#they only care about the finished product and not the whole process beforehand
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TAKE THE STAIRS ✲ n. jaemin
pairing. na jaemin x fem! reader
starring. na jaemin, ning yizhuo
genre. college au, strangers to lovers. fluff, comedy, suggestive.
warnings. alcohol consumption, throwing up, swearing
word count. 18k (18.666)
a/n. thank you all so much for 1k followers! consider this fic a small gift of celebration
playlist. candy - baekhyun ; honey - l'arc en ciel ; take the stairs - coin ; cutie - coin ; rose-colored boy - paramore ; don't go yet - camila cabello ; hot crush lover - blu detiger ; teenage dream - 5sos (cover)
after having an unexpected guest witness the neverending quarrels with your roommate, na jaemin starts to practically live at your place— or— where yizhuo's flegmatic project partner starts to put a suspicious amout of effort into their assignment.
✲ PART 2 OF THE SIMPLIFY ROMANCE SERIES ✲
Hot droplets of water wash over you like raindrops during a heavy storm, the mirror fogging up at the hot temperature you always choose to shower your body in, fingers trailing through your hair making you finally relax after a long day at college. You spent the day presenting your project and having a test from Physics, so you only deserve a good shower. You would even consider taking a bath, but your small apartment doesn’t have a bathroom big enough to contain a bathtub, so a good, scorching hot shower will have to suffice.
Now, you are a hard worker– however, you also like to wait until the last reasonable time to start working on your project. And while you’re best friends with procrastination, stress also decided to visit you for the time being; since, again, there was not much time for you to finish your project, and so in the whole process of working on it and doing extensive research about a topic you weren’t really that interested in in the first place, you forgot to take care of yourself. You wouldn’t even notice at first– not until one day when Yizhuo glared at you with questions in her eyes from the couch, seeing you go to the convenience store at 10pm with your home slippers still on because of your distracted mind– but when you looked at yourself in the mirror after arriving from school today, the image of your sweaty face and hair so oily you could probably fry a schnitzel on the extraction of the liquid from your follicles, you must admit that you’ve been neglecting your appearance for quite some time now, and so a well deserved annual everything-shower is the only thing on your mind right now.
Reaching over to the side of the shower that has various shelves installed, taking your hair conditioner into your palms and opening up the bottle, you get ready for the familiar smell of citrus that always hits your nose and makes you smile in satisfaction; yet, no matter how hard you try, the pleasant scent doesn’t come– and neither does the actual conditioner.
Huffing, even slapping the bottom of the bottle a few times, squeezing the tube as hard as you can– you tried everything, but to no use. Thinking back to the last few weeks, you try to remember when you bought the conditioner– because you swear it hasn’t been that long. There’s no way you already ran out, you think, as your eyes scan over the various bottles of other products in your shower, opting to use something your roommate has in stash– when you notice that there is no other hair conditioner in the shower, which makes the gears in your brain click in realization.
Sighing, you finish showering as you prepare your mental tangent in your brain. Drying off your body and slipping into your underwear, you put on the largest T-shirt you more often than not sleep in, not even bothering to put your hair up as you roughly scrunch it with your towel to get most of the water out, opting to leave the strands lay on your shoulders instead, in their full wet, naked mole rat glory.
Swinging the door to the bathroom open, you yell out the first sentence that comes to your mind– despite planning your outburst in your head beforehand.
“Ning Yizhuo! You used up all of my fucking hair conditioner again!” you scream into the apartment, knowing damn well that the walls are thin and she can hear you. “You promised you won’t use it after the last time! That shit is fucking expensive, y’know,” you mutter, voice still raised so your roommate can hear you.
“I’ll buy you a new one, chill out,” Yizhuo finally replies, her voice coming out of your living room. Your head snaps that way, feet dangling closer into the doorway.
“Yeah, well, maybe consider buying your own conditioner so you don’t have to replace mine every other week,” you spit, rolling your eyes in annoyance, “or at least buy a new one when it runs out, so I can actually use– oh.”
Stopping mid-sentence, your sudden outburst of anger is cut short as you notice another presence in the living room. There’s a man sitting on your sofa, his head turned towards you, flashing you an amused grin, and when his eyes scan you from head to toe, you’re suddenly painfully aware of your current state– only in your panties, with your hair wet, appearing as a chicken left outside in the rain, the wetness of your locks most likely dampening the thin fabric of your shirt to the point that it’s basically see through, revealing more to the stranger than you’d like. Crossing your arms at your chest, alert, you feel heat rising to your cheeks as your eyes jump from your roommate to the stranger in your living room, textbooks and an opened laptop scattered across the coffee table, making you believe it must be your roommate’s classmate of some sort.
“Okay, I’m sorry,” she sighs and rolls her eyes, looking at you with amusement when she notices your distressed state, “this is Jaemin, by the way. We’re doing a project together.”
Humming, you look at the man again, taking a notice of his casual, yet attractive demeanor. Black bangs falling into his eyes and Adidas joggers hugging his legs, you press your lips into a thin line– somewhat resembling an embarrassed smile, before you slowly walk out of the room for the sake of their privacy and also your dignity. “Nice to meet you,” you mumble on your way out, “I’m Y/N.”
And before you’re out of the door, you turn your head towards your roommate again, biting back an ironic smile. “How nice of you to notify me that we’ll have guests over!”
With that, you’re out.
You guess that embarrassing yourself in front of Na Jaemin is how life is going to go now. Don’t get me wrong– the next time it happened, you were notified of his visit; after screaming at Yizhuo about how she handled it the last time around– and you even put some effort into your appearance, as if to balance the absolute atrocity he had to deal with the first time he laid his eyes on you. Not that you really care about his opinion, or that you want him to think you’re at least a little bit attractive, of course. You’d say this is just the basic human need to look presentable in front of people you don’t even know that well.
While you were notified about the fact that he would come over in the afternoon to work on the project, you still didn’t have it in you to just casually walk over to the living room and hang out with them, though. On top of that, they were doing a project in Neurophysiology together– and no matter how much laughter and noise you heard from the living room, where the two crashed for the time being, you still didn’t think it was okay for you to intrude to say hi to the man, or find enough courage to just hang out in the room with them, enjoying their talks and quarrel. It wasn’t the same as when you were doing a project with Minjeong from your Biology class or when Yizhuo had a few assignments to do with your mutual friend Jimin, the three of you working on your own stuff in your spacious living room, while also talking gossip and laughing about the latest fashion trends on Tiktok together.
But sitting in your room on a Wednesday evening, completely alone; because your roommate was busy working on a project and none of your other friends– not even the online ones– were there to entertain you with their talks, you had nothing to do. The only thing you could come up with while trying to entertain yourself was to watch the latest season of The Great British Bake Off, your legs swiftly moving you towards your table, where your laptop lay untouched, opening it and turning on the show.
Everyone knows that feeling of desiring something they see on the screen of the show they’re currently watching, right? The feeling only intensifies when it comes to food– delicious food, on top of that– and suddenly, you’re no stranger to the cravings in your stomach as you watch the contestants cut slices of cakes and taste the sweet, tasty pastries and doughs. Maybe you could look around your room and find something to eat to satisfy those needs, but something is telling you that the secret stash of M&M’s you had hidden in your room, away from the eyes of Ning Yizhuo– the resident M&M lover– was now long empty, the image of the packaging thrown in the trash can now vivid in your brain.
But the more you keep watching, the more you crave something sweet, and you know that if you don’t stand up from your place at the table and walk over to the snack cupboard in the kitchen, you’ll go insane. And with this knowledge, you take a deep breath in and out, trying to find some courage in you to show your face to your roommate and her new friend; your hand is soon on the door click and you almost watch yourself from the third perspective as your socked feet stumble out of the safety of your own room, bringing you towards the living room where the two of them have been sitting, intending to pass by them and silently take some sweets from the kitchen.
“Hi Y/N!” the man greets you, almost making you jump up and bump into the TV on the right side of the living room. Na Jaemin has a contagious smile on his face, and while you vividly remember greeting him when he arrived, just seconds before closing the door to your room, you still greet him again, trying hard to maintain the same amount of enthusiasm as him.
The conversation doesn’t progress much from that, the two of them too busy reading some article on Yizhuo’s laptop that’s currently sitting on one of each of their thighs, rimmed glasses adoring your roommate’s face, and you allow yourself to complete your mission as you walk over to the kitchen that connects to the room.
Reaching over to the kitchen cabinet that is designated to hold all sorts of various snacks both you and your roommate love to eat and share on movie nights, you search over the stash and try to find something that fits your cravings perfectly. Eyes scanning over Skittles, some chocolate bars and even a bag of chips, you decide to take all of them– because you never know, sometimes you have the strange desire to chase down the sweetness with some salt– and also look over the room for a drink you could take with you, since you’ve gotten a bit thirsty over the course of the last few hours you spent camping in your room.
Holding all of the items in your arms, looking as if you’ve just done a grocery run and forgot to take a bag with you, you almost don’t see the floor below your feet as you walk– no, scratch that– you literally do not see the ground below your feet at all.
We mentioned you embarrassing yourself in front of Na Jaemin again at the very beginning of this scene. You may be wondering where that part comes to play– and let me tell you, the moment is now, and it has correlation with the sheer fact that you can’t see where you’re walking and you’re also rushing to get back to your room quickly, hide yourself away from their eyes and finish the episode of bake-off while munching on the party mix of snacks you’re planning on creating.
In your true fashion, considering all the variables of the situation you found yourself in right now, the ground is suddenly swept from beneath your feet as you trip over the door sill that separates the kitchen from the living room, your body falling to the ground with all the snacks in your hands and the bottle of Diet coke secured under your shoulder.
Desperate to keep the snacks intact, you don’t even drop the bag of chips to the floor before you fall to make some room in your palms to try to soften the fall. No, you fall down like a rag doll, face first to the laminated floor, the sound of your body hitting the ground resonating through both your brain and the whole apartment. A few seconds later, the sound of a bottle rolling across the length of the living room fills your ears and you feel a sharp pain in your side, the humiliation and growing stinginess in your knees fully hitting now, when the shock is gone.
A few seconds pass, with your body lying limp on the ground– not even from the pain, just from the sheer embarrassment of the thought of facing Na Jaemin again after this– and a sound of your roommate trying to bite back her laughter fills your ears when you finally wake up and wiggle a little on the floor, trying to get up. At least the bag of chips stayed intact, you think– all of the effort was worth it in the end… or at least you hope.
“Oh my god, are you okay?” the now familiar voice of Na Jaemin fills your ears, and while he does sound a little concerned, laughter fills his voice when the touch of his hand lands on your elbow, trying to help you stand up from your fatal position.
“I’m perfectly fine, yeah,” you nod as you suppress back a scowl, the amused look that meets your eyes once you turn your head to face your visitor that took it upon himself to help you up making you feel all sorts of emotions– humiliation, however, is winning by a mile.
“Are you hurt?” he giggles out, and the question almost sounds mocking with how his face breaks out into a pained scowl, seemingly trying to hide the clear grin wanting to settle on his handsome face.
“No,” you shake your head vigorously, tears rimming your eyes from the mix of embarrassment and the sharp stinginess in your knees– you’re sure there’s gonna be a big, purple bruise forming on your legs by tomorrow morning. “I’m okay.”
In that very moment, Yizhuo finally breaks out into laughter– as if she was really waiting for you to stand up, in case you fell dead and she would then have to feel guilty for laughing at your falling corpse– and the absurdity of it all makes you join them, the caring man no longer trying to bite back his amusement either as he softly brushes his hand over your arm before he leans down and picks up the bottle of coke that rolled all the way to the corner of the room and the pack of Skittles that managed to fall from your strong grasp.
“Here you go,” he says, shaking his head at you when he sees you still holding the bag of chips to your chest. “Damn, you guarded those chips with your whole life, didn’t you?”
Nodding, you snicker. “I put my whole life on the line for these.”
Accompanied by their amused giggles, alongside with Yizhuo’s pained sigh as she wipes her cheeks from the stray tears you caused with your comedic fall, you take the snacks Jaemin’s offering you, thanking him for the help as you escape the room with a final bow to end your performance.
“I was glad to be your fun little commercial break, but I’ll get going now,” you say, “good luck with the project!”
And with that, you disappear back into your room, setting your mind to never ever show your face in front of Na Jaemin again.
While you thought your resolution of never ever wanting to see Na Jaemin again out of the embarrassment your first and second encounter cost you, it seems to be that it’s easier said than done when you end up in Liu Yangyang’s basement, the whole place smelling of weed and cheap alcohol, standing right opposite of the man that haunts you in your darkest nightmares only a few days after the initial meeting.
There is a reflex in you that makes you want to turn on your heel and hide, maybe even bury yourself alive as you recognise the raven-haired boy, his bright grin making your stomach twist uncontrollably as he comes up to you and Yizhuo, a red single cup in his hand and a leather jacket adorning his shoulders. Something inside of you is telling you to get ready for the worst possible outcome of this situation, and you don’t know why your fight or flight instinct is so alert today, but you presume that Na Jaemin just has that effect on people as your roommate hides behind you and tries to get out of her project partner’s sight.
“Hello, ladies!” the man greets you as soon as he reaches you two– with Yizhuo still tugging herself behind your figure. “Didn’t expect to see you two here!”
Smiling, although a little tight-lipped, you turn around to finally reveal your roommate– the only reason why you’re in this disgustingly-smelling basement in the first place. It’s not like you don’t have friends– you do, it’s just that most of them aren’t actually your friends. They are Yizhuo’s friends, who just happen to be your friends, because your roommate decided that because you two are best friends, she needs to drag you everywhere with her– her love language, it seems– and that’s how you always end up in the same social circles.
Her dragging you around to places also applies to her weird first meetings with guys. And while you agree with the fact that she needs to be careful around new people– men, especially– so she doesn’t get stolen for human trafficking, you’ve been to enough cringey first dates with her to know that you should start saying no to her more often. Maybe tonight was the day you should’ve started, you think– as she asked you if you wanted to go to a party with her, since Jung Sungchan invited her– and while you could argue that a party in Liu Yangyang’s basement isn’t the best place for a first date, or that there’s no use in you being there in the first place, since other people are present, you agreed; because frankly speaking, everything’s better than sitting home alone and watching Netflix. Besides, you promised Yizhuo you wouldn’t watch the new episodes of Blue lock without her, and if you were left unsupervised, you know you’d break that plea– so here you are. Even though at this very moment, you deeply wish you weren’t.
“Yeah, me neither,” you mumble as your roommate, seemingly embarrassed to be caught hanging out with Na Jaemin’s acquaintance, slowly comes up from behind you, scratching the back of her neck in embarrassment. “Yizhuo here has a date with someone, so I was forced to third-wheel,” you muse, earning yourself a slap to your shoulder from the subject of the sentence.
Jaemin’s eyes widen to twice of their original size– a shock very evident in his features– and you wish you didn’t see him so taken aback at the fact that your insanely beautiful roommate was getting invited to dates left and right, because something about it makes your stomach acid boil in a weird way. “A date with who?”
“Whom,” you mumble, nit-picky at the correct grammar.
“Huh?”
“With whom,” you repeat yourself, seeing as Jaemin shakes his head in disbelief and chuckles.
“Okay, literature major,” he rolls his eyes and averts his attention back to your roommate, the comment making you furrow your brows for two things– one, correct grammar has nothing to do with literature and two, how the fuck does he even know your major in the first place, “you have a date with whom? Because I hope it’s not Beomgyu. He lies about his age.”
Hearing a sigh escape your roommate’s lips, you watch the interaction with uttermost interest. “No,” she mumbles, “it’s Sungchan, actually.”
“You’re having a date… at a frat party?”
You chuckle at the comment. At least someone has common sense here.
“Unfortunately, yeah,” Yizhuo notes, seeing as Jaemin empathetically nods at her and smoothes a hand down her back before he nudges her in the direction of the tall boy. Watching her leave, you mentally pray for her to come back and never leave you alone at a party where Na Jaemin is present– because quite frankly, you are very much okay with looking awkward in front of anyone else; be it strangers or the acquaintances slash distant friends you’ve made along the way on these gatherings– but when it’s Na Jaemin, the idea of him seeing you aimlessly walk around and try to invite yourself to conversations with people you distantly know makes you want to crawl out of your own skin and set it on fire.
Sighing purposelessly, looking around to see if you recognise anyone that you could find a safe harbor in at least for a couple of hours before you look for Yizhuo again and drag her home, you notice the boy not leaving your side. Locking your eyes with him, you hear him clear his throat before speaking up again.
“It’s actually so good to see you here, because we were about to play beer pong and you’re just the person I need for my team,” he says, offering you his signature grin.
Finding the last bits of your sanity, you shake your head. “Oh, you don’t want to play beer pong with me.”
“Why?”
“I’m no good,” you admit, scratching the back of your neck, “I’m like, the least athletic person in this room. And I also can’t handle my liquor well.”
Jaemin only rolls his eyes in annoyance at your comments, gently shoving you towards the direction of a large ping-pong table in one of the corners of the spacious basement. The game is already prepared, a pair consisting of a tall, ripped man with an adorable eye-smile and a person that gets introduced to you as his best friend waiting for someone to join them.
“Come on, I bet you can outdrink me,” Jaemin jokes, basically forcing you to the game as he hosts a ping-pong ball into your hold, looking at you with expecting eyes.
This evening is the moment where you learn that Na Jaemin is a man of many talents; the first one you find is his irresistible puppy look that makes you comply with everything he says. You don’t know how people have it in them to say no to him, but when he’s ushering you to take the first shoot towards the cups on the other side of the table, you only nod and sigh in the image of what’s gonna be your hangover in the morning.
Leaning back a little, feeling like a true Lebron James about to take his winning score, you aim for the plastic cups and throw the little white ball into space. You haven’t even taken a drink yet, but the ball goes where it wants and not where you want it to go, the small object hitting the floor instead, making your companion shake his head at you and click his tongue.
“I told you I’m bad,” you defend yourself, throwing your hands into the air in a defensive position.
“All good with me,” Jaemin grins, “I’m like, the least competitive person in this room. So as long as neither of us end up throwing up in Liu Yangyang’s backyard, I’m okay with losing this game.”
Rolling your eyes at his nature, refusing to relax even after his roommate Jeno– the boy on the other side of the table– scores and hits two cups in a row, each one of you drinking one, the bitter taste of beer falling down your throat, you find the second of Na Jaemin’s many talents. It’s playing beer pong– and even though he almost never misses, your opponent’s side is much quicker with their game and you end up drinking most of the cups in an apology for being so shitty at the game.
“Come on! You can do it,” you hear Jaemin cheer for you from beside you, your glossy eyes scanning over his figure. You’ve drunk quite a lot now, your distance-assuming abilities thrown out of the window as you reach back to throw the last shoot, body getting out of balance and threatening to meet the ground in the laws of gravity.
Jaemin’s hands quickly shoot up to steady you, a hesitant hand reaching to your waist as he giggles in your ear, and suddenly, you wonder if it’s been this hot in the room the whole time, when your hand lets go and the ball falls carelessly to the middle of the table.
And when you take at least two shots with Jaemin and his roommate, the game long forgotten as you two lost, you find yourself in Liu Yangyang’s backyard, Na Jaemin’s talent of being an absolute gentleman shining through as he holds your hair back for you when you throw up into the bushes.
“Okay, so… you can’t outdrink me. Noted,” the man hums, a gentle pat to your back sending shivers down your spine.
And with that, you swear you’re never going to show your face in front of Na Jaemin ever again. For the third time, yes.
At least the third time’s the charm…?
The sun greets you in the morning with an aggressive shine to your eyes, reminding you of the actions of yesterday evening slash very late night. There’s only one reason why your blinds aren’t shut in the morning, since you hate waking up to the hot beams of sunlight in your eyes– they always make you sweat and don’t let you continue in your quiet somber– and the reason is that you must’ve been too drunk yesterday to remember to close them.
And sure enough, once you open your eyes with a grunt and tumble in your sheets, the memories of yesterday evening flood into your brain the same way water did to your room when your ex-roommate Yeri forgot to turn off the water in the bathtub in your Freshman year. You decided to not live with the girl since, and you also quite loved the idea of not having a bathtub in your new place with Yizhuo; at least it meant that the chance of your roommate forgetting to turn the faucet off and flooding the apartment was significantly lower– you could say this experience gave you some sort of PTSD.
When the sunlight gets too hot on your back that you can’t handle it anymore, you open the window to let some fresh air in and stumble into the kitchen, ready to drink a glass of water and forget about the last night’s party. You don’t usually drink that much– because god knows you don’t need a lot to get tipsy– but getting caught up in a drinking game was definitely your first, and while you found it quite fun at first, you would’ve never allowed yourself to play if it wasn’t for Na Jaemin, your roommate’s project partner, dragging you into this mess.
At least Yizhuo is a good drinker, for the most part. She gets drunk, but stays responsible. You don’t know how you’d get home safe if it wasn’t for the responsible girl by your side.
The sight that meets your eye in the kitchen is one you would not want to see after a night out. The sink is full of dirty dishes– because your small apartment doesn’t have a dishwasher– and when you open the cupboard for an empty glass to fill with water, you find it empty, all of them used and unwashed in the silver basin.
Heaving out a sigh, you shake your head in disappointment and get mentally prepared to do the dishes. Reminded by the fact that it was you who cooked dinner last night before heading out to the party, it was Yizhuo’s turn to wash up– you two agreed on this arrangement to make sure everyone puts a hand in when it comes to household chores. If one of you is cooking a shared meal, the other one cleans up. It was a good deal, you got used to it fairly quickly, but still, your roommate has her flaws, and sticking to the rules you two made up together is surely one of them.
“Yizhuo! It was your turn to wash the dishes last night!” you yell out, not really caring that she’s most likely still asleep, as you turn on the faucet and get to work. While it was your roommate’s turn to clean up, you’re also not willing to wait for her until she gets up from bed and decides it’s a good time to complete the task, because truth be told, you really need some coffee right now and you only have two mugs in the whole apartment– both of them sitting at the bottom of the sink, dirty with last night’s tea.
“I know we were in a rush to get to the party, but for god’s sake, if you had the audacity to be all up in my ear about how I’m taking too long to get ready, you could’ve used up that time to wash the fucking dishes, man!” you continue your small tangent, your slight anger issues getting the best out of you as you scrub the oily pan. “Now the food’s stuck on the plates and it won’t come off! I’ll quit cooking for you if you don’t clean up, I swear to god!”
Sighing a little, you turn the water on and finally get to washing off the dish soap, shaking your head a little in both disbelief and unpleasant emotions filling your insides. This is not how you imagined your day to go, and soon enough, your stomach is growling with the need of food– you two have slept in until lunchtime– and you still don’t have either the energy to cook something again, or the appliances to do so. Hearing footsteps fill the small room, not bothering to even look at the source of them, you decide to continue your little rant with the premise of your roommate finally listening to it now that she’s present in the room.
“Fancy seeing you here, dear Yizhuo,” you mutter under your nose, irony filling your voice, “good to finally see you in the kitchen, now that I’m done with the dishes,” you grunt, turning the water off and wiping your hands on the kitchen towel that’s been hanging off the counter.
“Man, living with you must really suck, Ning,” you hear a male voice joke, the familiarity of it making you jump in your place as you look at the source of it, a little bit panicked.
His face looks fresh and lively– not a sign of last night’s drinking in his features– and his hands are full with two bags of takeout that he swiftly sits on the table, his figure now awkwardly standing in the corner of the room. Yizhuo is leaning on one of the chairs, eyes a little empty and tired, as if she has just woken up from deep sleep, her hair a mess on the top of her head and her pajamas still on. God knows neither of you look ready for a visitor– a male one, on top of that– and yet, there is still one standing in your kitchen right now, voice sing-songy and body dressed in athleisure, as if he’s just came out of his morning gym session.
Which he probably has. He seems like the type.
“What are you doing here?” Yizhuo beats you to the question, your eyes jumping from her figure to your morning– well, lunch time– visitor.
“What do you mean, what am I doing here? We’re working on our project today, Yizhuo, that’s what I’m doing here,” the man complains with an offended pout, almost a scolding tone to his voice that makes you look at your roommate with shock in her eyes. She knew she’d be hungover today and still chose to work on the project? Is she truly out of her mind?
“I swear we didn’t have it scheduled for today, Jaemin-” she sighs as she straightens her back and looks at the male with irritation and a hint of exhaustion before he jumps in and shakes his head in disapproval.
“We did, I swear to god! You just forgot,” he shakes his head, satisfied when the girl is left speechless in the kitchen, his eyes drifting to you before he smiles and moves closer to the kitchen table, opening up the boxes of takeout and offering you a proud nod. “I knew you two would be tired today, so I brought some chinese with me! We can have lunch and then get right to working!”
The enthusiasm spreading off his features is almost contagious– you swear it would be, if it wasn’t for the fact that your head was severely aching and you still haven't had a single sip of water since you’ve woken up. Jaemin scrambles through your kitchen, totally uninvited, but also unstopped, until he finds some chopsticks and cutlery in one of the drawers and then puts them all in the middle of the dining table, acting as if he was at his own house, and not in a place he’s been to three times, including this one.
“Well? What are you waiting for? It’s gonna get cold,” he chirps as he sits at the table and dives in one of the boxes, humming in satisfaction as the food hits his tongue.
Staring at the male, still not quite believing your eyes, but no longer feeling as humiliated in front of him when you realize that you embarrassing yourself in front of him is your habit by now, you only opt to a sigh as you sit at the table and taste the chinese, the noodles falling down your throat finally providing some comfort to your upset stomach. Jaemin smiles at you– the kind of smile where his eyes crinkle up into small moon crescents– with his full cheeks on display when you meet his eye, seemingly satisfied with his mission.
“Fucking hell,” you hear your roommate mutter as she escapes the room, seemingly to put some more presentable clothes on. Jaemin pays it no attention as he brightens up a little, pointing one of his chopsticks your way after he swallows and speaks up again.
“And hey! Thanks to me, you don’t even have to do the dishes now!” he exclaims, his proud face on full display making you stop in your tracks when you go to tell him that’s not true, since you still have to wash the reusable chopsticks you’re both holding in your hands, afraid of bursting his bubble as you only fakely smile at the male, nodding.
“That’s… great, Jaemin. Really nice.”
Walking across the school building, you find your stomach growling once again, the relief only spreading more on your insides when you realize that the last class of the day just ended and you are headed to the cafeteria to grab some lunch. Noting that it’s Tuesday and your schedules match with your best-friend-and-roommate-in-one’s today, you swiftly walk towards the crowded space and get the lunch with your school ID card, the cafeteria lady looking at you with a wobbly side-smile you only recognise to be her customer service demeanor washing off after the long day. Thanking her and scanning the room with your eyes, you quickly find your roommate waving at you from the corner of the room, calling you over with the motion of her hand. You’re actually excited to see her, until you notice another figure sitting right next to her– the figure being none other than the intruder of your home peace for the last few weeks.
You’re seeing Na Jaemin quite a lot lately, you realize, and it’s not even your project partner to begin with. Not that you mind, of course; he’s a nice guy, a good-looking one as well, to say the least, but there’s just something about his constant close proximity to your roommate that makes your stomach drop whenever you see him in her presence. This feeling has been there for a while now, and if you recognised it in you, you never paid it much attention, but with him sticking to her like glue even outside of the premises of your apartment, it almost makes you turn on your heel and walk out of the cafeteria to eat your lunch alone– daring to even say it’s the better choice, for you think you could throw up any second at the image of their enthusiastic smiles. You can’t really put your finger on the feeling– you’re not really sure how to name it, or what to think of it. You just know that the strange annoyance bubbling inside of you whenever it comes is one of the most frustrating things you’ve ever dealt with your whole, entire life.
But it’s too late to walk out of the cafeteria now, and so you choose to put up a smile and walk over to the two, sitting at the vacant spot opposite of them and get to eating.
“Hello,” Jaemin greets you, voice cheerful– does he ever feel down? –when you sit down with your tray and smile at the two.
“Hi,” you nod, “what’s up?”
“We were just talking about this thing on Friday,” he jumps in, looking at you from above his finished plate, Yizhuo nodding along to his conversation. She keeps chewing on her lunch as the man continues his speech. “My friend Taeyong’s in a band and they have a gig at the Neo bar, you know, the one in the center of the city…”
You find yourself humming in interest, nodding along to the new information. You don’t think you’ve heard about Taeyong or his band before, but you only imagine it could be fun. “Are you going?” you ask, eyes jumping from your roommate to your new acquaintance slash friend, anticipating his response.
“Yeah,” he nods, averting his gaze from you for a moment, looking to his feet for a second as he clears his throat, “you should come too,” he adds when his eyes meet yours again, a hopeful glint in his eyes.
Halting a little in your movement, you look at your roommate again. See, Yizhuo is just the perfect girl you’d invite to see your friend’s band. She’s outgoing, loud, the life of the party, and also has an amazing alcohol tolerance– perfect to match the boy in front of you. There’s no reason for Na Jaemin to be inviting you as well, and you presume it’s the way his personality naturally is– considerate and warm– that it doesn’t let him just leave you out of the conversation and let you stay home. He’d probably feel too bad if he didn’t invite you, that’s all.
But the more you stare at the two, noticing the familiar way Jaemin’s body leans into your roommate’s for support, the two of them growing quite close in the process of working on the project– she even trailed into his apartment a few times to work there instead, because you had exams to study for and she wanted to leave the apartment silent for you to focus better– and the more you feel the familiar feeling deep within your chest, bugging you with thoughts resonating through your brain that tell you that you’ll just be a burden if you go and that the two of them will have much more fun together if they’re alone anyways, since Jaemin is clearly interested in your roommate. The voice in your head doesn’t leave, and you get so caught up in listening to it that you zone out, only to be woken up from your state of autopilot with a soft nudge to your shin under the table.
“So? What do you say?” he asks again, raising his eyebrows at you in question, eyes wide with anticipation.
“Oh,” you let out, hesitant as you poke your fork into the slice of meat on your plate, “I’m good, thanks. I wouldn’t wanna… you know… intrude? Or something?” you say, nodding to yourself as you’re afraid to meet his eye, opting to stare into your meal instead.
“What are you talking about? Of course you won’t intrude, I’m the one who invited you,” he mutters under his nose, tone of voice close to a mother’s scolding, insistent on his words. “Come on, it will be fun!”
“Really, I-” you open your mouth to decline again, when the male sulks in his seat and turns to your roommate for help.
“Yizhuo, help me, would you?” he grunts. “Tell your roommate this is the best idea you’ve ever heard, maybe she’ll listen to you, since she clearly doesn’t trust me.”
Snickering at his offended pout, you roll your eyes in mock annoyance when your best friend finally speaks up for the first time since you sat at the table, now finished with her lunch and free to talk to you both. “I think it would be nice, Y/N,” she says casually, nodding, “besides, I bet the band guys will be hot. Maybe Jaem can hook us up with one of them, what do you say?” she says, looking at him with a teasing glint in her eye, dismissed by the male with a scoff and a wave of his hand.
“You wouldn’t want that,” he mumbles, “not saying they’re not hot, but they’re insufferable. And a little bit stupid.”
“You say that about your friends?” you grin, seeing as the male shrugs to himself.
“Yeah,” he agrees, “hanging out with them makes me feel better about myself.”
Giggling at the remark, you finish your food and stare at him with dumbfoundance in your eyes. “You’re unbelievable, Na Jaemin.”
“Mhm, whatever,” he hums, grinning, before he looks at the screen of his phone and his face scrunches up in horror. His figure stands up in hurry, slinging his backpack over his shoulder before he looks at the both of you, eyes drifting from your roommate to you in a sharp 0.2 second interval, pointing a finger at your sitting body. “I take it as I’ll see you there. I have a class in literally 5-” he says as he looks at his phone again, “no, 4 minutes, so I better get going. I’ll text the address to Yizhuo in case you two can’t find it, and don’t even think of not showing up, okay?”
Sighing in fake annoyance, you shake your head in disbelief as the man strides off, black hair flowing in the breeze as his figure jogs out of the crowded cafeteria.
You’re starting to think that Na Jaemin is actually the insufferable one. But as he made it clear that he might get mad at you if you don’t go, even though it might make the annoying voice in your head only scream at you louder if you see him and your roommate sway in the cigarette smoke, dancing together in the local bar, you take a mental note to check your journal and see if you have any plans on Friday, and if you do, to quickly cancel them.
The mental image you had of the concert in your head was mostly right. When you arrive at the local bar at 9 in the evening, the whole place is filled with cigarette smoke and the loud noise of guitars is making your ears ring a little when you try to listen to the lyrics. It’s not really your cup of tea, but the lead singer looks nice– you heard some girls in the front screaming his name; Yuta, if you weren’t wrong– and you find yourself dancing along to the beat of songs you’ve never even heard before.
Everything’s just like you imagined– smiley, flushed faces in the crowd, sweaty bodies pressed against each other in the small space that the bar provides, everything just perfect to scare a person with claustrophobic tendencies. Everything except from the small voice in your head telling you that you’ll be the third wheel tonight was right, and you find yourself thanking whatever inner motives that lead you to agree with Na Jaemin’s invitation, because when the small break the band had ends and you down the beer he bought for you and Yizhuo, the male is, to your surprise, tugging you to the dance floor. This is not really second female lead of you, you think as you sway under the neon lights of the bar; and you can’t say you hate it.
“Please tell your roommate to not get on with the boy she’s currently dancing with when you two get home,” Jaemin mutters into your ear through the music, and suddenly, the illusion’s over. Of course his eyes would be on your breathtaking, wonderful roommate– there was no way you’d have his full attention while he dances with you, no matter how much effort you put into your appearance tonight. You don’t know what it is that makes you finally admit to yourself that you’re endlessly yearning for male attention and validation– especially Na Jaemin’s, the casual heartthrob’s– but you’re willing to say it’s the effect of alcohol as you furrow your brows at him and lean closer to his face to hear him better as you two talk over the loud set.
“Why?”
“He’s insanely stupid,” he says, snickering, “and I also think he’d love to move into your apartment the first chance he gets. I’m pretty sure his roommate kicked him out last month because he wasn’t paying rent.”
“Well, aren’t you at our apartment all the time as well?” you squint at him, seeing as the male rolls his eyes at you in mock annoyance, the teasing getting to him.
“That’s because I have to,” he insists, grinning under the blue light shading his features, the hue making him look like he was cut out of a teenage movie.
Shaking your head in disbelief at the gossip, you find yourself yelling over the music again. “How do you even know all of that?” you ask, desperate to know the source of all information there is about the men on your campus.
“His roommate told me himself,” Jaemin says, “I used to play soccer with him in high school.”
“You have too many contacts,” you mutter, seeing as the male shrugs at you, taking your hand in his as he twirls you in your place, the music blending into a slower rhythm, the melody more solemn and relaxed.
“What can I say,” he grins, “I’m irresistible. Everyone wants to be my friend.”
Not even having a chance to reply a snarky comment back to him, the male suddenly brings you closer to him, taking all air out of your lungs. His strong arms are now pressed around your middle, causing you to almost automatically sneak your arms around his neck– you truly don’t know what brought you to these actions, you think it’s you working on auto-pilot after doing competitive dancing for 5 years when you were little that makes you get into position almost immediately in fear of your instructor screaming at you– and the neon lights now start slowly flashing through various colors, reminding you of disco balls you have at middle school formals. The lead singer sings a romantic song, his raspy, yet unique voice cutting through the speakers right into your poor, fragile heart, and Jaemin steps with you into a loose dance, just two bodies swinging to the music, catching their breath after jumping around to the rhythmic beats for so long.
In a moment full of embarrassing self-indulgence, you look at the boy with long eyelashes staring down at you, and you wonder if he finds joy in your company. He is that type of guy you’d naturally gravitate towards– charming and nonchalant, extremely charismatic– but you, you are the exact opposite of those qualities. Socially awkward and embarrassing with your antics, thinking too much of words to say before you speak to someone, tense shoulders giving you in as you look nervous with every new person you meet. You’re not the type of person Na Jaemin would voluntarily want to hang out with– your roommate is the one he should be dancing with right now, swaying to the slow beat.
And maybe he would be, if that other guy wasn’t faster than him at earning her attention.
“Are you enjoying yourself?” he asks, leaning in closer to your ear, because even though the song is slower, it’s still as loud as the previous ones. Shivers run down your spine when his breath fans your heated skin, and you find yourself nodding in response.
“It’s fun,” you mumble, seeing him grin.
“See? Told you,” he sighs, “and you didn’t want to go!”
“I didn’t know what I was getting myself into, that’s all,” you say, smiling at his warm eyes. The thing about Na Jaemin is that he looks at everyone with eyes reminding you of pools of warm honey– with such a welcoming gaze it makes your knees buckle from the sweetness. He looks at everyone with such care it makes them think they perhaps mean the whole entire world to him, and that’s why you can’t bring yourself to think something more of the situation when his eyes meet yours and your eye contact is a battle of symphony. Because he looks at everyone like that. He looks at Yizhuo like that, that’s for sure.
The man gently leads you into another turn, an amused giggle escaping his lips when you clumsily get back to his arms. You open your mouth to talk back to him, but before you manage to find words worthy of a good jab, the tempo of the song gets faster again and the drums once again ring loudly in your ears, the last tune of the set bringing an enthusiastic, energetic atmosphere into the small bar.
The rest of the evening comes by like a blur– you remember Jaemin ordering you a few more beers and introducing you to the band, the lead singer flashing you a grin you can’t quite decipher in your drunken haze. Your roommate hangs from the shoulder of the man Na Jaemin warned you about, and you find yourself despising the male even though you’ve never spoken to him– something inside of you trusts Jaemin’s judgment of men, it seems (he is one of them, after all. He knows what he’s talking about).
You almost get mad at yourself for letting yourself drink too much again. It’s like once you start, you don’t know when to stop, and after all, who are you to say no when you’re not even the one paying for all the shots of alcohol? That wouldn’t be very smart of you, as a broke college student. You have to take everything that’s free, no matter how harmful to your health it might be.
Well, except from drugs. You wouldn’t take free crack cocaine even if you were offered.
But when you drink, you find Jaemin’s attention more on you– his caring eyes watching your steps when you walk, making sure you don’t trip over your feet and fall. His arms put his jacket around your shoulders when you stand outside of the club with the band, the raven haired lead singer offering you a cigarette your companion denies for you before you even have a chance to open your mouth, and his smiley face beams at you when he holds your face in his palms and asks you if you want to go home. And you can’t lie, you’re enjoying all the attention– even though it might be coming solely from the fact that he has to look after you like you’re a baby, because you pretty much turn into one when you’ve had something to drink, but still, you can’t find it in yourself to compose yourself and tune down the drinks.
You’ll worry about the guilt when you wake up in the morning. Now is not the time.
You nod to his question, though, because you must admit that you’re getting a little sleepy in your night adventures. Following him like a lost puppy, you watch him as he gathers your roommate from the bar, the three of you now walking down the street towards your block, Jaemin taking the side of the sidewalk that’s closer to the road, his careful eyes watching over your every step making you even more surprised by the fact that he doesn’t have an older sister in his family that would shape him into such a gentleman.
“Everyone, did you have fun tonight?” he asks like a kindergarten teacher somewhere towards the end of the seemingly never ending walk home.
“Yes!” you chant along with Yizhuo, giggles erupting along the neighborhood.
“And what did we learn tonight?” he asks again, making your roommate frown at the question.
“That soccer guys suck!”
“That I can’t handle my alcohol!”
You both chime at the same time, making your companion nod, satisfied by both of your answers. Something about his sweet, scolding, yet patient tone makes your cheeks hurt from smiling when you two open up the front door to your apartment, your brain focused on listening to his small pep talk. “I hope you two take this as a learning experience and never make the same mistakes again! Alcohol is bad for your liver and broke soccer guys are bad for your wallet, but don’t you worry, I’m always here to remind you of such things when you forget.”
“Yes, Mr Na– oh no the lift’s broken again!” Yizhuo whines when she walks up to the elevator, scowling at the button that doesn’t light up when she presses it, the platform stuck somewhere between the second and the third floor. Normally, you wouldn’t mind such inconvenience– you don’t go to the gym often and every time you carry your groceries upstairs, you think of it as a little workout, trying to train your brain into thinking how good your ass would look only if you took the stairs every day, but failing as you go for the lift every time it works– but tonight, drunk, dizzy and a little tired, you’re glad you don’t break into loud cries at the newly found information.
“No!” you yell out, almost falling to your knees when your roommate presses a hand over your mouth to keep you quiet– although tipsy, Yizhuo still shows much care about your neighbors, it seems. Crouching in front of the unresponding device, you shake your head in disapproval at the whole situation, suddenly feeling like the whole world is against you just because you’re drunk and have to walk up to the seventh floor.
“Come on, ladies,” Jaemin says, patiently waiting at the first step of many.
“Oh, I’m not going,” you shake your head, a pout sitting on your lips as you rest your head on the wall, “I’m sleeping here tonight.”
“Y/N, stop being ridiculous,” the man sighs, walking closer to you, but seeing as you don’t budge, he only crouches down to your level and pokes your cheek with his pointer finger, seemingly regretting inviting you to the bar tonight, “want to get on my back, then? I’ll carry you upstairs,” he asks, gentle parenting you in the process of getting you home.
And see, if you were sober and completely in tune with your emotions and thought process, you’d say no and just walk up the stairs by yourself. But that’s not your situation right now, when you’re drunk and kind of falling for your roommate’s project partner, and so you only nod at him with bright eyes and securely jump to his back, nuzzling your face into the crook of his shoulder as he walks up the stairs to the sixth floor with both of you, patient with your drunken stubbornness.
“See, girls, sometimes things don’t go as you plan. But in those situations, you have to make a new solution and try to come up with something that is going to work. Life’s a bitch and there will be many things in your way, but you always gotta find a way around your obstacles,” he mumbles somewhere between the third and the fourth floor, “the bus is late? You run to the class. You get a stain on your shirt? You tell everyone it’s supposed to be there and that it’s a fashion statement. Your friend doesn’t wanna go out with you? You bribe her with sexy band guys.”
“And sometimes,” he says again, his tone of voice slowly lulling you to sleep, “the route you have to take might be harder than the one that failed. But that’s okay, because the end goal will be worth the trouble. The lift broke? Take the stairs, because at the end, there is a warm bed waiting for you in your apartment.”
You’re not sure where all of this wisdom is coming from, or how the hell his words are still coherent after so much physical exercise and also the amount of beers he had with his friends at the bar. You’re also not sure why he’s waffling so much– you bet it’s to pass time until he walks up to the seventh floor with your body on his back,
but you bet there’s a life lesson hidden somewhere in there.
The ringing of a doorbell is an unusual sound to your ears. You never have anyone use it, because frankly, you don’t even have that many friends in the first place, and the ones that do exist and come to hang out with you in your apartment always text you that they’re in front of the door instead, like everyone in the 21st century does nowadays. You don’t recognise this as the more practical method, but it’s the one that they all use, so you’ve gotten used to the fact over the time. The only people that use the doorbell are your landlord– because he loves to come check up on your apartment from time to time and then passively aggressively mention how there's a mess in your living room– and then Yizhuo’s friend Mark Lee that she met at the bistro she works at. They started hanging out and he’s the only one that actually picks her up at the door– as opposed to all of her other guy friends and dates that wait for her in the car. You think it’s sweet; the boy always wears a shy blush on his cheeks and nervously scratches his neck when you open the front door instead of your roommate and scream at Yizhuo that her date is here– to which she tells you that they’re not dating every single time, but you actually think you’re rooting for the adorable canadian, because after the men she chose to date before, you think she’s finally getting some sense into her head.
And so when the doorbell rings again, you get mentally prepared for either of those two outcomes. You don’t think it’s gonna be Mark Lee, because he always texts Yizhuo before hanging out with her and your temperamental roommate isn’t home yet– so the only reasonable option is your landlord Jinyoung, which makes shivers run down your spine as you pick up the mess scattered all around the floor in the entry hall and throw the stuff into the big closet at the right side of the wall, making sure it’s out of his sight.
Taking a deep breath in to collect yourself before the terror starts, you open the front door and put on your best fake smile, ready to face the wrinkled face of a middle aged man in a weird tracksuit– but to your surprise, there is one more person that can still use the ringbell on the door, and it’s none other than Na Jaemin.
“Hi!” he smiles, a wide grin sitting at his face. He’s once again in his usual attire that consists of Adidas sweatpants and a mint green hoodie, the clothing acting like his default skin in the game of life, and you can’t help but let out a satisfied sigh at the fact that it’s not your landlord that you have to talk to today; although speaking to Na Jaemin after the last time you met him isn’t much easier than sparking up a conversation about the state of your rented place.
“Hello,” you drag out, humming to yourself as you press your lips into a thin line, “Yizhuo’s not here yet,” you say, trying your hardest to not meet his warm eyes.
“Oh, I know! She texted me she’ll be late, but I was already on my way, so I figured I’ll just wait for her here,” he explains, naturally walking into your apartment as if he owned the place. And you don’t stop him– because frankly enough, you don’t have it in you to do anything else. And what would you even do? Let him stand outside?
And so, even though you weren’t prepared for a visitor today– because Yizhuo still hasn’t learned how to tell you that she’ll have people over– you walk along with him to the living room and see him invite himself to sit on the couch, body sprawled out all across the soft cushions. He seems like he lives here and not you– with how awkwardly you situate yourself on the other side of the sofa (he took your side– the one you picked the first day you moved in. Neither you nor Yizhuo ever sat on the other side ever since, it was an unwritten rule) and watch as he turns on the TV and scrolls through the channels. If this was anyone else, you’d find it inappropriate, rude even, but come on… it’s Na Jaemin we’re talking about. If he walks inside of your apartment and acts like he owns the place, who are you to tell him he doesn’t?
“You must really enjoy working on the project, if you’re around so often,” you mumble out, burdened by the fact that the silence between the two of you is slowly suffocating you out of the awkwardness of it all. One would say you wouldn’t know what awkwardness and shame is after embarrassing yourself in front of the man so much, but it’s quite the opposite, actually– as if the weight of it all was just packing on to each other, creating a big, heavy mess sitting on your shoulders, not letting you breathe.
“Oh, not really,” he says, turning his whole body and attention to you, eyes perking up at the sound of your voice, “I actually find it quite boring, if I’m being honest.”
Humming in response, you suddenly start to find the whole thing a little weird. Because if Jaemin doesn’t enjoy the project– and Yizhuo absolutely despises it too, or at least she told you she did– who in them has that much enthusiasm to meet up after school so often to work on it? If you were in their place, you’d just do it all in the span of a week. Projects you don’t like get lost somewhere in the back of your brain and you only remember them a few days before the due date, quickly scattering something and putting it on paper just so you don’t fail. Jaemin and Yizhuo, however, have worked on the project multiple times a week for the last two months, which is contradicting to the nature of your roommate in particular, because you know just how much she enjoys the art of procrastination as well.
“You must be really responsible, then,” you say, thinking this is the only possible solution– Na Jaemin doesn’t like the project, but he also doesn’t want to get a bad grade in it. That’s why he’s over at your flat multiple times a month, giggling with your roommate in the living room and working on the Neurophysiology essay that requires thorough research. That’s it– it must be.
“Well, I dunno about that,” Jaemin snickers, “this is my second time taking the class, actually. I failed it last year,” he grins, leaving you to stare at him with an opened mouth out of shock, the thoughts in your brain sprinting around like an itch you can’t really get to, making you shake your head in disbelief. This doesn’t sound like the words of someone who strives to get good grades in a subject– because if you had to retake a class, you’d be glad to just pass. Getting a good grade and putting in a lot of effort would be the last of your interests, especially after failing once– you’d have so much resentment for the subject you’d actually do the bare minimum, just to spite no one in particular but yourself.
You hum at that, at a loss for words.
“Do you not like having me around?” Jaemin asks, suddenly, catching you off guard. Looking up at him, sharply turning your head, your wide eyes must have betrayed you, since your companion lets out an amused laugh.
“That’s not it,” you try to save your skin, sighing, “I’m just wondering, that’s all.”
“So you don’t like having me around.”
“That’s not what I said!” you mourn out, suddenly scared of somehow offending the boy sitting in your living room. Being completely alone with him has been an emotional tsunami so far, having you praying and manifesting for your roommate to come back soon so you don’t have to deal with the pressure anymore. One moment, he has you all curious and guessing, the other one, he has you aimlessly trying to maintain an image you already lost the first second he saw you only dressed in a thin shirt with your wet hair staining the fabric, walking out the shower the first day he met you.
“Okay, so you’re saying you do like having me around?” he grins, the teasing glint in his smile driving you crazy, the weird turmoil on your insides almost making you stand up from your place on the sofa and running up against the wall. You bet that would bring you less pain and discomfort than having a conversation with him.
“Na Jaemin, you make me want to kill myself,” you mourn, draging your hands across your face in despair. Who would’ve thought that speaking to him all alone in your apartment could’ve been so much trouble? This is not at all how it went the night of the concert, but you’re willing to say that it was the effect of alcohol that made you get through the night. You can’t drink right now, in broad daylight, though– because that would legally make you an alcoholic.
“It’s okay, don’t worry. I wouldn’t be hanging around at your apartment so much if I didn’t like being around a certain someone that lives here either,” he says, matter-of-factly, as if the information didn’t just take all breath out of your lungs at the suggestion of something you pray your brain isn’t just misinterpreting in this very moment. Opening your mouth and closing it in a second, looking like a fish that’s been thrown out of the ocean and flapping around in the sand, you gape at the boy and furrow your brows, creating an ugly crease on your forehead that Yizhuo screamed at you about (she told you to stop making that face so often, because ‘it’s gonna ruin your skin and you’re gonna look old’. Like you can help it…).
“What do you even mean by tha–” you start, desperate for more explanation, when the door opens with a loud bang and your dear roommate finally marches up to the apartment with bangs sticking to her oily forehead and a frustrated frown on her face– choosing just the right moment to finally arrive, as if you haven’t been praying for this very moment for the last few minutes.
“I’m never going back to that fucking bistro ever again. Can you believe it? Lee Jeno decided to take a day off and tell everyone twenty minutes before the end of my shift, so I had to work for two more hours before somebody could come to cover him. Who even does that? Is everything okay in his brain?” she screams, throwing her bag to the floor as she walks up into the living room, finding you two there. “Why am I even asking? Fuck, of course he’s not mentally okay. And then a rush hour began and I had to serve the rudest customer I’ve ever encountered, and don’t even let me started on that fucking grandpa that complained about the fries being cold when I just got them out of the frier!”
Watching her little tantrum, you can’t help but giggle at your roommate. It’s an usual sight to you ever since she started working at the bistro, but Jaemin seems to be surprised at her temperamental outburst as he laughs at her like a maniac, watching her with mouth wide open and eyes twice their usual size, almost bursting out of their sockets.
“Don’t even try to start something today, Na Jaemin, or I’ll literally take a kitchen knife and slice your throat in half. Let’s get to this shit so I can shower,” Yizhuo says as she falls to the sofa with a loud thud, not even greeting neither of you before she kicks her hoodie off her body with an annoyed squeak.
You take this as your cue to leave– because if there is anyone else in the apartment that could be the person she can take it out on, you’re not willingly going to sit there and take her attention from them, sparing yourself for tonight.
Jaemin’s words resonate in your brain as you stumble into your room. There’s a certain someone he enjoys being around in this apartment, and when you look over your shoulder and see him with Yizhuo’s sweaty hoodie hanging off his head– you don’t dare to ask how it got there or why it was there in the first place, hearing his hearty laugh– you feel a ping close to your heart.
You don’t think you need an answer to the question anymore. How foolish of you to think it could be you.
When you went to college, you didn’t think you’d become the epitome of an average college student you see in movies and read about in Choi Minho fanfiction. Somewhere along the way, while keeping your assignments to the last possible day, living with a roommate that both gets on your nerves and makes you think you wouldn’t be able to survive without her by your side and going to more parties in a single semester than your whole entire life, you find yourself fitting all the criteria as you hang around your bedroom and get ready for what seems to be the biggest party you’ve ever set your foot in.
Your roommate is long gone now, and while you’d be frustrated by the fact that you were supposed to get to the party on your own, you don’t find yourself filled with rage when you remind yourself of the fact that this party is hosted by her cousin, Zhong Chenle, who took it upon himself to host the biggest birthday party of the century for his childhood best friend Park Jisung. Yizhuo was dragged to the big mansion to help with all the preparations, and while you sat around in class the whole morning, she spent the time with spamming you pictures of the place, coming from half-decorated to a fully, over-the-top, red solo cup crammed and loud music bearing building. The party starts at 8 and you’re set to leave in a bit, but there’s one issue that’s keeping you from hopping into the uber you’ve called for yourself– your dear roommate still hasn’t texted you the address, and with how fast the time is going and how she hasn’t replied to any of your messages since 6:25, you don’t think you’re getting a response any time soon.
And speaking honestly, you’ve made a list of rules for yourself. And you also set yourself to making sure you don’t break any of them.
Rule number one was to not get home later than 2 in the morning. Every time you do, you hate yourself for it the next morning. Rule number two closely ties with the first one, stating that you’re not allowed to get hammered. With the amount of partying you’ve been getting yourself into, you think it’s better to save your liver before it’s too late. And rule number three– however embarrassing it must sound– is that you’re not allowed to embarrass yourself in front of Na Jaemin again. Not after he had to see you half naked, collect your broken body from the ground and carry you upstairs on his back.
With how your evening’s going and you’re not not getting replies from the main organizator of the party herself, you don’t think you need the rule list at all, since it seems that you won’t even get to the party itself in the first place.
After many minutes of aimlessly scrolling through social media, dressed in the outfit you picked out yesterday, you are brought out of your dissociative episode with a ring on the doorbell. Cursing under your breath at the unwanted visitor, you open the door without much thought, the adrenaline in your veins caused by the fact that you might miss the party of the century making you not contemplate on the motion too much before you’re standing in front of Na Jaemin, unprepared and shocked to your core.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” you ask, the words rolling off your tongue without much thought.
“Good to see you too!” he chants, words dipped in irony, furrowing his brows in confusion before smiling in hesitance. “Yizhuo sent me to get you to the party.”
Blinking at him a few times, the situation downing on you, a shake of your head is performed to clear your mind. “She did what?”
“Yeah, it got a bit hectic over there and she didn’t have time to text you the address, so she told me to just come pick you up. Don’t worry, I haven’t drunk yet,” he says, the explanation making you huff out at the irresponsible nature of your roommate– because truly, how much time can a simple text take– before you put on your shoes and take the bag prepared on the ground close to the door, following the man out of the building and into his car.
Sliding into the silver Toyota Auris, only a few minutes pass before you’re strangled with the reality of being alone with Na Jaemin again, and even though this is not the first time, it still gives you just the slightest kick of adrenaline. Keeping up with conversation is harder for you than you would’ve imagined, and suddenly you’re regretting the fact that you don’t have at least a tiny bit of alcohol in you to kick some courage into your skull, but as the low melody of the radio hits your ears and your driver starts to singing along with the lyrics, using a silly voice that makes you crack up, you realize that maybe, after embarrassing yourself in front of him so much, you don’t even have to feel tense anymore. Because realistically, it can’t get much worse than this.
“You look really nice, by the way,” Jaemin smiles, making your heart run miles around your ribcage. Admittedly, you did spend a few hours picking out the perfect outfit in hopes of being recognized by someone– maybe even Jaemin himself, okay, you’ll admit that as well– but the accomplishment of actually hearing him compliment you still surprises you with great measures.
“Thanks,” you clear your throat, “you- you do too.”
“Oh, thank god,” he mumbles, sighing dramatically, “I actually had to buy some new clothes, because Jeno said I can’t attend this super fancy party in a tracksuit, but you know how it goes, shit’s expensive nowadays, and this was the only thing on sale, so I grabbed it,” he explains, going on a tangent, this mannerism of his making you break into a smile, “and I can’t lie, I think I kinda rock the style and I was hoping for a compliment of two from the ladies tonight, so I’m glad to hear this from yours truly first.”
Chuckling at his rambling, you shake your head in disbelief. “I think you’d look good in anything, Na Jaemin,” you tsk, “you have that kind of face that everyone likes.”
“Oh really?” he asks, the tone of his voice teasing. “So that means you like my face?”
“I’m not everyone, you know,” you bite back despite feeling heat rising to your cheeks, wanting to take back all the words that have come out of your mouth in the span of the last few seconds.
“Now that’s hurting my feelings.”
“You care about my opinion that much?”
“Of course,” he grunts, looking at you for a split second before he parks the car in front of a big house, already popping with people to its seams, loud music overbearing the beat of the music playing in the car. The ride wasn’t even that long– you live 15 minutes away from the wealthy neighborhood, it seems– but it's still good that you got a ride, because you don’t know how long you’re gonna last in those heels you’re wearing. “I can’t trust Yizhuo when it comes to these things. I’m convinced she hates me a little.”
“Why would she hate you?” you ask, amused.
“She always looks annoyed whenever I open my mouth,” he snickers.
“She’s like that with everyone,” you mutter, even though you remember your roommate complaining about the amount of words that Jaemin can spit in a minute just about yesterday, “it’s just her resting bitch face.”
The engine turns off and you turn around in the passenger seat to gather your bag from the back seat, where you carelessly threw it in the rush of getting to the party as soon as possible. Quickly looking through its contains– because your anxiety tells you to, just in case you somehow magically decided to leave your wallet and your keys back home, despite checking and making sure they���re there at least 8 times already– you turn back towards the front, ready to get out of the vehicle when you’re met with the sight of Na Jaemin opening the door for you like a gentleman, waiting for you to walk down the imaginary red carpet, completely ignoring the nature of the party going on just a few meters away from you.
Bashfully escaping his car and thanking him on your way, you watch him lock the car and catch up with you on the sidewalk, leading the both of you to the expensive-looking building.
The song accompanying your arrival is now Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!! by Vengaboys, and although you can’t deny the lyrics may be a little bit relatable to your current state right now, you can’t say the whole scene doesn’t look like a circus in your eyes. It’s Park Jisung’s birthday party, though, so you can’t say it doesn’t have to be a bit comedic, at least– the boy is quite known around these parts of the town. The whole place is filled with people you hardly know, and with the amount of teenagers and college students roaming around, you’re reminded a little of the fair– the only thing missing is a bouncy castle, in which you could clearly imagine Zhong Chenle with his best friend, hollering like the kids they still are, no matter how hard they’re trying to deny it.
Upon walking through the front door, you are met with the realization that Na Jaemin was abducted by a tall man with a puppy-like smile and another one, a little shorter one with brown, longer hair and a leather jacket adorning his figure. His face is screaming in despair, and although you find the expression funny, you let him be with his roommate and who seems to be his friend (you swear you saw the other guy in Yangyang’s basement, rolling a blunt with the boy somewhere in the middle of the night), deciding on finding your dear roommate so you can scream at her for being so irresponsible with your arrival to the party of the century. It takes you no longer than 15 minutes before you’re met with her strawberry blonde locks tied up in her signature bun, low-waisted jeans and a white crop-top adorning her figure that’s currently turned to you with her back, and before you can stop yourself, you approach her from behind, intending to scare her out of spite and also humor.
Shaking her by her shoulders, the girl turns to you with a sudden yelp before she bursts into laughter at seeing your face. “I thought you were that fucker Johnny! I almost threw this drink into your face, you know?”
“Oh, you’d regret that very soon if you did that,” you threaten, pointing a warning finger towards her face.
“Trust me, I know,” she giggles, shaking her head, “anyways, you got here!”
“Yeah, Jaemin picked me up,” you say, showing her a tight-lipped smile.
“He… he did?” the girl asks, furrowing her eyebrows at you, confusion very clearly written on her face.
“You told him to…?”
“No, I didn’t,” she shakes her head, snickering to herself. “I just told him to text you the address, because I was busy pouring all the drinks in the kitchen and making the speakers in the living room work…” she explains, the more words come out of her mouth, the more she breaks into a sly grin, the expression making you sigh in terror, knowing the amount of teasing that will come next.
“Why are you grinning like that? Stop it.”
“Na Jaemin likes youuuu,” she sing-songs, pointing a finger towards your forehead and digging into your skin with the sharp edge of her stiletto nail. Wincing away from her touch, you shake your head at her with a huff of frustration, wondering if she’s had enough to drink for it to cause all of this.
“He doesn’t, and we both know it.”
“Yeah, that’s why he picked you up,” she nods, before she takes a deep breath in, preparing herself for the long sentence that’s about to come out of her mouth, “and that’s why he insists on hanging out strictly over at our apartment, why he carried you up the stairs on his motherfucking back, why he bribed me just to get you to go to the concert with him, and why he won’t shut up about you literally every second the two of us are alone–”
“You know the same thing could suggest that he likes you?” you huff, roaming your hand through your hair in an attempt to soothe the weird bundle of nerves growing in your stomach. “He hangs out with you all the time, not me, you know…”
“That’s ‘cause you keep hiding in your room like a raccoon, you know.”
“That’s not true at all–”
“Okay, whatever you say. He’s coming towards us right now– so don’t look around or you’ll be too obvious– and I bet 100 pounds that he’s gonna drag you away from me and suggest you two play beer pong again, or whatever.”
“Yizhuo, I need you to shut the fuck–”
But before you’re able to finish your sentence, you feel a hand land on your shoulder, your whole figure spinning towards the source of the contact, finding a grinning Na Jaemin in your rear point of view– how unexpected, really– his body seemingly full of adrenaline as he jumps in his place, looking like a squirrel high on caffeine, his next sentence making your brain short-circuit as you hear Yizhuo snicker in your right ear, a bump on your shoulder and a shove into the male’s figure encouraging you in your movements out the room.
“Normally, I’d drag you to play beer pong with me again, but if I come back to the events that occurred the last time you got drunk, I have a suggestion that’s more considerate to your liver– wanna sing karaoke with me? You’re not allowed to say no, by the way,” and before you’re able to register what’s going on in this very moment, the conversation you two had with Yizhuo keeps repeating over and over in your brain the whole time you’re by Jaemin’s side.
Curse Ning Yizhuo for making you think he could like you at least a little– because even though he sang a corny love song with you at the karaoke machine and introduced you to his friends, along with taking you off your feet in an enthusiastic hug when you two won against his roommate and his best friend at a make-shift karaoke battle (you two got a 98 point score, just saying…), there’s a simple man called insecurity sitting soundly in the corner of your brain not letting you contemplate the fact and take it seriously, no matter how hard you try.
jaem [10:21]: hi how are you feeling!!!
jaem [10:21]: was wondering if u wanted to get lunch :p
jaem [10:21]:not that im assuming u have a hangover bc u hardly drank yesterday but yknow would be nice idk
jaem [10:22]: theres this new pancake place in town :OO
“You don’t look as bad as I expected!” Jaemin greets you as you two walk inside of the new bistro that opened not a long time ago– you only knew about it because Yizhuo hoped and prayed that the fact that there’s a new place in town will mean that less customers were going to show up at the one she’s working at, and you can’t say you don’t hate that logic. After hearing her stories about rude customers, you believe your roommate deserves a break. Working with people is hard– and as she said, you only realize just how stupid some of them can be when you truly start working in customer service.
“Ouch!” you utter out, your ego suddenly falling at the backhanded compliment.
“Not that you look bad, like, ever, I just– you usually look way worse after a party, you know,” he explains while opening the door for you and leading you towards one of the booths, the red sofas making the whole place look like a retro motorest you’d find somewhere on your way through the middle of nowhere. The polka dot walls only beg you to order a milkshake with your pancakes, and you do exactly that, feeling unapologetic in your actions. It’s not your fault– and you guess that you deserve to treat yourself to a nice chocolate swirl once in a while.
“I didn’t drink as much last night, you know,” you snicker, remembering the fact that you actually pretty much managed to stick to your rules the whole time you were enjoying yourself at Park Jisung’s birthday party.
“Should’ve dragged you to one more game of beer pong, then.”
“So you do want me to suffer, huh?” you roll your eyes at him, resting your back at the flashy red booth to get a better look at his shifting expressions.
“It’s fun to see you embarrassed when you recollect your memory, that’s all,” he admits, kicking your leg under the table in a teasing manner.
Snickering at his comment, you hide your face in your hands at the growing embarrassment. Taking a deep breath in to hide your hesitance, you look outside your window for a short moment before you turn back to him, continuing on with the conversation before the moment gets too awkward for you to bear. “Yizhuo’s still asleep, by the way. She drank too much because Chenle got a bet with her and she was sure she could outdrink him and then the Mark guy had to carry her limp body to our house last night,” you explain, “she’s the one with a massive hangover right now, that’s why she’s not joining.”
“I see you two like princess treatment,” Jaemin teases, referring to the time he had to collect you and bring you home on his back, “besides, I invited you, not her. If she was here, she wouldn’t stop complaining about her headache, and I really don’t need that energy in my life right now.”
Laughing, you move your hands away from the table as a server brings you two your plates, filled to the brim with pancakes smothered in syrup and chocolate topping. A shiny cherry is adorning the serving, and you can already feel yourself salivating at the sight, the sweet smell filling your senses as you dig in, feeling hypnotized by the food in front of you. You are a sweets lover, and while you don’t know how Jaemin managed to do that, he hit the right spot with making you join him for a sweet lunch– making you adore the man even more, if that was even possible.
“Does it taste good?” Jaemin asks, watching as you nod to him with your mouth filled– as if the sight wasn’t enough of a confirmation to him– a hum of satisfaction slipping out of your vocal cords.
“It’s so good,” you mumble when you swallow, wiping your mouth with the napkin you found at the corner of the table. “Just what I needed right now.”
Jaemin finally digs into his own plate, a bright smile sitting at his face, and as you eat, you find yourself glancing his way from time to time. After all this time, you’re finally starting to realize just how relaxed you’re truly feeling right in this moment, despite having oily hair that’s tugged out of your way with a headband and only wearing your casual clothes, being too lazy to change your sweatpants for jeans and your hoodie for a fancier top. Jaemin just has something about him that once kept you on your toes, nerves tingling all in your insides, the same thing now making you calm and appreciative of his presence. Who would’ve thought that it would only take you two hanging out together the whole time of Park Jisung’s birthday party to finally feel relaxed and natural around each other?
Watching him as he takes a sip of his milkshake, you get surprised at his disgusted face. “What’s up?”
“I forgot I hate strawberries,” he notes, scratching the back of his neck as he battles the face of discomfort spreading over his features.
“And you ordered a strawberry milkshake… because you hate strawberries?” you snicker, laughing at his face.
“Well, I ordered it for the aesthetic, I suppose, but the fact that it’s actually gonna taste like strawberries kind of… escaped my brain for a sec,” he explains, making you shake your head in disbelief at him, offering the boy your own milkshake that you have yet to take a sip of.
“Want mine? It’s a banana one. I don’t mind strawberries,” you say, smiling at him encouragingly when he hesitantly eyes the tall glass.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course,” you say, nudging the milkshake towards him, seeing as he exchanges the straws and sets the pink drink in front of you with a grin full of gratitude. The man takes a sip out of your drink, his eyes instantly growing wide at the taste, nodding his head and closing his eyes in pure bliss.
“Now, this is perfect.”
Giggling at his expression, you finish your plate and sit in a comfortable silence as the boy in front of you does the same. Seeing as he’s done with his serving as well, both of your stomachs full of the delicious meal, you watch him as he clears his throat before speaking up again. “So, what are your plans for the rest of the day?”
“You know, the usual,” you shrug, “check up on my roommate to see if she hasn’t died in her sleep, maybe try to wake her up in a way that doesn’t get me killed… Do the chores she was supposed to do because now she won’t stop complaining about her headache, and then watch the Spiderman movies, because I saw Tom Holland on my TikTok for you page the other day and suddenly got obsessed,” you explain, chuckling to yourself.
“No way!”
“What?”
“I wanted to watch those too!” Jaemin exclaims, expression full of surprise and excitement, his face lighting up something inside of you that makes you speak before you even get a chance to contemplate your decision.
“Let’s watch it together, then!”
His face falls into disappointment, pursing his lips as he shakes his head, full of disappointment. “I can’t today, I promised Jeno to drive him to his grandma’s in the afternoon.”
“That’s okay, let’s just watch it some other day. I’ll wait with it for you,” you say, finishing the last of your milkshake, seeing as the boy’s eyes light up at your suggestion.
“But what about your plans?”
“I can watch something else today,” you say, “maybe I’ll watch something with Yizhuo, so she forgets about her grumpy mood, you know.”
And with that, the plans are arranged. It all happens so quickly and spontaneously you can’t even let yourself process your actions, your brain only waking up when Jaemin pays for you at the counter despite your protests, deep voice full of teasing telling you that it’s okay and that it’s for all the snacks he’s eaten and will further eat while he’s over at your place.
“What do you mean it’s not on Netflix?” you hush, scrolling through the app popped up on the TV, clearly not showing any signs of the Spiderman movies. You could’ve sworn you’ve seen the movies on there when you were randomly scrolling through the service one day, not really interested in seeing them, but when it’s the time for you to actually watch the series, it’s nowhere to be seen, vanished from the face of the earth. It happens quite a lot with Netflix, actually– and while google may say the movie is available, when you open up the app yourself, it’s like you’re banned from seeing everything that’s there for the rest of the world to see.
“Well, we can just watch something else, then–”
“I am not watching anything else, Jaemin, we came here to watch Spiderman, so that’s what we’re doing,” you announce, rolling your eyes in annoyance. It’s not his fault– of course it isn’t– but the way he’s willing to give up on the movie so easily is making your blood boil. You’re no quitter when it comes to movies– either you get it on Netflix, or you do some digging (doesn’t matter if it takes you more time than the actual running time of the movie itself) and pirate it online. A few ads about hot singles in your area could never stop you when you’re about to watch something your soul has been searching for the last few weeks.
“We don’t have Disney plus, though,” the man squints, seemingly at the end with his solutions.
“We don’t need those paid streaming services,” you roll your eyes, shutting the TV off and getting your laptop from the bottom shelf of your coffee table, “let’s just find it online.”
Typing in your password and opening up the browser, a few searches of Spiderman online for free later, you’re able to find at least five sites with your desired movie in it. The only thing left for you to do is to check if it has subtitles– because when you watch a movie, all your listening comprehension abilities fly out of the window, no matter how fluent in the language you are– and see which one has the best quality. Settling on an ugly looking site with three ads covering the video window and another five around the corners, you smile to yourself, noticing as your companion only stares at you in awe. The look makes you feel like you just hacked the FBI site, and judging from his eyes, he’s admiring you as if you really did just show him the doings of Anonymous, but you only roll your eyes at him and snicker as you point towards your screen.
“Now we just click through 25 ads and pop-up windows and we’re there,” you nod, motioning towards the laptop, before a sound of the front door opening makes you jump up in surprise and halt in your movements.
Seeing as your roommate gets into the hall, seemingly out of breath and red in her face, carrying her tote bag scrunched up in the palm of her hand like a sack full of dog shit instead of the fashion statement it is, Yizhuo looks at you with furrowed eyebrows and a lost look on her face. “What’s Jaemin doing here?”
The boy next to you huffs in offense, opening his mouth and chiming in his defense. “And what are you doing here? Did the three meters from the elevator to the front door tire you this much?”
“I live here!” she exclaims, throwing her arms up in the air. “And the lift is broken again, so I had to take the stairs. I don’t think we had a hangout scheduled today?” she asks, pointing towards her project partner with a lost look, seemingly annoyed at herself just in case she forgot about the study session and made other plans instead.
“No,” Jaemin gets out, shaking his head, “we didn’t.”
“Oh,” Yizhuo says, eyes drifting from him back to you and then from you back to him, before realization settles onto her face as she nods. “Oh,” she repeats, more exaggerated now, “I see how it is. Inviting Na Jaemin over when I’m not around…”
Heat rising to your cheeks, you speak up for the first time, completely ready to shield yourself from her slandering words. “Yeah, speaking of that, weren’t you supposed to be on your date with Mark?”
The girl smiles at you in irony, noting the choice of words, before she runs into her room and comes out with a purse instead, dropping her things into the new bag. Before she’s out of the flat again, she pops a head back into the living room, waving at you with one last goodbye. “I just had to take a different bag, since this kept falling off my shoulder. I’ll see you guys in the evening, and please, out of all places, don’t shag at the kitchen counter, at least–”
“Your date is waiting.”
“At least I admit that it’s a date, sweetie, so in your place, I’d shut my mouth,” she recites, tone laced with bitterness, “okay, bye, kiss kiss!” she says before the sound of the door loudly shutting pierces through your ears, leaving the two of you in complete silence.
Clearing your throat, deciding to not go back to the things that have come out of your roommate's mouth, you shift your focus back onto the laptop, awkwardly scratching your neck before speaking up. “Now that’s out of the way…” you mumble, “can you please try to get the movie playing? There will be about 75 ads popping up, you just need to patiently close each and every one of them and not play the porn games, okay?”
“Why would I–”
“I’m gonna make some popcorn in the meantime, since I imagine it’s gonna take a while. Oh and also, you can’t pause the movie, because that makes the whole process repeat and we’ll have to close all of the ads again, so when it’s done, just call me and I’ll be quick,” you finish explaining before disappearing into the kitchen area.
Rummaging through the cupboards, you finally acquire the popcorn you’ve been searching for. Plopping it into the microwave and setting the timer to approximately 3 minutes, you go on a search for more snacks– sweet ones this time, since chasing down the saltiness with a chocolate bar is your favorite activity to do after eating popcorn– and getting out some bowls to put everything into, preparing the things onto the kitchen counter.
Too absorbed in the noise of the corn popping in the microwave, you don’t notice footsteps approaching you in the small room, the voice of Na Jaemin scaring you to death.
“I love these!” he exclaims, motioning to the M&M’s you just opened and poured into a bowl. His voice makes you turn back to him in surprise, adrenaline in your veins only heightening when your face almost meets his chest, his body so close to your figure you can almost feel the heat radiating off his figure. Gasping at the close proximity, you react automatically and try to take a step back from him, but your back only meets the counter that somehow does nothing to support your frame as you back up to it, making you lose your balance and almost crash into the hard surface.
Jaemin’s arms shoot up quickly to steady you, one hand landing on your hip and another one gently catching the back of your head into his palm so you don’t meet with the upper drawers of the kitchen counter in a painful thud, the soft gesture making pools of honey gather in your stomach at the action. “Careful,” he snickers at your taken-aback posture, your hands aimlessly clutching the edge of the countertop.
“Well, maybe if you didn’t appear out of nowhere, I wouldn’t almost smash my head open out of surprise,” you mumble, eyes shifting from his face towards his chest instead, the so well-known feeling of curiosity and nerves you thought was long gone whenever you are around Jaemin approaching you again in great measures, keeping you up on your toes.
He only shrugs at your expression, not really offering you any more words, a chuckle escaping past his lips almost driving you to insanity.
One of his arms– the one cradling the crown of your head– comes down around you and reaches into the sweets bowl, taking a few into his hold and dropping them onto his tongue. Chewing, with an overly-exaggerated hum of satisfaction, the man offers you the sweets and feeds you off his palm, the sugar melting on your tongue somehow reminding you of the man standing in front of you, the tension growing big in your stomach.
“You’re standing very close,” you mutter under your nose when you notice his and your thighs touching, hearing as he hums at your remark.
“Do you not like it?”
“I–” you stutter, cheeks only further heatening at the question, “that’s not what I said.”
“See,” he snickers, “I’m standing in perfect proximity, then.”
Eyes hesitantly jumping to his face, seeing him looking down at you with warm eyes and a teasing glint in his smile, your heartbeat quickens even more, slowly starting to match the rhythm of the corn popping in the microwave. His hand still on your hip, the contact of it with your clothed skin burning, you’re suddenly finding it really hard to keep your nerves down, swallowing harshly before you open your mouth to speak up or else you’re going to go crazy.
“Jaemin–”
“Can you admit that to yourself?” he cuts you off, suddenly, face curious and a little more hesitant than before. Looking at him with confusion in your eyes, he repeats the question. “That this is a date. Can you… can you admit that to yourself, Y/N?”
Blinking a few times at the strange inquiry, you stutter again, your thoughts running back and forth in your brain too fastly for you to catch up with them. “I– well, I–”
Shaking his head in disbelief, Jaemin snickers again. “I was told that you’re a bit oblivious, and that I should probably be more direct with my actions, because of… obvious reasons…” he chuckles, “so if you needed confirmation, I’d think of this as a date. And the lunch we had together before as well, if that wasn’t clear enough… I originally wanted to play it more subtly, but I realized that I should maybe change my ways for you to get me, so… if you don’t want this to be a date, just tell me. I just thought I should tell you.”
Gasping at his words, you shake your head in clear disapproval, suddenly too worried about him getting the wrong message. “It’s– I was hoping… this was a date? I– I mean–”
The man in front of you visibly relaxes, giggling at your reaction. His heartfelt laughter makes the mood lighter again– the knot in your stomach loosening a little only for a bit, before the man catches you off guard with another question, his face inching dangerously close to you.
“Do you do kisses on first dates, then?”
Breath shaking, eyes shifting from his deep eyes to the plush skin of his lips, you mumble out a reply. “I mean… by what you just said, this is not really a first date, so…”
“Does that mean I can kiss you?”
Gaping into his face, you nod– barely visible, but it’s there and it’s enough of a confirmation– before your eyes are shut in expectation and his soft lips land on yours, the sweetness of candy mixing in with the saccharine nature of his personality, gentle presses to your parted mouth making your knees week with bliss. Your hands hesitantly find their place on his neck, bringing him closer when he tries to pull away, earning yourself a smile from the male that you can feel in the kiss, the knot in your stomach fully disappearing and morphing into lightness and gentle fluttering.
Feeling the man sucking on your bottom lip and gently pinching the skin of your hip that he’s still kneading in between his fingers, you squeal into the contact as he gently hosts you up onto the kitchen counter, lips attacking yours only breaking apart when the microwave goes off and you try to catch your breath in between hungry kisses.
“Jaemin–”
“Hm?” he hums as his lips occupy themselves with your jaw instead, seeing as you’re meaning to talk right now and he’s a gentleman– he doesn’t want to break your words.
“The popcorn’s done,” you sigh, his lips only reaching further down your neck, not really paying attention to anything you’re saying, only responding with a content hum of acknowledgment. Seeing as he doesn’t really care– and neither do you, honestly, with his lips so magically attached to your skin– you let yourself indulge in the action again, tugging him back towards your face by his chin and connecting your lips once again, firm kisses exchanged between the two of you as his hands stay secure on the curve of your hips.
Fingers threading into the hair on his nape, you chuckle into the kiss when he talks in between, annoying you and amusing you at the same time– since you can’t get enough of his mouth, but still find his words kind of funny. “Oh look, it only took this long for you to realize I have a crush on you…”
Tired of his teasing, you shake your head in disbelief as you decide to move your lips away from his mouth, but rather pressing them along his jaw, just the way he did only a few seconds ago, shyly, yet determinately attaching yourself to his neck, pressing soft kisses steadily in between more hungrier ones, admiring the redness of his skin when you part away from him and see the wet spots you just attacked. “Can’t say it wasn’t worth it, though,” he hums as you seemingly find his soft spot, his whole body reacting as he squirms under you and moves you so you’re back against his lips, the contact more heated and rushed.
His hand slowly teases the edge of your shirt, cold fingertips drumming across your belly, and the further up he moves, the more goosebumps appear all over your back, pressing yourself closer to him on the uncomfortable kitchen counter.
“I know Yizhuo said no shagging on the kitchen counter, but I mean…” he hums as his hand reaches the hem of your bra, “what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her, am I right?”
Giggling at his comment, you momentarily contemplate to giving in to the temptation, but a loud noise coming from the living room is enough to wake you up back to your senses, the sound of the movie acting as a wake up call, causing your whole body to jump and shrug Jaemin’s hands off you; his swollen lips and flushed cheeks on your full display when you gape at him.
“The movie’s playing?” you ask.
“Yeah,” he nods, “forgot to tell you.”
“Why didn’t you tell me! I explained that you can’t pause it, now we have to load it again because rewinding it does the same,” you mourn, pushing him a little further away from you so you can jump off the counter and chime into the living room, his footsteps following you.
“I mean, I thought this was much more entertaining than the movie, but okay,” he says, causing you to playfully swat him on the shoulder before you close the tab and reopen it again, shoving him towards the kitchen instead.
“Go and get the popcorn out. I’ll load it back up, since you’re totally useless at the art of pirating,” you chime, rolling his eyes at him, battling back the grin that’s threatening to settle onto your features all while you’re trying to calm down the erratic beating of your heart.
And when the movie finally plays and you let yourself settle against Jaemin’s figure on the sofa, content with his arms around your middle and the occasional comments he lets out at the scenes rolling on the screen, you find yourself wondering how after all of this, this is the way you end up with him– spontaneously and totally unprepared.
A scene of Peter Parker appears on your laptop, the man in the red spider suit shooting webs to the top of the building to get MJ into safety, making a bubbly laugh heave out of Jaemin’s throat. “I wish I had those when I had to carry you drunk to the top floor,” he teases.
“Oh shut up, you did that to yourself,” you roll your eyes, reminding yourself of the day with much despair in your memory.
“And what was I supposed to do, leave you there?” he chuckles. “Besides, I quite liked the journey. Didn’t even mind that it took so long… it made the top floor feel like a big reward, you know,” he says, and when he looks at you from the corner of his eye, his orbs warming up like hot chocolate,
you swear there’s a metaphor– hell, a life lesson– somewhere in there.
#nct#nct dream#na jaemin#jaemin#nct x reader#jaemin x reader#nct dream x reader#jaemin fluff#jaemin fic#jaemin fanfic#jaemin drabble#jaemin imagine#nct dream fluff#nct dream scenario#nct dream fic
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Sunny Day Jack Transcript - PSYCHE - 72782
You know, writing Sunshine in Hell and all these headcanons has me going over a lot of lore bits for Something’s Wrong With Sunny Day Jack. I realized that the partial-transcript I wrote up for one of the audio files might be useful for other people as well. So, I went back and completed the transcript as best I can.
Disclaimer - I suffer from auditory processing disorder. This means that I struggle to translate sounds into words. As such, my transcript might not be completely accurate. (One word in particular is marked as one that I struggled with.) Please let me know if I got anything wrong so that I can fix it.
I’ll put the transcript below a cut for those who still haven’t played the demo and don’t want spoilers. I hope you find this useful!
...
Consultant: Hi there, Mr… uh… Mr. Haberdae.
[Redacted]: Yeah. Yeah, that’s it.
Consultant: Mr. Haberdae, so nice to meet you. My name is Joseph… Joseph Kinley. I’m sure the directors told you a bit about me beforehand, but I’m the psyche and development consultant for the show.
[Redacted]: (nervous laughter) Uh... W-well they might have? Um… I really don’t know that much about… production? I-I just try to stay out of the way when I can.
Consultant: And that’s perfectly fine. There’s nothing wrong with that. They don’t pay you to fuss over those details, I imagine?
[Redacted]: (nervous laughter) If only, right? (chuckles)
(rustling)
Consultant: So… my job here is to help the writers make sure that, um… that we’re sending the right messages out there. I make sure that the words you act out are mentally and psychologically nourishing for the children watching at home.
[Redacted]: Yeah, that makes sense.
Consultant: Now… you have a very important job as the face of our program. You’re the candy coating for the broccoli of information that we’re feeding them every day. You’re comforting, you’re kind, you’re caring… They have to trust you and like you.
Consultant: Tell me, Mr. Haberdae… um... have you ever considered having a child of your own?
[Redacted]: Um… well… well I guess… maybe. Someday. (chuckle) If I can afford one… Yeah, probably, yeah.
Consultant: Someday you might have your own, but the job you’re going to be taking, the role you’ll be playing, will be significant in the raising of children all over the nation.
Consultant: You’re going to be their parent when their parents are away… their babysitter when their parents are busy… You’re going to be their friend, their counselor, their brother… maybe even their dad when they don’t necessarily have one.
[Redacted]: Shit. Uh… (sigh) I don’t know if I can do all that… What… what if I mess up?
Consultant: That’s why I’m here to help you. We’re going to be putting you through a few psychology classes, some basic childcare and handling classes… the whole works, really.
Consultant: D-do you like children?
[Redacted]: Of course! But… (sigh) I know that… (sigh) I-I mean I… I just don’t want them to, you know… (sigh) I don’t want to put them in a bad position, or…
Consultant: Judging by your, um… a-are those tattoos?
[Redacted]: Y… (sigh) Y-Yeah… I-I can cover them up. Makeup told me that it was fine though…? They said it wouldn’t be an issue… I was in high school… I-I didn’t know any-
Consultant: I’m willing to bet that you had a very hard life growing up. For someone so young to be so defined(?) in themselves and to lash out like that, making permanent adjustments to their bodies in order to stand out… You wanted attention, didn’t you? You wanted to be seen and heard and felt and loved…
Consultant: I-I’m not here to judge, I might even be wrong, um… but I want you to really think about why you want what's best for these children.
Consultant: That’s going to be our starting point moving forward. You’re going to be wiping a lot of faces, holding little hands, and giving lots of hugs over the next coming years… with any luck, of course. (chuckle) By the time we’re finished, you’re going to be better at it than most mothers in America.
[Redacted]: Got it, got it, got it… Um, but… How do you know I’ll do it right?
Consultant: You want to know the truth? It’s all in the psychology, Mr. Haberdae. The child’s mind isn’t that hard a puzzle to figure out. Think of it like, um… like a secret code. It might seem like nonsense, but when you look at it in the right light, it all comes together and tells you everything that you need to know.
Consultant: If you love the kids enough, we’ll take care of the rest. Just keep that motivation and the enthusiasm sincere.
Consultant: We can teach you how to de-escalate situations and teach you how to navigate them, but children aren’t stupid, Mr. Haberdae. They can tell when you’re faking it.
Consultant: I’m sure you especially understand what it’s like to, say… have a parent or guardian tell you that they love you, right? But, maybe even as young as, say… six, you could tell that they didn’t really mean what they were saying.
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Prefab Metal Building Erectors
Getting the Right Steel Building Church Service Providers
Steel building church professionals suffice of a different breed, faced with interesting troubles not emerging in even more typical kinds of building and construction, that employing the appropriate one is very important. Steel building church specialists, in anticipation of handling large open spaces as well as high ceilings, need to have actually experienced their problems constructing sporting activities facilities or airplane hangars. Obviously, these aren't the only aspects present.
Church building contractors use steel, the toughest type of assistance structure, to acquire a large interior. Specific reactionary parishes might stand up to such a layout, comfortable with wood piles, bell towers, and also comfy auditoria, though the pattern remains in the contrary instructions. This introduces one more standard right into the picture: a person who can connect well with church members and also steer the conversation where it should go to get anything done.
Churches are a magnet for polarization, with members vulnerable to take sides as well as go to war rather than transform the various other cheek. The professional can not fix such standoffs alone; it takes somebody on the churchgoers's search board to moderate opposing factions along with him, someone humble enough to put the appropriate suggestions above vanity and savvy enough to coax others to maintain an open mind. Ultimately it refers membership rely on both the contractor and also the search board, that need to be prepared to answer challenging concerns.
Most participants will care much more concerning appearances, such as paint colors, than about construction materials as well as techniques. So, search committees need to do their due diligence and decide beforehand what building approach they choose, complied with by a narrowing of candidates down to those who espouse that specific approach. It practically boils down to a choice in between design-bid-build and design-build.
These 2 techniques vary mostly in terms of who has responsibility (threat) when, and also in exactly how the process unfolds. Design-bid-build, the extra conventional technique, separates the project into phases as well as finishes each stage before relocating to the next one (design signed off prior to soliciting proposals, and also service provider chosen before beginning the building phase). It's more costly to make changes to signed-off elements later on, as well as the proprietor (which in our case would be the church membership or board) joins some detail throughout the job.
The various other approach, design-build, is based on the property that close communication amongst designers, designers, as well as building contractors throughout the whole process leads to a much better product and also at a reduced cost. Yet it calls for the owner to identify and acquire with a job manager who welcomes this approach and that has the track record to get the job done. The job manager assumes a lot of the risk up front, yet has the authority to select the other experts and also subcontractors to compose his design-and-build team.
Design-build permits the style to evolve somewhat as the project accompanies; preferably, the job supervisor keeps church members apprised of any concerns that occur, and they in turn can provide comments regarding what style adjustments best meet their requirements. At the same time, engineers, engineers, as well as building contractors can discuss what products to use for sure aspects as well as how those decisions affect the style. There is even more exploration in the process, every person has a feeling of being included, yet nobody is biting off more than they can chew.
Design-build may also permit the project manager to pre-engineer significant architectural parts, which is a large aspect when working with steel. Pre-engineering consists of developing framework in the shop with higher accuracy devices as well as to even more exact resistances; the architectural participants are then carried to the website and also set up there. This possibility is something that may be worthwhile for the membership to take into consideration when choosing their job manager. https://www.facilitybuilders.com/
We have gone over the most essential elements that go into the decision of whom to employ to direct a sectarian construction job. Hopefully the visitor now feels more enlightened as well as much better prepared in obtaining the best steel building church specialists.
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Sindria's Prophet #16
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15]
[AO3]
~POV Sinbad~
Mori wasn't just a Prophet, she had immense knowledge of her own that was going to make Sindria untouchable. Sinbad was going to achieve his dream much sooner than he had ever imagined. Mori was special; intelligent, clever, capable, and she could read the waves of Fate. Was there any other woman as attractive?
The unknown craving that had plagued him for the past week was placated. Delicious wine, beautiful women, delicious food -none of his normal pleasures had fulfilled whatever that feeling was, but for some reason this moment with the his Beautiful Prophet was.
"And now you're *my* kind and generous King Sinbad, ... Right?" Mori's bashful confidence was always endearing, but hearing her call him 'my King' in person made something snap in him.
They were in a corner and Mori is small; he could easily block view of her in case any of the magicians turned around. He wouldn't even have to lean that far to get a taste of her.
"DO EITHER OF YOU Have an ounce of self awareness??” Ja'far popped the bubble that had formed around the two.
King Sinbad froze. Everyone in the room was watching them. Sinbad stood up straight. He shouldn't exactly continue his plans with an audience. He removed his hand from the window and crossed his arms.
Yam was practically shaking the magician next to her. "I wasn't the only one to see it this time!”
An older magician with a beard laughed and said something like 'to be young.' Another said something a long the lines of "So it's like that then."
Ja'far was still grumbling about his King's behavior -he should know better by now, he promised he wouldn't, etc. but 1. Sinbad didn't do anything wrong, and 2. he said he knew what he was doing -he knew how to handle flirting with Mori; he never said anything about not flirting with her.
"And you, Lady Prophet," Ja'far changed targets.
'Oh?' Sinbad didn't expect Mori to be reprimanded for his flirting -although, she did flirt back.
Ja'far continued, "You said that you knew about Sin's habits so wouldn't fall for him or-"
"AAAAAH" Yamuraiha yelled over the other General as she crossed the room as fast as she could, and clapped a hand over his mouth. She turned to the King and Prophet with wide eyes and a forced smile. "Your Majesty! Mori! Would you like to see the spell again with our new changes?!" She didn't let go of Ja'far.
The group of magicians started supporting her suggestion with "Let us show you," "I'm sure we've got it this time," and reciting the changes to the formula. They were clearly trying to stop Ja'far from discouraging Mori. Sinbad had no idea why they suddenly decided to become his wingmen, but it was convenient for him since he planed to do more than flirt with her later.
Mori walked up to the Generals, although she only addressed Yamuriaha. "Yes, please! Even if it's not perfect I'd like to see your progress!" She spoke with the same forced enthusiasm as Yam.
Sinbad only got a glimpse before Mori's back was to him, but her face was definitely a brighter red than it had been a moment ago. She was getting better at flirting with him, but she couldn't hold her composure for long.
The King laughed as the head magician practically body checked Ja'far out of her way and left him out of the group before they preformed the newly revised spell. This time it produced a mostly clear stone. It wasn't a high quality diamond, but they had done it. They would have to be careful with this though since it could lower the market value of whatever they make. As they figured out the specifics for every substance they needed, Sindria could become fully self sufficient -they would still deal in trade so as to not completely leave the rest of the world behind.
It was amazing. His magicians were amazing for being able to figure this out in such a short time, and his Prophet was just as -if not even more- amazing for knowing all of this and being able to explain it to them.
When the excitement around the magic spell died down they finally showed him the microscope. It was a prototype so they had to be gentle with it. Two pieces of glass with water squished between them were slid under and when Sinbad looked through the lenses he saw the strange small creatures that Mori had written about. Seeing them forced him to accept that what Mori wrote about 'germs' had to be true too -and those were even smaller than these things. Looking at those things squirming around and knowing they were everywhere made his skin crawl.
The King stopped looking through the device. "They really are real."
"Yup." Mori responded plainly. "And now that you all know and have proof. There's going to have to be a lot of changes. The way illnesses are handled is obvious, but there's going to have to be a lot more changes to how food and housing and things are handle to better maintain sanitary environments. I know a bunch of sanitation procedures so I can help there too."
Ja'far was rubbing his temples. "This is going to be a logistical nightmare. Do you realize that we are going to have to fix all those things and get all Sindrians to understand without having it affect our production or
trade??"
"It's not like we're doing this alone." Mori tried to comfort him. "We'll figure something out."
The conversation moved to this new problem. His Beautiful Prophet really was something else. She had solutions to problems they didn't even know they had. Mori had a habit of using her hands whenever she talked -even more when she was excited. She was cute and deserved to know, but she was in the middle of helping his people so he would hold his tongue and just watch her.
If Sinbad was honest, he had stopped listening to the conversation a while ago and was just looking for an opportunity to finally ask Mori -and Yam of course- if they would join him for dinner so he could get all of his Generals more aquatinted with her.
Someone mentioned a specific scroll in one of the libraries.
Before the whole group could drag Mori out of the room, King Sinbad raised a hand and got everyone's attention. "I know there's a lot to do, but I have some things to discuss with my Beautiful Prophet as well."
Mori looked back at him. "What is it?” It seemed that nickname wasn't as affective as before -hopefully it was just the timing. "Is it something we can talk about here?”
"I was thinking we could talk over dinner," Sinbad paused to see how she would respond to the implications. Mori's eyes widened and her shoulders tensed, and best of all that blush came back. "With all of my Generals, of course."
Mori blushed harder realizing he was messing with her. Yam looked disappointed at first -his Generals cared way to much about him finding a wife- but then she looked content with being a part of the plan.
"You might have met them, and know them from reading Fate but they still don't know you yet." He finished.
Yam spoke first. "This is a great idea. Pisti was just telling me that she wanted to get to know Mori."
Mori regained her composer. "I'd like to get to know everyone personally too, so I'm find with this." It was a roundabout way of saying 'yes.' Her blush was gone but she was still embarrassed.
With that settled, Ja'far let Yam and Mori know when dinner would be ready. It was a little earlier than he normally ate but this would give them more time to mingle before they'd be completely out of sunlight.
"Well then," the King turned to his Prophet, "since we have some time beforehand-"
"OH no you don't!" Ja'far cut in. "You've already had a long enough break *and* you plan on ending early today? The least you can do is work your butt off until then."
---
~POV Mori~
The King was pushed out of the room by his right hand man.
I had a mix of relief and longing watching him go.
"You'll see his Majesty again soon." Yam had a sweet smile on her face, but I knew better than to trust it. All eyes were on me and they were no longer the eyes of academics; they were hungry for gossip.
I was not ready to explain why shipping us was a bad idea.
"So about that scroll you mentioned earlier..." I completely shifted conversation back to the eventual rebuilding effort and luckily one of them obliged me.
I was lead to one of the libraries and handed a few scrolls on the construction used in the country. I had read a little on ancient construction methods out of interest and some on modern methods since my uncle worked in the industry. I had a little bit of experience with construction when I worked at a community theater, but it wouldn't be anything the people here wouldn't know.
That paired with these documents showing how magic was used in the process made what little I did know completely useless. 'Can't know everything I guess.'
I turned my head up towards the ceiling. I wasn't sure how much time I had left and I decided to use it soaking up the ambience of the library.
The smell of paper, the maze-esc layouts, the quiet feeling; it's like a gentle space separate from the rest of the world. The libraries of the Black Libra Tower also had huge windows to let in a ton of natural lighting. I was really going to enjoy working in this place.
---
Yam and I ended up lost in conversation, so someone ended up being sent to bring us to the dinner.
When we finally arrived and opened the doors to the dining hall my nose was filled with the smell of herbs and delicious food. This was my first meal that wasn't paired with bitter medicine. I might have been procrastinating subconsciously to avoid the medicine I was no longer taking.
Everyone was already there chatting. The long table was covered with food, but I couldn't make out any of it from the door. King Sinbad was sitting at the head of the table at the other end of the room with a goblet in his hand.
Yamuraiha started in ahead of me and called into the room. "I'm sorry we're so late! We were talking about magical proofs and," she rambled in her explanation.
I heard a few comments of congrats for getting better and said "Thanks" reflexively more than consciously.
As I got closer, I ignored the Generals at the table to look at the spread. There were a few different types of fish, meat of some kind, a bunch of vegetables, and bread. It brought tears to my eyes; It was so beautiful.
The Imuchukk laughed at my obvious interest in the food. "What are you waiting for? There plenty for everyone." He was sitting closest to the door.
I didn't look away from the food when I answered. "I'm small with a small stomach so I'm going to need to pace myself to be able to eat a little of everything. If I save the best for last like I normally do then I might not even get to eat it."
That garnered laughs and comments. I ignored them; I was too busy weighing my options.
As the guest of honor I was placed at the opposite end of the table from King Sinbad. Thank goodness, because I didn't think I could handle being super close to him all evening. Even with the direct line of sight, I had distance to protect me. Yam sat on the other side of Hina from me. Pisti was on my other side. Sharrkan was across from Yam. Spartos was between Yam and Ja'far. Drakon was across from Ja'far. And Masrur was between Drakon and Sharrkan.
I picked up my plate to get food. "Alright. I've decided to just grab my favorites. If I have room later then so be it!" I was used to being watched while I eat so their stares didn't bother me. I covered my plate in all of the types of fish and some vegetables.
"I take it you like fish?" Sinbad asked while I was taking some of the fish that was on his end of the table.
"It's my favorite!" I answered excitedly. I could tell as I placed the grilled fish on my plate that it was going to be heavenly. It was already flaking and letting the smell reach me faster.
I couldn't wait to get back to my seat and took a bite of the fish. It melted in my mouth. I let out a squeak of approval as I grabbed another bite.
After a moment Sinbad asked me another question. "What do you think of greasy foods?" It felt pointed.
"I'll eat it if it's the only option, but I'm not a fan."
The Generals made some comments that amounted to, "They have the same taste."
I was too busy enjoying my food to think about what they were saying.
Pisti asked me her own pointed question as I sat down. "Do you like alcohol?"
They were comparing me to Sinbad. I suddenly remembered the Official Character Encyclopedia. According to it, Sinbad's favorite food was fish, his least favorite was greasy, and his favorite snacks were the types that paired well with alcohol.
"I'm not a big drinker, but it's not like I dislike alcohol. I'm just allergic to sulfites."
"Huh?" The group asked in unison.
Time to explain one of my allergies again. "Sulfites are a very useful preservative so it was also added to a lot of foods back home including alcohol. All grape wines produce sulfites naturally. When I ingest about 2 shots of a drink that contains sulfites I will struggle to breathe for about an hour."
As soon as the words were out of my mouth, the goblet of wine I didn't realize was in front of me was grabbed by Hinahoho. They all looked panicked at each other like they had just dodged a bullet.
In an attempt to relieve the tension, Sinbad asked Yam to catch everyone up on the meeting from earlier. Yam started ranting about the progress we had made with the alchemy magic.
While they focused on reclaiming the mood, I focused on the delicious food. I tried a root vegetable on my plate. It was a little earthy with a subtle sweetness. The seasoning added to the sweet, but also had a little spice similar to cracked pepper. It had been streamed so it wasn't crunchy.
I was asked to repeated what I told Sin and Ja'far earlier about the tech of home, Their questions had me explain more about my world and many of the things I had done: volunteer work to get scholarships, marketing for some networking organizations and some other companies, an assistant and teacher in out of school programs for 6 years while also working at a theater to pay for my own education. I only mentioned some of the places I had traveled to. I didn't even get to the things I did as hobbies or in working toward my dream of being a full time writer&artist.
"I'm surprised by how much you say you've done." Drakon commented.
I had heard similar before when talking about my past. "Is it really that shocking? Considering my age, I think it makes sense for me to have done a bit." It's more shocking that I was doing all that while getting so sick from my chronic illnesses that I would be fully bedridden and need a machine to breathe at least once a year until I turned 15. But I had also ate up inspiration porn as a child as a motivation to not let my body hold me back if I could.
"Aren't we around the same age?" Yam asked me in response.
I laughed. "Do I look 23 to you?" I've been mistaken for much younger than I actually was for as long as I could remember. It 1st became a problem when I turned 18 and got told I was clearly 12 with a fake ID when trying to buy an M rate game (Devil May Cry btw).
"You're not?”
”Nope.” I rested my elbows on the table, interlocked my fingers, and I placed my chin on top with a smile, "But I'm curious how old you all think I am now."
At 25 I was mistaken for a 14
year old. At least, a few months back someone thought I was legal (they guessed 19). Most realized I had to be older the more they talked to me, but their impressions never fully dissipated. As frustrating as it was, I found amusement in times like this by turning my age into a guessing game.
Sharkkan had the face of someone fearing they had hit on someone too young. "You are at least 20, right?”
They all suddenly looked worried.
"I'm definitely older than 20." I answered.
Pisti laughed. She was also short with a baby face; she knew my struggle. "Maybe she's older than Ja'far!” Of course she would make the closest guess.
"There's no way she's older than me." Ja'far scoffed.
"I am older than 25 though.” I could have teased him but I held my tongue since he already seemed annoyed with me.
"How old are you then?” Hina asked.
"I'm 29.”
I smiled at everyone's surprise.
I might only have surface levels similarities to Sinbad, but when you're a simp for a fictional character does that really matter?
"I was born on April 7th so I should only be 5 days younger than King Sinbad since he was born on the 2nd. However, I don't know if there's a time dilation between my world and this one. The day we met was Oct 3rd for me back home. It wasn't the same date here, was it?"
Sinbad is 29, Ja'far is 25, and Masrur is 20 during the Balbadd arc; their 2nd set of ages are 30, 26, and 21 respectfully. Ja'far's birthday is Aug 30th and Masrur's is Dec 27. Those 2nd ages listed can't be for right after the 6 month time skip because no matter how you calculate it the shortest distance between those 3 birthdays is 8 months. I was really interested in how the current arbiter of this world was going to figure this out.
"It was Oct 3rd here too."
"Oh. Well, that's convenient," was what I said while my thoughts were cursing the arbiter.
'That lazy son of a bitch synced the worlds so they wouldn't have to deal with a time dilation. I can feel it. Hold on... I arrived on Oct 3rd; the coup was 4 days later on the 7th. 6 months later would mean Sinbad arrives back in Sindria on my birthday. Did some 'real me' somewhere plan a b-day present for myself in some self-indulgent fanfiction??' ((Yes. Yes, I did UwU & I plan on making Mori panic then too.))
King Sinbad had that smile on his face that told me he was ready to flirt. "I didn't realize we were so close in age."
No colors got in my way when he talked. That was good. I was desensitized again, and wouldn't have to deal with unnecessary distractions.
I couldn't tease Ja'far, but I could tease his Majesty. "I know, right? It's amazing what the difference of 5 days can do for one's complexion."
Sinbad froze and his expression went blank.
Something that was probably wine sprayed across the table as Sharkkan had a spit take before erupting into laughter with Hinahoho and Pisti.
"Oh my" Yam murmured with a hand over her mouth.
Drakon , Spartos, and Ja'far stared at me in disbelief.
Sinbad still wasn't responding... Maybe teasing him about his age was a bad idea.
So far, unless it was something important I flirted with Sinbad since that was the best way to get on his good side; hearing something like this from me must have hurt a bit extra. I had been so wrapped up in my thoughts that I forgot just how sensitive he was about his age.
I ended up flailing my hands from nerves, and to get his attention. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that when I know how self conscious you are." He flinched. "I don't know if this will make you feel any better, but you won't look any older than you do now 5 years from now..."
"I uh.. Is that so?" Sinbad asked as he started to regain himself.
"It is. You'll be just as-”
"If you're willing to talk about the future, does that mean you are finally ready to explain about those calamities you mentioned in Balbadd?" Ja'far cut in with a fierce look. He had been waiting for any mention of the future to bring this up.
The King spoke with a gentle but stern tone. "I don't know if this is the time for that conversation. This is Mori's first meal with
everyone after all."
"I'm fine. I made a promise and I intend to keep it. As long as everyone else is willing to talk seriously for a few mins, I don't see the problem." I had been avoiding this conversation for long enough. There were things I still planned to keep secret, but I couldn't avoid having this conversation forever. And besides, I could feel in the waves that Ja'far wasn't going to let this night end unless I explained some of it.
((I have the next 3 chapters written but it's going to take me a bit to draw all of illustrations & comics.
Also, good luck to all the students reading this. I know classes are starting up again. Be safe out there.))
#magi prophet fanfic#sinbad x oc#magi sinbad x oc#king sinbad#sinbad magi#magi fanfic#magi sinbad#yamuraiha
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The only non-modernist master that can truly spark my fire for the older periods, for the period of (early) Italian Renaissance. . . When I first started to explore and study about the history of art, alongside my practical studies, I have always been drawn to modernism. I loved older periods and I could and can always find something to catch on in anything before Modernism. But I never found an artist of older periods (before 19th century) that I could be so mesmerized by, as it happened to me with the discovery of Sandro Botticelli. La Primavera - Spring (cca 1482.), large panel painting in tempera paint. Painting itself used to be associated with his "The Birth of Venus", although art historians came to a conclusion that the two are not directly linked to one another. Both of the paintings are kept in Uffizi Gallery, and "The Birth of Venus" is a work more known to the general audience than Primavera is.
Venus stands in the arch, in the middle of the painting. There are six female figures to be found, and two male ones. Next to Venus, on the left of the painting, the Three Graces, a group of three females, are presented dancing, visibly holding hands. At the extreme left you can see Mercury, depicted in his "typical" clothes - crucial being his footwear. Zephyrus (the west wind God) and Chloris are looking at each other - or to better say, nympth Chloris depicted as being "attacked" by Zephyrus.
One of the Three Graces - the middle one- seems to be facing Mercury, while the other two seem to look at each other. Mercury has turned his back away, Cupid is blindfolded.
Only two figures looking at the viewer are Venus and Flora (the symbol of spring). Flora is depicted with an unusual smile.
Back in the day, being too young and lost in the enormous, mesmerizing and complicated world of fine arts/art history, alongside slowly gaining knowledge that would later on become my only reason to live, I had to rely solely on my personal childish feelings that I had for this painting. For me, it was the entrence for the whole new world each time I saw it, both stable and dynamic. I wish I have more time now as I did in childhood, but each work of art should require at least three hours of careful observation - and this is surely the first ever work of art so far from modernism that I found myself staring at for hours on and on. Drawing from life is extremely important for the improvement in fine arts - this is something I didn't learn until I finished high school and entered the academy of fine arts in my home country - where you constantly draw from life. In just around few months of constant life drawing - observational drawing - I have reached the point I never thought I am capable of beforehand. I realized that sometimes to see is far more important than to draw. Alongside my improvement and extensive eye training, I also realized that you should push your boundaries, and you should work on things you are afraid of - and as my sculpting teacher, a very honest and nonetheless encouraging woman, often says to us "we have a natural aversion towards certain subjects in art, which is normal and - after you create something and realize you are capable of doing it - stupid."
Note to myself - do not be afraid to live art. Art must become your home, your only source of life, reason to breathe and - your first everything.
However, it is also not such a bad thing to do at least one master copy from time to time. It won't only help you understand the work of art better (not really from the iconography pov), but it will also give you space to experiment. I bet that Girl with the Pearl Earring, by Johannes Vermeer, is one of the most commonly copied paintings I stumbled upon in my circle of friends and artists I've met. It ended up being my first 'classical' master copy as well (my first copy was David Hockney). I had no idea how to paint and what to do with all the colors and paintbrushes I had.
But, doing a master copy did not only make me examine the painting for hours - while working or resting - it also placed me in a position where I was trying to figure out how he was able to create all that he did in the painting, and therefore I ended up experimenting with oil paint, trying to find my way around it. Of course, the whole process was wrong - although the ending product was fine.
So - a final note to myself. Don't be afraid to do a master copy of everything that impresses, aka scares you from time to time. But also, do not postpone drawing from observation. In fact, make it your priority!
#sandro botticelli#renaisance#fine arts#Early#Italy#art history#primavera#panel painting#tempera paint#botticelli#art student#uffizi gallery#art history blog#Art history basics#art blog#studying#using tumblr as a diary#the birth of venus#Venus#spring#allegory#art lover#Art history lover#art#artlovers#self improvement#practice#painting#spilled feelings#academy of fine arts
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let’s talk about the Bene Gesserit
When Paul meets Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohamian of the Bene Gesserit, he identifies the order’s purpose right away: “Politics.” The Reverend Mother is surprised, and gives Jessica the side-eye to see if Jessica has spilled secrets, but Jessica denies it. I don’t know whether to believe Jessica or not here because Jessica has told Paul all kinds of things, but I’m going to assume Jessica is telling the truth here, and this is supposed to be yet another sign Paul is super-smart, super-observant, the Chosen One, etc, etc.
But I want to know: what does the rest of the galaxy think the Bene Gesserit do?
Pretty much every female character in Dune who’s not Fremen is Bene Gesserit, or at least has some degree of training from them. All of them are linked to powerful men: Jessica is a ducal concubine and mother of his heir; Margot is wife to Count Fenring (and presumably only allowed to marry him and be a Lady in her own right because the Count is a “eunuch” and can’t bear children); Irulan is a princess and the Emperor’s daughter. Even the Reverend Mother, once the superintendent of the Bene Gesserit school on Wallach IX, is now the Emperor’s Truthsayer. And the narrative goes out of its way to mention that Thufir Hawat specifically purchased Jessica for Duke Leto, and cleared her for the Atreides household.
So, are the Bene Gesserit seen as a religious order? A finishing school for ladies of the ruling class? Are they the futuristic equivalent of medieval nunneries, except with less embroidery and more manners? All of the above?
In reality, the Bene Gesserit are all-female order on a self-directed mission to provide “a thread of continuity in human affairs”. They do this by a secret breeding program, separating humans from “animals” by means of various tests (one of which Paul undergoes in the novel’s opening scene). The Bene Gesserit schools are filled with the (presumably female) offspring of this breeding program, as well as any other genetic lines they’re interested in manipulating. Many, like Jessica, are kept ignorant of their heritage by the higher-ups so they can secretly breed back into the line (ironically, a standard technique in animal breeding!). Apparently, the BG have found out the hard way that outright incest is a hard sell, so they keep the participants in the dark, which is... horrifying. The BG’s stated goal is to create a Kwisatz Haderach, a man who can look into the void that no BG [female] Truthsayer can see, “into both feminine and masculine pasts”.
Leaving aside the irony of an all-female organization seeking to create a man more powerful than they are, I don’t understand why the Kwisatz Haderach has to be male; it seems like a female Kwisatz Haderach who can see into both her male and female ancestral lines ought to be equally possible. Even if you argue that those male ancestral memories are inextricably linked to a Y chromosome or some other vaguely scientific rationale, it’s a) never explained anywhere in the book that I can recall, and b) Paul’s sister Alia will have this ability--and in fact will be haunted by at least one male ancestor to her extreme detriment. Maybe the BG are trying to create a male Kwisatz Haderach because they think men are easier to manipulate and control? Or do they not know what they’re talking about?
The Emperor knows the BG are useful; that’s why he has a Truthsayer and presumably was okay with them training his daughter, but he doesn’t seem to know the BG are manipulating his wife and concubines to make sure he has only daughters, so they can marry said daughters to a match of their choice. The BG orders Jessica to do the same thing, and she defies them because Duke Leto really, really wants a son. Does that mean the BG are always supposed to bear female children to keep the order going, or did Jessica and Irulan’s mother receive special orders on account of their positions? I don’t think this is ever made clear, and it bugs me.
I also don’t understand why the BG don’t... do something (anything!) when Jessica defies them and has Paul instead. Granted, Paul is the duke’s heir, he’s protected from assassins in general, but it seems like the BG might have had some way of influencing/punishing Jessica for her disobedience and they... don’t. At all. And I don’t get it. If Jessica’s act is so courageous--as Irulan later assess that it is in her history--what are the consequences?
The Reverend Mother sarcastically says Jessica defied the orders and had a son because she was arrogant enough to think she could produce the Kwisatz Haderach at last. Jessica says she suspected the possibility, but what made her think that? She doesn’t even know who her parents are! She hasn’t passed the final tests to be a Reverend Mother (and her defiance presumably knocked her off that track because the BG can’t trust her with that level of power), so why would she think HER SON would be the Chosen One? I don’t get it. Is Jessica being sarcastic here, too?
The Reverend Mother says Jessica did it because she loved Leto and didn’t want to disappoint him, which Jessica admits to. The Reverend Mother’s mostly angry because her plan was to wed an Atreides daughter to the Harkonnen heir and maybe put a stop to all the infighting between the two families (or compound it further? or for other reasons that only make sense when you learn who Jessica’s father really is?) Now with Paul as the heir, that’s not possible--because marriage is all about biological progeny, property, and heteronormativity in this book--and the Reverend Mother is annoyed mainly because the BG might lose both bloodlines in all the forthcoming violence.
I guess this begs the question of to what extent a BG agent is their own operative, and to what extent they are controlled/under the influence of the order as a whole? The Reverend Mother seems sympathetic to Jessica, saying, “Each of us must make her own path,” which implies some degree of independent agency. She also sees that Jessica has been teaching Paul the BG Way, and “I’d have done the same thing in your shoes and devil take the Rules”. And she encourages Jessica to train him in the Voice, because she thinks that’s the only way Paul’s going to survive the Harkonnen treachery to come (which she knows about because she’s presumably privy to much of the Emperor’s behind-the-scenes scheming with the Harkonnens).
And then the Reverend Mother walks out “with not another backward glance” and we don’t see her again until the final scene. “The room and its occupants already were shut from her thoughts.” And Jessica is freaked out by the fact the Reverend Mother is crying as she walks away.
Why is she crying? Does she genuinely love Jessica as her “own daughter” as she claims, and she regrets that Jessica is either going to die or be a fugitive with a price on her head once the Harkonnen trap is sprung? Is she upset about what could have been, and wasn’t? Is she regretful of all the genetic material and possibilities, thousands of years of careful work and preparation obliterated by forces she has no intention of stopping? All of the above??
I don’t know why the Reverend Mother shows up to test Paul’s humanity at the beginning. Is it because she’s curious? Or does she have no choice given Paul’s lineage, and her suspicions/Jessica’s assertions that Paul really might be the Kwisatz Haderach? Did Jessica ask for it, because she knows Paul needs this test in order to move to the next level in his training and she’s not emotionally equipped to administer it? All of the above?
And the Reverend Mother looks straight at Paul, saying outright that she sees the possibility/potential for him to become the Kwisatz Haderach and walks away... why??
Conclusion: The Watsonian explanation is that the BG talk a mean game, but they’re not as smart as they think they are. The Doylist explanation is that Frank Herbert wanted to set up his plot just so and didn’t care if the BG looked stupid in the process.
But this got even weirder when I realized there was an appendix in my edition (which I had never read before) claiming to be an in-universe “Report on Bene Gesserit Motives and Purposes” written for Lady Jessica “immediately after the Arrakis Affair,” which comes to the exact same conclusions.
The report does clarify that the BG expected the child of Jessica and Leto’s daughter and Feyd-Ruatha Harkonnen to have a high probability of being the Kwisatz Haderach. So Jessica’s decision to skip ahead on the program a generation wasn’t such a long-shot after all.
Except: “For reasons she confesses have never been completely clear to her, the concubine Lady Jessica defied her orders and bore a son”. So Jessica herself doesn’t even know why she did it...!! But she must have known some of this, because why else would she train/test Paul the way she did, or admit to the Reverend Mother she thought it was possible in the first place?
The writer goes on to note that BG knew teenage Paul had prescient dreams, the Reverend Mother failed to mention that his humanity test had broken records in her report (not mentioned in the book itself!!); that the BG knew that spice could amplify psychic powers... and did nothing to stop Jessica and Paul from going there and eating a fuckton of spice; and didn’t make the connection that the rumors of a guerilla prophet leader born of a Bene Gesserit mother and destined to be the savior might have some connection to the two people who had disappeared shortly beforehand (!!!); plus some stuff about their dealings with the Spacers’ Guild and the complications of a higher-order nexus they couldn’t see past, which ought to have alerted them that someone more powerful than they were was messing around with the future.
“In the face of these facts, one is led to the inescapable conclusion that the inefficient Bene Gesserit behavior in this affair was a product of an even higher plan of which they were completely unaware!”
And on that note, the report ends and I just... cannot believe that Herbert deliberately lampshades the BG’s incompetence--and then concludes that “God [aka the author] did it”. Because unless I missed something important and Paul meddles with the past somehow, I don’t know how else to interpret this...
I suppose this report might be written by an unreliable narrator--like every other in-universe document in this book--but then what is even the point if we never get any answers..?
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「 ʀᴇᴘᴏsᴛ, ᴅᴏɴ’ᴛ ʀᴇʙʟᴏɢ! 」
TAGGED BY: @vendettacanons
TAGGING: anyone who wishes to!
⇝ sᴇɴsᴇs ᴀɴᴅ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴏᴅᴅʟʏ sᴘᴇᴄɪғɪᴄ ʜᴇᴀᴅᴄᴀɴᴏɴs. 」 FOR ERNST.
「 WHAT DOES YOUR MUSE SMELL LIKE ? 」
Ernst smells primarily like the the waiting room of a particularly sanitary hospital, there is a perpetual stench of antiseptic chemicals clinging to his skin, his hands are especially egregious and always tend to have concoctions of anesthesia and antiseptics seeping from them; this is a direct result of all the " home brew " surgery he performs, as he does so often without gloves. And whilst the miasma of a person's insides tends to alleviate from him overtime, the chemical smell has essentially imbedded itself beneath his skin. Often, it's not noticeable over the excess of cologne he uses as a cover-up for this exact issue, but if you're close enough to him, it becomes clearly that he's essentially coated himself in cheap aftershave to disguise the distinct " inside of an operating theatre " smell.
When he doesn't carry the reek of chemicals on his skin ( which is rare, because the Dollmaker has a peculiar grievance with showering regularly ), Ernie tends to smell of cigarette smoke, general musk that hangs onto his old clothing and cheap men's deodorant. It's not as obscene as his usual scent but it's still not a particularly pleasant one if you're too close. He smells least pleasant right after a procedure, usually he doesn't scrub off the horrific stench of blood or entrails unless he plans on leaving his home.
「 WHAT DO YOUR MUSE ’s HANDS FEEL LIKE ? 」
The Dollmaker has " surgeon's hands ", which essentially mean that the palms, digits and knuckles of each are hardened and calloused from washing them a lot pre/post-surgery. They developed this roughness far back into his youth and have remained unchanged since, this is exacerbated as Ernst puts no effort into taking care of his skin -- and the lack of moisturizing or attempt to curb any texture to his hands leave them even more severe than most medical professionals. Holding his hand would be very peculiar as he almost has a layer of callous encapsulating the insides of each hand, which feel rather disjointed from the rest of his skin.
Even the parts of his hands that didn't build up the same " wall " of skin are rather scar riddled, as usually they are the first things his victims come into contact with and retaliate against - meaning they get bitten, scratched, stabbed et cetera and leave scars all over his fingers and knuckles.
It's not exactly a pleasant texture but his hands do feel strong and secure to a degree.
「 WHAT DOES YOUR MUSE USUALLY EAT ? 」
Ernst doesn't have a concrete or specific diet that he upholds throughout his day; in fact the Dollmaker's eating habits and food choices are the antithesis of organised. The majority of what the elderly man eats tends to assortments of cheap quality foods ( microwavable meals, pot noodles, reheatable pizzas and such things ) at random intervals when he deems fit to do so, such as when he's finished a procedure or when utterly starved. Most of what Ernie eats, he does so at night when desperate, it's less of a meal and more of a boost to his energy done from sense of begrudging necessity. Don't trust this man to cook for himself, he will only ever do the minimum.
「 DOES YOUR MUSE HAVE A GOOD SINGING VOICE ? 」
No, in fact it's rather the opposite, Ernst's voice is strained from his age and overuse, it sounds perpetually grating and when he's actively putting pressure upon his vocal chords in order to sing then it inevitably sounds a whole lot worse. When singing, the fact that he was an avid smoker becomes evident, as he is unable to smother his rasping with copious regulation in how he speaks -- this leaves his singing voice sounding heavy, monotonous and rough. The Dollmaker's accent also becomes far more present whilst singing, as he is too busy trying to control his warbling vocals in order to subdue how Europeam his annunciation is. Almost every other note he sings is wrong, as his range is lacking.
「 DOES YOUR MUSE HAVE BAD HABITS / NERVOUS TICKS ? 」
Plenty. Ernst smokes excessively in order to avoid coping with any inkling of emotion he has, as few and far between as those experiences are for him; the sensation almost burns out the internal processing of his brain -- leaving him more stunted than beforehand. He is also prone to bouts of violent rage which he takes out on his "products" especially, and when he doesn't have immediate access to them, the elderly man instead veers towards dismantling furniture in the most brutal manner he can manage.
「 WHAT DOES YOUR MUSE USUALLY WEAR ? 」
Primarily he dons a mid-grey waistcoat which he bought second hand and that is rather tattered and unkempt, an off-white shirt ( rolled up to the elbows for convenience ) that's perpetually stained and stinks of anaesthetic, black slacks, loafers and a utility belt when he's so inclined. Ernst's more casual dress is comprised mostly of scratchy, old turtlenecks in muted tones.
「 IS YOUR MUSE AFFECTIONATE? HOW MUCH? HOW SO ? 」
It depends on how you would describe "affection" and what the actions stemmed from, emotion-wise. Ernst is good at behaving in a typically affectionate manner, although it is completely falsified the majority of the time. He is capable of being warm ( usually in a devoutly exaggerated way, but warm nonetheless ) and physically affectionate too; quite often breaching personal space through the guise of physical comfort is the Dollmaker's first step in abducting vulnerable victims. When actually being affectionate, the man's displays are actually far more s, subdued, as he reserves the majority of his genuine physicality for bed. Ernst is never often affectionate in a genuine manner, but when he is, his first choice is mild physical attention.
「 WHAT POSITION DOES YOUR MUSE SLEEP IN ? 」
Ernst sleeps in a typical old man fashion, wherein he takes up an unnatural proportion of the bed, essentially he can stretch his large limbs in such a fashion to the point where he can easily take up most of the mattress without much consideration.
「 COULD YOU HEAR YOUR MUSE IN THE HALLWAY FROM ANOTHER ROOM ? 」
Depends on if he is attempting to be subtle; when he's casually manoeuvring about then he is very loud -- being six foot seven will do that -- and you can head his toe caps hitting the ground with each sluggish movement on his behalf, as well as the general ricochet of his body against walls as he is occasionally inclined to slump against them. When Ernie is actually trying to be quiet, then he has a well practiced technique for it specifically, all you would really here is the brief shuffle before he snatches you up.
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QA Software Testing Training Course - Ideal Online QA Training.
What Are IT Companies?
Is there a variation between IT companies as well as IT providers? Properly, let's merely state there is actually. You observe, there are distinct differences in the customer foundation as well as the tasks of each.
There is no such point as an IT firm for hire. There are specific firms that provide IT solutions and also will suffice to please your demands. Thus, for instance, if you need some professional IT help, you may possibly find some of these firms that has the required competence.
Nonetheless, there are a lot of sorts of IT firms. Below is a brief manual on a few of the extra popular ones. These consist of:
This set is actually a small, channel or even large-sized provider that delivers a wide variety of IT services, consisting of system, desktop computer and server help. A lot of much smaller IT firms likewise deliver training to others. One of the most effective attributes of the kind of company is actually that they possess a small impact.
This is actually a full service IT firm that includes yet is certainly not limited to, the following solutions: information technology help services, network administration solutions, personal computer systems services, customized IT options, website design, Web-based remedies, overall pc consulting, software progression companies, e-mail advertising and marketing, and also data bank concept as well as administration. Such providers could be located online along with in book stores and components retail stores. Yet the majority of firms are actually additionally discovered via the use of on-line web sites as well as directories.
This kind of IT company is actually one that focuses on a certain field. They likewise perform a bunch of "beforehand" study before they may provide a lot of services to a client. Such providers will certainly handle all the important work to ensure that the client are going to simply have to provide what is actually essential to finish the job.
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These are part of the standard IT solutions used through providers. They are the devices and apps called for due to the customer. This consists of but is certainly not restricted to, pc treatment as well as system software help, equipment as well as web server administration, software application and also treatment assistance, as well as interactions and technological assistance.
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An IT solutions company that provides "out of the box" answers. These answers are typically sustained as well as improved as needed to have by the client. Given that 30 dagen op proef tend to be extremely individualized, they are actually typically taken into consideration a very top-level role in the institution.
An IT expert works for a client firm, recommending all of them on just how to greatest operate their personal IT units. The professional will definitely advise the customer on the technology to become utilized, the best ways to run the IT organisation, and exactly how to make sure that the unit is actually safe and secure and also dependable. This place may also involve appointment along with clients, advising them on innovation, as well as applying options in brand new areas of the institution.
There are lots of, lots of various other roles that come under the type of what are IT business. The services offered below are vital and also necessary worldwide of computer. It's important to comprehend what each of these needs to deliver to help you create the best choice.
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Software application testing is actually certainly not practically composing exams, however it is actually additionally about the process of guaranteeing that the functions of a program unit is correct. While it is true that software screening may be carried out in isolation, it is similarly accurate that it is actually a symbiotic partnership in between different parts of the task. A good program testing instruction course are going to include the whole entire program progression pattern. It should consist of instruction on software application venture management strategies and the significance of repetitive progression.
Software program screening is actually a laborious and tough duty that can be filled with mistake and also breakdown. There are actually several resources of info to help comprehend the usefulness of top quality software application screening, yet regrettably, they are frequently improperly created. Qualifying handbooks often focus only on end-product testing. By this point, a lot of programmers have tired all accessible sources to get an excellent software application working on opportunity. As a result, it is actually critical to begin early in the task by reviewing end-to-end software application testing.
It is commonly handy to take a look at the starts of a software program testing project in order to value the value of end-to-end software application screening. By hanging around before shipping an ended up item, designers will certainly have the ability to observe if bugs are actually heading to decelerate the launch process. It is common for bug fixes to need to become applied after the software is currently offered.
Although the beginning of an end-to-end software application screening project is very important, it is actually just as vital to understand how to determine the issues that require to be checked as well as just how to evaluate all of them. As soon as a checklist of concerns has been crafted, the upcoming measure is actually to identify each product and also its designated completion. The specifics of each product will definitely dictate how the details thing is going to be applied and how the last program will be actually assessed. In some cases it is actually even achievable to view where the course will definitely be applied by studying the implementation details, however that relevant information has to be kept discreet.
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Lastly, software application screening is actually the crucial to premium and it is vital to create training systems to maintain software program developers up to time on the criteria of the task. Assessing might be actually tough, however testing is actually essential. When it relates to software application testing, there is actually a finding out contour, but when it pertains to program testing, there is actually nothing simpler than understanding.
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Just how Do You Check Program Performance?
"How do you test software application functionality?" There are a variety of inquiries that you should ask on your own just before you also start screening. You wish to know exactly how your body is visiting operate before you also consider actually evaluating it. You can not also begin to assess if your system won't work. When you've found out how your system will definitely run, you may get involved in the upcoming question of what to test. And so forth.
Your initial factor for testing a system's functionality is its own arrangement. After all, if you are receiving your system online, it would be unwise to examine a system that is actually not put in. You may have actually inquired yourself the question "how perform you examine program functionality?" on your own as well as have actually chosen to try a body prior to you install it. The opportunities are actually that this unit is certainly not in a state where you may in fact assess it however. You are going to require to go on to the upcoming inquiry concerning what to check to become able to execute a true exam of the system.
Your following consideration when it pertains to examining your device's setups is to be sure that your body's setup is appropriate for its own procedure. For instance, you most likely won't desire to set up a body that will help to improve the system's speed. You possibly will not would like to evaluate a system that is actually far also intricate for the hardware it makes use of. You will definitely need to have to acquire info coming from your system's supplier so that you know the system's ability of both memory as well as hard drive area. After you have actually figured out the ideal setup, the next measure is actually to calculate what to test. There are actually a lot of different devices you can utilize to administer an examination, like text editors, internet internet browsers, courses, or even everything else that can carry out the job of running a test. As soon as you recognize what to test, it's merely a matter of carrying out the tests, screening, and acquiring your system just as good as it may probably be.
The Benefits Of Getting A Software Application Screening Task
What is actually the Software Screening Role? This inquiry has actually been talked to by lots of applicants. Yet they are unclear regarding exactly what is the job of a Program Testing task. Furthermore, the more they discover the task of a part the even more complication they encounter.
The functions are actually pointed out according to their duties in every field. The function of a Software application Screening Job consists of a number of sub-roles. A Duty on Program Development, Assimilation Testing, Quality Control, and also Functional Checking has a specific function to play.
In every sector there is actually a major function of screening. This software program screening makes it possible for the developers to validate that the software operates as per the demand. Many of the time the coders must deal with their very own with no form of automated tools so it ends up being necessary for all of them to get the resources and also help from software testing.
It is actually the function of the screening that aids the designer in receiving factors done on schedule and also with no headaches. Apart, from that, there are actually a few other advantages of software program screening. A specialist needs to be actually a group player.
There are actually various means where a tester can receive promoted however the absolute most crucial point for him is actually that he needs to be actually good at his project which his job as a specialist carries out not need any kind of specialist progression tasks. Hence these other perks come after a specialist's success in the part.
Some of the biggest perks of a Software Screening Duty is that the specialist possesses the obligation of generating a lot of changes in the body as well as the code is actually therefore accountable for the major part of the task. For this reason it is his task to comprehend the project extremely well. The function of a specialist is different coming from that of the screening designer. This suggests that when a specialist is taken part in creating a screening document the testing engineer or perhaps the creator is certainly not involved in the real testing.
As a specialist possesses no direct involvement in the coding procedure, a specialist may be more aggressive in what he wants to perform. Thus the duty of a specialist is actually additionally various from that of a screening engineer. The part of a screening designer is actually quite basic, as it is accountable for all screening of the software.
Even though the role of a tester is almost as major as that of a specialist, it still plays a notable function in the testing of a body. Even the coding process is actually carried out due to the specialists as well as the benefits like automated screening tools and testing platforms are actually additionally delivered due to the screening neighborhood. So the inquiry, what is the software application instruction specialist is addressed by many due to the reality that a tester is a distinct individual in the IT world.
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What is accounts payable and how does it work?
Everyone loves to make profit, which is why companies exist. Companies do complex biddings, have profit, loss, take debt and return debt and this is how they make profit. Some companies start from nothing and ultimately reach the status of a multi-billion status, just like Microsoft or Apple.
One of the most fundamental things that all businesses should know about, before starting their venture to become the very best, is to know what accounts payable is. Accounts payable is a certain term in finance, so you or someone in your company should at least have a clear idea of how to handle finances.
Here is some information on accounts payable that you should know:
What is accounts payable?
If we had to completely simplify accounts payable and break it down into layman terms, it would be that accounts payable is a term that refers to the money owed by businesses to suppliers to show liability on the balance sheet of any company.
The Accounts payable is considered short-term debt and is supposed to be paid off immediately after sales are made.
There are many things to know about accounts payable, and it depends on what kind of company is taking the accounts payable debt.
Here is a quick bit before we begin how the entire accounts payable process actually works:
Accounts payable is paid soon afterward sale
Companies that make profit by selling off products, pay off their accounts payable soon after they make a product sale.
A brief method is that companies do not pay for the materials that a supplier sends them, immediately. Instead, they have a contract that they will send suppliers money as soon as some products are sold to the general market.
In other words, in this situation, accounts payable is the specific amount that must be paid to vendors for goods that have yet to be sold.
Accounts payable process – how it works
The accounts payable process is not very complex, but we will take you through the entire process in layman terms, so that it is easy to be understood.
Without further ado, let us begin:
Pay only legit bills
The main thing a company should be looking to pay for, is to pay only the legal bills that they are required to pay for. No company would want to pay for a bill that will just leave them in negative profit. Not only will this make it easy for the company to pay the company’s bills if the bills are only legal, it will also spare them precious credit. Additionally, this will also help remove any human made “errors” that some employees might deliberately want to make, just to make the company pay for their personal efforts.
What should the invoice be?
The invoice of the accounts payable process should be made entirely to the company that the company has ordered from. There are three things that the invoice should contain:
What has been ordered – What the company has ordered from the retailer/supplier
What has been received – What the supplier/retailer has sent to the company & have been confirmed received
All units/conversions with cost – All the relevant costs that the company and the supplier have agreed upon, for each product ordered and received.
These are the entirely of legal things that are required to be on the invoice. You can add other things to the invoice too but remember that the invoice should be precise for future references.
Pay the bills on time
After getting the invoices, it is recommended that all companies pay their bills on time. If they fail to comply from doing so, suppliers can either file for a case, or just fail to give more products to the company. Either way, the relationship between the supplier and the company will be strained a lot if the company fails to comply with the deadlines that have been discussed and agreed on beforehand.
Another thing that the companies should think about is that they should refrain from paying the bills too early. Because companies must think about a lot of other expenses other than accounts payable, paying just the payable might make it hard for the company to pay the other bills that require more urgent care.
Purchase order
After the company decides to buy certain products from vendors, they will send a purchase order of all the goods, quantity and cost/proposed amount to vendors.
The accounts payable department, the vendor, the receiving department and the person who is doing the purchase order each will have a purchase order copy.
Receiving order
The company will then receive a receiving order from the vendor which will show the quantity of goods as well as the description the vendor has sent the company.
Vendor Invoice
The vendor will send a receipt to the company that will show the products they have sent when a purchase order was sent to them. All vendor invoices are payable through accounts payable, if verified and approved by the company’s accounts payable department.
No purchase order for pre-established bills
Companies that already have a pre-established bill system will not bother making a purchase order for these quantities. For example, many companies pay a pre-established bill for electricity, and other quality of life improvements that the company doesn’t need to pay an extra for. Here, the entire system of accounts payable falls apart, and doesn’t have to be used.
Finishing ups
After all the account payable payment is sent to the company, the vendor then confirms their vendor invoice and bill that they have completely received the entire payment agreed upon. If not, they will then send another invoice or message to the company with the final bill and both parties will agree on another deadline for the rest of the payment.
Conclusion
These are all the major steps that will help you understand the whole accounts payable process as well as the definition of accounts payable and the different what-ifs.
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what are your top 5 Starco episodes?
Oh boy, my first ask since the Rebrandening™! So there’s no way in hell I can, in good conscience, rank a top 5 since there are different contexts and topics covered and reasons to like each, but I can definitely put together 5 total eps with a bit of explanation for each. So without further adieu:
Booth Buddies
Because of course this one must be on the list, albeit for different reasons than you might think. Of course I’m glad we got to see a Starco kiss (especially now that we saw our shadow and got 6 more months of hiatus!) but what makes this episode for me is the entire talk beforehand and the weight of the past two seasons behind it.
By this point, it had been a season and a half of their relationship being complicated, with the emotional distance between them at an all-time high and communication about their issues at an all-time low. This was especially poignant for me as someone who didn’t even watch the show until after season 2 had already finished - I experienced the sum total of carefree Starco in a few days, and my entire tenure as a fan of the show had been when things were awkward between them.
Enter Booth Buddies, an episode dedicated to letting it all out in the classic emotionally honest fashion that just screams “Starco”. I had unfortunately been partially spoiled by the leaks beforehand. I knew what was coming, and (despite being a totally sappy romantic) am not one to get all emotional, yet the talk about what was different between them - augmented by the appropriately titled, equally soul-rending track “What’s Different” by my aural lord and savior Brian H. Kim - had me in tears. Admittedly, the fact that all the emotional weight behind it comes from hardships and mistakes the characters made beforehand, this episode almost feels like cheating because it doesn’t really pack that emotional Starco punch as an isolated 11 minute segment, but that absolutely doesn’t knock it off my list.
Speaking of cheating, let’s nip that one in the bud right now. I’ll let someone both quicker and wiser than me tackle this topic. My only real addition to this is that, in all honesty, I don’t even think Marco ever thought “boy oh boy I gotta smooch Star.” Considering at every point in the episode prior to it, both of them were under the impression that they needed BEST FRIEND photos to get out, it speaks volumes that they finally are ready to take a photo about what being best friends means to them, and they both end up leaning into a kiss. Unplanned and regretted, yes (which is what makes this not really “cheating”), but a mutual expression of how they both truly view their relationship nonetheless.
…none of this is to say that I still don’t celebrate the fact that it finally happened.
Don’t worry, the others won’t be this long.
Divide/Conquer
This one is another obvious choice.It’s really impossible to extricate these episodes from one another, so I won’t. Short of them actually getting together, the season 3 finale had everything one could hope for following Booth Buddies. Marco finally opening himself up to a close emotional relationship with Star after trying to avoid it for his heart’s sake for so long, Star’s own feelings (both romantic and more generally emotional) for Marco returning stronger than ever, the extreme care they both show for each others’ well-being and safety.
Need I say more?
Camping Trip
Here is probably the first surprising entry on my list. Remember when Star and Marco had good times together, being best buds, without any serious plot or emotional weights dragging them down? Just hold on to that thought for a moment. Nice, isn’t it? As much as I genuinely enjoy the complexities and trials of their love story, I can’t help but miss simpler times (and hope that we’ll have carefree Starco return at least somewhere in Season 4). Granted, this episode certainly does include a lot of hints that something deeper is brewing on Star’s side of things, but for the most part the actual 11 minute segment is the poster child for the two of them happy to share fun times with each other.
Kiss already.
Deep Dive (feat. Night Life)
Another classic, which is one of the peaks of their working relationship as a team against the forces of the world. Even with the emotional hurdles, Marco never stops being the person Star entrusts with anything from mundane tasks to her very life. And Marco rises to the challenge, pouring his heart and soul into not only helping Star, but doing it in a way that brings him fulfillment in life. Night Life’s ending clearly indicates that Marco isn’t giving up fun times with Hekapoo against his wishes, but rather because Star is a genuine priority to him, and he himself gains emotional fulfillment knowing that he can help her. Deep Dive, of course, executes on this idea accordingly, alongside stellar music and visuals. Plus Marco and Star fretting over each other will never not be amazing.
It appears my subtitles are broken for this episode, so in place of significant lines of dialogue, have a bug hug.
Storm the Castle
And to top off the five, here’s the first taste of serious strife between Star and Marco, alongside how important they are to one another. It’s the little details here that I love - even after their fight, Star is ready to make up with him when she finds out he’s captured. It would be so expected for Marco’s kidnapping to change Star’s heart and just sweep their fight under the rug, but their relationship was already healthy and honest enough that they didn’t need an evil monster to force them to (be ready to, at least) make up. All the depth and complexity of Starco without any of the unrequited feelings angst that characterized later forms of its depth and complexity is a fantastic combination that feeds my soul without also trying to backstab my heart.
Blood Moon Ball
“Wow, Ngame, I just learned you exist and the first thing you do is fail at counting to 5?” First off, rude, and secondly, the whole point of this was to elaborate reasons why I love Starco episodes, so the physical constraints I’m working with are less relevant than the feelings - a Starco Special™ in its own right!
This episode, for me, is the strongest isolated 11 minute Starco segment, which earns it the spot on the list. The talk on the balcony at the end is still one of the greatest moments showcasing their emotional connection, and of course the dance itself (and especially the music, once again by Brian H. Kim) are spectacular. The only thing stopping this segment from topping the charts for me is my own heart. As great as it is, at this point in time my trash heart can’t watch it without thinking how wonderful it would be to see something like it after they figure out their feelings for one another, and that tinge of sadness that it hasn’t happened yet leaves an ever-so-slight bad taste in my mouth. Perhaps it’s unfair to this episode to knock it for my own issues, but I can’t help how I feel (and it made the list anyway).
I hope this was an interesting and satisfactory answer, and not painfully boring to sit through. Thanks for the ask!
P.S. I’m going to download clean copies of the episodes with subtitles soon and streamline my screenshotting process so I can actually live up to my dear friend Seddm in the production value of my posts, have no fears.
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Aftermath: Bombshell
So… this story and its counterpart was made at the beginning of this year. However, 4.2 and 4.3 ended up revealing that Dex and Nursey weren’t back in Maine/NYC during Game 7, but in Samwell/Providence. Because I’m a neurotic mess who likes my stories in a single canon-complaint headcanon-verse, I have zero qualms about going back and retconning. I continue to thank @kleeklutch for helping not only beta the changes but make the whole thing flow better.
**Warning: this fic contains explicit homophobic language, bullying behavior from an adult, mention of past physical trauma, anxiety, and allusion to the current opioid crisis.**
Read on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13320069
There some moments in your life when you know that something catastrophic is coming but there’s nothing you can do to stop it.
You have to bear that feeling of helplessness despite your mind tearing itself apart playing out all of the possible scenarios that could unfold. Despite the constricted breaths, sleepless nights, and twisted insides weighing on your body as you get closer to zero hour. Despite everything, you just have to suck it up.
I’ve done it before. I can do it now.
I’m with over half the village crammed into Aunt Trish & Uncle Jim’s diner, and all eyes are fixed on the diner’s new bigass screen; where my former captain is about to make a seventh-game overtime shot that will earn the Providence Falconers the Stanley Cup.
I know who is going to win as this scene already played out over a week ago. Championship games tend to finish late, so we just record them so we can focus on work — in the process, we do our best to avoid to avoid news — until we all get together for a community watch party. After all, unless there’s a personal investment, there’s no point in losing productive sleep before a work day.
This year though, I was able to not only watch the game live but did so in Providence.
Unlike the alumni who had seats with Bitty, I held down the fort with Chowder and Nursey at Jack’s apartment. Though I bet that any stranger could have waltzed right in and eaten our snacks right next to us without being noticed. While I can recall the play-by-play, that night still went by in a cuss-laden blur. The only lasting evidence of how I felt were the scratch marks along my arm and slight crescents in my palms. I do know that we never let our eyes leave the screen as it went into fucking overtime.
Through overtime, I never noticed how much I’ve been holding my breath until Jack made the shot that brought the Falcs victory. At that moment, that held breath exploded out into a scream and joined the screams of my friends into a collective holler loud enough to be heard back in Samwell.
We were still celebrating — as was everyone else, evident by the chorus of shouts and honking of car horns pouring in from outside — when we saw Bitty running across the ice right into Jack’s arms. Because of course. Still, even as I rolled my eyes, I smirked and raised my bottle to them. Jack not only deserved the Cup; the two deserved all the happiness they can get.
Still didn’t prevent me from wanting to make a chirp out of Ransom and Holster probably being bummed that they can’t charge fines anymore.
Then the chirp died in my mouth, a horrible weight settled in my stomach, and blood drained from my face as realization hit.
Bitty was leaning back and gazing straight into Jack’s eyes. Something was said, and the serious look between the two turned into smiles.
Then they kissed.
Not the affectionate pecks that garnered so many fines. No, it was the intense lip-locked version that they indulged in whenever they thought nobody was watching; their expectation was frequently not the reality, but hey.
After the game, I didn’t say anything about what happened on the center ice. The state of Bitty’s phone was testament to the fact that he and Jack already had enough on their minds. And everyone else was so happy and showing them support. Nobody needed me barging in with the kind of issues that will just raise all kinds of questions.
In any case, that scene is about to be replayed here.
As the puck goes into the net, the diner erupts into cheers. Even if my village didn’t know that Jack was my captain, the Falconers being a New England team is reason enough to root for them. But honestly, I think they’re making a bigger deal about this championship than prior ones because of my connection to the Falcs.
As I add my voice to the collective cheer despite having been spoiled already, a part of me hopes that connection won’t cause them to make a bigger deal about other more personal concerns.
Though maybe they won’t have to.
As footage transitions to the postgame, I take my chance and scramble for the remote. With the focus now on celebration and general conversation, nobody should notice me turning the television off.
As I mash the remote’s buttons, the room goes silent.
They’ll probably tell me off for messing with the controls. I don’t care. It’s not like there’s anything to watch now since it’s just the post-game. All I’m doing is keeping the electricity bill down.
Then I see the blue light reflected off the countertop. No. This isn’t happening. Nonono…
As I raise my head, my stomach drops.
In grabbing the remote, I hadn’t turned off the television. I only muted it.
A delusional part of me still hopes that the camera will cut away. That those fucking journo seagulls will find something else to focus on other than my two friends being able to happily embrace without fear.
Of course, the cameras don’t turn away.
So I turn away instead.
And immediately regret my decision.
Everyone in the diner has their eyes locked onto the screen. There’s no more joy on their faces.
Just shock.
For some, their surprise is muted and hints that they got the news beforehand one way or another. However, even they watch the scene unfold in disbelief.
A disbelief being expressed in wide eyes and frozen expressions.
I steel myself for what will come after that shock. I hope that they’ll accept Jack and Bitty. I hope that they will accept the player they were cheering on just minutes beforehand. Either way, at least I will know where they stand.
Finally, Pa breaks the silence:
“Huh.”
… What.
I wait for him to add onto that. Any kind of elaboration. Anything. Anything!
Uncle Miguel looks in my direction. As does everyone else. Dammit, anything but focusing on me.
“The blond boy…” he notes, “that’s your captain next year, aye?”
I almost gag in my attempt to get my throat unstuck. “A-ayuh.”
“… Huh.”
Oh for FUCK’S SAKE!
Aunt Meg chimes in: “I mean, from what you told us about the blond one, I can kind of see it? Didn’t you say he’s a bit…?” She makes a limp-wrist gesture.
I’m saved from answering that by Uncle Jeremy. “Yeah, no surprise there. But Jack Zimmermann?”
By now, the whole diner is overcome by a low chorus of questions, bafflement, and speculation… most of which is aimed at me as if I have all of the damn answers. That’s not getting into those damn noncommittal grunts, as well as a bucketful of confusion from my younger cousins; one just asked me if that means Bitty is the girl.
While there are some comments of disapproval about how Bitty and Jack are making a scene, nobody’s explicitly disparaging or condemning the two. Which I guess is good? But nobody’s offering notes of support or at least acceptance either; though I suppose the comments about the “gutsiness” of the move count as a positive.
Overall, nobody seems to know what to think about this. If they do know, they certainly aren’t letting their thoughts be heard.
It’s pissing me off.
“So Zimmermann’s gay,” states a cousin.
“Bisexual,” I correct.
“Huh.”
Okay, that’s it! I all but throw my hands up as I move for the exit.
“You knew.”
The hissed accusation stops me in my tracks. It’s from the one person who would have a stance. I turn to see Uncle Owen glaring right in my face.
“I… I—“
“I’m not just talking about l… that." He punctuates his statement with a grimace of disgust and gesture at the screen. “You knew those two were screwing each other.” Each syllable is accompanied with him jabbing his finger into my chest.
In this moment, it doesn’t matter how much hockey has built me up. I feel like I’m a scrawny ten-year-old again, and each jab forces me backwards. With each step back, the diner gets more and more quiet as all attention focuses on the two of us.
“How long, boy?” he spits. “How. Long?”
“Since…” I hate how small my voice sounds. I hate how those around me, even though they downright loathe Uncle Owen, are curious for an answer. I hate how part of me wants to give more information than they expect but… can’t. “Since December.”
Actually longer, but nobody needs to know.
Nobody needs to know anything.
“Only two years in that libtard ‘school’, and you’re just full of surprises,” Uncle Owen muses. “Wasn’t the captain elected unanimously by the team?”
“Yes.” Shit! My answer comes out just as I realize why he asked that question. But it’s too late to take it back.
“So you knew the little shit’s a pervert and still voted for him?”
“He’s not a pervert.” I grit out as my hands ball into fists.
“So you say,” he sneers. “And I hear you’re spending the next year in the same house.”
A small part of me feels relief that he doesn’t know that I’m going to room with Nursey. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to control myself right now if the shit he spews goes in that direction. “The rent’s better.”
“Hah. Of course that’s your excuse: ‘The rent’s better.’” There’s a gleam in his eyes that’s too knowing for my liking. “What other faggy secrets—“
“That’s enough, Owen,” Pa growls while shoving his way through the crowd. “Leave my son alone.”
My father may be leaning his cane and may have kept his right arm back home. But in this moment, he looks ready to kick any able-bodied asshole’s ass.
Uncle Owen sputters, “You’re willing to let this Cultural Marxism—“
“I don’t give a flying fuck if Billy has a Little Red Book in his back pocket. You say another goddamn word to him tonight, and I’ll convince Shannon to finally cut you out of her life for good.” Pa doesn’t even raise his voice, but it’s enough to make everyone take a step back. “That will be after I rearrange your face to be as ugly as mine.”
I don’t know how long the standoff lasts. I only know that Uncle Owen is the one to back down and storm out… and that the bloody crescents in my palms are going to last a bit.
As if to enforce a sense of normalcy, the collective conversation picks right back up where it left off. This is despite the subject of the conversation being anything but normal. Pa nods to the door, and the two of us take our leave to begin the walk back home.
As the sounds of the diner fade, I check my phone. Besides the general rambling of everyone, Nursey’s making cryptic suggestions to check the national business news in the coming week.
Finally, I look up from my phone and back at Pa. “… You do know I’m no tankie, right?”
Pa chuckles. “Ayuh. Was just making a point.”
Heh, yeah. A point. He’s just saying that he’d love me no matter what. But would his love really be so unconditional if I actually started spouting commie, nazi, or beardie propaganda? I know mine wouldn’t.
So then why did he bring it up?
Uncle Owen was the one who said ‘Marxism’ first, and Pa was just taking the statement to its logical conclusion. Don’t think too much of it.
But did Pa rebuke Uncle Owen because what was being said was wrong? Or was it just because I was attacked?
If Uncle Owen made his language just focused on “them gaysexuals”, would Pa make the same statement except with the Little Red Book replaced by a rainbow flag? If he did, would that mean he considers being queer as bad as a communist?
I know that I should really be giving my father more credit than that, and there’s a heavy weight in my stomach at the fact that I would even have doubts. But still…
Pa nudges me. “Something on your mind?”
“Just…” Okay, deep breaths. “Just thinking about the coming year.” Which is technically the truth.
That gets a nod from him. “It will be interesting. No doubt about that.”
Yeah… interesting. I can just see the attention Bitty will get between him being Jack’s boyfriend and the first out NCAA ice hockey captain. Media may even come to Samwell.
People will know Bitty lives at the Haus. People will know where the Haus is; even if the media doesn’t divulge the location, it’s not like it’s hard to find due to all the damn kegsters.
What if we get paparazzi waiting for Jack whenever he comes to Samwell? What if there is paparazzi obsessed with Bitty himself? What if we get assholes who decide that spewing shit in a comment feed won’t cut it?
We don’t even keep the door locked. But even if we get the Haus secure, we have to walk to campus. Even in school, it’s not like they gate off the campus and limit access.
We should put in new locks and give out a limited set of keys. Convince the frats to install a surveillance system along the whole street. Maybe we’ll even have to stop hosting kegsters so often.
We should do something. We need to do something. We need to do something now! We need to try to keep several steps ahead of them even though they’ll keep trying to find a new way. That includes at our games.
The away games. Fuck. I forgot about the away games. FUCK!
Shit. We’re fucked. We’re so f—
“Billy!”
Pa’s voice forces me to stop walking, and it’s then that I see that I’m at least twenty yards ahead. Billy, you fucking idiot. Hell of a son you are.
“Shit,” I blurt out while rushing back. “I-I’m so—”
Pa cuts me off: “Enough of that. Right now, I just need you to breathe.”
It’s only at his request that I realize my breath are coming in rapid gasps. I try to do as I’ve been taught but can’t seem to get anything under control as my vision blurs and pressure builds behind my eyes. Oh, now you’re gonna cry about it? You gonna cry, you fucking little p—
A gentle pressure settles around my wrist, and I feel my trembling hand firmly pried away from my arm. The action forces me to look up and see Pa heaving deep even breaths to focus on. It’s not easy, but eventually I force myself back on track.
Once stability’s restored, Pa tentatively asks, “What’s the matter, Billy?”
This time, I don’t have to make the truth a technicality: “Just wondering how the school’s going to deal with the media and security issues.”
Pa nods and thankfully doesn’t ask me to elaborate. “I’m sure they’ll figure something out.”
I’m also thankful that he leaves it at that and doesn’t try to further any reassurance as we continue walking in silence.
A silence which only lasts for another few minutes. “So… your captains are together.”
When Pa comments like that, without the crowds around, the situation feels even more naked than before.
Maybe I can get something out of it though.
“Ayuh,” I mutter. “Did you know? Before this?”
He shakes his head. “Didn’t have time to read the news.”
While I believe that he didn’t find out until now, I have a harder time accepting his explanation why. However, now’s not the time to get into that. “What do you think?”
My question comes out as a whisper that keeps any emotion in reserve.
Pa looks off at some unspecified point. “Well, I can say that my bombshell doesn’t compare to the one they set off,” he remarks with a wry smile and a waving of his forearm stump around the right side of his face.
Jesus Christ… “Jesus Christ, Pa.” It’s not like he hasn’t made similar jokes before, but I still fail to find them funny.
Pa rolls his eye and thumps me on the back. “To answer your question… I don’t know what to think. Though it’s not like it affects us,” he states with a shrug.
It affects us more than you think. “You know that a lot of queer folk come Downeast, right?” Hell, everyone here knows about, and plenty attend, the pride event in Bar Harbor.
“Ayup, and I know they help keep this economy afloat. Make great music too. Most are still just passing through. I mean, sure, there are plenty staying up in Mount Desert. But still…”
So is that how it will be okay? As long as distance is maintained?
“Well one's going to be officially leading me.”
Pa creases his brow. “He is, isn’t he.”
“The other did lead me, and it’s not like he became magically bi after graduation.”
“Hm…”
My jaw clenches. At least it’s not fucking “huh”.
Our porch light shines into view and guides us inside. Once we get to the kitchen, Pa takes his prescribed painkillers while I watch; I know it’s irrational of me as he hasn’t gotten hooked so far, and it’s not like I’m here all the time, but I can’t help it after a few recent cases.
As he sets his glass down, Pa sighs, “Look, Billy. I know they’re your friends. So maybe I don’t get it. Doesn’t matter. I trust your judgement.”
It does matter.
But still… “Thank you.”
“Hell, they’re welcome to stop by.” Pa barely finishes his statement before barking out a laugh and shaking his head. For a brief moment my stomach clenches until he murmurs, “Like a Falconer would come here…”
I hide my relief with a huff: “You never know. You saw how full of surprises they are.”
That gets a much warmer laugh from him. “Ayuh. They really don’t do anything halfway, do they.”
For once, I allow myself to join in on the laughs. Maybe everything can be alright. Maybe it will be alright.
Maybe… just maybe… “Pa, I—”
“Anyways, I’m not sure if I can handle any more surprises,” Pa chuckles before looking up at me. “You say something?”
… it will be a disaster. “Nothing. It’s nothing.”
I say goodnight, Pa pulls me in for a one-armed hug, and I make the obligatory noises of protest when he kisses my forehead.
Then I walk to my room and shut the door to whisper into the darkness enveloping me:
“Nothing at all.”
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If you are thinking about laying a concrete driveway, one of your first concerns will undoubtedly be how to find the right concrete driveway contractors. Having a concrete driveway installed is a significant investment in your home and one that requires careful thought and planning. With so many different options available, how will you be able to determine which contractor will provide the best quality at the most reasonable prices? It is possible to find good quality contractors who work with concrete on a regular basis, so if you find the right one you won't have to worry about having to replace your concrete driveway down the line.
Start by asking for referrals from people you know and trust. You may not know who they are, but ask anyway, and you will soon learn when you finally get some names of concrete driveway contractors. When contacting these individuals, ask them about their concrete experiences, and also ask about the concrete they used. You should never hire a concrete contractor without first determining if they have worked with all types of concrete and on multiple types of projects, since this can mean the difference between a beautiful, perfect concrete driveway that last for many years and one that cracks and breaks in just a few years. The better the contractor is at working with concrete, the better quality you will likely get.
Once you have received a few names of concrete driveway contractors, the next step is to call each one and see if you like them. It's important that you meet with each contractor face-to-face, and that you let each one know exactly what you expect from the job, and the price range you are willing to pay. Be sure to discuss the duration of the job, and the cost associated with various materials, as well as the schedule for completion. Most concrete driveway contractors will offer a free estimate, and by meeting with each of these contractors, you will be able to compare notes and choose the contractor offering the best price.
While it's important to meet with concrete driveway contractors and find someone you feel comfortable with, it's also important to consider the durability of each contractor's work. For example, do you feel that the color and texture of one of these contractors' concrete driveway projects are better than the others? Do you think the contractor has done a good job preparing the project for installation and making sure there are no gaps or other defects? By asking yourself questions like these, you'll be able to choose the right contractor for your concrete installation needs, knowing that the finished project will last for years, and look great for many years to come.
While it's always a good idea to hire concrete driveway contractors, sometimes it is preferable to leave the whole process up to a licensed contractor who already knows the ins and outs of the permitting process. Some states require concrete driveways to be made with certain materials, while others allow for variations in color, texture, and material. Before hiring anyone for your project, make sure that they know the applicable codes and can provide references that you can call upon in the event of any problems.
Another thing that you should consider when you're looking for concrete driveway contractors is their level of experience. Not everyone who wants to get into this line of work has been doing it for years, and while experience is certainly an important factor, it should not be the only one. You should also consider how long the company has been in business. The last thing you want is to hire a concrete driveway replacement company that has only recently started in business, which may mean that they do not have a large enough supply of products on hand, or may not have the necessary skills to complete the job correctly. If the contractor does not offer a portfolio of past jobs, take a pass, as this is a clear indicator that they may not be the best option for your job.
It is also a good idea to hire concrete contractors that are familiar with what you are looking to achieve from the job. For example, if you need to create a concrete driveway that will be perfect for a particular home, you should inquire about the home owner's preferences and needs. You should also ask the concrete contractor to give examples of other jobs that they have completed in the past, as this will ensure that you will have work that meets your unique needs. If a concrete driveway contractor refuses to answer any questions regarding the job, you may want to consider looking elsewhere.
Last but not least, before you sign a contract with any concrete driveway contractors, you should thoroughly research the company online. You should spend some time searching for reviews and testimonials of customers. You should also ask any friends and family that you know who have had work done by concrete contractors about the company they worked for. By researching concrete contractors beforehand, you will ensure that you get quality work done for an affordable price and can rest easy knowing that you have made the best possible choice for your driveway.
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Everything you need to know about ceramic coatings
What is ceramic coating?
Nano ceramic coating may be a liquid based polymer, said to possess 9H hardness on Mohs scale (Diamond has 10H), that’s applied on a surface to supply it with defensive capabilities and prolonging vehicle paint life.
Is ceramic coating good for your car?
Yes,
ceramic coating for cars
is extremely great protection for the paint surface. It not only increases the lifetime of the paint but also provides a tremendous glossy appearance thereto as if the vehicle just unrolled of a factory.
IS A CERAMIC COATING WORTH IT?
Ceramic coating
is worth every penny you invest. It provides superb protection against environmental harms and corrosion. it’s an honest practice to take a position in ceramic coating services in order that you’ll secure your vehicle paint integrity for an extended time.
What is the simplest ceramic coating?
Detailing Devils provides the simplest ceramic coating 9H DNA within the sort of ceramic car coating service. this is often far and away the simplest ceramic coating with 9H hardness protection against the worst of environmental harms. it’s considered because the most advanced ceramic coating for the vehicle’s exterior paint surface. 9H DNA (Diamond Nano Armor) may be a perfect
with dual layered cross linking molecules of polymer. It provides ultimate gloss and protection to a vehicle. it’s available in 3 Variants
Reload: With 1 year warranty
Pro: With 3 years warranty
Absolute: 5 years warranty
There is also a car coating called DNA Evolution that gives 7 years warranty on shine of the vehicle surface paint. then there’s DNA Voodoo, the self-healing coating that’s recently introduced by Detailing Devils. This ceramic coating has the facility to self-heal against hairline scratches and micro swirls.
Is ceramic coating better than wax?
Wait, what? The wax and sealants don’t even compared to ceramic coating. there’s no hiding the very fact that waxes are an efficient product since old. Many are using to supply a spectacular shine to their vehicle.
But the lifetime of wax is far shorter in comparison to the ceramic coating. this might cause buying the wax again and again to repair a replacement shine on your vehicle. a complete waste of your time and money. However, the ceramic coating can stay for as long as 1 to five years counting on the coating and its application.
HOW TO APPLY CERAMIC COATING?
The application of nano ceramic coating for car or bike isn’t a simple process. There are hardly any DIY products that encourage you to use the coating on your own. The ceramic coatings require professional training and practice to be applied correctly otherwise the entire thing will find yourself during a shiny mess.
However, just to satiate curiosity.
Ceramic coating is typically applied with an applicator cloth or duster very slowly and evenly on the whole surface of a vehicle. the method is administered during a slow and tedious manner to make sure that the ceramic coating has been applied evenly without leaving any oxidation.
This is because, once the coating hardens, it’s really difficult to correct the mistakes, almost irreversible. therein event, the coating must be removed and re-coated again. that’s why precision is that the key to the entire ceramic coating process.
WHAT DOES A CERAMIC COATING DO?
Ceramic coating has many advantages but a number of them are worth mentioning through which the ceramic coating is popularized among the massive crowds. It provides protection against:
Direct harsh sunlight
Off season acidic rains
Bird dropping
Swirl Marks & Water Spots
Minor blemishes and scratches
Harmful pollutants
Road chips
Road Grime and Contaminants
Not only this, but it also keeps your car shiny for years. Will you continue to ask the question ‘what is ceramic coating for cars?’ One must get their vehicle coated with the ceramic coating to get maximum shine and protection on the vehicle paint surface or the vehicle exterior body.
WHAT DOES A CERAMIC COATING DOESN’T DO?
Ceramic coating can do tons of wonders on your car but it won’t buy you a poolside house, a May Bach, and a woman expecting you with grapes in hand. Just kidding.
Ceramic coatings may have tons of benefits over everything. But there are some things it falls short on. They are:
Requires Professional Administration not DIY
It are often Costly
It cannot fix heavy damage and scratches
Apart from that ceramic coating for car doesn’t have the other drawbacks. Your bike or car are often as shiny, new, and delightful as possible with the appliance of the ceramic coating.
Who makes the simplest ceramic car coating?
Detailing Devils makes the simplest bike and car ceramic coating that creates your vehicle become a shine and protection beast. It brings out a flawless finish to any vehicle paint, glass, rubber, fabric, leather and plastic parts. Each service is crafted to focus on individual parts of a vehicle for max care. Its detailing services comprises of.
Skin Restoration
Restores the shine of a vehicle by buffing the vehicle paint and removing contaminants from it.
Wheel Restoration
Restores the wheel by removing break-dust, mud, and pollutants from it. Adds shine and darkness thereto .
Headlight Restoration
Restores headlight by removing haze from foggy glasses and rendering them clean and glossy .
Chrome Restoration
Restores chrome fittings of a vehicle by cleaning and polishing them to an absolute finish.
Fabric Restoration
Restores fabric parts of a car interior by removing stains and marks from it.
Leather Restoration
Restores leather parts of a vehicle by removing oil stains, imprints, cracks, etc.
Trim Restoration
Restores dashboard, trim, wheel and every one the parts of a vehicle interior by a radical cleaning.
COATINGS
DetailingDevils coating services involves applying a specialized ceramic coating to different parts of a vehicle. Keeping in mind the various surfaces a vehicle has, each ceramic coating is meant to be applied on a selected surface only. This provides the last word protection a vehicle can get. The services with ceramic nano coating are mentioned below:
9H Diamond Nano Armor
9H DNA is that the popular nano ceramic coating offered by Detailing Devils within the sort of service. it’s the nano tech coating with properties like scratch resistance, mud-repellence, hydrophobicity, chemical-resistance (acid/alkaline), that help the surface it’s applied on to remain unaffected against the harmful effects of UV rays, road debris, harsh weather, rains, etc. it’s 3 variants depending upon the density of ceramic particles contained in each of them: ABSOLUTE: 5 year warranty, PRO: 3 year warranty, RELOAD: 1 year warranty.
Crystal Vision
A water-repellent coating applied to a car’s wind-shields. it’s a singular good water contact angle that helps windshields repel water within the sort of beads and provides better vision while driving in rains. Also, it’s an anti-glare feature that promotes better night-sight .
Wheel Nano Armor
Developed using three ceramics mixed together, it serves all kinds of wheels, especially alloys, to assist them withstand heat created by the braking system of vehicles. It also renders them mud-repellent and hydrophobic.
Nano Shine Armor
Permanent tire shine nano coating to guard the black shine of tires and stop them from cracking and yellowing.
Nano Trim Armor
A water-based nano coating for dash trim and other parts to guard their shine from fading & getting spoiled for years.
Fabric Nano Armor
An industrial nano coating for cloth surfaces to stop them from stains, anti-fouling, fading and make them more breathable.
Leather Nano Armor
Nano coating for leather surfaces to guard them from water and oil based stains while preventing them from cracking and dullness.
Teflon vs Ceramic Coating for Cars: Which Is Better?
Teflon may be a coating that’s applied around a surface to guard it against many damages. Ceramic coating, on the opposite hand, bonds with the vehicle paint itself. The Teflon has less thickness in comparison to ceramic coating. It has 0.02 microns while the ceramic coating features a thickness of two microns. Ceramic coating car also has increased durability and hardness on Mohs scale if compared to Teflon. So, it goes without saying that ceramic coating is clearly the apparent choice.
CERAMIC COATING FOR CARS PRICING
As mentioned before, nano coating for car are often costly but it’s a one-time application process that gives 1-5 years of durability if applied during a correct manner. In India, the value for an honest ceramic coating service may cost somewhere around 20-70K for cars. counting on the years of warranty it’ll provide. For bikes the value would be considerably lesser, almost half the quantity compared to cars.
CERAMIC COATING MYTHS
There are certain myths about ceramic coating car and bike that creates the customer attract or repelled from getting it. a number of them are listed here.
Your car are going to be completely scratch proof (only self-healing coatings can do that)
It is for lazy people that don’t want to take care of their vehicle (Little maintenance required)
Stone chips won’t do anything to your paint surface (they would)
It are often applied directly (No, it also requires a skin restoration detailing beforehand)
It is DIY once you get the hang of it (No, professional tools, place, techniques, temperature required)
Does not need regular wash ( It does, with a ceramic shampoo)
These are some myths people encounter about ceramic coatings.
For more info visit us website: detailingdevils.com
Source:https://detailingdevilsindia.car.blog/2021/04/09/everything-you-need-to-know-about-ceramic-coatings/
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Get A Job In Arkansas
Get A Job In Arkansas Of Your Choice Through Online Job-Search Websites
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Jobs are an indispensable part of society. Be it a small food stall or an international food chain, and every commercial place needs people to do the working chores. Not just the jobs need people, but even people need jobs. Without work, humans would not be able to earn bread and butter, leaving unmanageable chaos behind. This is a two-way street where both of them have to cross each other. Neither of these is whole on its own; instead, they need each other to be wholesome. Jobs and people co-exist to strike a balanced living.
With the advent of the internet, it has become easy to get a job in Arkansas within a few clicks. Everybody should have sufficient knowledge about the different types and available opportunities beforehand.
What are the different types of available jobs?
There is a myriad of jobs available as of today with umpteen categories therein. Gone are the days when only some of the fields were considered to be premium. In these contemporary times, all genres are considered respectful. Hence, people have started exploring their interests, polishing their skills, and pursuing their passions. Some of the different categories are mentioned below:-
Finance & Accounts- Money making and managing are the elixirs of every society. They are not vital on just individual level but even national levels. It is easier to mint money but managing the same becomes a hassle. Get a job in Arkansas with smart abilities to allocate funds and maintain accounts.
Health & Nutrition- It is hard and nearly impossible to work without being fit. Every working person must be mentally and physically fit to perform job tasks effectively and efficiently. Folks do not have the right knowledge about what to eat to meet nutritional needs. Hence, the demand for nutritionists and health advisors are growing.
IT & Tech Support- The internet has also converted the world into a global village. Inventions have saved lives. Machines have made things easier and quicker. Get a job in the Arkansas IT department if the spark to make continuous technological advancements is there. People have come a long way from the ancient to today's times.
Hospitality & Travel- One of the lately emerging and most trending types of jobs has taken this pleasurable form. Be it a business trip or a holiday vacation, and visitors want to travel comfortably and stay at a decent place. Resultantly, there is ample scope for travel agents and other hospitability-related positions.
Warehouse & Transport- Another indispensable part of the commercial chain is efficient carriage and storage providers. Availability of learned drivers ensures smooth movement of raw material and finished goods to and fro a place. Warehouse workers are responsible for maintaining the quality and quantity of goods.
Sales & Management- Get a job in Arkansas as a prosperity puller with exceptional selling and handling skills. A convincing salesperson and successful manager can put life in any business. Revenue collection depends a lot upon the competency of the seller, and a manager keeps everything aligned. Hence, companies look for both to grow more.
Mechanics & Manufacture- All production industries require substantial human resources to carry out numerous small and big tasks. Even non-skilled labor has a tremendous demand in this category. These on-field jobs also welcome engineers who are passionate about contributing to manufacturing or mechanical processes.
Spas & Restaurants- People look forward to enjoyable outings, due to which it has become easy to get a job in Arkansas as a member of a café or spa. These industries are always in demand and are highly profitable. Hence, owners prefer to provide commendable services to clients by having a significant and proficient team.
Others- People embrace open thinking now. They are no more tied in the restrictive lines of professions. With liberal thoughts and sprouts of creativity, several other jobs are also surfacing. Assisting event planners, boutique staff, salon helpers, retail aides, content writers, data analysts, and other innumerable vacancies keep coming up every then and now.
It would be challenging to jot down the name of each available job in the market. Seekers must visit an excellent job enlisting website to Get a job in Arkansas.
Features of a worthy job finding website
Gone are the days when job finders had to scan through the pile of newspaper advertisements and tire themselves by visiting one place after another for an indefinite period. The introduction of the internet, the creation of smartphones, and affordable network connections have simplified hunting jobs' strenuous tasks.
People can now find jobs virtually with websites that offer a common platform for both the employers and the employees. However, it is advised that everybody should look for specific features in such websites. The following features in a job-enlisting site will facilitate a pleasing and worthy experience.
Mobile And User-Friendly- In these contemporary smartphones, most device users have quicker access to their mobile phones than laptops. Everybody wants to search, apply, and Get a job in Arkansas by browsing through the immediately available means, i.e., mobile phones. Hence, such a job-finding website should be user and mobile-friendly for convenience purposes.
Filters And Categories- An appropriate website should have ample filters and organized categories. Hundreds of employers publish thousands of vacancies. Prospects would be highly annoyed if they will have to go through all the posts one by one. Even the ad placers or the employers would not get a positive response. Hence, filters like duration, type, remuneration, etc., must be provided.
Timely Notifications- Some websites take care of all the necessary things but miss out on reminders and alerts. It will be of no use if the website does not update both the job appliers and inviters on time. Candidates will want to go for personal interviews and Get a job in Arkansas immediately upon getting selected by the employers via the job finding website. But the absence of automated notifications will ruin the chances.
Speedy Process- Sometimes, the server of such a website crashes frequently, or the procedure handling team is disappointingly unresponsive. This would again make the site unworthy of finding and applying for jobs with it. The customer support team must understand that tie is the essence of the job application and selection process. Forwarding the applications after the last date would be fruitless.
Good Reputation- Giving a platform for job placement and finding is a responsible task. The careers and lives of people would depend upon the credibility of such a website. Even the aspirants and hirers must take notice of this point. You should put Applications and advertisements to Get a job in Arkansas on sites with a good reputation, guaranteed results, and positive feedback from previous users.
How to apply for jobs online?
Virtual job finders may be new portals to many people. Those who are habitual to the traditional physical system or even novice searchers may need help in using these sites. The following short and crisp guide can help to apply for jobs online in no time.
Visit- The foremost step is to open the site on the mobile phone or the computer offering various career-making opportunities. To Get a job in Arkansas, look for the regional area for better results.
Filter- A good website will always come with all the possible filters. Firstly, select the category in which the applicant intends to work. It can be any medical, engineering, business, or other fields. Other filters can be about duration, i.e., contractual, part, or full-time basis.
Search- If a person does not want to scan through all the listed options or has a specific company name in mind, he/she can search for the same. Alternatively, users may also type the main keyword in the search bar for the desired results to save time.
Fill- After getting the list, the applicant has to click on the ads one by one. The next step would be to fill in the required details like name, birth date, contact info, etc. These are usually mandatory fields. Otherwise, the recruiters would not reach the applicant for any queries or contact.
Chat- It may be needed to clear out some questions from both the hirer and the applicant’s sides before appearing in person to Get a job in Arkansas. This virtual communication will help match the company's job specifications and the candidate's suitability to avoid time wastage later.
Proceed- Finally, if things turn in favor, the website helps both parties to come in personal contact with each other. The rest of the proceedings shall be between the employer and the prospect.
After passing out from a university, the next step is to find a job. Some become entrepreneurs, but millions of people look for jobs every year. Without job security, it is impossible to buy the necessities, let alone the luxuries. Start early and get connected with the promising career searching websites to begin earning.
Visit our website to get more information related to Get a job in Arkansas.
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What was that? Part 3
The final part to the Chapter ‘what was that?’ from my Lost & Found fanfiction.
So that brings us to Friday where she would be measured and looked closely at by the hair and make-up team. It would make the whole thing run more smoothly if they already knew her hair type, length, skin type, any 'problem' spots and her size. The clothes would be neutral, a more homey type, but that made sense for a kid's toy manufacture. Her make-up had to make her look, 'less-airbrush model' and more 'random kid'. Which sounded easy enough except Mary had exceptionally long luxurious hair that no normal high schooler would be able to deal with, she was also really fit, not thin like some other models but also not with a layer of fat on her, she was healthy and 'robust' which would mean that her wardrobe had to be looked at with care.
This was a process she never understood, it was part of natural process to make older people look younger and younger people to look older. But some of the model's here would possibly be considered full time models for Wayne, they had to go through an even more through process. Her only consolation was that other than the photographer, no one else would be here, the director had final say on the looks but it was up to the photographer to get everyone looking the part.
She had considered being a full time model for a company before, but ultimately decide against it because it would limit the work she was given. Plus after their prime models were replaceable, they serve their purpose and then there off. It was why she wasn't looking at this as a permanent future. Also she had other pursuits that 'fit' her better.
She went through the motions of the measuring, fitting, styling and re-styling process until they had all the models looking the way they wanted them to. This process actually takes a long time, as it's a lot of setting and resetting, but it's better to have the information beforehand so that on the day of the shoot everybody can come in and be streamlined into their 'roles' for the shoot. They would have all the products they needed and be able to have everybody ready by the time shooting began.
Nearly 50 models, 25 male and 25 female would be fitted and unfitted for multiple shoots and multiple campaigns. The whole thing would last for more than six months, because of the traveling to different areas for some of the shoots as well as some commercials.
Mary had done a hand-full of commercials in the past, in one of them she even sang but that was way too much work, time, and attention. It messed with her getting away-traveling schedule, once for a commercial she had a feeling someone was right on top of her, and she had been so scared that right after she finished the shoot she asked a friend that was sharing her hotel room with to get her stuff for her and meet her at the airport as she 'needed' to change her flight plans because of a 'last minute shoot' after that she focused on smaller projects .
After that you would wonder why she would be okay with settling now, whether it was truly a good idea. But she meant what she said, something about Gotham relaxed her like for the first time in a long time she was safe, like someone was in this city protecting her. So long as you avoid the 'dangerous places' you were actually pretty safe, just make sure that you wouldn't be followed around and were always what in front of a camera. She didn't avoid them outside when she takes off, she prefers to be seen on camera at all times even though she panics at the idea of her hologram shutting down by accident, it's never happened but still it's a valid fear.
After everything was done it was late in the day, she had eaten the catering for the shoot for lunch, and she took some extra home with her, for dinner.
Even now as she walked the streets of Gotham, the sun having set minutes ago she was calmer, steady. She had a feeling someone was watching her but, she didn't fear any danger from this one, just a careful watch. That feeling you get when your parents are behind you making sure you don't trip or fall. Strange but she continued on her way home.
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5 Tips for Your Residence Remodelling
Residence remodelling can become a difficult time with opposing tips, an overwhelming amount of choice, and also climbing costs. Nevertheless, when planned meticulously, it comes to be a pleasurable experience watching your house gradually get a new look. Here are some tips that will make your house improvement less of a headache as well as more of a satisfaction.Construction Services In London
1. Crosscheck the specialist: Obtaining the best professional will certainly set the tone for exactly how your entire experience goes, so make certain you find a person well suggested. If they have actually offered references, make full use of these, call them, and inquire about the professional. This doesn't suggest simply his job abilities but additionally how well he pays attention to the clients because you will be in constant call with him.
2. Strategy Ahead: This rule works well in any kind of location of life. Do not wait for the contractor to give you alternatives. Surf the net and talk with pals since the last thing you want is to end up investing a great deal of cash because you keep changing your mind.
3. Home Rules: Throughout your house remodelling, there will certainly be a great deal of strangers entering and out of your house that you can't keep an eye on. If you have any kind of policies such as not smoking in your house, make it known right from the beginning.
4. Information Matter: Make certain that every detail of the entire home improvement is removed in creating by your specialist before you start with the job or placed in your cash. There is nothing worse than entering into this traumatic time and after that learning that component of your idea isn't jotted down in your contract, so you have to end up paying an extra amount for it.
5. Tidy the Mess: It is very important that the restoration team tidies up each and every single day despite whether they will return as well as develop another mess or otherwise. In most cases, the restoration will create a massive amount of dirt and also if it is left untended to, it will enter your home heating or cooling down system. This can lead to any kind of amount of health issue.
With these ideas, you will discover it a whole lot much easier to undergo your house remodelling without losing your patience. The trick, as specified over, is understanding what you desire beforehand. When you know this down to the last detail, your renovation will certainly go efficiently London.
Couple Of Tips on House Remodelling
Residence improvement is not an easy task. It takes a great deal of hard work as well as preparation to execute a perfect remodelling. Besides that, a great deal of time and money is called for in order to see to it that a home improvement job obtains its intended purpose. All thanks to the internet, even inexperienced home owners can quickly find lots of house renewal ideas online. As the restoration project can set you back countless bucks therefore the house owner requires to make certain as to what it is that he intends to obtain.
Numerous points concern the mind of the individuals while thinking of restoring a residence and several of these consist of bathroom improvement, professionals, repairperson and contractors. Nevertheless, lots of things require to be taken into account prior to the restoration project starts. Home remodelling suggestions are essential for intending a home repair task. Among the most important points that a property owner needs to identify is the factors for renovating a residence. This assists in guaranteeing that the residence improvement project launches with suitable reasons and also thus, the outcomes of revival are ideal London.
Suggestions as well as pointers are essential during intending stages as they not only assist in saving some bucks yet likewise offer homeowners some alleviation. It is essential for owners to take down expected modifications thoroughly as well as the product required. Furthermore, it is a smart choice to take the recommendations of some professional before beginning with the revival procedure. An engineer or an indoor designer will see the troubles that or else might go undetected by the property owners. He will certainly suggest proper solutions for the problems and remove them during the renovation process.
Creating a building restoration is not just about exactly how it will certainly look yet likewise what products are to be made use of, when they are needed, making payments to sub specialists and suppliers and quality assurance. Complying with are couple of typical mistakes made by property owners while remodeling a home:
Not enough Planning
The success of your restoration task largely relies on excellent planning. A plan assists you in concentrating on the locations that need your attention.
Poor Materials Administration
Prompt product preparation is a huge task yet it can be really pricey not having the ideal products in the needed amount at the right time. In huge projects, you can seek the recommendations of a specialist to estimate the needed material London.
Slack Quality Control
Make use of a work-check-approve-work cycle at every stage of the renovation. The three most critical parts of the task consists of frameworks, foundations and solutions. The structures are the assistance on which the various part of style depends.
Poor Document Maintaining
Keep file, records and whatever well organized. Your financer needs evidence of completion at every phase as well as a summary of costs with the days, before issuing you the next repayment. If in case, you are not utilizing money service then record keeping is just a good monitoring.
Poor Subcontractor Monitoring
One benefit of hiring a builder as the job manager is that they have a great network of subcontractors. In a full home renovation, there can be 25 to 5 subcontractors. You require to have a well-planned system for handling, engaging, certifying as well as getting subcontractors.
Just How to Get Ready for Residence Improvement
Having any residence remodellings can be disturbing. We are not simply speaking about , but your house hold being interfered with. How can you prepare yourself for a home improvement and also decrease the anxiety?
This will greatly depend upon the sort of improvement or project you are taking on.
We are all watching the 'dimes' or 'cents' nowadays, this has been intensified by the ongoing financial environment. We might have been attracted to relocate residence not too long ago in order to update to a bigger residential or commercial property, or to gain more garden area. We now take into consideration carefully whether a house remodelling or refurbishment is a far better choice. Obviously, you need to research the housing market. Check out the area in which you live, the marketplace value of comparable residential or commercial properties to your own, triggered versus the cost of the remodellings you are planning. In a successful real estate market (ideally not as well away), you will certainly 'gain the incentives' of your improvement in economic terms, ought to you wish to market in the future London.
From a customers' perspective, what is a purchaser searching for in a residential property? Both major areas that buyers wish to see upgraded are the most pricey to remodel, these are the bathroom and kitchen. Adding an outdoors home entertainment area is also a marketing feature.
Living in your house while a remodelling is taking place can be a little stressful, so exactly how can you prepare yourself for your residence renovation and make the process as pain-free as possible?
Research study is essential, unless you are an expert in home refurbishing, I would seriously take into consideration hiring experts. Word of mouth is probably the very best way to choose that should manage the project. You might search websites such as ANGIES CHECKLIST which has an excellent track record. Request at the very least 2 quotes from various firms. Additionally ask to see instances of their work. Directly I would prefer to see instances of work finished, even fulfill a number of pleased clients, than rely on website testimonies. Consider that although you have utilized a company of specialists to do the job, they may sub-contract out to various other specialists where needed. Ask who is going to take on the plumbing or the electrics, find out a little bit extra concerning the people whom you are sharing your residence with London.
Take your time in choosing products, don't be rushed, making breakout choices might cost you extra in the future. Think thoroughly regarding the area you are renovating, what is its main function. That utilizes the space and how typically? What appearance do you want to achieve? and naturally just how much are you prepared to invest? Is there a bit a lot more in the budget in situation of the unforeseen taking place?
Keep a diary of events, take previously and also after pictures. Ensure you have call numbers for your contractor or consumer care center. Ask concerns. Keep reviewing the progress made. If you are not delighted with something, resolve the problems prior to the task relocates any better.
I also assume it is necessary to be on-site as the task starts to unravel. Know that is coming when at what time, how much time is the project going to take. Ask for an estimated date of conclusion. Do not pay the sum total of money prior to the task is finished and also you are thrilled with the results. A specialist contractor should have the finances to complete the renovation without requesting for project cash. Nevertheless, a tiny deposit serves to go in the direction of materials.
From a sensible viewpoint, we can't all remove on holiday and come back to an amazing designer space total with accessories and also flowers. So see to it if you are' living in' the task, that you can manage without this room working totally for some time. Professional service providers understand just how disruptive restorations can be as well as they will not leave you without running water as an example.
House Improvement to Produce Your Desire Residence
I always made use of to assume that relocating was the one of one of the most disruptive occasions to bring willingly into your life. I have since discovered a much more excruciating and taxing activity - RENOVATING. The word itself covers up the repercussions it really holds. One has visions of a little paint, perhaps altering a light fitting or 2 and also maybe placing in a wonderful contemporary shower room.
What you really obtain is weeks of countless dirt, an intrusion of individuals right into your home, an exponential increase in tea and coffee consumption, an up-close-and-personal encounter with personal belongings you neither had understanding neither demand of and also a significant boost in expense, which triggers capital crises. I have typically thought over the past weeks - why can't we just reside in a shack on the coastline, rest on the floor as well as just utilize one plate each?
While happy to delight in slightly hippy fantasies, I are afraid that in this life I will possibly not handle to shed my already various material properties in favour of a carefree breezy existence. The fulfilment obtained from residence remodellings is impressive and also I make certain that as soon as finished I will be happy to have put such laborious strategies right into activity as well as seen them through to conclusion. Yet completion seems fairly distant at this point!
I have actually found out some invaluable lessons throughout this procedure and also can only intend to pass them on to others to ensure that you can profit vicariously from them. This little checklist can conserve you plenty of troubles as well as much frustration:
1. Constantly have a look at recommendations regardless of how "straightforward" you believe the specific to be.
2. Do some research study on the products you plan to use: i.e. wall surface layers, exterior products and ideal technique approaches for applying and also installing your picked surfaces. This truly aids, as at least you know a bit about what you are talking about and also have a suggestion of what to anticipate quotes from contractors to be.
3. Obtain a specialist, objective point of view on tough problems. So usually a fresh pair of eyes can see the wood from the trees in half the moment that you have invested wrangling with the trouble.
4. There is greater than one means to skin a cat - use a little bit of savvy and attempt to deal with individuals who are prepared to be aggressive in resolving challenges, as they emerge. I have located that clever individuals deserve their weight in gold. Utilize them and also their experience to your benefit. Professionals that appreciate what you want can generally discover a method to provide it to you or a minimum of obtain close to the twenty-twenty you had London.
5. Understand that points will go wrong as well as try not to take the effects out on yourself, your companion or various other loved ones. Couple of things are completely incurable and most busted products can be fixed (at a rate). Learn about how to clean or fix installations must damage take place - particularly taps as well as baths. Buffing a bathroom is a crucial piece of knowledge - for acrylic bathrooms you can do it yourself with water paper to obtain scrapes out and acetone for persistent marks, or get a professional in to do it for you. Contact your distributor before you go ahead with this simply in instance. Sealant can likewise be removed from chrome taps with water not turpentine or thinners, as they damage chrome. Just water, a fine green searching pad and also some elbow grease works a reward.
My advice overall is to be cautious of the estate representatives' plug, follow your sensible idea pattern and conclude that if renovating your house had not been worth it for individuals selling the location it most likely won't just fall into place for you. However with persistence, preparation and also a lot of perseverance you will see your desires materialise. Occasionally things come out even far better than you anticipated and occasionally you need to endanger a little or even a whole lot, however this is all worth it, if you enjoy the trip and accept that the location is an operate in progress.
Perfect Residence Remodelling Suggestions
Every home-owner has distinct home remodelling suggestions. Remodelling of a home is considered as a job with various thoughts involved. Firstly, restoration of house includes countless type of home enhancement job. Remodelling of a house and residence remodelling are comparable terms and also can get quickly overlapped in a number of different locations. For instance, the renovation of a home may include fixing or upgrading your house to raise its facilities, functionality as well as energy-efficiency whereas the term house renovation is a lot more about upgrading decor, style, space, as well as fixtures.
Restoration of a home is available in many different plan sizes as well. Some projects can normally cause others. In this write-up, we have actually listed here terrific concepts that can be made use of for restoring your home. This will in fact pay you back over a period of time and also will act as a great financial investment in your home.
Doors and Windows- Among the most popular ideas that can be used while you are remodeling your home is to replace windows and doors since it isn't really affordable. If you upgrade these locations of your residence, you can easily increase your home's performance and decor. It is observed that these projects can aid the atmosphere in numerous ways. As a matter of fact, the green improvement ideas for home involve power saving. Ensure to set up double or triple paned windows as this will certainly assist optimize your objective in reducing warm loss, warm gain, air leakage, and condensation troubles. Often door replacement is thought about a good suggestion. It is observed that with flow of time, wood doors can reduce or swell.
Insulate and also Aerate - Roofing insulation is just one of the most neglected renovation jobs for house. The warm climbs yet mainly individuals do not realize that it keeps rising and can work its escape through the roof covering. Roof covering insulation can aid stay up to date with this warm inside your home. It can likewise straight influence the total insulation performance of most houses. One must ensure that they mount correct ventilation to avoid prospective timber rot and ice dams. Cellar insulation is the other essential great improvement idea for house. There are lots of resident that set up basement insulation in their cellar ceiling so that chilly floorings upstairs can be protected against.
Include Storage Space Cabinets and also Restructure - There are few individuals who like the concept of springtime cleaning, no matter the period or need. If your home is being overwhelmed by straightforward mess, the mental weight of trying to clean up your house can be rather frustrating. It is feasible to mount additional storage space closets as well as work with an indoor developer to rearrange the residence. They can supply you with a plan to comply with for stowing away your common home products in such a way to ensure that it helps you preserve a tidy home.
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