Went to a family thing for canadian thanksgiving and thought i looked cute as hell. <3

A little Christmas Elf told me there was a delay on @lavendertwilight89‘s IYBC Secret Santa gift, so I decided to write just a little something. She already has the whole fic, but I’ll be releasing it here on tumblr in two parts. Just a little something soft and sweet, partially inspired by something that happened between myself and my husband when we were only just together and still working each other out, and also by one of her chosen prompts. So, without further ado, here’s Part One of Song and Dance Man.

Or read the entire story on AO3

🎵

Inuyasha walked out of his small kitchen, carrying a large mug of hot chocolate with extra marshmallows and a plate of chocolate chip cookies on a tray. He put it down on the coffee table in front of his girlfriend, stooping to drop a kiss on the top of her head, then snorted as she tried to nudge him aside so she could see the show she was currently watching. He didn’t know which one it was – they all seemed to blend into one another, and he did his best to block out the singing. Why was there always singing?

“Another one?” he teased, blocking her view even more. “You mean you haven’t watched every single musical on Netflix already? What’s this one called?”

“Singing in the Rain”, Kagome said testily. “And it doesn’t matter how many times I watch them, they make me feel better”, she said, trying to lean sideways. “C’mon, Inuyasha, move!”

Finally relenting at the pouting face looking up at him, he moved out of the way.

“Alright little storm cloud, you win.”

Kagome huffed at him, and he chuckled at her as he walked over to his desk, and picked up his headphones, grateful that the swelling crescendo of violins would soon be drowned out by the much more soothing sounds of screaming and gunfire from his paused game. He glanced back over to the TV as he sat down in front of his monitor.

“That guy looks constipated”, he commented. “How do you even watch this tripe?”

Kagome turned to glare at him over the back of the sofa, a cushion hugged to her stomach to help keep the hot water bottle in place.

“This is not tripe, and Don isn’t constipated!” she hissed. “He’s feeling! He’s in love with Kathy, but he has to act like he’s in love with Lina on screen”.

“That doesn’t mean he needs to torture me by singing and dancing about it”, Inuyasha muttered. “How are you meant to take any of this seriously, when they suddenly just burst into song about their innermost feelings? It’s utterly ridiculous. I don’t get how you can love musicals so much.”

“Is that what you really think?” she said quietly, the tone of her voice sounding brittle in comparison to the cheerful music playing in the background.

Inuyasha lowered his headphones, ears suddenly twitching with trepidation. He wasn’t always the best at reading a room, but he could definitely feel the tension in this one.

Their relationship was only new, but already Kagome seemed like a permanent fixture in his life. She was bubbly and kind, her tiny frame usually draped in the brightest coloured clothing she could find, and she always seemed to be singing or laughing. She reminded him sometimes of a sweet little canary, his own bright eyed and inquisitive songbird, with her happy go lucky mentality and readiness to try new things. She was everything he wasn’t.

They’d only met by chance, both of them stuck waiting in the Emergency Room at the local hospital, him waiting for his friend Miroku to get patched up after coming off his bike, and her waiting to get her wrist x-rayed after an accident with a set at the theatre where she worked. They’d chatted, or rather Kagome had, and he’d watched her, somehow mesmerised by this tiny human that was unruffled by his obviously hanyou features.

When Sango had appeared to pick up her bruised and scraped boyfriend, he’d decided to stay with Kagome, not liking the idea of leaving her there to wait all alone. Eventually she’d been x-rayed, poked and prodded, with Inuyasha tagging along at her request, finally triumphantly emerging from the hospital with her wrist strapped for a sprain. By then, the idea of her travelling home alone on public transport in the dark was abhorrent to him, so he’d driven her home. Somehow, she’d managed to get his number from him, and added herself into the paltry number of contacts on his phone.

When she’d texted a few days later to invite him out for a drink to say thank you, to his own surprise he’d eagerly accepted, and before he’d known it, they were inseparable. Early morning texts and late night phone conversations progressed to in person talks and late night kisses, until one night instead of accepting his reluctant good night, she’d launched herself at him and asked him to stay and take her to bed.

He’d hardly been able to look Kagome’s flatmate Shiori in the eye the next morning at breakfast, because they hadn’t exactly been discreet with the noise levels, with Kagome delighted to discover that youkai stamina extended to the bedroom. Shiori had teasingly remarked that his second task as Kagome’s boyfriend should be to buy her flatmate some decent earplugs. Kagome had found it hilarious, him, not so much.

Kagome now had two drawers in his dresser for clothes, a makeup bag and toothbrush in his bathroom, and an extra hook on the back of his door for her jacket. She hardly ever slept at her apartment now, only going back to do washing and visit Shiori.

It still shook him that Kagome actually cared for him, showed an interest in what he did. And the sex. They were starting to ease off a little now, but for the first few weeks, they were at it like rabbits, christening every room in his apartment, nearly every flat surface, and even some of the vertical ones. The sex was fucking amazing; she was so passionate, so eager, so utterly beautiful. It was like going from starvation rations to an all you could eat buffet, and he took full advantage of their mutual eagerness to explore each other’s bodies. He didn’t think he’d ever get enough of her.

But their relationship wasn’t just built just on that. They laughed with each other, teased each other, helped each other. He hardly knew the person he was becoming since he’d met Kagome, but the change was…good.

Even though it was early in the relationship, she’d already told him she loved him. At three months, this was the longest time he’d ever been with anyone and even though he was pretty sure he loved her too, he wasn’t quite comfortable saying that to her out loud yet. She understood. At least he’d done his best to try and show her how he felt, and she seemed happy with that. Miroku and Sango loved her too, and she’d slotted into their lives like she’d always been there. He’d never felt so happy.

But right now, the look she was giving him was not a happy one. She seemed almost on the verge of tears. Kagome had warned him early on that she did get emotional just before her period and that some months were worse than others. He’d felt a little embarrassed by her candid remark, never having been in a relationship long enough for that kind of information to be shared. But so far everything had been okay.

Today hadn’t been great though. She had been out of sorts ever since she’d woken up this morning, feeling exhausted, achy and irritable, and he’d done his best to not take anything she said to heart and try and do little things to comfort her, knowing it wasn’t really her talking but her hormones. She’d smelt a little different, even though she wasn’t bleeding yet, but nothing concerning.

But right now, she was beginning to worry him – her heart rate was speeding up and her scent hinted at extreme agitation, similar to a fight or flight response. This was new. Should he remind her that she’d told him she got emotional just before her period and that she needed to calm down? Some deep seated sense of self-preservation made him realise that wasn’t a good idea.  

“Kagome”, he said uncertainly, trying to work out what the safest approach was, not wanting to upset her even more. “Are you okay?”

“What if we’ve been fooling ourselves Inuyasha.”

“Huh?”

“I mean, look at us,” she said, gesturing from Inuyasha’s faded Soundgarden t-shirt and ripped black jeans to her heart patterned leggings and hot pink t-shirt which proudly proclaimed she was Fuelled by Theatre and Coffee. “We couldn’t be more different.”

“But”, spluttered Inuyasha, his heart suddenly beating faster at the dangerous direction the conversation was taking. “Different is good! Yes, we like different things, but that shouldn’t matter!” Kagome’s bottom lip quivered.

“It might not matter tomorrow, or next week, or the week after that, but sooner or later, it would. That’s what you said last night.” Her breathing was picking up now, ragged gasps with a scent of tears.

“What?!”

“You said it’s important to find someone who shares your goals and your interests and fits into your life.”

“Kagome, I was talking about my asshole brother, and how he and Kagura aren’t on the same page about having kids! I wasn’t talking about us!”

“You just said musicals are utterly ridiculous”, she burst out, standing suddenly and letting the cushion and hot water bottle fall to the floor with a sad flop. “And just in case you’ve forgotten Inuyasha, I am a stage manager for a theatre company. Which means by default that you think I’m ridiculous.” A fat tear rolled down her cheek, quickly followed by another, and her distress was the only thing stopping him from snarling that the only thing ridiculous was this conversation. This wasn’t like her at all, and he needed to keep calm.

“Hey, hey, c’mon, I never meant that”, said Inuyasha softly as he stood, trying his best to de-escalate the situation. “I know your job is important to you, and just how much you love it.” Kagome continued on as if she hadn’t heard him, her voice breaking as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“You’ve never once shown an interest in anything that I’ve done at work. Never come to any of the shows I’ve been involved in”, she sniffed, and Inuyasha’s heart sank, made heavy with sudden guilt.

That was true. Kagome had listened to him rant about his work as a software test analyst, had shown interest in the games he played when he relaxed, had even made a WOW character and tried going on a raid with him when it was clearly not her thing. But she’d thrown herself into it, just like everything else she did, laughing at herself when she made mistakes, just happy to spend time with him sharing something he loved. He hadn’t done anything like that for her, hadn’t even noticed. That needed to change.

Kagome began gathering her things in a haphazard fashion, stuffing them in her backpack.

“Baby, don’t”, he said, trying to reach out to hug her. “Don’t leave when you’re upset. I promise we’re going to be better – I’m going to get better. I’m still learning how to be good at this. Please?”

She dodged his outstretched arms. “Don’t baby me”, she hissed, her tone venomous. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re even trying to get to know me. Do you even care at all? Or are you just in this for the sex?”

Inuyasha looked stricken. “Kagome…” His arms dropped to his sides.

Her eyes widened at his broken expression, her hands shaking as she reached tentatively towards him, then pulled herself back.

“I... I can’t do this right now”, she sobbed, pushing herself away. “I’m going home!”

And then the door slammed, and Inuyasha was left standing in the middle of his apartment, the untouched plate of cookies, cooling hot chocolate and water bottle the only evidence that Kagome had been there.

A man danced happily on his TV in the background, splashing around in rain puddles like it was the best thing ever. He plonked himself down on his sofa and picked up the cushion that Kagome had been hugging only moments before, burying his nose in it.

“What the fuck?” he whispered into the pillow. “What the actual fuck?!”

He didn’t know how serious this was, but it felt bad. She’d only been gone for seconds and already his life felt emptier. He felt sick, like he was going to vomit. He needed to fix it and fast. Because there was no way that he was going to lose Kagome over something like this.

Part Two

Wyoming, Truly Awe Inspiring

        I will try not to gush ad nauseam, but I LOVE WYOMING. Who knew how much there was to see, how beautiful the landscapes and how real “American” it is? Not me, that’s for sure. As much as I liked South Dakota I pretty much thought Wyoming would be about the same. The terrain goes on forever and at times while driving it was mesmerizing to see the same rolling hills and plains. But then, when we reached Wind River Canyon we perked up and ended up driving through the canyon 4 times to get photos and just admire the beauty. Even now at this time in history there is a real old town western feel about Wyoming, and being from the east I never experienced it like this.         Every day and in every place we went we got a strong feeling of pride from the people and felt how much they loved living where they were and being from Wyoming. They always talked about the history and I learned and saw first hand what I had only read about or seen in movies. We went to various museums and in Thermopolis we spent several hours in an incredible Dinosaur museum that also had digs you could go on to collect more bones. So the history goes back way further than the old West. Almost every town, no matter how small has an interesting local museum. In the larger towns they all boast about something to do with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Either they used to drink in their local “Hole In The Wall” Bar or stayed in one of the old hotels or gambled in the town saloon. We even went to a refurbished prison in Laramie that was the only prison Butch Cassidy never escaped from. We saw original clothing, housing, forts, photos and drove across the Continental Divide. We saw how the first people came from the east traveling over the South Pass, the Oregon Trail and other places during the gold rush. Everything is documented, recorded and preserved and we spent days emerging ourselves in the history. We also watched the Butch Cassidy movie to see how accurate it was to the real thing and enjoyed it even more.         Driving through from place to place we had two close encounters with almost hitting a deer. Fortunately we have deer whistles on the truck and they really do work. The second time I saw the deer step out and it’s foot was still raised ready to cross the road when it stopped and stayed still when it heard the whistles and stared right at us. There truly are places where you see the deer and antelope roaming, some buffalo, and of course lots of horses, sheep, cattle and even prairie dogs. All of the animals are highly respected. The weather has been hot, sunny and dry. The town of Centennial by The Snowy Mountains got 12” of snow in June so we were up quite high, around 7000 feet. It was cool to still see snow in places during July and it was a reminder of how cold and snowy in gets in the winter.         Flaming Gorge, that straddles the states of Wyoming and Utah is a magnificent sight and really does have a fire-like look in many places. Due to eons of erosion, volcanic activity, makeup of the strata, overall climate, etc. each area is unique with a different look. The Bighorn Mountains had us up to 10,000 feet and the temperature went from 84 degrees to 57. In the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area we stood in awe at the Devil Canyon Overlook and drove through looking for the wild mustangs and big horn sheep that roam protected on the range. Another day we drove from Sheridan to Lovell through the Big Horn Mountains which was rather exhilarating with the 10 degree downgrades while hauling our travel trailer. Fortunately John is an excellent driver and deserves extra points for getting us through alive. Even at the campground we stayed that night other travelers we spoke to were impressed.         In Cody (named after Wild Bill Cody) we spent a couple days in an impressive museum that had several wings dedicated to various parts of the history ranging from Wild Bill, Natural History, Fire Arms and Art, to the Plains Indians. We spent one evening at a dinner/show/rodeo that was recommended to us at the campground. The food was really tasty, western style and the entertainment was a local 3 piece band that was very talented. The guitar player was exceptional and his charisma on stage and keeping things going was quite entertaining. I’m not a fan of country western music but these guys did a good job and were skilled musicians. The rodeo was a lot of fun and included tie-down roping, team roping, saddle bronc riding, bull riding and barrel racing. It was really fun and exciting to view it live. Now I can truly say this is not my first rodeo. Everyone had a great time and we enjoyed all the people we met too.         Right before the 4th of July while we were still in South Dakota the slider on our travel trailer broke and would not retract. John tried to fix it out based on what he was told initially by a technician, but that didn’t work, although we were able to figure out how to manually push it in so we could drive with it. Since we are still under warranty he called the manufacturer and they agreed to send us the part we needed to get it fixed. Because it was a long weekend holiday we had the part shipped afterwards to a campground we booked by the RV repair place. It was supposed to ship overnight but it ended up going by truck and taking several days. We were baffled by this until we showed up at the repair place and saw the box containing the part was quite large and weighed almost 40 pounds. Turns out they sent us the wrong part! Fortunately the folks at the repair place were really on the ball and got on the phone with the manufacturer to determine exactly what we needed. The parts by this time were once again to be shipped overnight but ended up not arriving until a day later than expected. We had to regroup a few times through this fiasco and also keep ourselves from rising blood pressure and overall annoyance. Our lifestyle is not always fun and games and there are times when shit happens. But we don’t let it deter us from having a good time. Did I mention I love Wyoming?         For all the photos see John and Charlotte’s flickr sites. Just click on either of our names.

Hell is a place on earth....

Inner me: You better not cry…don’t you dare fucking cry! This is not the moment for you to be a pussy. DON’T BE A FUCKING PUSSY, DON’T FUCKING CRY!!!!!

Next thing I knew I was tasting tears and struggling to speak. I couldn’t breathe but what I wanted to say was more important than breathing at that moment. They needed to know that I was grateful for the job but I wasn’t sorry. This wasn’t the way I had imagined my disciplinary hearing would go. I didn’t think I would snap or be so emotionally heightened. I knew from the day I got the suspension letter that I was out of a job, that didn’t matter. People were unfairly dismissed here all the time and it was my turn to taste the blade. What mattered was that my loyalty had been misplaced. I had toiled, spent late nights, missed my nieces school concerts and FOR WHAT???? I was being ousted such that I’d have to forego my benefits, benefits that I had earned through my sacrifices. Whatever past sacrifices I had made for the company meant nothing now that I was no longer needed.

Ask most black women what they think about crying at work and they will tell you that they avoid it at all costs. Most women would rather come to the office sick on the cusp of death rather than cry at work. Its frowned upon not because it makes the men uncomfortable but because other women will make you feel like it’s unprofessional. They will ridicule you privately and overtly because the stereotype is that hard working strong women don’t cry. For your feelings to surface at work, it’s just a thing. I can’t really explain it, it’s deeper than rap. If you see a black woman crying over work related issues know that she is either ready to get into a physical fight or she has reached her boiling point. The experience of being chastised for doing my job had brought me to my boiling point. I had spent a year and two months of my life here and all the emotions of it had come to a head and resulted in TEARS!

I used to work at a place where the owner of the company was everything wrong with the world.  The CEO encouraged back biting gossiping and was always lying and conniving. Bold face lies were the breakfast of champions and no one was beyond a tongue lashing. One minuet you were useless, lazy, taking up space in the office and doing nothing the next your contribution to the organisation was invaluable and you were appreciated. Shady business at its best. The CEO had found me unemployed and offered me more than I was making before. Blinded by my deep desire to start taking care of myself again, I took a chance and danced with the devil. Everyone that I encountered told me that The CEO was the worst person to work for and I shouldn’t take the job. There were other opportunities out there they said. They weren’t in my position and when you talk from a point of privilege you are usually naïve. Empty pockets can quieten even the loudest, well-reasoned advice.

It wasn’t a terrible job, I was more than well equipped to do the work and remotely enjoyed it. What I wasn’t ready for was the layered individuals who worked there. I always kept to myself. I only really got to know The Tea Lady and The Grounds Keepers, who were lovely human beings but I maintained my privacy.

In my first few months My Supervisor and The Receptionist (both female) would gossip about me so that I could hear. They were never secretive about how terrible they thought I was at the job and how I wasn’t going to last long. Later I would come to know that The Receptionist had been trying to get me fired because she had been stealing and My Supervisor had felt threatened by my presence and that’s why she had actively decided not to mentor me so they could watch as I got things wrong and got reprimanded by The CEO. It was all relative. They didn’t sign my cheques and that motivated me to be incredibly cold and all about the job. Long as I was doing what I was supposed to, meeting my deadlines and my department was running at the optimum level I really was convinced that there was nothing more to deal with.

The company was understaffed and on occasion I would have to do things outside my job description. As a Procurement Manager and Junior Quantity Surveyor I often went to site, counted stock, organised trips and prepared payment certificates. I did a lot. When The Financial Controller went on vacation for three weeks and there was no one else to take care of her duties I moved office and wore all three hats. I used to wake up extra early and leave extra late to be able to do 33% of all the three duties and I managed. At the same time The Receptionist was caught stealing and arrested so now that just added to the plate. I was the stereotypical strong woman in the work place who got things done. I didn’t complain or refuse to work. I just carried on hoping for help and fortunately it came.

My work life was a mess. It felt like I was being sabotaged. I’d get notified of site meetings thirty minutes before they happened be totally unprepared and ultimately embarrassed. Getting late night calls from people about the worsening condition of their houses was now my daily bread. Tongue lashings for not knowing that the information I was getting was incorrect. I was always responsible when things went bad but when they went well, the team did a great job. Once my confidence had settled I decided it was time for a raise. I couldn’t do 3 jobs, get yelled at thrice and get paid for a quarter of one job. The CEO didn’t agree. I got a raise but the final offer was shockingly less than what we had agreed. I was disappointed, heart broken and consoled myself with the logic that half a loaf is better than none at all. I had watched a number of hard working people be cheated out of money they had worked hard for. Why oh why did I think I would be absolved???  

The company started to experience incredible difficulties. My Supervisor resigned in the heart of the tender season and two more people were hired to work in Procurement and I thought it was looking up. Then The CEO fell out with his right hand. When the suspension letter came I knew it was because I had taken an instruction from The Right Hand. The Right Hand would never be fired, but me, little old me was EXPANDABLE. After receiving the letter I typed up a hand over report and packed up all my personal belongings. My safety boots and highlighters were not being left behind in this hellish place! It hurt to be kicked out at the same time it felt incredible to be free from a bad working environment. Hell is a place on earth when you are in a bad job.

The day of the hearing. I slicked my hair back, wore just enough eye makeup and got there in my best “there is nothing you can do to ruin my day” dress. The hearing had already been decided before we sat sown. Close colleagues who were there when the events transpired couldn’t speak up because regardless of what they believed, they still need to feed their families. The biggest betrayal came from a Gentleman I worked closely with who gave testimony that made me seem like I had knowingly put the company at risk. I won’t ever say I didn’t go against a direct order because I did, it’s just that the direct order was flawed. What’s right is always what’s RIGHT!

I’ve learnt that I am my own business. I am the way I take care of myself and should never compromise and make great sacrifices for a business that isn’t mine. It used to bring me joy to meet my targets and submit tender documents against the odds but all that meant nothing for my bottom line. I had dedicated so much of my life force but once a replacement was hired, trained I was thrown away. The same company that I allowed to take me away from my family now had no need for me. What a wake up call!

My advice to you at this very moment is to BE MORE SELFISH! Unless you work for an organisation that is rescuing people from burning buildings in real time, you need BOUNDARIES. You are not your job. Even if you have chosen to focus on your career, you are still expendable and they will never not replace you. Don’t give them your soul in return for peanuts and pats on the back. These people are making millions off your back while you get a “good” salary.

It doesn’t matter if you are a high performer. Self-preservation should be HIGH on your list of priorities. Even if you take care of your family and need the job they would still rather have you over the money. Don’t hold the blade so long that you normalise the pain. It’s not supposed to hurt! Look for a new job or start a side business once you see yourself giving too much of yourself away. Reserve some of your skill solely for your personal gain.  

Many of the people I knew at that company have left. I don’t know the current situation and I don’t really care. I got a call two months after leaving from one of my ex co-workers asking what I was up to, I know he had been sent to ask if I’d take my old job back.  I would have never done that. Even if I had nothing but my pride and I was out on the streets I wouldn’t have gone back. I will never again sign up to suffer, you shouldn’t either.  Life is long and short at the same time, try your best to actually enjoy it.

 Bisou…bisou

Birthday Gifts

In honor of my youngest turning 18 (still have to get the boy through his last year of high school...convincing him this does not make him totally an adult is a bit of effort...ugh!)...here is a little tale to celebrate.

Pairing: None....a Kurt Hummel and Elliot and Dani friendship fic.

Seriously, the best thing about Kurt’s birthday that first year was that NYADA had had their finals two weeks before, but the Summer sessions did not start up again until the next week.   He had one more week before he spent several weeks straight being tortured by Cassie July in an effort to catch up and be ready for intermediate dance for stage. He had tap and Jazz and ballet and lyrical and hip-hop and street and Latin dance and ballroom techniques and…he was going to die.  He also had the rest of vocal techniques, drama year one, script analysis and, of all things, English 101.  All shoved into June, July and half of August.  So, yeah, the best part of his birthday was that he was on his summer break!

Rachel was insisting that the fact his birthday was on Memorial Day was the best thing…but Kurt did not agree.  

Kurt wasn’t home in Lima. He would not be visiting the graveyard to place flowers at his mother’s grave and at the gravesite of his Dad’s friend, who’d been in the Air Force in ’91 and had been in Desert Storm…or the gravesite of Harmon, who worked at the garage when Kurt was little and taught Kurt how to do Elvis’s hips and died of Lung Cancer and who had served in Vietnam and held his friend’s hand as he died in his arms. And his friend was named Marius Rossi and was from New York and one of the other guys had wanted to be an actor who acted in Musicals, on Broadway like Kurt wanted, and would tease Marius by singing ‘Maria, I’ve found a girl named Maria’ until Marius shut him up by kissing him right smack on the lips…and that guy had died too but Harmon hadn’t been close enough to him to hold his hand.  Kurt hoped his dad remembered to put the extra flowers at Harmon’s grave for Marius and their friend.  Kurt wasn’t home for the evening barbeque with the guys from the shop and the Memorial Day Poker and Darts tournament that happened in the backyard if the weather was nice or in the house garage if it was nasty outside.   He wasn’t home to make enough during this evening to fund half his summer wardrobe…mostly because both poker and darts were played better when sober.  His traditional Memorial Day activities were not an option.

Blaine had chosen to go to California and spend the weekend with Cooper…and take Sam with him…instead of visiting Kurt.  He also told Kurt that he wouldn’t be calling or anything until he was back to Ohio because he couldn’t figure out the time zone thing without giving himself a headache and he didn’t want Kurt to call him because he wasn’t sure when he’d be in while at Cooper’s.  They planned on spending most of their time out and about, after all they wouldn’t have time for FUN while in LA for Nationals. He’d not said Happy Birthday before he left, nor had he sent any gift of any sort. Kurt wasn’t even sure Blaine remembered he had a birthday.  Blaine had plenty of time for social media though, and he remembered all about sending pictures of him and Sam at the beaches and Disneyland to the Dalton Facebook group.

And New York during Memorial Day was nuts.   The whole weekend had been nuts. Everyplace was too crowded with people going and trying to do things while they had time off. Friday night at callbacks had been so packed Kurt felt faint from lack of air and that had just been that start.  He worked at the diner on Saturday and they never had a pause.  There had been a line at least 15 people long out the door of the place for seven full hours! Sunday was so bad on the subway when they went out that Kurt ended up bruised and had clothing torn.  And the amount of people trying to grill in places where one should NOT grill was insane.  It was NUTS!  They had heard almost non stop sirens for most of Saturday night and it hadn’t stopped.   Between his feet hurting from work and then Rachel’s Day At Central Park (a non-stop complaint fest due to lack of ‘good’ space for the blanket he dragged through the subway and then halfway through the park for her) and the sirens, Kurt wanted nothing more to do for HIS birthday than sit home, maybe with ear plugs in, put his feet up and watch HIS choice of movie and eat HIS choice of takeout.   He’d like to do it with friends…or at least not alone.  He was willing to do many things…as long as he didn’t have to leave the loft or be subject to packed spaces with no breathing room and which endangered his feet more.  Board game tournament?  He could do that.  A karaoke party…doable as long as it was at the loft.  He didn’t think he was being too picky.

He hadn’t stopped hearing about his plans…or lack thereof…since he voiced them after Rachel woke him at 6:00 am to find out what ‘grand adventure’ he wanted to embark upon.   Rachel…who had stolen his earplugs to block out the sirens all night long so she could get her beauty rest and preserve her ‘more important than anyone else’s’ delicate and ever so sensitive ears…and thus slept all night long woke him up…on HIS birthday...hadn’t been pleased at all when he said he wanted to stay in, maybe have a grand adventure at the loft.   She whined and then yelled and then stomped her foot. And then demanded he get up and make birthday pancakes since he was being a ‘self-centered pig wrapped in a blanket’ which she then laughed like a hyena over.  Yeah.  All it had done was cement his desire to stay the heck home.

Rachel and Santana had finally left to ‘go out and do something’ since they didn’t want to sit around being a downer all day and didn’t care how crushing it was outside…and why should they let him decide the activity for that day anyway…Kurt’s birthday or not.  Home was finally quiet. He was getting ready to pop in his Pity Party movie instead of something celebratory, because…the girls chose ‘fun’ and ‘excitement’ over friendship, again.  He did have his choice of take-out, though, so it wasn’t a total miss.

He wasn’t expecting a knock on the loft door…or for the ones knocking to just left themselves in.

Food halfway to his mouth, he turned just in time to put the fork back onto his plate before he was ambush hugged by Dani, who then removed the plate from his hands and passed him off to Elliot.

���So…we heard that it was your Birthday.  Of course we also heard you were being a party pooper and didn’t want to go out.” Dani said.

“So, we might have done a bit of calling around and…” Elliot added.

“You have about a half hour to change into something wonderful and fabulous before your party comes to you!  Eat on the run!” Dani finished, pushing him off towards his room after handing him his plate again.

“And we promise no one will try to barbeque anything!” Elliot shouted before tasking other members of the band different jobs…like quick clean up and pushing furniture around and putting the dessert table and drink tables together.

Dani followed after him. “Eat, Kurt.  You’ll get a belly ache if you just drink and eat sweets with us at your party.  Then shower and I’ll have something waiting for you to put on.”

Kurt ate quickly while gathering the basics to take into the bathroom with him…underwear and his towels. Dani wouldn’t release anything else to him.

He showered and was about to start doing his hair when Dani barged in and dragged him back to the bedroom area, whistles and catcalls from the other band members following in his wake. Kurt was pretty sure he saw the band gear going up in one of the corners and his movie was playing in the back ground as the others worked, snippets of song floating back to Dani and the waiting clothing.

“The top first and then I’ll do your hair while you finish getting dressed.” Dani demanded, pointing to the ¾ sleeved white Henley sitting on the bed.  

Kurt got the shirt on and had barely pulled it all the way down when he felt hands full of mousse running through his hair.  He sighed and reached for the pants.

“These aren’t something I own.” Kurt said, holding the leather pants that laced up the legs.

“Well, now you do. Happy Birthday.  I decided you needed clubbing clothing and Elliot chose these so they could double as ‘Rock Dude!’ if we want to try something a bit more extreme at some point.”

“Rock dude?” Kurt asked and sounded quite dubious.

“What?  You could totally do Freddy Mercury if you gave yourself a chance, not to mention some of the newer rocky stuff.”

Kurt tilted his head. “I could try.”

“Well, try later. People other than us will be here soon.” Dani said.

Kurt managed to get the pants on and properly fastened up and was adding to the outfit a black velvet sleeveless waistcoat that Kurt thought screamed Pirate or something.

“This is also an Elliot choice,” Kurt said fastening the front.  “I can tell. It has a very steampunk vibe to it.  I think it will become a favorite though, it is very comfortable. Dani?  What are you doing?”

Dani just chuckled and pushed Kurt back until he was sitting on the bed again.  

“I’m not really an eyeliner type of a guy” Kurt protested as his makeup was skillfully done in very little time.

“You look amazing.” Dani said, dragging him to look in the mirror over the chest of drawers.

Kurt smiled.  He did look pretty good.  It wasn’t at all his usual look, but he could certainly appreciate it and he’d definitely be willing to repeat the look to go out another time.

“Damn.  If there weren’t going to be so many other here, I’d totally tell you to go barefooted all evening.  You look delicious with bare feet.” Dani said.  “Unfortunately I cannot guarantee the safety of your toes…nor your virtue if Elliot saw you like that.  I suggest black boots probably.”

Kurt chuckled.  “I’ve got those covered.  Biker boots be too much?  Or would riding boots look better?”

“Like English riding boots?” Dani asked.  “Those…I think.”

Kurt finished the look after getting his feet covered by adding a pocket watch on a chain and a blood red silk scarf and finally convincing Dani that piercing his ears needed to wait at least another year or so because his dad would flip out completely if he did so and there had been too many health scares to do that to him yet.

He finished dressing just in time.  The first knock on his loft door was followed by a steady stream on knocking.  People he knew from NYADA were gathering as well as people from Vogue.com and people he’d met through work at the diner and through Elliot and Dani.  The counter space was quickly filled with goodies like cakes and cookies and other sweet treats and other snacks like nuts and chips. One of the guys Elliot introduced Kurt to had set up a small bar off to one corner and was fixing drinks and handling sodas and bottled water as well.   His movie had been restarted and a few people had settled in front of the TV on beanbags he was certain he did not own, while other people danced in the open middle area to the music produced by a small mix station that Kurt knew wasn’t there before he’d gone to shower.  The DJ was a girl who skated with Dani.  The music wasn’t too loud, great for dancing to but not loud enough to make it impossible for those watching the movie to hear it. Half in Rachel’s ‘room’ was a small table set up where people were playing cards and the band’s gear was set up so people would sing later. On the edge of the stage was a pile of gifts. Everyone there seemed to be having fun and Kurt was having a blast.  

Someone had procured a large sheet cake with ‘Happy Birthday, Kurt!’ scrawled across the top and music notes in a rainbow of colors scattered over it as the rest of the decoration.  It was vanilla cake with a raspberry filling and a slightly lemony flavored icing.  

“Do you like it?” Dani asked.

“I love it.” Kurt said, finishing his slice.  Elliot had made him blow out candles before serving the cake and Kurt couldn’t help but smile as everyone sang to him.

“Santana said you were very picky about chocolate cake but liked white cakes with fruit fillings pretty well, and I thought just plain flavored icing was boring.”

“You asked her today?” Kurt asked.

Dani giggled.  “Oh no.  All we heard from them today was when Rachel called to complain that you were being mean.  I texted her and Santana that we were going to be here at the loft this evening and to come join us here, but neither answered. No, I asked way back around Easter time, but then you made us cheesecake for Easter.”

Kurt smiled.  The fact Dani had remembered that long and thought about what he’d like made him even happier.

After the cake Elliot and the band set up and offered their services for karaoke…which was done for about an hour and half before someone suggested a name that song competition. Kurt put up his laundry money as payout…in two dollar wins.  Chase’s boyfriend was the big winner, much to Chase’s surprise.  He won 12 of the 25 rounds.

Kurt opened gifts right before midnight and people went back to dancing to the DJ for about another hour after that as the party died down and people started to wander out.  As the majority of people were leaving right around 2am, Kurt made sure to be at the door, thanking them all for showing up.

He looked back to his loft as he shut the door after the last group to leave other than the band and Dani and Elliot.  The floor was clean, all the trash picked up and sacked up to be taken down to the dumpster, and Elliot and the other band members were moving the furniture back while Dani set his kitchen to rights. There wasn’t really anything left for him to do.  The beanbags were piled in the corner, the drummer informing him they were there to stay. Kurt watched and thought that all in all, he had some awesome friends after all, just not the ones he had been counting on.

“You guys are amazing.” Kurt blurted out.

Elliot laughed, and tossed the throw pillow onto the perfectly replaced sofa before coming over to gather Kurt into a hug.

“Happy Birthday, Kurt. There was no way we were going to leave you to celebrate by yourself.  Not for your 20th.  Next year we will be going out though.  I’m taking you bar hopping!  Your other half will just have to stay home and pout.  Too bad he couldn’t make it up for your birthday though.  It would have been a great weekend for him to come visit. Rachel said he was too swamped with school though.”

Kurt snorted. “Blaine might be swamped with school, but the reason he didn’t come visit for the weekend, even though I called and asked him to come, was because he decided Sam needed to see California and spend time doing fun stuff there before they went back for Nationals in a week.  They needed some ‘bro’ time at his brother’s place so they could handle the rest of the year without getting too down, it’s been sooo hard on them, you know.  At least he told me he was heading out with Sam to see Cooper and Disneyland before I bought him the ticket to come see me this time.”

“So, what did he send to make up for missing your birthday?” Dani asked.

“Nothing.” Kurt said. “He probably forgot.”

Elliot just hugged him tighter.  “Well then, I guess coming bearing gifts and a party was even more necessary. You had a good time, right?  I know we sort of sprang it on you.”

Kurt hugged back and kissed his cheek. “I had a blast.  I honestly think this might have been my best birthday yet.  Thank you so much, you guys.”

Dani pulled him out of Elliot’s arms into her own and kissed him soundly. “You are always welcome. Honestly, everyone I talked to had fun as well.  We might have to do this more often.  The loft is perfect for gatherings like this.  With summer coming up maybe we can put together parties more often.  Like for Flag day!”

“June is National Accordion Awareness month!” the girl who played the bass and keyboard said.

“Really?” Kurt asked

She nodded.  “We could play polkas and learn to polka and then have a Weird Al name that song contest!”

“We should really do a Pride month celebration….either a get ready for Pride or a Pride recovery party.” Elliot said.

“I wouldn’t mind at all if we can always get the place back to it’s normal as quickly as you all did tonight.  Thank you so much for doing that. Last time we did something like this I was trying to get things back to normal for weeks…Rachel and Brody moved stuff but they did NOT help put it to rights.  Some of our furniture does not move easily by just one person.”

Their drummer laughed. “Anytime time you need help moving stuff around just call. We cannot risk you throwing your back out just when we are getting regular gigs.”

“I’ll remember that. You might be sorry you offered.” Kurt said.

“Just have some of those cookies you had at practice last week as pay.” He said with a dreamy sigh.

The keyboardist and sometimes bassist and the other guitarist laughed.  “It was a lot more fun that going out tonight.  Dani was so right about that.  I was disappointed we didn’t perform more though.” One of the girls said.

“Nah.  I think the fact we performed once was enough. Everyone there who hadn’t heard us before now might want to come see us at the next gig.” The other replied. “We left them wanting.”

“And we play Thursday Night.” Kurt said.  “Elliot got us this one.”

“I’ll text everyone tomorrow a set list, after sleep…and work and class.  Which I’d better getting going to so I can make it to see all of those.”

Kurt was passed to the rest of the band members for hugs as well as they left.  He looked back to the loft and the movie which had been turned on again as everyone cleaned up.  He wandered to the kitchen to get some water before he headed off to bed and wondered when Santana and Rachel would make it home.  He knew Elliot had texted them again before midnight but neither had answered. If they were doing their usual though, Santana would get Rachel to stay out till one or two, especially if they’d found someone to buy them drinks.  Kurt was the one that headed home early.

There were several pieces of cake left on a plate in the refrigerator. Other than the bean bags and the gifts he hadn’t yet moved to his bedroom, the pieces of cake were the only evidence left out saying they had had a party at the loft.

He gathered the gifts still left out and took them with him to his bedroom, shutting off the TV and most the lights.  He wasn’t waiting up.  Tucking his loot away on top of his dresser, Kurt stripped down and hung everything that didn’t need washed up.  He showered and settled into bed.

He had managed to eat HIS choice of takeout.  He had seen at least some of HIS choice of movie…and better yet others had enjoyed it as well.  He’d even managed to play a round of poker, even if he hadn’t won.  And really, the loft was good for lots of things but it wasn’t really good for darts when crowded but he’d played other games.  So he didn’t end up putting his feet up…he also never had to leave the safety of loft and deal with crowded venues.   All in all, Kurt couldn’t complain at all. The three he’d counted on coming through for him…you know, the ones who promised to be there through thick or thin…failed him on his day, but not everyone did.  And it was nice to know that he had friends who would be there for him, even if they weren’t the ones he expected.

The best part of the first birthday in New York was knowing he had somewhere along the way managed to make friends who would come through for him, despite the roadblocks the friends from Lima who promised to always be there for him kept throwing up.  And that wasn’t something to take lightly.

Bipolar Disorder Wears Many Faces, and So Do I [MF]

I have Bipolar 1. There, I said it. It’s not something I usually talk about very much. I’m private about it because it’s something I really struggle with, and sometimes, I’m even embarrassed about it. Especially the times that I’m manic. But I’m not always manic- in fact, Bipolar has many different faces. For those of you who don’t know, there are three basic states you can be in when you have Bipolar 1: depressed, stable, or manic. Technically you can be hypomanic, too, which is a state of near-mania that is usually characterized by Bipolar 2, but the condition wears the same face as mania. Two of the states- mania and depression- are bad for different reasons. With mania comes irresponsible, life-changing decisions and high impulsivity. Mania is toxic to the brain and can cause someone to ruin their own life, but while you’re manic, you feel like you’re on top of the world. Depression brings with it suicidal ideations, feelings of hopelessness, and a deep despair that eats into the soul.

It was the end of April. I had had a rough go of it recently due to my manic episode in September and my subsequent depression in the following months. I had been absolutely crippled by this depression largely because of my mania. I had done so many things I was ashamed of, made so many decisions I regretted, but at the time I had been so happy and carefree. The months after that were spent picking up the pieces of the destruction I had left in my wake.

Now, though, it was almost summer. My summer classes would begin soon and I had work at the funeral home to keep me busy. I had more structure in my life, and things finally started to feel…better. I had recently moved, partly to get away from the ruin I’d left behind, partly for mortuary school. But mostly to get away. I was in a new place, on my own (except for my faithful pug), with a new career path and no friends or family in the area. I felt conflicted because part of me was lonely and nervous- this was the most “adult” I’d ever had to be- but the rest of me was so excited to begin a new life. This, coupled with a new therapist who finally got me on the right medication, helped me level out. I was actually able to experience joy again, this time without being destructive. I could finally put on my Stable Face.

I probably should have mentioned this, but when I said that Bipolar has many faces, I meant that literally. At least, in my case. I have three faces I can wear, but they will only look natural if my mood matches the face. For example, if I’m depressed and I try to wear my Stable Face, the flesh will be askew and the skin won’t line up like an ordinary human face. Think of the cockroach alien flesh suit from ‘Men in Black.’ Yeah, not so pretty. But you know what? Bipolar isn’t pretty either.

When I’m not using them, I keep my faces in a jar by the door. The little window lets in the perfect amount of sunlight for my faces to get their proper amount of vitamin D without having to actually set them outside. I’m sure the neighbors wouldn’t be pleased about that anyway. My Depressive and Manic Faces floated flaccidly in a mixture of formaldehyde and other preservatives that I managed to sneak home from work. Every year, I would change out the mixture and clean the jar.

Tongs in hand, I dangled my Stable Face over the kitchen sink and began to rinse off the chemicals. I made sure to scrub inside and out, especially around the holes for my eyes and inside the nose, because formaldehyde always makes my eyes and nostrils burn. Then, I gently patted it dry with a clean towel and ran my fingers across the loose skin. The brow was not furrowed like the Depressive Face I’d been wearing for so long, and the eye holes weren’t wide and wild like my Manic Face. No, this face was relaxed and at peace. It also wore the slightest hint of a smile, its lips turned up at the edges.

I brushed my hair back up into a bun and began to apply my Stable Face. For the first time in forever, it fit perfectly. I gently pasted down the edges to cover the exposed flesh and muscle tissue beneath the skin, then I looked in the mirror and flashed myself a smile. It actually looked genuine, and I could practically feel the endorphins rushing through my body. I added a little makeup, and voila! The perfect face. I looked at my reflection and felt confident and beautiful.

I was still admiring myself when I heard a noise. I was in the bathroom, so I didn’t hear the initial click of the jimmied lock, but I did hear the slight creak of the un-oiled hinge on my front door. My ears pricked up, and I heard my pug begin to growl from the entryway. Suddenly, she yelped and bolted into the bathroom with me. I scooped her up and closed the bathroom door with my back against it, heart beginning to race. Someone was in my apartment. I held my breath and tried to keep my dog as quiet as possible. The intruder was rifling through my things, looking for valuables. I cursed myself as I remembered that I’d left my purse right out in the open.

After a few minutes passed that seemed more like hours, I finally heard the door shut. I expelled my breath in a heaving sigh and placed my dog back on the ground. She had stopped whining, so that probably meant she couldn’t smell the intruder in the apartment anymore. I peeked around the edge of the bathroom door and into the front room. There was no one. I relaxed a little, stepping out of the bathroom and into the front room to check my purse.

Oddly enough, nothing had been stolen out of my wallet. The whole purse was untouched. I furrowed my brow and then had to reposition my forehead to undo it. I went to the front door and, sure enough, the lock had been picked. Shaking my head, I looked down at the small table to my right. On top of it sat my bowl of keys, and on the shelf beneath sat my jar of faces.

I mean…face. There was only one. Panicking, I picked up the glass jar and examined it from all sides. Still, there remained only one. My Depressive Face. Someone-the intruder- had stolen my Manic Face, the most dangerous of all my faces. With that face, some serious, serious damage can be done. Now, I’d never had anyone steal my faces before, so I wasn’t sure how this would all play out. Would my face fit on someone else? What would happen if they weren’t manic? How the hell was I going to get it back?

I thought hard about who could have possibly wanted to do this to me? The only people in the world that knew about my faces were me and my parents. I racked my brain for any enemies I might have made recently, thinking that maybe someone had come for revenge and instead found something so bizarre they had to take it. But they didn’t take both- just the one. Why? And how did they find out? I was on the verge of frustrated tears.

I’d had no visitors for weeks, maybe even months because of the depression I had just gotten out of. And I worried that with the extra fear I was now carrying I might need to slip my Depressive Face back on. I went to the mirror and adjusted my skin. It looked okay. Not perfect, but good enough to pass as a normal woman. I thought about calling the police about the break-in, but what would I tell them about what the intruder stole? I imagined a cop showing up at my house, leaning back with his hands in his pockets and examining my door.

“Yup, that lock’s been picked alright. Ain’t much we can do about it since they didn’t steal anything, just get your locks changed,” said the imaginary policeman. I huffed and called a locksmith, then I took my pug and left the apartment to go to the park. I just needed to get out of there for a bit, every second I was in there I felt like I was being watched. I made sure I hid my extra face. Once we were at the park, I read and my dog played, and for a moment, everything was forgotten.

That changed when I got back home. It was late in the evening by that time, and I was exhausted from the sun exposure and emotional trauma of the day. I’d just bid the locksmith goodbye as he finished up. I didn’t feel like cooking, so I ordered a pie from Papa’s Pizza for takeout rather than delivery. I’d gotten delivery from there the whole time I was depressed, and I was ready to get off my ass and out of the house, even if I wasn’t fully up to cooking my own food yet. What better way to relax than eating comfort food?

I kissed my dog on her forehead the way I always do before I leave the house, even if it’s just for a short while. I triple-checked that the new lock was secured before leaving to pick up my food. Then, I hopped in my car and put on some Zeppelin. I lost myself in the music and drove to the restaurant under a cloudy, darkening sky. When I arrived, I sat in the parking lot so that the song I was listening to could finish, then I got out and slammed the door behind me. My feet crunched on the gravel as I swung open the glass door and entered the establishment. I strolled up to the bored-looking middle-aged man at the register and gave him my name. He looked up at me.

“So you’re the special customer Katy was talking about. She loved your tips, man. Shame she was fired,” he said, and reached around to grab my pizza. Gears turned in my head.

“Fifteen, even.” Katy. Katy…that was the name that always popped up on my delivery app. She was the girl who had been consistently delivering me pizzas for months now- the only person that could have peeked inside my apartment and seen my faces. It had to be her.

“Wait, why was she fired?” I asked slowly, reaching into my purse to fish for my wallet. He shrugged.

“Started acting fuckin’ crazy. Kept saying her face was falling off, or something.” I bit my lip and nodded, trying to keep a straight face, no pun intended. I handed him the cash.

“Right, right. Did she say where she was going, by any chance?” He shrugged again.

“Just home, I guess. Said she didn’t need a job anymore anyway because she just became a millionaire.” I sighed. Classic mania. It all hit too close to home.

“Alright,” I said as he gave me change for the twenty, “Where is ‘home,’ then?” The man snorted.

“How should I know? I don’t look at employee records.”

“Well, could you show them to me?” He rolled his eyes.

“Ma’am…” he started.

“I’m gonna stop you right there. First of all, I am way too young to be a ‘ma’am.’ Second, you’re gonna show me that record,” I said, acting more confident than I actually felt. This time, he actually laughed. It was more like a hee-haw.

“Or what?” I hesitated for a second, then I had an idea. Tearing at the delicate glue that I’d used to paste my face to my head, I ripped off my Stable Face and showed him the raw, pulsating, muscular, exposed, gruesome tissues beneath. Immediately, a wet spot started to form in his jeans.

“Rah!” I screamed at him, lunging forward menacingly. Then, he passed out. I admit I had to stifle a giggle as I rearranged my face to the best of my ability. I’d never shown that to anyone except my parents.

Focus, I told myself. I walked behind the counter and wandered into the back of the store. The office was the first door on my right down the hallway that led from the kitchen. I approached the file cabinet and opened the top drawer. ‘Financial Statements,’ it read. I closed it. In the second drawer, I found what I was looking for. ‘Employee Records.’ I found Katy’s resume in the ‘Shred’ folder. Her address was listed right at the top. Perfect, now I knew where I needed to go.

I left the pizza parlor after repositioning the unconscious man so that he wouldn’t wake up with a kink in his neck. Then, I took my pizza and headed straight to Katy’s, eating in the car along the way. When I got there, there was only one car in the driveway. I hoped she lived alone.

I knocked on the door, softly at first, but then louder after there was no answer to the first knock. A light flicked on in the doorway and I heard footsteps approach. Slowly, the door opened, but only just a crack.

“What is it? What do you want?” said a gruff female voice.

“Katy? It’s me, Isabelle, your best customer. I think you have something of mine?” I heard her gasp on the other side of the door. She paused to consider her next move, then sighed and opened the door fully. It was me. I mean, she was me. It was like looking in a mirror, except the body was different. She had my face, and it was a face I was oh, so familiar with. Wild-eyed and not quite lucid, but damn, it fit her perfectly.

“You can come in. Sit over there on that old couch, I’m tossing it tomorrow and buying all new furniture for this place.” I didn’t sit.

“Katy, I know you must have a lot going on, but I need my face back,” I said patiently.

“Well yeah, this is the busiest I’ve ever been in my life, so I’ll make this quick. Look, it’s not like I wanted to steal your face. I actually never even noticed the jar on your shelf until my own face started to peel off one day. And then I robbed you, and everything changed! Oh, my life is just perfect now! I’m gonna sell the house and buy a big van, you know? Like, the old-fashioned Volkswagen buses? And I’m gonna travel across the country and live off of the land. I’ll be blogging and taking photos the whole time if you want to follow my adventures- after all, it will be your face that makes me famous. Tell you what, we can even split the profits!” She spoke with such genuine zeal and excitement, I couldn’t bear to be the one to tell her that she was just delusional, that it didn’t make sense to buy new furniture for a house she that was planning to sell, that her life didn’t change at all- she did. And now she was about to destroy herself without help.

“Katy, listen to me,” I said, formulating a plan in my mind, “I’m gonna make you a promise, okay? If you give me back my face, your life is going to get so much better. And I can take you to a place full of people who will recognize all of your faces, and just how beautiful each of them are. But they have to be your own.” She blinked at me, skeptical. I continued.

“Look, bring me your face, the one that fell off.” She shrugged and went to fetch it. When she brought it out and I looked at it, I felt a pang of sympathy. She was so beautiful, yet she couldn’t accept herself. Her flesh had rejected itself. I gently took the face in my hands. It had only been a day, so the fact that she hadn’t preserved it in formaldehyde wasn’t that big of a deal. I would have to tell her about that trick, though.

“Now, can you do something for me? It’s not going to be easy, but I need you to trust me, because I’ve stood in your shoes before. I need you to give me back my face, and then you need to face yourself. We’re going to patch you up as best as we can, and then we’re going to go on the most important adventure of your life.” Katy nodded and bit her- my- lip. We went into the bathroom together and I helped her by getting my long fingernails under the edge of the skin to peel off the rest of the face. Once it was off, I sighed with relief, then I folded it up and slipped it into my purse.

“Okay. This isn’t going to be perfect, but we’re gonna do our best,” I said. After a half hour of glue and two hours of makeup, she looked reasonable enough to pass as a slightly-deformed woman. By the time I got her to the hospital, I knew that she would be in capable hands and that her face would readjust alongside with her medications over time. The medical staff would probably be baffled. I think she realized what was happening on the car ride over, but she didn’t try to fight me. Deep down, she knew that something was wrong and that she needed all the help she could get. I let her eat the rest of my cold pizza.

Once they were ready to take her back, we exchanged a hug and waved goodbye. I slipped her a small piece of paper with my phone number on it.

“Sometimes it gets lonely in there, so… Just call anytime.” She smiled genuinely at me as a tear rolled down her own cheek.

“Thanks, Isabelle. Things are going to change again, aren’t they?” Her voice cracked.

“Yeah, they’re gonna change. But remember when I said that this is the most important adventure of your life. It might be grueling, and sometimes you might even hate it. But it’s a path you’ve gotta take.” Katy nodded.

“The most important adventure of my life,” she echoed thoughtfully. I gave her hand one last squeeze before they took her away. I knew we would keep in touch.

It’s been a year since Katy stole my face, but in that time, she’s managed to build faces of her own, and I’m proud to say that she’s been wearing her Stable Face consistently for 9 months now. I’ve still got mine on, too. We’ve still got a long way to go, but now, we get to be our best selves, and we’re doing it together. I can’t wait to see what face she’ll be wearing when I pull out the engagement ring tonight.

submitted by /u/pan_kayke [link] [comments] via Blogger https://ift.tt/2Z4iODT

Wedding outfit Colours

Koreans do not always have a chance to experience initial love, or perhaps mutual compassion during adolescence, as is customary within our country. Korean language mail order bride is a good of all as a result of its unique features. Their sincerity and kindness is definitely something that is greatly appreciated in West Europe. That they always act positively and help everyone around them. Brides out of Korea turn into good moms and conserve of their partners and children. In this passage, you can find away more details about each of the features of a woman.

Today most, not only a few, American girls are eager to remove their virginity as soon as their hormones kick in – and do so with hardly an extra thought, remorse, or embarrassment. Eleven year old women are trapped giving oral sex to several 13 year old forceful at the same time and so the boys should “like her. ” Although this is marked a “christian” country declaring to have “morals, ” ladies are just not educated that virginity and advantage are holy and can not be replaced the moment they’re spent on pastime sex.

In love, they can be peculiar. Korean women of all ages have never recently been faithful, however, you canвЂt think that they might unlike their partner. Korean ladies really love have fun in body feelings, they need variety. But they seldom identify a romantic relationship with all the manifestation of affection. For them, intimacy is more of pleasure, joy, or perhaps self-indulgence. Korean brides feel the love of a man over a different level. How to recognize that you like the guy by the look, they may tell you. They easily fall in love. To get this sense, they need to actually know the chosen an individual well. But if the person felt love, you can be sure that this sense is for a very long time.

So what I will be saying is that she didn’t have a social lifestyle. Her dad wouldn’t let his daughters to dress provocatively. Among the to be home just before dark. Celebrations and organizations weren’t in the farmville farm country. And only have to go to a “disco” a couple times when they were 12-15 and of sixteen with their Dad as chaperone. Her actions included going to school and working on the family town. Visiting neighbors, going to her aunt’s house a couple hours away simply by bus with her Mom and staying for your week or two during slow park season. And this was about that.

It demonstrates that guys want to dominate in South Korea. Even though Korean females contain a lot of respect for men and in a natural way submissive that they don’t want to get married to local men. Korean women like American guys not simply for their attractive look however the way that they carry themselves and take care of their associates. So if you are searching for an Asian lady on the net, you will find a great choice of sole ladies so, who also look for lifetime lovers abroad.

Most of the time, my ex girlfriend always nagged myself to eat in a fine dining restaurant instead in Mcdonald or Jollibee. She wished me to invest money onto her, what a spoiled little girl. She wasn’t also my wife yet! Just imagine whenever we get married. I might ended up living my life in poverty.

Korean brides happen to be loving towards their lover and strive to take the ideal proper care of them. They are simply very mindful towards their very own men’s demands in a long term relationship and cherish anything that comes with marriage, such as a large number of relatives. An individual only must become close to a Korean girl to understand the depth with their commitment to someone they will love. When you get to know them they usually open up for you, you will surely be turned visit heels for him or her.

In fact , it’s far worse for the purpose of such the bride to be known as the self-confident and self-willed woman that to have a trustworthiness of an insensitive or short person. Checklist of virtues of a new bride from Korea includes the chance to be up to date, painful, soft-hearted and polite, however first of all, person. Mothers often tell their daughters: If you don’t just like the food, give it to the dog; if you do not like your partner, put up with it”.

Meet Awesome & Delightful Korean Women of all ages For Marriage & Dating Online

These foreign brides are a few of the sweetest, richly uneven, and warmest people likely to ever connect with because Mexican women have a status for being nice, gracious, and loving. You are going to achieve greater success over a date if you demonstrate your financial viability. Of course , like cannot be bought, but inclination will be given to even more prosperous job hopefuls. And it’s not really the fact that with cash you can buy a much better life for yourself. Just a marriage with a man in the future should grow into a marriage. And as the head of the friends and family, he can support his wife and children.

Little women below spend almost all their money to obtain clothes and everything sort of makeup stuff. Their main goal to locate a rich males who will provide them with money they usually won’t need to work. Their very own dream is not just a abundant men nevertheless oligarch who will buy them BMW, Mercedes, The bentley and all the luxurious stuff that exists widely in Moscow. This sort of young females drink and smoke and at the age of 25-30 they commence to realize that all their beauty commence to evade mainly because they beverage too much alcohol and they commence to look exclusively for any men who will marry her. After they discover some guys who need simply sex and a prepare on a kitchen they become lazy, grumbling and all the bad attributes of persona learn to appear (everything you authored about American women).

Southern Korea is actually a country with a high quality lifestyle. Therefore , do not think that you will be able to buy a Korean woman. These females are not buying sponsor, although a partner with whom to develop unified relationships. Moreover, Korea provides a high level of education. It indicates that Korean women are excellent interlocutors and can preserve a chatter on virtually any topic. That is a truly happy marriage if you are interested in spending some time with your better half, even after many years of relatives life.

The same as in any other country, finding your Filipina fiancée and eventual better half in the Philippines can be difficult. You can easily acquire conned and ripped off. Your is just like dating in person however, you must count on Internet connection mostly because you have no second option – if you are rich enough to travel 10, 500 miles aside and live there for several months. So i’m not abundant so it was necessary to outline a set of qualities that form the good from maybes and the probabilities from the bad. My spouse and i somehow achieved this without getting stung mainly because I meticulously thought out my personal preferred pair of characteristics just before I started out looking for job hopefuls.

A Foreign Affair (AFA), a business that helps men locate women through international trips, says organized tours to Republic of colombia are now trading out. AFA arranges group tours where 10 to twenty men travel together to Medellin, Cartagena or Barranquilla. During the tour, they attend fixed Social occurrences where the guys meet a huge selection of beautiful Colombian women looking for marriage. Women of all ages can also place their background on the AFA web site, with the hope of finding a husband.

My significant other is exquisite without makeup, had very little used clothes that was modern, recognized how to are present on a few pesos every day, and existed a very poor life with no complaining nevertheless had guaranteed small hopes and dreams for her near future. She had no boots and shoes to go to university when smaller, had you used tote, and her and her two siblings used each others apparel to have variety. Today she will buy lots of copies of brand name purses and watches, lots of nice sneakers that are inexpensive, blouses which can be on profound discount sale, etc . to ensure that she has two dressers and two huge closets packed with stuff for the point of bagging her older stuff and putting it in the garage area. I do begrudge her anything since she did not have nearly anything until I just came along although I would if she was insisting in the real manufacturers which a city girl could because the goal can be have the greatest brands of almost everything at your expenditure that they observe in magazines.

Your girl will be happy to tell you about her family, her life, etc . because you are with any luck , going to eventually turn into part of her family. Your lover never leaves her family group. She is permanently theirs and you simply become their very own relative too. If you usually are finding this kind of openness in a candidate the woman isn’t the one you prefer or she’s shy about you feeling like you’re a higher level of individuals than her because she will be very poor right up until you https://bestrealdatingsites.com/asian-brides/korean-brides/ convince her you aren’t like this. You will consider tiny steps to bring yourself closer to her gradually and she’ll agree to you bringing those basic steps. She do not ever lurch toward you while gushing take pleasure in comments.

Anticipate to pay your total expenditures. The endless question about who should pay the bills by the end of the date, in Korea, is usually chosen in favor of the woman. Once the man responds the moment marrying a Korean girl, respectively, he begins to be aware and support it beforehand. That is, usually, a man pays the check. Although sometimes there are circumstances when a girl offers to pay the main menu — for example , piece of food. Do not refuse it to her, but be sure to order pay for anything extra. If you have certainly not received presents to pay off, it means you will have to pay for everything – nowadays and in the near future.

Thousands Of North Korean Women of all ages Sold When Brides In China, Many With Kids Still In

The tune describing a bride, who is almost all dressed in white, does not pertain to the widespread bride after all. I think that this is excellent advice. In the event you really want a great Asian partner from the East or South-East, maturity will probably bring you the best chance of contentment. A ten years younger woman is wonderful for the ego for perhaps a hot instant, then the foolishness of the decision will become noticeable. My Thai wife and I are both middle-aged ( My spouse and i am ten years her senior) and the woman brings me personally great enjoyment and lasting love. Having said that, all of us met and live in my country, nevertheless We am accessible to moving to Thailand later on.

Korean girls for marital life are chosen not only because of the magnetic external data. These kinds of girls are distinguished by their humbleness, which likewise magically functions on males because that they prefer very soft and supple women. Matching to Korean language traditions, a guy is the brain of a home, therefore girls do everything to become the very best lovers in life. Seeing that men love young ladies, social traditions recommend marriage for females of a incredibly young age.

Anything overlooked at weddings are the name options on desks. I recommend keeping all web site the same and in line with all the theme of wedding event. Standard brand are done all over, try to mix it up and personalize the name options. Maybe every person table can have a sub-theme that plays through your wedding accessories. You can integrate unique wax lights layouts and this will impress guests. Case in point satin towels and trees make for an intimate setting. Whilst covering the party area area with small poles elegantly draped with satin laces and ribbons or garlands of trees makes for an incredible scene. Everybody will appreciate the time and energy putting into the tiny details designed for the wedding reception area.

What am I looking to say in essence? An Ibo man always carry at heart his monetary gain or profit in no matter what thing he does in life- whether it be business, education, relationship, etc . It is this trait that earned Ibos criticisms from other Nigerian people, because in whatever they are really doing, they can be always conscious of what they might gain financially. To spa it up, Ibo guy is just for a Chinese gentleman in terms of- money intelligence, creativity, and worth.

The good news is that “Send Me Zero Flowers” despite once more as being a romantic funny which thrives off of bafflement is not just a rehash of Doris Moment and Steel Hudson’s prior two films. The whole thing moves on with the enjoyable storyline regarding George planning to sort out stuff for when he dies and Rock Hudson has thrilling with various established ups including choosing his funeral plot and discovering his wife a friend. In fact even though Day nonetheless entertains with a wonderful cosmetic expressions “Send Me No Flowers” is very much Hudson’s movie. And what is as well nice is the fact whilst Tony Randall all over again finds himself making up the trio he gets more to do and supplies another great method for comedy. That quite match up to “Pillow Talk” nonetheless “Send Me personally No Flowers” is definitely better than “Lover Come Back”.

The crowning of 2015 Miss Universe Paulina Vega set Barranquilla, Colombia on the map. Barranquilla now has recognition to be home for some of the most beautiful and skilled women in the world. Not only is certainly Miss Galaxy from here, Grammy Award winning place singer Shakira, and presenter Sofia Vergara also phone Barranquilla house. Vergara superstars on the DASAR series Contemporary Family since Gloria Delgado-Pritchett. She’s recently been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, 5 Prime time Emmy Honours, and six Screen Stars Guild Awards, almost all stemming out of this role. In 2014, she was ranked as the 32nd Best Woman on the globe by Forbes.

Bows will probably be informal not to mention formal. Even though the general usual for men ought to be to maintain the hands at their own individual sides as well as bend forward from the belly, for girls it is the same with typically the hands positioned on the clapboard, with the sight looking downward. Formal bows will be much lower compared to laid-back bows. A fabulous bow is obviously returned by using a bow and may normally last only approximately 2-3 just a few seconds. A-tremble hands, at times in conjunction with a good ribbon and bow, has now become a common practice when it comes to Japan, specifically with outsiders together with holidaymakers. As a traveler, for anyone who is applying this custom, ensure you change to the left instead of straight, to settle away from knocking to the reverse guy. Any kind of sentiment should piece of art a anticipating the waves, different it can be thought about impolite.

Korean language brides prove that love may be eternal and mutual. They are simply a good and respectful example of ideal partner and spouse. Now you know to find Korean new bride. Don’t be scared of your feelings and emotions and the perfect Korean language bride definitely will once wink to you.

Become a member of Allure Tale and meet the best Korean brides from the comfort of the home. This website is full of sexy and hot Cookware girls who wish to date Westerners. Romance Storyline has already helped hundreds of mixte couples to get married, so you can fully trust it and join it to find the soul mate in this article. Create your account for free and get located by really eye-catching girls and mature women of all ages from Seoul and other places in the country.

The post Wedding outfit Colours appeared first on Kiến trúc gia đình.

Morgan and Chad’s Wedding at Graystone Quarry

Morgan and Chad decided to make their wedding truly their own by adding many personal touches; Hello Kitty onesies as gifts for the bridesmaids, Chad’s own graphic design of whiskey labels for his groomsmen, a poem the groom wrote for his bride, and Morgan’s mom’s wedding dress turned into a jumpsuit for the happy couple’s exit on a Vespa! Morgan’s gown by Hayley Paige is swoon-worthy to say the least, and the simply stated but gorgeous florals by Enchanted Florist were absolute perfection. We are so lucky that Amilia Photography was there to capture every beautiful moment. And make sure to grab the tissue before you watch the video!

What made the wedding special and unique? 

I feel like our ceremony was pretty special. We didn’t see each other until the beautiful chapel doors were opened and I started walking down the aisle. Chad and I also wrote our own vows and didn’t share them with each other. Chad wrote the most beautiful poem that I will remember forever!! I also think the people who attended made our wedding especially wonderful. Our friends and family were amazing on the dance floor. Our venue reps kept saying “we’ve never had a wedding party dance this much!” There was never a lull on the dance floor–it just kept going until we had to leave!!

Tell us about your gown and how you found it!

A few months before Chad and I were engaged I saw a photo of a groom holding his bride in this beyond gorgeous gown. I didn’t know the designer and the photo was in black and white, but the gown just seemed perfect. After I got engaged, I made a few appointments for a weekend when my mom and aunt were going to be in town. Our first appointment was at The Dress Theory in Nashville. I wanted to go there first because I knew they had Hayley Paige and I was super pumped to try on her dresses. I showed Bre (she’s amazing if you’re in Nashville at Dress Theory) the black and white photo and she said “oh I’ll pull that dress for you”. I was SO excited they had that exact dress and it was a Hayley Paige gown. It was the second gown I tried on and the moment I looked in the mirror I had that moment that you see in all the cheesy wedding movies where the bride cries and the dress is perfect. I tried on a few more dresses because why not and then I put the Hayley Gown by Hayley Paige back on and cried happy tears again. That was it. I found my dress in one afternoon, the first place we looked within 30 minutes of shopping. It was PERFECT. I hate that I only got to wear it once!

What were some touches that made the wedding more personal?

I feel like our whole wedding was so intimate and personal. Here are a few that were extra special to Chad and I:

– I gave my bridesmaids Hello Kitty onesies to wear instead of robes. I have a weird obsession with Hello Kitty and all my besties know this about me. I also got them little bracelets with coordinates of the place that was special to us engraved on them. (for example, my friends I met in college got the coordinates of Auburn University on their bracelets)

– Chad designed whiskey labels for his groomsmen. He’s a graphic designer and spent months perfecting his special label for all of his friends.

– Chad and I didn’t have a first look, but it was really important to me to have a first look with my dad and my brother. We are so close and I knew having that special moment with them before all the craziness began was going to be important for my family!

– Our vows were so special and I just start crying every time I see our video and Chad saying his sweet poem!

– Before we were announced at our reception, we got to get in a boat and wave to everyone from the little lake across the Quarry.

– My favorite little touch was my leaving outfit!! My mom really wanted me to wear her wedding dress! She had preserved it for 30 years and it was in mint condition. I wanted to cut it shorter and wear it when were leaving, but I knew Chad wanted to leave on his Vespa. A short dress was NOT going to work on a scooter, so I decided to turn it into a jumpsuit. Only One Tailoring did an AMAZING job turning my mom’s dress into the perfect jumpsuit to leave in. I loved it so much and it was my favorite little touch!

Amilia Photography | http://ift.tt/2zwjjuf

What was the most memorable part of the day?

Chad says his most memorable part of the day was driving over the quarry and waving to everyone while we were taking photos. We got to see all the people we love in one place and it was incredibly special! I think the most memorable part to me was when the doors opened and I got to see him standing at the end of the aisle. It’s just such a cool feeling. It’s like a new beginning, but with someone you already love so much!!

Tell us how you met/got engaged.

Chad and I met at Acme Feed & Seed at a 90’s dance party in downtown Nashville. We eye-flirted at the bar and he danced over to me on the dance floor and we ended up talking for about 3 hours that night. He asked me on our first date the next Friday, which was Valentine’s Day, and we ended up on an 7 hour date and from that moment on it was a done deal. We fell HARD and it was so great. There was never any guessing with him. He asked me to be his girlfriend a month later and two years later, we were married!

Chad started out the engagement process by getting our friends to send a group text asking everyone to go to Acme Feed and Seed (where we met) on Friday, August 26. Of course I said yes (because who doesn’t love a good hang on a roof top bar)! He picked me up on his Vespa and drove us downtown and parked close to Acme. We received messages from our friends saying “we’re gonna be late” and “we can’t find parking.” Those little liars!! Chad made an excuse to walk along the river to the Ascend Ampitheatre Park (where you can see all of downtown Nashville). He told me he needed to take photos of downtown for a graphic design project he was working on. So I grabbed his phone and started getting the best angles possible, crouching down and walking all over the park to get my shot. At this point I’m pretty hot and sweaty and I asked Chad if we could go inside. He kinda took a step back, looked at me and said “sure sweetie, but I’ve gotta ask you one question first”. He proceeded to get down on one knee and told me how much he loves me in his sweet, fighting back tears voice. He told me that I’m his very best friend and he couldn’t imagine spending the rest of his life with anyone else and ends his tear-filled spill with the classic, “will you marry me, sweetie?” Obviously, I’m shaking and not believing it’s real and screaming yes and we stood up, hugged and kissed…then I felt all these warm hugs snuggling us from behind and he surprised me with our families coming to watch our precious little moment! We ended the night with dinner and celebratory champagne at Flyte, and it was more perfect than I could have ever imagined!

Morgan & Chad Trailer from Phillip Colling on Vimeo.

Photographer: Amilia Photography // Florist: Enchanted Florist // Venue: Graystone Quarry // Videographer: Colling Films // Wedding Dress Designer: Hayley Paige // Bridal Shop: The Dress Theory // Caterer: Chef Penelope // Hair & Makeup: Brynn Boyd // Cake: Desserts by Leland // Bridesmaids Dresses: Show Me Your Mumu // Groom’s Suit: Men’s Wearhouse // Jumpsuit: Only One Tailoring

The post Morgan and Chad’s Wedding at Graystone Quarry appeared first on Grey Likes Weddings | Wedding Fashion & Inspiration | Best Wedding Blog.

Casting Call

Summary: The concept for this story is that the FFVII Advent Children 'cast' are real people, playing different versions of themselves on screen. Mature content.

Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with Square Enix, who owns all the rights to Final Fantasy VII and its characters. This is strictly a non-commerical endeavor, I make no money from this.

“Get up!” Tifa exclaimed, shaking Cloud.

“What’s the emergency?” Cloud sleepily groused, realizing he was at her place.

“Today’s the audition, and we need to look our best. That way we’ll get lead roles, and finally become those stars we were meant to be.” Tifa reminded him.

“It’s too early to be awake.” Cloud complained.

“It’s not too early when our careers are at stake…I’m tired of being cast in bit roles as some damned floozy…today’s going to change all that. So get your ass out of bed!” With that, Tifa pulled the pillows out from under his head, ignoring his cursing as she got out of bed.

“Thanks for that.” Cloud snapped as he unwillingly got out of bed as well.

“And thanks for staying up late at the club last night just because those starlets thought you were a big star.” Tifa responded heatedly on her way to take a shower before prettying herself up properly for the audition.

Cloud was glad Tifa didn’t see him smile. He knew how jealous she got when he was around other women, and he did like to bait her. Besides, their relationship was constantly switching between on and off states, so if she caught him with another woman, it was because he could never remember if they were together that week or not. That’s one reason they kept separate apartments. It might be better if they permanently called it quits, but neither of them was quite willing to take that step, because they had been together since they were kids, and didn’t know how not to be together. So they kept reuniting, and the makeup sex might be one reason for their having such a tempestuous relationship. And he hadn’t yet met a woman with better breasts to replace his ideal pillow.

                                          ***

 Elena woke up in Rude’s arms, feeling happy and nervous at the same time. Happy to be celebrating their one year wedding anniversary tomorrow, nervous because of the audition today. She had decided to run for mayor of Midgar, but even though she was still young herself, her advisors suggested some kind of a stunt to capture the youth vote, and staring in an action movie that was going to be filmed in Midgar seemed like a good idea at the time, but now that the day had arrived, doubts were surfacing. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

“Happy Anniversary.” Rude startled her, she hadn’t noticed he was awake too.

“That’s not til tomorrow.” Elena reminded him.

“Well, can we start celebrating now?” Rude asked.

Elena sighed as he tightened his arms around her. She had wanted him since the first time she saw him, catering a charity event where she was the hostess. It wasn’t just that he was eye-candy and his English accent had done things to her that she had never told anyone, he was also an extremely talented gourmet chef. Elena had not been able to help herself, and had started hiring him for all the charity fundraisers she hosted in her job as chairwoman of her family’s philanthropic foundation. Finally she had gotten sneaky, and had asked him to privately cater a dinner for two, and then pretended that her date had cancelled on her. Rude had felt that she shouldn’t be forced to eat alone, and so they had had their first date, and eight months later he had proposed. Elena hadn’t been happy with all the fuss it created in the society papers, especially when there had been a subtle trend of making Rude seem like nothing more than a glorified burger-flipper who had gotten his hooks into the Mackintosh heiress. It had taken considerable restraint on her part not to sue the reporters within an inch of their lives for slander.

“Elena?” Rude brought her back to the present.

“Oh, sorry, I was thinking about…”

“Starting our celebration early?” Rude asked hopefully.

Elena sighed again. “I wish we could, but I’ve got a full schedule this morning, I won’t be free til after that silly movie audition. I don’t know why I let myself get talked into it…”

“Because you‘re smart enough be the first woman elected mayor of Midgar. Why don’t I meet you there?” Rude suggested.

“Would you? “ Elena was grateful at the thought of having someone there with her who wasn’t trying to tell her what to say and do like her political team was doing. Like she hadn’t learned image control growing up in the spotlight. But Rude was right, she wanted everyone to know that she wasn’t just another brainless socialite. Even getting two Master’s degrees, one in international business, and another in business law hadn’t stopped the gossip, they merely decided that the degrees were bought and paid for.

“Of course I will. You’re tensing up, and you need to be relaxed today.” Rude said, caressing her arm.

“Yes, yes I do.” Elena smiled at her handsome husband, running her hands over his chest. The first time they had had sex, she had been amazed at the shape he kept himself in…it was obvious the first time she saw him that he wasn’t out of shape, but he worked out as much as he cooked, and she loved to feel his muscled body under her hands. “Would you help me relax?” Elena’s eyes twinkled as she asked him.

“Your wish is my command.” Rude covered her body with his.

A little while later, Elena appeared in the foyer of her family’s mansion, where her election team had been waiting for quite a while.

“What took you so long? We’re half an hour behind schedule already!” her campaign manager exclaimed. “And you’re a mess!”

“So let’s hurry and catch up.” Elena said as she put her other shoe on. “I’ll get myself prettied up on the way.” She started heading to the door where her limo was waiting, then stopped and look back at the unmoving group. “Well, what are you waiting for? Let‘s go!”

“You, uh, missed a few buttons.” her publicist said.

Elena looked down at her blouse and saw that her bra was clearly visible due to the three buttons she had forgotten to fasten. She blushed as she hurriedly corrected her error. “Okay, let’s get this day over with!”

                                          ***

“Hey honey, look at this!” Yuffie exclaimed, circling something in the newspaper before handing it to her husband over the breakfast table.

“A movie audition? Why would that be interesting?” Reno asked.

“We could use the extra money. And it might be fun.” Yuffie replied.

“Yeah, we sure could use the extra money.” Reno agreed as he handed the paper back to her, thinking of their student loans, hers for medical school, and his for his Master’s degree in art history. “I’ve got to head to the museum now. What time is the audition?”

“1 pm.” Yuffie told him. “I’ll text you a reminder.”

“Thanks dear.” Reno kissed Yuffie absentmindedly on the cheek before leaving.

Yuffie frowned…she loved Reno, but he had seemed so boring lately. When they were first dating, she had found his passion for preserving culture through art as fascinating, and on their honeymoon he treated her like a priceless work of art. And now five years later, once she was in private practice and no longer besieged by the demanding training to become a doctor, that spark wasn’t as bright as she remembered it being. Reno only seemed interested in sculptures or paintings by the old Masters lately. She was hoping that being movie stars for a little bit might get their marriage back on track.

                                       ***

Reeve hoped today would be his big break. He was tired of being a taxi cab driver. He had seen the casting call ad in the paper, and was hoping that he would end up being around celebrities that needed a personal chauffeur.

                                          ***

Vincent walked over to one of his most troublesome female students, who was more interested in fashion and actors than in mastering the English language.

“What, may I ask, do you find more interesting than Shakespeare?” he asked her in what he hoped was a forbidding voice.

“Oh, nothing Mr. Valentine.” the girl replied in a simpering voice, moving her book slightly to cover something.

“A movie audition? That’s what you find so fascinating?” Vincent grabbed the piece of paper she tried to hide. “Two hours detention after school today.” he announced as he walked back to his desk.

After that class had been dismissed by the bell, he looked at the casting call information more closely. If it paid well enough, he could finally take that long overdue sabbatical he wanted, after ten years of teaching English to unwilling high school students without a vacation.

                                          ***

“Did you call and tell the airline we’re unavailable today?” Shera asked her husband.

“Sure did, but they’re going to make us work continuous flights next week to make up for it.” Cid told her, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice that he felt at being grounded.

“I figured as much, but if we pass the auditions today, hopefully we’ll finally be able to buy a house big enough for starting a family in.” Shera smiled shyly at him.

“Yeah, that’s true.” Cid said as he smiled back at her, taking her in his arms and kissing her.

                                          ***

Barret checked his watch. Still plenty of time before the audition…it was merely a formality for him to be there, since he was allowing his investment properties to be used for filming the movie in exchange for his having a role. So he was guaranteed to pass the audition, it was merely what character he was going to play that was unsure. And he was hoping that he’d get some profitable free advertising by being in the movie as well.

                                          ***

Scarlet walked upstairs to the childrens’ bedrooms. “Marlene! Denzel! Are you ready to leave?” she called out.

“Coming!” their voices chimed simultaneously, and they opened the door to their own rooms, running past her down the stairs and to the front door. “Let’s go to the audition!”

“Okay, let me just grab the keys.” Scarlet enjoyed being their nanny, but their exuberance could be overwhelming at times, and she hoped that they wouldn’t turn into snobs if they became child stars. Their parents weren’t that involved with the children unless it was to show them off, and it worried her. They were good kids, but they needed more love than they were getting at home.

                                          ***

"So what are you doing today?" Rufus asked Aerith, as they lay in their bed.

"I heard about auditions today for a movie they're going to be filming here in Midgar. It sounds like fun." Aerith replied.

"Anything with a penis sounds like fun to you." Rufus said without a trace of rudeness or jealousy, caressing her. His so-called relationship with Aerith was mostly one of convenience, they were roommates in an oversized one bedroom apartment, to keep monthly costs down so they could have extra spending money. His job as a cabana boy meant he was surrounded by women all day at work, many of them very attractive, and he was willing to earn bigger tips, since he was saving up to go back to school.

"I'm just a people person." Aerith smiled at him. "Besides, I know you're glad I think your penis is quite fun." she said as she fondled his with one hand, putting her other hand on his cheek and kissing him.

Rufus obliged her unspoken request, and before too long, he had her clawing at his buttocks as she cried out. "I know you're glad I think you're fun as well." he smirked as he got out of bed to take a shower and get ready for work. When he came out of the bathroom, Aerith was still in bed, texting on her cellphone.

"You should come to the audition too, you might earn some extra money." Aerith said. "I bet you'll earn as much in one day acting in a movie as you do acting in one week with all those desperate housewives at the hotel." She got out of bed and went into their walk-in closet where Rufus was getting dressed. "It's at 1pm at the convention center. Tell all those women that I said their husbands said hello. My turn in the bathroom before heading off to work as well." Aerith kissed Rufus, who pulled away when he felt her hands on him.

"Uh-uh, Aerith, you know the rules, only once in the mornings, we need to save our energies for earning money." Rufus knew she didn't enjoy being a waitress, even if it was at an exclusive gentleman's club where the tips tended to be huge the more cleavage you had. Aerith spent hers on fashion and clubbing in her off hours, and he knew that‘s what she‘d like to be able to afford to do all the time, party. "I'll think about the audition, don't wait up for me. It's Friday after all, the weekend crowd will be arriving." Rufus reminded her before leaving.

                                          ***

“It’s time to go, can we finish this another time?” Sephiroth asked his cousins.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s over.” Loz said. “Everyone knows Germany is going to win the World Cup this year.”

“Dream on, Australia’s going to kick your asses!” Yazoo snapped.

“Who cares, soccer is nothing compared to hockey.” the Canadian-born Kadaj proclaimed.

Sephiroth took a deep breath, trying not to lose his temper with his cousins. They were all stuntmen who had come to Midgar to try and prove themselves capable of acting as well. All their auditions they went to somewhat irked him, because he had a hidden desire to become a director. And he had decided to go to this audition with them, wanting to try life in front of the camera to get an idea of life behind it.

“I’m heading out to the car now, anyone who wants to be a star is free to join me.” he said, slamming the door behind him on their sports argument. “Besides, everyone knows American football is the best sport in the world.” he muttered under his breath as he got in the car.

                                       ***

Shalua was surprised at the amount of people who showed up to audition for parts in Advent Children, twice as many as expected. Following the instructions given to her by the director and producer, she counted out the hopefuls in groups of twenty and led into the special room set up that morning. Once she had them all lined up, she asked their name, occupation, and reasons for auditioning, writing it all down. As the wannabe actors looked at each other uncertainly as they weren’t sure what was going on, Shalua sat down at the table in the room and waited.

“What do you think?” Zack Fair asked the producer, Mr. Hojo, as they stood looking at the people through a two-way mirror disguised as windows in the room.

“So far, these people couldn’t find their way out of an open casket.” Hojo snapped.

“Next group please, Shalua.” Zack spoke into the microphone, and he saw Shalua touch her earpiece in acknowledgment.

“Thank you all for coming, we’ll be in touch.” Shalua told the disappointed group.

“Hell of a way to pick a cast.” Zack said, to help pass the time and maybe get a little info on why it was being done this way.

“You are merely a director, I don’t expect you to understand. To make great film, you must push the boundaries of acceptable risks. You must experiment!” Hojo exclaimed.

“Whatever, man.” Zack replied. “It’s your dime.”

Hojo was about to start an argument when he got a look at the current group entering the room. “Hello, who are these people?”

“Please state your name and occupation, ma’am.” Shalua requested to the first woman in line.

“You don’t know who the hell I am? What kind of a person are you that you haven‘t heard of me? I’m Tifa Lockhart, you fool!” Tifa snapped.

“I’m the kind of person who has a job.” Shalua replied calmly, ignoring Tifa’s seething as she caught the implication that she didn’t have an acting job right now, meaning she wasn’t as important as she thought. “And you are?” Shalua asked, moving onto Cloud.

“Why does that one guy seem so depressed?” Zack wondered aloud as Shalua got information from Vincent. “Oh, he’s a high school English teacher, that’s why.” Zack remembering hating English in high school and not being very nice to his teacher as a result, which he wasn’t too proud of now.

“They are perfect!” Hojo was ecstatic when Shalua got through interviewing them all.

“But they’re all so different. And most of them aren’t even actors.” Zack pointed out.

“That’s why they are so perfect! This will be a masterpiece!” Hojo was so excited he was starting to drool.

“If you say so.” Zack said dubiously.

“I do say so!” Hojo grabbed the microphone. “Shalua, do not let them leave. Bring in chairs and more tables with meals for them all, then bring me their information. I want to see how they interact with each other!”

  ***

“How old are you two?” Yuffie asked Denzel and Marlene as chairs were brought in. She and Reno ended up in line right next to the children.

“You’d never believe it, but I’m twelve and she’s ten.” Denzel said as he and his sister ate their lunch.

“Why wouldn’t I believe that? I’m a doctor. I’ve seen lots of people who don’t look their age.” Yuffie replied, humoring Denzel. He looked his age, but Marlene did look younger.

“You’re a doctor?” Marlene asked in surprise. “I want to be one when I grow up.”

Reno stopped listening to his wife’s conversation with the children and thought about how to attract more donors to the museum when he felt someone tapping him on the shoulder.

“Hope I’m not interrupting you, I just thought you looked familiar. My name is Rude, and this is my lovely wife Elena.” Rude offered his hand to Reno.

“Pleased to meet you. I’m Reno, and that‘s my wife Yuffie talking to those kids. I think I met you once when you catered an event for donors for the museum I work at. And I recognize your wife from her campaign posters.” Reno shook Rude’s hand, noticing that the man’s other hand was firmly entwined with Elena’s, and noticing the way she looked at Rude caused Reno to frown. He couldn’t remember the last time Yuffie had looked at him like that.

“Yes I did, and that’s why I’ll give you some advice. Don’t eat any of this food they provided, it‘s all garbage.” Rude informed Reno. “I’m only here for my wife’s sake, but I might have to have one of my apprentices be the on-set caterer for the cast and crew if this is what they expect her to eat.”

“I don’t care if you have other clients, dammit! You’re my manager Tseng, you get over here right now and make sure to earn your percentage by getting me top billing!” Tifa yelled into her phone, unaware that she had suddenly become the focus of attention in the room. Yuffie tried to cover the childrens’ ears as Tifa started swearing more as she became aware of Aerith.

Finding nothing else to do, Aerith went over to the table that Shalua had been sitting at in the center of the room, and sat on the edge of it, crossing her legs. To keep her free hand busy, the other one having a bottled water in it, she fiddled with the necklace that draped down in between her breasts in the low-cut top she was wearing. Five minutes later, every wife or girlfriend in the room told their man to go stand by the windows where they wouldn’t get a good view of Aerith’s advertising, and then the women formed a loose semi-circle near Aerith and were glaring at her.

“Is there a problem?” Aerith asked innocently.

“Yeah, you can quit being a damned slut.” Tifa snapped.

“Is there a problem?” Rufus repeated Aerith’s question as he came to her defense. He pulled her up off the table and put his arms around her waist. It was part of their agreement to pretend to be a couple if they ever got in trouble with an angry jealous lover of their current interest.

“If she’s yours, then you’d better keep a tighter leash on her.” Tifa told Rufus, who just stared calmly back at her as he drug Aerith away from the angry wives’ mob.

“Who is that man?” Aerith said as she noticed Vincent in a corner opposite the one Rufus took her to. “He looks so sad. Maybe he needs cheering up.”

“Good luck with that.” Rufus scoffed as she walked towards the other man. “I doubt you’ll score.”

“Hello, I’m Aerith.” she introduced herself to Vincent. A few moments later, she was extremely frustrated. He wasn’t even looking at her legs or breasts. He just kept staring at the floor as he talked to her.

The next commotion in the room was two-pronged. Rude and Barret were about to get physical because Barret kept trying to convince Elena to invest some of her fortune with him, and wouldn’t leave her alone. The other issue was Cid had left Shera with the other wives to go join in the sports discussion amongst Sephiroth and his cousins. The cousins were pissed off when they realized Cid was as big an American football fan as Sephiroth was. Fortunately, Shalua came back into the room holding a big box which she put on the nearest table with a thud.

“You’re all hired. Here is everything you need to know about shooting dates and times, your contracts, blah blah blah. You‘ll each be mailed a copy of the script next week, and if you leak any of it, you‘ll be fired and hit with a nasty lawsuit.” she told them all.

“But you don’t have our addresses.” Cloud said.

“Yes we do, it’s standard procedure for Avalanche Films to run a background check on all employees.” Shalua handed a thick folder to everyone and then left again.

The Essential Steps Of Facial Skin Care

Skin is vital in one's life and to get yourself a beautiful skin isn't an one day perform. You need to take good good your skin and keep it on regular base so relating to keep it beautiful and glowing. In accessory for these remedies, you would like to use a dependable Anti Aging eye cream the appropriate approach . slow down the appearance of wrinkles. Really look for your ingredients Eyeliss, CynergyTK and Phytessence Wakame. Bella Vous Cream

I recently had an irritating one far from the tip of my nose. They may be usually skin colored to light brown and grow outward through the center. My doctor had three tries to freeze it away with liquid nitrogen over several years, but it kept growing back. Eventually a dermatological doctor removed it with more than likely application of cryotherapy, which did activity. But has left a flat depressed 10 mm white spot while on the end of my nasal.

Take care of program so so that you may look picturesque. Try to use only natural products on one's body as they no damage to your pores. Regular care is very important in a beautiful body chemistry. Adopt proper and effective methods that can help you to check beautiful and also glow to get a skin.

Loss of memory: You could already have noticed your grandparents forgetting things and places or repeating aren't words and sentences. This is also a common sign of aging. The involving aging, particularly on the facial features such as ridges and furrows, crow's feet and wrinkles, psychologically depress and worry men. The desire to look great and feel happy is overpowering in a world, which places top-notch premium on beauty.

Have seconds on the spaghetti with tomato marinade! Tomatoes provide powerful antioxidants. Like avocados, tomatoes also have sun-fighting real estate. So tomatoes do two jobs at once. Increasing your consuming tomatoes guide you avoid premature wrinkles and brown spots. The fragrance in the body lotion was too stable. I felt like I had bathed in cologne. I am not likely to mention this capsule name in this anti aging Skin Care review. But, the information which i want to share will allow you to choose safe non-irritating products that work.

Here are two of the easiest in order to spot inside of ingredient list on a robust package. If you find either ingredient used in an anti aging Skin Care Review care system product line, you already know not make investments any more and certainly not any of one's money. A thorough research is actually find the highest quality affordable skin deal with 50 year old woman. Products that have fragrances, alcohols, and preservatives should be avoided. Adhere to the tips given above they'll help you achieve skin glowing and sparkling.

Anti Cellulite creams : There are various such creams effortlessly the markets as well as on the website. The best end up being the acai based creams when he are natural and do not have any side consequences. These help a person receive rid for the problem within 3 to 4 a couple of months.

It doesn't dry your skin like soap truly. It removes the dirt and extra sebum by means of face positively gently and cleanses experience completely. Yet at switching the time, it retains highly effective press release moisture deparately needed for your are up against. So, as a result, even after cleansing with olive oil based products, your skin doesn't feel dry.

Where To Buy:>>>>>>http://skincaresfreetrial.com/bella-vous-cream/

The best oil control foundation There is is Cover Girl Clean Makeup Oil Control. The makeup goes on clean, feels fresh, and continues search fresh all night long. Bella Vous Cream If I need a touchup I personally use them Cover Girl Fresh Look Pressed Powder. Smoking will speed increase the aging methods. To quit smoking isn't quick nevertheless but essential must for males and women on a quest to obstruct the maturing. You will find of course lots of other great reasons to stop smoking, as a consequence be brave and from techniques stop smoking right now.

Click Hear:>>>>>>http://skincaresfreetrial.com/bella-vous-cream/

February Faves

Function of Beauty - I know this might seem gimmicky to some, I certainly thought so myself but I followed it for a bit and kept up with reviews. I dont make “resolutions” since I always think theyre super cheesy and lame. BUT since Id face some hardships over the last few years I thought Id...make one to start taking better care of myself. I frequently dye my hair so it’s really been quite damaged and most shampoos, even salon level many were not meeting all 5 of the things I need, just rather focuses on just the one thing. >[ I took the leap and got a smol set and it took a week or so to get to me which was fine. Ofc I got pink but I did give this a shot and I LOVE IT. I use very little to cover a lot of hair (its v long) and my hair felt AMAZING. I also follow wash once a week regimen to keep the color in a bit longer...and it was v soft, healthy, not oily for once and kept the scent even! I am VERY happy with these, I will be buying more in the future. { My Picture }  $ Is varying, depends on what you’re getting. Worth it? Yes.

My BKR - Another thing I was following and stalking for quite some time. Checking out the reviews and considering my resolution. Ive always been actively trying to drink my 8 cups of water a day. They are a bit on the pricier side but not only are they cute AS FUCK, but they ARE glass and much more environmentally friendly. No icky BPA and constantly recycling plastic bottles. Also, no irritating crunching of plastic bottles! I am ALWAYS reaching for this, I take it everywhere with me. I’m glad I jumped on this train honestly. { My Picture } $28 Worth it? Yes.

Burts Bees Peach+Willowbark Wipes - I use the grapefruit ones normally to remove my makeup, and I love those very much. But sometimes I have extra tough makeup and I need a good exfoliation without doing a mask or facial cleanser. These are wonderful and they smell amazing too. $6 Worth it? Yes.

ELF Cosmetics Daily Brush Cleaner - UM WHAT THE HECK. This was UNEXPECTEDLY amazing. So amazing, I’m embarrassed I got to it LATE! This lil bottle, yes its little, but DOES WONDERFUL at cleaning my brushes! And it smells very fresh and clean - leaves my brushes almost immediately dry so if I wanted to use them a while later in the same day I definitely could. I was using a gel soap that left my brushes with no scent (which was fine) but too damp to re-use in the same day, I had to go use other brushes if I needed to do another look. Not with this lil bottle! Omg SO glad I got to it. $3 Worth it? Yes.

Loreal Infallible Pro Glow (208) - So admittedly I was late getting to this one too and watching a lot of people use it and hearing such positive things I decided I’d give this a shot rather than running to ulta and grabbing another Tarte Amazonian Clay Foundation. Turns out, I’m super diggin’ on this. Easy to apply, easy to blend, easy to clean off my face and brushes. Despite the “glow” on the title, it will matte down which I like. They do have a matte version of this that I will try when I’m done with this for comparison’s sake but for now this is getting the job. $12 Worth it? Yes.

Lush Cosmetics Cupcake - Welp. Idek what to say about my obsession with Lush. I’m a hoe for Lush. Esp when free hah. Forever I was saying, and still am, that I was trying to steer away from products that were not self preserving but its free so why would I bitch? I knew its a damn good product, its always sold out and Ive heard and read all the reviews. So now, because I got 2, my boyfriends sister and I now have mask+tea nights. We have tried this mask twice and have discovered it is indeed everything everyone has hyped it up to be. We’re soft, exfoliated and smellin’ like chocolate. Only downside: our dog thought we were strangers and barked at us lmao. It is messy applying and while drying it flakes a bit - no biggie tho. $10 Worth it? Yes.

Lush Cosmetics Prince Charming - ITS PINK. OK. ITS PINK. Thats one of the biggest reasons why I got this. BECAUSE PINK. I love pink and its soap and it smells fresh and clean. Turns out, I love it like I knew I would. It is LE though, AFAIK so go grab it before its gone. P sure its a Valentines thing like some of their bath bombs. $10 - $35 Worth it? Yes.

Bite Beauty Agave Lip Balm - Like Lush, I am a hoe for lip balms and butters. I have many, and cant stop. I love the aesthetic of this product as well as the scent (like cake!). Its application is smooth and definitely helped my poor lips overnight while I slept. I tend to wear these types of products most when I’m sleeping since I’m not eating or drinking things in my sleep so it does the most when its left alone. I generally wake up with nice fresh and healthy non-chapped or cracked lips. Its a p nice way to start the day honestly. $18 Worth it? Yes

Lush Cosmetics Rub Rub Rub - I got a sample of this recently and I actually REALLY love it. I don’t use this in the shower, but normally once or twice a day if I do both my face cleanser and my nightly mask. It makes my hands sooooo silky smooth I’m obsessed. I will absolutely get a pot of this! $22 Worth it? Yes.

Lush Cosmetics Rock Star Soap - Another sample piece that I had originally put aside to try at a later date, I decided I’d just try it and get it out of the way. Well, I accidentally fell in love with it. It smells amazing and makes my skin super soft, you know, like soap lol. $7.95 Worth it? Yes.

Oh Nos!

ELF Cosmetics Pink Diamonds Highlighter - Alright. Idk where this got effed up. I got this product because many people said it was amazing, including one of my faves, Jeffree Star. (FFS it won against a really expensive highlighter!!!) But when I tried it, it wasnt shit. Nothing! I tried with my fingers and 2 brushes! NOTHING!! Im ok with it being $4 so its not that big of a loss but like ??? Im let down lmao $4 Worth it? No.