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ninja-go-to-therapy · 3 years

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Whumptober 27: Okay, Who Had Natural Disasters On Their 2020 Bingo Card?

Earthquake

This one was an absolute delight to write. I just love this type of fic. Thanks to LovelyStressedPrincess for feeding me ideas and writing a couple of the paragraphs.

Summary: MK wakes up to an earthquake. At first he writes it off as paranoia, but as the day progresses, he can't help but feel like he's been here before.

Trigger Warnings: serious injury, mild self harm

2537 words

MK woke up to the world shaking. Books were thrown from his shelves, various trinkets going everywhere.

Oh shit, was this an — earthquake. The word left a gross sense of deja vu.

The earthquake stopped almost as quickly as it started.

Warily, he dressed himself, praying there wouldn’t be another one. This had been rather tame for an earthquake.

He hurried downstairs, not wanting to be late for work.

When he saw that the shop, too, was a complete and total mess, he couldn’t help but be a little bit relieved.

In the calabash, nobody but him had been affected by the “earthquakes”. This meant that it had actually been real.

Thank god.

“Kid, are you okay?” Pigsy asked.

MK snapped out of his thoughts. “What?”

“The earthquake, are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said.

Pigsy seemed satisfied. “Good. Let’s get started on cleaning this mess. I won’t have customers thinking we’re slobs!”

MK laughed breathlessly. Yeah, that was definitely Pigsy. There was absolutely nothing to worry about! Everything was all good.

An hour later, the shop was totally spick and span. Luckily, the earthquake hadn’t done too much damage.

From there, MK went on with his job, delivering noodles to people all across town. Rush hour had traffic, and there were no free samples.

Still, the earthquake had him on edge. But there was nothing to worry about. He was sure there was nothing to worry about.

The day proceeded to be almost painstakingly average. No horrible demons attacked, and he didn’t have to deal with any Karens at work. It was just… normal.

Almost suspiciously so.

At the end of his shift, Mei showed up. That was odd, wasn’t she supposed to have been busy? He could have sworn she was doing something today.

“Are you ready?” She asked, bouncing on her heels.

“Uh… ready for what?”

Mei laughed. “Don’t tell me you forgot.”

“Forgot…?”

“That event the arcade is holding? You know, the one we’ve been talking about for weeks?”

MK’s blood went cold.

There was no event. He’d never made plans with Mei. He was sure of it.

He would have remembered if he had, which meant… no, no, this was the only strange thing that had happened, it didn’t mean anything…

But what if it did?

What if he was trapped again? What if this was all fake? The earthquake, the complete and total perfect normalcy of the day…

Okay. Alright okay, there was an easy way to figure this out. He just needed to check for his staff.

Mei watched, looking somewhat concerned, as he reached for the staff. Only… it wasn’t there.

“Where’s the staff?” He asked, panic beginning to set in.

“Locking away DBK,” Mr. Tang supplied from across the room as he slurped down his noodles. “Are you feeling alright, MK? You look a little… ill.”

He had never done that. He’d never defeated DBK, not for real. It wasn’t true. They were lying to him, none of this was real.

“I’m fine,” he squeaked, backing away very, very slowly.

“Kid?”

He snapped around, coming face-to-face with Pigsy, who looked just as concerned as the other two.

Oh god, he was being boxed in, they were going to hurt him, they wouldn’t want to let him leave.

He forced his breathing to slow, and he gave the most natural smile he could muster. If he could convince them that he wasn’t onto them, he could buy himself some time.

“Everything’s good!” He said. “Sorry, I dunno what got into me! Anyways, I should probably make this last noodle delivery! I’ll be back soon for our thing, Mei!”

“If you’re sure…” Mei finally said, looking unconvinced.

“Please, I’ll be as quick as a bunny! You know how great I am at noodle deliveries, after all,” he said, as if he thought the concern was him not making it back in time. If he just kept playing dumb, everything would be fine. He just needed to get away.

He grabbed the bag of food, getting into his cart as calmly as possible.

Almost there almost there almost there.

Finally, he deemed himself a good distance from them. He didn’t know to what extent the demons had control over this… realm? Pocket dimension? Illusion? But he had to figure this out quick, before they realized he knew what was up.

Still, he couldn’t stop the panic from growing. Everything was so much more natural than last time. Had he not been here before, he probably would have just written it all off as a bump on the head.

But he knew better. He wasn’t stupid.

He came to a stop on the side of the road, putting his head on the steering wheel.

He needed to go. But he needed to stop. Why was he freaking out so much? He’d been here before, this would be a piece of cake.

But his breathing refused to calm, and he was pretty sure he was going to vomit.

Deep breaths, he demanded of himself. Deep. Breaths.

“MK?”

He looked up, his knuckles going white from how hard he was gripping the wheel.

“Monkey King,” he greeted stiffly, swallowing down his fear.

“Well that’s a little formal,” he laughed.

MK just looked at him, ignoring his comment in favor of trying to determine what to do. Fake or not, Monkey King was too strong for him to fight. Especially without his staff.

Monkey King frowned. “You seem—”

Agitated, MK thought with a growing sense of dread. He was going to say that. Jin and Yin were just taunting him, they were playing with him, they were letting him know—

“Worried.”

Instead of comforting him, MK only felt the sense of nausea swirling in his stomach get worse. They had gotten smarter.

That wasn't good.

“Mhmm,” he agreed, not trusting himself to speak.

“Did something happen?”

Besides being trapped in an evil artifact again? Besides the fact that the world around him was completely and utterly fake? Besides knowing that everyone here was nothing but a lie?

“Nope!” He forced out. “Just had a long night!”

He needed to get his staff he needed to get out he needed to run.

“Anyway, I’vegottodeliverthesenoodlesbye.” He didn’t give Monkey King a chance to stop him, speeding off in his cart as fast as it would take him. By the grace of the heavens, he didn’t follow him.

Okay. Tang had said his staff was on the mountain. He found it a little odd that the demons would put it right back where it had been last time, but hopefully that would make it easier for him. If last time’s experience had taught him anything, it was that he would have to be fast.

He didn’t know how quickly Jin and Yin would send his “friends” after him. He glared at the street. Friends. They were nothing but empty shells, puppets on strings. That may have been the most cruel part of all. Trying to make him believe that the people he loved were real.

Focus MK. Just get to the mountain.

He could do this.

He continued to drive, trying hard to force all other thoughts out of his head. It was hard to not think about things when you were thinking about not thinking about them.

It was hard not to focus on the fact that he was trapped in a tiny world controlled by two people who were intent on destroying him, who were holding his life in their hands, who were manipulating and playing with it like putty, who wanted him to suffer and not know it until the very last moment.

Tears pushed at his eyes. It wouldn’t be like last time. He’d figured it out way faster, and now he was going to put an end to it.

This didn’t help to calm the panic.

Jin and Yin had done a better job this time. They were smarter. This could only mean horrible things for him if he let it go on any further.

He pulled to a stop again, squeezing his eyes shut. He just needed a minute. He just needed a quick minute. Everything was gonna be fine.

He covered his eyes with his hand, as if it would block the tears. It really only served to make his hand wet.

Shakily, he ran his other hand through his hair, flinching when a sharp burst of pain came from it.

Carefully, he touched that spot again. There was a large, really fucking painful bump. When had that happened? He didn’t remember hitting his head…

Whatever, he could worry about it later. Right now, he needed to pull himself together and get the hell to the mountain before he was caught.

He couldn’t manage to stop crying, but the tears had at least slowed enough that he felt he could drive again. His vision was only slightly blurry.

Just as he pulled up to the construction site, his phone rang.

“Um… hello?” he asked, cursing himself when he choked up. Fuck, now they would know he’d been crying.

“Kid? You okay?” Pigsy asked from the other end of the line.

“I’m—” so scared “fine.” He forced down a bitter laugh. They really had gotten smarter. A worried phone call instead of all his friends randomly showing up to stop him from taking back his staff, yeah, that was clever. But he wasn’t stupid. He was going to get out of here, and he was going to go home.

“Okay, great, care to tell me why this tracker app says you’re hanging around at that construction site instead of doing your job?” Pigsy asked, sounding somewhat annoyed.

“I’m not stupid!” MK yelled, unable to hold himself back. He all but flung himself into the elevator, directing it down. “You can’t keep me in here this time!”

“What?”

“You can’t trick me that easily again!”

“Kid, hold on, I’ll be right there—”

“Don’t even try it!”

He hung up, glaring at his dark phone screen as the elevator continued to descend.

And then, out of nowhere, it stopped.

“Come on, you stupid piece of junk!” he begged, “Work!”

Oh god. He’d given himself away, and if he didn’t get to the ground in time, they’d catch up with him. Fuck fuck fuck, he was so stupid, why had he done that?

He looked down, weighing his options. He couldn’t jump, not without his staff. He’d break something for sure.

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck. He kicked the wall of the elevator as if that would do something.

He was a sitting duck. For a few, dreadful minutes, he sat there, contemplating his options. He was going to throw up.

“MK?” he heard.

No.

“Are you here? Pigsy sent me since I was already nearby.”

No no no, he wasn’t letting not-Mei ruin everything.

“MK?”

He covered his mouth, hoping it would quiet down his breathing. He couldn’t make a sound.

He heard Mei fiddling with the lever of the elevator. “Move, you stupid…” she gave it a kick, and then it started to move. Up.

No!

He didn’t have a choice. He forced the gate open, tumbling out and to the ground.

The resounding crack echoed loudly.

“MK, oh my god!”

He scrambled to his feet, whimpering through the pain, limping frantically for the staff. Almost there, almost there—

“Kid, stop! What is he doing?”

“He’s going crazy, he just jumped from this thing!”

“Holy shit, MK, stop!”

He tuned out their words, forcing back the tears and the pain. Almost there. Just a little closer—

Someone grabbed him.

“No!” he screamed, wrenching himself from their grip. They only grabbed him again.

“MK, bud, take a deep breath. Can you do that?”

Monkey King was here why was Monkey King here he wouldn’t be here if this wasn’t all fake.

“Let me go!” he screamed, twisting out of his mentor’s hold once more, barely making it two steps before he fell to the ground.

His not-friends were surrounding him.

He couldn’t breathe, they weren’t going to let him get to that staff, he could barely even think through the pain, he needed to move, but he couldn’t.

“Give him some air!” Pigsy demanded, pushing Monkey King to the side as he kneeled beside MK. “Kid, look at me.”

MK squeezed his eyes shut tight. “You c-can’t trick me, not again,” he whispered.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb! I know! I told you I know! Give it up already!” he sobbed, clutching his leg.

They were trying so hard to save this, it was almost pathetic. They’d gotten Pigsy just right this time, too.

He loosened his grip on his leg, slowly sitting up.

“Hey, hey, be careful—”

He bolted. He shot to his feet and ran for the staff, holding back every scream and every sob. He could hurt when he was free.

His fingers brushed against the staff—

He was yanked back.

Mei was there, holding her blade. “We can’t let you do this,” she whispered.

“You can’t stop me this time!”

He threw a punch, actually managing to land a hit on her. She looked shocked and horrified and scared all rolled into one.

“MK,” Tang said, approaching him with his hands up, as if to show that he wasn’t a threat. “You need to calm down so we can look at your leg.”

MK had to give the demons props. Tang really did look scared.

“Stay. Away from me!”

Mei put a hand on his shoulder. “We just want to help,” she insisted.

Without thinking, he kicked her with his bad leg, nearly falling to the ground himself with the pain. Still, he scrambled for the staff once more.

Monkey King forced him to the ground. “Enough!” he shouted.

MK didn’t listen to him, crying so hard from the pain that he couldn’t see straight. He kicked, and screamed, and fought, but Monkey King, real or not, was so much stronger than him. He was helpless.

“Just kill me!” he sobbed, thrashing in Monkey King’s grip. “Just kill me!” he begged again. “I know that’s what you want! Just do it!”

Monkey King recoiled. “Where would you even get that idea? Kid, it’s me. I would never want you to be hurt. But you’re hurting yourself by doing this.”

MK thrashed harder, his sobs making his whole body shake and tremble. His leg twisted in the wrong way.

He screamed, the sound ripping from his throat painfully. His breathing picked up, he was hyperventilating again, get off him get off him get off him he needed to get out please let him go he wanted to go home he wanted to be in reality again.

“We need to get him to a hospital,” Tang said, from somewhere to his right.

“Mei, call an ambulance,” Pigsy said, looking over MK worriedly.

“No!” he sobbed, weakly fighting back. It hurt so much. He was beginning to get tired. “Let me go, kill me, please…”

“Help is on the way, bud,” Monkey King said.

In one last attempt, MK reached weakly for the staff, even as darkness began to overtake his vision.

He had been so close.

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tglifestyle · 4 years

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Well, that happened quickly 49! Wow! I know a lot of people get depressed about hitting milestones like 40, 50, or 60 but for me, I feel like each decade gets better so it doesn’t stress me out about hitting the next milestone. Age is just a number, so I can honestly say I have no problems with turning 50 next year, which isn’t surprising because I didn’t have any problems with turning 40 several years ago.

On the streets of Venice, Italy March 2019

Bring on the Botox

Now, I’m not saying I’m a fan of some of the “gifts” getting older has to offer, like the deepening lines and wrinkles, the worsening eyesight (hello, readers!), the stiffness and creaking in my joints, among other fun things that aging brings to the table. I’m fully on board for face creams and Botox as needed! I’m not trying to fight the clock, but I have already invested in veneers for my teeth and hair extensions, which I consider methods to enhance my appearance as I age, not necessarily ways to try to look younger.

My forties have been my best decade yet, so I can only assume my fifties will be even better. In thinking about what 50 will have in store for me, I decided to reflect on what happened over the past 9 years and what I have planned for this final year of my forties. When I started mentally cataloging my accomplishments, adventures, failures, and thoughts, I was surprised at just how much travelling we did and also by how many different things I did. If variety is the spice of life, things are pretty spicy (not smoking hot, but spicy)!

Hair extensions gave me the fullness my thin, fine hair just didn’t have on its own.

Make new friends, but keep the old

I made lots of new friends in my forties, and lost some along the way as well, but that’s OK because the new ones have become some of my favorite people and are like sisters to me. Besides losing some friends and gaining new ones, I also had the opportunity to reconnect with old friends (gold friends!) a few times over the last decade. I feel very lucky to have so many of these people in my life for over 30 years, and what is truly special is even though many years and thousands of miles separate us, we can all pick up where we left off when we do get back together. That’s magic.

One is silver…

…and the other’s gold.

The relationships that have changed the most over the last decade are the relationships I have with each of my daughters. When I turned 40, they were just 11 and 13 and now they are soon to be 21 and 23. I was surprised to realize just how different the relationships I have with your adult children are from the relationships I had with my teenage children. I can honestly say I like the adult relationships much better! Truly my greatest accomplishment, my daughters have both grown into incredible young women and I actually enjoy hanging out with them now.

With my husband and beautiful daughters in Hawaii.

19 States and 4 Countries

From the time I turned 40 up until now, I have been lucky enough to go on lots of trips. I absolutely love to travel and if I had the means, I’d do it every month. I have been to many other places not on this list prior to turning 40, but during my forties (besides cruising all over Georgia) I went to:

South Carolina (Charleston, Folly Beach, Hilton Head) North Carolina (Asheville) Florida (all over the state, everywhere from Jacksonville down to Miami, over to the Gulf Coast, and everywhere in between) Tennessee (Nashville, Knoxville, Gaitlinburg) Kentucky (Owensboro) Ohio (Cincinnati) Alabama (Gulf Shores and Orange Beach) Louisiana (New Orleans) Missouri (St. Louis) Iowa Wisconsin Minnesota South Dakota (Rapid City) Nevada (Vegas) Arizona California (San Francisco, Palo Alto, Napa Valley) Washington (Seattle, The Gorge) New York (NYC) Hawaii (Maui)

And… London, England Cancun, Mexico (twice) Toronto and Montreal, Canada Venice, Padova, Bologna, Florence, and Rome Italy

Trevi Fountain, Rome

But, what did I do?

At the start of the decade, I was not working. I made the decision to stay home with the kids and help my husband with his business towards the end of 2009. So, when I turned 40, I was deep in the throws of PTA, cheerleading booster club, and running a small custom cake business on the side as well as helping out in our convenience store. I went back to work full time when I was 43 and have since worked for 3 companies (a Fortune 500, a Fortune 7, and a small independent firm) as a project manager.

I’ve been a PTA president, a cheer booster club president, hosted bingo nights, and served on countless committees. I’ve driven carloads of kids to and from basketball games, football games, swim meets, and cheer competitions, and chaperoned dances and field trips. I’ve baked hundreds of cakes and cupcakes and spent countless hours in my kitchen mixing up icing. I’ve cashed lottery tickets, stocked drink coolers, taken inventory and dealt with vendor and customers. I’ve managed technical projects, budgets, programs, and team members. I’ve prepared countless presentations, reports, and spreadsheets. I’ve even been laid off twice and all three of my jobs that I’ve held in my forties found me – I didn’t have to find them – thanks to keeping in touch with former colleagues.

I helped my husband with all kinds of construction projects including the remodel 4 houses, and the build out of a new business. I’ve painted, caulked, scraped, sanded, lifted, loaded, and hauled. I’ve been on ladders and rooftops, handled power tools, and had my physical strength (and patience) tested.

I ran several 5K races over the last 9 years including the Warrior Dash twice. I’ve gained weight, and lost weight fluctuating nearly 60 pounds from the high point to the low point. I’ve had one surgery. I’ve attended countless concerts and music festivals in several different states and countries.

You got this!

I guess that’s not too bad

So when I think I haven’t accomplished much in life, because I haven’t raised a million dollars for charity or because I’m not the CEO of a big corporation or because I haven’t become Instagram-famous, I instead need to remind myself of all that I have done – because it’s a lot. Among all of this, I even managed to raise two teenage girls without losing my mind: middle school, high school, college. That in and of itself is huge.

For my 49th year, I want to learn to give myself more credit, rid myself of doubt, and gain a little more confidence in my abilities. I want to see some new places (hello, Greece!) and try some new things. I want to not only maintain the relationships in my life, but also nurture them so I can be a better wife/mom/daughter/sister/friend.

So, here I go. We’ll see you soon, 50.

The Last of my Forties Well, that happened quickly 49! Wow! I know a lot of people get depressed about hitting milestones like 40, 50, or 60 but for me, I feel like each decade gets better so it doesn’t stress me out about hitting the next milestone.

#49 #forties #life experiences #middle age #Travel

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tuesdaystorch · 6 years

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Tuesday’s Torch

09/25/18

By: Tim Sader

I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. (2 Corinthians 2:8)

Our first Thanksgiving and Christmas being married and under the same roof was a lot of fun. We discussed various customs each of our families had and started figuring out what traditions we would bring into our marriage. Most importantly we want it to be a day we celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ and spend time giving gifts and affection to all our loved ones. New Year’s kind of just came and went for us in 2016. It is a hard day for Sammy because it is a loud holiday and fireworks make her have spasms and hurt a lot. The next big event in our relationship was Valentine’s Day weekend and this year would be the one that will be difficult to top. The first trip I took to see Sammy after a big snow storm was actually on Valentines so it holds very special meaning to us. We started celebrating that year a few days early on our 10 month anniversary. I knew we had some big things happening in the next couple days so I wanted to give her the jewelry to wear on those other nights. I bought her a white gold heart key with diamonds outlining an amethyst heart at the base of the key. The next evening our friend Kim got us signed up for a thing at her church called a Luke 14 Banquet. Basically that is the story where no one comes to the rich man’s feast so his servants go and invite those who are less fortunate (Lk 14:15-24). The church where we had this event invited people with disabilities, low incomes and others who are sometimes left off of the guest list. They went out of the way with valet parking, red carpet, tables were decorated with center pieces, table cloths. They served fancy finger foods, cake and fruit punch. The DJ played music, people danced, there were many activities such as a salon for hair, nails and make up also a photo studio, cookie decorating and bingo. We hung out a lot with Sammy’s friend Kim but also this was like a reunion for her so I met a lot of people from various times in her past. She has touched a lot of lives with the grace of her presence. The following day I think we just used it to decompress and prepare for the bigger date on Valentine’s Day. Earlier in the year we heard of an epic concert coming to the Charleston Coliseum and it would sell out fast especially accessible seating. The tickets went on sale at 10 am one day several months beforehand and all six shows sold out before the day ended. That day I had the urge to be out of bed early so I could get tickets to the Garth Brooks show. The first time Sammy saw Garth it was a special moment for her and her mom 19 years previously and I never saw him live but always wanted to.

The day of this concert we wished to get dressed up but since it was cooler outside I had to dress warmer. We both wore our jeans with long sleeved shirts this was enough for Sammy but I also wore a quilted flannel shirt and my blanket. If I’m not mistaken this weekend hit us with the first cold snap all winter. When we got there we had nowhere to park so mom let us out of the van and we made our way to the door while she parked far out in the lot. When she caught up with us we showed our tickets to a staff member and she led us to the elevator so we could get to our seats. We were in the handicapped platform on the left side. The show started with a warm up band I had never heard of. Then it moved onto one of Garth’s background singers who was working her solo career. Finally after what felt like forever Garth lit up the stage and never stopped until every fan was satisfied. The positive energy and star quality that man puts into every performance is absolutely infectious. He completely captivates the audience and compels them to feel something in every song. Christs love compels us in a similar manner because we are convinced that He died once for us all. Since all have died those who live should not live for themselves but for Him who died whom with we are raised again (2 Cor 5:14-15). We should feel the urge to always reaffirm our love for Him. This is why if I am compelled to preach because of my love for Him. If compelled by Him to do something and we don’t shame on us (1 Cor 9:16). Paul tells us to imitate Him but I would not say that about myself I say imitate Christ and join me in becoming more like Him (1 Cor 4:16). At the end of the night Sammy and my heart were full from a new Garth memory we were able share together.

Lord I thank you for the lovely memories you have blessed me with however big or insignificant they may seem. Help us to be grateful when we are included in the lives of our friends and loved ones. When we are left out God help it not to be so sad and remind us that even when nothing’s left you will still be there in our corner. We want to be compelled by the love of Christ who died for us all and rose again. We reaffirm our love for you Jesus so we may do the good works you have called us to. Compel us God to do whatever it is you want us to so that we might be better imitators of you. In Jesus Name, Amen

Tuesdays Torch has been viewed in countries all across the globe through our website and social media. We pray the words of every Torch will sink into the hearts and minds of readers. Please share Tuesdays Torch and encourage others with it. To partner with Tuesdays Torch and help expand our reach please contact us. We pray the Lord will touch our readers. All of what Christ did was so we would believe. He told us not to believe because of what He said but in what He did (John 14:11). Every Tuesday we talk about what He did and is still doing. The best thing God’s done is send His Son so we could be saved (John 3:16). If anyone is not a believer we pray they will invite the Lord into their lives by asking Him to forgive their sins and believing that He is the Son of God. Please share testimonies, feedback or encouraging words by email at: [email protected] we enjoy hearing from you. Look out for next Tuesdays Torch on our website http://www.tuesdaystorch.com , by email, Facebook and Twitter @tuesdaystorch Thanks and God Bless!

No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. Luke 8:16

Tuesdays Torch week 503 Tuesday’s Torch 09/25/18 By: Tim Sader I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. (2 Corinthians 2:8)

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