Pnc near me

So I've been playing a campaign and all of a sudden my game is paused. the prompt to resume is not appearing on the screen and when i press the pause button, nothing happens. Additionally when I try to load up an autosave it throws me to a battle on Mon Calamari, which I don't own and am nowhere near.
Does anyone know how to fix this, or is my file gone?

I've (28F) been chatting with a couple of friends and have reached the conclusion that I must be doing something, like, fundamentally wrong in my approach to dating apps but I truly don't understand.
I really don't take the apps all the seriously. I'm not on them regularly, and I have no interest in creating/managing a profile on more than one at a time. I tend to use Bumble, because it also has the BFF feature, but everyone says I should use Hinge instead. I tried Hinge once, and I don't get how it's different/better than Bumble.
I don't currently have a very big social circle (I'm a recent grad school grad, I stayed in town and most of cohort has/will soon move away), so I'm currently using Bumble mostly as a way to see who lives near me that I might not otherwise meet. I only swipe on people I'm genuinely interested in getting to know. I'm not afraid to unmatch or block people if they get weird and I have pretty strict standards for when and where I meet up with people. (I did have a bad experience previously that could have been a avoided if I had trusted my instincts.)
But my friends keep telling me that I'm doing it wrong and I need to download multiple apps and pay for premium so I can go on more dates. I don't want to go on a lot of dates, necessarily? I'm just curious as to who my age lives around me and shares my interests. If I meet someone and like them, cool, let's grab coffee. If it goes anywhere, cool. If not, oh well. Is there something ethically wrong with that?

I’m 10 months post partum and I noticed that one of the things that changed with my body after giving birth was my g spot. In the past, my husband was able to find my g spot without much difficulties with his penis. Now it went closer to the roof near my cervix and it’s impossible for my hubby to reach it without hitting my cervix and it hurts.
What we do now is sometimes he shove his fingers and curve it before it hits the cervix and pleasure me that way. I wanted to ask if theres any toys or techniques we can try to simulate without having my husband to pull out. Sex is still pleasurable for me.

Ok someone help me out with this one and devistating wounds.
The new doomsday ark gets D6+1 attacks.
Say we are stationary and going to shoot a land raider. We get super lucky and roll 6 on the d6. 7 attacks / hits to roll. We hit on 3+. Say we get 4 hits, 3 miss.
We now roll to wound.
Our S15 cannon against T14 tank means wounding on 3+ So one of two things can happen now.
Either one of our wound rolls is a 6! We immediately trigger devistating wounds and 4 mortals wounds (damage) is applied to the tank. Nice. Then Shooting ends
BUT
What if we roll 4, 5 ,5 and 2 on our wound rolls. At -4 AP the tank needs to make 6+ or gets no save and we could do 12 damage and kill it.....or nearly (Although the tank could save I guess)
Does that mean for the doomsday a critical wound (6) technically is worse!?

I (19m) have been friends with my buddy (19m) for 19 years. We were born just a month apart and lived next door to each other. I moved away at 4 but we were able to keep in touch through our parents. When we both got phones at around 13-14 we started to communicate to each a lot more and played video games together nearly everyday. Our relationship has been good and I’ve even made the 3 hour trip from Wisconsin to Indiana to see him a few times over the years.
Recently, we haven’t been talking as much, I didn’t really think of it. We’re both graduating high school and he doesn’t quite know what he’s doing yet and it’s quite stressful for any senior. We actually had the idea to have our grad party together. A few weeks ago I reached out to ask him about it and got no response. Again, it happens sometimes, so about a week ago I reached out again. Again, nothing. So I read of texting him on Snapchat I texted him on IMessage and Instagram. Despite him being “active” on both platforms, no response. I messaged him asking if everything was ok and if I did anything wrong to no avail. So finally, I told him it was my last attempt reaching out and again asked if he wanted to talk about it and how friendships need effort to stay strong. Again, nothing.
After being ignored, I reached out to his GF to see if she had any insight. To my surprise, she replied “I don’t think he wants to be your friend anymore.” Of course I asked why, she then said “he’s doesn’t like the way you make fun of him and try to embarrass him.”
First off I want to say that those feeling are completely valid. I can understand not wanting to be made fun of. Like I said we live in different states so have developed different friend groups. Where I live we just poke fun at each other all the time, that’s just how we are. So when I talk to him I just imagine it’s like talking to my friends at home. He had never said anything to me about not liking the way I treated him so I just assumed that his friend group must be similar to mine. So I kept talking to him the way I do with all my friends. I never say things that are very deep. Mostly surface level things like “you’re stupid” “you’re a fatass” stupid things that are rude, but again, things that I don’t view as serious because it’s the way me and my friends talk.
I’ve struggled with this for a few days and want to know, do I deserve to be ignored and should I just accept that I’m the asshole?

I was playing medusa safe lane. Got decent farm. But near the end nobody was trying to push together or maybe it was expected from me to be on frontline?
Team mates: Clinkz -mid Dawnbreaker - offline Underlord- support Silencer- Hard Support
We won the game but I'm really confused.
Game id: 7175183246
Please suggest what could I have done differently or how else it could have played off.

We just moved to the area and word had spread round that we had money and we're new to the area and essentially targets. We live next to the part of town where all the crack users get together and sit along the wall, but they never come near our house.
Friday night someone knocked and I answered because I've made a couple friends in the area and assumed it was someone I know and I'm aware that's stupid but anyway, he grabbed me and took me in the living room saw there was nothing and took me into my room, my partner was there and he made him open the safe where we had passports and maybe £450, and also he took our phones and my main bank card. He was demanding we give him the cash and had no money whatsoever but apparently we did so he was getting more and more angry.
He realised someone told him a rumour about us having money and expensive items but told us if we tell the police he'll kill us. We have cameras that recorded the whole thing and each show up till when he walks up to them and turns it off but you clearly see him assaulting us and most the experience.
I want to report it but he said his family would kill us. Without police no insurance no new phone, no justice, no nothing. If we go to the police his family may truly show up and break the door down.
I'm scared to go to the shop and I'm scared he'll come back especially if he thinks we didn't report this so we won't in the future and that it's an easy £450 and two iPhones.
Legally speaking, if I report it will there be any way at all that I'll have any type of protection from his family such as asking my housing association to move us because when I told them she said things happen go police and that's that.
I'm mentally disabled I guess as I suffer from paranoia - hence the cameras - and I suffer from anxiety.
Edit: We are in England (midlands).

So, I've been getting into Splatoon recently. It started with me seeing the GRIZZCO TAPES on YouTube - real good stuff by the way, check them out if you haven't already - and have fallen down a rabbit hole of Splatoon content, from goofy/funny/sweet animations to listening to some of the music, and holy shit, Calamari Inkantation 3Mix is straight up godly, and, as of a few days ago, watching a nearly 5 hour timeline video on the funny squid games. After finishing, I've found that yeah, I'm a fan of Splatoon now. Legit trying to read the lore, stories, find art, talk about it with friends who have played, it's a good time. There's... Just one problem.
I can't play the games. I physically can't.
I do have a Switch, but I won't use it for reasons that are, to put it mildly, intensely personal. Even if I were to use the Switch, I'm also trying to tighten the belt these days when it comes to money, so buying the games isn't an option for me.
I love Splatoon's setting, lore, characters (so far of what I know of 'em, they're funny, adorable, and charismatic,) color scheme, godly music, design, just about everything. Hell, even from my purely outsider perspective, the games look really damn fun, and this is coming from a primarily RTS gamer. It's nice to have a game series that's so vibrant, colorful, and dedicated to being a good time. I just don't know how I can go deeper in without playing, which, again, I can't do.
So, uh... What do I do? Any advice, or something? Sorry that this post is so weird, and I apologize ahead of time if it breaks any kind of rule.
To finish up with this whole thing, take this trash meme/edit I made earlier this month. Rock and Stone! Or... Well, Booyah I guess.

I made a post about a PMU around 2 weeks ago (https://www.reddit.com/FEEngage/comments/13hu6efirst_fe_pmu/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) and finished it last night. It took a bit longer than I expected but it’s because I’ve (successfully) been trying to touch grass. Anyway, feel free to check out the screenshot for stats and some bonus Citrinne, Clanne, and Lindon content https://imgur.com/a/fd9h5uj. I left my thoughts on how each unit turned out below. It was on Hard Classic and all units are around internal level 40 giver or take 1 level (except Mauvier who just got those 9 levels after reclassing). I did grind for second seals early through relay trials because I wanted everyone to be in their new classes ASAP, so that gave me extra SP books and forging materials to work with. Thanks to everyone who commented builds on my last post!
Alear - Swordmaster - Chrom (Canter+/Sword Power 5)
Fun Facts: 8 MVPs (tied for 2nd), 84% wins to battles ratio (2nd)
Pretty great combat. He was getting HP and Str screwed (based on averages) in the early game so I did feed him some stat boosters to make up for it and he wound up great. Chrom was great for a free 1-2 range option and the ability to hit on res. Rally Spectrum was incredible utility and pushed other units into thresholds they were just missing countless times. I did compare the averages between sword master and divine dragon and DD is better at almost everything but speed so if you want sword Alear you should probably stick with that class for the stats and dragon tag.
Bunet - Halberdier - Eirika (Break Defenses/Lance Power 5)
Fun Facts: 8 MVPs (tied for 2nd), 83% wins to battles ratio (tied for 3rd), Highest HP (62) , 2nd Highest Def (33) & Lck (26 *Capped), 3rd Highest Str (29) & Dex (34)
One of my best combat units. In fairness I did cheat a little (since I was giving him the pact ring) and gave him starsphere until I got Marth back for break defenses. One of my best combat units. When he got pincer attack he did great work using it, but then he kept leveling up str and spd. Eventually I stopped setting it up for him and he would kill with 2 or 4 brave lance hits and never had issues due to high dex and an accuracy engrave. Also surprisingly bulky in def. Break defenses was a recommendation from the comment who suggested him and it did help with the faster swordmasters and heroes in the last chapters. Of course Eirika pulled a lot of weight and this was my first time using a Halberdier but I was very happy with his performance.
Clanne - Sniper - Marth (Canter+/Speedtaker)
Fun Facts: 9 MVPs (1st), 83% wins to battles ratio (tied for 3rd)
Easily one of the best units of the run and it showed. His only problems were his low build and he was speed screwed until the very late game. I gave him speed taker to make up for that and he did great. He honestly didn’t really need to double most enemies because his crit rate was consistently 70%-90%. He had 102 crit in endgame with No Distractions active. He also had great Str for an archer. Would recommend trying him out if you haven’t.
Chloe - Hero - Byleth (Canter+/Dual Assist+)
Fun Facts: 2nd Highest Spd (35), 3rd Highest HP (59)
Put in work early game, but combat fell off pretty hard. She did decent chip with the levin sword and could clean up damaged enemies. Once I got Byleth, most of that didn’t matter much though. She spent most of her turns rallying str and dancing which was invaluable. Brave assist & Dual assist+ was incredible support though, and helped a lot of other units get kills. All in all nothing notable and most units could fill the same role in this class.
Alcryst - Thief - Leif (Canter+/Draconic Hex)
Incredibly underwhelming. Serviceable combat early on but fell off hard. Could only ever kill with crits which are harder to stack on daggers and even then it wasn’t guaranteed. He also got stuck with probably the worst emblem in the game. Maybe he could’ve been used better or gotten better skills, but his stats weren’t giving me much to work with. The best utility he had was giving a hit support to Fogado who did everything Alcryst did but infinitely better (see Fogado’s section).
Lapis - Wyvern Knight - Tiki (Canter+/Level Boost)
Fun Facts: Highest Str (33), 2nd Highest Spd (35), 3rd Highest Def (28), Most RNG screwed (-7 total to stats calculated with starsphere)
She was definitely a good unit, but she did feel underwhelming for being arguably the best physical class in the game + starsphere. Her build was so bad that she carried her refined & engraved steel sword from the early game so she could double enemies (She got 2 of her bld levels after Ch22). Stronger weapons often weighed her down enough that she couldn’t double. Tiki helped with that a bit though she often still relied on eternal claw crits (which her personal works against). Being my only natural flier was nice though.
Citrinne - Martial Master - Lucina (Canter+/Lunar Brace+)
Fun Facts: 2nd Highest Res (33) & Lck (26)
100% bonded shield procs for every ally, what more can I say? For real though, that was good enough utility that she was worth deploying whenever I could. Staff utility also came in handy a lot. I was excited about making her combat ready with FFA (hence Lunar Brace+) but she honestly let me down. She wasn’t quadding almost anything, even after 3 (I think) Speedwings. She was also incredibly squishy, though I was able to stack avoid to stop enemies from targeting during bonded shields. If you want a MM nuke, definitely pick someone faster with more balanced mag & str.
Amber - High Priest - Veronica (Mag+5/Staff Proficiency 5)
Fun Facts: 3 MVPs (All Fell Xenologue), 62% wins to battles ratio, Highest Lck (28), 2nd Highest Str (30* Capped)
Functioned as a great staff bot. Fortify+ on Veronica with Staff Proficiency 5 was my “Great Sacrifice at home,” though he could do it every engage turn. His combat was actually decent early on due to reprisal, but his speed was garbage and he wasn’t able to equip better weapons due to class limitations. Book of worlds helped with freezing some enemies and he did decent chip safely with elthunder. He was my only staff unit that I didn’t try to make combat effective and he didn’t need to equip a healing staff thanks to Veronica so that was nice. I would still rate him 10/10 because of those High Priest hips alone though.
Jade - Great Knight - Camilla (Canter+/Axe Power 5)
Fun Facts: 6 MVPs (3rd), Highest Def (42), 3rd Highest Str (29)
This is definitely one of the less out there builds, but she did make my life a lot easier. A 10 move flier with incredible defense was great to have. She one shot A LOT of enemies with Dark Inferno using a unrefined, Ike engraved silver great axe. Thanks to the speed levels she was getting and Camilla’s bonus she was actually doubling some midgame enemies and matched/outsped most of my other units for a bit. Camilla’s res, HP, and Camilla’s axe also kept her safe against magic enemies. She also did fairly well with Camilla’s bolt axe. Her biggest flaw was low hit rates, but she was always able to eventually clean up or safely draw enemies for allies to finish off. Would recommend trying this build if you like Jade.
Nel - Sage - Soren (Canter+/Draconic Hex)
Fun Facts: 2nd Highest Magic (33) & Res (33), 3rd Highest Lck (25)
Great magic combat unit. Fast enough to double most enemies up till late game, only because Sage’s speed cap wouldn’t let her get higher than 30. She also capped HP and Def, which made her bulky enough to Flare tank with Soren. Otherwise, she was doing decent chip and debuffing with bolting/cataclysm, anima focus, and Draconic Hex. Useful staff utility when she wasn’t doing combat too. If you would like to build her for offense I would help keep her Spd up or increase her Mag a bit since I did use most of my Spirit Dust on her.
Zelkov - Hector - (Canter+/Gentility+)
Fun Facts: 3rd highest Spd (33)
Honestly wasn’t super sure how to use him. He’s in a fast class, but has the slow and bulky emblem. Quick Riposte did help against some faster enemies and other Wolf Knights but it was mostly useless. The bulk and Impenetrable was somewhat helpful and the Wolf Beil was nice for effective damage. Most of my good axes went to Jade and Lindon though so he was stuck with a forged & refined Silver dagger. He did get his job well most of the time, but it’s also not a huge. At the end of the day, Wolf Knight is basically thief with slightly more HP, Spd, Res, and Lck and slightly less Str, Dex, and Def.
Fogado - Mage Cannoneer - Corrin (Canter+/Divine Pulse+)
Fun Facts: 3rd Highest Res (25*Capped)
My first mage cannoneer was incredibly satisfying to use. Hit rates were very shaky at first, especially since I declassed him right away and his stats weren’t great, but he made excellent contributions once he got Corrin and Divine Pulse. He stopped needing to rely on supports to hit and chip/debuff. Venom blast afflicts 3 stacks of poison, making daggers way less useful. Freeze blast and break blast also came in handy plenty of times, though they’re lest reliable as it’s only a 50% chance for those effects. You don’t actually need damage for the effects to occur, which is nice. 8 range AOE freeze with Corrin saved me more times than I can count. Canter helped him not fall behind, especially since he can attack an enemy almost every turn with 8 range. Effective canons that you can choose based on map composition help guarantee decent chip too. 10/10 would love to use a Mage Cannoneer again. Other units might be better suited though, since Fogado's personal str & dex growths aren't super high.
Lindon - Berserker - Ike (Reprisal+/Vantage+)
Fun Facts: 87% wins to battles ratio (1st). 2nd Highest HP (61)
Haha funny crit man. He literally got to 100 crit on the first map after recruiting him. I did use Eirika engrave for his killer axe instead of Corrin or Camilla. It gives 10 less crit, but it gives 40 hit, which he desperately needed and it doesn’t lower might. He capped his dex at 22 and that’s not nearly enough to get above 60-70 hit on most enemies. He also had so much HP that it was optimal to get crit on multiple occasions since he didn’t die and it got him in wrath/vantage/reprisal range. He did need Reprisal though, because his str isn’t high enough to oneshot some enemies even with crits. Vantage+ was for when he had more than 60 HP wich happened quick with the Ike bonus. It makes the Vantage range easier to set up and he still gets maximum Wrath and enough Reprisal. For those uninitiated, here’s the crit stacking break down: Killer Axe +5 (40) + Eirika Engrave (20) + Weapon Insight (20) + Wrath (30) + 22 Dex (11) = 121 Crit. I would recommend Warrior though since it has higher dex, spd, def, and res caps.
Mauvier - Mage Knight - Celica (Speed+5/Canter+)
Fun Facts: Highest Mag (34) & Res (36)
This is one of the best classes for him. He has excellent magic and this class helps his speed issues. I also gave him Spd +5 which allowed him to double basically everything, especially with all my Draconic Hexers and Rally Spectrum from Alear. He cleaned up the endgame for me with little to no issues. He also caps HP and build upon reclassing, and capped defense soon after. 11/10 I love this man and I wish we could use him for longer. Wish I wasn’t tech illiterate so I could use him in reverse recruitment or a randomizer.
If you kept reading this long thanks for hearing my thoughts! I had tons of fun with this run and it was a chance to use some units and builds I never would’ve otherwise. I’m definitely thinking of doing another one somewhere down the line prioritizing units, classes, and emblems that weren’t picked this time.

I’ve been watching porn and masturbating since I was 11, with the death grip or laying prone, sometimes both so yeah just about the worst two masturbation habits possible. I’m nearly 20 now and have not been able to go more than a week without porn or fapping, until now. I’m currently 2 weeks off porn and finally made it to 7 days of no fapping. I feel good but frustrated with the lack of sensitivity in my dick. I owe a lot of this new personal success to my GF, who I recently told about my struggles for all these years. She didn’t judge or hate me for it, but instead actively supports and checks in on me, and I could not feel more motivated to do this not just for me but for her and our relationship. That being said, I do have a couple questions:

1. After starting from a young age and fapping nearly every day, sometimes multiple times a day, how long do you think it would take for me to recover? I have PIED, and I’m hoping that it will be resolved soon before I can see her again in person.
   
2. Would it still be okay to sext with my gf? I love the connection that we have, and making her feel desired and sexy and showing her that she makes me aroused. Lately I don’t look at her intimate pictures for long when she sends them, I just save them and move on with the conversation. I don’t touch myself looking at her though one week in and I still struggle to get erections, let alone a rock hard one. I’m not sure if it’s bad to sext her if it’s slowing my recovery, but I also don’t want an intimacy-less relationship with her when we can’t physically be together just yet.
   

This is a connection with someone that I’ve always wanted, but never one that I felt I deserved until I fixed myself. I see this as a test, whether it’s God, fate, or whatevewhoever, to prove that I can overcome this tough mental struggle and there’s nothing I want more right now than to kick some ass. Fuck porn. Fuck masturbating. It made me socially uncomfortable and depressed, and it’s never gonna happen again. Any help or advice in the comments is greatly appreciated. Thank you :)

Hey all, I'm wondering if anybody could point me in the direction of any English speaking or Spanish special education schools in malaga. I'm planning on re-locating in the near future. Both my kids are aged 10 and 8

We wanted to order some sweet and sour chicken balls but it ends up being £19 with the min order and delivery fee on Just Eat. I don’t seem to be able to find anywhere much cheaper online/on maps or it just takes me to their ubejust eat/deliveroo page. I’m happy to order online, ring to order and possibly pick up.
Any recommendations for cheaper takeaways? Preferably near Ancoats or the centre

TLDR; My boyfriend has drama with his ex wife and I’m being sucked into it via him trying to keep me out of it. How do I politely let him know I can fend for myself if she shows up? She moved into my apartment complex. Kids are involved.
My(f37) boyfriend (m47) had a nasty divorce with his ex (f46) and it has left both with animosity. His rises in situations where me or the kids suffer. I’ve never met her. We’ve been together 2.5 years, including as the divorce was finalized. (It was dragged out for a while due to debates over custody.) They only communicate through an app that stores conversations to avoid sharing phone numbers and of course save the convos.
I have never met his ex. At some point it would appear she hired a PI to follow him. She found out he was coming to my complex. She is under the impression he lives here or is seeing someone here, with the latter being much more likely in her mind. We know she must have hired a PI unless someone randomly follower my bf to my complex. This happened about a year ago. I found out recently that she’s living in my complex, and likely has been for nearly a year. So she knew he was seeing someone here and decided that, despite this, she just had to live here.
He said she did it on purpose because she’s that spiteful.
Now there’s drama because they have 50/50 custody of their younger child (he has full of the older child), so sometimes when we all do something he needs to bring me home. We used to meet at the garage in another building but I needed to be dropped off specifically at my building. He was so afraid his child would narc on my building location that he pulled a u-turn and came up with a plan to prevent it.
He told me if she finds out where I live she’ll make my life hell. First she’ll befriend me then she’ll mess with me.
My take? I don’t care if she shows up? We are going to meet eventually and I need to have thick skin so I will. I just don’t know how to approach my bf. He’s so protective of my feelings in a good way but this situation is unnecessarily stressful.

I'm pretty new, still havent won, but have gotten to zot 5 a few times. I cannot deal with spider. I have died in spider 99% time i've tried it. I play mainly casters and granted I did die 1 times because I was simply unaware of the invisible mana drain enemies, but the other times I died I just couldnt output enough damage for all the swarm and variety of enemies. The two high AC enemies are really hard and I couldnt even take out one of the armored scorpians in a 1 on 1 with iron shot (probably was unlucky with misses/rolls but still). Then I had a fire build and had a tough time with the armored centipede snake looking thing. I lost multiple runs where I had ocuzubo's online just because I didnt have the mana to kill fast enough (and I even had veh). Have tried toxic radiance/bog/ignite fire and lost. I have never died in shoals (although I've always done it 2nd after vaults 4) and snake just feel remedial. Swamp is fine too although I actually find it harder than the other 2.
The one time I did beat it I was just stair dancing and shouting with a really insane build including starburst, ignition, iron shot, blink, the portal spell, and insnae defenses (20+ ev, 20+ shield, ~200 hp, rpois, 12 ish AC) and still had to use nearly all my consumables including 5 blink scrolls and all my tp scrolls, 2 magic pots, 3-4 hastes... I nearly died to single tiny spider because I was oom and it was enraged and life stealing me. I HATE SPIDER!
Most of the guides I read put spider as second easiest ahead of swamp but from now on im just doing it 2nd after at least v4 if not more, its just a hell hole. Maybe its just harder for casters, but I figured it would be easy just rolling through with aoe. I also suck so thats probably a big issue. Idk just ranting and looking for advice
TLDR any tips for spider?

Hello KS,
YOLO > Chat PP FF No Notes No Trades just recouping funds. Will ship Saturday - USPS with Tracking.
Koenig Carbon Fiber Arius - SV: $849
Timestamp:
https://postimg.cc/tZxW8hQg
Pics:
https://postimg.cc/gallery/sxh8hrF
Koenig Carbon Fiber Arius - SV: $849
Koenig Arius Gen 4 Batch 5 Textured sporting a Shepard CC Blurple Carbon Fiber Show Scale and all Blue Hardware. Comes with box, coa and original textured show scale if you ever want to reconfigure it back to factory specs for a spa visit. DOB April 7, 2021. Second owner for both the Arius and CF Scale. M390 blade May have been sharpened by previous owner but not by me and it’s in great condition. Ti scales & clip have minor snails throughout and the CF scale has a tiny blemish near the pivot I tried to capture in the pictures. I can send any additional pictures via chat if I missed anything you want to see.

Me and my best friend graduate this year. We went to a park near our house, and played eventually low key baby sat for a few hours. I was a camp counselor so I was glad to be little again. All the kids were so mature and adorable. We had a deep conversation about bullying and being nice to others. We played on the swings, spun around in the spiny thingy. And now I have a babysitting gig😂 but I wish older people could do stuff like that without the risk of being a creep. It’s so sad so many children go missing because they’re kind (mostly) and very trusting. Or sone creep make or female decide to be perverted. We got a few weird looks the first 5 minutes of being there, but then parents looked with fondness and curiosity. My best friends boyfriend pointed out he couldn’t do that. He’s a 6’3 dork with a beard. If he has been with us, someone honestly would have called the person. And I felt bad. We all talked about harmful gender stereotyping and how it affects the day to day. And the mental health factors. So how do you guys deal with it? How has it affected your life?

Memory transcription subject: Daniel Price, UTC Special Forces
Date [standardized human time]: September 8, 2140
I was roused from sleep by Colton. Groggily I checked my watch, it had been four hours. Rubbing my eyes I groaned, “Is evac here yet?”
“No, we’ve got an issue. Get up. I’ll grab Jath and Tassev, you get Usli and go to the common room. They’ll fill you in. It sounds like the situation up top has gone to shit.”
Once I was up I lazily grabbed my backpack and parted the partition of the ‘room’ to begin my search for Usli. It wasn’t hard, following the sound of Yotul children I found him being dogpiled by them in a sectioned off area that must have been a playroom of some description.
“Come on Usli, everyone’s meeting in the common room. Apparently there’s a situation.”
“Awww”, several of the young Yotuls cried out in unison.
Usli shook some of them off and got to his feet. “Alright kids, fun’s over.” Kicking his leg he shook off one particularly stubborn child. “Get off! There will be plenty of time to horse around later.”
Clinging to Usli’s back one kid asked, “What’s a horse?”
Usli leaned in towards me, “You see what I have to deal with?”
I could hardly contain a chuckle as I pried the last straggler from him. “I see you’re popular. Did they let you get any sleep?”
“No. They are just full of questions. ‘Do you live with predators? What is space like? Have you killed anyone? Ooh what’s that shiny bug in your pack? Do your Arxur ever eat anyone?’ And then when they’re out of questions they drag you around showing you their favorite rock or their favorite dolls, or-”
I could no longer contain my chuckle as I burst out laughing, "Cut them some slack. You’re probably the coolest Yotul they’ve ever met.”
He let out an amused huff, “Easy for you to say when they’re not keeping you awake. They’ve barely bugged you guys and haven’t even bothered Jath or Tassev at all”
One of the children ran up behind us and grabbed a hold of the backpack in my hand. “Is this your toy,” he asked, grabbing a hold of Lily.
Yanking the backpack up I hoisted the kid off his feet up to eye level and tersely replied, “Don’t touch that!”
He immediately let go and fell on the ground stunned as we continued walking. Looking over to Usli I saw he was barely suppressing a chuckle, holding his hands tight to his snout. I gave him a playful jab with my elbow before sighing, “Oh you shut up, let’s see what’s going on.”
Entering the common area we found everyone was huddled around the radio again. As the dials were adjusted we were privy to what sounded like numerous commands and battle updates.
“What’s the situation,” I asked.
Ugo, the elderly Yotul who we now knew was something of a de facto leader of this enclave, answered, “The Federation is not content to see us freed without a fight. Just as the humans won control in orbit, a Krakotl fleet arrived in the system. The battle is ongoing, but we cannot tell who is winning.”
Shit. If we hadn’t found these guys there’s no doubt we would have been overrun with our evac being delayed. It was inevitable that the Federation would contest us in space eventually. Our overall strategy forced them to pick and choose which systems were better abandoned and which were worth defending, and it looked like Yotul Prime was the latter.
“Have confidence,” I reassured him. “The First Fleet should have more than enough firepower to deal with whatever the Federation throws at them.”
“And if they don’t? Our food stockpile can’t cover the extra mouths to feed, let alone your uh, dietary requirements.”
Colton entered the scene with Jath and Tassev in tow, “Then we’ll send another fleet. Kicking the Federation out of Yotul Prime is high on Command’s Christmas list. You guys are the only species that even tried to reach out to us after the bombing. That’s not something we intend to forget.”
The sound of wood scraping the floor grabbed our attention. It was Amja, who was pulling a small table with one hand and carrying a bundle of paper in the other. “There is another issue.” She stopped and layed the paper, which looked like a map, over the table. “With the distraction, they’re going to evacuate the Governor.”
“Oh not this again,” Ugo lamented.
“This is our last chance to take him down. If he escapes now we’ll never find him.”
“How many times do I have to tell you, there is nothing to gain in pursuing him. The planet will be ours again soon anyways. You’ll just get yourself killed, and for what? Revenge?”
Amja snapped back, “No, justice! He needs to answer for what he’s done these past years. If he slips through the cracks now our people will never have closure. And this time is different.” She looked over to us, “We have them.”
“Hold on,” I said. “ My team didn’t sign up for a suicide mission. The planetary distress beacon was our objective, and it is neutralized; in no small part due to your help. We are thankful for that, but I can’t justify putting my men at that kind of risk.”
“It’s not a suicide mission. The Ossuaries can get us close to the old Chancellor’s Manor where the Governor’s headquarters is. Everyone is in the bunkers right now, so at worst we’ll only encounter the odd exterminator until we reach the manor.”
Ugo interrupted, “And then his guards will cut you to ribbons! We’ve been over this!”
“Not if they are evacuating,” Amja replied. “Yes, they will be on alert, but they won’t be guarding the whole perimeter. We can slip in and nab the Governor before he has the chance to flee, but that’s not all.” She unfurled more sheets of paper. These appeared to be copies of communications. “The manor is full of documents and records. Lists of collaborators, records about those they took during the Depurations, even what they did with the humans left behind after the invasion. The Kolshians won’t leave information like that for us to find once this is all over. They’re probably burning them as we speak. We need to act now.”
“Amja-”
“We have to do this.” Turning back to us she pleaded, “I know it is a lot to ask, but please.”
As much as I’d like to knock this Governor down a notch, that wasn’t enough to risk my team over. But the documents on the other hand caught my attention. Records of Federation’s wrongdoing would be an invaluable propaganda tool for the UTC, and help us legitimize whatever government was set up on Yotul Prime after we were done here. Not to mention the possibility of helping people the Federation had taken or captured. I looked to my team and I could see by their expressions what my answer would be.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“The coast is clear,” Amja said, pushing the manhole cover to the side. Sirens were still wailing in the distance, but there was no movement on the streets of the capital. Immediately I was taken aback by the sight of dozens of mangled Yotul strewn across the street and sidewalks.
“Christ,” Colton muttered under his breath. ”This isn’t our doing? Right? They said cities wouldn’t be targeted for bombing.”
“Not directly,” Amja replied. “These poor souls are victims of a stampede. That’s just how it is. Their deaths are on the Federation, not you. If they took your offer of surrender then these people would still be alive.” She then noticed Jath kneeled down over one of the unfortunate Yotul. “Hey! Now is not the time for snacks.”
“I was checking for vitals!”, Jath growled back.
“Jath is our medic,” I said.
“What?!” Amja was taken aback by my statement. “You trust an Arxur to treat your wounded? To be near you at your weakest with blood in the air?”
“I do,” Usli rebutted. “And I trust Tassev to have my back in a firefight too.”
“That’s- it’s just… nevermind.”
Jath rose to his feet somberly, an indication that the emaciated Yotul lying at his feet was indeed dead. “We need to keep moving.”
The streets were utterly deserted. Making our way mostly through back alleys Amja commented on this fact. “Something’s not right. We should have seen at least one exterminator patrol by now.”
It was soon apparent why as we came to the perimeter of the manor grounds. Numerous vans labeled EXTERMINATOR were parked haphazardly going all the way down the boulevard.
“Those bastards,” Amja cursed. “They aren’t patrolling because the Governor has them supplementing his own security!”
“So what’s the plan,” I asked.
“We stick to the plan. He likely doesn’t trust them enough to have them mingled with his normal security inside the manor. In that case all of the exterminators will be outside, if we can sneak our way into the building they won’t be an issue.”
“And those second story windows will make the perfect vantage point to keep them out once we’re in,” Colton observed.
Once again Usli’s drone was a godsend. The bright silver suits of exterminators made them easy to pick out from the well manicured surroundings of the manor. After climbing over the exterior wall we were able to use the decorative foliage to our advantage, concealing our movement as we approached the manor proper. The best entry point Usli could find was a greenhouse that connected to the main building. Approaching the structure we could see one Yotul standing guard at the door. Shooting him wasn’t an option, Even Colton’s suppressed rifle would make too much noise to not alert someone else in the compound. Someone would have to sneak up behind him and silently take him out. I opted to take up this task, but it would not be simple. He would see me in his peripheral vision if I was anywhere except directly behind him when I struck. This was complicated by the fact his back was to a wall.
“Usli,” I whispered. “Remember when we went on that float trip and there were mosquitos everywhere bugging us?”
“Bugging you more like, they only annoyed me when they got in my eyes and ears.”
I gestured towards the guard, “When I’m in position, give him a taste of that.”
Connecting the dots he nodded and I slowly crawled to the spot I had in mind. The greenhouse was rounded on the end towards us, and the door was located on the left side. I snuck around towards the right side and got into position prone right up against the side just where the curve concealed me from the guard’s view.
On cue I could hear the guard grunting in irritation. After the sounds of him slapping himself on the head came more frustration, “Damn bug, go away!”
Peeking around the bend now that his full attention was one the drone, I waited for the perfect moment. Finally the irritated guard turned so that he was facing directly away from me. Springing into action I ran forward, knife in hand. He turned at the sound of my approach but it was too late, I tackled the marsupial to the ground, pinning him with my bodyweight. I grabbed his snout with my left hand, ensuring he couldn’t scream for help. And thrust the blade into his throat with my right. The muffled cry of the Yotul beneath me waned into a sickening gurgle as his frantic, fearful eyes glazed over and his resistance ceased. I sat on top of him for a moment in a daze before the feeling of warm blood on my hand snapped me back to reality. On autopilot I removed the knife and wiped the blade off with the dead Yotul’s uniform before turning to gesture for my team to move up. The door was locked, but the guard conveniently had a key on him. Inside we found no resistance as we entered the main building.
Shooting a bird wasn’t something I had any real qualms about. There was something detached about the action of pulling a trigger to end one. But stabbing a Yotul, to overpower it and watch the life leave its eyes…To feel its blood soak my hands? It was different. I knew his death was necessary like all the others, but in the back of my mind I couldn’t shake a feeling. When I shot a Krakotl it felt akin to our target practice with wild pigs. Killing the Yotul on the other hand? It felt like I killed a person. I didn’t linger on these thoughts for more than a moment. We had a job to do.
We dispatched two more guards inside in a similar manner as we moved up to the second floor and towards what Amja’s floor plans denoted as the Chancellor’s Office. Colton took point dispatching these guards. While Jath or Tassev would seem like the obvious choice for the task, we wanted to slit throats, not tear the guards in half. We came to an open space that looked similar to a ballroom. The second floor formed a balcony that overlooked the dance floor. Here the hallway split to hug the walls on either side with ornate chandeliers hanging in the open space between the walkways. At the opposite end from us was a trio of Krakotl who opened fire the moment they could make us out over the chandeliers. Bullets whizzed by us as we hit the deck and tried to return fire, but it was difficult. The chandeliers provided little more than concealment, glass shards accompanied the bullets flying all around us. Amja crawled to the point where the walkway split and rolled to the right, hitting one of the guards who let out a pained squawk. She tried to crawl back into concealment but took a bullet to the shoulder as the birds returned a hail of gunfire in her direction. Trying to draw them off, I let out a burst of gunfire in what I thought was the direction the squawk came from as I ran to the left side of the split.. They shifted their fire towards me, but unable to pinpoint my position, missed their shots by mere inches. Looking to my right I could see Amja holding her shoulder with her left hand while her right arm laid limp on the ground.
“Jath!” I yelled out, “Amja’s hit!”
He crawled forward towards our position, hugging the ground to avoid the exchange of gunfire that flew above. Amja looked to me and pleaded, “N-no, I’m fine. Just- f-focus on them.”
“We’re not leaving you to bleed out there.”
She adjusted herself to see Jath’s approach from down the hall and looked back to me with newfound terror in her eyes. She spoke lower and faster, gasping between breaths “I d-don’t, I don’t. Not with h-him. No!”
“There’s no time to argue. Trust us.” I turned around to see Jath closing in. Amja closed her eyes and winced as he grabbed her by the leg and pulled her back into the hallway.
The situation wasn’t good. The only thing keeping those two from being shot was the fact they couldn’t be seen through the chandeliers. It was as Jath rounded the corner into a side room that I made a realization: if it wasn't for the chandeliers, the guards would be in a more exposed position than we were. Without them we had the advantage.
“Colton! Drop the chandelier!”
“Do what?!”
“Drop it!”
Within moments the roof anchor of the first chandelier was shot out. With an ear splitting crash it shattered on the floor below, quickly followed by the second. The birds were caught off guard by the destruction of their only concealment. The one Amja had shot was already down and another was clutching the sides of its head, giving us ample time to pick off the more composed bird first before finishing off the other, all before they could return accurate fire.
“Move up,” I yelled, not wanting to waste any of our momentum. I took the right side while Tassev took the left. The moment I was in position, several rounds were blind fired through the door from within. I swung the door and Tassev threw a flashbang in. As it flashed multiple times more gunshots rang out, firing every which way. When the grenade ceased Tassev barged in and I followed behind. Directly in front of me stood a blue cephalopoid figure. One of the tentacles that formed its arms was stretched in front of its eyes while the other flailed wildly with a gun in hand. Without hesitation, Tessev lunged for the gun wielding appendage. I ran to the side to get a clear shot on the Kolshian and barked commands for him to surrender, not that he could hear me considering that his equivalent of ears were probably bleeding. He thrashed in every direction as Tassev finally wrested control of the gun via liberal application of his claws. Seeing that Colton had come in behind us and could keep lethal cover on our target, I opted to bash the Kolshian’s head with the butt of my rifle. The dazed alien fell to the ground and we were finally able to restrain him. The office was huge in comparison to similar rooms in the manor. This had to be the room we were looking for. Colton vaulted the desk on the far end of the office, peaking through the window before tearing down the curtains.
“Where’s Usli,” I asked.
“He’s with Jath treating Amja,” Colton replied. He returned his gaze outside for a moment before readying his rifle, “Shit, we’ve got exterminators incoming.”
I looked to Tassev, “We need to get everyone in this room ASAP.” He nodded and rushed out the door.
Walking to the window I asked, “How many?”
“Twenty and counting,” Colton replied. “A few guards with firearms as well.”
“You need covering fire?”
“No, just finish off the ones that get through.”
With that he opened the window before laying down judicious fire on the oncoming hostiles. It was at this moment that Tassev returned with Amja in his arms.
“Put her down over here,” Jath ordered, swiping away stray books and debris that littered the floor.
“What’s her condition,” I asked.
“The bullet entered from the top of the shoulder blade and is now lodged in her abdomen. I don’t have the tools necessary to remove it and she can’t move her right arm, but it didn’t hit anything vital.”
Amja winced as she was propped up against the wall. She was obviously still fairly shaken as her gaze drifted to the Kolshian tied up opposite of her. Her eyes narrowed as she weakly pointed at him with her still functioning hand, “T-that’s him.”
"That's the Governor?" I queried.
Before she could respond, Usli stomped towards the Kolshian, his hands balled into fists, “Good. I was hoping to get a piece of him.”
“Not now,” I cautioned. “We’ve got exterminators plus anyone else in the building closing in on us.” I swept a computer and monitor off the top of the heavy wooden desk behind Colton. “Tassev, help me push this thing to the door for cover. Usli, I need you to tell us exactly how many hostiles make it in the building. Move it!”
The sound of the desk dragging against the floor was only drowned out by the sound of Colton's gunfire occasionally followed by an explosion of what must have been exterminator fuel tanks. Tassev finished the construction of our makeshift machinegun nest by resting his gun on its bipod looking down the unobstructed view into the ballroom and the hallway across. The perfect fatal funnel for us to defend.

Beep—beep—beep—beep beep—
I lifted the thermometer I had placed in her flushed left ear.
Looking at the reading on the thermometer, it showed "38.2 C".
Although a pregnant woman’s body temperature tends to be higher, this was definitely a fever, no doubt about it.
I slowly lowered my hand holding the thermometer, looking at Hoshino-San lying on the couch, I covered my face and recalled this morning.
…
The usual morning routine, I entered the bathroom for the usual grooming and looked at myself in the mirror.
After coming out, I noticed the mobile phone on the kitchen counter was buzzing with a notification, so I checked it.
I noticed that Hoshino-San had sent me two messages.
I opened the chatroom: "Amamiya-Sensei, I think I have a fever." she messaged—ugh. She sent a sticker—a somewhat chubby white seal looking displeased with a thermometer apparently stuck up its rear—What?
I turned off the phone screen and put it into my pocket. I put on my mask, grabbed the alcohol spray, and rang the doorbell at Hoshino-San's next-door apartment.
After a moment...
…She didn't faint, did she? But then—she opened the door, her face looking somewhat flushed.
"Ah~~Uno you're here~" She—What? "Hoshino-San, are you okay?" I asked.
"Relax! I just feel a little—" she said, waving her hand forward, then her body started to fall forward—"HEY ! HOSHINO-SAN!" I quickly stepped forward to catch her, her head leaning slightly on my shoulder.
"I'll take you to the couch to rest first." I gently assisted her, helping her to lie down on the couch.
…
Looking at her lying on the couch, she was resting with her eyes closed. Apart from looking exhausted, coughing, and a runny nose, her symptoms didn't seem severe. It's possible that she started feeling unwell on the way home yesterday, and her symptoms worsened during the night, preventing her from sleeping well.
I noticed her constantly adjusting her position, so I went to her bedroom and fetched a blanket and a pillow. I gently lifted her head and put the pillow in a comfortable place for her, and then covered her with the blanket.
"Is there anywhere else you're feeling uncomfortable?" I asked her softly. "Hmm... my... my head hurts a lot." she answered weakly, her face showing discomfort and her hands gripping the blanket tightly.
She couldn't take care of herself in this state, and I couldn't bear to leave her alone. "Hoshino-San, do you feel too cold right now?" I asked her gently.
"Uh... yeah, um... yes..." she answered slowly with her eyes closed. I got up, looked around for the air conditioner remote, found it, and turned up the temperature slightly.
After that, I went to her bathroom, rinsed a plastic washbasin, filled it with seventy percent hot water and thirty percent cold water, soaked a towel in it, and brought it to the living room.
I dipped the towel in the water, then wrung out most of the water. I then gently placed the warm towel on her forehead. Her expression seemed to relax a bit.
I watched her resting quietly.
After a while, I reheated the towel and placed it on her forehead again.
"Hoshino-San, did you do anything yesterday that might have led to catching a cold?" I asked her gently. "Uh... drank too much lemon water?" she answered me.
Uh... dinner last night? If I recall correctly, she didn't drink much.
"I saw you didn't drink much lemon water yesterday, was there anything else?" I asked her gently. "Um... yesterday... I think I took a cold shower." she answered slowly.
"For a long time?" I asked her. "I... don't remember, I think... after dancing yesterday afternoon, I showered until you rang the doorbell?" she slowly—What?
She showered until I rang the doorbell? I had finished a movie before I went to see her!
"Do you only take cold showers, Hoshino-San?" I asked her gently. "Well... at the beginning there was hot water, but later it ran out." she answered slowly.
I got up and gently opened the balcony door. The water heater is the same model as mine, the movie "The Graduate" is about 100 minutes, so this water heater can provide hot water for about 20 minutes, which means... 80 minutes of a cold shower.
No wonder she caught a cold... I heard her coughing from inside.
It seemed that I had no choice today. I walked over to the railing, dialed the hospital, and waited for the call to go through.
"Hello, this is Amamiya Gorou, a gynecologist. I have an emergency to attend to. My neighbor suddenly has a fever and can't take care of herself. She has no one else to look after her. I'm sorry, I need to take a leave of absence." I said. "Understood, Amamiya-Sensei, thank you for informing us. Are you sure your neighbor's condition requires your personal care? Does she need to be taken to the hospital?" the other party asked.
"Yes, I'm worried about her condition. I believe I need to see her myself. I've already assessed her illness. I will observe her condition. If it worsens, I will take her to the hospital immediately." I replied. "We understand your situation, Amamiya-Sensei. How long do you think your leave will last?" they asked. "I estimate I will need a day. I will handle this issue as soon as possible and return to the hospital." I answered.
After some more conversation, I managed to take the leave. I started thinking about what food is good for someone with a cold.
…
To be honest, aside from catching a cold when I was a child, I don't seem to have much experience with colds. Among the people I know, the one to ask about making a meal for someone with a cold would be...
But I didn't really want to call— I heard coughing from the room.
…
Sigh. I dialed a number from my contact list, waiting for the other party to pick up.
"Hello, this is the Amamiya residence." the voice on the other side said. "Hey, Grandma, it's me—" She cut me off. "Oh! My dear grandson! How rare of you to call back home! Did you miss Grandma?" she said joyously. "Kind of, but today I wanted to—" She cut me off again. "Gorou, are you bringing your girlfriend home this time? Should I notify the relatives?" She inquired—
Yes, this is precisely why I don't fancy making these phone calls.
"No, no, no, wait a moment! Grandma! Not every time I call it means I'm bringing a girlfriend home, okay!? I have other things to discuss!" I said, burying my face in my hands.
"Well, what could be more important than you bringing back my great-grandson? Gorou, you're nearly thirty now. There are only old folks and adults in our hometown, no children or babies. I'm bored! I wouldn't mind taking care of a child again, after all, I did help raise you!" she started to ramble.
"No, Grandma, aren't you missing several steps here? It's not like once you have a girlfriend, a baby pops out, right? Can't you just let things take their natural course? And today I really didn't call to talk about this!" I answered, feeling helpless.
"So, do you have a girlfriend?" She asked. "...No." I replied.
A moment later.
"Alright then, what did you need today?" she said, sounding a little impatient. "Do you remember what you used to cook for me when I was sick? The kind that made me feel better really quickly?" I asked her.
"I don't recall having any sort of family heirloom elixir. Or are you referring to the usual meals you ate when you were sick?" She asked. "...Yes, the latter. The meals you prepared when I was ill, do you remember them?" I clarified.
"...You don't sound sick to me?" She queried. "Uh...no, it's not me—" She cut me off. "Who are you cooking for?" She asked, seemingly curious. "Well, my neighbor—" She cut me off.
"Oh!? A girl?" She—what? "Does that matter?" I asked, looking ahead. "Of course, it concerns my great-grandchild." she proclaimed proudly.
"Grandma, please, can you stop fixating on having a great-grandchild?" I said.
After a pause.
"Okay, Gorou, it was lovely chatting with you today. Let's talk again another day. Bye—" I cut her off. "ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! HOLD ON, DON'T HANG UP!" I shouted.
I took a deep breath.
"...Yes, she's a girl, are you satisfied now?" I finally answered. "Oh, I thought it might have been a boy. That's a relief." she responded—what?
"Grandma, you're being too pragmatic." I retorted. "This is about my great-grandchild—so when are you bringing her home?" she asked—wait, what?
"Grandma, first, she is my patient, second, we're not that close, and third, she's only sixteen." I responded.
"Gorou, first, so what? Does that matter? Second, you know they say 'familiarity breeds affection'! Third, I gave birth to your mother when I was sixteen." she countered—wait a minute, the third point, what the hell, sixteen? I never knew that.
"Grandma, what do you mean 'does it matter?' She's my patient, I'm an 'OB/GYN'. How do you think the baby in my patient's belly came about?" I told her seriously.
"And so?" She—really?
"Grandma, babies don't just spring from stones, nor do they reproduce asexually." I replied.
"What is reproduce asexually?" She asked.
…
"Anyway, Grandma! Times have changed. If this were to happen, I would be socially ostracized, seriously!" I told her.
"No worries! Then just wait until she's twenty! I can wait a few more years, no problem!" she said. "No, Grandma, this—wait! Today I really just called for a recipe! She's not feeling well right now, can we talk about this another time?" I asked her.
After a moment.
"Um...alright, rice porridge—add a little ginger, steam some chicken breast and dice it." she answered. "With ginger, right?" I repeated.
"Yes, you could also make her a vegetable soup! Add tomatoes, onions, and garlic. Oh yes, garlic is very important!" she instructed. "Alright, alright, garlic, got it." I echoed.
"I used to stir-fry some broccoli, but softer food is better for someone with a cold." she advised. "Mhm, I'll keep that in mind." I affirmed.
"Oh, our Gorou is finally cooking for a girl! It seems my teachings weren't in vain!" she said, laughing. "Grandma, can you not—" She cut me off.
"I thought that since the family persuaded you to become an OB/GYN, you had lost interest in cooking—"
...
Right, isn't it?
After the family convinced me to become an OB/GYN, how could they think I was still interested in cooking? I gazed at the blue sky ahead.
...
"Gorou?" She called. "Yes, Grandma, I hear you. Is that about it? I have to go, she's not feeling well." I told her. "Alright then! Don't forget to come visit Grandma when you're free! Bye!" she said. "Sure, I will, goodbye." I hung up.
...
I should have just googled it instead of putting myself through this. I looked at the black smoke billowing from the chimney in the distance.
Isn't this what they wanted? Isn't this what I had to do? Isn't this why I switched from being a surgeon to an OB/GYN?
After all, my mother—
I heard coughing from inside the room.
...
Now's not the time for these thoughts; she needs someone to look after her.
I slid open the balcony door and casually closed it behind me, moving closer to Hoshino-San, who seemed to be asleep on the sofa.
I thought about cooking at my place and bringing the meal over later, so as not to disturb her. After all, I just live next door.
Taking the key placed next to her entrance hall, I locked her door and returned to my place next door.
Back home, I took out the necessary ingredients from the fridge. To make a rice porridge with steamed diced chicken breast, I needed to find my steamer, which, luckily, I found after a brief search.
Taking out the chicken breast... ah, it needs defrosting.
Covering my face, I hadn't considered this. But I decided to use the microwave to thaw it.
I put the frozen chicken breast into the microwave and turned on the defrosting function, but I shortened the microwave time.
After each round of microwaving, I would move and turn the chicken breast. It's a bit of a hassle, but at least it ensures that every part defrosts evenly, to avoid some parts being cooked while others are raw.
Once the chicken breast was fully defrosted, it had a nice, even color—from pink to pale yellow. Despite being frozen, it was still not sticky and retained a certain firmness.
I took a sniff; it had no off-putting smell.
Next, I placed the defrosted chicken breast in the steamer and started to steam it. It should take around 20 minutes. Meanwhile, I planned to prepare a vegetable soup.
I cleaned the carrots, onions, garlic, and tomatoes, and cut them into appropriate sizes. I then grabbed a pan, heated a bit of oil, and started sautéing the garlic and onions until the onions turned semi-transparent.
Next, I added the diced carrots and tomatoes and continued to sauté for a while. A few moments later, I added an appropriate amount of water and covered the pan.
The simmering process also took about 20 minutes. By that time, I could start making the rice porridge. I picked up another pot, washed it clean, and washed a cup of rice as well, then drained the water and added four cups back.
After putting it on the stove, I turned on medium heat and slowly brought the rice to a boil until it softened. This also took about 20 minutes, by which time the porridge became thick. By then, the chicken breast was ready. I took it out and let it cool on a plate while checking on the vegetable soup.
Hmm, the scent of garlic was present but not overpowering.
A moment later, I checked on the rice porridge with a spoon. The grains were distinct but had clearly softened. When I lifted the spoon, a thin strand of white liquid was dragged up.
I diced the cooled chicken breast on a cutting board and added it to the porridge. I also prepared some ginger, grated an appropriate amount into the porridge, and waited for the ingredients to meld together.
The vegetable soup was about ready. I seasoned it with a bit of salt and pepper, then covered the pot and brought it over to Hoshino-San's house. Upon entering, I set it on the kitchen counter. She seemed to be sound asleep.
I returned home and saw that the porridge was almost ready, so I turned the heat down and picked up the frying pan, getting ready to stir-fry some broccoli.
I washed the broccoli and cut it into small pieces, then started stir-frying it in the preheated pan. During the process, I alternated between medium and low heat until the broccoli turned green and began to char slightly.
Recalling my grandmother's advice to make it softer, I added a small amount of water. After covering the pot, I turned the heat to low and let it simmer. I took the opportunity to serve the porridge to Hoshino-San, who seemed to have sensed it even in her sleep. With her eyes closed, she appeared to be smelling something.
After that, I dished out the cauliflower and added a touch of salt before bringing it over.
I took a brief rest on the sofa, picked up a tissue nearby, removed my glasses, and wiped the sweat off my face.
The morning sun was illuminating the entire room, and the wind chime on the balcony outside the glass door was gently chiming as always. The quiet hum of the air conditioning wasn't too loud.
Hoshino-San was still sound asleep on the long sofa to my left — albeit with a faint snoring due to her stuffy nose from a cold.
A little later, I went into the kitchen, picked up a bowl and spoon, lifted the pot lid, and served a bowl of porridge.
"Hoshino-San, can you eat?" I asked slowly, then brought the bowl closer to her.
I initially wanted to help her up, but she seemed to get up automatically at the scent of the food.
I handed her the bowl, and she held the spoon in her right hand with her eyes closed.
She scooped up a spoonful of porridge, then — it brushed past her upper lip.
...Uh.
She paused for a moment, then — this time it almost went into her nose.
"Hoshino-San, let me help you!" I said anxiously, fearing she might burn her nose next.
I scooped up a spoonful of porridge.
She kept her eyes closed, her delicate mouth slowly opening to let my spoon in. Once I put the spoon in, she closed her mouth, swallowed the porridge from the spoon. As I slowly pulled out the spoon, it seemed like she still wanted to keep it in her mouth.
She then swallowed, a smile creeping onto her face with her eyes still closed.
...This is just too cut-
No — no, I'm a doctor. I need to stay calm. She's my patient, and she's only sixteen.
I continued to feed her the remaining porridge.
A while later, I had managed to feed her half the bowl of porridge, and got her to have a few bites of the vegetables and vegetable soup.
She didn't seem to like garlic very much and now, with her eyes still closed, she was sitting on the sofa.
Thinking about it now, although I could take care of her all day, I don't have a car in case we need to rush to the hospital. I should contact her guardian.
"Hoshino-San, could you please..." Before I could finish, she had already laid down on the sofa and continued to sleep.
Alright then.
I helped her pull her feet onto the sofa, made her lie flat, covered her with a blanket, and planned to check her phone for an emergency dial setup to find an emergency contact.
Surprisingly, there was one.
I slid open the glass door, walked out onto the balcony, and made the call.

I hate to say this and I'm not even that kind of a person but i saw a junior boy from my uni/college in my dreams. It's such a shame that i dreamt bout him even though it was brief.
Backstory: He asked my name, tried to communicate once by joking around me and we nearly bumped on each other once while i was hurrying to a lecture. I see him every now and then as he is our junior. Just based on these, I'm like dreaming bout a lil guy? A brother figure? Like bruh, what in the world...
It's clear as hell that i have no such intentions or even a lil feelings for him. Bruh like how? He's a lil brother goddammit. Istg i hate my brain so freaking much, what an over thinking ashhhh. And I'm overreacting like this cos in my dreams, he was staring at me so creepily, like a freaking predator LOL.
K now, gave it time and thought, so let's end this chapter right here right now x

Does anyone else feel this way? I watch this show alongside my mom who is 50, me 20s, and she said while watching the finale and the S2 final cabin burning scene, “they are the parents.” And I laughed a bit. Like yes, she’s right. They are the parents of the group.
I say this not only because of how accepting the entire group is of them as a couple but in how they move cohesively together even in differing opinions. And ESPECIALLY, during the fire scene. We see the team come together, to grab anything they can and get out. But I was very focused and loved the scene (albeit a very quick moment) in which Van is kicking the door, nothing budging, while Tai grabs the axe, and Van’s simple: “you go!” then Tai begins to hit the door with the axe. Just the in-sync, complete focus on survival, was awesome.
I know that moment is small, but they were also the last two people out of the cabin. They pushed everyone out before them. Tai was not going to go without Van. They just lead as this duo in such a strong, strangely inviting, and comforting way. These two young people just figuring themselves out, let alone the wilderness.
Nat and Travis are nowhere near this comfort yet. Are they even together at the finale? There is no cohesion. I think the group leans into something where we have two or more people being close in a quiet but powerful way. I just kinda love them and it’s more a way to look at the ways in which we as humans are pulled and guided to people who seemingly move the world together as one; but also as strong separate people.
And just big, big props to some badass acting by Jasmin and Liv & Tawny and Lauren. Holy smokes do I love them.
Love to the sub, thanks for reading.