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Doctor has submitted prescription twice (electronically) to CVS pharmacy, CVS says they don’t have prescription in queue or any record of it. Any advice?
2023.06.10 08:39 jiji88899 Doctor has submitted prescription twice (electronically) to CVS pharmacy, CVS says they don’t have prescription in queue or any record of it. Any advice?
My CVS pharmacy is open 24 hours. Dr submitted first prescription at 5pm. I never got notified by CVS that it was ready and couldn’t get anyone to answer my calls, so I went in person at 9:30pm. They said they didn’t have anything for me. I call the doctor who says they’ll submit a new prescription. 2 hours later, still nothing… does anyone have any advice?
submitted by jiji88899 to CVS [link] [comments]
2023.06.10 07:48 Crazed_waffle_party Health insurance is not navigable (insider rant)
My brother makes $60,000 a year as a support manager in NYC for a well known B2B tech company. However, he pays about $3,600 a year for his health insurance through his company. That's not terrible. The average rate for an American is $465 a month, but depending on ones plan and risk factors, it can go between about $300 and $1,200 a month for coverage. By the way, instead of using the term subscription or monthly fee, insurance companies use the term "premium". Although "premium" sounds more decadent and luxurious, it's really just a way to confuse consumers to make them less resistant to costs.
In this grand country, my brother pays 6% of his wages pre-tax just in premiums. Sadly, There are extra costs that he and all other patients must navigate:
Although doctors have no clue what they're hospital is being paid for seeing a patient (how would they, it differs by insurance, company, plan, and procedure, which can result in trillions of combinations), the hospitals and their administrators do have a means to look it up. The list that contains these amounts is called a charge master. Practically all hospitals require employees to sign NDAs regarding this document. If an employee were to post it online or let the information slip, they will lose their jobs and then be sued in civil court.
Normally, we are used to looking up the costs of something in realtime on our phone, but this is impossible in the world of medicine. You will only know what something costs if you ask. However, you cannot ask your doctor. They do not know. It would also compromise your relationship with them if you were to constantly interrupt their analysis with financial questions.
You may ask an administrator, but they can take a long time to get back to you. They cannot answer off the top of their head. They have to look it up with specialized tools, while also handling their own workload.
You may be willing to wait around for an answer for a major procedure, but probably not for the small things. For instance, a single Tylenol pill, may actually be costing you $50. Without access to the charge master, patients cannot navigate the system, even if they have a sophisticated understanding of the medical system. Obviously, without price transparency, costs can and have become egregious. Making these lists public is the first and perhaps simplest way to improve healthcare.
Frankly, all medical providers and insurance companies should be forced to disclose their charge masters in a standardized format that must be sent to a centralized government database for easy access. If the format isn't standardized, any government agency or company that wants to make a price/procedure search engine to to increase transparency will not be able to without a disruptive amount of human capital. If these companies are not required to submit these documents to a centralized source, they will introduce red tape or technical complications in accessing them. The demand to standardized and centralize this information should not be up to discussion. The amount bad faith tactics they have leveraged over the years has ultimately disqualified both hospitals and insurance companies from negotiating for compromise.
My mother used to manage these intricacies as a hospital administrator and I used to navigate the hundreds of thousands of varying procedures, drugs, and hyper specific codes used to define them all as a biomedical company database administrator. This is something that has been part of my life for some time. It's something I have learned to resent as I've been increasingly involved with its needless absurdity.
I recognize though, that the medical insurance industry directly employs 3 million Americans through its pointless inefficiencies. It cannot be rectified without harming millions of people who are simply doing their jobs. There isn't a politician cruel enough nor self-sacrificing enough to drain the lake at once. However, price transparency is a practical first step, even for an elected official. Getting charge masters into the public domain should be priority. That is all.
submitted by Crazed_waffle_party to offmychest [link] [comments]
In this grand country, my brother pays 6% of his wages pre-tax just in premiums. Sadly, There are extra costs that he and all other patients must navigate:
- Deductibles: The sum you pay before insurance covers costs. For example, with a $5,000 deductible, you shoulder the first $5,000 of medical expenses yearly. If you have cancer, that means on top of the monthly fees (PrEmIuMs) you spend on insurance, you will also have to spend $5,000 for your own treatment before your insurance even kicks in.
Keep in mind, standard procedures are usually covered by your insurance even if you haven't met your deductible. However, because of the amount of possible medical exams a person can have, the list of what counts as "standard" vs. "non-standard" is not intuitive. Some PhD.s who specialize in this field even find the amount of irregularities between what is covered by default throughout varying insurance networks to be unfathomably complex. - Coinsurance: Even after you met your deductible, you may still be obligated to pay for some of your care, usually a percentage of the final bill. This split in pay is your coinsurance. Going back to the earlier example, let's assume you maxed out your deductible, spending over $5,000 for your cancer treatment; however, you will need an operation that is likely to cost $10,000. Even though you're deductible has been met, you may have a coinsurance bill of 20% ($2,000) for your surgery.
- Copays: This is a fixed amount you will pay for a service, deductible met or not. This varies based on your procedure or the medication you are taking, so there is no way of planning for it prior to a diagnosis. You may pay $3 copay for insulin, but you may have to pay $120 for an MRI scan. The costs are fairly arbitrary and cannot be easily looked up on a website. Unless you know how ICD10, pharmaceutical codes, etc. are used by your specific plan and hospital, you will not be able to navigate this yourself. At my previous position as a database administrator for a biomedical company, I had to deal with over 70,000 codes used by insurance companies and hospitals. It is not practical for an individual to understand or navigate these systems on their own without specialized knowledge and tools. Considering that every single insurance companies' plans has different charges for pharmaceutical, procedures, and hospital facilities, not even your doctor has a clue about the expenses you may have to burden when they write you a prescription. No person should have to plan around this.
- Out of pocket maximums: The most you can pay before your insurance covers everything, including copays and coinsurance.
- in-networks/out-networks: your insurance company negotiates on price with pharmacies, hospitals, and other institutions within the medical system. However, sometimes these negotiations fail. When an insurance company does not have an agreement with a medical provider, that provider is considered out-of-network and the insurance will not pay for your care there. It gets more complex, though. Sometimes, a hospital may be in your network, but the doctor you must see may not be. Sometimes the doctor may be covered, but the MRI machine they used to check you isn't. That's right, equipment can be outside of your network.
Although doctors have no clue what they're hospital is being paid for seeing a patient (how would they, it differs by insurance, company, plan, and procedure, which can result in trillions of combinations), the hospitals and their administrators do have a means to look it up. The list that contains these amounts is called a charge master. Practically all hospitals require employees to sign NDAs regarding this document. If an employee were to post it online or let the information slip, they will lose their jobs and then be sued in civil court.
Normally, we are used to looking up the costs of something in realtime on our phone, but this is impossible in the world of medicine. You will only know what something costs if you ask. However, you cannot ask your doctor. They do not know. It would also compromise your relationship with them if you were to constantly interrupt their analysis with financial questions.
You may ask an administrator, but they can take a long time to get back to you. They cannot answer off the top of their head. They have to look it up with specialized tools, while also handling their own workload.
You may be willing to wait around for an answer for a major procedure, but probably not for the small things. For instance, a single Tylenol pill, may actually be costing you $50. Without access to the charge master, patients cannot navigate the system, even if they have a sophisticated understanding of the medical system. Obviously, without price transparency, costs can and have become egregious. Making these lists public is the first and perhaps simplest way to improve healthcare.
Frankly, all medical providers and insurance companies should be forced to disclose their charge masters in a standardized format that must be sent to a centralized government database for easy access. If the format isn't standardized, any government agency or company that wants to make a price/procedure search engine to to increase transparency will not be able to without a disruptive amount of human capital. If these companies are not required to submit these documents to a centralized source, they will introduce red tape or technical complications in accessing them. The demand to standardized and centralize this information should not be up to discussion. The amount bad faith tactics they have leveraged over the years has ultimately disqualified both hospitals and insurance companies from negotiating for compromise.
My mother used to manage these intricacies as a hospital administrator and I used to navigate the hundreds of thousands of varying procedures, drugs, and hyper specific codes used to define them all as a biomedical company database administrator. This is something that has been part of my life for some time. It's something I have learned to resent as I've been increasingly involved with its needless absurdity.
I recognize though, that the medical insurance industry directly employs 3 million Americans through its pointless inefficiencies. It cannot be rectified without harming millions of people who are simply doing their jobs. There isn't a politician cruel enough nor self-sacrificing enough to drain the lake at once. However, price transparency is a practical first step, even for an elected official. Getting charge masters into the public domain should be priority. That is all.
2023.06.10 06:19 No-Engineering2646 Omnicare salary
What is the job grade and pay range for a front-end pharmacy technician position at CVS/Omnicare? I want to be clear about what salary I should request during my interview. The range is $17-$27. But that is for the job grade this position falls under. I can’t find more info than that.
submitted by No-Engineering2646 to PharmacyTechnician [link] [comments]
2023.06.10 05:30 blank_7664 I was Misdiagnosed and can't help thinking about it.
It was the fall of 2020. Female, 23, 5'2, weight 113lbs. I felt sick unusually sicks. I felt the weight of my body become heavy. Every step began to take my breath away. I would sleep but would wake up every 30 minutes. And every 30 minutes I would gasp for air.
But before all that. I thought it was just a regular cold and I treated it as a cold. I took medicine. Slept. Went to work and started to work doubles. I thought it was finally my body telling me to take a day off. Two months went by, my "cold" would not leave. My cough got worst. Chills began every night. I still worked because no one could cover. So, my body decided to shut down full. I would wake up to mucus in my eyes and coughing but nothing coming out. I did the typically vicks, sprite or 7 up, night quil, soup diet. Nothing, would change that. One night, I was playing video games with my friends. And they said I did not sound like myself. And I thought I might have gotten a fever. Then in the back of my mind I thought maybe pneumonia. I had pneumonia when I was a 5 years old. I don't remember anything of the feelings of having it. But my mom would tell me to take care of myself because she didn't want to see me get like that ever again. After some convincing, my family forced me to go. But since I woke up around the late afternoon. I went to the ER to get checked. As I was walking from the car to the entrance of the ER. I realized something is wrong with me. I could barely breath and it wasn't this bad two days ago. Why now. My family was walking way ahead of me. I tried to yell at them to wait but hardly anything came out. So, I called. And they saw me struggling. They first thought I was joking but realized I started to wheeze as I tried to catch my breath. Mind you I had no memory of how pneumonia was for me as a child.
My mom went to the front desk talking to the lady, saying I needed to get seen asap. My older sister sat me down. There was so many people there. It felt like a long wait. I got up fast because I felt like I could not breath. Finally. After a 2 hour wait that felt like 5 hours. They called my name, asked why I was there and took my vitals. I told them I am coughing constantly and could hardly breath. They took note of my vitals, pressure and what I said. They escorted me out and told me they will call me when a doctor is ready to see me.
I waited for another hour. Crying because I cannot breath. But it started to hurt to cry. My chest felt like it had a lot of pressure. I looked at the time and started to slowly lose my patience. I heard my name. I got up quickly and rushed to see the doctor. She sat me down. Talked to me and I said I can't breath but i keep coughing. I get chills, i am wheezing and could hardly sleep. I feel pressure on my chest, it really hurts. The pain level is a 9 out 10. The doctor took notes and looked at me. She grabbed the stethoscope and listened. She then told me, "Nothing is wrong, your temperature is normal, nothing out of the ordinary. I'll suggest getting cold medince and drinking water." She pointed at the door and said "go ahead and head to the pharmacy". I looked at my mom and she looked at me, "see nothing". I looked down in embarrassment and started to slowly make my way out. As I was heading out. Another doctor who was in an office in the ER overheard my concerns. She told me to step into her office and she sat me down. She took her stethoscope and made me breath multiple times. She looked at me in disbelief and said, "oh. Honey." And yelled out to get a wheelchair. She escorted me to x-ray to see my lungs. She then had a nurse wait for me and escorted me to her main office. And had me under a device that helps me breath and break apart mucus for 30 minutes. She came into the room telling me that my left lung was filled with fluid and my right was half filled. She then started to give me actual answers and told me I had pneumonia. And that she is suprised I could even breath for so long. I told her how long I was sick for and such. After getting treated by her. I gotten better in the matter of a week and a half. I don't know what happened between that doctor and the one that treated me. But I am very thankful for the doctor who intervened with the diagnosis. She literally saved my life. Who knows what could have happened.
In the future is there anything I could do to avoid something like this? I feel like it was my fault for over reacting about chest pain. I am also scared to be ignored again about my concerns.
submitted by blank_7664 to medical_advice [link] [comments]
But before all that. I thought it was just a regular cold and I treated it as a cold. I took medicine. Slept. Went to work and started to work doubles. I thought it was finally my body telling me to take a day off. Two months went by, my "cold" would not leave. My cough got worst. Chills began every night. I still worked because no one could cover. So, my body decided to shut down full. I would wake up to mucus in my eyes and coughing but nothing coming out. I did the typically vicks, sprite or 7 up, night quil, soup diet. Nothing, would change that. One night, I was playing video games with my friends. And they said I did not sound like myself. And I thought I might have gotten a fever. Then in the back of my mind I thought maybe pneumonia. I had pneumonia when I was a 5 years old. I don't remember anything of the feelings of having it. But my mom would tell me to take care of myself because she didn't want to see me get like that ever again. After some convincing, my family forced me to go. But since I woke up around the late afternoon. I went to the ER to get checked. As I was walking from the car to the entrance of the ER. I realized something is wrong with me. I could barely breath and it wasn't this bad two days ago. Why now. My family was walking way ahead of me. I tried to yell at them to wait but hardly anything came out. So, I called. And they saw me struggling. They first thought I was joking but realized I started to wheeze as I tried to catch my breath. Mind you I had no memory of how pneumonia was for me as a child.
My mom went to the front desk talking to the lady, saying I needed to get seen asap. My older sister sat me down. There was so many people there. It felt like a long wait. I got up fast because I felt like I could not breath. Finally. After a 2 hour wait that felt like 5 hours. They called my name, asked why I was there and took my vitals. I told them I am coughing constantly and could hardly breath. They took note of my vitals, pressure and what I said. They escorted me out and told me they will call me when a doctor is ready to see me.
I waited for another hour. Crying because I cannot breath. But it started to hurt to cry. My chest felt like it had a lot of pressure. I looked at the time and started to slowly lose my patience. I heard my name. I got up quickly and rushed to see the doctor. She sat me down. Talked to me and I said I can't breath but i keep coughing. I get chills, i am wheezing and could hardly sleep. I feel pressure on my chest, it really hurts. The pain level is a 9 out 10. The doctor took notes and looked at me. She grabbed the stethoscope and listened. She then told me, "Nothing is wrong, your temperature is normal, nothing out of the ordinary. I'll suggest getting cold medince and drinking water." She pointed at the door and said "go ahead and head to the pharmacy". I looked at my mom and she looked at me, "see nothing". I looked down in embarrassment and started to slowly make my way out. As I was heading out. Another doctor who was in an office in the ER overheard my concerns. She told me to step into her office and she sat me down. She took her stethoscope and made me breath multiple times. She looked at me in disbelief and said, "oh. Honey." And yelled out to get a wheelchair. She escorted me to x-ray to see my lungs. She then had a nurse wait for me and escorted me to her main office. And had me under a device that helps me breath and break apart mucus for 30 minutes. She came into the room telling me that my left lung was filled with fluid and my right was half filled. She then started to give me actual answers and told me I had pneumonia. And that she is suprised I could even breath for so long. I told her how long I was sick for and such. After getting treated by her. I gotten better in the matter of a week and a half. I don't know what happened between that doctor and the one that treated me. But I am very thankful for the doctor who intervened with the diagnosis. She literally saved my life. Who knows what could have happened.
In the future is there anything I could do to avoid something like this? I feel like it was my fault for over reacting about chest pain. I am also scared to be ignored again about my concerns.
2023.06.10 04:09 UncleCeiling Writing on the Wall, Chapter 16
First Chapter Here
Previous Chapter Here
My other story, Going Native Here
Hey look, a chapter released in a somewhat reasonable timeframe! As always, thank you for reading and let me know what you think!
*****
Faye hadn’t noticed right away that Meechie missed her regular stop. The pair had been standing in relative silence, Faye’s thoughts drifting off to debate whether or not she would go to the next movie night at the Library, and it was several stops before she realized that she hadn’t said goodbye to the Rakiri. It was in a bit of a brain fog that Faye half-turned, figuring she should hurry and say it now before Meechie got too far away, but instead she jerked her head to find the brown-furred woman staring directly at her.
“I am still here,” Meechie said quietly, a small smile causing the fur on her cheeks to bristle.
“You are,” Faye agreed. “I thought I missed seeing you off.”
“I am accompanying you to the library,” the young woman declared. Faye tried not to read too much into vocal cues, especially when she had little-to-no experience with the species in question, but there still seemed to be something nervous in Meechie’s voice. Nervous and pleading.
“I don’t need a bodyguard,” Faye said cautiously. “And I definitely don’t need someone making a decision like that for me.”
That seemed to strike a nerve. Meechie slunk back as if hit, causing some grumbles from the other passengers. The Rakiri took a moment to smooth out the fur on her face with one hand before replying.
“I did not express myself well. I wished to visit a library after work, and as you work at one I thought it would be nice to travel alongside you.” Meechie’s eyes lowered. “I should not have presumed.”
As if on cue, the bus slowed to its next stop and Meechie moved to leave. It would put the furry young woman at a corporate business park near absolutely nothing of interest. Faye shot out a hand and grabbed Meechie by the shoulder. The Rakiri froze mid-step as if turned to stone.
“Don’t!” She tugged gently and Meechie shifted back to Faye’s side. “No need to run off. Sorry. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.”
“I…” Meechie seemed to be glancing everywhere except at Faye. “It’s alright?”
God damn was this poor girl shy. “Yes, you can ride to the library with me. I just wish you had mentioned it earlier; we don’t have a lot of time to talk shop now.” Faye considered Meechie again, clothes that looked brand new and not a speck of grease to be seen. “Is that why you got all dressed up?”
Meechie nodded, still keeping her eyes somewhere to the left of Faye’s face. “I normally go straight home, but it wouldn’t do to soil any of the books.”
“The books and I both appreciate it.” That earned Faye a smile, at least. “What are you looking for? I didn’t take you for much of a reader.”
“I like adventure stories,” Meechie replied.
“Hmm…” Faye tapped a fingertip to her lips as she thought. “Historical? Big battles?”
“The fighting isn’t what’s important.” Meechie stopped, eyes drawn to the motion of Faye’s finger, and she self-consciously brought her hands back down to her sides. “It is more about the people the hero meets on his travels.”
His travels?
The pronoun threw Faye for a bit of a loop; she was so used to hearing the feminine form used as the general that it stood out. It only took a moment for her to understand. Faye grinned.
“Romantic stories?” She asked the question in a faux whisper, slightly teasing, and Meechie immediately went wide-eyed. Her freshly-cleaned fur puffed up in what could only be panic. Faye reached over and gave Meechie a couple quick pats on the shoulder before leaning in.
“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”
—
“...should have what you’re looking for. I’m going to be upstairs at Archives, but the help desk can find what you’re looking for if you get lost. And remember, no judgment.”
Mahnti glanced across the lobby more out of instinct than anything else. Hearing Faye’s voice simply drew his attention, especially considering he didn’t think her shift had started yet. His eyes quickly picked her out as Faye turned away from the entrance and towards the hall that led towards the employee lounge. He also took note of who she had been talking to.
Rakiri weren’t uncommon in University City, but the way this one stood in place, staring at Faye’s back with an unnerving intensity, was setting off alarms all down Mahnti’s rather sizeable spine. He began to make his way on an intercept course towards Faye, trying to imprint the furry girl’s look into his memory just in case. Brand new clothing, still showing the creases of packaging. Not quite the right fit for the woman’s frame, and she moved like she was profoundly uncomfortable in them. Dark brown fur that seemed to puff up as she stared at Faye, then flattened as she noticed Mahnti watching her.
The Senthe flared his hood slightly, emphasizing his size instinctively as he narrowed his eyes. The Rakiri stared at him unblinking for a moment, then turned and wandered off towards the main stacks. It only took another moment for him to catch up to Faye.
“Who was that?”
Faye jerked slightly, then stopped and turned with a small smile decorating her lips. “Good morning to you too.”
“Yeah, yeah, good morning and all that. Was that your bus Rakiri?”
Faye nodded, the smile fading as she picked up on Mahnti’s unease. “Yeah. Why, do you know her?”
“No, nothing like that.” Mahnti sighed. He didn’t want to cause problems, but he also had some serious bad vibes going. “She was just standing there staring at you. It was pretty creepy.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed her doing that a lot. I think it might be a Rakiri thing? Meechie seems to have latched on for whatever reason.” Faye shrugged. “I don’t think she has any friends.”
“I’m not surprised if that’s her way of making them. She seriously looked like she was about to attack you or something.”
“Doesn’t know anybody, trying to figure out how to socialize with people…” Faye shrugged again, adding a lopsided smile. “I can relate. She seems harmless enough, even helped protect me the other day.”
Mahnti slumped a little. “I suppose. I just… be careful, okay? I don’t want to have to frame another dent in a wall.”
He also didn’t want to have to worry about Faye bleeding out in some dark corner somewhere. She could outrun a Shil, but a Rakiri with ill intentions would be a far more dangerous proposition.
“After what happened before, I’m not taking chances.” Faye patted the side of her purse conspiratorially and Mahnti could see the outline of a cylinder. It seemed to be a fair bit larger than the grinshaw spray he carried in a vest pocket, but that could have just been a trick of the bag it was in. Regardless, he felt a little better knowing she had something. It wasn’t until he saw the fear she was tucking down behind her smile that he suddenly realized just how vulnerable Faye must feel.
She was smaller and weaker than a Shil’vati, easy to pick out of a crowd and easier to pick on, and with the way she dressed and styled herself Faye really was priming the pump for trouble. A random attack at her place of work had nearly killed her and, less than a week later, here she was trying to take it in stride. All while knowing that the chance of it happening again was approaching certainty.
“Come on,” Mahnti said quietly. He took one of Faye’s hands and pulled her deeper into the hallway, away from prying eyes and towards the break room. He almost told her that she was safe here, but that was a lie. Nowhere was safe if you stood out, and he knew that better than anyone.
–
Ib’aest Jamia, chronic layabout and day manager at the Jamia Library, hoped he didn’t look too guilty when Faye’s face poked through his office doorway and interrupted the scandal rag he was reading on his pad. He slipped his pad face-down into his desk drawer in a single smooth motion and slapped on his second-best friendly but not flirtatious smile.
“Hey Ibby.” Faye seemed suddenly nervous herself, glancing around the room as if to ensure that it was just him in his office. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Is it work related?” Faye shook her head in the negative. “Then of course! Come on in and shut the door.”
Faye followed his lead, latching the door and stepping gracefully to the chair he indicated on the other side of his desk. It was odd, watching the way she moved. Too graceful for most women he knew, but still nervous. Faye sometimes seemed to approach the world as if everything was made of glass. Or perhaps that she was.
Ibby looked the girl up and down, trying for a “kind older friend” vibe. The Human was dressed simply in one of the outfits she seemed to have a knack for throwing together. He knew he had seen at least some of it before, the tights and the skirt at least, but the overall effect was new to him. She struck such an odd balance, clearly a woman but throwing off such a distractingly masculine vibe. In this one person Ibby had a real empirical example of the strange dichotomy that made Humanity so interesting. That said, there was really only one reason for a young woman to ask to speak to an older man in private. At least, only one he figured Faye would be up for.
“Boy troubles?”
Faye blinked at Ibby, confused for a moment. “Kind of, yeah. I guess you could call it that.”
Ibby ran through the list in his head. Mahnti was the obvious first choice, but the way that pair seemed to be getting along he didn’t think there would be any trouble he’d have to intervene with. Besides, the Senthe had said they weren’t doing the perpendicular poke. At least not yet. Faye also knew Tevor, but Ibby had yet to see anyone aside from Sade who could pull that poor kid out of his shell. Maybe Iora over in Digital Media. Did Faye even know Iora?
“Have you ever been to any fancy dress parties?”
Ibby’s racing mind slammed into a drift, changed gears, and nearly ran headlong into the answer. “You’re going on a date with that reporter!”
“It’s NOT a date. I have gone to great lengths to make that clear to both of us.” Faye’s voice was firm. The girl was apparently a better liar than Ibby thought. “He invited me out to go see a play being performed in English at a fancy theater.” Faye pulled out her pad and showed Ibby a copy of the playbill.
“Ooh, the Icosahedral Garden. That’s a great venue.” Ibby considered. “I assume he’s dragging you out to dinner first?”
“I guess? I didn’t really think that far ahead. I just realized that I have no idea what’s culturally acceptable to wear to an event like this.” Faye blushed prettily. “I don’t want to show up in a ball gown and have it turn out to be more of a spikes and corpse paint thing.”
“I… what?”
“Nevermind. Just making a joke.” Faye shrugged, eyes drooping as her expression soured. “It seems like I make a scene no matter where I go. It would be nice to blend in for a change.”
Fat chance of that, Ibby thought. Still, he could be of some help. “What would you say to another shopping excursion? I wouldn’t mind helping you out.”
Faye nodded, relief washing over her. “I would appreciate that. I have an errand to run tonight and plans for tomorrow, but how about the day after? I’m free all day and that will still give me plenty of time before the show.”
“It’s a…” Don’t say date, you idiot. Poor girl is nervous enough as it is. “..plan. Truth be told, it’ll be nice to show you the sights properly. Most of your new friends seem to be more of the indoor sort.”
Faye snorted back a laugh. “Ain’t that the truth.”
–
…Really?
Faye tilted her head to one side just to give her eyeroll a running start. The sign hanging above the shop door was written in a rounded style made to emulate the shape of English letters despite being Shil’vati script. Through the window she could see an assortment of Human snacks, assorted tchotchkes that somehow made her feel victimized on behalf of every race and culture involved, and an embarrassingly large amount of soft-core pornography.
"Chad Nova’s Human Emporium" was probably the single cringiest store that Faye had ever seen, and she distinctly remembered hanging out at the mall back when you could get jeans with pockets big enough to hold a CD player. It didn’t help that, while Faye was standing in the mall concourse staring at the store, the clerk inside was staring right back. That girl seemed to consider blinking an afterthought.
After a moment to square her shoulders and pat the side pocket on her purse reassuringly, Faye entered the store. It was a riot of mismatched goods, poorly made display swords and replica firearms tucked alongside “authentic” Polynesian nose flutes and decks of playing cards. After accidentally locking eyes with what she was fairly certain was an Abraham Lincoln body pillow, she decided to simply accept that this was what her species boiled down to.
“Can I help you, miss?” The voice was high and cracked around the edges. Faye turned to look at the clerk, a Shil’vati girl barely out of school with a face still lightly dusted with acne. The girl seemed to be about ten seconds from exploding in excitement.
“Actually, yeah. I was wondering if you do special orders.” Faye pulled out her pad and started tapping at the screen. “I brought some sundries when I moved out here and I don't know what I’m going to do when I run out.”
“Moved, like from Earth?” Make it five seconds.
“Yes, and to answer your next question, yes, I’m a Human. Nobody decided to bleach a Helkam or anything like that.”
Four… three… two…
The Shil girl turned away and ran to the back of the store, sliding to a stop in front of a rather tacky looking beaded curtain hanging next to an “Employees Only” sign. She shoved her head through the beads.
“MOOOOOOOOOOM!!! HUMAN!!”
Faye took a moment to collect herself. She glanced around, cataloging the strange array of goods. There were some things that clearly fell into similar themes, like the large snack section or the graphic novels (emphasis on graphic), but much of the place was simply a cacophony of crap. She noticed a stuffed doll of the Statue of Liberty fallen over into a container of brightly colored, thumb-sized plastic crucifixes. All the little Jesuses seemed to be staring in mute, cross-eyed horror at the plushie green giant.
“Oh! It’s you!”
Faye turned away from the plastic Jesusai and saw that the young Shil’vati clerk was now accompanied by another woman. Definitely not old enough to be the clerk’s biological mom, but with how things tended to go with Shil families and how long lifespans could get it wasn’t the most surprising. If the clerk was a Human seventeen, she’d put this new one at twenty three or twenty four.
“Yeah, it’s me,” Faye replied to the stranger with a shrug.
“We saw you on the news, but…” the young woman trailed off, her black and gold eyes focused on the still-fading bruises on Faye’s face.
“Lost a fight,” she said curtly. Anything to move this along. “Some friends of mine recommended this place to get Human snacks, and I figured if you’re getting regular imports you might be able to get me some other stuff.”
“..Ah. Oh! Yes!” The woman blinked, then looked at her daughter. “Can you go grab my order book?” Turning back to Faye, she continued, “What sort of things did you need? We have quite a collection here.”
“You certainly do.” Faye tried to focus on the woman, but her eyes kept getting drawn off to the side. An anime-style wall scroll of a mostly-naked, hugely muscled brown-skinned man was staring at her, and she couldn’t place who it was supposed to be. Bob Sapp maybe?
“Mostly I was thinking about makeup, maybe some comfort food. Stuff you probably don’t stock but I can’t afford to import on my own.”
The young woman nodded, her dark hair bouncing. “I’m sure we can work something out. You’re lucky; most Human stores are part of a chain, but we’re independent. We’re not confined to ordering from just one catalog.”
As if she was just waiting for her cue, the Shil kid arrived and plopped an oversized binder into her mom’s open arms. She placed it on a table and flipped it open with a thump.
It was like someone tried to print the Internet. The woman quickly fingered her way through hard-copy recreations of digital storefronts while Faye groaned inwardly. She liked paper more than most but this just seemed so awkward. An alien luddite.
“My brother-in-law’s cousin-in-law works on Earth at one of those new superconductor factories. They ship a lot of materials here, so I was able to negotiate a good deal to take up their extra mass allotment for cheap.” The woman stopped on a page, then pointed. “Something like this?”
Faye leaned over the book and looked. It was the digital storefront of one of those corner store and pharmacy chains that sells makeup on top of everything else. Not exactly top of the line, but better than the dollar store.
“Perfect.” Faye started noting individual things she’d like and the woman dutifully started marking things down on a scrap of paper. The big items on Faye’s shopping list were more foundation and concealer, but she picked out some blush, lipstick, and eyeliner pencils too; she was leery about trusting Shil makeup in general. It was hard enough to find brands that didn’t make her skin break out into an oily mess without getting alien biochemistry involved.
“We can order whatever you like, but the fewer stores you have to pick from the better. I would hate for our buyer to get pissy because she has to run too many errands on the hot guy planet.” The clerk paused for an eye roll. “Also, keep in mind that these prices aren’t what you’ll pay; there will be an additional convenience fee.”
Faye nodded. “Of course. What are you thinking?”
“Hmm…” The woman looked Faye up and down in a way that suddenly made her feel a lot smaller and more vulnerable. While this stranger wasn’t particularly tall for a Shil, that still made for a five or six inch height difference. “You are pretty cute…”
“Dad said no more cute discounts!” Faye’s attention was drawn to the younger girl, who had been watching the whole exchange from a few steps back. The darkening purple blush on her face matched Faye’s own red one.
“You’re no fun!” The Shil mock glared at her (step?)daughter, then turned back to Faye. “Seriously, though, as long as the mass and volume are small the cost to get this sort of thing here isn’t too bad. Say twenty percent. It'll be more if you want anything big or our buyer has to go to a specialty store, but we can do that too. It will still be a lot cheaper than trying to import anything yourself.”
“Twenty percent isn’t bad.” It was a great deal, honestly. Faye doubted they’d be doing much more than breaking even on her little orders. She closed her eyes for a second, clearing her mind. She could feel the spray canister in her bag, pressing against the inside of her arm. Its presence was reassuring. “Can I add an absolutely no flirting policy to our agreement?”
The woman nodded, suddenly looking abashed. “Sorry, I forgot Human women aren’t normally into other girls. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
Whether or not Faye was into girls was irrelevant, but she wasn’t about to get into an argument about it. Instead, she turned a few pages back and forth, adding a few more odds and ends to the list that she hadn’t been able to find in University City. Much of the list consisted of condiments and seasonings that might help make the Shil instant meals Faye had been purchasing a little more palatable.
By the time they were done, Faye had an order totaling a couple hundred credits and a promise that she would have her goods in three to four weeks. Before she left she made a point of stocking up on junk food and picked up a few English-language graphic novels that looked interesting. She rounded out the visit with a couple decks of playing cards. Tomorrow was game night, after all. She should be at least somewhat prepared.
****
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This is a fanfic that takes place in the “Between Worlds” universe (aka Sexy Space Babes), created and owned by u/BlueFishcake. No ownership of the settings or core concepts is expressed or implied by myself.
This is for fun. Can’t you just have fun?
submitted by UncleCeiling to Sexyspacebabes [link] [comments]
Previous Chapter Here
My other story, Going Native Here
Hey look, a chapter released in a somewhat reasonable timeframe! As always, thank you for reading and let me know what you think!
*****
Faye hadn’t noticed right away that Meechie missed her regular stop. The pair had been standing in relative silence, Faye’s thoughts drifting off to debate whether or not she would go to the next movie night at the Library, and it was several stops before she realized that she hadn’t said goodbye to the Rakiri. It was in a bit of a brain fog that Faye half-turned, figuring she should hurry and say it now before Meechie got too far away, but instead she jerked her head to find the brown-furred woman staring directly at her.
“I am still here,” Meechie said quietly, a small smile causing the fur on her cheeks to bristle.
“You are,” Faye agreed. “I thought I missed seeing you off.”
“I am accompanying you to the library,” the young woman declared. Faye tried not to read too much into vocal cues, especially when she had little-to-no experience with the species in question, but there still seemed to be something nervous in Meechie’s voice. Nervous and pleading.
“I don’t need a bodyguard,” Faye said cautiously. “And I definitely don’t need someone making a decision like that for me.”
That seemed to strike a nerve. Meechie slunk back as if hit, causing some grumbles from the other passengers. The Rakiri took a moment to smooth out the fur on her face with one hand before replying.
“I did not express myself well. I wished to visit a library after work, and as you work at one I thought it would be nice to travel alongside you.” Meechie’s eyes lowered. “I should not have presumed.”
As if on cue, the bus slowed to its next stop and Meechie moved to leave. It would put the furry young woman at a corporate business park near absolutely nothing of interest. Faye shot out a hand and grabbed Meechie by the shoulder. The Rakiri froze mid-step as if turned to stone.
“Don’t!” She tugged gently and Meechie shifted back to Faye’s side. “No need to run off. Sorry. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.”
“I…” Meechie seemed to be glancing everywhere except at Faye. “It’s alright?”
God damn was this poor girl shy. “Yes, you can ride to the library with me. I just wish you had mentioned it earlier; we don’t have a lot of time to talk shop now.” Faye considered Meechie again, clothes that looked brand new and not a speck of grease to be seen. “Is that why you got all dressed up?”
Meechie nodded, still keeping her eyes somewhere to the left of Faye’s face. “I normally go straight home, but it wouldn’t do to soil any of the books.”
“The books and I both appreciate it.” That earned Faye a smile, at least. “What are you looking for? I didn’t take you for much of a reader.”
“I like adventure stories,” Meechie replied.
“Hmm…” Faye tapped a fingertip to her lips as she thought. “Historical? Big battles?”
“The fighting isn’t what’s important.” Meechie stopped, eyes drawn to the motion of Faye’s finger, and she self-consciously brought her hands back down to her sides. “It is more about the people the hero meets on his travels.”
His travels?
The pronoun threw Faye for a bit of a loop; she was so used to hearing the feminine form used as the general that it stood out. It only took a moment for her to understand. Faye grinned.
“Romantic stories?” She asked the question in a faux whisper, slightly teasing, and Meechie immediately went wide-eyed. Her freshly-cleaned fur puffed up in what could only be panic. Faye reached over and gave Meechie a couple quick pats on the shoulder before leaning in.
“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”
—
“...should have what you’re looking for. I’m going to be upstairs at Archives, but the help desk can find what you’re looking for if you get lost. And remember, no judgment.”
Mahnti glanced across the lobby more out of instinct than anything else. Hearing Faye’s voice simply drew his attention, especially considering he didn’t think her shift had started yet. His eyes quickly picked her out as Faye turned away from the entrance and towards the hall that led towards the employee lounge. He also took note of who she had been talking to.
Rakiri weren’t uncommon in University City, but the way this one stood in place, staring at Faye’s back with an unnerving intensity, was setting off alarms all down Mahnti’s rather sizeable spine. He began to make his way on an intercept course towards Faye, trying to imprint the furry girl’s look into his memory just in case. Brand new clothing, still showing the creases of packaging. Not quite the right fit for the woman’s frame, and she moved like she was profoundly uncomfortable in them. Dark brown fur that seemed to puff up as she stared at Faye, then flattened as she noticed Mahnti watching her.
The Senthe flared his hood slightly, emphasizing his size instinctively as he narrowed his eyes. The Rakiri stared at him unblinking for a moment, then turned and wandered off towards the main stacks. It only took another moment for him to catch up to Faye.
“Who was that?”
Faye jerked slightly, then stopped and turned with a small smile decorating her lips. “Good morning to you too.”
“Yeah, yeah, good morning and all that. Was that your bus Rakiri?”
Faye nodded, the smile fading as she picked up on Mahnti’s unease. “Yeah. Why, do you know her?”
“No, nothing like that.” Mahnti sighed. He didn’t want to cause problems, but he also had some serious bad vibes going. “She was just standing there staring at you. It was pretty creepy.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed her doing that a lot. I think it might be a Rakiri thing? Meechie seems to have latched on for whatever reason.” Faye shrugged. “I don’t think she has any friends.”
“I’m not surprised if that’s her way of making them. She seriously looked like she was about to attack you or something.”
“Doesn’t know anybody, trying to figure out how to socialize with people…” Faye shrugged again, adding a lopsided smile. “I can relate. She seems harmless enough, even helped protect me the other day.”
Mahnti slumped a little. “I suppose. I just… be careful, okay? I don’t want to have to frame another dent in a wall.”
He also didn’t want to have to worry about Faye bleeding out in some dark corner somewhere. She could outrun a Shil, but a Rakiri with ill intentions would be a far more dangerous proposition.
“After what happened before, I’m not taking chances.” Faye patted the side of her purse conspiratorially and Mahnti could see the outline of a cylinder. It seemed to be a fair bit larger than the grinshaw spray he carried in a vest pocket, but that could have just been a trick of the bag it was in. Regardless, he felt a little better knowing she had something. It wasn’t until he saw the fear she was tucking down behind her smile that he suddenly realized just how vulnerable Faye must feel.
She was smaller and weaker than a Shil’vati, easy to pick out of a crowd and easier to pick on, and with the way she dressed and styled herself Faye really was priming the pump for trouble. A random attack at her place of work had nearly killed her and, less than a week later, here she was trying to take it in stride. All while knowing that the chance of it happening again was approaching certainty.
“Come on,” Mahnti said quietly. He took one of Faye’s hands and pulled her deeper into the hallway, away from prying eyes and towards the break room. He almost told her that she was safe here, but that was a lie. Nowhere was safe if you stood out, and he knew that better than anyone.
–
Ib’aest Jamia, chronic layabout and day manager at the Jamia Library, hoped he didn’t look too guilty when Faye’s face poked through his office doorway and interrupted the scandal rag he was reading on his pad. He slipped his pad face-down into his desk drawer in a single smooth motion and slapped on his second-best friendly but not flirtatious smile.
“Hey Ibby.” Faye seemed suddenly nervous herself, glancing around the room as if to ensure that it was just him in his office. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Is it work related?” Faye shook her head in the negative. “Then of course! Come on in and shut the door.”
Faye followed his lead, latching the door and stepping gracefully to the chair he indicated on the other side of his desk. It was odd, watching the way she moved. Too graceful for most women he knew, but still nervous. Faye sometimes seemed to approach the world as if everything was made of glass. Or perhaps that she was.
Ibby looked the girl up and down, trying for a “kind older friend” vibe. The Human was dressed simply in one of the outfits she seemed to have a knack for throwing together. He knew he had seen at least some of it before, the tights and the skirt at least, but the overall effect was new to him. She struck such an odd balance, clearly a woman but throwing off such a distractingly masculine vibe. In this one person Ibby had a real empirical example of the strange dichotomy that made Humanity so interesting. That said, there was really only one reason for a young woman to ask to speak to an older man in private. At least, only one he figured Faye would be up for.
“Boy troubles?”
Faye blinked at Ibby, confused for a moment. “Kind of, yeah. I guess you could call it that.”
Ibby ran through the list in his head. Mahnti was the obvious first choice, but the way that pair seemed to be getting along he didn’t think there would be any trouble he’d have to intervene with. Besides, the Senthe had said they weren’t doing the perpendicular poke. At least not yet. Faye also knew Tevor, but Ibby had yet to see anyone aside from Sade who could pull that poor kid out of his shell. Maybe Iora over in Digital Media. Did Faye even know Iora?
“Have you ever been to any fancy dress parties?”
Ibby’s racing mind slammed into a drift, changed gears, and nearly ran headlong into the answer. “You’re going on a date with that reporter!”
“It’s NOT a date. I have gone to great lengths to make that clear to both of us.” Faye’s voice was firm. The girl was apparently a better liar than Ibby thought. “He invited me out to go see a play being performed in English at a fancy theater.” Faye pulled out her pad and showed Ibby a copy of the playbill.
“Ooh, the Icosahedral Garden. That’s a great venue.” Ibby considered. “I assume he’s dragging you out to dinner first?”
“I guess? I didn’t really think that far ahead. I just realized that I have no idea what’s culturally acceptable to wear to an event like this.” Faye blushed prettily. “I don’t want to show up in a ball gown and have it turn out to be more of a spikes and corpse paint thing.”
“I… what?”
“Nevermind. Just making a joke.” Faye shrugged, eyes drooping as her expression soured. “It seems like I make a scene no matter where I go. It would be nice to blend in for a change.”
Fat chance of that, Ibby thought. Still, he could be of some help. “What would you say to another shopping excursion? I wouldn’t mind helping you out.”
Faye nodded, relief washing over her. “I would appreciate that. I have an errand to run tonight and plans for tomorrow, but how about the day after? I’m free all day and that will still give me plenty of time before the show.”
“It’s a…” Don’t say date, you idiot. Poor girl is nervous enough as it is. “..plan. Truth be told, it’ll be nice to show you the sights properly. Most of your new friends seem to be more of the indoor sort.”
Faye snorted back a laugh. “Ain’t that the truth.”
–
…Really?
Faye tilted her head to one side just to give her eyeroll a running start. The sign hanging above the shop door was written in a rounded style made to emulate the shape of English letters despite being Shil’vati script. Through the window she could see an assortment of Human snacks, assorted tchotchkes that somehow made her feel victimized on behalf of every race and culture involved, and an embarrassingly large amount of soft-core pornography.
"Chad Nova’s Human Emporium" was probably the single cringiest store that Faye had ever seen, and she distinctly remembered hanging out at the mall back when you could get jeans with pockets big enough to hold a CD player. It didn’t help that, while Faye was standing in the mall concourse staring at the store, the clerk inside was staring right back. That girl seemed to consider blinking an afterthought.
After a moment to square her shoulders and pat the side pocket on her purse reassuringly, Faye entered the store. It was a riot of mismatched goods, poorly made display swords and replica firearms tucked alongside “authentic” Polynesian nose flutes and decks of playing cards. After accidentally locking eyes with what she was fairly certain was an Abraham Lincoln body pillow, she decided to simply accept that this was what her species boiled down to.
“Can I help you, miss?” The voice was high and cracked around the edges. Faye turned to look at the clerk, a Shil’vati girl barely out of school with a face still lightly dusted with acne. The girl seemed to be about ten seconds from exploding in excitement.
“Actually, yeah. I was wondering if you do special orders.” Faye pulled out her pad and started tapping at the screen. “I brought some sundries when I moved out here and I don't know what I’m going to do when I run out.”
“Moved, like from Earth?” Make it five seconds.
“Yes, and to answer your next question, yes, I’m a Human. Nobody decided to bleach a Helkam or anything like that.”
Four… three… two…
The Shil girl turned away and ran to the back of the store, sliding to a stop in front of a rather tacky looking beaded curtain hanging next to an “Employees Only” sign. She shoved her head through the beads.
“MOOOOOOOOOOM!!! HUMAN!!”
Faye took a moment to collect herself. She glanced around, cataloging the strange array of goods. There were some things that clearly fell into similar themes, like the large snack section or the graphic novels (emphasis on graphic), but much of the place was simply a cacophony of crap. She noticed a stuffed doll of the Statue of Liberty fallen over into a container of brightly colored, thumb-sized plastic crucifixes. All the little Jesuses seemed to be staring in mute, cross-eyed horror at the plushie green giant.
“Oh! It’s you!”
Faye turned away from the plastic Jesusai and saw that the young Shil’vati clerk was now accompanied by another woman. Definitely not old enough to be the clerk’s biological mom, but with how things tended to go with Shil families and how long lifespans could get it wasn’t the most surprising. If the clerk was a Human seventeen, she’d put this new one at twenty three or twenty four.
“Yeah, it’s me,” Faye replied to the stranger with a shrug.
“We saw you on the news, but…” the young woman trailed off, her black and gold eyes focused on the still-fading bruises on Faye’s face.
“Lost a fight,” she said curtly. Anything to move this along. “Some friends of mine recommended this place to get Human snacks, and I figured if you’re getting regular imports you might be able to get me some other stuff.”
“..Ah. Oh! Yes!” The woman blinked, then looked at her daughter. “Can you go grab my order book?” Turning back to Faye, she continued, “What sort of things did you need? We have quite a collection here.”
“You certainly do.” Faye tried to focus on the woman, but her eyes kept getting drawn off to the side. An anime-style wall scroll of a mostly-naked, hugely muscled brown-skinned man was staring at her, and she couldn’t place who it was supposed to be. Bob Sapp maybe?
“Mostly I was thinking about makeup, maybe some comfort food. Stuff you probably don’t stock but I can’t afford to import on my own.”
The young woman nodded, her dark hair bouncing. “I’m sure we can work something out. You’re lucky; most Human stores are part of a chain, but we’re independent. We’re not confined to ordering from just one catalog.”
As if she was just waiting for her cue, the Shil kid arrived and plopped an oversized binder into her mom’s open arms. She placed it on a table and flipped it open with a thump.
It was like someone tried to print the Internet. The woman quickly fingered her way through hard-copy recreations of digital storefronts while Faye groaned inwardly. She liked paper more than most but this just seemed so awkward. An alien luddite.
“My brother-in-law’s cousin-in-law works on Earth at one of those new superconductor factories. They ship a lot of materials here, so I was able to negotiate a good deal to take up their extra mass allotment for cheap.” The woman stopped on a page, then pointed. “Something like this?”
Faye leaned over the book and looked. It was the digital storefront of one of those corner store and pharmacy chains that sells makeup on top of everything else. Not exactly top of the line, but better than the dollar store.
“Perfect.” Faye started noting individual things she’d like and the woman dutifully started marking things down on a scrap of paper. The big items on Faye’s shopping list were more foundation and concealer, but she picked out some blush, lipstick, and eyeliner pencils too; she was leery about trusting Shil makeup in general. It was hard enough to find brands that didn’t make her skin break out into an oily mess without getting alien biochemistry involved.
“We can order whatever you like, but the fewer stores you have to pick from the better. I would hate for our buyer to get pissy because she has to run too many errands on the hot guy planet.” The clerk paused for an eye roll. “Also, keep in mind that these prices aren’t what you’ll pay; there will be an additional convenience fee.”
Faye nodded. “Of course. What are you thinking?”
“Hmm…” The woman looked Faye up and down in a way that suddenly made her feel a lot smaller and more vulnerable. While this stranger wasn’t particularly tall for a Shil, that still made for a five or six inch height difference. “You are pretty cute…”
“Dad said no more cute discounts!” Faye’s attention was drawn to the younger girl, who had been watching the whole exchange from a few steps back. The darkening purple blush on her face matched Faye’s own red one.
“You’re no fun!” The Shil mock glared at her (step?)daughter, then turned back to Faye. “Seriously, though, as long as the mass and volume are small the cost to get this sort of thing here isn’t too bad. Say twenty percent. It'll be more if you want anything big or our buyer has to go to a specialty store, but we can do that too. It will still be a lot cheaper than trying to import anything yourself.”
“Twenty percent isn’t bad.” It was a great deal, honestly. Faye doubted they’d be doing much more than breaking even on her little orders. She closed her eyes for a second, clearing her mind. She could feel the spray canister in her bag, pressing against the inside of her arm. Its presence was reassuring. “Can I add an absolutely no flirting policy to our agreement?”
The woman nodded, suddenly looking abashed. “Sorry, I forgot Human women aren’t normally into other girls. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
Whether or not Faye was into girls was irrelevant, but she wasn’t about to get into an argument about it. Instead, she turned a few pages back and forth, adding a few more odds and ends to the list that she hadn’t been able to find in University City. Much of the list consisted of condiments and seasonings that might help make the Shil instant meals Faye had been purchasing a little more palatable.
By the time they were done, Faye had an order totaling a couple hundred credits and a promise that she would have her goods in three to four weeks. Before she left she made a point of stocking up on junk food and picked up a few English-language graphic novels that looked interesting. She rounded out the visit with a couple decks of playing cards. Tomorrow was game night, after all. She should be at least somewhat prepared.
****
Previous Next
This is a fanfic that takes place in the “Between Worlds” universe (aka Sexy Space Babes), created and owned by u/BlueFishcake. No ownership of the settings or core concepts is expressed or implied by myself.
This is for fun. Can’t you just have fun?
2023.06.10 03:47 shaneonymous Best Pancakes? (blueberry)
My fiance and I have been vacationing at hilton head for several summers. We know some great breakfast spots around the Coligny area and elsewhere on the island, but today she asked me about blueberry pancakes. Any suggestions for some really great pancakes on the island?
submitted by shaneonymous to hiltonhead [link] [comments]
2023.06.10 03:44 yardsaleyolo Class action lawsuit over DIR?
90+ year old family owned pharmacy run exceptionally well by my mother. Filling over 11,000 prescriptions a month and still growing (up 10% YTD). They are being absolutely bent over by PBM DIR fees. The town relies on this business and it’s literally becoming worthless in front of our eyes. Some of the growth this year is coming from the fact that there was a walkout of staff at the local CVS over a terrible work environment.
I have my own successful business in a different city but I’ve been getting involved to try and right the ship. This is a fight for survival right now. Mom stopped paying herself a few months ago and is doing everything she can to keep the business afloat. Implementing strategies to hold less inventory, start telling customers they are “unable to fill”, and whatever they can to help raise cash. This isn’t a question of squandering a business away.. this is theft.
Seriously… WTF!?!?
submitted by yardsaleyolo to pharmacy [link] [comments]
I have my own successful business in a different city but I’ve been getting involved to try and right the ship. This is a fight for survival right now. Mom stopped paying herself a few months ago and is doing everything she can to keep the business afloat. Implementing strategies to hold less inventory, start telling customers they are “unable to fill”, and whatever they can to help raise cash. This isn’t a question of squandering a business away.. this is theft.
Seriously… WTF!?!?
2023.06.10 03:31 unepommechat Revelations
Been a confused pre-med for the past 4 years, alternating between medical school, pharmacy school, or data science as possible career paths. Took some pre-req courses, dropped others, all the while I was an uncertain mess. These past few weeks have been especially tough as graduation inches closer, unable to commit to a decision post-grad, but I had a very revealing moment.
Saw someone get a blood draw and fainted. Thought to myself "huh, that's weird." Saw another and fainted again. Mfw I find out I have profound hemophobia. Literally cannot see or smell it without fainting.
Would've been nice finding this out during 1st year or something. At least I don't have to stress anymore about the MCAT or applying to med school.
Rip. Smh my head man.
submitted by unepommechat to udub [link] [comments]
Saw someone get a blood draw and fainted. Thought to myself "huh, that's weird." Saw another and fainted again. Mfw I find out I have profound hemophobia. Literally cannot see or smell it without fainting.
Would've been nice finding this out during 1st year or something. At least I don't have to stress anymore about the MCAT or applying to med school.
Rip. Smh my head man.
2023.06.10 03:21 Agitated-Chair-2278 Blew past the budget but I believe Im happy with it. 10’ Offshore angler breakwater rod paired with a penn battle 3 5000. Surf fishing for the first time this weekend in Hilton Head, SC.
 | submitted by Agitated-Chair-2278 to u/Agitated-Chair-2278 [link] [comments] |
2023.06.10 03:01 sunflower_1970 Can serotonin syndrome cause nerve damage? I've recovered from most of my health issues (I'm about 80% back to where I was before I got sick), but nerve/muscle problems in the left side of my face, neck, upper inner thigh, and genitals persist. Does this sound like I had SS? Or something else?
I want to stress I'm not looking for medical advice on what to do further. This occurred in late 2020 and just want opinions on if people who have also taken Lexapro can give input on if they think I had serotonin syndrome or not. I was never diagnosed so I do not know. I've had a lot of medical testing done in the past 3 years that has not gotten me any closer to a known cause.
Long story that I wrote more in detail here, but the gist of it is, I suddenly was not able to get a 30mg dosage refill of Lexapro that I used for OCD/Anxiety reasons in June 2020. I researched things that could help with withdrawal, and people recommended 5-HTP as a good supplement. I took it for about a month or so, maybe a month and a half. I didn't notice anything different when taking it, so I eventually stopped taking it. I probably stopped taking it in late July 2020 or possibly at most, late August 2020.
I went back on 10mg Lexapro in late September 2020, and about 3 weeks into that, suddenly had horrible and now chronic health problems such as brain fog, extreme fatigue, body weakness, nerve sensitivity issues/tingling and burning, muscle pain, neck stiffness, chest pain, memory loss, sinus inflammation, and blunted emotions and libido.
I did not take 5-HTP at the same time as the Lexapro, I am 99.9% sure of it, and only took it as a temporary replacement. I quit 30mg Lexapro just before going on 5-HTP, and I didn't feel sick at all when doing that.
I am no longer on Lexapro, and I have seen some improvement with my issues. My health problems only began once I re-tried Lexapro. I had been around medical professionals and at an ER for anxiety reasons, so it is possible that I caught a virus like COVID, which I've seen cause many of the symptoms I have. I believe the 5-HTP I got at the time was an over the counter 200mg supplement that you can get at CVS, this one to be exact. I took it once a day. When that ran out. I took a 100mg supplement for about half a month and then stopped.
I didn't feel sick at all when taking the 5-HTP, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't the cause of my health problems, but maybe people here would know better? I linked the detailed version of my story above, because repeating it here would be too lengthy. I explain all the medical testing I have had done since this started. Around 95% of my blood work and testing has been normal. The only abnormal results have been low Vitamin D, low iron, and high CRP/ESR results.
I don't think it was serotonin syndrome, as nothing like that happened when I took the 5-HTP. Serotonin syndrome is usually acute, and this was more of a slow onset of problems. I was very anxious in 2020, but I was anxious before taking the 5-HTP. I read that 200mg of 5-HTP isn't very much, and that it doesn't stay in somebody's system for long, so I feel like maybe it being the cause of my very acute health problems doesn't seem likely.I did read that 5-HTP crosses the blood-brain barrier, so I don't know what this would mean in terms of what happened to me.
Do my symptoms seem like common serotonin syndrome issues? The body warmness, stiffness, etc, does, but the sinus inflammation doesn't, and I've never read of nerve issues from serotonin syndrome.
I remember in late 2021 I had a very weird sharp pain where when I touched the right side of my penis, the top of the left side would hurt. It went away, but I still have nerve issues in the left side of the head of my penis.
The nerve issues are mainly in the left side of my face, neck, chest, genitals, and seldom in my left foot, in the sole area. My neck feels painful and stiff a lot on the left side, I would get quick, almost zap-like chest pains on both sides of my chest a few months ago, but now it's only on the left side, my face on the left side will sometimes feel tingly, burning, or weak, or numb, my genitals only hurt in the left testicle and on the left side of my penis when I move it a certain way. The right side of my leg feels weak at times too. My left foot would have a burning feeling sometimes)
submitted by sunflower_1970 to lexapro [link] [comments]
Long story that I wrote more in detail here, but the gist of it is, I suddenly was not able to get a 30mg dosage refill of Lexapro that I used for OCD/Anxiety reasons in June 2020. I researched things that could help with withdrawal, and people recommended 5-HTP as a good supplement. I took it for about a month or so, maybe a month and a half. I didn't notice anything different when taking it, so I eventually stopped taking it. I probably stopped taking it in late July 2020 or possibly at most, late August 2020.
I went back on 10mg Lexapro in late September 2020, and about 3 weeks into that, suddenly had horrible and now chronic health problems such as brain fog, extreme fatigue, body weakness, nerve sensitivity issues/tingling and burning, muscle pain, neck stiffness, chest pain, memory loss, sinus inflammation, and blunted emotions and libido.
I did not take 5-HTP at the same time as the Lexapro, I am 99.9% sure of it, and only took it as a temporary replacement. I quit 30mg Lexapro just before going on 5-HTP, and I didn't feel sick at all when doing that.
I am no longer on Lexapro, and I have seen some improvement with my issues. My health problems only began once I re-tried Lexapro. I had been around medical professionals and at an ER for anxiety reasons, so it is possible that I caught a virus like COVID, which I've seen cause many of the symptoms I have. I believe the 5-HTP I got at the time was an over the counter 200mg supplement that you can get at CVS, this one to be exact. I took it once a day. When that ran out. I took a 100mg supplement for about half a month and then stopped.
I didn't feel sick at all when taking the 5-HTP, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't the cause of my health problems, but maybe people here would know better? I linked the detailed version of my story above, because repeating it here would be too lengthy. I explain all the medical testing I have had done since this started. Around 95% of my blood work and testing has been normal. The only abnormal results have been low Vitamin D, low iron, and high CRP/ESR results.
I don't think it was serotonin syndrome, as nothing like that happened when I took the 5-HTP. Serotonin syndrome is usually acute, and this was more of a slow onset of problems. I was very anxious in 2020, but I was anxious before taking the 5-HTP. I read that 200mg of 5-HTP isn't very much, and that it doesn't stay in somebody's system for long, so I feel like maybe it being the cause of my very acute health problems doesn't seem likely.I did read that 5-HTP crosses the blood-brain barrier, so I don't know what this would mean in terms of what happened to me.
Do my symptoms seem like common serotonin syndrome issues? The body warmness, stiffness, etc, does, but the sinus inflammation doesn't, and I've never read of nerve issues from serotonin syndrome.
I remember in late 2021 I had a very weird sharp pain where when I touched the right side of my penis, the top of the left side would hurt. It went away, but I still have nerve issues in the left side of the head of my penis.
The nerve issues are mainly in the left side of my face, neck, chest, genitals, and seldom in my left foot, in the sole area. My neck feels painful and stiff a lot on the left side, I would get quick, almost zap-like chest pains on both sides of my chest a few months ago, but now it's only on the left side, my face on the left side will sometimes feel tingly, burning, or weak, or numb, my genitals only hurt in the left testicle and on the left side of my penis when I move it a certain way. The right side of my leg feels weak at times too. My left foot would have a burning feeling sometimes)
2023.06.10 02:56 sunflower_1970 [27M, Hypertension] Can serotonin syndrome cause nerve damage? I've recovered from most of my chronic health issues, but nerve/muscle problems in the left side of my face, neck, upper inner thigh, and genitals persist to some degree. Does this sound like I had serotonin syndrome? Or something else?
Long story that I wrote more in detail here, but the gist of it is, I suddenly was not able to get a 30mg dosage refill of Lexapro that I used for OCD/Anxiety reasons in June 2020. I researched things that could help with withdrawal, and people recommended 5-HTP as a good supplement. I took it for about a month or so, maybe a month and a half. I didn't notice anything different when taking it, so I eventually stopped taking it. I probably stopped taking it in late July 2020 or possibly at most, late August 2020.
I went back on 10mg Lexapro in late September 2020, and about 3 weeks into that, suddenly had horrible and now chronic health problems such as brain fog, extreme fatigue, body weakness, nerve sensitivity issues/tingling and burning, muscle pain, neck stiffness, chest pain, memory loss, sinus inflammation, and blunted emotions and libido.
I did not take 5-HTP at the same time as the Lexapro, I am 99.9% sure of it, and only took it as a temporary replacement. I quit 30mg Lexapro just before going on 5-HTP, and I didn't feel sick at all when doing that.
I am no longer on Lexapro, and I have seen some improvement with my issues. My health problems only began once I re-tried Lexapro. I had been around medical professionals and at an ER for anxiety reasons, so it is possible that I caught a virus like COVID, which I've seen cause many of the symptoms I have.I believe the 5-HTP I got at the time was an over the counter 200mg supplement that you can get at CVS, this one to be exact. I took it once a day. When that ran out. I took a 100mg supplement for about half a month and then stopped.
I didn't feel sick at all when taking the 5-HTP, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't the cause of my health problems, but maybe people here would know better? I linked the detailed version of my story above, because repeating it here would be too lengthy. I explain all the medical testing I have had done since this started. Around 95% of my blood work and testing has been normal. The only abnormal results have been low Vitamin D, low iron, and high CRP/ESR results.
I don't think it was serotonin syndrome, as nothing like that happened when I took the 5-HTP. Serotonin syndrome is usually acute, and this was more of a slow onset of problems. I was very anxious in 2020, but I was anxious before taking the 5-HTP.
I read that 200mg of 5-HTP isn't very much, and that it doesn't stay in somebody's system for long, so I feel like maybe it being the cause of my very acute health problems doesn't seem likely.I did read that 5-HTP crosses the blood-brain barrier, so I don't know what this would mean in terms of what happened to me.
Do my symptoms seem like common serotonin syndrome issues? The body warmness, stiffness, etc, does, but the sinus inflammation doesn't, and I've never read of nerve issues from serotonin syndrome.
I remember in late 2021 I had a very weird sharp pain where when I touched the right side of my penis, the top of the left side would hurt. It went away, but I still have nerve issues in the left side of the head of my penis.
The nerve issues are mainly in the left side of my face, neck, chest, genitals, and seldom in my left foot, in the sole area. My neck feels painful and stiff a lot on the left side, I would get quick, almost zap-like chest pains on both sides of my chest a few months ago, but now it's only on the left side, my face on the left side will sometimes feel tingly, burning, or weak, or numb, my genitals only hurt in the left testicle and on the left side of my penis when I move it a certain way. The right side of my leg feels weak at times too. My left foot would have a burning feeling sometimes)
submitted by sunflower_1970 to medical [link] [comments]
I went back on 10mg Lexapro in late September 2020, and about 3 weeks into that, suddenly had horrible and now chronic health problems such as brain fog, extreme fatigue, body weakness, nerve sensitivity issues/tingling and burning, muscle pain, neck stiffness, chest pain, memory loss, sinus inflammation, and blunted emotions and libido.
I did not take 5-HTP at the same time as the Lexapro, I am 99.9% sure of it, and only took it as a temporary replacement. I quit 30mg Lexapro just before going on 5-HTP, and I didn't feel sick at all when doing that.
I am no longer on Lexapro, and I have seen some improvement with my issues. My health problems only began once I re-tried Lexapro. I had been around medical professionals and at an ER for anxiety reasons, so it is possible that I caught a virus like COVID, which I've seen cause many of the symptoms I have.I believe the 5-HTP I got at the time was an over the counter 200mg supplement that you can get at CVS, this one to be exact. I took it once a day. When that ran out. I took a 100mg supplement for about half a month and then stopped.
I didn't feel sick at all when taking the 5-HTP, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't the cause of my health problems, but maybe people here would know better? I linked the detailed version of my story above, because repeating it here would be too lengthy. I explain all the medical testing I have had done since this started. Around 95% of my blood work and testing has been normal. The only abnormal results have been low Vitamin D, low iron, and high CRP/ESR results.
I don't think it was serotonin syndrome, as nothing like that happened when I took the 5-HTP. Serotonin syndrome is usually acute, and this was more of a slow onset of problems. I was very anxious in 2020, but I was anxious before taking the 5-HTP.
I read that 200mg of 5-HTP isn't very much, and that it doesn't stay in somebody's system for long, so I feel like maybe it being the cause of my very acute health problems doesn't seem likely.I did read that 5-HTP crosses the blood-brain barrier, so I don't know what this would mean in terms of what happened to me.
Do my symptoms seem like common serotonin syndrome issues? The body warmness, stiffness, etc, does, but the sinus inflammation doesn't, and I've never read of nerve issues from serotonin syndrome.
I remember in late 2021 I had a very weird sharp pain where when I touched the right side of my penis, the top of the left side would hurt. It went away, but I still have nerve issues in the left side of the head of my penis.
The nerve issues are mainly in the left side of my face, neck, chest, genitals, and seldom in my left foot, in the sole area. My neck feels painful and stiff a lot on the left side, I would get quick, almost zap-like chest pains on both sides of my chest a few months ago, but now it's only on the left side, my face on the left side will sometimes feel tingly, burning, or weak, or numb, my genitals only hurt in the left testicle and on the left side of my penis when I move it a certain way. The right side of my leg feels weak at times too. My left foot would have a burning feeling sometimes)
2023.06.10 02:23 Dependent-Rent2618 Can't get 10, 12.5, or 15
Beenwithout Mounjaro for three weeks. CVS can't get 10, 12.5 or 15 mg. They said there is a manufacturer back order on all three doses and they don't know when it will come in. The appetite suppression wore off almost immediately. I'm hungry all the time. This sucks. BTW, I have a T2D diagnosis. The pharmacy just can't get it in.
submitted by Dependent-Rent2618 to Mounjaro [link] [comments]
2023.06.10 02:18 beaveman1 Nice to See That EA Has Stopped the Cheaters.
 | -8 on a 4 hole tournament. 4 Eagles in one round. Yeah, I’ll believe that. When monkeys fly out of my butt. submitted by beaveman1 to EASportsPGATour [link] [comments] |
2023.06.10 02:17 VRAXHZDS I was born in a broken family , and I have to the one to deal with it
I am a 14 year old boy, when I was 10 , i loved my dad alot , like really alot , although i rarely saw him , like he coems only one day a week , i loved him.my parents broke up ,my dad has cheated on my mother , he was also a really bad husband , he always made her the one that pays for the food , the rent , the bills ,everything she was paying , he always made excuses which she always believed because she always "loved him" and felt bad for him. And he broke her heart and cheated on her WITH HIS FUCKING BEST FRIEND'S WIFE. It is so messed UP!!!! As soon as I have heard the news that has happened , and like I said I loved my father, I got a fucking panic attack and was crying endlessly for 8hours until I passed out. My grades have fallen from 100% down to 70-80's , i got diagnosed with really terrible adhd ALL FROM THAT .he still to this day , doesent think he is in the wrong btw. My mom always wanted to make him feel bad so everytime if i go out , cuz I have to , yk even if I don't want to , she tells me to tell him this or that , just for a little hope , but I am so TIRED OF THIS SHIT!!! While I was growing up I have seen signs and signs again that my dad actually never cared for me as much as he cared for himself , pre or post break up, I am always the one who calls , or texts him , I am the one who calls or does anything , but never HIM. I also noticed that the one day he is at home , he always spent it watching TV, everyday , I try to remember him , it comes out that he was a worse person then I initially realised.
So that's my dad , let's head over to my sister , who has fucking brain damage, and although she is "17 years old" realistically she is 8 years old , because she had a problem at birth . She doesent know that, but now because she is the pure innocent soul although she is going to college and I am still in middle/high school , I HAVE TO PRESSURED TO KNOW THAT MY OWN BLOOD MIGHT DIE IF I DONT GET MARRIED? IF I DONT SUCCEED, THEN THE FAMILY WILL BE LEFT LIKE A MEOMRY FORGOTTEN BY THE UNIVERSE????NOT TO MENTION I AM TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO AM I AS A HUMAN BEING???
My mom, my mom is a great mom , she sacrifices everything for me although she can be like angry for absolutely no reason , she works overtime for us , she is a high rank in the most famous hotel in the world ,hilton, she never buys anything for herself , and so she can buy everything for my sister and me , the problem is she can be too intense and have high expectations for me even though I am trying my best , but this is the only thing you will find positive on this post
Then me ,hi ,all of this happened in a spam of 2 years and its not stopping my grades are falling I have been in my room alot listening to music or gaming, I have stopped reading books as much even though I want to, which is something for me atleast so abnormal , I am now suicidal than ever , everything right now thats holding me is my mom and my religion . I am a muslim , that's something I want to talk about as well , I have been straying away from Allah SWT every second , I was this kid this angelic kid who does everything allah SWTsays in the qu'ran el kareem I did things at the age of 9 to 12 , people the age of 30 can't do , now I am the fucking devil himself I have been this manipulator I can lie and gaslight whoever I want . I have been feeling like I was gay for a time but I am trying my best to stray away from that , ( no hate to gay people ofc, you guys do whatever Idrc i am not homophob i am a muslim yes , islam says dont be friends with gay people not dont disrespect and torture gay people ) I haven't been praying or concentrating , I haven't read the qu'ran or done the tasabih I feel like I am gonna go to jell because I do so many things that are against the book .
What do I do ? What can I do? My life is pain pain pain pain pain pain, I am going to jump but i don't,want to I fail , my adhd has worsened and I can't focus in class I want to die I want to die !!! It's 3:16 rn I can't fucking sleep , please someone tell me something 😔
submitted by VRAXHZDS to offmychest [link] [comments]
So that's my dad , let's head over to my sister , who has fucking brain damage, and although she is "17 years old" realistically she is 8 years old , because she had a problem at birth . She doesent know that, but now because she is the pure innocent soul although she is going to college and I am still in middle/high school , I HAVE TO PRESSURED TO KNOW THAT MY OWN BLOOD MIGHT DIE IF I DONT GET MARRIED? IF I DONT SUCCEED, THEN THE FAMILY WILL BE LEFT LIKE A MEOMRY FORGOTTEN BY THE UNIVERSE????NOT TO MENTION I AM TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO AM I AS A HUMAN BEING???
My mom, my mom is a great mom , she sacrifices everything for me although she can be like angry for absolutely no reason , she works overtime for us , she is a high rank in the most famous hotel in the world ,hilton, she never buys anything for herself , and so she can buy everything for my sister and me , the problem is she can be too intense and have high expectations for me even though I am trying my best , but this is the only thing you will find positive on this post
Then me ,hi ,all of this happened in a spam of 2 years and its not stopping my grades are falling I have been in my room alot listening to music or gaming, I have stopped reading books as much even though I want to, which is something for me atleast so abnormal , I am now suicidal than ever , everything right now thats holding me is my mom and my religion . I am a muslim , that's something I want to talk about as well , I have been straying away from Allah SWT every second , I was this kid this angelic kid who does everything allah SWTsays in the qu'ran el kareem I did things at the age of 9 to 12 , people the age of 30 can't do , now I am the fucking devil himself I have been this manipulator I can lie and gaslight whoever I want . I have been feeling like I was gay for a time but I am trying my best to stray away from that , ( no hate to gay people ofc, you guys do whatever Idrc i am not homophob i am a muslim yes , islam says dont be friends with gay people not dont disrespect and torture gay people ) I haven't been praying or concentrating , I haven't read the qu'ran or done the tasabih I feel like I am gonna go to jell because I do so many things that are against the book .
What do I do ? What can I do? My life is pain pain pain pain pain pain, I am going to jump but i don't,want to I fail , my adhd has worsened and I can't focus in class I want to die I want to die !!! It's 3:16 rn I can't fucking sleep , please someone tell me something 😔
2023.06.10 02:16 dieseL0T $400 Shampoo
They won't approve my dermatitis shampoo.
I had to get my rx refilled, in order to do so, I had to set up an appointment with a dermatologist (specialist) for $154 out of pocket. Mind you, this is for a chronic disease with cure, so it's not like we're getting any sort of advanced treatment here. I manage it with a borderline over-the-counter combo of extra strength hydrocortisone, an antifungal, and a sulphur-based shampoo.
So I go to pick up my hydrocortisone cream, ketocazonole (antifungal), and a sulfa-something shampoo. [Side note: I had this shampoo a couple years ago when I had insurance through a different employer and it was free (in fact, they would mail it to my house, automatically, which was awesome).]
I head in to CVS with my "CVS Caremark" insurance card and they say that the creams are $36 out of pocket and the shampoo is not covered... it would cost $400. In stunned silence I drive home and prepare for the dreaded task of calling my insurance.
I call the number on my card, I finally get a human on the line, provide them with my card number, and personal verification info, just to have them report that they don't *do* prescriptions, so they will need to transfer me to someone else. I hold on the line. I eventually get a new human and again provide them with my card number and personal verification info.
They proceed to tell me that the shampoo is not FDA approved. ***my mind begins to do mental gymnastics.. a *shampoo* that is recommended by my dermatological specialist, not approved? a medication that CVS CARRIES and *would have* provided to me, no problem, had I supplied them with the $400 is NOT FDA APPROVED???
The human suggests that I contact my dermatologist to have them switch it to something else.
I push back, why would I do that? this is seemingly innocuous and common medication, a dermatologist-recommended medication, surely there must be some mistake.
Human says that maybe the pharmacist entered the ID number for the medication into the computer wrong and suggests I call the pharmacist.
I say "You want me to call my pharmacy and tell them my insurance think they might be wrong?"
The nice human then offers to call the pharmacy for me.
Long story short, after an additional 45 minutes (the pharmacy doesn't like to answer their phone, apparently), we have, in fact, proved that there was no mistake, the ID number for the medication was entered correctly. My shampoo is not FDA approved, and therefore, would cost me $400 to obtain.
So that's pretty much that.
TL;DR: Fuck CVS. Fuck the US healthcare system. And fuck me, apparently.
submitted by dieseL0T to AmericanHealthcare [link] [comments]
I had to get my rx refilled, in order to do so, I had to set up an appointment with a dermatologist (specialist) for $154 out of pocket. Mind you, this is for a chronic disease with cure, so it's not like we're getting any sort of advanced treatment here. I manage it with a borderline over-the-counter combo of extra strength hydrocortisone, an antifungal, and a sulphur-based shampoo.
So I go to pick up my hydrocortisone cream, ketocazonole (antifungal), and a sulfa-something shampoo. [Side note: I had this shampoo a couple years ago when I had insurance through a different employer and it was free (in fact, they would mail it to my house, automatically, which was awesome).]
I head in to CVS with my "CVS Caremark" insurance card and they say that the creams are $36 out of pocket and the shampoo is not covered... it would cost $400. In stunned silence I drive home and prepare for the dreaded task of calling my insurance.
I call the number on my card, I finally get a human on the line, provide them with my card number, and personal verification info, just to have them report that they don't *do* prescriptions, so they will need to transfer me to someone else. I hold on the line. I eventually get a new human and again provide them with my card number and personal verification info.
They proceed to tell me that the shampoo is not FDA approved. ***my mind begins to do mental gymnastics.. a *shampoo* that is recommended by my dermatological specialist, not approved? a medication that CVS CARRIES and *would have* provided to me, no problem, had I supplied them with the $400 is NOT FDA APPROVED???
The human suggests that I contact my dermatologist to have them switch it to something else.
I push back, why would I do that? this is seemingly innocuous and common medication, a dermatologist-recommended medication, surely there must be some mistake.
Human says that maybe the pharmacist entered the ID number for the medication into the computer wrong and suggests I call the pharmacist.
I say "You want me to call my pharmacy and tell them my insurance think they might be wrong?"
The nice human then offers to call the pharmacy for me.
Long story short, after an additional 45 minutes (the pharmacy doesn't like to answer their phone, apparently), we have, in fact, proved that there was no mistake, the ID number for the medication was entered correctly. My shampoo is not FDA approved, and therefore, would cost me $400 to obtain.
So that's pretty much that.
TL;DR: Fuck CVS. Fuck the US healthcare system. And fuck me, apparently.
2023.06.10 02:16 dieseL0T $400 Shampoo
They won't approve my dermatitis shampoo.
I had to get my rx refilled, in order to do so, I had to set up an appointment with a dermatologist (specialist) for $154 out of pocket. Mind you, this is for a chronic disease with no cure, so it's not like we're getting any sort of advanced treatment here. I manage it with a borderline over-the-counter combo of extra strength hydrocortisone, an antifungal, and a sulphur-based shampoo.
So I go to pick up my hydrocortisone cream, ketocazonole (antifungal), and a sulfa-something shampoo. [Side note: I had this shampoo a couple years ago when I had insurance through a different employer and it was free (in fact, they would mail it to my house, automatically, which was awesome).]
I head in to CVS with my "CVS Caremark" insurance card and they say that the creams are $36 out of pocket and the shampoo is not covered... it would cost $400. In stunned silence I drive home and prepare for the dreaded task of calling my insurance.
I call the number on my card, I finally get a human on the line, provide them with my card number, and personal verification info, just to have them report that they don't *do* prescriptions, so they will need to transfer me to someone else. I hold on the line. I eventually get a new human and again provide them with my card number and personal verification info.
They proceed to tell me that the shampoo is not FDA approved. ***my mind begins to do mental gymnastics.. a *shampoo* that is recommended by my dermatological specialist, not approved? a medication that CVS CARRIES and *would have* provided to me, no problem, had I supplied them with the $400 is NOT FDA APPROVED???
The human suggests that I contact my dermatologist to have them switch it to something else.
I push back, why would I do that? this is seemingly innocuous and common medication, a dermatologist-recommended medication, surely there must be some mistake.
Human says that maybe the pharmacist entered the ID number for the medication into the computer wrong and suggests I call the pharmacist.
I say "You want me to call my pharmacy and tell them my insurance think they might be wrong?"
The nice human then offers to call the pharmacy for me.
Long story short, after an additional 45 minutes (the pharmacy doesn't like to answer their phone, apparently), we have, in fact, proved that there was no mistake, the ID number for the medication was entered correctly. My shampoo is not FDA approved, and therefore, would cost me $400 to obtain.
So that's pretty much that.
TL;DR: Fuck CVS. Fuck the US healthcare system. And fuck me, apparently.
submitted by dieseL0T to UniversalHealthCare [link] [comments]
I had to get my rx refilled, in order to do so, I had to set up an appointment with a dermatologist (specialist) for $154 out of pocket. Mind you, this is for a chronic disease with no cure, so it's not like we're getting any sort of advanced treatment here. I manage it with a borderline over-the-counter combo of extra strength hydrocortisone, an antifungal, and a sulphur-based shampoo.
So I go to pick up my hydrocortisone cream, ketocazonole (antifungal), and a sulfa-something shampoo. [Side note: I had this shampoo a couple years ago when I had insurance through a different employer and it was free (in fact, they would mail it to my house, automatically, which was awesome).]
I head in to CVS with my "CVS Caremark" insurance card and they say that the creams are $36 out of pocket and the shampoo is not covered... it would cost $400. In stunned silence I drive home and prepare for the dreaded task of calling my insurance.
I call the number on my card, I finally get a human on the line, provide them with my card number, and personal verification info, just to have them report that they don't *do* prescriptions, so they will need to transfer me to someone else. I hold on the line. I eventually get a new human and again provide them with my card number and personal verification info.
They proceed to tell me that the shampoo is not FDA approved. ***my mind begins to do mental gymnastics.. a *shampoo* that is recommended by my dermatological specialist, not approved? a medication that CVS CARRIES and *would have* provided to me, no problem, had I supplied them with the $400 is NOT FDA APPROVED???
The human suggests that I contact my dermatologist to have them switch it to something else.
I push back, why would I do that? this is seemingly innocuous and common medication, a dermatologist-recommended medication, surely there must be some mistake.
Human says that maybe the pharmacist entered the ID number for the medication into the computer wrong and suggests I call the pharmacist.
I say "You want me to call my pharmacy and tell them my insurance think they might be wrong?"
The nice human then offers to call the pharmacy for me.
Long story short, after an additional 45 minutes (the pharmacy doesn't like to answer their phone, apparently), we have, in fact, proved that there was no mistake, the ID number for the medication was entered correctly. My shampoo is not FDA approved, and therefore, would cost me $400 to obtain.
So that's pretty much that.
TL;DR: Fuck CVS. Fuck the US healthcare system. And fuck me, apparently.
2023.06.10 02:11 dieseL0T Fuck CVS (Story Time!)
They won't approve my dermatitis shampoo.
I had to get my rx refilled, in order to do so, I had to set up an appointment with a dermatologist (specialist) for $154 out of pocket. Mind you, this is for a chronic disease with cure, so it's not like we're getting any sort of advanced treatment here. I manage it with a borderline over-the-counter combo of extra strength hydrocortisone, an antifungal, and a sulphur-based shampoo.
So I go to pick up my hydrocortisone cream, ketocazonole (antifungal), and a sulfa-something shampoo. [Side note: I had this shampoo a couple years ago when I had insurance through a different employer and it was free (in fact, they would mail it to my house, automatically, which was awesome).]
I head in to CVS with my "CVS Caremark" insurance card and they say that the creams are $36 out of pocket and the shampoo is not covered... it would cost $400. In stunned silence I drive home and prepare for the dreaded task of calling my insurance.
I call the number on my card, I finally get a human on the line, provide them with my card number, and personal verification info, just to have them report that they don't *do* prescriptions, so they will need to transfer me to someone else. I hold on the line. I eventually get a new human and again provide them with my card number and personal verification info.
They proceed to tell me that the shampoo is not FDA approved. ***my mind begins to do mental gymnastics.. a *shampoo* that is recommended by my dermatological specialist, not approved? a medication that CVS CARRIES and *would have* provided to me, no problem, had I supplied them with the $400 is NOT FDA APPROVED???
The human suggests that I contact my dermatologist to have them switch it to something else.
I push back, why would I do that? this is seemingly innocuous and common medication, a dermatologist-recommended medication, surely there must be some mistake.
Human says that maybe the pharmacist entered the ID number for the medication into the computer wrong and suggests I call the pharmacist.
I say "You want me to call my pharmacy and tell them my insurance think they might be wrong?"
The nice human then offers to call the pharmacy for me.
Long story short, after an additional 45 minutes (the pharmacy doesn't like to answer their phone, apparently), we have, in fact, proved that there was no mistake, the ID number for the medication was entered correctly. My shampoo is not FDA approved, and therefore, would cost me $400 to obtain.
So that's pretty much that.
TL;DR: Fuck CVS. Fuck the US healthcare system. And fuck me, apparently.
submitted by dieseL0T to Healthcare_costs [link] [comments]
I had to get my rx refilled, in order to do so, I had to set up an appointment with a dermatologist (specialist) for $154 out of pocket. Mind you, this is for a chronic disease with cure, so it's not like we're getting any sort of advanced treatment here. I manage it with a borderline over-the-counter combo of extra strength hydrocortisone, an antifungal, and a sulphur-based shampoo.
So I go to pick up my hydrocortisone cream, ketocazonole (antifungal), and a sulfa-something shampoo. [Side note: I had this shampoo a couple years ago when I had insurance through a different employer and it was free (in fact, they would mail it to my house, automatically, which was awesome).]
I head in to CVS with my "CVS Caremark" insurance card and they say that the creams are $36 out of pocket and the shampoo is not covered... it would cost $400. In stunned silence I drive home and prepare for the dreaded task of calling my insurance.
I call the number on my card, I finally get a human on the line, provide them with my card number, and personal verification info, just to have them report that they don't *do* prescriptions, so they will need to transfer me to someone else. I hold on the line. I eventually get a new human and again provide them with my card number and personal verification info.
They proceed to tell me that the shampoo is not FDA approved. ***my mind begins to do mental gymnastics.. a *shampoo* that is recommended by my dermatological specialist, not approved? a medication that CVS CARRIES and *would have* provided to me, no problem, had I supplied them with the $400 is NOT FDA APPROVED???
The human suggests that I contact my dermatologist to have them switch it to something else.
I push back, why would I do that? this is seemingly innocuous and common medication, a dermatologist-recommended medication, surely there must be some mistake.
Human says that maybe the pharmacist entered the ID number for the medication into the computer wrong and suggests I call the pharmacist.
I say "You want me to call my pharmacy and tell them my insurance think they might be wrong?"
The nice human then offers to call the pharmacy for me.
Long story short, after an additional 45 minutes (the pharmacy doesn't like to answer their phone, apparently), we have, in fact, proved that there was no mistake, the ID number for the medication was entered correctly. My shampoo is not FDA approved, and therefore, would cost me $400 to obtain.
So that's pretty much that.
TL;DR: Fuck CVS. Fuck the US healthcare system. And fuck me, apparently.
2023.06.10 02:06 mirahasnolife cvs training is awful
So I just started working as a pharmacy tech for cvs a few weeks ago, and I was told that the training program was new and improved. At first I felt relieved, because I know someone working at a different cvs and she said she'd never been properly trained despite being there since March. I was assigned a training store to go to during my first few shifts- the first day I showed up, only one person knew that I was coming. So there's red flag #1- My assigned "trainer" failed to properly inform the manager that I would be at their store for about 2 weeks (apparently she only informed one of the lead techs). This so-called trainer shows up (late) and then explains to me and one of the techs how the training process works (basically a combo of videos, shadowing, and practice). First few shifts went well, sometimes the videos were boring but I was grateful for any training I could get. However, over time the techs have been getting more and more frustrated over the fact that they're stuck training me since no one had asked them ahead of time and no one there was familiar with the new training program. Their frustrations reached a breaking point on Wednesday after one of the techs called out last minute. I was cut from my Friday shift and my last two shifts at this store scheduled for next week were also shortened. I don't take any of this too personally, honestly I feel guilty about it more than anything especially since it's a pretty busy store and they're short-staffed as it is so I know taking time away to train me really puts them behind. Plus, they have a tech who started a month before me yet had far less training than me, so the other techs didn't think it was fair that they had to prioritize training me first (especially since I don't even belong to this store!!).
The trainer I mentioned earlier is also absent for most of this- she only showed up the first shift to explain the process then left after an hour. All she really does is make my schedule and successfully pissed off all the pharmacy staff at this cvs since this issue was mostly her fault. She also sucks at communicating (getting her to respond to my texts is an absolute nightmare).
Guess I'll have to try and stick it out for my last two shifts. At least I won't have to be at this store for much longer but at the same time this whole thing was pretty discouraging.
submitted by mirahasnolife to PharmacyTechnician [link] [comments]
The trainer I mentioned earlier is also absent for most of this- she only showed up the first shift to explain the process then left after an hour. All she really does is make my schedule and successfully pissed off all the pharmacy staff at this cvs since this issue was mostly her fault. She also sucks at communicating (getting her to respond to my texts is an absolute nightmare).
Guess I'll have to try and stick it out for my last two shifts. At least I won't have to be at this store for much longer but at the same time this whole thing was pretty discouraging.
2023.06.10 02:04 JJ_DUKES How do I recover from a binge?
Hey guys. I have had a lifelong struggle with managing my video game habits. Recently, I moved cities, got a new job, and got a girlfriend. For a few months, things were going really well. I’ve been prescribed Adderall for my ADHD since I was 16, but I’ve started to realize that I need to approach my life in a more deliberate way instead of just using Adderall whenever I feel like focusing, so for the first time in my life, I was writing goals down (little things: do laundry, clean room, etc), had a vague, self-imposed structure around most of my days, and it felt like I was making progress in my life. Probably played a few hours of video games every other day.
Then one day, I lost my adderall bottle and had to wait a month to get my next refill. But I handled it fairly well. My organized behavior slipped a little, but for the large part I was actually really impressed with how much those structures kept my life together. It bothered me that it felt like there was no “drive” without my medication, and though I really tried to invest myself into creative projects, I couldn’t do it with the same fervor that I was used to with my medication. But that was alright: two weeks later, I picked up my medication from the pharmacy, and I thought “alright, now let’s pick up where we left off.”
What followed was probably one of the worst binges of video games I’ve ever fallen into. I called out of work twice that week, played 50-70 hours straight for an entire week, had to force myself to eat, drink, and sleep. My brain is wracked, and it’s a little hard to reflect on it because I struggle to remember a lot of it. To rub salt in the wound, I have a hair-pulling disorder called trichotillomania, which (basically) is the compulsion to pull out hair upon feeling nervous energy. Well, apparently I had a lot of nervous energy during the binge. I looked in the mirror today, and my head is covered in bald spots.
I am slightly devastated. I feel like I left the door to the chicken coop unlocked one night, and the next morning I’m finding the blood and feathers that the wolves left. Right now, I know that I need to stop, my body feels like shit, and I don’t even really enjoy the binge at this point, but I don’t know what “stopping” looks like. Rather, I don’t know what continuing my life looks likes. It’s all just so blurry.
submitted by JJ_DUKES to Healthygamergg [link] [comments]
Then one day, I lost my adderall bottle and had to wait a month to get my next refill. But I handled it fairly well. My organized behavior slipped a little, but for the large part I was actually really impressed with how much those structures kept my life together. It bothered me that it felt like there was no “drive” without my medication, and though I really tried to invest myself into creative projects, I couldn’t do it with the same fervor that I was used to with my medication. But that was alright: two weeks later, I picked up my medication from the pharmacy, and I thought “alright, now let’s pick up where we left off.”
What followed was probably one of the worst binges of video games I’ve ever fallen into. I called out of work twice that week, played 50-70 hours straight for an entire week, had to force myself to eat, drink, and sleep. My brain is wracked, and it’s a little hard to reflect on it because I struggle to remember a lot of it. To rub salt in the wound, I have a hair-pulling disorder called trichotillomania, which (basically) is the compulsion to pull out hair upon feeling nervous energy. Well, apparently I had a lot of nervous energy during the binge. I looked in the mirror today, and my head is covered in bald spots.
I am slightly devastated. I feel like I left the door to the chicken coop unlocked one night, and the next morning I’m finding the blood and feathers that the wolves left. Right now, I know that I need to stop, my body feels like shit, and I don’t even really enjoy the binge at this point, but I don’t know what “stopping” looks like. Rather, I don’t know what continuing my life looks likes. It’s all just so blurry.
2023.06.10 01:58 LittleDrop2316 I feel like I am not fully "there" when I go out in public. I go on autopilot. Can someone point me in the right direction?
When I go out in public to buy something, I feel like I shut off and go on autopilot.
I am always thinking about the following:
I bought a mascara from a pharmacy today. While walking home, I was thinking of the yellow packaged mascara I bought. When I came home and opened it I realized I bought a purple packaged mascara. Turns out I barely even looked at it, I just took something and got out.
I am not sure why I can't just focus on the mission and take my time to look at things.
submitted by LittleDrop2316 to mentalhealth [link] [comments]
I am always thinking about the following:
- Am I acting strange?
- Do I look weird?
- OMG the store owner thinks I am stealing because I am looking at too many things
- Is it weird to go inside and not buy something??? *buys something because I created so much pressure in my head*
I bought a mascara from a pharmacy today. While walking home, I was thinking of the yellow packaged mascara I bought. When I came home and opened it I realized I bought a purple packaged mascara. Turns out I barely even looked at it, I just took something and got out.
I am not sure why I can't just focus on the mission and take my time to look at things.
2023.06.10 01:01 CringeyVal0451 The Lap of Luxury (Funky P. Beard gets in trouble)
Looks like it might be time for a cast list refresher! So let me reintroduce the chummers!!!!
OP (c’est moi!)
Female, late 20s
Grad student
Perky emo girl with purple hair
Likes crass humor
Nerdy, petite, beard bait
Decker
Funky P. Beard (FPB)
Male, early 30s
Bona fide psycho piece of shit
Street Samurai
Mori
The GM
Male, early/mid 30s
Hypersexual kinky bastard
Likes exhibitionism, vomit, and illegal substances
Charismatic, cult-leader vibes
Very amusing, always nice to OP
The only person who seemed capable of getting FPB to behave
Axton
Male, late 20s
Grad student
Sexy, pleasant to be around
Has a sense of humor that meshes well with OP’s
Usually able to ignore FPB’s psycho behavior
The primary target of FPB’s jealousy
Rigger
Sage
Male, early/mis 30s
Assistant GM
Host of the gaming weekends
Typically level-headed, but losing patience with FPB
Skilled in martial arts
Mage
Athena
Female, early 30s
Sage’s girlfriend
Co-host of the gaming weekends
Increasingly intolerant of FPB
Petite, pretty, friendly... probably also beard bait
Shaman
Snorlax
Male, early 30s
The funny fat guy (NOT a neckbeard)
Easy-going, friendly, rarely directly involved in the weekend’s drama
Stoner
Adept
Chapter 5: The Lap of Luxury
We had been moving back and forth between the garage and the living room (it wasn’t the “War Room” until the gaming began) for the past hour or so. This was actually my favorite part of the weekend. I wasn’t exhausted yet, nobody was plastered yet, and I was genuinely getting to know FPB’s buddies. Snorlax told me about his former career as a semi-pro wrestler, and how an injury had forced him to start working as a mall cop. Athena and Sage were both pharmacy techs, and they were considering opening their own gaming shop. Mori was a paralegal for an LGBT law firm and ran a fairly lucrative fetish website on the side. Axton was going to grad school for social work and was the bass player for a classic rock cover band. Damn it, we had genuine common interests. Why couldn’t he have been a parolee or a gong farmer?
And I was able to chat comfortably with all the team members because FPB had taken to the master bathroom upstairs to get “re-ready.” Not only did he desperately need to change his “dew-covered” underpants, but he also needed to take a full shower (using Athena’s bathing products, of course). He would then spend nearly a full hour blow-drying, flat-ironing, and spiking his jet-black hair so that he emerged looking like some bizarre mash-up of Hagrid and Discount Tom Sandoval.
I’m also assuming that he manscaped, and I sincerely hoped he’d brought his own pink razors for this task. But as for his bushy behemoth of a beard? He took absolutely NO care of it. I never understood the statement he was trying to make by being fastidious AF with every aspect of personal grooming, save his defining feature. No matter. He was absent, and I was finally having fun! Alas, the fun wouldn’t last. The time for pre-game was approaching, so Sage and Athena went to the kitchen to arrange the shots.
Athena: How many do you want, OP?
Me: I think I’d better stick with two since I’ve already had a beer.
A freshly showered and finally dressed FPB turned to me, “Yeah, you need to stay sober.”
Oh, now that bullshit made me want to drink...
Me: Athena, make it three for me.
FPB shot me a menacing look.
Me: What? I’m not gonna get wasted off one extra shot.
FPB: I’m saving you from yourself. You could at least TRY to appreciate my chivalry.
Me: Right...
But then I had second thoughts about angering the already rage-prone beast. I didn’t want to ruin the evening for the other team members. And FPB’s temper tantrums definitely had the potential to ruin the evening for everyone in attendance.
Me: I’ll shoot two and just sip on the third one. Does that sound reasonable?
FPB shrugged.
Me: Come on! I feel like such a sissy compared to the rest of you.
FPB: Whose fault is that? You didn’t take advantage of your years and years and years of being a “student” to practice handling your liquor?
Me: No, mostly I studied. And when we partied, we did drugs. We didn’t drink. Not like this, anyway.
I was getting pretty mad, and I did NOT want to have a full-blown screaming match with FPB in front of everyone.
Me: Do you mind if I take five? This isn’t something we need to argue over. I really am trying to learn how to play, and to play the way YOUR TEAM plays. The guide books were no help at all.
FPB: If I catch you asking Mori for coke, so help me...
Me: I just need some air. That’s not code for anything untoward. I just want to go outside.
FPB: I’m coming with you.
Snorlax stepped in.
Snorlax: Bro. Just let her go outside. I’ll stand by the door and make sure Mori doesn’t follow her.
FPB: I don’t care about Mori! You make sure that dick-wipe Axton doesn’t follow her. I *know* he’s trying to bang her.
I could hear all this rancor on my way to the back door.
Me: Dude!!! Chill! I’m not going outside to get drugs. I’m not going outside to shag anybody. I just want five fucking minutes of peace!
Mori stood up. He was shirtless that night, wearing nothing but ultra-sheer light pink boxers that complemented the pink streaks in his bedazzled beard. But despite his wispy attire, the group still kowtowed to him.
Mori: I hereby grant OP *TEN* minutes of solitude on the back porch. FPB, you will use this time to meditate. Think about what it means to be kind to your significant other. Think about what it means to show empathy and acceptance. Think about what it means to enjoy the company of your fellow chummers.
I slipped outside and inhaled the pleasant dusk that was beginning to fill the air. And I found myself feeling indebted to Mori and wondering if this was some sort of cult indoctrination malarkey... or if he’d just known FPB longer than any of the rest of us and had learned how to effectively handle him. And then I decided that it didn’t matter. I finally had the peace and quiet I so desperately needed.
But how *did* FPB know that Axton was flirting with me? I thought we’d both been pretty covert about it. Uhhh... In front of FPB, at least. I decided that he didn’t actually know. He was constantly accusing male friends of “trying to bang me” when there was not even the slightest hint of attraction on anyone’s part. It was a numbers game. If you throw out hundreds of accusations, one might happen to stick. And then you can say, “I TOLD YOU SO.”
I often felt like an alternate universe version of Anne Boleyn, imprisoned by a skinny and even madder version of the famous king. FPB certainly fancied himself a regal figure, worthy of everyone’s fealty. Wait... was Henry VIII the OG neckbeard??? (note... I thought I had made an original observation here, but I came across a year-old post on ReddXReads from u/Raidan1084, so props to you for beating me to this observation!!!)
My unfocused mind ran amuck for a bit longer, and the ten minutes were almost up when I heard a quiet voice calling my name from around the side of the house.
I rounded the corner to answer.
It was Athena.
Athena: OP, I know it’s none of my business, but FPB is a douchebag. That girl who came to the door last night? She’s one of his hook-ups.
I laughed a little. “I know. He’s got loads of them... Hey, do you mind if I ask you a stupid question that I ask myself all the time?”
Athena: Sure.
Me: Why do you guys put up with his shit?
Athena: He and Mori have been best friends since before the team formed. He’s kind of a “package deal.” If we want to keep Mori as our GM, we have to accept FPB. And Mori does run a really fun campaign.
Me: So if he ever crosses a line with Mori, he’s out?
Athena: That’s what we’ve all been hoping for! But Mori’s insanely patient with FPB.
We sighed and returned inside.
FPB was sitting in sulky silence, staring at his polished Chelsea boots. I took a seat on the other side of the room, next to Mori.
Mori: You good?
I nodded.
Mori whispered, “You want some coke?”
Me: Shhhhhh!!! No, I don’t do that!
Mori mouthed, “Adderall?”
I smiled and mouthed, “Later.”
Mori stood. “Tonight, we are making a seating chart. There are six numbers on the floor. You will each draw a number from my underwear, and you will sit on the corresponding number. Is that clear?”
Everyone bellowed in unison, “YES, GAME MASTER.”
This was exciting! I had a decent chance of not having to sit by FPB that night! I was completely fed up with his constant criticism of my character sheets and his suggestions for future moves. He was messing me up more than he was helping.
Mori took a seat on a throw pillow, shoved 6 folded pieces of paper down the back of his boxers and called us up, one by one, to draw our numbers from his drawers.
Being the newbie, I was the last to draw.
Mori: Get all the way up in dat crack, OP.
I laughed and fished the paper out of Mori’s boxers.
FPB took a loud breath and fumed, “MORI, YOU FU...”
Sage put a hand on FPB’s chest, and said very sternly, “Take it down a notch.”
Mori: Tonight, we will find peace amongst ourselves and rain fire and terror on the mega-corporations! Are you with me???”
“WE’RE WITH YOU, GAME MASTER.”
Mori: Then inspect your numbers and take your seats. You should also feel free to sniff the papers.
No one did that.
I got #3. Motherfucker. FPB was sitting to my right. But at least Athena was sitting to my left. I felt like I could trust her, and I felt like she would call him out if he pulled any more of his rage crap. Tragically, Axton was sitting to FPB’s right. That wasn’t going to go well. Snorlax was sitting to Athena’s left, and Sage was in his usual spot, as Mori’s right hand. So it went: tech, muscle, tech, magic, muscle, magic. Not ideal.
Mori surveyed the room. “Not at all how I had hoped,” he muttered. “But nevertheless! The team has been assembled. The time has come...”
“PRE-GAME!!!!!!”
I actually knew what to shout this time. I remembered to pound on my chest, and I looked to Athena in an attempt to learn the tribal dance. I got close enough.
We charged into the fuel station. I stood by the non-threatening triad of shots, while all the other team members stood before their seven shots.
Mori: Fireball. Each tincture shall light a fire in our bellies, improve out spell-casting, and lead us to victory. Chummers... DRINK!!!
I slammed two shots and picked up the third to nurse during the game. Just like the night before, all the other players downed their seven shots with astounding ease.
We returned to the War Room and took our assigned seats.
Mori: The Rules!
Everyone groaned, just as they had previously. Apparently, this was customary.
Mori: If you glitch, you must take a shot of Fireball to boost your skills. OP, you may take a SIP of an alcoholic beverage. You may also do a bump of coke.
FPB clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and growled. This was delighting me to no end!!! Not only might I get a little taste of my former favorite drug for the first time in YEARS, but Mori also seemed to be actively antagonizing FPB. It was delicious.
And here’s one for the philosophers: AITA... If you’re antagonizing the asshole, doesn’t that kind of make you the hero?
Mori: The second time you glitch, you must kiss my staff or endure a smack in the face from my staff. FPB, you must suffer The Lap of Luxury upon your second glitch... Or if you misbehave.
FPB: Explain that.
Mori: It will become clear in good time, my sweet little Samurai.
FPB shifted uncomfortably. I bit my lip to keep from laughing.
Mori: All subsequent glitches will result in escalating staff punishments, the anal gaze, removal of armor, or a spanking. Anything the team deems an epic success shall be rewarded with a shot of Johnny Walker Blue. And my trusted Assistant GM has a few new rules to add, just for the time being. Sage the Mage, the floor is yours.
Sage: We can’t afford to pay for another round of professional cleaning for... the time being. We are now asking that ALL team members please use the restroom if you must pee, poop, or puke. Gentlemen, feel free to pee in the backyard, but please refrain from peeing on the porch. Thank you. Back to you, Game Master.
Mori: Place your hand on your chest and pledge your loyalty if you agree to this; and take off your pants if you object.
FPB put his hands near the button of his trousers. Everyone watched him with bated breath. But then he placed his hand on his chest.
Mori: Then we continue planning the station takeover... NOW!
We had barely gotten through two combat turns when Mori decided it was time for leftover Taco Bell, more liquor, and pornography. Tonight, Snorlax rolled for Bat Pussy, an older film that is widely considered to be the Plan 9 from Outer Space of porn. It was definitely on the “softcore” side since no one ever actually banged. It’s a spoof on Batman, and the main character gets a little “twitch” DOWN THERE whenever she needs to go fight crime. I found it wildly entertaining!
In fact, I laughed hysterically throughout the entire movie. Most of us did. FPB even snorted once or twice. As the main character was bouncing on a hippity hop alongside the highway, wearing a cheap costume, I was howling with laughter. Possibly because everyone was a little drunk and the drunken laughter was contagious, possibly because it really was absurdly funny. Or both.
FPB: It’s not THAT funny.
Me (gasping): I can’t help it! This is bat-shit crazy!
Mori: We gotta get OP a Batgirl costume and a hippity hop!
Me: You’re ON! I will absolutely do that! When can we film it???
FPB: You’re gonna recreate a scene from a PORNO??? With MORI???
Sage: Dude! WHAT is sexual about this scene? It’s ridiculous. That’s why we’re all cracking up!
FPB: You have to understand. I’m an intellectual...
I was painfully familiar with the insufferable tripe that typically followed this statement. Apparently, so was the Shadowrun crew. Everyone groaned dismissively. And then something vaguely resembling a sex scene started up, and Mori shushed us all.
Mori: Shhhh! It might finally get good!
It didn’t. Not in the way Mori meant.
The movie ended, most of us lit a ciggy, and we all returned to our assigned seats.
Mori: Shall we refuel before we resume?
A chorus of “HELL YEAH” rang out. I wasn’t in the mood for booze. I was once again beginning to fade around this time, and I needed to find a way to get some Adderall from Mori without FPB noticing. It had already been an incredibly long day for me, even though I had been having fun (aside from having to tend to FPB’s nonsense). Maybe the beardo boyfriend was the reason I was getting exhausted at these gatherings.
Constantly having to talk him down from a temper tantrum, having him constantly looking over my shoulder and scrutinizing my every move, suffering through his ceaseless (and useless) suggestions for my next move, having to defend myself for not drinking enough, then having to turn around and defend myself when I decided to have an extra shot, enduring his seething wrath every time I so much as spoke to Mori or Axton... It was exhausting.
As everyone was refueling, FPB had managed to trap Sage and Athena and was lecturing them about why it was disrespectful to FEMALES to combine humor with sex.
FPB: To make a mockery of the female anatomy, and then to depict sexual acts so crudely is offensive to me as a feminist.
Athena: YOU’RE a feminist?
FPB: Obviously. I would lay down my life to defend the sacred honor of the feminine spirit.
Sage: I’m pretty sure it was just a bad movie. Plus, the superhero was a woman, so...
FPB: But they had to make her superpowers connected to her genitals. That’s objectification. It’s not funny, even if it’s meant to be “so bad, it’s funny.” I’m offended.
I wasn’t part of the discussion, but I interjected, “I feel like humor can be sexy. Being able to laugh during sexual experiences can create a bond. And if both partners are deliberately goofing off, what’s offensive about that?”
Axton raised his glass in approval. I couldn’t help smiling at him.
FPB: Oh, Miss Sex Therapist knows everything.
Me: I don’t know anything. Clearly. It’s just an opinion. Based on research. That I learned in graduate school.
FPB: Some idiots actually researched LAUGHING during sex? That can’t be a real thing.
Me: I’ll print out the articles.
FPB: From where? Hustler?
I didn’t have the energy to argue with him.
Me: Yes. I cite Hustler in all my papers.
Axton: I’ve read the same thing. Laughing releases endorphins. Sex releases endorphins. Plus, why do you think adult novelty stores are always so funny? The elephant trunk underwear?
Mori: I have a pair of those.
Of course he did.
FPB: You want a bottle smashed over your head, Axton? STOP TALKING TO MY GIRLFRIEND ABOUT YOUR DICK.
Me: FPB, he literally said nothing about his dick.
FPB: WRONG. He was *agreeing* with you. He’s trying to ingratiate himself. Because he’s thinking with his DICK.
I rolled my eyes.
Mori saved us by clapping his hands. “Back to the War Room, chummers!”
We headed back, and Mori was following close behind me. He tugged on one of my pigtails. I turned around to see him holding an Adderall in the palm of his hand. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure FPB wasn’t watching. He was too busy staring daggers at Axton. I snatched the pill, thanked Mori, and slipped it in my mouth.
When my turn came around, my sleaze failed, and the security subnet sent my coordinates to the mainframe. It was my first glitch of the evening, and I didn’t want to pile cocaine on top of Adderall. So I had to take a sip of an alcoholic beverage. Since I didn’t have one of my own, FPB offered me his Jack & Pepper (Jack Daniels and Dr. Pepper... 90% Jack, 10% Pepper).
Me: Is anybody drinking a beer? Or something a little less potent?
Snorlax offered me a sip of his beer.
Me: You’re sure you don’t mind?
Snorlax: It’s all good. Have a sip.
FPB was fuming again.
Snorlax handed me his beer and I took a sip.
Me: Thank you.
FPB: You’re drinking after another man??? You didn’t even wipe off the mouth of the bottle first? UGH! It’s like you’re kissing him!
Snorlax started making kissy sounds at me. I made them back. Everyone laughed. Everyone but FPB, of course.
Please remember that this was in the Before Times...
I sat back down. FPB pulled me into his lap and growled, “Snorlax now? Really?”
I twisted to look him in the face and said through clenched teeth, “It was a sip of beer.”
FBP kept one long arm tightly wound around me and used his free hand to slug back loud gulps of Jack & Pepper. I dared to glance over at Axton. We locked eyes for a few seconds, but Axton abruptly whipped his head around to face Mori.
FPB roared, “WERE YOU JUST LOOKING AT MY GIRLFRIEND, FUCK-WALLET???”
Sweet Athena spoke up.
Athena: Funky. Seriously. We’re supposed to be a team. We can’t even look at each other? Mori, can we outlaw the outbursts? We’re never even gonna get past the planning phase if FPB keeps screaming at every single person who interacts with OP.”
Mori: I’m inclined to agree with you, Athena. FPB, why did you invite your girlfriend here if you didn’t want her to play our game and get to know us?
I felt FPB take a deep breath in preparation to react inappropriately to Mori’s innocuous question.
Mori was able to effectively silence him by simply lifting his hand. Dude, he was gonna have to teach me his tricks!
Mori: We’d like to be able to get to know her in peace. OP, would you like to get to know us in peace?
Me: Yes. I really would.
Mori: FPB, these outbursts have earned you a new punishment... The Lap of Luxury. Get on over here, Tall Boy.
Mori patted his lap.
FPB: Are you serious?
Mori: I am. You sit right here until I say you may rise.
FPB didn’t move.
Mori: Should you refuse, OP can come sit in my lap. (Better Mori’s lap than FPB’s.)
FPB scrambled up, sending me flying out of his lap. I gleefully lit a cigarette and made googlie eyes at Axton that were sure to go unnoticed by the incredibly incensed FPB.
FPB awkwardly folded himself into Mori’s lap, grunting and grumbling the entire time. The rest of the team was desperately trying not to laugh (which of course, made it even funnier).
Once he had settled in (as much as he could), we continued the planning phase. Athena was successful, so was Snorlax, so was Sage. But Axton glitched. This was sure to be a problem. Mori was stuck under FPB, so he was unable to “whip it out” and administer the customary punishment.
Mori: Axton, remove a piece of your armor.
Axton reached around with one hand and pulled his t-shirt off in a single fluid motion. I’m quite certain that my pupils noticeably dilated. The rest of the room “whooped” like we were at a Chip ‘n Dales show.
FPB looked like some sort of cartoon villain who had just been foiled. As he sat indignantly upon the Mori Throne, he twitched and shifted, snarling curses, teeth gritted. And then he froze. His eyes widened. He started to stand, but Mori wrapped his arms around him tightly, trapping him in the Lap of Luxury.
FPB: YOU HAVE A HARD-ON, BRO. LET ME THE FUCK GO.
I squealed with laughter. And it seemed that I had been right about Mori letting people off the hook when they were legitimately uncomfortable with the “gross-out” punishments, because Mori loosened his grip, allowing FPB stomp off to the back porch.
“OP! OP! OOOOOOOO PPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!,” FPB screamed from the porch.
Mori: OP, you’re free to go tend to his meltdown if you want to. But I’m happy to handle him if you need a break.
Me: I definitely need a break.
Mori got up to tend to the bearded ball of rage.
I heard a bit of unintelligible yelling, then the door slammed. We all looked at each other with something across between nervousness and bemusement, waiting for someone to speak. I decided to break the silence...
submitted by CringeyVal0451 to ReddXReads [link] [comments]
OP (c’est moi!)
Female, late 20s
Grad student
Perky emo girl with purple hair
Likes crass humor
Nerdy, petite, beard bait
Decker
Funky P. Beard (FPB)
Male, early 30s
Bona fide psycho piece of shit
Street Samurai
Mori
The GM
Male, early/mid 30s
Hypersexual kinky bastard
Likes exhibitionism, vomit, and illegal substances
Charismatic, cult-leader vibes
Very amusing, always nice to OP
The only person who seemed capable of getting FPB to behave
Axton
Male, late 20s
Grad student
Sexy, pleasant to be around
Has a sense of humor that meshes well with OP’s
Usually able to ignore FPB’s psycho behavior
The primary target of FPB’s jealousy
Rigger
Sage
Male, early/mis 30s
Assistant GM
Host of the gaming weekends
Typically level-headed, but losing patience with FPB
Skilled in martial arts
Mage
Athena
Female, early 30s
Sage’s girlfriend
Co-host of the gaming weekends
Increasingly intolerant of FPB
Petite, pretty, friendly... probably also beard bait
Shaman
Snorlax
Male, early 30s
The funny fat guy (NOT a neckbeard)
Easy-going, friendly, rarely directly involved in the weekend’s drama
Stoner
Adept
Chapter 5: The Lap of Luxury
We had been moving back and forth between the garage and the living room (it wasn’t the “War Room” until the gaming began) for the past hour or so. This was actually my favorite part of the weekend. I wasn’t exhausted yet, nobody was plastered yet, and I was genuinely getting to know FPB’s buddies. Snorlax told me about his former career as a semi-pro wrestler, and how an injury had forced him to start working as a mall cop. Athena and Sage were both pharmacy techs, and they were considering opening their own gaming shop. Mori was a paralegal for an LGBT law firm and ran a fairly lucrative fetish website on the side. Axton was going to grad school for social work and was the bass player for a classic rock cover band. Damn it, we had genuine common interests. Why couldn’t he have been a parolee or a gong farmer?
And I was able to chat comfortably with all the team members because FPB had taken to the master bathroom upstairs to get “re-ready.” Not only did he desperately need to change his “dew-covered” underpants, but he also needed to take a full shower (using Athena’s bathing products, of course). He would then spend nearly a full hour blow-drying, flat-ironing, and spiking his jet-black hair so that he emerged looking like some bizarre mash-up of Hagrid and Discount Tom Sandoval.
I’m also assuming that he manscaped, and I sincerely hoped he’d brought his own pink razors for this task. But as for his bushy behemoth of a beard? He took absolutely NO care of it. I never understood the statement he was trying to make by being fastidious AF with every aspect of personal grooming, save his defining feature. No matter. He was absent, and I was finally having fun! Alas, the fun wouldn’t last. The time for pre-game was approaching, so Sage and Athena went to the kitchen to arrange the shots.
Athena: How many do you want, OP?
Me: I think I’d better stick with two since I’ve already had a beer.
A freshly showered and finally dressed FPB turned to me, “Yeah, you need to stay sober.”
Oh, now that bullshit made me want to drink...
Me: Athena, make it three for me.
FPB shot me a menacing look.
Me: What? I’m not gonna get wasted off one extra shot.
FPB: I’m saving you from yourself. You could at least TRY to appreciate my chivalry.
Me: Right...
But then I had second thoughts about angering the already rage-prone beast. I didn’t want to ruin the evening for the other team members. And FPB’s temper tantrums definitely had the potential to ruin the evening for everyone in attendance.
Me: I’ll shoot two and just sip on the third one. Does that sound reasonable?
FPB shrugged.
Me: Come on! I feel like such a sissy compared to the rest of you.
FPB: Whose fault is that? You didn’t take advantage of your years and years and years of being a “student” to practice handling your liquor?
Me: No, mostly I studied. And when we partied, we did drugs. We didn’t drink. Not like this, anyway.
I was getting pretty mad, and I did NOT want to have a full-blown screaming match with FPB in front of everyone.
Me: Do you mind if I take five? This isn’t something we need to argue over. I really am trying to learn how to play, and to play the way YOUR TEAM plays. The guide books were no help at all.
FPB: If I catch you asking Mori for coke, so help me...
Me: I just need some air. That’s not code for anything untoward. I just want to go outside.
FPB: I’m coming with you.
Snorlax stepped in.
Snorlax: Bro. Just let her go outside. I’ll stand by the door and make sure Mori doesn’t follow her.
FPB: I don’t care about Mori! You make sure that dick-wipe Axton doesn’t follow her. I *know* he’s trying to bang her.
I could hear all this rancor on my way to the back door.
Me: Dude!!! Chill! I’m not going outside to get drugs. I’m not going outside to shag anybody. I just want five fucking minutes of peace!
Mori stood up. He was shirtless that night, wearing nothing but ultra-sheer light pink boxers that complemented the pink streaks in his bedazzled beard. But despite his wispy attire, the group still kowtowed to him.
Mori: I hereby grant OP *TEN* minutes of solitude on the back porch. FPB, you will use this time to meditate. Think about what it means to be kind to your significant other. Think about what it means to show empathy and acceptance. Think about what it means to enjoy the company of your fellow chummers.
I slipped outside and inhaled the pleasant dusk that was beginning to fill the air. And I found myself feeling indebted to Mori and wondering if this was some sort of cult indoctrination malarkey... or if he’d just known FPB longer than any of the rest of us and had learned how to effectively handle him. And then I decided that it didn’t matter. I finally had the peace and quiet I so desperately needed.
But how *did* FPB know that Axton was flirting with me? I thought we’d both been pretty covert about it. Uhhh... In front of FPB, at least. I decided that he didn’t actually know. He was constantly accusing male friends of “trying to bang me” when there was not even the slightest hint of attraction on anyone’s part. It was a numbers game. If you throw out hundreds of accusations, one might happen to stick. And then you can say, “I TOLD YOU SO.”
I often felt like an alternate universe version of Anne Boleyn, imprisoned by a skinny and even madder version of the famous king. FPB certainly fancied himself a regal figure, worthy of everyone’s fealty. Wait... was Henry VIII the OG neckbeard??? (note... I thought I had made an original observation here, but I came across a year-old post on ReddXReads from u/Raidan1084, so props to you for beating me to this observation!!!)
My unfocused mind ran amuck for a bit longer, and the ten minutes were almost up when I heard a quiet voice calling my name from around the side of the house.
I rounded the corner to answer.
It was Athena.
Athena: OP, I know it’s none of my business, but FPB is a douchebag. That girl who came to the door last night? She’s one of his hook-ups.
I laughed a little. “I know. He’s got loads of them... Hey, do you mind if I ask you a stupid question that I ask myself all the time?”
Athena: Sure.
Me: Why do you guys put up with his shit?
Athena: He and Mori have been best friends since before the team formed. He’s kind of a “package deal.” If we want to keep Mori as our GM, we have to accept FPB. And Mori does run a really fun campaign.
Me: So if he ever crosses a line with Mori, he’s out?
Athena: That’s what we’ve all been hoping for! But Mori’s insanely patient with FPB.
We sighed and returned inside.
FPB was sitting in sulky silence, staring at his polished Chelsea boots. I took a seat on the other side of the room, next to Mori.
Mori: You good?
I nodded.
Mori whispered, “You want some coke?”
Me: Shhhhhh!!! No, I don’t do that!
Mori mouthed, “Adderall?”
I smiled and mouthed, “Later.”
Mori stood. “Tonight, we are making a seating chart. There are six numbers on the floor. You will each draw a number from my underwear, and you will sit on the corresponding number. Is that clear?”
Everyone bellowed in unison, “YES, GAME MASTER.”
This was exciting! I had a decent chance of not having to sit by FPB that night! I was completely fed up with his constant criticism of my character sheets and his suggestions for future moves. He was messing me up more than he was helping.
Mori took a seat on a throw pillow, shoved 6 folded pieces of paper down the back of his boxers and called us up, one by one, to draw our numbers from his drawers.
Being the newbie, I was the last to draw.
Mori: Get all the way up in dat crack, OP.
I laughed and fished the paper out of Mori’s boxers.
FPB took a loud breath and fumed, “MORI, YOU FU...”
Sage put a hand on FPB’s chest, and said very sternly, “Take it down a notch.”
Mori: Tonight, we will find peace amongst ourselves and rain fire and terror on the mega-corporations! Are you with me???”
“WE’RE WITH YOU, GAME MASTER.”
Mori: Then inspect your numbers and take your seats. You should also feel free to sniff the papers.
No one did that.
I got #3. Motherfucker. FPB was sitting to my right. But at least Athena was sitting to my left. I felt like I could trust her, and I felt like she would call him out if he pulled any more of his rage crap. Tragically, Axton was sitting to FPB’s right. That wasn’t going to go well. Snorlax was sitting to Athena’s left, and Sage was in his usual spot, as Mori’s right hand. So it went: tech, muscle, tech, magic, muscle, magic. Not ideal.
Mori surveyed the room. “Not at all how I had hoped,” he muttered. “But nevertheless! The team has been assembled. The time has come...”
“PRE-GAME!!!!!!”
I actually knew what to shout this time. I remembered to pound on my chest, and I looked to Athena in an attempt to learn the tribal dance. I got close enough.
We charged into the fuel station. I stood by the non-threatening triad of shots, while all the other team members stood before their seven shots.
Mori: Fireball. Each tincture shall light a fire in our bellies, improve out spell-casting, and lead us to victory. Chummers... DRINK!!!
I slammed two shots and picked up the third to nurse during the game. Just like the night before, all the other players downed their seven shots with astounding ease.
We returned to the War Room and took our assigned seats.
Mori: The Rules!
Everyone groaned, just as they had previously. Apparently, this was customary.
Mori: If you glitch, you must take a shot of Fireball to boost your skills. OP, you may take a SIP of an alcoholic beverage. You may also do a bump of coke.
FPB clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and growled. This was delighting me to no end!!! Not only might I get a little taste of my former favorite drug for the first time in YEARS, but Mori also seemed to be actively antagonizing FPB. It was delicious.
And here’s one for the philosophers: AITA... If you’re antagonizing the asshole, doesn’t that kind of make you the hero?
Mori: The second time you glitch, you must kiss my staff or endure a smack in the face from my staff. FPB, you must suffer The Lap of Luxury upon your second glitch... Or if you misbehave.
FPB: Explain that.
Mori: It will become clear in good time, my sweet little Samurai.
FPB shifted uncomfortably. I bit my lip to keep from laughing.
Mori: All subsequent glitches will result in escalating staff punishments, the anal gaze, removal of armor, or a spanking. Anything the team deems an epic success shall be rewarded with a shot of Johnny Walker Blue. And my trusted Assistant GM has a few new rules to add, just for the time being. Sage the Mage, the floor is yours.
Sage: We can’t afford to pay for another round of professional cleaning for... the time being. We are now asking that ALL team members please use the restroom if you must pee, poop, or puke. Gentlemen, feel free to pee in the backyard, but please refrain from peeing on the porch. Thank you. Back to you, Game Master.
Mori: Place your hand on your chest and pledge your loyalty if you agree to this; and take off your pants if you object.
FPB put his hands near the button of his trousers. Everyone watched him with bated breath. But then he placed his hand on his chest.
Mori: Then we continue planning the station takeover... NOW!
We had barely gotten through two combat turns when Mori decided it was time for leftover Taco Bell, more liquor, and pornography. Tonight, Snorlax rolled for Bat Pussy, an older film that is widely considered to be the Plan 9 from Outer Space of porn. It was definitely on the “softcore” side since no one ever actually banged. It’s a spoof on Batman, and the main character gets a little “twitch” DOWN THERE whenever she needs to go fight crime. I found it wildly entertaining!
In fact, I laughed hysterically throughout the entire movie. Most of us did. FPB even snorted once or twice. As the main character was bouncing on a hippity hop alongside the highway, wearing a cheap costume, I was howling with laughter. Possibly because everyone was a little drunk and the drunken laughter was contagious, possibly because it really was absurdly funny. Or both.
FPB: It’s not THAT funny.
Me (gasping): I can’t help it! This is bat-shit crazy!
Mori: We gotta get OP a Batgirl costume and a hippity hop!
Me: You’re ON! I will absolutely do that! When can we film it???
FPB: You’re gonna recreate a scene from a PORNO??? With MORI???
Sage: Dude! WHAT is sexual about this scene? It’s ridiculous. That’s why we’re all cracking up!
FPB: You have to understand. I’m an intellectual...
I was painfully familiar with the insufferable tripe that typically followed this statement. Apparently, so was the Shadowrun crew. Everyone groaned dismissively. And then something vaguely resembling a sex scene started up, and Mori shushed us all.
Mori: Shhhh! It might finally get good!
It didn’t. Not in the way Mori meant.
The movie ended, most of us lit a ciggy, and we all returned to our assigned seats.
Mori: Shall we refuel before we resume?
A chorus of “HELL YEAH” rang out. I wasn’t in the mood for booze. I was once again beginning to fade around this time, and I needed to find a way to get some Adderall from Mori without FPB noticing. It had already been an incredibly long day for me, even though I had been having fun (aside from having to tend to FPB’s nonsense). Maybe the beardo boyfriend was the reason I was getting exhausted at these gatherings.
Constantly having to talk him down from a temper tantrum, having him constantly looking over my shoulder and scrutinizing my every move, suffering through his ceaseless (and useless) suggestions for my next move, having to defend myself for not drinking enough, then having to turn around and defend myself when I decided to have an extra shot, enduring his seething wrath every time I so much as spoke to Mori or Axton... It was exhausting.
As everyone was refueling, FPB had managed to trap Sage and Athena and was lecturing them about why it was disrespectful to FEMALES to combine humor with sex.
FPB: To make a mockery of the female anatomy, and then to depict sexual acts so crudely is offensive to me as a feminist.
Athena: YOU’RE a feminist?
FPB: Obviously. I would lay down my life to defend the sacred honor of the feminine spirit.
Sage: I’m pretty sure it was just a bad movie. Plus, the superhero was a woman, so...
FPB: But they had to make her superpowers connected to her genitals. That’s objectification. It’s not funny, even if it’s meant to be “so bad, it’s funny.” I’m offended.
I wasn’t part of the discussion, but I interjected, “I feel like humor can be sexy. Being able to laugh during sexual experiences can create a bond. And if both partners are deliberately goofing off, what’s offensive about that?”
Axton raised his glass in approval. I couldn’t help smiling at him.
FPB: Oh, Miss Sex Therapist knows everything.
Me: I don’t know anything. Clearly. It’s just an opinion. Based on research. That I learned in graduate school.
FPB: Some idiots actually researched LAUGHING during sex? That can’t be a real thing.
Me: I’ll print out the articles.
FPB: From where? Hustler?
I didn’t have the energy to argue with him.
Me: Yes. I cite Hustler in all my papers.
Axton: I’ve read the same thing. Laughing releases endorphins. Sex releases endorphins. Plus, why do you think adult novelty stores are always so funny? The elephant trunk underwear?
Mori: I have a pair of those.
Of course he did.
FPB: You want a bottle smashed over your head, Axton? STOP TALKING TO MY GIRLFRIEND ABOUT YOUR DICK.
Me: FPB, he literally said nothing about his dick.
FPB: WRONG. He was *agreeing* with you. He’s trying to ingratiate himself. Because he’s thinking with his DICK.
I rolled my eyes.
Mori saved us by clapping his hands. “Back to the War Room, chummers!”
We headed back, and Mori was following close behind me. He tugged on one of my pigtails. I turned around to see him holding an Adderall in the palm of his hand. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure FPB wasn’t watching. He was too busy staring daggers at Axton. I snatched the pill, thanked Mori, and slipped it in my mouth.
When my turn came around, my sleaze failed, and the security subnet sent my coordinates to the mainframe. It was my first glitch of the evening, and I didn’t want to pile cocaine on top of Adderall. So I had to take a sip of an alcoholic beverage. Since I didn’t have one of my own, FPB offered me his Jack & Pepper (Jack Daniels and Dr. Pepper... 90% Jack, 10% Pepper).
Me: Is anybody drinking a beer? Or something a little less potent?
Snorlax offered me a sip of his beer.
Me: You’re sure you don’t mind?
Snorlax: It’s all good. Have a sip.
FPB was fuming again.
Snorlax handed me his beer and I took a sip.
Me: Thank you.
FPB: You’re drinking after another man??? You didn’t even wipe off the mouth of the bottle first? UGH! It’s like you’re kissing him!
Snorlax started making kissy sounds at me. I made them back. Everyone laughed. Everyone but FPB, of course.
Please remember that this was in the Before Times...
I sat back down. FPB pulled me into his lap and growled, “Snorlax now? Really?”
I twisted to look him in the face and said through clenched teeth, “It was a sip of beer.”
FBP kept one long arm tightly wound around me and used his free hand to slug back loud gulps of Jack & Pepper. I dared to glance over at Axton. We locked eyes for a few seconds, but Axton abruptly whipped his head around to face Mori.
FPB roared, “WERE YOU JUST LOOKING AT MY GIRLFRIEND, FUCK-WALLET???”
Sweet Athena spoke up.
Athena: Funky. Seriously. We’re supposed to be a team. We can’t even look at each other? Mori, can we outlaw the outbursts? We’re never even gonna get past the planning phase if FPB keeps screaming at every single person who interacts with OP.”
Mori: I’m inclined to agree with you, Athena. FPB, why did you invite your girlfriend here if you didn’t want her to play our game and get to know us?
I felt FPB take a deep breath in preparation to react inappropriately to Mori’s innocuous question.
Mori was able to effectively silence him by simply lifting his hand. Dude, he was gonna have to teach me his tricks!
Mori: We’d like to be able to get to know her in peace. OP, would you like to get to know us in peace?
Me: Yes. I really would.
Mori: FPB, these outbursts have earned you a new punishment... The Lap of Luxury. Get on over here, Tall Boy.
Mori patted his lap.
FPB: Are you serious?
Mori: I am. You sit right here until I say you may rise.
FPB didn’t move.
Mori: Should you refuse, OP can come sit in my lap. (Better Mori’s lap than FPB’s.)
FPB scrambled up, sending me flying out of his lap. I gleefully lit a cigarette and made googlie eyes at Axton that were sure to go unnoticed by the incredibly incensed FPB.
FPB awkwardly folded himself into Mori’s lap, grunting and grumbling the entire time. The rest of the team was desperately trying not to laugh (which of course, made it even funnier).
Once he had settled in (as much as he could), we continued the planning phase. Athena was successful, so was Snorlax, so was Sage. But Axton glitched. This was sure to be a problem. Mori was stuck under FPB, so he was unable to “whip it out” and administer the customary punishment.
Mori: Axton, remove a piece of your armor.
Axton reached around with one hand and pulled his t-shirt off in a single fluid motion. I’m quite certain that my pupils noticeably dilated. The rest of the room “whooped” like we were at a Chip ‘n Dales show.
FPB looked like some sort of cartoon villain who had just been foiled. As he sat indignantly upon the Mori Throne, he twitched and shifted, snarling curses, teeth gritted. And then he froze. His eyes widened. He started to stand, but Mori wrapped his arms around him tightly, trapping him in the Lap of Luxury.
FPB: YOU HAVE A HARD-ON, BRO. LET ME THE FUCK GO.
I squealed with laughter. And it seemed that I had been right about Mori letting people off the hook when they were legitimately uncomfortable with the “gross-out” punishments, because Mori loosened his grip, allowing FPB stomp off to the back porch.
“OP! OP! OOOOOOOO PPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!,” FPB screamed from the porch.
Mori: OP, you’re free to go tend to his meltdown if you want to. But I’m happy to handle him if you need a break.
Me: I definitely need a break.
Mori got up to tend to the bearded ball of rage.
I heard a bit of unintelligible yelling, then the door slammed. We all looked at each other with something across between nervousness and bemusement, waiting for someone to speak. I decided to break the silence...
2023.06.09 23:16 Sea-Corgi2086 Is negotiation possible?
I (in Texas) recently applied to be a full time Pharmacy Tech at a CVS very close to me, among other places. I have a reasonable amount of experience, and have been getting interest from other companies as well. CVS offered me a position first, but at 16.25 per hour. I made 15 dollars in my first position ever as a part time tech at a Kroger, and I know from friends other companies would be starting me at 17 at least. I'm not particularly attached to this specific location. It is convenient, but not convenient enough to be underpaid.
My question, does anyone have experience negotiating their hourly rate before accepting employment? Will they leave me hanging and waiting for days just to tell me no? I don't want to miss out on somewhere else because i'm waiting for CVS to get back to me.
submitted by Sea-Corgi2086 to CVS [link] [comments]
My question, does anyone have experience negotiating their hourly rate before accepting employment? Will they leave me hanging and waiting for days just to tell me no? I don't want to miss out on somewhere else because i'm waiting for CVS to get back to me.