#my supervisor said they’d find me my own closet so this stops happening (this is the third closet - in all three of them my shit was bein

[digimonnetwork-project]

Episode I

The seeds are sown...

“Shidou...Shidou....Isamu Shidou pay attention!” There was a dull thud as Isamu was thrown out of his thoughts by the sudden acquaintance of his head and the teacher’s book. At his old school, the boy in question would never have gotten in trouble for daydreaming in class, let alone assaulted for it.

“Gah! I’m sorry, Ms. Mazawa! It won’t happen again!” Isamu exclaimed, bolting from his chair and bowing repeatedly while he rubbed the back of his skull, certain a bump would develop where he’d been struck with the teacher’s book. He pictured something large and swelling, hopefully enough to get him out of math next period, but would go down before soccer practice after school.

“Honestly!” She huffed, twirling her graying hair in exasperation, “Shidou, this is the third time this week. You know I hate doing this, but if you can’t be bothered to pay attention to the lesson I’m going to have to keep you after school.”

Aside from the streaks of grey in her hair, Ms. Mazawa didn’t look more than a few years passed thirty, but her barbaric teaching methods made her seem centuries older. Isamu suspected she might be one of the old monsters of folklore, maybe Arikura-no-baba or Osakabe, but Isamu really didn’t care enough to try to research which one she could be.

“Yeah right you don’t like doing it, you keep kids after school all the time.” A chill ran up Isamu’s spine as Ms Mazawa’s irritated scowl deepened into a glare, making him overly aware of the fact that he had said this out loud instead of keeping it in his head.

She swatted him upside the head with her book a second time. “Shidou, I was just going to keep you in class for thirty minutes to reread today’s lesson, but your smart mouth just earned you a detention spent setting up the cafeteria for the archery club’s fundraiser tonight!” She declared.

“Y-yes ma’am!” Isamu stuttered, getting a giggle out of his classmates, “I’m sorry ma’am!”

“I hope you are.” Ms. Mazawa replied and turned to go back to the front of the class.

Isamu sighed and returned to his seat, brushing brown bangs out of his face and looking at his desk. At his old school, his classmates would have been laughing with him, not at him, he thought reminiscing, again, about his former life. The bangs he just moved fell right back into his eyes. He really needed to find something to keep his hair in place.

“Psst! Isamu!” He turned around at the sound of his name and saw his classmate Masato Namura give him a thumbs up. Beside him, Aki Mikami pushed up his glasses and awkwardly waved at him.

Isamu gave a small nod of acknowledgment to the both of them before facing the front of the class. The two of them were nowhere near the top of the food chain in this school’s social hierarchy, but they were the only friends he had here. He turned his head back out the window, catching his phantom reflection in the glass. How was it that he only had two friends? At his old school he was the cool popular kid that was friends with everyone, how did he become so bad at connecting to people?

In the glass, Isamu noticed more than just his own blue-eyed reflection. Just outside the door way he could make out the faint image of someone standing just outside their classroom. He looked that way just to be sure it wasn’t a trick of the light. Yes, there was a girl standing there, waiting to be invited in.

“Now that that’s out of the way, class...” Ms. Mazawa said, turning to the door, “We have a new student transferring today. Please give her a warm welcome. You can come in now, dear.”

The girl stepped in front of the class with her head held high. The students all have short gasps of amazement at the fact that she dared come in without her uniform on. The transfer student was wearing casual clothes, ankle length beige pants with green trimming that matched her Chinese style shirt  and held her bag in front of her like a purse, rather than a backpack. Oddly, the thing that stood out about her wasn’t her lack of uniform, but the fact that she was wearing a white fingerless glove on her left hand with what appeared to be a strange digital watch over it.

“Hello.” She said to them, pulling a strand of her black hair behind her ear. “My name is Ju Ling, my family and I just moved here from Bejing. I don’t have my school uniform yet because of a mix up that gave me the wrong size.” She looked over at Ms. Mazawa who waved her hands for her to continue, “I'm an only child who likes computers, though I’m not necessarily very good with them. Thank you for having me, I look forward to joining your class.”

With a bow, she concluded her introduction and looked at Ms. Mazawa again who directed her to take the open seat next to Isamu. They whispered something to each other and Ju giggled as she came forward, Ms, Mazawa had probably instructed her to make sure he didn’t start daydreaming again. Isamu sighed and began scratching notes on the lecture.

This was going to be a long day...

When the last bell of the day rang, Isamu almost forgot about his detention and started out the door with Aki and Masato when Ms. Mazawa reminded him of his unwanted duties. Basically he was setting up chairs and tables for an hour and half, rather than the half hour lesson he would have gotten if he hadn’t mouthed off,  but still that was an hour and a half Isamu wasn’t spending at the park practicing with Aki and Masato.

Another defeated sigh escaped him, tryouts for the Soccer team were a few weeks away, Masato was the right midfielder and Isamu had been the striker for the team at his old school, but Aki had never played an official game. Isamu felt terrible that he had to miss out on training Aki, the blond haired boy wasn’t awful by any means but he needed as much support as possible.

The archery club supervisor met him outside the door where he saw another of his classmates, Kaiyo Nakano, lined up as a volunteer. Isamu knew she was a volunteer, number one because he knew she hadn’t gotten in trouble, secondly because Kaiyo seemed to volunteer to help out with every club, though she was only an active member of the chess club.

“Hey, Shidou, I’ve already signed us both in” Kaiyo greeted, taking the opportunity to partner up with him, “It’s easier for me to work when I’m not in a skirt, so I’m going to change out of my uniform before we start. You go ahead and change too, that way you can just leave right after we’re done.”

“Oh? Okay, thanks.” Isamu replied, he hadn’t even known they were supposed to sign in as volunteers, but with Ms. Mazawa nowhere in sight, he supposed there had to be some way for them to prove he’d actually done the detention work. Deciding not to waste time, Isamu went to his locker at a slight jog and grabbed his casual clothes to change in the nearby boys bathroom.

As he swapped clothes Isamu’s text alert beeped and he juggled his phone to check it as long as there was no one to scold him for texting when he should be working. The message was from Gorou, a friend from his old school. Isamu’s heart skipped a beat, he’d messaged Gorou about hanging out over the weekend three days ago, what had taken him so long to reply? To his disappointment, Isamu opened the text to find a simple “Sorry, can’t come ¯\_(ツ)_/¯” in response to his invitation.

Isamu dejectedly put his phone away without replying and finished changing so he could get to work. He stepped out of the stall sporting a pair of capris and white shirt with the word “REAL” printed in english lettering on the front, and a black track jacket with blue stripes running down the sleeves. He folded his uniform into his school bag and started back to the gym, running into Kaiyo again on the way.

Apparently she’d had the same idea to change in the girl’s bathroom. She was dressed in a pale pink shirt with the words ‘Be Kind” written under a graphic resembling a heart made out of an arrow, an army green jacket, light shorts, and long striped socks.

“Looking sharp. Leave your bag by the door and don’t forget to pick it up when you leave” She winked at him with a friendly, teasing tone and led the way back, and took him over to a supply closet once they dropped off their bags. She went on to explain “It's actually not a lot of work to get this all set up, but it takes two people to carry one table, sometimes more for the big ones. Mr. Kojima and Mrs. Arai will tell us where to put them, we just have to coordinate and do the heavy lifting.”

She wasn’t kidding about it being heavy, Isamu could hear her grunt as she pulled a table out from the closet and was soon grunting himself as he grabbed the other end and helped her lift it away. “And you volunteered to do this?” He blurted without thinking, he really needed to stop that, it usually got a laugh in his old town, but around here, it usually got him in trouble.

But to his surprise, Kaiyo did laugh, “What can I say? I like to keep busy. It sure beats going straight to my homework.” She said, they both paused for a moment while the supervisors instructed them on where to move the table to. Kaiyo showed him how to set it up, and they were quick to return to the supply closet to get another table.

For a little while, Isamu actually felt like he was finally connecting to people as Kaiyo introduced him to other students from around the school. He’d never needed anything but soccer in his life for a long time, but as he was socializing with the volunteers and other kids in detention, Isamu thought Kaiyo probably had the right idea by volunteering with other clubs outside of his personal interests.

It didn’t take long to get everything set up, and as much fun as this had surprisingly turned out to be,  Isamu was the first one out the door when everything was done- after just barely an hour rather than the hour and a half they’d thought it would take. What were the odds that Aki and Masato were still at the park? Isamu didn’t want to leave them hanging, and considered texting them when he found there was no need to.

They were waiting outside the school gates for him, already changed out of their uniforms. Masato had dark grey jeans with yellow stripes on the side, and a vest half zipped over an old graphic tee from the 80s. His dark brown hair was kept out of his bangs with a red bandana that, for some reason, Ms. Mazawa let him where in class.

“Man, they sure kept you in there long enough, did’ja have to clean the toilets with a toothbrush or something?” Masato griped as he picked his bag off the ground and stood back from the school gate.

“Ms. Mazawa told him to help set up for the archery club, I don’t think that’s what they do in detention.” Aki told him  and pushed up his glasses, his white jacket was zipped up all the way and had an orange stripe running horizontally across his chest and shoulders. He had dark green pants tucked into long boots, and his bag was strapped over his shoulder.

“What would you know about it? You’ve never gotten a detention!” Masato teased, lightly punching Aki’s shoulder, playfully, Aki stepped on his foot in response.

“He will if he keeps hanging out with you.” Isamu joked back and turned to Aki, “And yeah, I was totally scrubbing toilets with a toothbrush, all detention kids have to!”

The look on Aki’s face was priceless, it took all of his will power not to laugh, “Y-you’re kidding, right!?” His glasses slipped further down his nose and once more he had to push them back into place.

“About the toilets or about you getting in detention because of me?” Masato slinging his arms around each of their shoulders, at which point Isamu couldn’t help laughing, ruining the joke entirely.

“Well, never mind.” He said, freeing himself from Masato and  sticking his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “Sorry to have kept you guys waiting, you still free for practice or-”

“-Shidou!” All three of them turned to look, surprised to hear Kaiyo calling for Isamu.

She  was running toward them from the school entrance. She’d been a volunteer and was free to go whenever, but Isamu was under the impression that she was going to stick around to decorate too. His face flushed a little when he saw the reason she was running to catch up with him.

“What’s up Nakano, can’t you see we’re trying to escape from this place?” Masato trilled with a mischievous grin.

Kaiyo skidded to a stop and panted for a second before she looked at Isamu and smiled as she handed him the bag she was carrying with her. His bag, that he must have left at the fundraiser despite her warning not to. “You forgot this.” She winked at him, “Tanizaki wanted to hang it from the basketball hoop but I told him it was mine. You owe me big time.”

“Ah, th-thanks Nakano.” Isamu replied, taking his bag back and flipping it over his shoulders.

She waved her hand dismissively, “You can just call me Kaiyo if you want.” she said, hiking her own bag onto her shoulders and turned away, heading down another street, before shouting over her shoulder  “See you guys in class tomorrow! Don’t forget your homework again, Namura or Ms. Mazawa might actually make you eat lunch in the hall this time!”

Masato made a face while Isamu quirked his eyebrow at the bizarre sounding punishment, “It’s worse than it sounds,” Masato said, “Anyway, I guess I better get home and do that homework. You guys alright practicing without me?”

“Actually, I’d better do the homework too.” Aki said, pushing up his glasses and looking at the ground, “After all we have that math test coming up and it’s my worst subject.”

“You say that about every subject.” Isamu rolled his eyes slighting, very aware that he needed the practice for the math test more than he needed practice for the soccer try-outs, “Man, sorry about the detention guys, I hate to have you waiting for me and not have time to actually practice.”

Masato clapped his shoulder, “It’s alright, we can practice for a while and then do homework together at the park. I fail, you fail, what do you say? We can always practice more this weekend, you guys free?”

“I’m always free.” Aki replied with a shrug. “And studying together would probably be good for all of us, too” they both turned to Isamu, waiting to hear his answer.

His  fingers brushed his phone and thought about Gorou, but remembered that his friend claimed to be too busy to hang out this weekend- somethin he was never too busy for when they lived on the same side of the river. “Yeah, I’m free too. Who wants to race- huh?”

Isamu paused mid sentence, staring up at the building across the street where the air had seemed to distort for a second. Aki and Masato both looked the same way, but there was nothing to see. Isamu quickly dismissed it as a trick of the light, “Sorry, seeing things I guess.” He said, though he couldn’t shake the sudden feeling of being watched, “Anyway, I’ll race you guys to the park!” He pushed his way passed them and took off at a run, giving them no choice but to give chase.

Isamu laughed as he ran, Masato quickly started gaining on him with Aki no more than a few feet behind. The park was a few blocks away, and all three of them were exhausted from the run, “I’m.. so...slow…” Aki complained as they panted by the water fountain.

Masato checked the clock on his phone, “Actually... I think we... broke our record” He said.

Isamu clapped Aki’s shoulder, coughing slightly, “And you... kept up, just fine...I had guys on my team… At my old school...who were much slower…” He told him.

It took a few more minutes to convince Aki that he had done well, before they all agreed to sit at a picnic table and complete one page of homework before they started practice. Working together they actually managed to complete two pages before they remembered they wanted to practice some, too. Aki had a duffle bag which he kept his swimming trunks and towel in, as well as his uniform and clothes when he needed to change, and now it had become home to their soccer ball.

Between homework and practice, Isamu forgot about the strange distortion he’d seen outside the school, but while they were practicing the feeling of being watched started to creep up on him again. Not wanting to frighten Aki or Masato, he ignored the feeling and focused entirely on being the instructor, teaching both of them a trick he’d picked up at his old school to pass the ball between teammates while feigning a shot at the goal to confuse the other team.

At long last, they’d had enough practice and went back to their homework where it was harder to ignore the feeling of being watched. It was starting to alarm Isamu greatly, “Man, guys, I’m starting to get really tired” He sad, stretching to try to avoid suspicion of why he was suddenly backing out of the study group, “I think I’m finally getting this, so I’m going to head home for dinner and finish up tonight. I can text if I need extra help right?”

Masato nodded, “Yeah, it’s starting to get late, too” he said, “My aunt will get worried if I don’t at least call.” Aki agreed, and they all got up to leave the park- the feeling following Isamu, though neither Aki nor Masato seemed to be concerned. Whatever it was, he didn’t want to put them in danger so he tried to discreetly hurry them along.

However, the three of them spent a few extra minutes talking on the side of the road and finalizing plans for their weekend meet up before they finally parted ways. Aki and Masato lived three blocks away from each other, but Isamu lived in an apartment in the opposite direction.  

Having lived down here long enough to have learned a few short cuts, Isamu avoided the crowded main roads by taking less used alleyways, hoping to lose whatever was haunting him. This particular street was a back road behind a few convenience stores that occasionally company trucks used for deliveries, but Isamu rarely saw anyone actually using them.

His text alert beeped again, making him jump slightly, but he stopped to check it, this time the message was from another of his friends from his old school canceling their plans to hang out the next day. Isamu frowned and put his phone in his pocket without texting back. He’d only moved across the river for his father’s new job. Why was it so hard for everyone to meet him?

The boy became so lost in his thoughts that his sense of alertness started to fail. Isamu had his phone out again, looking up what assignments he had to for his classes and trying to decide what he needed to complete after dinner and what could be done during lunch tomorrow when he noticed movement. Isamu looked up, now absolutely certain that it was not just his imagination, or a trick of the light.

Where he had seen nothing but an odd ripple from the corner of his eye,  something melded into view. It looked like a giant chameleon wearing military gear. “Found a good one!” A raspy voice called out from the monster’s direction. Wait- that thing wasn’t the one speaking was it?

Faster than Isamu could make a run for it, a long slimy tongue lashed out of the creature’s mouth and wrapped around his body. He screamed and wiggled desperately, but was yanked closer to the chameleon’s open maw. Isamu closed his eyes, not wanting to see his upcoming doom, and wondering if the creature would kill him first or if it intended to swallow him whole and alive.

Neither option appeared to be the case, however as mere meters from the beast’s jaws, the tongue suddenly lifted him high. Isamu hardly dared to open his eyes again, but eventually had to when the raspy voice demanded he did, confirming that it was in fact the giant chameleon that was speaking.

Isamu struggled to breathe in the firm grip of the tongue, but did as commanded and opened his eyes to look at the creature, which was scrutinizing him the same way he might inspect the latest electronics while deciding what was better quality.

“Yes, yes. You’ll do.” The monster muttered,  Isamu whimpered as the tongue started to retract back toward the creature’s mouth, certain that this time he was going to be lizard chow, but to his relief, Isamu’s toes brushed the ground and he was released. Isamu toppled over, landing face first onto the pavement. “You’ll do just fine.”

Instinct told Isamu to get up and run, but logic reminded him that the creature would catch him with its tongue again if he tried...and maybe this time he would end up as dinner. “I...I’ll do just fine for what...?” Isamu asked, clearly food wasn’t what this monster was after, for now at least, but he had no idea what it really wanted from him.

The answer came with a massive foot being pressed onto his back, pinning him to the ground. “My Tamer!” The creature replied, “I am Chamelemon! And I need a leader like you to make me stronger!”

Chamelemon spoke as if Isamu should know what that meant, “You seem plenty strong to me!” He said, and wound up again regretting his tendency to say what was on his mind, when the pressure on his back increased as Chamelemon pushed him harder into the ground.

“Don’t be a fool! I barely scrapped through the war on my own! I need you to be my Tamer!” Chamelemon growled, “Now, make me stronger or I’ll kill you!”

Isamu wasn’t really in a position to say no, even if that’s all he wanted to do. Who did this thing think he was, what did he mean leader? Sure he had taken charge of Soccer practice but that hardly made him a leader. What could someone as powerless as Isamu do to make Chamelemon stronger? Two shapes appeared in Isamu’s peripheral vision, a black one and a white one. Female voices cried out strange words.

"Moon Surge!”

“Sun Bash!”

He managed to turn his head just enough to see the white shape, some kind of dog-like animal, shoot a small blast of light energy at Chamelemon. Though Isamu couldn’t see it, the black one on the other side of him was doing the same thing. The combined blast was powerful enough to knock Chamelemon back, allowing Isamu to scramble away.

With a good look at his rescuers now, Isamu realized that they were an almost identical pair. The canine features extended only to their faces and body shapes, their ears were long and tipped with tuffs of fur that were red on the black creature and blue on the other. They had long tails with spikes on the end.

“Ju! Get ready” The white one called, glancing behind her, passed Isamu forcing him to look as well.

He was surprised to see the girl that had transferred into class just that day. Ju looked equally surprised to see him, but didn’t dwell on it long as she focused on whatever it was that the white creature had told her to prepare for. Ju lifted her arm, pressing buttons on her digital watch.

The black one dodged a lashing from Chamelemon’s tongue, “Leptomon! Ju! We need to act now!”

“Don’t rush her, Cannismon!” the other replied, shooting another blast of energy from her mouth.

“All set!” Ju called, looking up from her glove, “Do it!”

The small dogs leaped between Isamu and Chamelemon, and their bodies began to glow. “Eclipse Snare!” they cried in unison and bounded forward, black and white energy trailed their every move.

Chamelemon attempted to squash them with both his tongue and his claws but Cannismon and Leptomon were much faster than him. The pair encircled him several times before their glow diminished and they sprinted away . The trail of energy they’d left behind tightened like a noose, trapping Chamelemon in its coil!

Ju took a few long strides forward, holding her gloved hand in front of her, “Initiate data conversion!” She shouted.

A computerized voice replied “Data conversion initiating.” A beam of light shot out of Ju’s watch and struck the giant lizard. Chamelemon started to pixelate, “Conversion in progress.”

“No!” Chamelemon struggled in his bonds, much like Isamu had while trapped by his tongue, and just as fruitlessly. Bits of his body broke off in small pixels and were dragged down the beam into the watch. The process was slow at first but picked up speed, and soon there wasn’t enough of Chamelemon left to struggle.

When he vanished entirely, the beam returned to Ju’s watch and the computer voice announced, “Conversion complete. Scanning new data....Scan complete. Digimon identified: Chamelemon. Would you like to view Chamelemon’s profile?”

“Not now.” Ju said and lowered her arm, pressing another button on her wristwatch.

The air around them pixelated in a similar manner to how Chamelemon had vanished, but aside from that, nothing seemed to change. “Digital Construct deactivated.” The computer said.

Ju then turned to Isamu, “You alright?” She asked.

Isamu’s mouth was hanging open in shock, “Wha- Did you kill it?” He asked.

Ju laughed, “What? No! No, I never kill Digimon. I just converted his data into something a little easier to carry.”

Isamu jumped when two small bodies suddenly pressed up against him, “If a Tamer converts a realized Digimon back into scan data, they can take them back to the Network, or even all the way back to the Digital World!” The one that had been called Leptomon said, bumping her head against Isamu’s hand like she wanted him to pet her.

“We always send the hostile ones back to the Digital World. If they attack humans in this world they’re not going to be welcome in the Network.” Cannismon added, wagging her tail, but keeping back from Isamu.

“Digimon? Network? Digital World?” Isamu looked at Ju for some kind of explanation, but the transfer student was busy giggling.

Finally she stepped over and offered him her hand to help him back to his feet. “That’s a little hard to explain, but Cannismon and Leptomon seem to like you, and they don’t usually warm up to strangers. Maybe Chamelemon was onto something, choosing you.”

“I don’t understand.” Isamu exclaimed, digging his hands into his pocket, “Choosing me for what?”

“To be a Digimon Tamer.” She replied, lifting her glove to him so that he could see that it was not a watch on her wrist. She lowered it and held her hand out again, this time in greeting. “I know I introduced myself this morning, but I think we should have a more proper one. I’m Ju Ling, I’ve been a Tamer for three years. These are my partners, Cannismon, and Leptomon.”

“Nice to meet you!” Leptomon said with a sing-song-voice, Cannismon gave the same response in a less enthusiastic tone.

“Hi, nice to meet you. I’m Isamu Shidou.” He replied, shaking Ju’s hand and looking at the creatures at their feet for a moment before turning his eyes back to Ju. “What’s a Tamer?”

Next episode

#Digimon #Digimon fanfic #Digimon FDD #DigimonFDD #Digimon fanseries #chapters

[sebspocketsquare]

I Hate You, I Love You

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, angst, mentions of violence, language A/N: Here’s another one from my old masterlist. Enjoy <3

You hadn’t expected to fall in love with him. 

That wasn’t part of the plan that your supervisor had told you about. You were to pretend to be dating him, let the enemy see you two getting close. Let them see you get comfortable, before they planned an attack. Let them see him get comfortable. When you first met Bucky Barnes, you were petrified. You had heard all the ghost stories about him, but you’d also heard rumors about he behaved before he left for the war. A murdering womanizer did not sound like a good time to you, but as you got closer to him, you started to notice little things about him. Normal things.

Like how whenever he’d drink his coffee, the liquid would get caught in his mustache, but instead of wiping it away with a napkin, he’d use the back of his hand. It was almost.. endearing. Or how whenever you’d playfully tease him about how handsome he is, his cheeks would turn a light shade of pink, even though you both knew this was a charade. This was all a trap. To capture the last of Hydra. It was no secret that they still wanted Bucky back. To reprogram him to do their bidding; exact their revenge. This is how they’d be drawn out: Seeing that Bucky was finally settling down, being domesticated. Seeing Bucky let his guard down and be happy. But what they never saw was your life behind closed doors.

You and Bucky never spoke aside from your scheduled meetings at coffee shops, local parks and even the library. The soft smiles he’d cast in your direction never did quite reach his eyes, and his flirtatious words and actions were all the product of someone else’s mind; rehearsed to make it seem real. Bucky had been hesitant to even touch you at first. It took weeks just for him to hold your hand. He still hadn’t kissed you, yet, aside from the lingering ones he’d leave on your cheek every now and then. But god, you’d have to be an idiot if you didn’t see how you’d started to fall for him. It was quick, but not painless. Some nights, you’d go back to your apartment and curse yourself for even thinking for one moment that any of this was real. For looking too far into what he meant when he said, “I’m really glad I have you.. You make me feel.. okay.” You couldn’t help it, though. James Buchanan Barnes had you wrapped around his little finger, and he thought it was all a joke. What could you do? The answer to that question is simple: nothing. You had a mission, and that mission was to make the outside world believe that you were in love with the Winter Soldier, and that he was in love with you, too. This has to happen. It’ll save so many lives.

So that’s why you’re here, 8 long months later, sitting in one of the most expensive restaurants in the city, wearing a dress that’s crushing your rib cage and shoes that are blistering your feet, while Bucky sits across from you, dressed in a black suit with a black tie, pushing his hair out of his face nervously. “Babe, its okay. You don’t have to be nervous. Nobody is going to recognize you.” You whispered to him, reaching across the table to grip his hand tightly. He chuckled nervously, shaking his head, not meeting your eyes. “That’s not what I’m nervous about, doll.” He said, his voice barely above a whisper. You leaned forward, using your free hand to caress his face, ignoring the pained expression that he wore as your thumb traced his jawline softly. “I won’t let them hurt you.” You whispered to him, and suddenly, you saw something register in his eyes. He leaned towards you, bumping his nose against your own gently as he smiled. “I.. I gotta ask you something, sweetheart.” He breathed, and you hummed in response, pressing your lips to the tip of his nose gingerly. The next thing you knew, he was holding a rectangular box right in your line of sight, and you felt your heart clench in your chest. Your eyes scanned his face apprehensively. This wasn’t part of the plan. What the fuck is happening? You could heart your heart beating in your ears as he opened the box slowly. It wasn’t what you were expecting, but it was still something big. Keys? Your eyes met his again, and he was still wearing that stupid, boyish grin. “Will you move in with me?” He asked, his teeth capturing his lower lip softly as he waited for your answer. “Bucky, I..” You paused, your hand leaving his cheek to cover your mouth. You were speechless.

“Just say yes, babe. Please.” He practically begged you, his gloved hand catching your neck, pulling you back to him before you could go too far. Your hand dropped from your mouth as you let out an airy chuckle, nodding slowly. “Okay..” You breathed, and for the first time, you saw him smile a real, bright smile. All of his pearly whites were showing, and you couldn’t stop yourself from leaning forward and pressing your lips to the corner of his mouth. You felt him tense at the contact, but relax quickly as he pecked your cheek softly. “I’ll come over tomorrow and help you pack.” He whispered to you, and you felt brave, suddenly. “Or.. You could.. Just come back to my place tonight.” You offered, chewing the inside of your cheek nervously. His eyes studied your face for a moment, obviously surprised that you had said that. You were a little surprised, too. You felt your stomach drop to your feet when you saw him start to nod slowly as another small smile graced his face. “Yeah.. I’d like that, actually.” He said, making you hope that for once, something had changed with him, that it could be real for once.

The ride back to your apartment was everything you hoped it would be. You’d both opted to take a cab, cuddled up in the backseat with his lips caressing your neck sweetly. He kept whispering sweet nothings against your skin, earning small gasps and giggles from you in the process. “Bucky.” You whispered, pulling his face up to meet yours as you pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I’m so lucky to have you, you know that?” He breathed, cupping your cheek in his hand. “I never tell you that often enough.” He continued, narrowing his eyes slightly. “I’d be lost without you..” You felt your heart start pounding in your chest as your eyes searched his face, looking for any trace that he might be lying. When you found none, you felt your eyes sting, letting your forehead rest against his. This is real.

The cab pulled up outside your apartment far quicker than you liked. You would’ve stayed cuddled up in the backseat with Bucky forever, if you could’ve. He helped you out of the car carefully, his fingers lacing with yours as soon as you were steady on your feet, before you began leading him towards your door. Suddenly, he pulled you towards him, causing you to collide with his chest gently. His lips found your ear tenderly, but his voice was harsh. “There’s someone in your apartment. Stay still for a moment.” He whispered soft enough for only you to hear, and though you felt your heart leap into your throat, memories of the time you walked in your apartment, not knowing there were two Hydra agents lingering there flooding your mind, and you nodded, nuzzling your face into his neck for effect. He hummed happily, his hands roaming your lower back softly, comfortingly. “Doll?” He said louder, his lips resting on the top of your head. “Yeah, Buck?” You asked, fluttering your eyes closed as your nose brushed against his throat. You felt his muscles tense under you for a moment before his hands found your upper arms, squeezing gently. “Let’s get you inside, you’re probably freezing.” He said softly. You looked up at him, your eyes scanning his apprehensively. He gave you a slight nod before resting his hand on the small of your back and leading you towards your door. You didn’t argue.

Once you were both inside the apartment with the door locked, Bucky turned to you, his index finger resting on his lips as he pulled a small gun from his hidden holster. You nodded, taking in a shaky breath as you watched him move through the apartment silently, checking every room, every closet, making sure that whoever was here was gone, now. Ten minutes later, he returned, running his fingers through his hair slowly. “They’re gone. You should be safe tonight, but Steve will be watching close by just in case.” He told you, all the tenderness gone from his voice. You cleared your throat, cocking your head to the side. “You- You’re not staying?” You stammered, and you saw his lips form a thin line as he shook his head slowly. “Y/N.. You know I can’t do that. We had an agreement - this isn’t supposed to get too serious.” He told you, his eyes cold as he stared down at you. You felt a lump form in the back of your throat. “Right. Not too serious. That’s why we’re moving in together, right?” You asked, your bitterness getting the best of you. He sighed, coming forward, his hands caressing your elbows as his eyes bore into you. “Y/N.. You know it has to be like this. This is just business, a mission.” He told you and you nodded, chewing the inside of your lip as you felt tears pool in your eyes. “Sure. Have a good night, Buck, I’ll see you in the morning.” You whispered before you tore yourself from his grasp, heading towards your bedroom. “I trust you can find your way out.”

“Y/N.” He called, his voice soft and pleading. You turned to look at him over your shoulder, seeing his eyes glazed over as he stared at you with his mouth hanging open slightly. “I’m sorry. I don’t want you to get hurt.” He said quietly and you shrugged, sniffling as you averted your gaze. “It's okay, Buck. Don’t worry about it. Won’t be long now, right?” You teased, forcing a small smile. “Then we can go back to our own lives.” You finished with a whisper, hearing him let out a long breath. “They’re hoping within the next few weeks.” He told you and you nodded, turning back to head towards your room. “Goodnight, Buck.” You called softly, not caring at this point if you got a response from him.

#Bucky Barnes #Bucky barnes x reader #winter soldier x reader #bucky x reader #sebspocketsquare #james barnes x reader

[bridgetatwork-blog]

How I did the DCP on a Budget

Well, to be fair the word “Budget” may be the wrong choice. I merely chose to blow my money on things like coffee mugs with Mickey Mouse on it and buy every person I ever knew a Christmas ornament because the discount was bumped to, like, 50% off. 

  If you’re reading this you most likely know what the DCP is. If not, no worries- I’ll tell you! The DCP, or Disney College Program, is an internship that caters to thousands of students from varying backgrounds and aspirations. It has two main seasons, Spring and Fall, and a smaller Summer season. These can break down even further to Spring/Fall Advantage (longer) or just the Spring/Fall (most resembles a typical college semester). Students live in Disney sponsored housing and work on property in a multitude of roles (jobs) such as merchandise, food service, custodial, entertainment, hotel services, etc. The program exists in both Anaheim’s Disneyland and Orlando’s Walt Disney World Resort. I participated in a Spring and Fall program in Orlando as a Merchandise cast member. 

The pay for these roles are mostly shit unless you land an Entertainment gig or working in a premium location like on Main Street in Magic Kingdom. I think I made $7.25 my first program and $7.50 my second program working merch in the resorts right outside Magic Kingdom. I did earn a little extra when I worked the holiday booth in the Contemporary during Christmas time, which was nice. That costume was also super comfy- the pants felt like yoga sweats and I wore a Chef’s jacket that felt like a hoodie! The costumes at Disney are really hit or miss with the designs and how they fit. Mostly misses. The hours varied for me in these locations. I would typically be scheduled for 25-30 hours and would offer to stay late and would pick up a bunch of extra shifts. Disney has one of my favorite OT policies for interns: if your shift is longer than 9 hours, everything after that 9th hour is OT. If two different shifts are within 6 hours of each other (back to back) then the previous 9 hour rule applies. If you work more than 40 hours in a week than everything after that 40th hour is OT. This was how it worked in 2012- it may have changed since then.

So with that layed out it is safe to say that I was making enough money to support myself, but not enough to do that and have the fun I wanted. When it came time to choose between groceries or tickets to Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights you can guess which one I picked. Hint: I wouldn’t be writing this if I had a full pantry all the time. 

FOOD The most important thing to have on your radar is where your next meal was coming from. If one of your roommates has a membership to Sam’s or Costco, coordinate your shopping day with them to take advantage! I signed up for a loyalty card to Walgreens, Winn-Dixie, and anywhere else I found myself visiting often. Winn-Dixie is a southern grocery store that sometimes can rival Walmart with their deals- like 10 Totino’s Party Pizzas for $10! I could make those things last for like 2-3 meals each when put with some cheap chips or something. Watching the weekly ads for deals from local places and Walmart helped me find variety so I wouldn’t notice I wasn’t eating right. And I could sometimes find deals on fresh produce, sandwhich meat, or meats that were about to reach their sell-by date! Something I always kept on hand was Popcorn and Pickles. They lasted forever, made quick snacks I could eat on the go, and would give me a false sense of eating a lot (especially the popcorn) which kept me from being hungry. If you skimp on the nutrition remember to buy a good multivitamin and drink lots of water. I was always moving so these bad eating habits didn’t really catch up to me until I got home from the program. I did drop 20lbs which was cool. **

Speaking of water: buy a case of cheap water, enjoy the fresh bottled taste at first, and save those bottles! Reuse them by filling them up with water at the drinking fountains. If you forget your water at home or throw the bottle out after many uses don’t worry. If you’re playing in the parks you can go to any quick-service counter and ask for a cup of water. It’s free!

Eating out is expensive. Pick where you eat wisely. We always went to Golden Corral, Siciliy’s Pizza, or Sweet Tomatoes where we would get a small discount and could eat as much as we wanted.  Despite the discount Disney food is not usually your best option. Here are my exceptions: Magic Kingdom and Epcot.  Magic Kingdom: If you’re playing make sure you bring a backpack to stow your “Ears” and pin lanyard. Wear plain clothes and have your cast ID handy. You want to appear as if you’re coming to/leaving work. Behind Main Street heading towards Tomorrowland on the right is an easy entrance to the Utilidors. Make sure you’re familiar with the Utilidors before venturing down there if MK is not your home park. If you get lost try not to ask security or upper management for directions. Stick to others in sweats or themed gear. You’re looking for the cast member cafeteria. There’s a Subway down there where you can get a $5 footlong and Aramark also has other options for snacks. I would always split this with someone and have one of my water bottles handy for a cheap meal. It’s also really fun to watch Cinderella and Gaston talk shit about someone (Peter Pan?!) while stuffing their faces with Hot Cheetos. You’re not supposed to be down there if you aren’t working so be careful. Pecos Bill in Adventureland has a little salad bar meant for the taco salads. It’s packed with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, pickles, and other toppings and condiments that you can create a make-shift salad with for free (unless a cast member decides to stop you, but they most likely won’t).   Epcot: Make a bee-line to Japan in the World Showcase. The kids meal at the quick-service is like $6 and plenty of food to fill you up. Saves money for the important stuff- like Tequila in Mexico!

I was lucky to work at the Contemporary where we hosted Pirates and Pals, which is a fireworks cruise. They served these giant sheet cakes for the guests and there was always a whole cake left over. One of our supervisors was married to a man that facilitated the food for that shindig so it always appeared in our break room! We also had a popcorn machine (remember what I said about popcorn!) that we could rev up any time we wanted, and so I did during my breaks. Many nights my dinner was cake and popcorn! There was also a “Hungry Intern” box the other cast members would put stuff in that had stuff like easy mac, ramen, and granola bars. I had great coworkers. :)

If you happen to work in a place that has a merchandise cooler for drinks and food or sells candy keep an eye on the expiration dates! If you have a supervisor that doesn’t care or pays attention you could score things like boxed candy or frozen breakfast foods (in the hotels) that were on their way to being thrown out anyways. I wouldn’t recommend taking things like MILK that was expired- but who cares if the Goofy cotton candy was day over it’s mark?

Household Essentials Some of my “tips” here include theft. Cover your innocent eyes if you’re not into that. I would take things like toilet paper, soap, razors, and feminine products from the hotel’s supply closets. I didn’t want to spend my money on things like that when there it was behind this door I had a key to. Sometimes you could score stuff like candles or laundry detergent too. I only took what I needed and I shared with the other interns. Like Robin Hood! You could also grab essentials from the bathroms, like cotton swabs and toilet paper and paper/cloth napkins. The best place is the bathrooms in the convention centers like the one at the Boardwalk. This is conveniently located next to the cast member parking lot/bus stop!

If you’re purchasing buy things in bulk if the price is right! You know you’ll need it, it’s worth it to just get as much as you can when you can. 

Entertainment This is where all my money went. I mainly spent my money on shows, alcohol, gas, parking, and food when I wasn’t using my free food cheats and comped park entrances. Before I even left home I bought an annual pass to Universal that got me discounts on Halloween Horror Nights tickets, food, and free parking. I knew as a Cast Member I would already be getting those same perks at Disney. This helped me save money while escaping the Disney Bubble often. 

SIN Night at House of Blues - Service Industry Night is the best if you want to go clubbing. Admission is free with your Disney ID if you’re over 21 and ladies drink free until about 10 or 11.  Jellyrolls - This is a dueling piano bar at the Boardwalk outside Epcot. Admission is free for cast members and they serve free... wait for it... POPCORN inside! This is a great show and the pianist are very talented. Each night is different as they play requests only all night. The staff is very friendly as well! The alcohol is expensive - like $7 for a bottled beer! We would usually just pool our resources and buy liquor from the Walgreens in front of Vista Way and pregame in the parking lot. If you’ve been keeping your water bottles from earlier handy you could smuggle in your own vodka and sip at your leisure! Buffalo Wild Wings - On Wednesday nights the BWWs in the Crossroads Center on SR 535 clears their dining room floor and turns the place into a karaoke bar on the inside and a latin club on the patio! Great prices on drinks, food, and admission. I can’t remember if there was a way to get in free or not. When they’d shut down you just crossed the parking lot to McDonald’s and ball out of control because it was just after 1 am on a Thursday and your drunk self just remembered EPCOT!! EPCOT - Every Paycheck Comes On Thursday. Direct Deposit, hell yeah! Disney pays you weekly!

Other ways we would save money is by splitting dryer time on small loads in the laundry rooms, carpooling, pregaming, rotating email addresses to get free trials on Hulu and Netflix, rotating which roommate would buy community use things, rotating amongst friends each week for a home-cooked meal, investing in things we would use over and over like board games and cards for entertainment, staying away from fast food whenever possible, and not being wasteful.  This post may look like all I did was play and party, but I worked hard too. I took advantage of the OT regulations to where I would work 4 10-12 hour shifts each week. When doing this I would usually get an Early Release on my 5th day or could afford to give up the shift all together. I enjoyed being at work since most of my friends were already there! I had a great time with the guests and thoroughly enjoyed what I was doing every day! My two programs got me the job I have now and the above-average salary I’m making. 

** Please be safe and treat your body right. This is no way advocates the usefulness of an eating disorder in any way. Do not skip meals. Do not starve yourself. Do not count popcorn as your only meal for an extended amount of time. I love popcorn, I really do, but it’s not a miracle food. Listen to your body and give it what it needs.

#disney college #disney #budget #dcp #disney college program #college #broke college student #broke college girl #work hard play hard

[hottytoddynews]

Dr. Chandrashekhar Joshi is leading the fight against a disease that has revaged Native Americans across the country.

Juantina Johnson was speeding southbound toward Meridian for her daughter’s dance performance when she noticed a mother and daughter retreating from a car stranded alongside the bustling highway.

“As a single parent I know how tough it is, so I pulled over,” Johnson said.

The family, members of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, were commuting more than 50 miles to Anderson Regional Medical Center when their car suddenly slowed, then came to a sickening stop. They had been making the hour-long trip for an appointment with a specialist the reservation’s outdated health center couldn’t offer.

Johnson lent a hand, a ride, and a can of gas to the family to help get them back on their way. She never made it to her daughter’s performance.

“I didn’t feel that bad about it because I helped a family that really needed it rather than my 4-year-old daughter who wouldn’t really remember me being there any way,” Johnson said.

Many other Choctaw families, on limited income and facing health issues, have had to make the agonizing decision of whether to spend money on gas to travel almost an hour away for an appointment or to skip it altogether.

“Truthfully, that is so many of their stories,” said Johnson, the Choctaw Health Center’s chief medical officer.

“Those are the kinds of stories that really broke my heart and showed the need to bring specialists to the Choctaw Health Center.”

The new health center has a larger diabetes unit to tackle the tribe’s most serious health concern.

Years later, a new, bigger, better-equipped Choctaw Health Center, which opened in March 2015, is doing just that. Mississippi’s Choctaw, almost wiped out by European diseases centuries ago, further thinned out by federal removal to Indian Country, then ravaged again by the worldwide flu pandemic in the early 1900s, now boast state-of-the-art medical technology, consistent staffing, and a slew of specialists.

Today the tribe can offer a badly needed, much larger dental clinic with an oral surgeon, a bigger diabetes unit to battle the tribe’s single most serious health concern, and an impressive array of other services — cardiologists, optometrists, mental health counselors, WIC, pediatric dental and primary care units, 20 inpatient rooms, a vast pharmacy, a women’s wellness center, an audiology unit, pain management clinic, pulmonology clinic and more.

“In the old facility we were busting out at the seams,” CHC Deputy Director Mary Harrison said. “Here we have room for the patients and their families to be comfortable.”

The old and cramped one-story facility with baby blue walls and orange carpets, built in 1976, was built to serve 4,000 patients, less than half today’s tribal population. Its waiting rooms were so packed that sometimes people had to stand shoulder to shoulder. Some offices were the size of broom closets.

Now patients flock to a modern, three-story building with sleek, timeless colors and wide-open areas that offer more and better care, a monument to just how effective Choctaw-run health care for the Choctaw can be.

The project, on an old stickball practice eld, was a joint venture between the tribe, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Indian Health Service (IHS). Chief Phylliss Anderson negotiated with IHS, which normally runs medical facilities on reservations, to agree to pay the tribe to operate the facility.

“The chief said we know best how to run it for our own people,” said tribal spokesperson Misty Brescia Dreifuss.

“We knew what it felt like to run out of room and so we planned this building so we would have room to grow,” Acting Health Director Tina Scott said.

Transitioning into the new center was like buying a new home. It doesn’t happen within a day, but after stepping over the threshold for the first time, it’s hard to think of anything other than the endless possibilities of what can happen within these walls.

Even the wallpaper speaks of Choctaw culture. Basket-weaving textures and diamond-shaped details frame large windows. Here, patients and staff alike have room. There are large lobbies on every floor and each patient has his or her own individual room— a bed, a couch where family members are encouraged to stay the night, and a bathroom large enough to do a cartwheel in.

“Patients have choices of where they want to go and we want to make it easy for them to choose here,” Johnson explained. “Now we are able to have patients see multiple specialists here rather than have to drive all the way to Meridian or Jackson.”

Once specialists see the facility, they’re much more eager to set up shop there.

“Build it,” Scott said. “And they will come.”

Physical expansion has also led to an expansion of opportunities. The health center is now able to control its own funding, create contracts with providers to bring in specialists, and “catch up with the norms.”

For example, “we’ve been able to have consistent staffing so they know the patients and their needs better,” Scott says.

One of those staff members is Gail Wilson, who works on the second floor in the dental unit.

Wilson, the dental assistant supervisor and long-time employee, is proud of her 16-chair clinic. She shows it off with a beaming smile.

“At the old hospital we had a four-chair clinic that could fit into our new lobby,” Wilson said.

Dr. Timothy Adams, a podiatry specialist, conducts an examination.

The place is busy, busy, busy. Most chairs are full and dentists scurry from patient to patient. People pour in for routine exams and cleanings, an oral surgeon visits every week, seeing about eight to 10 patients each time, and stickball mouth guards are molded in large quantities.

In the old laboratory, employees were crammed in like sardines, always bumping into each other. Now, the lab is four or five times larger and tasks are cranked out with ease, like making 75 mouth guards in a single morning.

The clinic is manned by 23 staff members, including five dentists and 14 dental assistants.

Wilson said if the center could secure more dentists, they’d be ready to expand immediately.

The tribe’s population is about 10,800. But as an IHS facility, the health center also serves those who are members of federally recognized tribes and their dependents.

The center also offers a spacious diabetes clinic, where the staff finds itself on the front lines of a long-term war against an epidemic that has plagued tribes across the United States. Diabetes has become such a problem that President Barack Obama extended a special diabetes program offered under the Indian Health Care Improvement Act. It provides $150 million a year for support programs.

Darlene Willis and Dr. Chandrashekhar Joshi are two of many workers striving to help the Choctaw battle the reservation’s leading health concern.

About 1,900 Choctaw have been diagnosed with the disease, especially type 2 diabetes primarily caused by lifestyle habits—poor diet and lack of exercise. About 1,600 of those are classified as active, meaning they receive services at the center at least once a year.

U.S. health care officials report a 16.1 percent diabetes prevalence rate among Native Americans, as opposed to a 12 percent Mississippi rate and 9 percent national rate. The statistics don’t adequately describe the human carnage – amputations, kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, death.

For a long time, diabetes statistics among the Choctaws were murky, but the extent of the disease has become more obvious because on the reservation the tribe is like a captive audience, making screening highly effective. At least the tribe knows what it faces.

Willis, who has been the diabetes prevention coordinator for 18 years, said when she started, only about 55 people on the reservation had been diagnosed. With more efficient screening, more people are being diagnosed and advised on ways to better their health.

The number of diabetics has remained high for decades. Things have improved in recent years but it’s a slow, long-term siege.

“Change is going to be hard. Change is hard for these people,” Willis admitted. “They’re going to do what they do. They’re going to eat what they eat.”

Traditional Choctaw foods such as fry bread and fried chicken are major perpetrators in the poor diets that trigger the disease. The diabetes unit works to teach patients the benefits of a healthier low-fat diet, nutrition, exercise, and complete lifestyle change. But Joshi says all the preaching and cajoling in the world can’t solve the problem unless patients decide to change their ways. The toughest part of his job, he says, is fixing general attitudes toward diabetes.

“People do not change because somebody tells them to change,” Joshi said. “The only solution that is left is you have to make them want to do it. Change is going to happen very slowly.”

Joshi, who has been practicing medicine for 41 years with almost 30 dedicated to the reservation, has been lovingly dubbed an “honorary Choctaw” by the staff and has big dreams for the tribe and its future.

With a growing grin, Joshi admits his dreams are not practical but he still dreams them. He describes an ideal reservation that is virtually car-free to promote walking and exercise, healthy foods on sale at the grocery store, junk food sold at inflated prices, and more.

He has genuine hope for what is to come.

“I have never really had negative thoughts in the respect that nothing will change, that things would remain the same,” Joshi said. “Sooner or later. It will take time. It will happen.”

By Lana Ferguson. Photos by Chi Kalu. 

LEFT TO RIGHT: Ariel Cobbert, Mrudvi Bakshi, Taylor Bennett, Lana Ferguson, SECOND ROW: Tori Olker, Josie Slaughter, Kate Harris, Zoe McDonald, Anna McCollum, THIRD ROW: Bill Rose, Chi Kalu, Slade Rand, Mitchell Dowden, Will Crockett. Not pictured: Tori Hosey PHOTO BY THOMAS GRANING

The Meek School faculty and students published “Unconquered and Unconquerable” online on August 19, 2016, to tell stories of the people and culture of the Chickasaw and Choctaw. The publication is the result of Bill Rose’s depth reporting class taught in the spring. Emily Bowen-Moore, Instructor of Media Design, designed the magazine.

“The reason we did this was because we discovered that many of them had no clue about the rich Indian history of Mississippi,” said Rose. “It was an eye-opening experience for the students. They found out a lot of stuff that Mississippians will be surprised about.”

Print copies are available October 2016.

For questions or comments, email us at [email protected].

The post The Choctaw: Taking Care of Their Own appeared first on HottyToddy.com.

#hottytoddy #olemiss #oxfordms #oxford ms #mississippi #university of mississippi #the grove