Realistic or Modern Westbrook: On The Road (The First Official Spinoff)

[Soap]

Maisie

She might've felt a little more than bad when Stu had agreed with her and knocked himself down a peg. He might've deserved the insult, but he had to stop with this emo stage. It was becoming way too much, and that's Maisie talking. Once she caught sight of the place there was a clear grimace on the brunette's face. Stu was right. It was sad here.It must've been difficult for most of these stores to stay in business while they were running in a place like this, but it was only a matter of time before they came to their sense and decided to shut the whole mall down. But instead of worrying about Chicago and their terrible shopping malls. More pressing matters were at hand.

Like... trying to remember what was on a shopping list.

Or... Colby's shoe size.

With a heavy sigh, Maisie followed Beck into the shoe store. Nike? Really? Couldn't they have gone to like... Payless or something? "Shouldn't we aim for a store that's a little more in our price range?" As in price range, she meant the cheapest shoes money can buy, the rest of the trip wasn't going to be exactly cheap if they were going to continue buying pairs of shoes and three different kinds of chips for the next few weeks.

She glanced over at Stu with an eyebrow raise that no doubt said, 'How did you forget the only thing we needed?' If that wasn't enough-- Maisie clarifed.

"How did you forget the only thing we needed?"

KingofAesir Dede






​

 

[Winona]

Ash

"What?"

Somehow, Ash hadn't even realized that she was still holding onto Colby. It was little bit -- no, not even a little bit, it was really embarrassing. "Oh, yeah." She said, perhaps a bit flustered as she let go of him, falling back into the water. At least this time she was mostly used to it -- mostly -- and it didn't elicit some kind of even more embarrassing squeak.

"I say," Ash started, as she pushed her way through towards more shallower water to stand beside Bella. "That Hunter and Noah deserve a second chance to make themselves not look like total losers." She smirked in Noah's loser direction as she spoke. "So they should play against Shawn and Bella." Surely Shawn could hold the small girl on his shoulders.

0k_mang0 Elf_Ruler geminiy mogy Twin Fantasy​

 

[Dede]

Stu

Who knew what shoes Colby wanted? He just said he wanted shoes, so why couldn't they just get him these ones? Maisie was making a big fuss out of nothing. The Nikes were expensive, so what? They weren't going to be paying for them anyway, Colby was!

Stu lingered by the flip-flops. Maybe they'll just get him a pair of those? They were bound to be cheap. 'Let's just grab whatever,' he said, crossing his arms. 'We don't have all day.'

He checked the time on his phone. There was still shopping to be done, and Stu wanted to get back on the road as quickly as possible. Something about being on the road kept his mind busy. Probably all the map reading he had to do. Now that he wasn't doing that, he just felt a bit idle and on edge.

Maisie was coming at him again with her stupid eyebrows, and you could clearly see why she and Aaron were once together. Well, maybe if he hadn't had to sleep on the floor because they picked up a stranger, he wouldn't be so exhausted and forgetful!

'Whatever,' Stu said, randomly clapping flip flops together before hanging them away. 'Nobody else cares anyway.'

Obviously they just sent them away so Ash and Colby could do adult things together on the beach. Obviously. You think Stu hadn't noticed they were fond of each other? Poor Colby. He had no idea what he was getting into.

'I'm gonna go look for the loo,' he said and left the girls browsing the shoes. Maybe when he came back God will have answered his prayers and they will both have miraculously disappeared.

KingofAesir Soap

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Winona mogy geminiy Elf_Ruler​

Colby was more observant than some people believe. He smiled amusingly at Ash’s slightly flustered reaction, finding it endearing. It wasn’t every day he saw her act like this.

Once the wet skin-to-skin contact was gone, he actually felt relieved. He didn’t want to start feeling very awkward if they held on any longer, even though he knew he could control himself. Besides, Ash wasn’t supposed to sleep with her friends, and he would make sure she wouldn’t do that anymore. Because that’s what best friends do.

“If Noah and Hunter win, then maybe they’ll only have to buy gas in the next stop once instead of three.” Because Colby was generous like that.

After swimming out of the water, he made a quick stop back inside the RV to grab his own large towel and returned to his friends with the towel wrapped around his torso like a cloak. He might’ve left some wet footprints and dripped trails on the RV floor, but they would dry up later, right?

“Maybe the loser should buy lunch or dinner later, too,” he added.

 

[KingofAesir]

Beck
Stu didn't really seem to invested in this shopping expedition. Beck couldn't blame him, she probably wouldn't be either had she not chosen to come along. Ah, well. Beck wasn't interested in him anyway. The British boy could have his fit. Beck had other things to worry about, things like Maisie. As Stu ran off to the bathroom, Beck moved toward a shelf with white tennis shoes. She grinned as she glanced at the sizes. She wasn't sure what size Colby was but she could assume he had pretty big feet. Beck bit at her tongue subconsciously as she decided what size to get. 12. Yeah. Beck plucked a box up off the shelf and turned back to Maisie, brandishing the box with a smile.

"These are good. Cheap." She gestured to the price tag. "And they can be painted." Beck smiled again and nodded her head down at the white converse on her own feet, not entirely white anymore, they were painted with a rainbow of colors in what seemed to be a multicolored sunset. Beck started toward the register and dug around in her pockets for a certain item. When they emerged she held a shiny blue debit card with her father's name blazed across the front. Beck wasn't stupid. She knew that the thing would probably get cancelled as soon as he noticed it was missing, but it would be a while before he did.

"My dad's. He never uses the thing so, might as well make use while I have it." Beck smiled at the young man at the register as she sat the box down in front of him. He blushed and ducked his head at the intensity.

"Is that all." He asked rather quietly. Beck was about to say yes when she noticed one of those shoe bomb things that make your shoes smell good hanging near his head. She reached up and grabbed it and the boy froze as her arm brushed past his shoulder. He couldn't be any older than 15. Easy, especially for a girl.

"Can you do me a favor, " Beck glanced at his name tag, "Anthony?" The boy fumbled over his words and ended up just nodding. "I'm afraid I don't have enough for this. Could you do a girl a solid?" She didn't have to elaborate any further. The boy, Anthony, swept entirely too long brown hair out of his eyes and pushed the shoe box back at her as well. Beck smiled and leaned over the counter to whisper in his ear, "Thank you." Beck turned back around with her newly acquired shoes and shoe bomb and took Maisie by the arm, leading her out of the store.

"C-come back again!" Anthony shouted and Beck chuckled, shaking her head as they left the store.

"They should be careful wo they hire. Teenage boys are easy pickings." Beck finally said once they were away from the store.

Soap​

 

[mogy]

Noah

​

Ash and Colby had been talking about a rematch, but this time with Bella and Shawn, which would have been good and all if Noah wasn't scared of losing against them. If Ash managed to push him into the water, Noah now knew that he didn't know what Bella was capable of and that he really shouldn't judge a person by their looks, but then again, Ash was there to be judged.

Noah had promised Bella that she can play against the losers, and he promised this thinking Colby and Ash would be the losers, but now his toxic masculinity was hurt by getting beat by a girl in a game, and he wasn't feeling like playing more of chicken (sarcasm). All jokes aside, the truth was that Noah's wallet couldn't handle him paying for dinner AND gas. If Hunter and he lost another round of chicken, he would literally be broke, and also, Noah was cold as fuck.

Standing in the cold wind, in the water from the bellybutton down, Noah's upper body parts have been freezing against the wind, no matter how much the sun shined. He felt like he felt in that gas station AC while covered in his own sweat from walking in the heat.

"Um, how about..... no?" He asked, gesturing with his hands. "Why don't you and Ash play another round with Bella and Shawn? You seem to be getting along smoothly." Noah grinned.

Interactions: Winona (Ash), 0k_mang0 (Colby), geminiy (Bella), Elf_Ruler (Hunter), Twin Fantasy (Shawn)​

 

[Elf_Ruler]

Hunter had been a little disappointed in the fact that Noah hadn’t wanted to play another round of chicken. But it was his choice so instead he shrugged a little before he climbed out of the water. It was definitely a good thing the weather was warm, and the sun was out because the water was so cold. It had taken his body a second to register just how cold the water had been. “The man said no. So, looks like I’m not redeeming my dignity right now.” He did seem to like these people and really it was the first time in a few days he hadn’t felt stressed and if nothing else he was grateful to that fact.

He let his body dry up in the sun and wondered what the next plan of action was. Attempt to convince Noah to another game? Or would they do something else? Of course, Maisie, Stu, and Beck were still off at the store, so he wondered if Shawn and Bella had wanted to play chicken and just play the winners. Figure out who truly reigned supreme. “Why not play the winners and see if they really are as good as they say. The lovebirds can’t reign supreme.” He already knew they were ‘friends’ but he questioned it and figured neither of them truly realized that they weren’t just friends.

Winona 0k_mang0 geminiy Twin Fantasy

 

[Winona]

Ash


They had been gone for only a couple weeks at this point. And yeah, Ash was smiling, she was easy-going, she was happy over the current course of the trip. But how much of that, she wondered, was just her trying to pretend? Of course things weren't... horrible, but they weren't great, either. Ian's messages the other day, apologizing, had just pulled her right back to Westbrook, right back to those dark thoughts and tainted memories. It all left her reeling and stuck in the past.

And right now, having Noah and Hunter tease her about there being something more between her and Colby didn't help her try to keep that positive attitude at all. Not that there was anything wrong with Colby -- he was fun, he made her smile, and he obviously cared about her. In a totally platonic, friendship only type of way.

It wasn't their fault. They didn't know what had happened over the last school year, or the things that were still eating at the back of her brain. Things that, no matter how hard she tried to ignore them, they demanded to be dealt with and answered. And every teasing remark just reminded her of Ryder, and how badly she was hiding.

Her smile fell away. Noah had at least been beating around the bush, but Hunter had come right out and called them lovebirds. Ash didn't think she was that touchy or clingy or flirty with Colby, but she also hadn't thought she was that way with... Well, any of her guy friends before. And she desperately didn't want that.

"I'm going to head back to the RV. See where the kids are at." The playful lilt that had accompanied her voice just moments before was gone, replaced by monotony as she turned and headed out of the water. Ash's arms were wrapped tightly around her stomach, damp blonde hair covering her face as she got out of the water, pausing briefly to try and find her towel before she remembered that it had sunk to the bottom of Lake Michigan to never be seen again.

She envied that towel right now.

0k_mang0 Elf_Ruler geminiy mogy Twin Fantasy​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Winona , Elf_Ruler mogy geminiy Twin Fantasy​

That lovebird comment may have dropped a few percentages of Colby’s respect for Hunter. He was a new guy who didn’t know anyone in the group very well, so you couldn’t completely blame him. But Colby didn’t think it was okay for him to assume his and Ash’s relationship—which was totally platonic.

After Ash walked away, Colby turned to the group, specifically at the two wannabe-comedians, narrowing his brows at them disappointedly. “Really, guys? Not cool,” he responded in an unamused tone. Before following after his blonde friend, he kicked some sand towards Noah’s direction. The guy had been kind of a dick with all of the teasing of them being a couple, and it was getting a little annoying. It was kind of Colby's fault for partially flirting with her a few days ago, even though it happened, like once since then. Ash had been through enough during the past year, and she did not need that right now.

Colby caught up with Ash along the way to the RV, while picking up his slippers and shirt off the ground. “Ash, wait.” He pulled the towel off his shoulders and held it out to his friend. “I probably should’ve given you my towel first,” he said. “You okay? If you want, I can probably try to get one of them to sleep on the roof tonight.”

He was kidding, of course. Then again, he would probably consider it in the near future.

 

[Soap]

Maisie

Beck using whatever feminine wiles she had, was cool. Maisie had to admit, getting things for free simply based on batting your eyelashes? Yes please. Yeahyeahyeah. Maisie was all for female empowerment, women’s rights, and the whole shebang on not to be objectified... but if you had it, you had it. Countries that have nuclear weapons have them incase they need it. Maybe not Maisie, but she was sure that every woman had their own weapon. You just needed to know how to use them. “I guess, yeah... aren’t you worried about using the credit card? Don’t those show where you made a purchase?” It was a legitimate question that needed to be asked.

The last thing they needed was someone trying to get one of them back home. Because if one was caught, well, what did that mean for the rest of them? After a bit of shopping, Beck and Maisie spilt up. Grabbing whatever necessities was needed. Maisie wandered into a department store which— was so run down she was in shock there was people still working here. Money was money so she couldn’t exactly blame them. Shoes, snacks, what else did they need? If someone hadn’t forgotten the list, all of this would’ve been easy instead of walking around aimlessly, looking for things they might need.

Maisie’s gaze fell onto a jewelry rack. All fake, of course. No way a place like this would ever care to purchase anything related to actual sliver at the least. But that’s okay, Maisie was never a girl who put materialistic things first. And the people who were, it baffled her that someone even had that state of mind. Her eyes widened as she noticed the familiar earrings.

Those were her earrings.

Okay, not hers exactly. But they were just like the pair she lost. The only thing she had left of... another person who decided to give up on her. That might repel someone not to want a momento of that. But for Maisie it was the exact opposite. A quick glance at the price tag and she almost considered putting it back. These earrings were never found anywhere. And Maisie means anywhere. After she lost her own, she scoured every store in hopes of finding them. Maisie wasn’t putting her materialistic needs above the group. Of course she wasn’t! She would never!

But that just meant she wasn’t going to spend their hard-to-get money on it.

Dede KingofAesir​

 

[Winona]

Ash


She hadn't wanted to disrupt the game, or ruin anyone's fun, but Ash also... didn't like being teased. Not when it came to things such as romance, or kissing, or relationships. Ash wasn't... she didn't... Colby was great, but not for her. She didn't entirely know what was going on with him and Tatum, but Ash was kind of positive that she wouldn't even have a chance with him if she wanted one -- which she most certainly did not. He was still just as wrapped up with Tatum as she was with Ryder.

Her fingers found the necklace that she had started wearing, her fingers twisting the medallion around in her fingers. It managed to calm her... kind of, but it also left her feeling torn up inside. And now she was cold, and sad, and Ash just wanted the RV to start moving again so she could hide in the bedroom until they reached LA.

Colby called her name, but Ash didn't stop walking. He was still able to catch up, and soon he was walking beside her, and talking, and offering her his towel. This was why their friends thought something was up. Colby was too nice.

"I was actually just going to use Noah's shirts as, you know, payback." Ash replied at the offer of the towel, but... then she reached out and took it, pulling it around her shoulders. "Uh... thanks."

A wisp of a smile crossed her lips. "Thanks, but it's fine. I'm fine. Really." She felt like she should say something more, anything, but right now it felt like her words were failing her.

0k_mang0​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Winona​

When she mentioned using Noah’s shirts as towels, Colby nodded casually like it’s a reasonable, normal occurrence. “I think his stuff is above mine in the left closet.”

Colby glanced at the necklace pendant she was slightly fidgeting with, and he raised his eyebrow doubtfully. He could see it in her eyes that she wasn’t completely fine. Her cold reaction to Hunter’s lovebird comment proved enough. Jeez, why did he have to care more than he should when Ash was dispirited? Well, someone has to.

“Well, that better not be a lie. ‘cuz, you know, best friends shouldn’t lie to each other,” he remarked, shaking bits of sand out of his tank top off to the side away from Ash. He’d have to get another clean shirt in the RV soon.

Colby looked back at Ash as he climbed up the steps to the inside of the RV. “Don’t let whatever crap Dumb and Dumber said get to you,” he said, his tone almost insistent. “They don’t understand anything. We both know we’re just friends, right? And that a dork like me can never have a chance with you. I’m pretty sure the little girl with the football is aware of it, too.” He hoped the lighthearted self-deprecation would do something to brighten her mood just even an ounce. Otherwise, he might have to find that little girl playing catch with her dad and tell her to throw the football at his head again.

“Maybe I should try acting like a despicable asshole towards you... But that would just end up being painful for me. And surprisingly a lot of work.”

 

[mogy]

Noah Stewart

​

Ash had stormed out of the water faster than light when Hunter had called her and Colby 'lovebirds'. It was obviously just a joke and Noah didn't see why she was so upset about it. He was even more confused and was starting to get a little bit mad when Colby ran after her, acting all disappointed and shit.

"See. That right there is why I don't deal with straight people. They don't know how to joke. No offense." Noah sighed. Of course, he wasn't discriminating against straight people, no. Noah just knew that if you teased two gay guys or girls about being in a relationship, they wouldn't storm off like a little princess who didn't get a doll she wanted for Christmas, but would be queens about it, shaking the joke off or continuing it.

Noah's mood was kind of officially ruined. He was simply making a joke and now Ash and Colby were mad because they needed to confront their feelings, if there even were any feelings between the two. Noah wasn't gonna judge them, he knew how it was when feelings developed between friends, and he knew it wasn't a fun experience if the feelings weren't reciprocated, but being mad at somebody for making a simple joke wasn't something they had a right to do.

One thing was for sure. If Ash or Colby were going to blame Noah or anybody else for their own problems, they were going to get a piece of Noah's mind and trust me when I say, it ain't gonna be pretty.

Interactions: Elf_Ruler (Hunter), geminiy (Bella)
Mentions: Winona (Ash), 0k_mang0 (Colby)​

 

[Winona]

Ash


She wanted a drink. Badly. More than she had in a really long time, and the fact that she couldn't just made her even more annoyed. With one hand still playing with her necklace, the other hand wrapped around her stomach. The towel still laid around her shoulders and for a moment, Ash just stood there, her teeth digging into her bottom lip.

Most of his words fell on deaf ears. Ash knew that he was trying to cheer her up, and make her feel like this situation was alright, but for her it wasn't. She had left Westbrook to escape all of... this, and instead she was right back in the middle of it. But now she didn't have any of her friends there to support her -- not that Ash would want to bother them, again, with her issues. The past school year had left her feeling more alone than any other year. And not necessarily because she didn't have people there to support her, but because she hadn't had the courage, or the strength, to go to any of them with her issues.

The only person who had known everything had been Ryder.

"But that's the issue." Ash started speaking, her thoughts a whirlwind of emotion. All she wanted right now was to go back in time, back to Westbrook, and back to... to some day where everything felt right. "There's no... you had a crush on me in middle school, and I kinda liked the whole dorky thing back then. And if the last year has taught me anything, it's that feelings really don't die. And I don't know what's going on with you and Tatum, but I'm guessing you aren't together."

Ash was rambling. Ash was panicking. She didn't know how to stop, and she knew that the feelings and the what ifs in her head were stupid and she was overreacting in a million different ways, but... Ash couldn't handle this again. She couldn't handle falling for someone, not right now, not after everything that had happened.

"I don't want to hurt you, or risk losing you as a friend. And I guess the more they tease, the more I worry that it might happen." Ash wasn't sure what she was saying anymore. "Just... promise me that you won't... you know... get feelings for me."

0k_mang0​

 

[Dede]

Stu

​

Stu refilled his canteen at the water fountain, then iconically slumped on a bench between a statue of Ronald McDonald and a KitKat vending machine. If anyone had come across him then, they might have captured the perfect million-dollar photo of him – as it happens nobody did, and the once-in-a-lifetime occasion went unmarked. The mall was so dead it was a miracle that some of the shops were still in business. What a pity.

Eventually Stu made that long trek back to the shoe shop, but Maisie and Beck were no longer there. So he dragged himself into the department store adjacent – it seemed like a logical place to find the girls. Instead he managed to find himself hopelessly lost in the mall’s neck tie section. There were neck ties in all colours and lengths. Neck ties from the richest red to the blandest blue, the stubbiest short to the leanest long. So… so this was what heaven looked like.

Judging by the excitement of the sales assistant, he must have been her very first customer of the day, quite possibly also her last. Apparently lonely on her job, the old woman made it her mission to stalk the teenager from one aisle to the next, until such opportunity arose as she was able to approach him with compliments: ‘Oh, this is perfect. I think this tie would look great on you!’

‘I. . . I’m not looking for a tie,’ the boy replied.

‘Won’t you try it anyway? Go on—’ she said, holding up another tie. ‘How about this one? It's got an elephant on it.’

‘Huh?‘

‘It's from India, my dear. 100% silk.‘

‘N. . . no thanks,’ he said.

It turns out he was too polite to break an old lady’s heart, so he spent the next fifteen minutes swapping ties, and buying one for absolutely no reason at all. She even coaxed him into buying a colourful bowtie too. ‘I’ve got a friend who always wears these,’ he told her. ‘And his birthday’s coming up, so.’

‘Your friend must be quite the gentleman.’

‘Oh. . . I suppose he is,’ he said with a chuckle. ‘Quite.’

So much for spending thriftly. If he ran out of his own money before they got to LA, he might just have to swallow his pride and ask Ash for her charity. I mean, there was no way she’d just let him starve, right?

… Right?

Stu said good bye to the old lady, who went back to being all lonely and dejected beside the cash register. As he roamed a while longer, it didn’t take him long to spot Maisie. That girl had a way of sticking out like a sore thumb. But he did more than just spot her – he arrived just in time to see Maisie picking some expensive-looking earrings off the display and sticking them into her pocket!Was she. . . was she stealing them? GASP!!! Maisie, a filthy SHOPLIFTER?!!

‘W—what are you doing?!’ he stepped up, a sharp hiss. ‘Maisie, put them back!’

Soap KingofAesir

 

[KingofAesir]

Beck
After she and Maisie had split up, Beck found herself wondering around a bookstore for almost the whole time they were separated. This was a weird bookstore for a mal. It wasn't the chain kind, not a Barnes and Noble or a Books-A-Million. A simple, quiet, small place tucked away in the corner. When she spotted it Beck had been confused as to why a place like this was inside a mall. She doubted most small business owners were able to afford an outlet in a Mall as large as this one. The inside was packed full of shelves and various odd decorations. There wasn't a spot in the place that looked uncared for. It was cozy. Beck had shuffled quietly inside and disappeared into the tightly packed shelves. Her hand ran over the spines and she looked at them curiously. One might expect the shiny covers of new books in a mall bookstore but these were old, warn with time, they looked used. Beck plucked a random one off the shelf and smiled at the rather flamboyantly painted cover with the title, Art and it's Uses. The cover might have been even more vibrant at one point in it's life but it seemed to have faded with time. It was peculiar to find a place like this anywhere, not just in a mall. After a brief moment of deliberation, Beck tucked the book under her arm and continued her journey through the shelves.

There was a man at the very end of one shelf as she turned the corner, tucked rather dainty like on a small, cushioned seat. A book lay open on his lap but he didn't seem to be paging much attention to it. The man appeared to be asleep with his eyes shut behind reading glasses that were slowly slipping down his long, slender nose. Dark, bushy eyebrows with soft flecks of graying age we're drawn together in a concerned look. His hair was almost as scraggly as his eyebrows, unkempt and long enough that it was pulled into a pony tail at the nape of his neck. The dark beard on his face looked like the most looked after thing, cut neatly and showing no signs of graying. He reminded her of the illustrations of Civil War soldiers she'd seen, with their long hair pulled away so low at their necks. He dressed like he might actually be a Civil War soldier too. Beck laughed at her own internal joke. But, anyway, he looked to be asleep and Beck didn't want to bother him so she turned to go back to the front of the store in search of the owner.

"You're quiet." The older man spoke up, causing Beck to turn around startled, "I almost didn't hear you walking around." His eyes were open now, an almost unnaturally green color. Beck simply smiled at him.

"I've been told that before." She chuckled. And she had. Her mother had always told her that she was blessed with soft feet, she made almost no sound as she walked.

"You want that book?" He questioned, pointing to the book tucked under Beck's arm as he unfolded himself from his seat. He was startlingly tall, almost a whole three heads above Beck. He couldn't have been less than forty but his physique made him look a whole lot younger.

"Yes, I was just about to go buy it." Beck informed him as he approached her, "Are you the owner?" The large man placed a hand on Beck's shoulder as he guided her toward the front of the store.

"No. My mother is but she is old and can't come as often anymore, my name is Nikolai." Beck had only just now noticed the light Russian accent. What an odd place. Operated by a burly Russian man no less. Beck was very curious but wasn't going to ask this man for his life story and simply bought the book and went on her way. That was weird.

On her way out she spotted a familiar head of brown hair headed into a store and she followed after him, only just catching the end of his words to Maise. Something about putting a thing back. Oh dear, was she trying to steal something? Beck couldn't help her amused grin.

"Now, now, no need to persecute her, Stu." Beck chuckled, "What is it?" She turned to Maisie, pointing to her pocket.

Soap Dede​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Winona​

Colby sighed when she brought it up. It’s true, he did have a crush on her when they were kids. But it happened a long time ago; he moved away 6 years ago, and a lot happened during those years. He hardly thought about his old feelings for Ash after he’d fallen for someone else in California and then, after returning to Westbrook last year, he met Tatum.

Of course, a lot can also happen in one year, and not everything lasts forever.

“You’re right, we’re not together anymore… and it actually kinda sucks,” he admitted, clenching his jaw at the thought of it for a moment. He hated dwelling on stuff like this. It tends to make his day go unproductive. He was supposed to be the guy that tries to enjoy the present with little to zero regret.

So, why was there a hollow ball that felt paradoxically heavy in his chest whenever he thought of Tatum now?

“But hey, you’re not gonna lose me as a friend. I’m too nice to let that happen,” he said, offering her a reassuring smile and gentle arm squeeze after stepping closer. “The only feelings I have for you are platonic, nothing more. I just want you to be happy and enjoy life. It’s summer vacation, and Ash freakin’ West deserves a break from freakin’ Westbrook.” Yes, he was determined to make sure his best friend had a great first road trip experience. The putz in their group teasing their relationship can suck it.

He would hug her, but... he was still shirtless. He knew Ash would feel awkward about it. So, another arm squeeze had to do.

“I’m gonna put on a T-shirt, get my phone and wallet, and find some food for lunch. I also saw a coffee stand nearby selling hot chocolate, so I’ll try to get that for you on the way back. Because I'm your goddamn friend. Deal with it.”

After patting Ash’s back on the way out, Colby walked about five minutes towards the area with some food trucks parked there. He went up to one truck, ordered a couple of shawarma sandwiches, falafel bites, and hummus—but before he could pay, Colby realized he’d picked up the wrong wallet. Yes, he carried two wallets on the trip, and the one he had right now had cash that wasn’t enough to pay for the food instead of his card. Shit, this was embarrassing. If he went back to the RV with his debit card now, he'd have to go the back of the ridiculously long line and the food truck would most likely run out of falafel when it's his turn.

Yes, Colby really wanted to eat falafels.

 

[geminiy]

Isabelle Dupont

Bella had stopped her relentless water attack on Shawn to listen to the conversation that quickly escalated to an argument that led to Ash leaving the group stranded in the oddly cold waters of Lake Michigan. The situation was tense enough was tense enough without Noah's comment about straight people. For some reason, the comment struck a nerve. Perhaps it had been the light in Ash's eyes dimming at the teasing or the falling of the smile from her face.

"Hey, cut it out Noah! She's clearly upset, the last thing she deserves is to be talked about behind her back." Bella snapped, sending a glare over to Noah and Hunter. Bella pondered what to do for a moment, finally deciding on going to see if Ash was okay. "I'm going to see if Ash is okay. Think of a way to apologize." She said to the boys before pushing her way to the shore.

The cold air hit Bella's bare legs, causing her to shiver. Even in the summer, the air seemed to have a nip to it that made Bella want to cover up. After drying herself off, Bella pulled back on her shawl and made her way over to the RV with the towel slung over her shoulder. Thankfully, Colby was leaving as Bella showed up. She didn't really know what was going on between the two, if either one of them had feelings for the other or if it was as platonic as they were saying, but the last thing she had wanted to do was barge in on them breaking up or making out or something along those lines. Bella offered a soft smile to Colby as he passed. It didn't matter what was happening with him and Ash and it wasn't her place to know. The only thing that was important was that Ash was upset and Bella wanted to be there for her.

Bella stepped inside the RV, using her foot to stop the door from slamming shut behind her. "Hey," Bella said quietly, walking over to where Ash was and sitting down in front of her. "You seemed pretty upset out there, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Noah and Hunter were being dicks, you didn't deserve that."

Slowly, Bella reached her hand out and took Ash's in hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Look, I know that we aren't the closest people out of everyone on this trip but I just want you to know that I'm here for you, okay? You are genuinely one of the nicest people I've ever met. You're so quick to help people with things, always putting your happiness second to that of others. Hell, you even offered Jackie a place to stay after the whole Wolves ordeal and you barely knew her. I can never repay you or thank you enough for that. I know you've been through hell and back but that's why I look up to you. You're... Inspiring. So if you ever need me, whether you need to talk or laugh or cry, I promise I'm here for you. Us girls have to stick together."

| Noah mogy | Hunter Elf_Ruler | Colby 0k_mang0 | Ash Winona |​

 

[Elf_Ruler]

As soon as both Colby and Ash had disappeared Hunter immediately felt bad, he hadn’t meant to upset Ash, he was just joking and really, he didn’t know their history, but he had hit a sore spot and that made him feel bad. He only felt worse when Bella had yelled at him, he really had fucked up and everyone around him was upset with both him and Noah. Difference between him and Noah was that Noah hadn’t seemed to feel bad. Hunter had turned to Noah, “People have feelings, whether you agree with them or not. I hurt Ash, and I feel bad. You’re friends with her. You should think about apologizing too. But that’s up to you.” Hunter got out of the water and followed not far behind Bella. He did a soft knock on the door before peaking in.

He was shy when he stepped in and his hand rubbed the back of his head, “I’m sorry, Ash. I was a jerk. I didn’t mean to upset you. I was trying to have some fun and I crossed a line. I really didn’t know I would hurt you this bad. I know we aren’t friends but I’m sorry. Next stop I’ll get you some sort of treat, whatever you want. Food, jewelry, you name it. Just nothing too expensive.” He smiled. He really did want to make it up to the blonde. He didn’t want her upset because of his stupidity. He wasn’t perfect but he wasn’t going to be known as an ass. He had been raised better than that and Ash deserved to know that he felt bad. He also didn’t want the rest of the group to hate him because of some stupid act so he was going to right his wrong the best he could. He could only hope that Ash would accept his apology but that was her choice to make and not his. Whatever she decided he would respect.

mogy geminiy Winona Twin Fantasy

 

[PenguinFox]

Boots tapped down the street to the beat of So What by P!nk being blasted through headphones. Sneers flashed at anyone who dared look at the girl confidently strutting down the sidewalk as if it were a catwalk. Black skinny jeans torn at the knees and a black leather jacket completed the ensemble of the girl who just couldn't be bothered to give a fuck about the world. A catcall was thrown her way and was met with a ringed middle finger. Her other hand gripped the pocket knife in her jacket pocket. It was a dangerous world, the only way to survive was to be more dangerous. Vicious, cutthroat, and ruthless were nicknames she often heard, and that suited her just fine.

It was around lunchtime and the girl was looking score a free lunch. Best place to do that was where the food trucks collected. She hung back and scanned the crowd looking for her target. Someone that could easily be played by feminine wiles. Just as the line 'And you're a tool' played in the song her eyes landed on a face that she recognized, but only barely. Wasn't that the guy she was flirting with on twitter? Perfect, he could definitely be played for some food. She waited for him to get to the front of the line and place his order before sidling up next to him. "Hey big brother! You order my food too?" her eyes flicked to the guy in the truck. "Hey Marco!" she flashed him a grin. "This is my brother Damian. He's paying for me this time. You know my usual." Her tone was sweet as honey. The guy, Marco, raised an eyebrow at her. "This anything like the last four boyfriends you had?" Clearly this girl was a 'regular'. "Marco! You wound me! How could you not believe this is my flesh and blood? Can't you see the resemblance?" she slung her arm over her twitter flirt's shoulder. Marco saw that the boy was pulling out a wallet so he shrugged and went about making the order.

The street punk girl released her 'brother' from her grip the second Marco turned away. "Thanks for lunch stud..." her smile faltered as she looked down and noticed his wallet seemed disappointingly empty. Of course. Of all the dumb luck. The one person she tries to scam for food doesn't have money for it. What kind of tourist doesn't have fucking money? "Oh for chrissake..." she groaned and pulled out her own wallet. "You'd think a babe like me could get a free lunch around here..." she muttered half to herself, but definitely loud enough for 'Damian' to hear. Rolling her eyes she put money up on the counter for the food before turning on her target with a cold gaze. She leaned against the truck casually and scanned him up and down. "You're better looking in person Damian. Is that actually your name? You look like you could be a Damian." she folded her arms over her chest and smirked. "Who you buying for...or more accurately, who am I buying for?" 0k_mang0

 

[Winona]

Ash


Colby's words reassured her... a little. At the very least, the promise of hot chocolate managed to force a smile to her face as she watched her friend walk away. Once he was gone, Ash headed into the single bedroom that the girls had managed to claim as their domain. She dried her hair off with the towel, and then tossed it onto the ground before squeezing past the bed to get to her duffel bag. Ash pulled it out of its corner and started rummaging through it for a shirt.

She paused, her fingers brushing against the paper envelope that she kept hidden in the bottom of her bag. For the whole trip, Ash hadn't opened it -- just... left it there. A reminder. She found herself chewing on her bottom lip for a moment, lost in her thoughts while her other hand played with her necklace. And then Bella was coming in, and Ash was quick to pull her hand away from the envelope, and go back to looking like she was just trying to find a shirt to wear.

"Oh, hey," Ash greeted the other girl as she walked over, taking a seat on the bed... and then Bella started talking and for a moment Ash's smile managed to die. She hadn't wanted anyone to worry. Really! Ash had just... she needed a moment to breathe, away from the teasing and the pressure and the constantly being surrounded by these people. Not that she didn't like them, but... the trip had happened so quickly. Ash was trying to be happy, and to smile, but she hadn't had any time to get over everything that had happened.

"Oh, please, I'm fine." She said with a little scoff, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear before she reached back into the duffel bag, finally pulling out a light blue t-shirt. Ash stood up, pulling the shirt on over her head and kicking her bag back into its corner before sitting down on the bed next to Bella. And then the girl kept talking, and took one of Ash's hands in hers, and it was... well, wow, no one had ever been so blatantly nice to her. Especially not someone that she didn't know super well. Ash was struck silent.

No one had ever called her... inspiring. Hell, people didn't even really respect her. For the last couple years of high school, Ash had just been a joke -- the slut jokes are what stuck, not the sweet things like what Bella was saying to her now. "I... you really shouldn't be inspired by me." Ash admitted with a little, half-hearted laugh.

At least she was saved from this awkward conversation by Hunter stepping in, and also apologizing. What in the hell was going on today? Ash hadn't... oh this was just a mess, and the embarrassment of this whole thing just caused her cheeks to burn light red. "Please... don't apologize. It's fine. Really. You don't owe me anything. Just... feeling a little homesick."

Ash let go of Bella's hand, her fingers finding the pendant on her necklace once again.

Elf_Ruler geminiy​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

PenguinFox​

To be clear, his wallet was empty. It was just somewhat scarce of efficient funds to pay for the entire order. To prove that, Colby added a little of his own cash on the truck counter, casually and innocently smiling at Marco after being introduced as “Damian”. That was random. He still had enough to buy hot chocolate later, at least.

“Partially buying,” Colby corrected her. “For me and my friends.” Stepping to the side away from the food truck window, he turned towards his “sister” and noticed her checking him out. She wasn't exactly being inconspicuous about it either. He arched his eyebrow curiously at her.

“You know, sisters don’t usually call their own brothers a ‘stud’,” he said. “People might get the wrong idea if they hear that.” With arm one hugging around his chest, he started lightly twisting his father’s silver ring that hung through the leather cord around his neck.

“Some people call me Colby... wait, are you that motel-combat boots girl on Twitter?”

 

[Twin Fantasy]

Shawn Orozco

Ugh... straight people. Now Shawn was standing there alone with Noah looking like a fucking moron. He hadn't even said anything. He rolled his eyes. There goes Ash, making up new problems despite already having old ones. Noah's statement about straightfolk was definitely true. Shawn probably joked about banging a new stranger every day, and implying two homos have screwed will usually get you a laugh and, maybe, a punch on the shoulder.

"Christ on a bike." He mumbled a bit. "Straight people, am I right?"

Luckily, all the other presumably straight people were gone. Then again, Shawn considered, everyone did already assume Ash was fucking anyone she'd ever been friends with. Then Shawn started to feel like shit, but decided not to backpedal on his previous statement. Everyone else had already ditched Noah, and Shawn didn't need the guy being pissy to everybody for the whole bus ride. And he wouldn't go back on saying that it's still an absolutely minuscule joke to get that shitted over, reputation aside. Maybe he was being too callous, or maybe everyone else was being too soft. Something was too much of something in this situation, for sure, and Shawn didn't want to think too hard about it. As if the day wasn't already ruined for everybody.

"When do you think we're allowed to go back in the car?"

// mogy //​

 

[Soap]

Maisie

And, of course. Stu just had to appear right at this time. Look, Maisie didn't hate him. But she couldn't stand his whole holier than thou attitude that would be quickly thrown out whenever he felt like he needed a whole drama queen act-- which, to be fair he wasn't like that with Maisie up until now, but she watched and observed. It was clear him and Ash had some weird sibling thing, and maybe that's all it was. But Maisie and Stu weren't exactly friends, she didn't need to listen to him just because he said so. "Get off my back, go continue shopping." And shut up. She didn't want to get caught, but the more Stu decided to talk about it, the more attention they'd get.

She wasn't new to the whole shoplifting thing, okay? Yeah, before it had been more... necessary things. But this was as necessary as anything else was at this point. They were horribly overpriced! She wasn't going to spend thirty dollars on these earrings, especially when that money could go towards other things. Like, food, or gas. She wasn't selfish but she had her moments. And for Maisie? A pair of earrings isn't going to end up in cuffs. Beck's laid back attitude was something the brunette actually enjoyed about her. She wasn't all interested in interrogating her and was genuinely curious. "Earrings." No, she wasn't about to get into the whole story about these cheapy trashy things. "Now, if you both will excuse me, you're drawing unneeded attention." Maisie handed the bags to Stu, practically shoved but who's really paying attention to all that and walked out of the store.

--

See! That was simple enough. Mission accomplished and kitties accounted for. Maisie was more than happy she'd be able to shove it in Stu's face. Besides, this place probably got stolen from all the time. Just look at it! If you'd spare a glance to all the suspicious people too, you could tell they were the type to take a little something too-- She wasn't overly stupid. She knew it was wrong, but there was so many things wrong with the world.

What was the big deal if she enjoyed herself for a little bit? If she tried to make herself happy.

Maisie felt a tap on her shoulder and she turned around to see-- a security guard.

"Ma'am. Would you come with me, please?"​

Shit.

KingofAesir Dede​

 

[Dede]

Stu

​

It wasn’t like Stu could just not freak out. Every bone in his body was telling him what Maisie was doing was wrong. She was going to end up getting not just herself, but the whole group in trouble! Heck, he would have slapped those earrings right out of her hands if he could, or if he wasn’t a 100% sure she’d punch him back right in the nose! Lest we forget… he’d already been punched by a girl once this year, and he was in no rush to become that one loser who got punched TWICE by girls! If he was going to go down in the Guinness Book, it would be for something a little less embarrassing, like eating the most KitKats in one go, and so on and so forth… Plus, Stu could swear his nose was still slightly bent from Ash’s swing. Earlier last year he’d also lost a tooth to Maisie’s love interest, Aaron. All things considered, he would rather like to keep whatever remained of his beautiful face and beautiful smile, thanks very much.

Whatever. Maisie could steal those earrings if she wanted to. Stu would have no part of it. He was going to get as far away as humanly possible from Beck, too. He never liked her from the start, less so now that she was butting in and grinning at them like it was nothing. Persecuted? The only one who was going to be persecuted was Maisie – when the police showed up! Bah. Humbug. Why did everyone and everything have to be so dumb? *Insert even more angst here.*

After doing his supply run to the best of his memory, he went to the cashier and PAID FOR HIS THINGS, like you were supposed to, unlike a certain somebody. Well, Stu ended up watching that certain somebody get STOPPED by a security guard! She couldn’t say Stu didn’t warn her!

As the drama unfolded, he wasn’t sure whether to laugh at her or pity her from the distance, in the end he did neither, because, well, he didn’t want the guard to come after him too! Ending up in a police station was not how he was planning to spend his time in Chicago.

He marched back alone to the rest of the group. He didn’t go to Ash, for obvious reasons. He went instead to Colby, not bringing back his much-awaited shoes but rather some bad news from the front line. Colby actually had his shirt on for a change, much to his surprise.

‘Hey, Colby—’

Stu completely ignored the person Colby was with. Strangers weren’t worth his time anymore. But also, did Ash know Colby was cheating on her?

‘So um. . . we’ve got a little problem,’ he said, scratching his ear. His eyes wandered a little as he spoke. That falafel sure looked nice.

Soap KingofAesir 0k_mang0 PenguinFox