actually, and it’s debated if he was a Harbinger, a powerful daemon, a Horseman, or even one of the Horsemen’s steeds (with Charon being the most likely), as his name and deeds have been struck from all of Abaddon’s records. He gorged on mortal souls until the memories and emotions that came with it induced a painful melancholy in him, and he soon found himself becoming paralyzed by his own decisions and crushed under the weight of the leadership that his position afforded.

In a spectacular show of Outsider Mind Weirdness he realized he hated having to make decisions for himself and wished to be free of the Burden Of Choice, and threw himself at Pharasma’s feet in supplication, hoping for mercy. Taking advantage of this moment of weakness, she turned the Pale Horse into her own watchmen of the River of Souls, a figure that now trots up and down the shores of the River, slaying creatures who would prey on the vulnerable souls within while guiding those who’ve lost their way back onto the trail. He personally trains other guardsmen of the River and even leads charges into daemonic territory to reclaim stolen souls!

Yes, there IS a bit of irony--or perhaps hypocrisy--in his actions and attitude versus what he expects of his followers (the Burden Of Choice was a weight he could not bear, but he expects everyone else to shoulder their own hardships), but I enjoy such looks into the minds of spectacularly weird Outsiders like the Pale Horse.

You can read more about him here.

[talix18]

November 4

If I could go back in time and tell myself anything useful, #1 would be for gods sake please keep up with guitar lessons. #2 would be something about considering carefully the fact that you're going to live out a few more decades; continuing to blow up relationships will have you living them out mostly alone. #3 would be Absolutely Fill Out the Rhodes Scholarship application, idiot. I know you don't know yet that you want to travel but I promise that the experience you would have going to school overseas would be more than worth putting up with the weather. It's a problem that opportunity arises for some people when they're too young to appreciate it – at least it was a problem for me. So play guitar, sing, write, do all those things in front of people because it can just be fun, you know. Go to school far away. Sit still and let someone love you.

Because there is a distinct possibility that you will never meet someone who you know is The One. I'm pretty sure I thought I'd met The One two or three times. Nobody is going to fit all of your edges without rubbing uncomfortably in a few areas, whether it's their tendency to cut their hair too short or their inability to take on housekeeping duties when you're laid up or their families not being people you'd choose to hang out with. It's nice to have someone to hang out in sweatpants with; it's nice to have someone around who makes you laugh. Love is just as much about action as it is about emotion. It's not just something that happens to you; it's also something that you do.

But the reality is that I did meet someone I had those heart-flips over. We had that connection I'd always hoped to find. And life got in the way. He wasn't willing to make the changes he needed to in order to be with me and I wasn't willing to wait anymore. And I had the one that I was crazy about who just wasn't as crazy about me, and the one that I thought was the Universe actually working in my favor until the long-distance of it all got too much. Maybe I've had my chances.

I just want a life where I can honestly say “I wouldn't change a single second because it got me here.” Is that so much to ask?

Is it terrible if I don't eat anything except cauliflower crust veggie pizza? I mean, if I'm not overdoing the cheese and the veggies are fresh and the sauce doesn't have sugar in it – there's no reason that it's a “bad” idea, is there?

Saturday night I was at a meeting where a friend was celebrating nine years clean. She is hilarious and outgoing and incredibly smart, and she honestly believes that all Muslims are taught to throw acid in the faces of their women. This baffles me. I have this other friend – she's Jewish and also incredibly smart, and helped vote in the current administration because she's anti-reproductive rights. The administration that normalized being a Nazi in the 21st century. I just don't get it. And this is always going to limit the extent to which I'm going to trust someone – if you fundamentally believe that some humans are less deserving of compassion and dignity and self-determination, then I have to wonder what's going to happen if I fall into one of your less deserving categories.

Anyway, what I'm learning is that my mental health depends on being around people – on being part of a community – and I need to tell the truth about myself in safe places. So I'm at a meeting Saturday sharing about how my depression manifests, the specific example being that for most of the almost 15 years I've lived in this house, there has been a dresser drawer on my bedroom floor. It hasn't always been the same drawer – I've fixed at least two or three rails in the time I've owned these IKEA dressers. And it is entirely likely that I wouldn't have this problem if I didn't stuff the drawers beyond their recommended capacity. The point is that this is how I live: walking around the drawer on the floor. I am not going to consider my shit together until there are no drawers on the bedroom floor.

After the meeting, the woman next to me, who is a successful married adult with grown children, leaned over and said “I've never felt so close to you.” And that's what it's about, gang. Those moments when we tell the truth about how we live and other people recognize themselves in it. It's scary sometimes but, for me, it's necessary. And when I have more than one broken dresser drawer, I can ask for help getting rid of the things I don't need and taking the broken things to the dump. Then I can buy a new piece of clothing storage furniture, probably from IKEA, because I'm not made of money, and this one doesn't have drawers.

Last night I drove two hours to Philadelphia to see Fleetwood('s Heartbreakers House) Mac. You have to understand what Stevie Nicks means to me. Yes, I loved “Dreams” when I heard it the first time in someone's apartment in fifth grade where I was playing some version on Spin the Bottle for the first time. (Billy Schoonmaker, where are you now?) I loved the White Winged Dove song that I didn't know the name of until I saw a song I'd never heard of by Stevie on a jukebox and played it. And I remember a cartoon of someone literally dragging a heart behind them that was in the junior high newspaper. But The Moment I got it was when my mother's second husband, who played bass in an actual, playing out band, brought home Stevie's first solo album. I remember seeing her on the cover with white roses and gauzy clothes and a crystal ball and a tambourine and thinking “you mean life can look like that all the time?” My experience of gauzy clothes and crystal balls was limited to the Renaissance Festival that came to town every summer. I don't know why I took that album cover so literally – she could have been dressed that way specifically for those pictures – but in that moment I had permission to make my life look any way I wanted it to.

So Stevie, and by association Fleetwood Mac, have been part of my soul for most of my life, and I've been lucky enough to have seen her solo and with them several times. (Not on the Wild Heart tour, though! Not when Joe Walsh was her opener and Mom refused to sit through him and I was too young to go by myself. [Learning later that Stevie considers Joe the lost love of her life just makes it easier to carry that grudge.]) I've seen them minus Lindsay plus Billy Burnette & Rick Vito, with Lindsay Buckingham but minus Christine McVie (sorry I'm not sorry this is my preferred line-up), and now minus Lindsay plus Mike Campbell and Neil Finn.

I saw them in April and had All The Emotions. All of them. There were the general Stevie emotions, of course. Then there were the Tom Petty emotions, because I'd seen Campbell with Petty and the Heartbreakers the previous summer, on that last tour. Thank god. I don't even know what made me decide to go – I didn't take pictures or buy a shirt like I almost always do – but I was there, and then Tom died. And now Stevie, who adored him, and Mike, who was his musical partner, were on stage together without him.

Then there's Neil Finn, who was? Is? The frontman for Crowded House, who I also love. But more importantly, he was one of the favorites of my friend Andrea, who died of cancer far too young, who lived in Seattle and I made it a point to fly out for her 40th birthday. Who I flew out to sit in the hospital with in the last weeks of her life. Who I met on the Internet of all the ridiculousness, along with an entire group of Webpeeps who I've been lucky enough to ride roller coasters, celebrate weddings, and baptize babies with. Andrea loved Split Enz and Crowded House and made me listen to their catalog beyond “Something So Strong” and “Better Be Home Soon” and find the pop perfection there. There he was, sounding like he was doing Fleetwood Mac karaoke but also sounding like someone I love who is gone.

Not to mention the whole Stevie and Lindsay and will he ever be able to sing again after his throat was injured after his heart surgery and what the hell happened that Stevie decided this was finally a bridge too far to cross with him after everything else they've worked through. I love Stevie but not blindly, and I see Fleetwood Mac touring without two of their three main songwriters but not without her.

All. The. Emotions.

And I went with my grown adopted niece and Stevie sang about children getting older and I was weeping, as I do.

I had decided against buying a shirt, figuring I could make a more rational decision about what I wanted the next day and get it online. And learned to my horror that no, I couldn't, and then the crazy started. The crazy that said “Look! They're going to be in Philly Friday. Get a ticket to that show and buy what you want there. And if you go alone, you can get a more expensive single seat on Mike Campbell's side of the stage and be In It.” I don't remember how long I thought about it. I do know I ran it past my sister, who said she'd done equally as outrageous things, which gave me permission. My sister is one of the sanest people I know and is one of the lines I can never color outside of.

So I bought that Mike Campbell section ticket and reserved a place on the parking lot and vibrated through half a day at work looking forward to it. Until I happened to see something about them canceling the Boston show the night before and looked further and saw that the Philly show had to be postponed due a band member's illness. I was disproportionately devastated. Which is a thing with both addiction and depression – responding to things out of proportion with their actual importance. That disappointment led to a pretty steep downward spiral during which I actually called my sponsor and allowed her to talk me through the insanity maze.

It is recommended that one have a sponsor one trusts and get in the habit of talking to them regularly so that muscle will be exercised when you're feeling crazy or like using or whatever it may be. This is not my way. My traditional way of being a sponsee was crawling through whatever on my own and calling my sponsor to tell her about it afterward, and getting together with her just long enough to work whatever my next step was before my anniversary. Then my very smart Buddhist sponsor with 20 years clean relapsed, and everything changed.

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball Z 134

I’m just imagining Toriyama having this same discussion with his editor. 

On the flip side of things, Dr. Gero is struggling to convince 17 and 18 that the Z-Fighters are a clear and present danger.    The problem is that they were never exactly loyal to Gero in the first place, which was why Gero was so reluctant to activate them.   But Vegeta destroyed Android 19 with ease, and Piccolo damaged him pretty badly, and Future Trunks is a complete mystery to him.    Also, Gero worked Krillin over pretty well on the way here, and he’s still on his feet.    Like it or not, he needs 17 and 18 now.   

Thing is, 17 and 18 don’t really need Dr. Gero.    At this point in the story, all we really know about these two is that they never fell into line with Gero’s authority.   My personal assumption is that they resent him for turning them into cyborgs against their will.   I feel like there’s lore about how they don’t remember their former lives as humans, so maybe I’m wrong.   

The point is that they only really ever got along with him because he had devices like the remote that could shut them down.   17 seemed pretty angry about that in the previous episode when he destroyed it.   They may have other beefs with Gero, but they seemed especially frustrated with the way he could just “put them to sleep” at any time, for any duration.    Now they’re finally awake again and it turns out Gero built a nineteenth androids in the meantime, and then he had 19 rebuild Gero in the twentieth android.   To Gero, that’s old news, but to 17 and 18, it only goes to show how long they’ve been out of commission.

18 wonders aloud why Gero based himself and 19 off the “older” energy absorption model, as opposed to the “eternal energy” model she and 17 are based upon.   I think she hit the nail on the head.   Gero suspected that 17 and 18 were unruly because they were too powerful.  I don’t know if he’s right, but he wouldn’t have trusted either of them to rebuild him into an android body, so he built 19 in a way that he could trust.   I’m not sure why he didn’t have himself made into an “eternal-energy” type, though.  Was he afraid he’d betray himself?    Did he think it would drive him insane?  He’s already an evil mad scientist, how much worse could it get?

So 17 and 18 tell Gero that they’ll deal with the Z-Fighters later, when they get around to it.   Without his controller, he doesn’t have much leverage over them.   Really, even if he did have the controller, he’s in no position to use it.   17 and 18 are the only thing keeping him alive right now.    If he shut them down, he’d be the first one to die.   

Instead, 18 wanders around the lab to see what’s changed since she was last active, and notices another chamber containing an Android 16.   She’s curious about this one, since he’s an unlimited energy model like herself, only he seems to be much larger, indicating a different design.   But Gero gets upset at the very idea of turning him on.    Back at the door, Trunks is just horrified to learn of a fifth android.   

While they bicker, the Z-Fighters just sort of stand at the door and watch.    Krillin suggests they retreat while they’re distracted, and Vegeta plans to stick around no matter what.   Inside, Dr. Gero tries to pull 18 away from 16, which is pretty dumb, since she’s much stronger than he is.   I mean, this is why he reactivated her in the first place, after all.   

It’s pretty fun watching Gero struggle like this.  He was so confident in his plans and backup plans when he first showed up, but now he’s trapped between Vegeta and his own misfit creations.   The funny thing is that 17 and 18 will be kicking the crap out of the Z-Fighters very soon, but not nearly soon enough to do him any good.    Right now all they want to do is screw with his stuff.

18 points out that all the Androids up to #15 aren’t present in the lab.    I suppose this is why Movie 7 introduces 13, 14, and 15 in the sub basement.   18′s point here is that it doesn’t make sense that Gero considers 16 defective.  If he were truly as dangerous as he claims, then why keep him in tact at all?    Really, you could ask the same question about 17 and 18.   They represent the high water mark of Gero’s android research, and maybe he thought he could work the bugs out of their systems, but they’re clearly not going to help him, so wouldn’t he have been better off dismantling them?

Gero starts flipping his shit, warning them that turning on 16 could get them all killed.   17 scans 16 and concludes that 17 has a higher power level, so clearly 16 isn’t a threat.    Gero keeps arguing with them,  and threatens to turn them off, but he doesn’t have the remote, so he can’t.    All he can do is threaten to build a new one, like anyone’s gonna stand back and let him do that.

Finally, as 18 pushes the button on 16′s chamber, 17 attacks Gero and kills him.   This was the big moment Trunks spoke of when he first warned Goku about the android threat.  He said they killed Gero when they were activated, and now it’s finally come to pass.    It’s not clear how things played out in Trunks’ timeline, but in this one it just took a little longer to play out.  

Krillin is shocked that 17 would kill his own creator like that, but Vegeta thinks it’s very similar to the Saiyan way of doing things, which makes the Earthlings the oddballs in the universe.

Then Trunks blows up the whole mountain because he’s been quietly freaking out over all these androids while this scene has been playing out.    I’m pretty sure he didn’t expect that blast to kill 17 and 18, since he never managed anything like that in his own time, but he probably hoped to destroy 16 at least, and any other secret weapons Gero left lying around.

But yeah, no, they’re all fine.   Vegeta scolds Trunks for wasting his energy on a pointless attack like that.    18 goes back to turning on 16 like nothing happened.

So they let him out of the chamber and he’s a big ol’ feller.   17 and 18 ask him why Dr. Gero was so uptight about activating him, but he has nothing to say.

But when they ask him if he was also created to kill Goku, he says yes, and I guess that’s enough for them to bond over.  18 says it was rude for Gero to deem 16 a failure, since he seems to be on board with the whole “kill Goku” agenda.  

As for 17 and 18, they’re not particularly inclined to folllow Gero’s instructions, but they need something to get them started, so hunting down Goku is as good an objective as any.    So they fly off together to plan their next move.  

So the reactions to this development make a pretty good lesson on characterization.   The Z-Fighters are all on the same side, but they’re not all of one mind.    So when something like this happens, it’s a good chance to show them all reacting differently.   Tien just wonders where they’re going.     He’s the practical sort.   He didn’t expect them to leave, so he wants to know why they left and what they’re up to.  

Piccolo’s more of a strategist.   He’s mostly interested in what the Androids aren’t doing, which is rampaging through the nearest populated area, which was what Trunks says they do in his timeline.    For him, the main issue is that the Androids aren’t behaving the way he anticipated, which makes it harder to plan around.   

Krillin thinks with his heart, which often leads him to make logical leaps, but he’s pretty sharp at the same time, so a lot of times he gets the right answer.    This is has been about Goku from the start, so it makes sense that they’d go after him, especially if they’re not interested in attacking the other Z-Fighters or destroying cities.    It’s the only thing left on their bucket list.

And Vegeta’s an egomaniac.    As far as he’s concerned, this is all about him, and he’s offended that he stood here, ready to fight the Androids, and they didn’t even notice.   

And Trunks is just way in over his head.   Right now all he wants to do is wait for Goku to recover from the heart virus so they can regroup and figure this mess out.  He definitely does not want to go off picking fights with 17 and 18, because they were too much for the Z-Fighters in his own history.   In this timeline, they now have backup, and he has no idea what 16 is capable of.    But Vegeta doesn’t care, and he chases after the androids anyway.

The problem here is that Trunks doesn’t understand Vegeta’s attitude toward Goku.    He doesn’t see him as a valuable ally, he hates him worse than he hates the androids, and as far as he’s concerned, he wants to kill the androids first, then finish off Goku later.   So he punches Trunks and leaves.

Then Krilin reminds Trunks that if the Androids really are headed for Goku’s house, they’ll run across Gohan and Bulma along the way, since they sent them there a couple of episodes back.  So now Trunks realizes they have to intercept the Androids, or else he might lose both his parents.

Speaking of Bulma, Gohan was flying her, Baby Trunks, and Yajirobe back to Goku’s house, but in this episode they’ve stopped somewhere and built a campfire for some reason.     This is one of those weird things in the anime where some subplots seem to take much longer than the main story.    I’m pretty sure it’s only been an hour or so since the attack on Amenbo Island.  I guess it could have been longer than that, since Gero had to travel all the way from South City to North City, but he’s pretty fast.    Anyway, the idea that Gohan’s group had to land and rest long enough to build a fire seems kind of weird, like this whole saga has spanned most of the day.   

Anyway, it’s been a while since we’ve had a small boy in this series, so Toei’s gonna return to its roots and show baby weiners.  

At Goku’s house, Chi-Chi’s coping with the crisis by cooking.    She figures Goku will be hungry when he recovers from the virus, and she does this cute impression of him while she thinks about it.    I love this, because this is exactly what they did in the dub version.   Honestly, the subs and dubs match up a lot more often than they don’t.   I won’t deny that the dub got a lot of stuff very different, and some of it flat out wrong, but one of the reasons I wanted to watch the whole thing in Japanese was to see just how different it was, and it’s not that far off.  

I mean, this is a visual medium, first and foremost.    I see Team Four Star talking about the directions they want to take the characters in with the DBZ Abridged series, but the fact of the matter is that they’re pretty much confined to the footage they have to work with.   Funimation had the same constraints in the early 2000′s when they dubbed this part of the story.    The way I heard it, they didn’t have access to the original Japanese scripts, so they had to write the English version based on Spanish dubs instead.    And sometimes they would ad lib things to punch up the story or fill long pauses without any dialogue.    You can debate whether that’s a good idea or not, but the bottom line is that there’s only so many ways you can spin a scene like this.   Chi-Chi’s clearly not cooking all that food for Yamcha.    I’m sure he can have some, but that’s not what’s on her mind right now, and any dub that ignores her concern over Goku is missing the point.   

All TFS can do is try to make it funny.   I’m pretty sure they didn’t use this scene, probably because there wasn’t a good way to make it funny, but they’d still have to acknowledge the fundamental premise that Chi-Chi is cooking food because she’s worried about Goku.    You could go in an absurdist direction and have her say “hehehe im putting p00p in this food because i h8 my husband lol XD”   But that’s pretty cheap.   Any idiot could tell that joke.  

See?   

Yamcha reminds Chi-Chi that the virus might be contagious, so he tells her that they should both take some of the medicine.    I feel like that should have already happened by now, but whatever.   I seem to recall in the dub, Chi-Chi tells him he has to buy his own bottle, which is kind of petty.    Like I said, the dub does take some liberties, but it mostly sticks to the story.   

Meanwhile, Vegeta’s butthurt that everyone trusts Goku to solve this crisis, even though he’s at least as strong as Goku now.     He seems to be missing the point that he can Goku probably need to work together on this problem, but whatever.

Elsewhere, 17 leads his group to a highway, because he wants to steal a car and drive it to Goku’s house, as opposed to flying straight there.   While they wait for a car to drive by, they ask 16 if he was based on a human, like they were, and he explains that Dr. Gero constructed him from scratch.

And this is where the whole Android/Cyborg/Artificial Human thing sot of falls apart.   #20 is clearly a cyborg, because you can see Dr. Gero’s brain in the dome on op of his head.    17 and 18 are cyborgs, because, as they say, they were built from human beings.    A lot of fans just refer to them as cyborgs for that reason, but 16 is not a cyborg, because he’s purely artificial.   Since he’s a robot that closely resembles a human, that makes him an android, literally, by definition.   

I’m less sure about #19.   The dome on his head looked like it had a bunch of computer parts in it, but that could just mean Gero transferred his brainpatterns to a CPU, or he may have cut out 19′s cerebrum entirely, killing the human he was based upon, but still using organic parts in his final design.   16 might be the same deal, really.    He looks and acts a lot like the Terminator robot, and those guys were just robot endoskeletons wrapped in cloned human flesh.   The T-800′s are cyborgs, even though they don’t have human brains or human consciousness.   

Anyway, that’s why I use “android”.   It’s incorrect, and I know it’s incorrect, but it’s what the dub used, so I’m used to it, and there doesn’t seem to be a more “right” term available that covers all of these characters.   

This revelation makes 17 wonder why Gero ever bothered using humans in his experiments.  If he could build an android fighter from scratch, why did he abandon that design to make 17 and 18?   

This is something I like about the androids.   You’d expect the higher-number ones to be stronger, but instead Toriyama introduced them in reverse order.    16′s the strongest, then 17 and 18, then 19 and 20.   Movie 7 takes that idea one step further by having #13 be even stronger still.   The implication is that Dr. Gero had his perfect killing machine ready to go a long time ago, but something about #16 worried him, so he went back to the drawing board and made something weaker.   Then 17 and 18 proved too hard to control, so he went back to the drawing board again and made #19, and then he decided to turn himself into an android, which is kind of stupid seeing as he’s the lynchpin to this whole operation.  If Gero fights Goku himself and loses, there’s no one left to build the next wave.  

I don’t know if this is about Gero being a perfectionist, or realizing that power couldn’t be the only factor in his design, or what.    You’d think the ideal android would combine traits from 16 through 20, but he seems to have abandoned one idea and moved on to another.    Why not build a cyborg with unlimited energy and the power to drain people’s ki?   Well, we can’t as Gero now, because 17 killed him.

Anyway, Vegeta finds them and challenges them to a fight.  

18 asks 16 to fight Vegeta first, because she wants to see what he can do, but he refuses.  So 18 decides to take care of him herself, because fuck this guy.   I’m a Vegeta fan, but come on.   Fuck this guy.  

Seriously, when has anyone ever said this and won a fight?   Like, in Iron Man 2, Happy Hogan tries to go easy on Black Widow because she’s disguised as a secretary and he doesn’t know she can kick his ass, and she kicks his ass.     No one ever goes “Well, I’ll probably win because you’re just a dumb ol’ girl,” and actually wins.  

Seriously, this is just ingrained in my head after a lifetime of watching pop culture stuff.    It always seemed surreal to me when I play Street Fighter II as Chun-Li and she loses, like she’s just supposed to automatically instakill her opponents.     My default assumption is that if I ever got in a fight with a woman, any woman, that she would probably win, because that’s what happens on TV.   I don’t know exactly how they’d do it.    I’m not very tough, so it’s not like I’d be hard to beat anyway, but if I saw a woman in a coma in the hospital I’d be like “Yeah, I better not mess with her, she could probably kick my ass.”    Is it a stupid way to live?  Maybe.    It’s also healthier.   

I’m just saying Vegeta should watch more TV.    He doesn’t have to learn everything the hard way. 

[tannie-bell]

100 Questions!

thanks to the lovely @chioo92 for sending this my way~! 💕💕💕

edit: putting this under read more bc it’s looooong 😂😂

1. What is you middle name?

Elizabeth

2. How old are you?

18

3. What is your birthday?

october 16

4. What is your zodiac sign?

libra

5. What is your favorite color?

in general black, but i do really like teal and deep greens

6. What’s your lucky number?

i don't really have one, but i like 13 and 16 and 3116

7. Do you have any pets?

yep! two dogs~

8. Where are you from?

a little italian town in the lower half of illinois

9. How tall are you?

technically 5' 1&¾". please feel free to round up to 5'2"

10. What shoe size are you?

depends on the brand, mostly between 8 and 9 u.s. sizes—they have to be wide though, or i have to get bigger sizes and just deal with the looseness 😅

11. How many pairs of shoes do you own?

i think 8?? but i only actually wear like 4

12. What was your last dream about?

in the last dream i *actually* remember, i was a character from my wip and she was with her husband in like this cozy, dim-lit room filled with furs and ancient pieces and neat stuff and she was moderately pregnant so i just remember feeling so warm and loved inside. looking back it's kind of weird bc i've never been pregnant or in love romantically, but it's still heartwarming

13. What talents do you have?

um, I bake well i think 😂 so far i haven't had any bad feedback...😅

14. Are you psychic in any way?

nope.

15. Favorite song?

gaaaaaaah why is this always so hard mikrokosmos ~ bts or lucid dream ~ monogram

16. Favorite movie?

singin' in the rain, howl's moving castle, moana, all mcu movies i've seen so far

17. Who would be your ideal partner?

someone who shares my beliefs/morals and who supports my passions/interests (and i would do the same for him). has a few quirks he needs a few to survive me lol and is musical, respectful, and romantic. also has a sense of humor i appreciate and vice versa. there are other qualities, but that's the gist 😂

18. Do you want children?

yes! not necessarily biological though, i am very open to adoption

19. Do you want a church wedding?

most likely yes

20. Are you religious?

it depends on your definition of religious. in the sense of believing in a particular faith/religion, then yes

21. Have you ever been to the hospital?

yes 😫

22. Have you ever got in trouble with the law?

nope!

23. Have you ever met any celebrities?

if you count the drummer from a now-disbanded band, then yes 

24. Baths or showers?

showers most times

25. What color socks are you wearing?

plain white—they're extra thick ones though! 😁

26. Have you ever been famous?

in what sense? 😂 locally or within a specific community of people, then i think so??

27. Would you like to be a big celebrity?

nope. i used to dream about what it would be like, but i seriously value my privacy and i would feel like i had none if i was famous

28. What type of music do you like?

pretty much anything and everything—except country 😅😂

29. Have you ever been skinny dipping?

nope...

30. How many pillows do you sleep with?

three

31. What position do you usually sleep in?

this weird twisted position on my side. it usually ends with my shoulders hurting 😅😅

32. How big is your house?

it's decently large, but we just updated our tiny two bedroom, one bathroom house (for five people for 15+ years 😳) to a five bed, two bath with an open living area/dining room/kitchen. we made it big enough to accommodate both sides of my family around the holidays (bc we have a decently large family that's only growing 😂)

33. What do you typically have for breakfast?

cereal or a fruit smoothie with either coffee or black tea (preferably earl grey) assuming i even eat breakfast

34. Have you ever fired a gun?

not yet, but i would eventually like to! thinking about a concealed carry permit as well depending on circumstances

35. Have you ever tried archery?

yess, and i love it!! it always makes me feel like some woodland elf heroine or something 😂

36. Favorite clean word?

like just regular words? pretty much any soft-sounding, flowy word with l’s, like melody or lucent

37. Favorite swear word?

i don't swear so none

38. What’s the longest you’ve ever gone without sleep?

like 36-ish hours

39. Do you have any scars?

yep

40. Have you ever had a secret admirer?

...not that I'm aware of??

41. Are you a good liar?

.....i do my best to be honest, but.....i can be....😅 just don't tell my mom

42. Are you a good judge of character?

i think so? i'm not going to be right 100% obviously, but most of the time i think i am

43. Can you do any other accents other than your own?

yeah, but they're not very good 😂

44. Do you have a strong accent?

depends on where you're from tbh

45. What is your favorite accent?

i reeeaaally like australian accents...

46. What is your personality type?

INFP-T

47. What is your most expensive piece of clothing?

a top and skirt set someone i know bought for a wedding and never wore again. i think she paid $100+ for it?? so i got it for nothing which was amazing

48. Can you curl your tongue?

yep!

49. Are you an innie or an outie?

innie~

50. Left or right handed?

right~

51. Are you scared of spiders?

most of the time no

52. Favorite food?

i'm just gonna go with italian beef with mozzarella bc it always sounds good

53. Favorite foreign food?

ramen, bingsu, turkish delight, gulab jamun, and this one chicken rice dish that i have no idea what it's called but it's a.maz.ing.

54. Are you a clean or messy person?

in general? clean. my room? the best way to describe it is definitely-not-so-organized chaos

55. Most used phrase?

oh my goodness or oh my word

56. Most used word?

like or eyyy

57. How long does it take for you to get ready?

......depends. literally anywhere from 5 to 45+ mins...

58. Do you have much of an ego?

i don't think so

59. Do you suck or bite lollipops?

both

60. Do you talk to yourself?

if i didn't i'd go insane

61. Do you sing to yourself?

^ see above

62. Are you a good singer?

i'm decent if my vocal chords are warmed up enough 😂

63. Biggest Fear?

failing/disappointing others. that and falling from heights

64. Are you a gossip?

no. i do my best not to be, anyway

65. Best dramatic movie you’ve seen?

i literally don't know what's considered dramatic anymore

66. Do you like long or short hair?

for my hair? long

67. Can you name all 50 states of America?

give me a piece of paper and a pen and yeah 😂

68. Favorite school subject?

english and music

69. Extrovert or Introvert?

introvert~

70. Have you ever been scuba diving?

nope

71. What makes you nervous?

being put on the spot

72. Are you scared of the dark?

not really, but it also depends on where i'm at and who's around

73. Do you correct people when they make mistakes?

if it's one of my really close friends I'll jokingly correct their grammar, but that's it

74. Are you ticklish?

.......sometimes.

75. Have you ever started a rumor?

no

76. Have you ever been in a position of authority?

a couple times, yeah

77. Have you ever drank underage?

no

78. Have you ever done drugs?

no

79. Who was your first real crush?

this one kid when i was like four or five. his name is tyler. he actually just got married! random i know

80. How many piercings do you have?

none

81. Can you roll your Rs?”

no 😥

82. How fast can you type?

not terribly

83. How fast can you run?

slower than my 70 lb. dog

84. What color is your hair?

dark brown with some blonde and red hints

85. What color is your eyes?

dark chocolate so brown

86. What are you allergic to?

pollen 😥 i think i also have oral allergy syndrome (but that's purely self-diagnosed 😂), so there's that too

87. Do you keep a journal?

i have the past couple weeks for a class, but otherwise no

88. What do your parents do?

my mom is a nurse and my dad is a letter carrier

89. Do you like your age?

ehh, ish

90. What makes you angry?

things taken out of context of conversations, situations, etc. and twisted to portray something else entirely

91. Do you like your own name?

yes~

92. Have you already thought of baby names, and if so what are they?

yes! these are just some of my favorites

for girls: lacie everest, elizabeth marie, roselyn chae (or chaela rose)

for boys: vincent alexandre, killian gray, quinton james

93. Do you want a boy a girl for a child?

both~!

94. What are you strengths?

um....i'm very musical 😂

95. What are your weaknesses?

i procrastinate too much and i don't really know how to work on a project with a group

96. How did you get your name?

my mom knew someone with the name (but they shortened it). she later found out that my dad's great- or great-great-grandmother had the same name

97. Were your ancestors royalty?

like seeeeeeeeveral hundred years back, but yes

98. Do you have any scars?

some

99. Color of your bedspread?

off-white/cream and a purple-y maroon

100. Color of your room?

off-white/cream

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

not tagging anyone bc this is like super long 😂😂 if you see this and want to fill it out, go ahead! you brave soul  😂

[thetalkingrainbow]

Maldives Travel Guide for First Timers

Even before we got married, my then fiancé now husband (Jamal) promised to travel with me to different countries– Maldives on top of the list. True to his word, after two years of our marriage, he took me to my dream destination.

I had various reasons why I wanted to visit this country. For one thing, it’s considered by many as “Paradise on Earth” and it’s undeniably true to me– after swimming in the clear, turquoise waters, walking around a local island with sparkling beaches and palm fringes, running on a white sandbar, and seeing aesthetic coral reefs that are home to plenty of marine species. Second, it’s a 100% Muslim country, and it was an exciting thought to beach bum without seeing too much nakedness. Haha. Indeed, if heaven on earth exists, it is definitely in Maldives!

I used to imagine visiting the tropical paradise as an exceptionally luxurious trip– accessible only if I have millions of pesos on my bank balance. I thought of it as a place I will never have the capacity to visit in this lifetime. I may be right years back, but things have changed now. Maldives is now reachable for budget travelers like me, despite it being a luxury destination. Thanks to the government allowing Maldivians to operate guesthouses, staying in a resort is just an option today.

ABOUT THE COUNTRY Maldives is an Islamic country located in the Indian Ocean southwest of Sri Lanka and India. It consists of 1,192 gemlike islands grouped in clusters called “atolls” but only 200+ are inhabited. Its capital and most populous city, Malé, is geographically located at the Kaafu Atoll and is a ferry-away from the airport island, Hulhule.

Below are some of the local islands near Malé which are accessible by local ferry:

Maafushi Island

Hulhumale Island

Villingili

Gulhi

Guraidhoo

Fulidhoo

You can choose which island you want to stay in but I recommend Maafushi Island based on experience, and Fulidhoo Island based on positive reviews I have read across the internet.

VISA

Filipinos do not need a pre-arrival Visa to enter Maldives. You will be issued a 30-day free Visa upon arrival provided that your passport is valid and will not expire for the next six months from the entry date.

WHERE TO BOOK FLIGHTS Flights to Maldives normally cost around ₱20,000 to ₱25,000 with a layover either in Singapore, Malaysia or Thailand. There are several low-cost carriers servicing the Manila to Malé route—you can try Scoot Air, AirAsia or Cebu Pacific. In our case, we took the MNL-SG-MLE and vice versa flights via Scoot Air for P14,000 ONLY per pax inclusive of a 15kg check-in baggage. I honestly thought I scored the cheapest with the said amount, but unfortunately, several weeks subsequent to booking, I came across Scoot Air’s promotional flight of just ₱8,000 for MNL-MLE round-trip flights. There are times that AirAsia offers the same promo. Insane, right? You simply have to be always on the lookout for these unusual promo fares. It’s a different story if you have the moolah to splurge though.

For more info on how I usually score cheapest golden flights, read here.

HOW TO GET AROUND You might be wondering just how you should be getting around Maldives. Well, there are few methods of transport you can avail depending on your preference and based on factors such as convenience, budget, and safety.

From the Airport Right after stepping outside the arrival hall, you will see a number of booths and their respective staff scattered around the area. If you are expecting your hotel or resort’s staff to welcome you there, just look for a placard with your name on it.

To Resorts or other Local Islands – If no one shows up for you at the airport (insert sad smiley), you may consider taking a speedboat to your preferred resort or local island. Rate depends but it typically starts at 25 USD ~ 1,315 PHP per pax. You also have the option to take a seaplane that costs a lot more than my two kidneys combined. hahajk

To Malé City – If you’re on a budget plan, walk past the booths and locate the public ferry counter to purchase a ticket to Malé City for only 10 MVR ~ 34 PHP. The ride should only take 15 minutes and you’ll arrive at Hulhumale Ferry Terminal.

Ferry Schedule: FROM MALE CITY TO AIRPORT    Every 10 minutes from morning 06:00 AM to 02:30 AM    Every 30 minutes from morning 02:30 AM to 04:00 AM    Every 15 minutes from morning 04:00 AM to 06:00 AM FROM AIRPORT TO MALE CITY    Every 10 minutes from morning 06:00 AM to 02:30 AM    Every 30 minutes from morning 02:30 AM to 04:00 AM    Every 15 minutes from morning 04:00 AM to 06:00 AM

On Fridays, ferries operate every 10 minutes from the morning at 06:00 AM to 00:00 AM.

Conversely, you can ride a speedboat for your convenience. Within two minutes, you’ll reach the northeast part of Malé City.

Because I booked our hotel in Malé within a day before our arrival and because I did not communicate with them our arrival time, no one showed up for us. Wala kaming placard, jusko napaka-dukha feels. Haha. But they were supposed to greet us at the airport since we paid for that one-way airport transfer. Ang tanga ko lang talagang kausap. hehe

Around the City of Malé Arriving at the ferry terminal, you can take a taxi or a mini pickup truck to bring you either to your hotel (if you intend to stay at Malé) or to Villingili Ferry Terminal (if you want to go directly to a local island of your choice). Also, there are bus lines running a circular route around the small city. The downside is—if your hotel is not within their routes, you still have to walk after getting off on the nearest bus stop.

To our Hotel – We rode a mini pickup truck to reach our hotel. Pahirapan kumuha ng taxi, mga bes kaya nagpaka- Megan Young and Mikael Daez kami ni Jamal. Haha. We were charged 50 MVR by the driver. Minimum fare for taxis is 20 MVR per pax during the day and 25 MVR during the night.

To Maafushi Island From Villingili Ferry Terminal, the ride to Maafushi Island will only take about an hour and a half. Ticket price is only 53 MVR ~ 3.50 USD ~ 190 PHP.

Ferry Schedule:

For an updated schedule, click here.

After spending the night at Malé, we went to Maafushi Island where we planned to stay for 5D4N. From our hotel, a staff hailed a taxi for us (and paid for it because of their utang to us) and instructed the driver of our destination.

Since we arrived at the terminal early, we went to a food court nearby and had milkshake while waiting. Sobrang init, mga bes.

Around Maafushi Island From the terminal, getting to your hotel will be either through your hotel’s private vehicle or rickshaw. Yup, rickshaw. Maafushi is a very small island (1.275km x 0.260km) that you can see the entire island within two hours of walking. Some hotels and guesthouses offer a rental bike service for 5 USD per hour. A bit pricey. You can see the locals using motorcycles as a mode of transportation as well, though I am not sure if they are up for lease.

WHERE TO STAY There are a limited number of budget sleeps in Maldives. Unlike in any other Asian country where you will find a 30 USD per night accommodation for two, in Maldives, budget hotels or guesthouses usually cost no less than 60 USD. If you’re lucky, you may come across huge discounts in Agoda. Make sure to constantly browse the app, you might come across a crazy deal like what happened to us.

Or better yet, sign up on Airbnb using this link to earn ₱1,600 travel credit. Or get a 10% refund on your first transaction at Booking.com when you use this unique link.

For high-end tourists, exclusive resorts are the place to be but allot at least 600 USD per night.

The Melrose Hotel – It’s a 450m-walk from Hulhumale Ferry Terminal. We spent our first night here for just 30 USD. It’s the cheapest we could find on Agoda that serves breakfast. Our booking was inclusive of taxes, environmental fees, a welcome drink, one-way airport transfer, and free breakfast. The staffs were friendly and helpful; the receptionist is Pinay, yaay! Our room was small, enough for a 9-hour stay, but very clean. It has toiletries, coffee and tea sachets, iron, and a flat-screen TV among others.

Seven Corals Guesthouse – This was our home in Maafushi for 5D4N. I loved it! The staffs were friendly and attentive, the room was spacious and snug, food was in a variety, and the ambiance was cozy and relaxing. Not to mention the long list of inclusions on our ₱16,500 deal:

Meals (Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner)

Welcome drink

Afternoon tea

Express check-in

Fruit basket

Selected watersports (i.e. Jetski, but the schedule was in conflict with ours)

Free local mobile SIM card

Complimentary snacks

Night Fishing

Sunset Cruise

Dolphin Cruise (No dolphins on our cruise huhu)

Snorkeling Excursion

Sandbank Picnic

Taxes and other fees

We tried looking for another guesthouse/hotel that offers the same but only Seven Corals does. Highly recommended to keep an eye on a deal like this.

Adaaran Prestige Vadoo (optional) – One-night rate starts at ~1,000 USD inclusive of breakfast and taxes/fees. Additional of at least ~200 USD per pax for the roundtrip transfers. It can hurt your pocket but recommended to stay if you have the cash. OR- here’s the catch, you can ask a Maldivian in the local island where you stay to contact any resort you prefer and ask them if you’re allowed to arrange your roundtrip speedboat transfer. The local quoted us 100 USD (2 pax; 2-way transfer) only, 400 USD less than the quoted price on Agoda.

Novina Hotel – another great hotel centrally located in Malé City for ~70 USD only inclusive of a welcome drink, buffet breakfast, and airport transfer. Just like our room in The Melrose, it was small but well maintained. The floor was carpeted and there’s a mini-fridge, too. They served decent food which was great. I love the omelette. Staffs were very welcoming and friendly that they let us stay in the lobby after check-out while waiting for our evening flight.

PLACES TO VISIT IN MALE CITY

Masjid Al-Sultan Muhammad Thakurufaanu Al-Auzam

Fish Market

Republic Square

National Museum

Tsunami Monument

ACTIVITIES TO TRY

MONEY SAVING TIPS 

If you have a layover in Singapore for at least 5.5 hours to 24 hours, join the FREE 2.5-hour guided tours of Changi Airport. More info about the tours here.

Visit during the low season (June to November) to score off-season rates on activities, accommodation, and flights. Prices tend to drop insanely plus, there are fewer tourists traveling.

Last minute deals exist, just be smart enough to plan your trip.

Currency exchange shops in Malé City offers better rates than those in the Airport.

Bring USD with you preferably in 100s or 50s. Usual buying rate for 50-100 USD is 15 MVR per USD while for denominations below is around 12 MVR per USD.

Resorts and guesthouses only accept Dollars while local restaurants and street side shops need Rufiyaa.

Local Ferry >>> Speedboat

STAY. ON. A. LOCAL. ISLAND.

If you’re into luxury resorts, choose those closer to Malé or to the island you’re staying at.

Get not just a full board stay, but an all-inclusive package. It’s very reasonable than bringing with you your wallet all the time.

Haggle like a pro. Be it souvenirs or activities, bargain a better price.

Pack chips and biscuits.

Do not forget your swimming essentials. Sunscreen lotions and rashies in the local islands are expensive.

For our ultimate travel hacks mostly on how to save on your next trip abroad, check these tips on our previous blog.

SAMPLE 6D5N ITINERARY 

OPTIONAL:  Stay on a high-end resort.

EXPENSES

*The amounts do not reflect our actual expenditures.

[xtattlecrimex-blog]

15 Major Errors In Hannibal (S2)

Though I don’t think the first season of Hannibal is in any way perfect or above criticism, because it’s not, I do think that it is really good. Could I list my complaints with it? Sure. Like how unnecessary of a character Abigail Hobbs was. They could have literally done the whole season with her in a coma and it really wouldn’t have made much of a difference. She was awful. However, there aren’t as many problems with season one as season two and then of course, season three, is just a massive train wreck. I thought I’d start with season two and then go from there.

Hannibal doing all that work to frame Will Graham in season one only to get him out of prison the second he could in season two. That is completely out of character for Hannibal Lecter and the canon established by the original source material. Hannibal, who was very devoted to keeping up his free lifestyle as well as cannibalism would have been thrilled that he got away with that. He’d have left Will to rot and would have moved on with his life happy that eyes were off of him, at least for a bit.

Hannibal seemed very confused as to why Will was even in jail and why they couldn’t just let him out. He was very pouty about it. It was weird. Like he had some disconnect to the fact that after everything he did, Will would not only be in jail but also be facing the death penalty. He walked around like this was confusing to him and he didn’t get the concept of it, though season one details everything he did to avoid being caught. Clearly he knew the repercussions of getting caught so why did Will’s incarceration confuse him so much?

The deus ex machina of Matthew Brown. Seriously, that’s all this character was and the only reason he existed was to get Will out of prison. Really examine this character for a moment. He just happens to get a job at the same insane asylum Will is at. He just happens to be a murderer himself who is dying to copycat Will Graham. Hannibal just happens to find him somehow. He’s just happy to work for Hannibal to get Will out of prison then more than happy to try to kill Hannibal just because Will asked. He’s very nearly a self-insert for Bryan Fuller. Then he’s shot and never heard from again. He was awful.

Alana falling in to bed so easily with Hannibal. See, this might be a bit more believable had there not been really obvious feelings between her and Will in season one. I get that she may have not liked him after the point she thought that he killed Abigail but it seemed to me someone like Alana would have more respect for Will than just to run off with his psychiatrist. Not to mention the ethics involved there. Really? It made her look like a pretty terrible person especially since she was also still trying to counsel Will while he was in prison.

Beverly not telling anyone where she was going when she went to check out Hannibal’s house on Will’s behalf. Now, I get that what she was doing was illegal (and I’ll talk about that in a minute) but seriously? She only went to check it out based on what Will told her so she believed him when he said Hannibal was The Ripper. Ergo, why not at least leave a fucking note. Being charged with some kind of breaking and entering crime isn’t as bad as murder, and if she was going to die anyway, why not leave some evidence behind that Hannibal MAY have been your killer? He was the one she was trying to catch, after all.

Beverly agreeing to break into Hannibal’s house to collect evidence at all. Just to go look. How did she think that was going to work? It would have never held up in court. She’d have known this because she worked for the FBI. Any evidence she would have obtained (had she gotten out of there alive) would have been thrown out in court. Then what? What was the plan there other than to prove to everyone he was The Ripper to what? Get more evidence? Inform Hannibal about how sloppy he was so he could just do a better job of hiding? Beverly and Will but ESPECIALLY Beverly should have known this was pointless to do even if she was certain to get out alive.

Miriam Lass still being alive. For this to have worked and been anywhere near realistic, we’d have to consider several things. For one, she was kept alive for literal years by Hannibal. For some reason. Keep in mind, when he took her he’d have had no real actual use for her other than to maybe taunt Jack, I guess. Except it didn’t seem like he was even doing that. He just had her around for some reason. He also had to amputate her arm at some point. Which, I agree, Hannibal could do just fine. However, you can’t just lop off someone’s arm and leave them. You have to monitor them, a lot. He also had Abigail with him either in his basement or that remote cabin where Miriam was found for an entire year. What? No one noticed this? At all? How? Okay, let’s pretend that it’s possible that a bunch of FBI agents going in and out of Hannibal’s house at all hours of the day would miss him keeping two females captive. Even though one is an FBI agent and should have been smart and Abigail for some dumb reason was painted as a genius. Well, then Hannibal’s just not getting any sleep. Between seeing patients, killing people, throwing dinner parties, and covering his own ass so he doesn’t get caught for murder he also has to take care of these two hostages. I know he’s some kind of psychopath and even borderline superhuman but he had no actual ability in reality to do all of this and keep up the appearance that he was normal.

Hannibal not being able to tell that the meat he was eating wasn’t Freddie Lounds or human meat at all. After Will attacked Freddie and there was a whole thing staged to make it seem like he had killed her and he brought Hannibal the meat, which was actually just pork, Hannibal wasn’t able to tell the difference. Hannibal the freaking cannibal. Maybe people like Will or Jack or Alana who really had no frame of reference wouldn’t be able to tell but Hannibal didn’t? Yeah, I’m calling BS.

Miriam Lass being able to shoot Chilton in the face, under extreme duress, one handed, after all that trauma through what should have been bullet proof glass, where Alana’s head was obscuring Chilton’s face at that angle and she would have been hit first (because she can’t move faster than a bullet). That. All of that. Not even possible. Not to mention the fact that Jack, a trained FBI agent couldn’t have stopped her at all? I get that she was an FBI student, prior to her kidnapping, but it had been YEARS without handling a gun or anything like that for her and she was having a freaking PTSD level flashback. No one was able to stop her? Why was Jack even armed in the interrogation room? It’s all sorts of dumb.

Everyone just so easily believing that Chilton was The Ripper. Chilton. A tiny man who walked with a cane and was messed up from his injuries in season one. Yeah, that guy. He took down two armed FBI agents then arranged them by himself in his own kitchen so he’d get himself caught for some reason. Alana, who’d known him for years just easily agreeing to that and that it was possible. Really? These are FBI agents. I get that we as an audience know MORE than they do but just the simple facts of Chilton’s life alone should have pointed them to the conclusion he couldn’t have done that. He wasn’t even physically able to do that.

Abigail Hobbs still being alive and then for some reason pushing Alana out of a window. I guess Hannibal not only had the time to keep her hostage but brainwash her as well. Which leads me to the point that he brainwashed Miriam into thinking Chilton did all this stuff to her. Somehow. For some reason. On the off chance that he was going to need yet another guy to frame at some point? Really? When did he even have the time to do all of this stuff? I’m not saying it isn’t possible but brainwashing to the level he had Abigail and Miriam takes a lot of time and dedication no matter how good you are at it.

Alana running up the stairs and further into Hannibal’s house when he was chasing her instead of just running outside. Why? I get that she was scared but she had already called the police. I mean, damn, she must not have been that scared. Who in the hell does that? I don’t care how much she still thought she loved Hannibal, human nature would have made her run out of the front door, not up the stairs. She didn’t know Abigail was in there or even alive. Why do that? Why not literally go and get help from a neighbor or run down the street to meet the cops?

Why did it take the cops so long to get there? She had FBI connections and by that point Hannibal was known to be wanted by the FBI. Especially because of Jack’s dealings with that stupid lawyer at the FBI. Her giving a call like that, the police and other authorities would already have known it was a serious priority and to get their asses on it right away. They were also in DC like in the city area not in the middle of nowhere like Will’s house. It wouldn’t have taken them 30 damn minutes to get there in the middle of the night.

Hannibal just walking away from the murder scene all the way to Bedelia’s house covered in blood as the cops are arriving. Maybe, I can agree they missed him because it was dark. Fine. However, he walked to Bedelia’s house which clearly was in the middle of nowhere? Because, he didn’t get in his own car. He couldn’t. The police would have known to watch for that. He couldn’t have taken Alana’s car or Will’s car. They’d have been looking for those too. Did he steal a car? He certainly didn’t get a cab covered in blood like that. Someone would have noticed. I don’t know this makes no sense either.

Hannibal getting on a plane with Bedelia. A commercial flight. After he killed all those people and they knew it was him. He’d have never been allowed in an airport to even leave. He wasn’t disguised either. He was looking as Hannibal as he ever looked. A commercial airport on a commercial flight like that? No one stopped him? A man who’s face would have been all over the news. That police would have pictures of. That airport security would have pictures of, that guy? Even if he waited for a “week” for the heat to die down, or somehow got into Canada to leave from there, people would have STILL known it was him I mean God Damn. In no universe is it possible Hannibal did anything like that unless he has jedi mind powers. Even if people didn’t recognize him by his face, did he have a fake ID? Like…how am I supposed to believe he could pull this off without getting caught?

These are just the things off of the top of my head that I know are wrong with season two. The things that stand out the most. Are there more? I’m sure there are, but this is just what comes to mind. Still, this was supposed to be a somewhat realistic crime drama. At least, that’s how it started. Then season two just took that and made it all sorts of nonsensical to a point where no one could suspend disbelief anymore. Everything existed to further the escape of Hannibal, no matter how little sense it made. It was still somehow better than season three but not by much. How this show maintained any sort of following is really beyond me. I just think it has to do with the fact that the fannibals didn’t care how much or little sense it made as long as they got their murder husbands on screen for an hour a week. Gag.

[thesilverdragoon]

REALLY LONG CHARACTER SURVEY.

I’m not subjecting anyone to this horror. Stolen from @crimsonfluidessence​

BASICS.

FULL NAME: Vesevont Nevelaux

NICKNAME: Ves, “Cap”

AGE: 49

BIRTHDAY: 15th Sun of the Second Astral Moon (March 15)

ETHNIC GROUP: Ishgardian Elezen

NATIONALITY: Ishgardian

LANGUAGE(S): Common Eorzean

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Bisexual

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: Biromantic

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Single

CLASS: Dragoon (OOC only, IC a mere knight)

HOMETOWN / AREA: Coerthas

CURRENT HOME: The Mist

PROFESSION: Ex-knight of Ishgard's House Durendaire. Currently: none

PHYSICAL.

HAIR: Blond

EYES: Amber

NOSE: He has one(1) nose.

FACE: Scarred, eye bags, wrinkly, crow’s feet, a little gaunt, aged

LIPS: Probably dry to be fair.

COMPLEXION: Light or, probably just pale

BLEMISHES: We all have ‘em

SCARS: One over the right eye, one across the left cheek and nose. And others.

TATTOOS: None

HEIGHT: 6′6″

WEIGHT: Average for his height

BUILD: Lean, fit

FEATURES: He’s got pretty big ears?

ALLERGIES: Bananas.

USUAL HAIRSTYLE: Short, blond, shaved on the sides.

USUAL FACE LOOK: Resting bitch face

USUAL CLOTHING: Old knight-attire with green cloak, or his blue outfit later in SB

PSYCHOLOGY.

FEAR(S): Abandonment, his kids or friends getting hurt, Carbuncles, Voidsent

ASPIRATION(S): Being able to settle down with someone

POSITIVE TRAITS: Tenacious, Loyal, Polite, Caring, Merciful

NEGATIVE TRAITS: Reckless, Stubborn, Confrontational, Harsh, Impulsive

ZODIAC: Ironically a Pisces (Thaliak on the Eorzean calender)

TEMPERAMENT: Guarded but usually optimistic

SOUL TYPE(S): He has a soul or he wouldn’t be alive.

ANIMALS: He’d want to be a shark

VICE HABIT(S): Stress-eating, boredom eating, eating

FAITH: Unknown

GHOSTS?: Reluctantly yes

AFTERLIFE?: He hopes so

REINCARNATION?: Maybe

ALIENS?: "Who?”

POLITICAL ALIGNMENT: Probably really liberal

ECONOMIC PREFERENCE: Don’t ask him things like this he doesn’t know.

SOCIO POLITICAL POSITION: Refer to the above

EDUCATION LEVEL: Life experience. (He was a knight. Cannon fodder.)

FAMILY.

FATHER: Yes; Dead

MOTHER: Yes; Dead

SIBLINGS: No

EXTENDED FAMILY: Probably

NAME MEANING(S): Vesevont is the made up version to his OC actual name, Vsevolod, which hilariously means ‘lord of everything/everybody’. It’s also a name that hasn’t been used in centuries so anyone with that name is looked at very weirdly irl.

HISTORICAL CONNECTION?: No.

FAVORITES.

BOOK: Particular towards fiction, because he likes happy endings.

MOVIE: If there were movies, rom-coms.

5 SONGS: He doesn’t really listen to music anymore

DEITY: Not currently

HOLIDAY: Maybe Starlight

MONTH: Doesn’t matter

SEASON: Spring

PLACE: The Ruby Sea

WEATHER: Warm and sunny

SOUND: The ocean, the breaking-the-sound-barrier sound Sihl makes when flying

SCENT(S): Fresh cut flowers

TASTE(S): Savory, spicy, chocolatey

FEEL(S): Warm hands on his icicle hands.

ANIMAL(S): Again, sharks

NUMBER: 13. A baker’s dozen

COLORS: Yellow

EXTRA.

TALENTS: Destroying property, taste-testing, withstanding harsh environments

BAD AT: Acting normal and well integrated into society, social anything

TURN ONS: Intelligence, Kindness, Snappy Wits and Sarcasm, Prim and Proper

TURN OFFS: Cruelty, Unforgiving..ness, All Out Bad

HOBBIES: Flying with Sihl and exploring, sometimes people-watching

TROPES: Anime-Reactions, Dopey Dad, Seems to Survive Everything

AESTHETIC TAGS: Birds, the sky, flying, the sun, dragons happy, uplifting and airy

GPOY  QUOTES: "Uh oh.”

FC INFO. (I dont know what ANY of this means.)

MAIN FC(S): 

ALT FC(S): 

OLDER FC(S):

YOUNGER FC(S): 

VOICE CLAIM(S): WS!Cap definitely was lip-syncing Ronan Harris’ voice due to the sheer multitude of VNV songs that were part of his character. But Ves specifically?? I imagine something probably deeper and more rough but I haven’t heard anything I liked in particular yet.

GENDERBENT FC(S): 

MUN QUESTIONS.

Q1: IF YOU COULD WRITE YOUR CHARACTER YOUR WAY IN THEIR OWN MOVIE, WHAT WOULD IT BE CALLED, WHAT STYLE WOULD IT BE FILMED IN, AND WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?:

If it were up to me, the movie would be emulating a war movie in style, with muted and often cold colors and much darker themes and tones. Occasionally there’d be bursts of color or uplifting scenes to remind everyone that people are still human and contrast all the darker stuff, so a balance between the two. 

That’d be the most important part of it for me personally. Many references to all sorts of symbolism, though not too heavy-handed with it, allegories, metaphors, etc. To explore the spectrum of the ...for lack of better term, human condition.

Q2: WHAT WOULD THEIR SOUNDTRACK / SCORE SOUND LIKE?:

Completely orchestrated, done in a romantic style so that, in case someone weren’t watching the movie itself, they could simply listen to the music and imagine their own scene to it as the composition of said songs would ...in a perfect world, be very specifically tailored to fit certain sequences of emotion and whatnot.

And of course some violin/piano duet pieces sprinkled here and there.

Q3: WHY DID YOU START WRITING THIS CHARACTER?:

Ves is just one version of an old OC I’ve had for a long, long time. Maybe eight or so years. Give or take. He’s got several different iterations thus far.

Q4: WHAT FIRST ATTRACTED YOU TO THIS CHARACTER?:

My love for war movies and such to be honest. Along with my insane fascination and interest in historical narratives and European warfare and the like. Typically, Ves’ character is usually pulling all sorts of things from WW1 from fashion to mannerisms, and his whole world is constructed to emulate that as well (though, not set on Earth.) Not the FFXIV version of course because Ishgard is there, but other versions of him such as WS and his original counterpart.

Q5: DESCRIBE THE BIGGEST THING YOU DISLIKE ABOUT YOUR MUSE:

If I had to pick the largest thing I have against him (and I mean this character in general, not specifically FFXIV,) it’s the need for historical accuracy in most cases. I’m a die-hard for things like that and spend a lot of time doing research (usually just for fun but I get carried away easily.) Considering reference material isn’t always the easiest to find for really specific things from a time period that old, it becomes frustrating VERY quickly when I don’t feel I’m portraying him ‘authentically’ enough.

Elsewise, as far as his personality goes, he’s just like any dad. The need to always be right drives me absolutely insane. The good thing about him though is that he’s fictional and I can make him change and grow and learn. >:) Now that’s what I call sexy.

Q6: WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN COMMON WITH YOUR MUSE?:

We both love to eat and eat way too much too often and yet are like twigs. And we’re too particular about certain things.

I dunno, your characters technically are just facets of you.

Q7: HOW DOES YOUR MUSE FEEL ABOUT YOU?:

He’d be extremely annoyed but I don’t think he’d do anything about it. I am but a CHILDE.

Q8: WHAT CHARACTERS DOES YOUR MUSE HAVE INTERESTING INTERACTIONS WITH?

Thus far? There’s Lowrey who won’t leave him alone and is always trying to wrangle Ves in like a bucking horse, and they’re VERY entertaining to watch with their weird and aggressive banter (on Ves’ part anyway, he can’t stand the guy. Lowrey just rolls with the punches with a big grin and keeps on pushing. Ves is gonna clobber him one of these days for real this time. For REAL this time.)

And then there’s Ves and Caudecus’ very polarizing and almost jarring but still extremely funny interactions with one another. They’re roommates right now so, typical roommate shenanigans, laugh track plays here. There’s something sinister hidden underneath it all and I think Caud may just get a laugh out of stabbing Ves verbally, which is also something I enjoy laying witness to.

And of course, Mei and Ves. He has NO idea who she is, he just kind of met her out there in the wilderness I suspect and thought she was weird, but she’s very fun and loves to go exploring and flying too and that’s something he can relate to. Plus Mei displays a very clear sense of justice and that is something he appreciates VERY much. She’s just whacky and weird and a mystery but he likes it and doesn’t know why. It’s probably all the pink.

Q9: WHAT GIVES YOU INSPIRATION TO WRITE YOUR MUSE?:

Anime stuff probably, war stuff. I dunno, depends on my mood for the day. I don’t need inspiration, my characters are just on a roulette wheel. Which one do I feel like using today.

Q10: HOW LONG DID THIS TAKE YOU TO COMPLETE?:

About an hour, but I had to constantly rephrase things that didn’t make sense.

[mfackenthal]

150 Follower Spotlight: @blackcatkita!

What follows is the transcript of the very first episode ever of “The MFackenthal show.”  Imagine the set of “The Ellen Degeneres Show.” Emojis have been used to help show facial expressions and to give this transcript greater depth.

Hello everyone and thank you for that warm welcome!  This show is a dream come true.  When Ellen saw me interview @simplyaiden-blog  and asked me to create a show, I almost fainted.  No one pinch me as I don’t want to learn this is just a dream. 

We have an amazing show for you today.  Please join me in welcoming @blackcatkita to the stage! 

MFack:  Jen, I am so glad you are here!  I have loved your work for a while now and I am so glad you are willing to join me on stage for my first episode of “The MFackenthal show.”

Jen:  Megs, thanks for having me!

MFack: So your name is Jen and your MC is often named Jennifer … now, I name all of my MC’s Megs …

Jen: Yep! I name all of them a derivative of my own name. Those based in high school are Jenny, because that’s what I went by. College aged ones are Jen. TRR is the only one I use Jennifer, because its more proper. 😁

Once I start writing for more series I will have to think up new names. It will be too confusing to have them all with the same name!

MFack:  I understand, though have you met the blogger @lizeboredom? All her MCs are named Minah and she's just made it a running joke.  You should reach out to her and tell her how awesome my show is – I’d love to have her on as a guest.  (wink)

But back to you, where are you from?

Jen: I'm from Milwaukee, WI, USA.  I’m still in the Milwaukee area but now I live in a nearby suburb.

MFack: and what do you do when you're not writing?

Jen: Oh, not much! I work a lot but when I'm not I'm usually playing the app, reading, or writing.

I’m a master level manicurist at a full-service salon and spa.

MFack: Whoa, that's awesome.

Jen: (Laughs) It is?

MFack: (Laughs) Well, I guess you'd have to tell me.  I'm thinking it's a lot of work, but that you'd also get a discount on some great spa services.

Jen: I don’t pay anything for hair or spa services. Most of the time we don’t even tip each other, just trade. And I get half off products, so that’s nice. I actually started doing it because it was flexible, and I could do it while I finished college. I never did go back because, honestly, I love what I do! I’ve been doing it for 15 years and some of my clients have been with me the whole time. They aren’t just clients, I consider them friends as well. I’m booked at 87-95%, I love my coworkers, the owner is awesome, it’s a great place to work and its insane to me how much I make doing nails. I always say I don't really work there, I just go there to hang out with my friends and they pay me for it.

MFack: Awh - so it is AWESOME!

Jen: It is 😁 Usually people don’t have that reaction is all. I’m not a surgeon or anything but I do make people feel good about themselves. Sometimes I feel like a therapist.  

MFack: In many ways, I'm sure you are a therapist.

So, what brought you to the choices fandom?

Jen: I honestly don’t remember why I downloaded the app in the first place. I played “The Crown and the Flame” and was hooked! I held out on purchasing diamonds until “The Royal Romance” and “Endless Summer.” I’ve now fallen completely off the deep end. Like hundreds of dollars into the abyss. Now I unlock everything in my favorite stories!

MFack:  Me too! "What's a few dollars here or there," my mind asks ... and then the other part of me says, "if only it was a few dollars … don't ask that question ... "

Jen: I look at it like this: it entertains me for hours every day. I work for a living, I deserve those diamond scenes! (whispering) and outfits!

MFack:  Who’s work in the fandom did you read first?

Jen: I think it was @captainkingliam, closely followed by @violetflipflops and @ladynevrakis (who have since changed their handles to @sgt-peppers-coffee-club and @i-dream-so-i-write) I absolutely adore @captainkingliam’s "In Another World" AU and @violetflipflops and @ladynevrakis' Kenna/Diavolos fics are life!

MFack: Yes! I love Diavolos! (Whispering) Here’s a little secret: I almost cried the other day when the former @ladynevrakis said she's pretty much done writing for Kenna/Diavolos!

Jen: NOOO! I didn't see that! I was already #teamDiavolos before I read her stuff but if I hadn’t been she certainly would have swayed me!

But, Megs, can I ask a question of you now?

MFack:  (Looking at Jen quizzically) I guess ….

Jen: Well, I saw that you’re reading all of my masterlist, including earlier stuff 🙈

MFack:  Yup! I'm calling it "research" (wink) Don't worry, I'll catch up ASAP!

Jen:  Well, I feel like I hit my stride in part 4 of Consequence of Secret and every time I write it gets a little better. I may rewrite those first 3 someday. We are our own worst critics though.

MFack:  Indeed! That's why I'm not a writer - I can't do the rewrite parts. Once I write it and read it for "editing" I hit publish and deal with my consequences of my many errors …

I'm remember chapter 4 and I love that Chance shames Liam. ;)

Jen:  Oh yeah, well then I have to ask, which chapter of “The Consequence of Secrets” was your favorite?

MFack: I think maybe chapter 9 is my current favorite. I get to hate new characters and things don't quite go as planned in that chapter, Olivia is delightful in her Olivia way - the writing is just soooo good! I love the chapter more when we realize that Liam's perspective is inaccurate.

Jen: Yes! Liam is so blind, and he doesn’t even know it. Spoiler alert: Shit goes down in chapter 11b.

MFack:  Ahhhh!  I can’t wait! I want to ask about that, but I know half my audience hates spoilers so let me ask my next question.  Have you read all of the choices books?

Jen: Yes! I replay my favorites all. the. time.

Megs:  What's your favorite?

Jen: Hmm ... I will go with The Royal Romance, followed by Lovehacks and The Crown and the Flame. I am really enjoying Perfect Match and Bloodbound too, just not enough to break into the top 3.

MFack:  While I agree with you about Lovehacks, I know it's not a Tumblr favorite.

Jen:  I don’t know why it gets so much hate. I think it’s hilarious and Mark is a perfect cinnamon roll of a man!

MFack:  I don't know why either!  Of course, as all my viewers will learn, I love anything that hints to the TV show Friends.

Okay, so seeing as The Royal Romance is your favorite, who is your favorite character from that universe?

Jen:  How can you make me choose?! I love them all! Liam is obviously a favorite of mine. There’s so much more to him than just "the sweet and romantic love interest." He’s been brought up to be the stoic king and he is, but he’s also a man with conviction who really does want the best for his people and his country. That being said, he isn’t afraid to fight for what’s important to him and he goes for what he wants in life even if that means going against what others think. Then there’s Maxwell. He’s the happy go lucky go to guy for a good time but he’s really the most supportive friend you could ever want. He will do anything for his friends, even bring a random commoner he just met to compete for his friend’s hand because he saw something in the two of them. All that said - I'm choosing the MC for the win! She's fearless, loyal (at least how I play her lol) assertive, kind, funny, generous, selfless etc. etc.

MFack: Going back to your work, what's your writing process?

Jen:  Uhh … I don’t know if I have one! An idea pops into my head and I start writing … I'm one of those fortunate people who retains information, so I don't usually have an outline when I start.  I kind of just know where I want the story to go. I do have a file of "fic ideas" but it’s full of simple like statements: "the Lovehacks gang at the renaissance faire" or "Red Carpet Diaries/The Royal Romance crossover." Consequence of Secrets is a little different, of course. The entire series started with the words "It's killing me to see you with him," and it quickly took on a life of its own. I know how each part starts and ends, and what I want to accomplish within that chapter. My goal is to have all of my fics line up together in a timeline that makes sense.

MFack: What's your favorite/least favorite thing about Tumblr?

Jen:  My favorite thing is the fandom itself! It amazes me how kind and supportive everyone is. Also, there are so many incredible writers here it's insane!

My least favorite thing? Not getting notifications and when tags don’t work.

MFack: Ugh, the tags are driving me crazy!  But I don’t want to go on a tangent, so instead tell me what is your favorite piece of your own work?

Jen:  I love how fun “How to Please a Woman” is but my favorite is “Consequence of Secrets” starting with part 4 and up. It has required a lot of research - Paris hotels, legal advice (from a real-life lawyer) and ... other things I can’t reveal at this time 😁. The characters are flawed, but still lovable. It really challenges me as a writer and I hope I convey how torn they all are. I want people to be mad at them, but still understand where they are coming from... if that makes sense.

MFack:  Well, if you want me to be mad at Liam, you're definitely succeeding … I do understand him though, so I think you can call it all a big success!

Now, for the question everyone wants to know ... do you like Pineapple on your pizza?

Jen: (laughing) I will dabble with pineapple on occasion but it’s not a topping I would choose often.

MFack:  Alright, it’s time to dish.  Tell us an "embarrassing story" … Something unique or cheesy about yourself.

Jen: (shaking her head but smiling) An embarrassing story huh? I'm so laid back my sister says I'm half dead so it’s REALLY hard to embarrass me.

Some "unique" things though ... Let’s see, I have a "Nerdary".  It’s our 3rd bedroom - filled with bookshelves, funko pops and harry potter memorabilia such as wands, time turner, golden snitch etc. Oh! Also, I sing in the car, with no shame, and if someone looks at me I sing to them! It’s especially fun when it’s the soundtrack to “Galavant” or “Grease 2” 😂

MFack:  Y’know, I love to sing.  Will you sing with me?

Jen:  Of course!

MFack and Jenn sing “Do it for our Country” from Grease 2:  

“America is calling, let's care enough to give our very best.

For if we give our very best,

I know that we will more than pass the test.

If I could have three wishes, I'd wish that you'd live free,

I'd wish for amber waves of grain from sea to shining sea.

Yeah, let's do it for our country, the red, white, and the blue.

It's Uncle Sam who's asking, so your mother will approve.

Tomorrow I'll be fighting, and I'll win this war for you.

Let's do it for our country, our country wants us to.

Bullets are exploding, they'll soon be at the door,

Give something to America you never gave before.

Yeah, let's do it for our country, the red, white, and the blue,

If the President were standin' here, I'm sure he would approve.

I'll be a mighty soldier before this night is through.

Let's do it for our country, our country wants us to.

(Spoken)

Just think about it -- it would be like as if we were doing it for the Statue of Liberty, or the Grand Canyon, or the New York Yankees... it would be like as if we were doing it for... Disneyland!

Yeah, let's do it for our country, the red, white, and the blue,

It's not a lot to ask of us, our parents will approve.

I'll be a mighty soldier, before this night is through.

Let's do it for our country, (spoken) we owe it to our country.

Let's do it for our country, our country wants us to.”

MFack:  (Laughing) Well, on that note … Jen, what do you want to say to your adoring fans?

Jen:  Thank you so much for your love and support! You all make me smile every day and I'm so happy you enjoy my work! It's all of you that keeps me going!

MFack:  That’s our show – thanks for coming everyone!  Have a GREAT night! We’ll see you next time (when MFackenthal has 200 followers) on “The MFackenthal Show!”