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Realistic or Modern hollywood arts: main (open!!)
sunshineysoul
entertainer at the house of asmodeous
code by valen t.
Kitsune2202
Elder Member
Naomi M. Elizondo
coded by incandescent
Naomi noticed the little jab Alex gave the tall boy beside her, though she didn't pay much mind to it. She figured it was friends joking around. She smiled instantly seeing her basically bouncing on her heels, damn she was adorable. At least that meant she really was excited to be hanging out with her right? Naomi wasn't normally the insecure type, but something about Alex made her feel a bit different then her norm. Maybe because the end game wasn't the same as her norm...well not exactly the same.
Her comment about the weather as an ice breaker...almost made her bust out laughing. Who used that? It was like something out of a sit-com and honestly Naomi was here for it, "It's beautiful, just like you. A perfect day for radishes. She joked shooting the girl a playful wink before the tall boy swooped in with an actual conversation starter. She listened to the remarks as she tapped her chin with her index finger, "Hmmm the food. I only really come to these things for the food. While the rides are nice and all, if I wanna ride something I'd go to an actual amusement park." She shrugged finally. She didn't care what they did so long as she got to spend some time with Alex. "But I'm down for whatever honestly."
Naomi smirked at Stella's comment to The boy she called Zeph. She supposed they probably should all introduce themselves? Well they might all know each other for all she knew. She was probably the only outsider here. Not that she minded, Naomi usually was considering she kept a very small circle of friends. A few more minuets went by as they waited outside of the gate, but Naomi was growing impatient waiting on the fifth and final member of their little group to arrive. "Look, I don't mean to sound rude, but what about we just meet up with your friend inside? I'd rather not spend the majority of our time outside of the fair." If they were just gonna stand around and have small talk she could've stayed home gotten high and called Alex or invited her over and they talk. That'd be more entertaining then just standing here awkwardly twiddling their thumbs waiting. "You can always text or call her right? Let her known where to find us when she is ready." She hummed slightly back peddling slowly towards the ticket stand.
Stella nodded in agreement because let's face it she was just as impatient, and want to get inside already except she wasn't as shy about it. The moment the suggest popped up she agreed and walked to the line to buy her ticket figuring the others would follow suit regardless. Naomi appreciated the girls bold personality that's for sure, but she didn't want to seem completely insensitive to Alex since it was her friend they were moving on without.
In the end They got their tickets and finally were inside the fair grounds, "So did we decide what we were doing first? I heard they've got some killed funnel cake. That and the apple cider seems to be what people talked the most about." She chimed. Well that and cotton candy, but that was a weird conversation including the fact that apparently there was a yellow flavor...ew.
Her comment about the weather as an ice breaker...almost made her bust out laughing. Who used that? It was like something out of a sit-com and honestly Naomi was here for it, "It's beautiful, just like you. A perfect day for radishes. She joked shooting the girl a playful wink before the tall boy swooped in with an actual conversation starter. She listened to the remarks as she tapped her chin with her index finger, "Hmmm the food. I only really come to these things for the food. While the rides are nice and all, if I wanna ride something I'd go to an actual amusement park." She shrugged finally. She didn't care what they did so long as she got to spend some time with Alex. "But I'm down for whatever honestly."
Naomi smirked at Stella's comment to The boy she called Zeph. She supposed they probably should all introduce themselves? Well they might all know each other for all she knew. She was probably the only outsider here. Not that she minded, Naomi usually was considering she kept a very small circle of friends. A few more minuets went by as they waited outside of the gate, but Naomi was growing impatient waiting on the fifth and final member of their little group to arrive. "Look, I don't mean to sound rude, but what about we just meet up with your friend inside? I'd rather not spend the majority of our time outside of the fair." If they were just gonna stand around and have small talk she could've stayed home gotten high and called Alex or invited her over and they talk. That'd be more entertaining then just standing here awkwardly twiddling their thumbs waiting. "You can always text or call her right? Let her known where to find us when she is ready." She hummed slightly back peddling slowly towards the ticket stand.
Stella nodded in agreement because let's face it she was just as impatient, and want to get inside already except she wasn't as shy about it. The moment the suggest popped up she agreed and walked to the line to buy her ticket figuring the others would follow suit regardless. Naomi appreciated the girls bold personality that's for sure, but she didn't want to seem completely insensitive to Alex since it was her friend they were moving on without.
In the end They got their tickets and finally were inside the fair grounds, "So did we decide what we were doing first? I heard they've got some killed funnel cake. That and the apple cider seems to be what people talked the most about." She chimed. Well that and cotton candy, but that was a weird conversation including the fact that apparently there was a yellow flavor...ew.
fin
"all i do is finesse, man."
code by low fidelity.
Damn.
Amy was a bad-ass when she was heated, and Dei was turned on in more than a few ways at her berating him. Maybe it was something about how her eyes burned with a greater fire, her lips pursed into a bright pink smile, and her gaze peered directly into his eyes. For the moment you wouldn't have known that Amy was a complete geek, scenes gave Kordei the impression of a cuter Gen.
Kordei couldn't help but curl his lips once Amy huffed and turned away. He sighed down at his shoes, trying his best to conceal just how impressed he was.
But Kordei wouldn't stop though. He only continued at Amy, poking at the tiger, and honestly trying to set things aright. It was like going fishing, and with time, Amy had finally clamped down onto his hook. "Okay, fine, we can talk..." Was all that Kordei needed to hear. He had her attention now, and even if she pretended to be uninterested, her accepting his offer was her letting him speak his own case.
"Sweet." Dei grinned as Amy's sentence came to an end. She was going to comply. He flashed a wink over to Ellie seated by Nic, and softly pushed his half-eaten container of fries closer to the two of them. "Later, assholes." Kordei teased, before beckoning one of the waitresses over, and seating himself and Amy to a booth several spots down from Ellie. Somewhere some real privacy.
Dei allowed himself to sink back into his seat, and along with Amy, ordered their meal and got on with the rest of things. He twirled the straw between his fingers, sipping softly at the sprinkle-filled vanilla milkshake as he watched Amy seated across of him. Kordei's smirk had never left his face from the moment Amy had accepted his offer, till he'd got them a booth and paid the waiter before Amy could object.
His off-hand stretched onto the top of the empty seat at his side in his recline, stroking lightly at the leather seat.
"I still can't forget that time we were down in Long Beach. The girls were tryna' holler at me, and you got so sick of that shit, you made us bounce right in that moment." Dei chuckled, "Ended up at some shitty diner in Crenshaw-- somethin' like this one, but the food slapped. Freddy's In-n-Out, was it?" Dei continued his quiet laughter, and sighed softly at the memory. "This kinda' reminds me of that. Minus, y'know, us not being together now--"
"-- I feel bad. I do. You don't got to do the song with me, this is me just letting you know. I ain't feel bad then, when it happened, if I'm being honest. But I do now 'cause, well, Evie's doing something similar to me. Feels shitty being on the receiving end, now don't it, Ames?" He'd posed it as a question to her, but in reality, Dei might've cut fairly deep into himself. The thought lingered in his mind, and for a moment he averted his gaze with Amy just to collect himself.
Fuck, he thought as he quickly regained eye contact.
Amy was a bad-ass when she was heated, and Dei was turned on in more than a few ways at her berating him. Maybe it was something about how her eyes burned with a greater fire, her lips pursed into a bright pink smile, and her gaze peered directly into his eyes. For the moment you wouldn't have known that Amy was a complete geek, scenes gave Kordei the impression of a cuter Gen.
Kordei couldn't help but curl his lips once Amy huffed and turned away. He sighed down at his shoes, trying his best to conceal just how impressed he was.
But Kordei wouldn't stop though. He only continued at Amy, poking at the tiger, and honestly trying to set things aright. It was like going fishing, and with time, Amy had finally clamped down onto his hook. "Okay, fine, we can talk..." Was all that Kordei needed to hear. He had her attention now, and even if she pretended to be uninterested, her accepting his offer was her letting him speak his own case.
"Sweet." Dei grinned as Amy's sentence came to an end. She was going to comply. He flashed a wink over to Ellie seated by Nic, and softly pushed his half-eaten container of fries closer to the two of them. "Later, assholes." Kordei teased, before beckoning one of the waitresses over, and seating himself and Amy to a booth several spots down from Ellie. Somewhere some real privacy.
Dei allowed himself to sink back into his seat, and along with Amy, ordered their meal and got on with the rest of things. He twirled the straw between his fingers, sipping softly at the sprinkle-filled vanilla milkshake as he watched Amy seated across of him. Kordei's smirk had never left his face from the moment Amy had accepted his offer, till he'd got them a booth and paid the waiter before Amy could object.
His off-hand stretched onto the top of the empty seat at his side in his recline, stroking lightly at the leather seat.
"I still can't forget that time we were down in Long Beach. The girls were tryna' holler at me, and you got so sick of that shit, you made us bounce right in that moment." Dei chuckled, "Ended up at some shitty diner in Crenshaw-- somethin' like this one, but the food slapped. Freddy's In-n-Out, was it?" Dei continued his quiet laughter, and sighed softly at the memory. "This kinda' reminds me of that. Minus, y'know, us not being together now--"
"-- I feel bad. I do. You don't got to do the song with me, this is me just letting you know. I ain't feel bad then, when it happened, if I'm being honest. But I do now 'cause, well, Evie's doing something similar to me. Feels shitty being on the receiving end, now don't it, Ames?" He'd posed it as a question to her, but in reality, Dei might've cut fairly deep into himself. The thought lingered in his mind, and for a moment he averted his gaze with Amy just to collect himself.
Fuck, he thought as he quickly regained eye contact.
fin
"all i do is finesse, man."
code by low fidelity.
As much as Jordan had wanted to stay mad, it was difficult to do so at the fall fair. The aura of games, sweets, and fall had been far too enticing. After Kai had so abruptly ditched him, Jordan was hit with the sudden realization that after this entire affair, he'd still be tossed back into school with the rivaling Gen and JJ. He may as well enjoy the little peace of mind he had before the inevitable came to pass.
In a short period of time, Jordan had beaten this year's corn maze on his own (and devoured a giant stick of corn as his prize), absolutely killed the balloon dart throw, and was walking down the fairgrounds with a bright, unicorn plush-toy tucked under his arm pit, and a stick of candy apple in the other when he knocked into a crying child.
His eyes thinned down onto the teary kid, and then up at its mother. He rose his stuffed unicorn to the mother to make sure speaking to her son was fine, which was followed by a grateful smile that quickly intoxicated Jordan and left him smiling too.
"Hey, lil' man, what's the problem?" Jordan inquired, and dropped to one knee.
"She-- she took the blue beaaaar." The child cried his words out, sniffing and huffing, and occasionally wiping at his nose. The fall fair was a time to enjoy, especially for the kids, and yet someone had ruined this kid's day? Jordan wasn't going to have it, especially if it meant further distracting himself from his drama at school.
"Woah, woah, she? Who was the meanie?" Jordan inquired with furrowed brows. "I.. I dunno' but she had really, really red hair. Like Meredith in Brave."
If this were a cartoon, a floating light bulb would've illuminated over Jordan's head as he'd put two and two together. Ava was the meanie! And if Ava was at the fair, that also meant that JJ would be here too.
"Well that sucks. I hope you win somethin' else." Jordan shrugged, rose up to his feet, and skipped away with his unicorn in hand.
If he hadn't been so distracted with the idea of seeing JJ maybe he might've offered his own stuffed animal... Who the hell was he kidding? There was no way that Jordan was going to give some stranger his hard earned toy. Everybody knew that the balloon dart was the most rigged fair-game, and yet he'd came up victorious with the most vied for prized. If the fair was set up like last year, Ava's blue bear wouldn't compare to the pink mane, and golden horn of his white-furred unicorn!
Jordan's inclinations proved themselves correct as he came up from behind JJ and Ava, just in time it seemed as Ava had the blue bear in question stretched out over to JJ. He, and Ava had this little game running where they tried to one up each other on what they could do for JJ. It was lots of fun really, and Jordan loved the idea of Ava encouraging him to do more for JJ. What a wholesome bestie.
"I really wonder when you guys started leaving crying kids in your wake." Jordan teased, bouncing ahead of the two. He walked backwards in front of them, as they continued ahead, and stretched out his unicorn over to JJ. Partially as a "sorry" for how things had been left off on the roof, and partially because he just wanted to impress the girl that he liked.
"Don't worry, you can keep yours, Ava!" Jordan smiled at his act of generosity. "I got JJ a bigger one. Do you like it?" His brown eyes settled over JJ's there and then. Maybe he was a little nervous at how she'd react, but shying away only seemed counter-intuitive. Plus, along with his initial plan to find Ava and JJ, Jordan had something even bigger planned up his sleeve.
In a short period of time, Jordan had beaten this year's corn maze on his own (and devoured a giant stick of corn as his prize), absolutely killed the balloon dart throw, and was walking down the fairgrounds with a bright, unicorn plush-toy tucked under his arm pit, and a stick of candy apple in the other when he knocked into a crying child.
His eyes thinned down onto the teary kid, and then up at its mother. He rose his stuffed unicorn to the mother to make sure speaking to her son was fine, which was followed by a grateful smile that quickly intoxicated Jordan and left him smiling too.
"Hey, lil' man, what's the problem?" Jordan inquired, and dropped to one knee.
"She-- she took the blue beaaaar." The child cried his words out, sniffing and huffing, and occasionally wiping at his nose. The fall fair was a time to enjoy, especially for the kids, and yet someone had ruined this kid's day? Jordan wasn't going to have it, especially if it meant further distracting himself from his drama at school.
"Woah, woah, she? Who was the meanie?" Jordan inquired with furrowed brows. "I.. I dunno' but she had really, really red hair. Like Meredith in Brave."
If this were a cartoon, a floating light bulb would've illuminated over Jordan's head as he'd put two and two together. Ava was the meanie! And if Ava was at the fair, that also meant that JJ would be here too.
"Well that sucks. I hope you win somethin' else." Jordan shrugged, rose up to his feet, and skipped away with his unicorn in hand.
If he hadn't been so distracted with the idea of seeing JJ maybe he might've offered his own stuffed animal... Who the hell was he kidding? There was no way that Jordan was going to give some stranger his hard earned toy. Everybody knew that the balloon dart was the most rigged fair-game, and yet he'd came up victorious with the most vied for prized. If the fair was set up like last year, Ava's blue bear wouldn't compare to the pink mane, and golden horn of his white-furred unicorn!
Jordan's inclinations proved themselves correct as he came up from behind JJ and Ava, just in time it seemed as Ava had the blue bear in question stretched out over to JJ. He, and Ava had this little game running where they tried to one up each other on what they could do for JJ. It was lots of fun really, and Jordan loved the idea of Ava encouraging him to do more for JJ. What a wholesome bestie.
"I really wonder when you guys started leaving crying kids in your wake." Jordan teased, bouncing ahead of the two. He walked backwards in front of them, as they continued ahead, and stretched out his unicorn over to JJ. Partially as a "sorry" for how things had been left off on the roof, and partially because he just wanted to impress the girl that he liked.
"Don't worry, you can keep yours, Ava!" Jordan smiled at his act of generosity. "I got JJ a bigger one. Do you like it?" His brown eyes settled over JJ's there and then. Maybe he was a little nervous at how she'd react, but shying away only seemed counter-intuitive. Plus, along with his initial plan to find Ava and JJ, Jordan had something even bigger planned up his sleeve.
geminiy
v tired
Charlie couldn’t help but burst into laughter as Lin approached, raving about Puerto Rico and his three ex-wives and hallucinogens. As soon as Lin started laughing himself, Charlie only grew louder and more uncontrolled with her laughing, dissolving into a fit of giggles as her cheeks ached with her smile and her abdomen burned with the endless chuckling. Of course, what else was expected with Charlie and Lin together. If they weren’t cracking jokes and laughing until they cried, they were likely in a competition of some sort.
That’s how things always were with them. Some would call it predictable. But for Charlie? It was the best thing in her world.
“Charlie-Lite? Nah, I’m like fun-sized. You know, like how those tiny chocolate bars you get on Halloween are called fun-sized.” Charlie joked, leaning back to rest against the picnic table behind her. “Though, I don’t really know why they call them fun-sized. What’s fun about getting less candy?”
George the Rasta Banana was taken from her grasp, leaving Charlie to dramatically cross her arms over her chest. Throwing on her best fake scowl, she watched as Lin hoisted the oversized stuffed fruit out in front of him. He looked as if he was some sort of proud parent, watching as his kid trotted off to school for the first time. Hell, if you took a picture of the two and cropped it at Lin’s elbows, it would probably make for a damn good inspirational poster about being proud of your family. But, in a rather odd and unexpected turn of events, Lin was handing George the Rasta Banana back to Charlie.
“Aw I can’t take both of them. You worked so hard for him!” Charlie said, holding them back out in front of her. But she could tell from the look on Lin’s face that he was not about to take them back. Instead, Charlie handed him back the stuffed llama that had been earned from her points. “Here. Take Sir Vergil. We’ll have like joint custody or whatever. Besides, if I take George and you take Vergil, we both won each other prizes to remember this date by. You can hold Vergil tight, he’ll totally take away your nightmares and stuff. Very soothing, he’s truly a magical llama, man.”
Charlie followed Lin’s lead, laughing as she struggled around with George in her grasp, walking beside him as they weaved through the fair. She couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the two of them just hanging out felt so… Natural. Nothing was forced, even though it had technically begun as a blind date. But, the nervousness had left Charlie as soon as she took the banana and ran off with it as if the wind had carried it off with each running step. Everything felt so genuine, so natural, as if they had been joking around at fairs together for years.
“You didn’t win shit!” Charlie giggled, playfully bumping her hip into Lin’s as they walked. “I totally won that race. AND I also won George’s heart so HA! Also, George is not my ‘side-hoe’. He’s clearly my main squeeze. You, Lin, you are my side-hoe. Duh.”
The next thing Charlie knew, Lin was saying something about corndogs and running off with his wallet in hand and Vergil the llama under his arm, dragging Charlie along behind him. To be honest, Charlie had absolutely no clue what was going on. Were they even going to have time to eat before Lin was rushing them off to the next exciting thing? Probably not. Charlie doubted that anything could top corndogs in Lin’s mind. Food acquired, the two found a table and grabbed a seat, having barely sat down before Lin was devouring his meal. Without waiting for Lin to say anything, Charlie reached across the table and snagged one of the corndogs for herself, digging in with a small smile on her face.
“I am convinced these things have to be like the number one contributor to clogged arteries. They’re so greasy but damn, they’re so good.” Charlie speculated as she danced around a little bit in her seat, a satisfied smile on her face at the taste of the sickeningly bad-for-her carnival food. What was a carnival without the horrible junk food and stomach aches anyways?
“I didn’t realize until, like, a month ago, that they’re called corndogs because of the cornbread stuff around them— I thought that they were called corndogs because the pigs were Southern.”
Charlie looked up from her food, a look of pure confusion on her face. Her eyes scanned Lin’s face, narrowing as she attempted to figure out if Lin was joking or if he was serious. To be honest, Charlie really couldn’t tell. So, she simply laughed, crossing her legs underneath her on the bench.
“Ah yes. Genuine southern hog right here. Nothing to do with the breading, noooo, not at all. Yeehaws only.” Charlie teased as she cleaned the last bit of the corndog off the stick, placing it carefully down inside the cardboard box it had come in. “I don’t know if they are, but you should totally enter if they do. It is truly impressive how much you can eat and I’ve heard the prizes are really good. I think the nausea is totally worth like a hundred bucks or something. You could totally do it too. Lindsay Kay, champion corndog eater!”
After the pair were done eating, and one apple cider break later, Charlie sat quietly for a moment, listening to the sounds of the fair, taking in as many sights as she could and ignoring the fact that she was somehow always drawn back to Lin. If she was really dumb or really bad at flirting, Charlie would have probably said something along the lines of ‘the fair is cool and all but not as cool as you’ or something really dumb. How absolutely corny would that be? Luckily, Charlie had better game than that.
“You wanna go puke on the twirly arm ride thingy?” She asked as she leaned forward, wiggling her eyebrows playfully. Standing up and disposing of their garbage, Charlie held her hand out, nodding to the large purple ride in the distance. “Come on, I’ve heard it's extra unsafe this year. Ten bucks says some kid gets launched from it or something.”
Grabbing Lin’s hand, Charlie pulled him off the bench of the picnic table. Normally, she would have let go as soon as he was up. But blind dates weren’t their normal, no matter how natural it felt. So, instead of letting go, Charlie simply readjusted her hand’s position to firmly grasp onto Lin’s hand, her fingers lacing with his as she pulled him along behind her to the ride. Fuck it! That’s what dates were for, right? Might as well make the best of it.
After multiple rides and a few different carnival games, Charlie found herself tuckered out from the adrenaline and in desperate need of a chill down moment. Sure, she loved the thrill as much as the next person, but her poor aching head needed a break from all the twirls and all the loop-de-loops and all the drops. More than anything, she needed a moment to collect herself and her thoughts.
Things were beginning to feel out of her control, though perhaps not in a bad way. Charlie was having fun, genuinely having fun. For the first time since school started, her smiles were full and bright and shining with the light of life that had dulled within her. Her laughs bubbled from her chest, her jokes rolling off her tongue like a language she had studied for years. But, even despite the comfort of everything between her and Lin feeling so natural to her, Charlie was still struggling to get a grip on everything that was happening. One minute, she was forgetting they were technically on a date. The next, she was forgetting that the date had been blind and not set up by her or Lin. The next, she was forgetting that the two of them were not already dating and that technically, this was their first date. Ultimately, Charlie had given up on pretending to understand her racing thoughts and palpitating heart. If she was meant to understand it, she would. For that moment, she just needed to be and to enjoy herself. Charlie thought deserved that much.
“Hey, can you hold onto George for me? I’m gonna run to the bathroom while we’re by an actual building and not one of those nasty ass portapotties.” Charlie asked, handing George over to Lin. “I won’t be long. Meet you back out here in a few.”
Charlie dipped into the building through a set of large doors and further into the bathroom on her right. The place was, surprisingly, empty. After making sure she was genuinely alone, Charlie walked herself to the sink. Placing her phone on the counter beside her, screen facing up towards the ceiling, before bracing herself on the edge of the sink to peer into the polished mirror.
“Well, what a turn of events this was, huh?” Charlie giggled to herself, fixing up her hair as she collected her thoughts.
Taking the moment to breathe and simply relax was proving beneficial, her thoughts organizing themselves as she fixed herself up. Sufficiently fixed up, Charlie closed her eyes as she stood by the sink, focusing on her breathing. Everything was going to be okay. For the first time since the whole blind fair date thing got brought up, Charlie believed that.
It was going well. It was going to be okay…
BUZZ BUZZ.
Charlie’s eyes slowly fluttered open, looking down at her screen. Twitter. Of course it was. What a damn surprise that people couldn’t stay out of drama for two and a half minutes to actually enjoy the fair. Charlie’s face scrunched up. Would it be hypocritical to actually check her messages? Probably. Was she going to do it anyways? Definitely.
She should never have flicked that screen alive, never clicked into the Blue Bird of Death and Destruction. If she had played dumb, if she had just minded her own business for once, nothing would have happened. Charlie would have walked out to Lin, still full of smiles and confidence. Their date would have continued on like the world wasn’t burning around them. Ignorance would have been bliss.
The first blow, delivered by an intoxicated Nic. The words knocked the breath from Charlie’s chest, her thumbs hovering over the keyboard.
Of course she didn’t. Charlie absolutely did not have a clue about what had set Nic off or why she was suddenly his public enemy number one. But her confusion did little to dull the ache in her chest.
Nic, Charlie understood. But Ash? Had she really fucked up that much? What had she done? Everything Charlie did was to make them happy, two people she valued more than herself. They deserved all the happiness in the world. Had she truly brought them agony?
Charlie kept reading over that last sentence. ‘Whatever makes you feel better’. It was not phrased as a question, more a statement, yet Charlie still asked herself the question. What was going to make her feel better? Was anything going to make her feel better at that point? After she ruined everything, turning what was supposed to be a joyous occasion for everyone into a pit of fire fanned by her own hands? Charlie had lied to everyone. She promised happiness and comfort and light in a time that otherwise seemed stressful and dark. Yet she was the main vehicle for the discomfort, for the sadness. For the hatred. Charlie’s breath refused to enter her chest, tears flowing openly down her cheeks. They hated her. They all hated her. As they should. Who would want to be around someone that brought nothing but pain with them?
So, what would make her feel better?
Charlie thought back to that morning. To her bed and the sinking feeling of dread that ate away at the core of her stomach, leaving her abdomen hollow and her fingers cold. To the night before when she had cried into her pillow, the disgust in herself boiling over the edge of the pot that was her mind. To the weekend before when her control abandoned her in a fit of rage that was proving to become a defining factor of who she was as a person.
It hurt. Everything hurt.
Charlie’s fingers typed but her mind was elsewhere, a voice echoing around inside her head. The words that had dug deep gashes into her skin reverberating around inside of her hollow skull. They were right. They had to be right. First, people Charlie disliked told her. Now, some of her closest friends were confirming thoughts she had attempted to convince herself weren’t true. She was a bad person. She was a bad friend. She had no purpose but to hurt people around her.
Gasps for breath were met with a stabbing pain in Charlie’s chest as she braced herself on the wall for comfort. The edges of her vision were falling blurry in cohorts with the tears that flowed freely down her face. Her hands shook, her knees wobbling and threatening to give out. What if she fell? If she fell, she could leave. Maybe she’d hit her head, pass out, rest her excruciating thoughts that sat behind her and tormented her with each sharp hiss of reality.
Lin.
Oh fuck. She was still on her date.
Charlie had to collect herself. She had to get Lin away from her. She was blowing up, crumbling apart, shattering like a vase having been pushed from a table to the floor. No amount of delicate Kintsugi would repair her, to make her an ounce of desirable to any desperate individual. Lin had to go, he had to leave her alone, he had to enjoy his time. He deserved better. Though, Charlie didn’t have to be mid panic attack to know that. Lin deserved a world of opportunity she couldn’t give to him.
But no amount of pleading or begging could get Lin to budge. He seemed certain that he wasn’t going anywhere. Charlie couldn’t understand why. No amount of logic could allow her to understand why he wasn’t leaving. It wasn’t abandonment. Charlie was asking him to go, to just leave her to implode upon herself. But there he was, steadfast in his decision. Even through her blurred vision and the thumping pain inside her head, she knew that there was no changing his mind.
Fuck it. If he wasn’t leaving, Charlie couldn’t make him. The few minutes she had allotted herself to pick up her broken pieces was far from enough. Sure, she didn’t look horrible, but the expression that refused to leave her face and the sag in her shoulders spoke volumes over any amount of makeup she could apply. Why was she bothering? Was he not just going to leave anyways?
Charlie exited the building, keeping her eyes to the ground. Looking up as she was outside the doors, her heart crumbled as she saw Lin once again. Keeping herself together was fucking useless. He had just told her to let it happen, to just let herself feel. So, without much of another thought, Charlie practically ran up to Lin, throwing herself into his chest as her arms snaked around his waist, pulling him as close as she could to her.
Charlie couldn’t speak. Her voice felt as if it was going to shatter if she used it, a burn at the back of her throat spurring her silence. She had expected to start crying again. But no tears ever came. Charlie could feel her breath slowing, the pain of every comment receding. She felt safe.
“I…” Charlie eventually tried to manage, still nestled into Lin’s chest. “I ruined everything. Fuck it, I ruined everything.” The silence returned as Charlie slowly looked up at Lin, her chin resting on his chest as her face softened. “Well, almost everything. I hope I didn’t ruin this too. Us, I mean. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you today too. I’m so sorry giving you one of the shittiest first worst dates in the history of shitty first dates. I’ve really outdone myself this time.”
That’s how things always were with them. Some would call it predictable. But for Charlie? It was the best thing in her world.
“Charlie-Lite? Nah, I’m like fun-sized. You know, like how those tiny chocolate bars you get on Halloween are called fun-sized.” Charlie joked, leaning back to rest against the picnic table behind her. “Though, I don’t really know why they call them fun-sized. What’s fun about getting less candy?”
George the Rasta Banana was taken from her grasp, leaving Charlie to dramatically cross her arms over her chest. Throwing on her best fake scowl, she watched as Lin hoisted the oversized stuffed fruit out in front of him. He looked as if he was some sort of proud parent, watching as his kid trotted off to school for the first time. Hell, if you took a picture of the two and cropped it at Lin’s elbows, it would probably make for a damn good inspirational poster about being proud of your family. But, in a rather odd and unexpected turn of events, Lin was handing George the Rasta Banana back to Charlie.
“Aw I can’t take both of them. You worked so hard for him!” Charlie said, holding them back out in front of her. But she could tell from the look on Lin’s face that he was not about to take them back. Instead, Charlie handed him back the stuffed llama that had been earned from her points. “Here. Take Sir Vergil. We’ll have like joint custody or whatever. Besides, if I take George and you take Vergil, we both won each other prizes to remember this date by. You can hold Vergil tight, he’ll totally take away your nightmares and stuff. Very soothing, he’s truly a magical llama, man.”
Charlie followed Lin’s lead, laughing as she struggled around with George in her grasp, walking beside him as they weaved through the fair. She couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the two of them just hanging out felt so… Natural. Nothing was forced, even though it had technically begun as a blind date. But, the nervousness had left Charlie as soon as she took the banana and ran off with it as if the wind had carried it off with each running step. Everything felt so genuine, so natural, as if they had been joking around at fairs together for years.
“You didn’t win shit!” Charlie giggled, playfully bumping her hip into Lin’s as they walked. “I totally won that race. AND I also won George’s heart so HA! Also, George is not my ‘side-hoe’. He’s clearly my main squeeze. You, Lin, you are my side-hoe. Duh.”
The next thing Charlie knew, Lin was saying something about corndogs and running off with his wallet in hand and Vergil the llama under his arm, dragging Charlie along behind him. To be honest, Charlie had absolutely no clue what was going on. Were they even going to have time to eat before Lin was rushing them off to the next exciting thing? Probably not. Charlie doubted that anything could top corndogs in Lin’s mind. Food acquired, the two found a table and grabbed a seat, having barely sat down before Lin was devouring his meal. Without waiting for Lin to say anything, Charlie reached across the table and snagged one of the corndogs for herself, digging in with a small smile on her face.
“I am convinced these things have to be like the number one contributor to clogged arteries. They’re so greasy but damn, they’re so good.” Charlie speculated as she danced around a little bit in her seat, a satisfied smile on her face at the taste of the sickeningly bad-for-her carnival food. What was a carnival without the horrible junk food and stomach aches anyways?
“I didn’t realize until, like, a month ago, that they’re called corndogs because of the cornbread stuff around them— I thought that they were called corndogs because the pigs were Southern.”
Charlie looked up from her food, a look of pure confusion on her face. Her eyes scanned Lin’s face, narrowing as she attempted to figure out if Lin was joking or if he was serious. To be honest, Charlie really couldn’t tell. So, she simply laughed, crossing her legs underneath her on the bench.
“Ah yes. Genuine southern hog right here. Nothing to do with the breading, noooo, not at all. Yeehaws only.” Charlie teased as she cleaned the last bit of the corndog off the stick, placing it carefully down inside the cardboard box it had come in. “I don’t know if they are, but you should totally enter if they do. It is truly impressive how much you can eat and I’ve heard the prizes are really good. I think the nausea is totally worth like a hundred bucks or something. You could totally do it too. Lindsay Kay, champion corndog eater!”
After the pair were done eating, and one apple cider break later, Charlie sat quietly for a moment, listening to the sounds of the fair, taking in as many sights as she could and ignoring the fact that she was somehow always drawn back to Lin. If she was really dumb or really bad at flirting, Charlie would have probably said something along the lines of ‘the fair is cool and all but not as cool as you’ or something really dumb. How absolutely corny would that be? Luckily, Charlie had better game than that.
“You wanna go puke on the twirly arm ride thingy?” She asked as she leaned forward, wiggling her eyebrows playfully. Standing up and disposing of their garbage, Charlie held her hand out, nodding to the large purple ride in the distance. “Come on, I’ve heard it's extra unsafe this year. Ten bucks says some kid gets launched from it or something.”
Grabbing Lin’s hand, Charlie pulled him off the bench of the picnic table. Normally, she would have let go as soon as he was up. But blind dates weren’t their normal, no matter how natural it felt. So, instead of letting go, Charlie simply readjusted her hand’s position to firmly grasp onto Lin’s hand, her fingers lacing with his as she pulled him along behind her to the ride. Fuck it! That’s what dates were for, right? Might as well make the best of it.
✩══════════════════✩
After multiple rides and a few different carnival games, Charlie found herself tuckered out from the adrenaline and in desperate need of a chill down moment. Sure, she loved the thrill as much as the next person, but her poor aching head needed a break from all the twirls and all the loop-de-loops and all the drops. More than anything, she needed a moment to collect herself and her thoughts.
Things were beginning to feel out of her control, though perhaps not in a bad way. Charlie was having fun, genuinely having fun. For the first time since school started, her smiles were full and bright and shining with the light of life that had dulled within her. Her laughs bubbled from her chest, her jokes rolling off her tongue like a language she had studied for years. But, even despite the comfort of everything between her and Lin feeling so natural to her, Charlie was still struggling to get a grip on everything that was happening. One minute, she was forgetting they were technically on a date. The next, she was forgetting that the date had been blind and not set up by her or Lin. The next, she was forgetting that the two of them were not already dating and that technically, this was their first date. Ultimately, Charlie had given up on pretending to understand her racing thoughts and palpitating heart. If she was meant to understand it, she would. For that moment, she just needed to be and to enjoy herself. Charlie thought deserved that much.
“Hey, can you hold onto George for me? I’m gonna run to the bathroom while we’re by an actual building and not one of those nasty ass portapotties.” Charlie asked, handing George over to Lin. “I won’t be long. Meet you back out here in a few.”
Charlie dipped into the building through a set of large doors and further into the bathroom on her right. The place was, surprisingly, empty. After making sure she was genuinely alone, Charlie walked herself to the sink. Placing her phone on the counter beside her, screen facing up towards the ceiling, before bracing herself on the edge of the sink to peer into the polished mirror.
“Well, what a turn of events this was, huh?” Charlie giggled to herself, fixing up her hair as she collected her thoughts.
Taking the moment to breathe and simply relax was proving beneficial, her thoughts organizing themselves as she fixed herself up. Sufficiently fixed up, Charlie closed her eyes as she stood by the sink, focusing on her breathing. Everything was going to be okay. For the first time since the whole blind fair date thing got brought up, Charlie believed that.
It was going well. It was going to be okay…
BUZZ BUZZ.
Charlie’s eyes slowly fluttered open, looking down at her screen. Twitter. Of course it was. What a damn surprise that people couldn’t stay out of drama for two and a half minutes to actually enjoy the fair. Charlie’s face scrunched up. Would it be hypocritical to actually check her messages? Probably. Was she going to do it anyways? Definitely.
She should never have flicked that screen alive, never clicked into the Blue Bird of Death and Destruction. If she had played dumb, if she had just minded her own business for once, nothing would have happened. Charlie would have walked out to Lin, still full of smiles and confidence. Their date would have continued on like the world wasn’t burning around them. Ignorance would have been bliss.
Oh hush up. You don’t know anything.
The first blow, delivered by an intoxicated Nic. The words knocked the breath from Charlie’s chest, her thumbs hovering over the keyboard.
I told you you didn’t know anything, and you don’t. Not about what I’m going through right now.
Of course she didn’t. Charlie absolutely did not have a clue about what had set Nic off or why she was suddenly his public enemy number one. But her confusion did little to dull the ache in her chest.
Sorry that we're not doing things exactly how you envisioned.
Nic, Charlie understood. But Ash? Had she really fucked up that much? What had she done? Everything Charlie did was to make them happy, two people she valued more than herself. They deserved all the happiness in the world. Had she truly brought them agony?
But go ahead, keep putting words in my mouth. Whatever makes you feel better.
Whatever makes you feel better.
Whatever makes you feel better.
Whatever makes you feel better.
Whatever makes you feel better.
Charlie kept reading over that last sentence. ‘Whatever makes you feel better’. It was not phrased as a question, more a statement, yet Charlie still asked herself the question. What was going to make her feel better? Was anything going to make her feel better at that point? After she ruined everything, turning what was supposed to be a joyous occasion for everyone into a pit of fire fanned by her own hands? Charlie had lied to everyone. She promised happiness and comfort and light in a time that otherwise seemed stressful and dark. Yet she was the main vehicle for the discomfort, for the sadness. For the hatred. Charlie’s breath refused to enter her chest, tears flowing openly down her cheeks. They hated her. They all hated her. As they should. Who would want to be around someone that brought nothing but pain with them?
So, what would make her feel better?
Charlie thought back to that morning. To her bed and the sinking feeling of dread that ate away at the core of her stomach, leaving her abdomen hollow and her fingers cold. To the night before when she had cried into her pillow, the disgust in herself boiling over the edge of the pot that was her mind. To the weekend before when her control abandoned her in a fit of rage that was proving to become a defining factor of who she was as a person.
It hurt. Everything hurt.
Charlie’s fingers typed but her mind was elsewhere, a voice echoing around inside her head. The words that had dug deep gashes into her skin reverberating around inside of her hollow skull. They were right. They had to be right. First, people Charlie disliked told her. Now, some of her closest friends were confirming thoughts she had attempted to convince herself weren’t true. She was a bad person. She was a bad friend. She had no purpose but to hurt people around her.
Gasps for breath were met with a stabbing pain in Charlie’s chest as she braced herself on the wall for comfort. The edges of her vision were falling blurry in cohorts with the tears that flowed freely down her face. Her hands shook, her knees wobbling and threatening to give out. What if she fell? If she fell, she could leave. Maybe she’d hit her head, pass out, rest her excruciating thoughts that sat behind her and tormented her with each sharp hiss of reality.
Lin.
Oh fuck. She was still on her date.
Charlie had to collect herself. She had to get Lin away from her. She was blowing up, crumbling apart, shattering like a vase having been pushed from a table to the floor. No amount of delicate Kintsugi would repair her, to make her an ounce of desirable to any desperate individual. Lin had to go, he had to leave her alone, he had to enjoy his time. He deserved better. Though, Charlie didn’t have to be mid panic attack to know that. Lin deserved a world of opportunity she couldn’t give to him.
But no amount of pleading or begging could get Lin to budge. He seemed certain that he wasn’t going anywhere. Charlie couldn’t understand why. No amount of logic could allow her to understand why he wasn’t leaving. It wasn’t abandonment. Charlie was asking him to go, to just leave her to implode upon herself. But there he was, steadfast in his decision. Even through her blurred vision and the thumping pain inside her head, she knew that there was no changing his mind.
Fuck it. If he wasn’t leaving, Charlie couldn’t make him. The few minutes she had allotted herself to pick up her broken pieces was far from enough. Sure, she didn’t look horrible, but the expression that refused to leave her face and the sag in her shoulders spoke volumes over any amount of makeup she could apply. Why was she bothering? Was he not just going to leave anyways?
Charlie exited the building, keeping her eyes to the ground. Looking up as she was outside the doors, her heart crumbled as she saw Lin once again. Keeping herself together was fucking useless. He had just told her to let it happen, to just let herself feel. So, without much of another thought, Charlie practically ran up to Lin, throwing herself into his chest as her arms snaked around his waist, pulling him as close as she could to her.
Charlie couldn’t speak. Her voice felt as if it was going to shatter if she used it, a burn at the back of her throat spurring her silence. She had expected to start crying again. But no tears ever came. Charlie could feel her breath slowing, the pain of every comment receding. She felt safe.
“I…” Charlie eventually tried to manage, still nestled into Lin’s chest. “I ruined everything. Fuck it, I ruined everything.” The silence returned as Charlie slowly looked up at Lin, her chin resting on his chest as her face softened. “Well, almost everything. I hope I didn’t ruin this too. Us, I mean. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you today too. I’m so sorry giving you one of the shittiest first worst dates in the history of shitty first dates. I’ve really outdone myself this time.”
location
the fair
mood
'it isn't too late to give up, is it?'
outfit
autumn vibes
tags
lin
ditto
ash (twitter)
Winona
nic (twitter)
Kio.exe
coded by natasha.
LowkeyLovingLoki
heartbeat on the high line
code by valen t.
LowkeyLovingLoki
heartbeat on the high line
code by valen t.
Last edited:
LowkeyLovingLoki
heartbeat on the high line
code by valen t.
Last edited:
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