Sobriety. Why is it such a struggle for me? I know people who are sober and say that they don’t even think about it anymore. Why is it that I think about it daily? I fight it everyday. Most days I win but there are days that I don’t. Regardless, I will never give up. Every day I pick up my sword and fight.

TV Review: Seven Swordsmen

TV Review: Seven Swordsmen

TV Review: Seven Swordsmen aka “Seven Swords Descend from Mount Heaven”

In 17th Century China, the Qing Dynasty now rules where once the Ming Dynasty did. Many Han resent their new Manchu overlords and pockets of rebellion are everywhere. To help quell the resistance, the Qing have banned the practice of martial arts by ordinary citizens. The Red Spear Society strongly objects to this…

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It is OK to seek support for alcohol use. Being mindful of your relationship with alcohol can help you decide the safest way to drink. If you think drinking alcohol is negatively affecting your life, talk to someone you trust, such as a close friend, family member, mental health professional or medical provider.

For additional support, reach out to NYC Well. NYC Well staff are available 24/7 and can provide brief counseling and referrals to care in over 200 languages.

For support:
Call 888-NYC-WELL (888-692- 9355)
Text “WELL” to 65173
Chat online at nyc.gov/nycwell

Six Good Reasons to Take a Break From Alcohol

Six Good Reasons to Take a Break From Alcohol

Alcohol is ubiquitous in America. You can’t drive down the freeway without seeing billboards advertising various adult spirits, all of them featuring smiling folks who look like they’re having the time of their lives. 

The reality is often far different. Although many people can enjoy the occasional happy hour cocktail with few negative repercussions, others become addicted. This substance…

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CW: Alcohol abuse, overworked and underappreciated hero

“Hero..? Damn… When Sidekick called and told me what happened, I never expected… this.”

Hero was standing in the parking lot of the bar, bottle in hand, glaring at Villain. “Why are youhere?”

“I’m here to stop you from self destructing.”

With a frustrated yell, Hero threw the bottle in their hand at Villain. It missed.

“Wow.” Villain looked down at the smashed pieces of glass now littering the ground.

“Get the fuck away from me! I don’t want your help!”

“Are you always this expressive when you’re drunk? You’re usually so calm.”

Hero took a shaking breath. “Don’t talk to me— I don't— You shouldn’t have come!”

“Sidekick is worried about you. I thought they were exaggerating, but… Well, now I’m worried.” Villain started closer to Hero.

“Stay away from me!”

“No. Hero, you’re coming with me. Make it easier and go quietly.”

Hero tried to push Villain, but Villain just caught them close against their chest. “Let go!” Hero started thrashing. “Let me go you— you bastard!”

“Wow. Creative.” Villain rolled their eyes, forcing Hero across the parking lot to their car. “I’d put you in the backseat, but I don’t trust you to sit still.” Villain shoved Hero into the trunk and closed the hatch.

—

“Get me out of here!” Hero screamed, kicking and hitting the trunk’s interior as they felt the car come to a stop.

A minute later, the trunk opened to reveal Villain.

“If you don’t get me out of here right now, I swear I'll—”

“What?” Villain interrupted Hero. “You’ll do what, exactly, Hero? You can barely best me on a good day. Right now, you’re drunk. You can’t even use your powers, so tell me. Exactly what do you think is about to happen right now?”

Hero spluttered, speechless.

“Good. I’m glad we see eye to eye.” Villain tugged Hero out of the trunk.

“But… but this isn’t your base..?” Hero was looking at a cheap apartment complex.

“No, it’s not. What, do you live in your base?”

“Yes.”

Now it was Villain’s turn to be speechless.

“What the hell do you expect?? My whole life is my work!”

“You have no life outside of work?” Villain stared.

“I don’t have time for life outside of work! I fight you, Other Villain, Vigilante when they get out of hand, and now I’m expected to help out with Supervillain too! When am I supposed to have time??”

“Well you seem to be able to find time to drink…” Villain muttered.

Hero shoved Villain away and fell, suddenly off balance. “You don’t know what it’s like!” They angrily swiped the tears out of their eyes. “I do everythingforeveryone! And then I make one mistake— Supervillain gets away with one hard drive— and I take all the heat!” Hero curled in on themself. “Sometimes… sometimes I don’t even know why I try…”

“Hero…”

“Don’t touch me!” Hero snapped, saying at Villain’s hand as it brushed their arm.

Villain stood in silence for a moment.

“I… I didn’t mean…” Villain crouched next to Hero. “Hero, I’m sorry…”

There was another long moment of silence before Villain helped Hero to their feet. “Come inside.”

“I want you to not need to drink just because you spent one night treating me the way you are with Pete all the time.”

“Hey, no - kid, this isn’t about you,” he tries to explain.

“Except it is,” Peter interrupts, “because he’s just like me, but you love him and you can barely even look at me.”

Set Theory by Anonymous

Avengers | Tony/Peter(+Peter) | WIP already at 70k+ | pining; so much pining; what do you call sleeping with yourself?; dubcon in the identity way; also dubcon in the you-made-a-clone-of-me way; this premise sounds crazy but it is so incredibly in character

Let’s say Tony deals with losing Peter on Titan in his own terribly predictable and predictably terrible way: by creating a replacement Peter. But then Endgame happens - Tony survives, and OG Peter comes back.

Drunken Concerns

Ging Freecss X Reader

A/N: I’m literally screwed on rum right now i kind of hate this but kind of like it so here it is anyway

Description: Ging is always a little concerned about why you like him at all, and thinks drinking is the way to solve that problem.

Tags: fluff, established relationship, gn!reader, alcohol abuse, vomit, seriously tho if ur not a fan of vomit i wouldn’t

Word Count:3000

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You and Ging had been on this exploration for weeks now. It was long, tricky, and getting relatively annoying to locate the place you were trying to get to. Normally both of you would press on out of devotion and spite, but for once, Ging had proposed to take a break and stay in a hotel for a couple of days to wind down. You weren’t going to say no to a soft and plush bed, so you accepted his suggestion eagerly, the setting sun already enticing you to take some time to yourself. Perhaps with some good rest you would have a clearer mind to help your love and partner find what he was looking for. His success meant just as much to you as it did to him, after all. 

Ging definitely needed a break as much as you did, the lengthy exploration making him irritable due to the lack of results. He was admittedly a little bitter, so he made a good call for his own sanity while the two of you checked into a rather nice hotel in the nearby city. The room was a simple single king bed on the top floor with a balcony and a small kitchenette, Ging having decided he wanted a nicer view for this particular stay. He wasn’t one for such material things, but perhaps he was thinking of you when he asked for the best room with one king bed. He had a tendency to not tell you when he was thinking of you, but at times like this, it was painfully obvious. 

The two of you ascended in the elevator to your room once your key cards were secured. You were personally excited as ever to have a clean and soft bed, the thought of having a steaming hot shower being even more appealing. All that climbing, running, and sleeping on tough ground had your bones aching for a good scalding. When you were on the designated floor, you ran out and viciously tapped your key card on the door, letting yourself into the incredible room.

“Aaah, finally! Soft, warm, and in the clouds!” You cheered, throwing yourself face first onto the bed and messing up the sheets. 

“Our luck has been shit. It’s definitely break time.” Ging sighed as he dropped his things in the corner of the hotel closet. “Great job messing up the bed by the way, loser.”

“It is standard hotel practice! How dare you question my ritual!” You huffed. “Anyway, I think I’m due for a positively scalding shower. What about you, oh lord and master of stink?”

“Ha! We’ve been sharing the same sleeping bag. My stink is your stink.” He snorted. “Go on ahead before me. Lord knows you need it.” 

“Will do. Buuuut, you could also come in with me and wash your stinky ass a lot quicker~” You teased, getting up from the bed with a suggestive look about your eyes. 

The look on his face was priceless. The poor man was at a loss for words, absolutely flustered by your offer. The laughter you let loose only made it worse too.

“Sorry, sorry~. I won’t tease you anymore~.” You hummed. “Think of something to eat in the meantime. I think there’s a restaurant downstairs in the lobby. We can eat something nice for once tonight.”

“Y-yeah, I’ll look into that.” He stammered quietly.

You shook your head and approached him, giving him a reassuring peck on his cheek before you departed for the bathroom. He was left there a jumbled mess to decide on food for the night while you washed away the past few weeks, but he really wasn’t thinking about food at all once that clean white door shut behind you. Only questions ran through his mind, the most prominent one being ‘why?’

That word bounced around in his mind constantly, and once he heard the shower turn on, he sighed, leaving the hotel room. He now felt the need to attempt to clear his head… before he said something stupid when you got out. 

===

You were in the shower a lot longer than you originally wanted to be. What should’ve been a fifteen minute cleanup ended up being a forty minute meditation session with hot water massaging your back and pouring down your cold skin to bring it back to life. It felt too good, which was why you spent so much time in there fogging up the mirror. Tonight you simply decided your body was due for a bit of love and care, washing yourself from head to toe until you smelled absolutely divine. Whatever the hotel’s body wash scent was, it was wonderful.

Eventually you gave up the sweet flow of boiling hot water over your shoulders and turned the water off, stepping out of the shower and wrapping yourself in a towel. You were clean enough, and left Ging waiting long enough too. 

“M’kay, it’s your turn Ging!” You called out, opening the bathroom door. 

Yet there was no one. You were met with an empty hotel room. 

“… Ging?”

Standing there in nothing but your towel, you searched for his aura with your en and found nothing nearby. He was gone from the room, which meant that you’d have to put on regular people clothes instead of cozy pyjamas to search for your missing love, thankful you at least had a pair of sweats on you. 

“God. Where have you gone, Ging?” You mumbled to yourself as you changed. “Did he go to the restaurant maybe? I was in the shower for a long time… Or maybe I shouldn’t have teased him. Ugh, I’ll find him.”

Once all dressed you marched on out of the hotel room and back down to the lobby, constantly searching for him with your en as you went down. When you finally hit the lobby, you were thankfully able to pick up on where he was. He was in fact in the restaurant attached to the hotel, but not to eat food. When you rounded the corner and paced through the entryway, you found him sitting at the far end of the bar instead, an entire bottle of rum on the counter before him. 

“What the…” You muttered. “Ging?? What the hell are you doing at the bar?!”

Ging raised his head and looked over at you as you approached him. He had hoped you wouldn’t have come looking for him, but here you were. To be fair, he hadn’t gone far. If he really didn’t want to be bothered, he would have gone further. 

“Ah. It seems you’ve found me. I just wanted to come n’ try the drinks here before ya came down.” He slurred.

“Oh wow you are fuckin’ plastered.” You huffed. “Why are you drinking? You don’t drink. And what are you- oh. Oh my god.”

You stared down the bottle in front of him on the counter, eyes nearly popping out of your head. 

“What? S’ just a sip. Don’t yell at me.”

“A sip??? You’ve had half the bottle, Ging! That’s thirteen ounces worth! At forty percent! Are you insane?!” You scolded, throwing your hands wildly in a gesture at the bottle of golden liquid. 

“Maybe I am. Lemme live.” He mumbled.

Ging picked up the bottle and swirled its contents around. He really was drinking it straight up. You had no idea what possessed him to do this, having never seen him so dismissive before even when the two of you were flitting around in the beginnings of your relationship. Just when he was about to tilt the bottle up and take another swig, you reached over and swiped the bottle from his hand before he could get a taste, sitting down next to him at the bar. 

“My god. No more drinking alone for you, mister. I dunno why you’re doing this, but I ain’t gonna let you do it alone.”

When you finished speaking you immediately threw your head back with the bottle to your lips, chugging several ounces of the rum in front of him. Ging looked at you appalled; almost offended that you stole his bottle from him. 

“Hey! I was drinkin’ that!” He protested with a slur. 

“Not anymore.” You stated when you took a moment to speak. “If you wanna keep drinking, get a highball. If you keep tryna finish a whole 26 yourself you’ll regret it immensely. So, I’m finishing it for you.”

He tried to take the bottle back from you but you leaned away, flipping him off before making a quick heart with your fingers right after. It stung, but you bit back the alcohol like a champ and finished the rest of the bottle so there was nothing left for him to hurt himself with. He’d be forced to slow down his pace, which was at least something in your eyes. 

“Are you… sure you’re gonna be ok after drinkin’ that??” Ging then questioned cautiously, rather surprised by your ease with consuming the other thirteen ounces of rum. 

“Oh so now you’re concerned about the amount of liquor now that I’m the one drinking it?” You laughed. “I’ll be fine. In fact, I could take a few more if I’m being honest.”

You waved down the bartender and got yourself a double, looking over at Ging again with a raised brow when all he did was keep staring. 

“You gonna get another drink since I stole your rum?”

“… Yeah, fuck it. Why not.” He sighed. 

He was already fucked, so what was the harm in a little more? You may have taken his rum, but now you weren’t so concerned about if he kept going or not. Now that you were with him, everything seemed alright again, and all those previous questions that bounced around in his mind before had suddenly gotten drowned out; exactly what he had been trying to do with the liquor. He went from drinking alone to drinking for fun, all thanks to your persistence. 

Now that his original intended task was completed, he finally quit moping in the corner of the bar. That common wash of confidence came back to him as the liquor hit you both, a pointless yet enjoyable conversation breaking out between the two of you, laughing at every second sentence. Time stood still between you, the moment too good to not let last. 

After a couple more casual watered down drinks, you suggested to order a wine bottle and carry on back in the privacy of your room. Traffic was picking up in the bar, and your conversations usually weren’t ones you wanted the public to catch wind of. He agreed, and the two of you paid and stumbled your way back up to your room, ever grateful for the elevator that carried you there. 

You were the first in the room, headed straight for the kitchenette to grab the glasses that were complimentary with the room. You filled them up while Ging made his way to the small counter and leaned on it, a glass full of wine being pushed up to him shortly after.

“We’ve had a rough couple of weeks. S’ time to relaaaax.” You hummed with a hint of a slur. 

“You can fuckin’ say that again.”

You knocked your glasses together and took your sips, but that seemed to backfire for Ging. He’d had too much, and had a far lower tolerance than you. All it took was that one sip to turn his stomach, and he knew it was time to get into the bathroom. 

“Ah shit, there it is.” You mumbled, watching him run into the bathroom. 

Setting your glass down you followed after him, just in time to witness his grand hurling as he kneeled before the toilet. You crouched down behind him, ready to help. This wasn’t your first rodeo thanks to how often you’ve done the same for your friends. 

“Now imagine if I’d let you finish that bottle alone.” You cooed.

“Shut up.”

He uttered those two words between hurls. It was no longer an evening in his favor, still staring down the porcelain prison he had to hold onto. 

“As you wish.”

It was a neat reflex you had; being able to turn off how intoxicated you were when it came to taking care of someone important to you in a moment of need. It took all your focus, but you quickly wet a cloth from where you sat on the floor in the sink and put it on the edge of the counter to use later. You then turned your attention to him again, remaining silent but gently brushing back his hair that clung to his sweat slicked face. He was in no condition to protest, and admittedly didn’t want splashback to end up where it didn’t need to. 

You sat there with him until he finished, rubbing his back in an attempt to ease the discomfort he surely felt. Now that he was done, you pulled him back a little to shut the toilet lid and flush away the ungodly amounts of lost liquor. You then took the cloth you wet earlier and started to gently clean up his face. He felt stupid; drunk and stupid. 

“Why’d I do that…” Ging mumbled, dropping all his weight forward and smashing his forehead on the toilet seat. 

“Stop it!! My god…” You sighed, pulling him back again into your arms this time. “Quit with that. Just relax, you’ve got the worst of it over.”

“Why though?” He asked. 

“Why what?”

“Why do you even -hic-care??”

“Ging what-”

“Why do you even love me…” He rambled on, voice so quiet you nearly missed it. 

You weren’t sure what to say back to him at this moment. It was a truly shocking thing to hear from him, wondering why on earth he would think such a thing. 

“I’m always so mean to you. I’m a mess too. All I do is run around in dusty ruins, so why?” He carried on in the same quiet tone. 

You sighed deeply after a moment of contemplation, putting the cloth back on the counter so you could resume brushing his hair back while keeping him upright. 

“I don’t really think it matters why. I love you a lot, and that’s all that should matter, right?” You finally answered. “This is what you were thinking about when you went down for a drink huh…”

“… Yeah.”

“Well, you don’t sound convinced at all.” You spoke softly. “Can you walk?”

“Not… really.”

“Aight. Stand up and lean on me.”

You forced him up from the floor and leaned all his weight onto your shoulder so you could get him out of the bathroom. You were practically carrying him, barely any effort put in his steps at all while you dragged him over to the bed. With a quick yank on the covers you sat him on the edge, getting him to take off his vest before you pushed him down under the covers, getting in with him. You gave him no room to protest, trapping him in a bubble of warmth under the thick blankets, cuddling him close with your hands in his hair. 

“Ging, I love you because of your passion. Your love for discovery and everything that you do is admirable, and that extends to me as well. You don’t realize it I guess, but you do treat me as well as you treat your passions.” You reassured him. “And about you being mean; we’re both mean, you goof. We bully each other every day for fun. I know you care, and that’s all that really matters for me.”

The poor man looked as if he were about to cry. You clicked your tongue and brought him closer again, massaging his scalp. The entire issue he kept trying to drown out had been resolved by a few simple words from you, and he never felt more relieved. 

“Ugh, ‘m too fuckin’ drunk for this shit. How can you keep yourself together?” He whined, unraveling with every scratch you made. 

“Well, I wouldn’t say I’m noooot drunk~.” You giggled, that tipsy lilt coming back to your tone. “I just held it off to make sure you know I loooove you.”

The way you slipped back into sounding like a fool made Ging look at you funny, unable to stop a smile from twitching up on the corners of his mouth. 

“You’re so dumb. How d’ya hold back that much rum for this long??”

“The power of needing to carry my partner to bed is a strong one.” You hummed. 

“God, you- You’re so… genuine. I’m real glad you love me I… yeah.” He said dumbly, still unable to overcome his own intoxication as he snuggled into you.

“I do love you, Ging. I love you enough to drink the other half of the rum so you don’t black out over stupid thoughts in your mind. You almost fell in the toilet. That would make you unkissable, and we can’t have that now can we?” You cooed, kissing his forehead where he hit the lid of the toilet. 

You didn’t stop there though. You kept kissing your way all around his face, making him groan in protest. He didn’t want to admit it, but he adored the attention. You knew he did too by the way he simply gave up and let a tiny smile slip by. Nothing was hidden from you with him anymore. 

Eventually you cut him some slack though and pulled the blankets tighter around the two of you, snuggling close after you tapped off the lamp on the nightstand. He needed rest, and you did too. The hangover would be killer. 

“_____ I… I love you.” He finally said, settling with his arms wrapped tightly around you. 

You softened, happy to finally see him at ease for the night. 

“I love you too, Ging. Never doubt that again.” You whispered.

“I won’t”