Westbrook Season 2

[Winona]

Mason

He was ready to defend himself, but not argue. Or fight, or... anything of the nature with whoever this chick was that was waving his Twitter profile around in his face like that. For the most part, he could've ignored it, brushed it aside. The shitty fucking things that she was saying, and move on with his life, because he was used to this by now. There wasn't a day that went by where he didn't have some bitch yelling at him about something he'd said, and he was so tired.

But she knew about his fucking kid, and that freaked him the fuck out.

It wasn't like it was a secret that Mason had Ari. Well, it had been until fucking June had leaked it, and then Mason had been on a series of failed relationships and one night stands because that's all girls wanted. All the fun, but no commitment with a guy with a three-year-old -- now four-year-old, which just made him even more pissed off. Fuck. Mason kept any mention of her off of social media, or in his DMs, so this all felt super fucking stalkerish to him.

He didn't like her.

And he was prepared to give her a piece of his mind, or at least defend himself, but then the fucking blonde bitch was asking them to save this until Monday, and fucking hell. He pressed his tongue against his teeth, fighting the urge to try and go off on the other fucking girl because the blonde had asked not to, and for some fucked up reason, Mason didn't want to piss her off. Fucking hell. Fuck. God. He was so tired of arguing and trying to defend himself, anyway.

His gaze stayed on the dark-haired girl for a moment. "Ari." He corrected her. "That's my daughter's name. Ari, and she's four years old. Definitely not a baby. And I don't... I don't have her anymore, so maybe don't start shit when you don't know the whole story." And that was it. That was all he was going to say, so he turned his dark amber gaze to the blonde.

"Sorry," Mason said, with a faint, half-hearted smile as he held a hand out to her. "Mason Rivera. I guess now you know everything about me because some people like to stalk guys they've never met." He said, casting a dark glare at the dark-haired bitch before looking back at the blonde. She was... pleasant, at the very least. "I promise I'm not always a total dick."

Fuck. He couldn't do this. The mention of Ari had gutted him, knocked the wind out of his lungs.

BELIAL.​

 

[Winona]

Ash


Why.

Tatum was yelling, and Raven was yelling, and her wrist was hurting but she knew it wasn't really hurt but it felt like it hurt. And everyone was looking, and staring, and whispering, and Ash's breathing was becoming more labored as the seconds ticked past. What was only minutes felt like a lifetime, and then Raven was bridging the distance between herself and Tatum, and then her fist was crashing into Tatum's face and Ash let out a small squeak, and then her eyes squeezed shut.

No, no, no.

She couldn't breathe, and although the punch hadn't been directed at her, Ash had still flinched. This was her fault, wasn't it? If she... if she had stopped and talked to Tatum, or if she could just be strong and stand up for herself, then none of this would've happened. Raven wouldn't have punched Tatum. Tatum wouldn't have yelled. People wouldn't have been staring.

That's how it always was, though, wasn't it?

No matter where she went, it felt like destruction followed her.

Ash couldn't be here. She couldn't breathe.

So she turned and pushed her way through the crowd and just started walking. Ash didn't know where she was going, but she did't plan on stopping any time soon. Not until the air returned to her lungs, or she got control of the tears threatening to spill over. Not until Ash could keep trying to fake that everything was alright.

Elf_Ruler Soap​

 

[Soap]

Maisie

Maisie practically ran towards the sweets. She wasn't sure what she wanted exactly, but candy always made everything better. Comfort food to everyone else was like... french fries and many other things among that. But anything overloaded with sugar was Maisie's go to for comfort, or... just to treat herself. "Okayokayokay. Candy apples." She placed her money down onto the counter, getting a delicious apple. Just normal of course, the candy apples that had like... everything on there was too much going on in the little thing to enjoy it.

Sweet red syrup was good enough and Maisie would be damned if she wasn't going to enjoy it. Taking a seat besides Gia as she took a bite out of her treat and shrugged at her question. "Um... not really no. I mean, if you see good in him that's good. There's nothing wrong with it." But... something nagged at Maisie and she knew she was gonna feel bad if something bad happened between the two, she sighed and turned to face her.

"Just... be cautious? I mean, that's what I would do. Do what you want... but don't turn a blind eye to what everyone else says either. I don't know him, but I'm sure he's sweet. Sometimes it's just nice to be careful." Naturally, Maisie had to be 'careful' around a lot of people in her life. Maybe that's why it took her a little longer to warm up to people than usual? Whatever her case was, her and Gia were becoming close. It was nice to have someone to talk to, even if Maisie didn't really feel like opening up to anyone, it was nice to talk about everyone else's problems instead of her own.

Elf_Ruler
​

Greyson

Greyson glanced up at the sky and blinked a few times from a raindrop dropping into his eye. Whoops. It's totally fine no one noticed anyway. "Yeah, a waste." He said, not paying much attention to the girl once he heard his own name on court-- well, his last name and his heart kinda squeezed a little. Again, he didn't really know his sister well. But it was still sad. Why would they vote for her if it meant she wasn't going to be there?

He shook it off. He didn't want to think about the bad stuff. It'll be fine.

"I'm Greyson." He grinned and took shook her hand, giving the clipboard to another one of the other guys "Here Luke, can you take over?" The other boy took it with a nod, clearing distracted and staring at some cheerleader. Grey shook his head and motioned for Jackie to follow him. He knows that she said no, but he did make a promise-- well, sort of promise, look when the guy says something he follows through with it. "We can get under this little shade thingy so we can have delicious clouds." He grabbed a green one for himself and a blue one for Jackie, handing the five to the cashier and leaned against the small truck.

"You don't have to eat it if you don't want it, sorry. I just thought like... I don't know. Anyway, I'm excited for you to be on the team." Sure, she had to tryout. But he's sure it'll go great. If she gets onto the team they'll have enough to qualify for the competitions later next month.

geminiy

​

 

[BELIAL.]

Norah Walsh
location: moving away from Roasted Almonds Booth mention: dendygar Winona ​

Norah bit the inside of her cheek, unsure what to think of. She'd half expected the guy, Mason, to start shouting at Sha'nay, or to throw some dirt at her face. Something classy, maybe. It seemed he was able to speak, or at least form emotional tactful sentences. He seemed to restrain himself, Norah recognized it because River did the same thing. A lot. What was it with high school guys and their flaring testosterone?

She respected that he had listened to her and kept it civil, and more so when he made eye contact. It wasn't like she expected anything less, but being respected felt good to Norah. Being recognized. Acknowledged. He stuck out a hand, apologizing. Her head swiveled for a second to look at Sha'nay, a bit unsure of what to expect next. Was his hand smeared in dirt? Blood? Shit? Why did she trust literally no one?

Juggling her phone in the hand with the cotton candy, she freed the left hand and gingerly took his handshake. She kept her lips pursed, back straight. Eyes narrowed. Norah never let her guard down; even in the face of uncertainty. Perhaps more so then, when everyone was on high alert.

"I promise I'm not always a total dick," he said, and she let out a small snort of laughter.

"Hey, I'm just surprised that something normal came out of your mouth after that jarring entrance. They teach you guys manners at Westbrook?" She teased, but she wasn't sure if it would land. No matter. She pulled her hand back after the moment, slipping it into her pocket. She looked around at the two, gazing at the sky and the oncoming rain. She stared to move, maybe to just shift the party from a stationary position where the rain could fall on them harder by the minute. Hopefully they'd continue to keep it civil while she was there. Some kind of shining beacon of anti-conflict. For now, that is.

"So, I get that this is a festival thing... for like, school. Is this an every year thing? I'm sure it's not often that you get a bus full of transfers," she gave a knowing glance to Sha'nay, a smile. Another flip of her hair. "If we had carnivals, it was a birthday thing. Never my cup of tea, I preferred going to the observatory for mine."

She looked back at Mason. Her turn for a jarring entrance. Edging a bit closer to him, she raked in the details. Messy hair, creased clothes. She sought all the details, more for her guard than any sort of latent curiosity. She'd already sized up Sha'nay on the first moment. Again, for now at least.

"So do people like... stalk you often? Is your life, like, legitimately that interesting?" She said it with a straight face, but someone could laugh. She didn't mean it be mean either, just getting to the point. The only time that Norah would beat around the bush, or avoid a subject, was when it was about her, and emotional. Or embarrassing. Again, only if involving her.

 

[DrabberRogue]

Jace Rose

When he first arrived at the festival, Jace hadn't intended to pay much mind to Ash and Raven's kissing booth. Honest! He wasn't that desperate to kiss Ash, or Raven for that matter. Even if he was entirely confident that it would be a wonderful experience. Even if he still really wanted to kiss Ash. Despite all of the bullshit that surrounded her, the little blonde still managed to make his heart skip a beat from time to time. Often enough that he just couldn't help himself on Twitter.

One thing led to another, then that thing led to another, then that thing lead to a legitimately interesting conversation about snakes. He might have to find that lizard girl some time, she seemed fun. After that another thing started up following the announcement of the homecoming royalty, then that thing lead to an amusing interaction with Princess JJ, then that thing looped right back around to Ash. An Ash that was trying her hardest to be decidedly less fun. Jace had no intent to back down just because of a little negativity though, regardless of how much he hated it when she talked down about herself. By that point his mind was set. He had money, Ashton seemed to be in need of a little reinforcement to her self-esteem, and he might as well take the opportunity to get his first kiss out of it. Also puppies.

Unfortunately reality was very different from Twitter. Ash and Tatum had both come off the stage in a bad mood, and something decidedly unfun looked to be happening a few feet away from where Raven was wrangling in her eager customers. Remembering the unexpected burst of hostility that came off the cheer captain during his escapades on Twitter, Jace decided to keep his distance, watching the exchange with a curious look in his icy blue eyes.

What in the world was Tatum's problem? He still had no idea what had caused the aggressive blonde, to whom he'd only ever talked to like once, to get so venomous at him on Twitter. Sure he'd poked her and Mason on Twitter while they were pissed at each other, but all Mason did was snap at him and go back to Tatum. You know, how people normally react to that kind of thing. Tatum on the other hand seemed to be dead set on having a problem with as many people as possible. She jumped down the quarterback's throat every time he opened his mouth, she seemed to think Jace was some kind of Bond villain, and now it looked like she was picking a fight with his two favorite girls.

Well, one of them. He'd arrived a little late to see what the whole fuss was actually about, but it looked like Raven had jumped up to defend Ash. So he could only assume that Tatum had come off Twitter to be a bitch in person. When had the girl turned into that? He wondered. Jace vaguely remembered his one encounter with the cheer captain, that one time in The Sleeping Hedgehog. She had struck him as a fun sort of person back then. Now she seemed like anything but...

There was the punch. Whatever Tatum had said seemed to set Raven off, Jace hadn't seen her throw a punch like that since after the musical. Although to be fair he didn't actually know how often she got into fights. That was only the second time he'd ever seen it happen. Now ordinarily he'd stick around to watch the mess until it resolved, he might as well. Even if it was Raven. He was pretty confident the black haired girl would win, so he didn't think just observing was that bad.

However this wasn't an ordinary situation.

...

Okay well that was just a lie. As much as he didn't want to admit it, Ash was probably the leading cause of fights at Westbrook. So the circumstances of the fight were completely normal. Still though! The point is Ash was there, and she looked like she was about to break. Whatever had gotten her back to the point where she could at least seem happy, to the point where Jace couldn't help but want to kiss her, all of that hard work looked like it was unraveling on the spot.

He could predict what would come next.

Icy blue eyes followed the girl as she left, standing out from rest of the crowd with their piercing hue. Laced amidst the bright energy that gaze always carried was a distinct sense of disappointment. For a good couple months now, and arguably even since the previous year, Jace had been teetering back and forth on his opinion of Ash. Sure she still made his heart race, and she was still impossibly sweet to him. Was she even the same person anymore though? It seemed like every other month the girl had a total breakdown. Forget Murder Monday, he hardly even noticed anymore compared to the drama hurricanes she started.

Some days Jace just wanted to cut his losses. He'd been pining after this damn girl for a full year now and it seemed like all she'd ever done was drag his mood down. Hell, he wasn't even that close to her! What kind of shit did Ian and Sebastian have to put up with? The festival had felt like it was going to go differently though. On social media he'd been making an effort to engage her, actively plotting to show the girl that she wasn't as bad as she seemed to think she was. It was going to be fun.

Now though? Now that he was there in person, watching with his own two eyes, he could see that nothing had changed. Ash was still a black hole of bullshit and drama. Probably in her own head degrading herself even while someone else stood up to fight for her. If the pattern held true then she was going to disappear again, running away from her problems to go-

Jace cut that train of thought off before it could go any further. Even while frustration sparked through him, he could feel that annoying sense of pain roll through his chest. That weird kind of heartache that had nothing to do with his actual heart. His obnoxious crush was still tugging on his heartstrings. Making it hurt to see Ash like that. With a deep breath he forced himself to look away, turning his attention back to Raven and Tatum. The next most interesting thing within line of sight. Maybe it was time to let go. People with a lot more patience than him had been by that girl's side, trying to keep her head above the surface, and she'd drowned herself in vodka anyways. People with even more patience than that were by her side now, presumably trying to keep her from getting any worse, and this shit kept happening.

He wasn't really watching the scene in front of him, between Raven and Tatum. For all his frustration it felt deeply dissatisfying to just let Ash get away this time. As much as he knew he should walk away, stop staking his emotions on this unstable little time bomb, he really didn't want to. With an annoyed sigh he absentmindedly ran his long fingers through his golden blonde hair, his restless hand driving the faintly damp strands aside before tousling them back into shape.

"...Damn it." Jace growled quietly, taking in another breath as he turned to do the one thing that he definitely shouldn't do. All of that thought and emotion had involved a lot less words while they were roiling through his head, so Ash was still vaguely in sight as he broke into a run, the tall boy taking advantage of his height to look for her between the gaps in the crowd.
He wasn't about to let her go off and make her life worse so easily this time.

Winona
Mentions Soap Elf_Ruler

 

[mogy]

Noah Stewart

​

True. Nobody said that the girl was in trouble for anything, and it was wrong to assume so from the start, but Noah just had a hunch from the way she entered the room in a quick manner. Noah's hunches were usually pretty on point, and he didn't think he was wrong about the girl being in trouble. The girl had avoided his question with a question which was pretty clever and something Noah did on a daily basis with his mom, so he could spot somebody doing that from a mile away.

"I hope it's just a broken leg." Noah said, truthfully. The nurses were doing all those tests, and every time a nurse came into the room to do another test or whatever, Noah wanted to ask why they were taking all those tests, but the answer would've probably freaked him out more than just not knowing.

It was a little bit surprising when the girl said his name and it took Noah a few moments to realize that his name was probably written on his chart, which was conveniently in the girl's hands. Invasion of privacy much? Well, it might have been to other people, but not to Noah seeing that his leg was in a cast and that the information about why he was here was pretty obvious to everybody who entered the room.

"Oh, you know, people don't care." Nothing more needed to be added. Sure people had school or whatever, but it still didn't feel good that not a lot of people came to visit. "What about you?"

Interactions: Soap (Evie)​

 

[0k_mang0]

colby

Soap Winona Elf_Ruler​

Mr. Sweetheart? That got a chuckle out of him. That was new. He had never been called that by anyone until now. And wasn’t Raven supposed to be matchmaking him and the other girl, who was probably not into guys? What an odd turn of event, and he wasn’t complaining one bit.

“I wish,” Colby quipped. “It’s Katzmeir. Colby Katzmeir. And apparently, I don’t have a middle name.” It was like his mother was too lazy to think of one when he was born. Weird. “I think my mom would kick my ass if I acted like an asshole towards others, especially to girls.”

Colby was prepared to listen to what Raven wanted to ask him. But then something else caught her attention, and it wasn’t a hot dude this time. It was an intense confrontation between his new friend (Tatum) and his childhood friend (Ash) that didn’t really remember him, like, at all but could be discussed another day. Suddenly, Raven was over there, and everything went meshuggah.

Colby jolted up to his feet once Raven’s fist contacted Tatum’s jaw. He rushed in and immediately, carefully, tried putting distance between the two girls without shoving anyone. He raised up his hands in case he had to block any impulsive punches from either side. He also meant no harm because he really didn’t want to fight anyone.

He started talking to Raven, “I put a twenty in the jar. You can keep the change and the basket, too. It still has ten macarons left. Now, go find your friend and take care of her, please.” He wasn’t as lighthearted as earlier anymore, knowing this was a bad time to be one. He wasn’t really taking sides; he wasn’t even upset that she just punched Tatum – or rather, he didn’t have time to be upset. One blonde had just gotten punched in the jaw and had no one to help her. Another blonde, who was clearly not okay to be alone right now, just dashed away from the scene, and Raven was probably the only available friend that could find her before something else might happen to her. This was no time to argue.

Cautiously, he stepped back a few times, turned around when it seemed safe to, and helped Tatum up. “C’mon, let’s put some ice on that,” he said under his breath, guiding her away from the nosey crowd. They made a quick stop at the Sleeping Hedgehog stand. His grandpa and a few employees looked confused, but Colby dismissively waved their attention away as he gathered a bag of ice from the cooler.

“Want me to drive you home?” Colby offered, putting the ice pack in Tatum’s hand. “Or just the parking lot? Anywhere but here? Let me know.”

 

[Soap]

Evie


Noah was far more fun to talk to. Sure, the random British boy was okay, Grace was less likely to annoy her and Sawyer was... bleck. Sawyer. But besides of the golden girl’s visitors, Noah was already up on her list— below Adriane of course. She almost felt bad for the guy. He had no friends around him, or family for that matter. At least sometimes her parents would pester her or her brothers would attempt to talk to her here and and there.

Noah’s situation just seemed sad. But she could relate; she didn’t have many friends either.

That’s okay though. While Evie isn’t busy causing chaos around here, she’s more than happy to make it less depressing for poor little Humpty Dumpty. Ignoring his chart, she took small steps in his direction. There wasn’t many things interesting on that chart besides his name, at least nothing that jumped out to Evie. “Yeah I get that. People are annoyingggg.” She might’ve been referring to almost every one of her nurses, but in her defense they were very annoying

The brunette took this as a chance to use the sharpie, signing his cast with one of those terrible emoji faces.

“Hmm? What about me?”

mogy (Noah)​

 

[TheFool]

River Walsh

He’d be lying if he said that her actions didn’t anger him slightly.
River was fond of winning. No matter what it was he was winning at. Even some stupid dart throwing game at some stupid school fair. But,
He calmed himself and his lips formed another smile. “You saying I’m the best?” He stared into her eyes. He’d be lying ( again ) if he said he didn’t enjoy her touch. One hand on his bicep and another on his hoodie-covered chest. He looked her up and down. She was cute. Chocolate brown hair and a similar colour pair of eyes. The eyes complemented the hair and the hair the eyes. She had an… exotic flair to her. He thought at first that she may’ve been Spanish or something, but…
Nah.
She was something else. He was here for it. He eyed her clothing. Very punkish. Her attire reminded him of the freaks that hung outside Black Mill’s Hot Topic. She was far from a freak, though. At least in the same sense as those weirdos anyway.
He spotted the necklace.
An odd little man-thing symbol attached to it. He looked back up at her,
“Nice necklace.”
Nice tits.

He peered behind her, looking at the guy she was with. Was he her boyfriend? Definitely not. He seemed a bit too flowery for a girl like this. Gay best friend? Or simply just trapped in the friendzone? Whatever his predicament, River got the feeling that the guy wasn’t jiving with him.
Something that River didn’t give two shits about, of course.
He gave the guy a solid nod.
The nod of bros.
“What up.”
It was more of an acknowledgment and less of a question. He didn’t really care what was “up” with this prance.
He turned his gaze back to the girl.
“River.”
He introduced himself, showing her another small grin. Had to show off the teeth. Girls always loved the pearly whites. Though, he did get the feeling that this chick was different to the other ones. Someone that River had never really met.
“River Walsh.” He finished. “Just moved here. Transferring to Westbrook from Black Mill - down in Mas - starting Monday.”
He looked at her hands.
Still planted on him.
He bit his lip.
“Also notoriously bad at throwin’ some fucking darts around apparently.” He chuckled.

“I’m guessin’ you guys go Westbrook, yeah?”
He asked.



dendygar
Elf_Ruler



​

 

[Pysren]

Location: Fall Festival
Interaction: Soap 0k_mang0
Mention: Winona Elf_Ruler


Rae grinned at her words, and replied "Anything for those puppies." Then the raven haired girl graced her with a gentle kiss, complete with a hand on her cheek. She didn't expect for the girl compliment her, especially her lips. She couldn't help but nervously giggle. It so unexpected indeed. Then told her the compliments were extra. Rae started to wonder what would happen if she put in more money. "Hehe maybe I figured kissing you was more important than introducing myself with my name first." She joked as she looked over to the guy who was talking to the girl earlier. Sure he's cute, but Rae needed to know him before she pursued him, anyone for that matter. Guy or girl. "Name's Raelynn, you can just call me Rae cutie." It was directed to both of them but the raven hair girl had wondered off before she could say her name, so only Colby heard her.

Rae turned her attention to the crowd that suddenly forming, why did the girl go in there? She moved away from the booth and edged her way through to the front. Ouch. The blonde had called the raven hair girl pathetic. This sounded personal and it made her uncomfortable. She shouldn't be here, but there was something about what was going on that kept her here. She didn't know what happened between the two or that other blonde who seems to be the center of attention as well.

It didn't take long for the situation to escalate. Raven threw what looked like a nice bunch at the blonde. Then the other blonde who looked like she was hyperventilating took off. Suddenly Colby was in there breaking it up, adorable. He seemed like a nice guy, she would love to talk to him more... as well as Raven but that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. Raven then left the scene towards the direction the other blonde went, on a impulse Rae pushed her with through the crowd and followed behind Raven. "Hey! Raven!"

When the girl turned around, she could so many emotions on her face it was hard to read them. "I don't know what's going on. And I doubt you'll tell me, but I don't think I should let you be alone." She got alittle closer and lowered her voice. "I'd like to keep you company if that's alright... until you find that other girl. I'm assuming she's your friend?"​

 

[dendygar]

Tadita

Tadita snorted and looked over her shoulder slightly at Cam, giving him a small smirk. "Play nice." She mouthed at her friend. She was still somewhat new too- new to Westbrook, but not new to town. Being the pothead had it's own stigma it came with, just as River and the other Black Hill kids did for being wealthy. "Look, I'll make it up to you," Tadita bit her lower lip at him, and she picked out three stuffed animals. One for Cam- she got him a dinosaur, one for Gia which was a giant pink teddy bear.. and she picked a giant glow in the dark black and green gorilla for River. "I think this one suits you best, because you're tall and super unique." She stroked his ego as she haphazardly struggled to hold the giant bear and gorilla after giving Cam his dinosaur. "And whatever carnie food you want, it's on me. As long as we get to share an elephant ear." Tadita ran her tongue along her lower lip, offering out the gorilla to him.

Her eyes wandered down River's body and stopped at his waist line, daring to go down further, but that would be obvious. Grunting and shifting her weight to carry the bear, she tossed it over her shoulder with a hum. "Cam," She grinned brightly at her friend. "Do you mind taking this to Gia? I don't wanna leave the new Westbrookian here by himself." In all honesty, she just wanted to get River alone and see what he was all about. Her eyes wandered, and her demeanor suddenly seemed to shift. Like a conditioned dog, she heard screaming and her flirtatious demeanor dropped like a lead weight, her eyes wide and frantic for half a second as she moved behind River like a frightened child. It was a fight, and when Tadita realized it, she seemed to begin to relax and frown deeply, slightly leaning into River's back as she watched from around his body. "Fuck. Me. River? Those are common- fights, I mean." Her vision had sharpened and mouth tasted like sawdust, her PSTD having kicked in her fight or flight. "Let's go to the fun house, okay? Just you and me?" She asked him a bit more shyly but the flirtation had returned, furrowing her dark brows, just wanting to be somewhere less crowded.

TheFool Elf_Ruler
-



Sha'nay

The beauty didn't take her eyes off of the threat for one second. But first impressions were everything, and she could tell that she had thrown Mason off.. good. He wouldn't fuck with her, he already knew better. She thought that training dogs was harder than this.. but apparently not. Shay seemed to continue to be relaxed and carefree, smiling down at Norah. "I mean hey, at least they know how to carry a conversation." She smiled, her pearly white teeth glistening as the sky began to clear up again, a smidge of the humidity seeming to fade.

She stood back and watched the two interact, learning and soaking up and memorizing how they looked and talked. Her lips slightly pursed with thought, nodding slightly in agreement with Norah about the carnival events and such, because she could relate. Then, at the stalker bit, she looked directly at Mason and a dark brow shot up. Don't blow this, Scrappy-Doo.

BELIAL. Winona​

 

[Winona]

Mason

He liked this little blonde. Or, well, he liked her more than the other girl. Maybe because for one, she hadn't fucking stalked him. Or maybe it was because she was like a breath of fresh air. Someone that hadn't known his fucked up past, and although Mason suspected that after Monday rolled around, she'd hate him just as much as everyone else, at least for tonight... Well, for tonight he was just Mason and she was just Norah. And then there was the fucking stalker.

"Unfortunately, no. We're pretty much just taught how to be dicks and punch each other." Well he wasn't lying. And a little half-smile crossed his face as he spoke. Norah asked a lot of questions, but Mason was prepared for it. He liked it, actually. Usually people didn't ask him questions. Generally they just punched him.

Mason decided to just ignore the stalker, because that kind of seemed to be what Norah was doing, and Mason was all for it. He kept his dark eyes on the blonde, and followed after her.

"Wait, an observatory? For your birthday?" Mason hadn't even been to an observatory. He stopped short for a second, but then kept trailing after her. "Well, we got a new principal in, and I guess she's doing this for the clubs and shit to raise money." He shrugged. It wasn't his cup of tea. "The football team has all the funding we need, so we're not messing with it." The only reason he was here was to find Raven, but instead he was now following this blonde. Fuck.

Well, and to apparently be put on Homecoming Court. One step away from being King, which was laughable.

At the stalking comment, he glared over at his new fucking stalker for a moment before Mason's gaze softened and turned back to Norah. Just focus on her, right? She was sweet, and that was enough to keep him calm at least for now. Even though he really wanted to say a lot to his fucking stalker, but whatever.

"You'd be surprised. Girls don't always stalk me," -- he shot a glare at her once again -- "but they do insult me a lot. Usually when I'm not even talking to them, too. Bitches in Westbrook are crazy."

Exhibit A, standing right next to them.

BELIAL. dendygar​

 

[BELIAL.]

Norah Walsh
location: moving away from Roasted Almonds Booth mention: dendygar Winona ​

She laughed when he mentioned that Westbrookians were taught to be uncouth. Wasn't that funny? She liked his little smile, but she knew better than to touch anything without her ten foot pole. Norah was generous with her flirtations but picky with true sentimentality. Now that, that was true vulnerability. Even with real friends, best friends, they had to be vetted a few times over. Usually by the siblings, then a final round by Norah's fine tooth comb. She'd let a lot of bullshit through, like her father's ninny of a fiancee, and there was no way in hell she'd let rats like that in her walls.

Besides, there was 'hopefully' a lot more to see. Here, there, all over town. That is, if the already present drama didn't trip her up immediately.

He asked about the observatory and she nodded, shrugging a bit. "Renting it out was the best part, just me and my mom. We'd run between exhibits and have a day of it," she said and clenched her jaw a bit. Unconsciously. Thinking about those special birthdays poked a healing wound she didn't even know could fester. She stomached the pain and brought the smile back to her face, taking another bite of the cotton candy. It turned a bit sour on her tongue, her brain almost ricocheting to recount how much she truly missed her mom. It wasn't just the observatory birthday dates, but it was the hugs. The kisses. The advice she always knew when to give, or about what to give. She was like a best friend but all wrapped up in a mom-sized package. There was none of that now, and it wasn't like Norah could rely on Riona anyhow. She had nothing now, and moreso from moving from Black Mill.

She twirled the sugar floss around a finger, centering her reality. She listened to Mason. A football team? River would be glad to hear that. Hopefully buddy here wouldn't be butt-hurt about Black Mill beginning to lace themselves into the foundation. High school started and ended with their sports teams, Norah knew that. Black Mill had been rooted in their own athletics, if not for their academics. They were a reigning champ. Now, just a ghost. Westbrook High would be lucky to have players like River and the Windrifts.

Norah tracked his gaze, which was doubling back on Sha'nay when he wasn't looking at Norah. He seemed to be really offput by her, probably because of how thick she'd laid it on to him. Clearly there was something resentful in the other girl, something that let her throw her guns around, unrestrained. Why waste a good source of information? Was she trying to make sure Norah knew? Or was it a personal vendetta?

She raised an eyebrow at the crazy bitches comment. "Are they?" She looked back at Sha'nay, then to Mason. "Well, it's a good thing I'm not from Westbrook, isn't it?" A wink and a curled smile at the boy, almost as sweet as the cotton candy in her hand.

Norah smiled, tilting her head a bit, swinging her gaze to Sha'nay. "Where did you transfer from Sha'nay? Somewhere in Westbrook?" It was a sugar-coated jab, more so to test if this girl would try and use her 'detective' skills on Norah anytime soon. She had no skeletons in her closet, nothing to hide. These people didn't know her, and if they scrolled on social media they'd see what Norah wanted people to see. If it was a smoke-screen, it was opaque and covered in Swarovski crystals.

 

[Hypnos]

Gus Windrift
​

The harsh screeching of the brakes was enough evidence to suggest that Gus had very well intended to stop, just as the car barrelled towards the red light, the silver Rolls decelerating rapidly as it’s driver pushed his foot hard against the peddle. Slower. Slower. Slower. Until eventually the whole car came to a halt.

With the red light about a dozen meters behind in the rearview mirror.

He cursed loudly, offering nothing but his middle finger to the other drivers upon the road, the crescendo of blaring horns only adding adding fuel to the fires of his annoyance as he quickly shifted a foot back to the accelerator, trying to get the car moving again before he caused too much of a disturbance to the traffic. He had been going too fast, he knew that, but honestly with the bleak and dreary scenes of the city streets of Maine, he didn’t exactly want to take his time to admire the view. Besides, it’s not like the fine of a speeding ticket or skipping a red light was going to be much of a bother to someone like him.

Gus ran a hand through his hair, his eyes glancing toward the rear view to see if the food on the back seat had been jostled around too much by the sudden stop, pleased to find that nothing had spilled out onto the seats of the new car. He was already running late, if he had caused a mess as well, then his brother might well have killed him.

He’d promised Fitz that he’d only pop out quickly to pick up some Chinese, but he’d already managed to delay the journey by about half-an-hour.

It wasn’t his fault, not entirely at least, since the rude cashier had wasted almost fifteen minutes bemoaning that he couldn’t find change for a hundred dollar bill, though Gus hadn’t helped speed up matters by starting a lengthy argument about the selections of food that the place had to offer.

It wasn’t like he was wrong though.

What kind of Chinese place did five types of chicken balls but not a single piece of squid?

Not that it mattered anymore. He had the food now, and Fitz was just going to have to deal with the fact that it was a little late.

It was already starting to rain as Gus pulled the Rolls into the apartment building, cursing under his breath about the fact that he had neglected to bring something with a hood. ‘It wasn’t raining fifteen minutes ago.’ He could almost hear Fitz chastising, though for the moment he pushed that thought from his mind, parking the Rolls carefully down beside the Tesla in it’s dedicated spot.

The Windrift’s had rented out a whole cordoned-off section of the parking area when they had first moved into the building a few days ago, needing a safe place to keep all the cars away from the rabble whilst they weren’t in use. There were three of them at the moment: the Tesla, the Lambo, and the Lexus, with the Rolls rounding that number up to four, a singular empty spot to it’s right.

With the Benz not parked in its usual space, Gus knew that Geoffrey had not yet returned, which was somewhat of a relief, as it meant that the house keeper could not complain about the mess of Chinese food that was about to be spilled upon the freshly cleaned carpet, though Gus was like to get an earful about that fact at a later date. The best he could hope for was a delayed reaction, at least enough time to soften the blow.

Taking off his jacket as he opened the door to the car, Gus held it aloft over his head like a makeshift umbrella, squeezing himself out of the front door before moving towards the back, where he gathered up the food with his free hand, trying to keep everything as dry as possible, though he could immediately start to see a few drops start to trickle down over the edges and into the honey-beef.

It wasn’t a long journey between the car and the building’s lobby, but by this point the rain had started to pick up enough that he was already soaked by the time he made it to the building’s elevator, looking to the world as if he had just taken a trek into the Atlantic ocean, rather than merely a few blocks away. He was going to have to get changed once he got back inside. This eight hundred dollar jacket was ruined.

Hitting the button to the fourteenth floor, Gus hummed a little happy tune as the elevator took him upwards, one hand reaching into the food bag to pull out a single crisp chicken ball which he shoved lazily into his mouth, still chewing when the doors opened to reveal his new home, though he managed to swallow before he could be seen.

The new apartment was not as sizable as Windrift Manor, that was for sure, and it certainly didn’t compare to the regency era architecture of the Massachusetts home that had been in his family since the days of his great-great-great-great-great grandfather, however that didn’t mean that it didn’t have it’s charm.

It was mostly open space, a vast hall with boxes upon boxes piled up inside, from where none of the Windrifts had had the motivation to properly unpack, though certain items and pieces of furniture were strewn across the floor where they were needed. They didn’t have a table yet, that was a setback, but Gus didn’t mind sitting crossed legged on the floor and eating their food over bare carpet.

When the place was properly decked out, it was going to be the perfect place to host all sorts of wild parties with the boys, and it was a huge shame that half of his old chums from Black Mill weren’t gonna be around to appreciate it. Back in Mass, the Windrift’s had grown a reputation for hosting the most elaborate costume and theme parties, almost every other week, and now that they had their own place, it was gonna be much easier to get the boys round for a sesh.

If the people of Westbrook weren’t too stuck up their own asses to appreciate a bit of good fun.

As Gus walked in the room, he could hear a gentle panting coming from somewhere near where they had organised a makeshift TV set-up, and he looked down on the floor behind a big box that probably contained some kind of couch, to see his brother doing push-ups.

Showing-off.

‘You been doing that ever since I went out?’ Gus asked semi-sarcastically, squatting down to address the other Windrift properly. ‘You’re not in the army yet, buddy.’ He took the bag of chinese that he was carrying and rested it upon Fitz’s back, so that the weight would further impede his progress before standing up once more.

‘Is Zia in her room? Tell her food has arrived.’ Sitting down on the couch-box, he let out a yawn.

‘Traffic is fucking awful up here, man. Damn Mainer’s drive like they're fucking seventy and on a pension, almost makes you miss Black Mill, where every driver has a death wish.’

Braddington ailurophile

 

[Soap]

Kate

The last few days have been difficult to say the least. And having Jonathan back over these next few months didn’t help any. “I’m... I’m sorry, okay? It’s just hard.” Apart of her wanted to scream at him, slap him, hurt him, but none of that could ease any of the pain that she was feeling. This was every mother’s nightmare but it was Kate’s hell to feel so... hopeless. She’s a fixer it’s what she does. This is just the first time she couldn’t do anything to fix it. “I’m going to go for a bit, okay? Think about it. The doctors—“ Jonathan’s words were cut short by Kate raising her hand and waved him away. She didn’t want to hear it anymore. All the doctors, nurses, the apologies, Kate couldn’t take it anymore and the longer she sat here, just kept making more and more difficult to leave.

The sounds of machines and unsteady beats just kept eating at her. Taunting her almost. When you have a child you try to keep all the bad out of the way. You don’t focus on what could happen if it’s negative. Seventeen years ago Kate was convinced her daughter would grow up to be successful, healthy, and married to a man she cared for.

It’s safe to say that nothing had gone according to plan so far.

With a sigh, Kate grabbed the folder and left the hospital room, taking a seat outside of it instead— She couldn’t do it while Grace was sitting in front of her, and if Kate’s being honest she’s not sure if she wants to do it at all.

With a shaky hand, the pen hovered over the signature line as soon as she saw a flash of red hair, Kate looked up to see no one other than Elise.

“What are you doing here?”

Winona​

 

[mogy]

Noah Stewart

​

The girl understood where Noah was coming from and he could see that in her eyes. He had the ability to read people pretty accurately, and that was as much as a gift as much as it was a curse. Because he could read people, he could see that Evie pitied him. Well, perhaps not pitied in the full sense of the word, but maybe felt just a tiny bit sad for him, and Noah didn't want anybody feeling sorry for him because he had that covered.

The girl signed his cast with the sharpie she found, and she didn't ask, but it wasn't like there wasn't space. She was literally the only one who signed his cast so far, and that could've been considered sad, but Noah didn't care about the fucking cast at all.

"I like your name, Evie. Hebrew origins. Means 'life'." Noah really needed to get off the baby name websites. It was weird and beyond explaining if somebody looked at his search history. Sure, he wanted to be prepared for when he has a kid one day, that was reasonable, but it came at the expense of knowing a shit ton of name meanings and origins. Noah didn't know if Evie being called Evie was ironic because he didn't know anything about the girl, but she was in the hospital, and she seemed like she had been here for some time, so assumptions are made.

"Why are you here, Evie. What are you running from?" Noah asked, adjusting himself in the uncomfortable hospital bed, being careful of the cast on his leg. It was weird and he couldn't get used to it and he didn't want to get used to it because it was heavy and his leg was going to have scars and it's gonna look skinny and pale, even more than Noah already was. He really didn't want to think about his leg or talk about it. He wanted to ignore his leg for the next six months, and that was the plan, but Noah knew that wouldn't be possible and that he would have to explain to every new person why his leg was in a cast.

Interactions: Soap (Evie)​

 

[Winona]

Jace

He was not here because he wanted to be. Jace was stressed, and anxious, and he hated the crowds that moved around. Instead, he took to sticking to the side, glaring in disgust at the so-called "musicians" that they had playing on the stage. If Jace had gone up there and played like that, his mother probably would have disowned him! Er... well, she did kinda do that, anyway. Look, that was beside the point. They were pitiful, and yet their parents were cheering them on.

Jace didn't get it.

The Homecoming Court started to get announced, and for the most part, Jace could've cared less. He didn't have opinions on most of the kids, until they announced his baby sister having to go up there with none other than Ryder Vaughn. Well, fudge. His blue eyes glared up at the stage as he saw that stupid smug twin head up there. After Ash had told him about Ryder dating Nova, he'd stopped talking to Nova completely. Looking at her just made him mad in so many ways now.

And then, Stu was running off the stage. Puzzled, Jace started after him to try and be the best Big Beanie Bro he could be -- despite, you know, the lack of his beanie that said exactly what he was -- and made his way after his brother. As he was walking after him, he heard Mason's voice sounding over the fall festival, announcing the last couple.

Grace Jackson.

Jace knew that Ash was going to come off the stage just as upset, but in that moment, he had to make a choice. Sister by blood or brother by beanie? And, well... the decision was too easy.

"Stu, hey, are you okay?" He asked as he caught up with the kid.

Dede​

 

[Braddington]

Fitzroy Windrift III

He already didn’t like Westbrook. He had been here five minutes, already got into a Twitter argument and was almost seduced by a 15 year old. Not good going in the grand scheme of things. The house being a mess just added to his stress. They were moving in so it was going to be like this for a little while, but in the back of his mind was a voice screaming to sort it out. Which he did little bits of every chance he got. A TV here, a couch over there, a kitchen stool for cosmetic sake. Everywhere he looked his OCD perked the fuck up and out. It only seemed to grow.

He hadn’t even met anyone yet.

If he had his way, he wouldn’t, but he wasn’t here on vacation. This was home now, this was school. Maine. What a shit place to graduate from. Not something he would want to put on a CV. Not something he would even wanna talk about with friends.

What the fuck did Stephen King see in this place? It’s people?

It was only a year. He wouldn’t have to spend long here and then he could be shipped off away from everyone and everything. Fathers orders. And you don’t disobey the Major. He had learnt that early. Military discipline was harsh for his eldest child by a mere few minutes. Maybe he’d finally find a place.

A place where he wasn’t always fucking stressed.

Gus was fetching food, Zia was doing god knows what. Fitz simply sat in the living room of their large apartment, twiddling his thumbs. Restless. Taking every opportunity to do something productive. To no avail. His skittishness not abating. Simply giving up, he reckoned he had another fifteen minutes. He had given Gus a time limit he would no doubt extend. He stood, walking to his room, reaching under his bed where a tray had been kept.

On it were an assortment of papers, a small plastic bag with something green inside.

He rolled out a cigarette, where had he gotten this from again? Malachie? Seemed most likely. That guy was a godsend when he was like this.

Once he was done, he jumped from his bed, lighter in hand as he headed to the balcony of the apartment. Looking out over the steadily darkening sky that lay out before him. Taking the occasional drag, his shirt long since having been thrown to the side.

At least it was beautiful.

As soon as he heard Gus appearing, he threw the half smoken joint over the balcony, quickly getting down to do push-ups. Pretending he was being a good lawful citizen.

“Yeah, what else was I meant to do? Wait for you?”

He just raised an eyebrow at the other.

“Fifteen minutes?”

His words were cut short by the food placed upon his back. The heat and the cold rain water mixing in some torturous experience. Quickly lowering himself to the ground, he placed the food on the floor next to him. Standing with a quick catch of his breath and a smell of the surrounding area. Fuck. It smelt like weed.

“Yeah, I will go get her.”

Quickly vacating he tapped on the door to his sisters room.

“ZIA, GUS IS BACK, FOOD IS HERE. GET IT WHILST ITS LUKEWARM.”

Returning to the living room he sat on the floor, pulling out the beef and grabbing a fork.

“Traffic was fine when I was driving earlier. You’re probably the awful one. Scratch that, I know you are.”

He smirked at him, setting into the feast before him.

“Zia is gonna want pizza. You watch. I’ll call it. $100.”


Hypnos ailurophile ​

 

[High5ives]

Babysitting some Fall Festival on what was supposed to be his day off was frustrating. Showing up and being handed a fucking mop was infuriating. Kanen wasn't some janitor. Elise's lacky? Sure, that was a fair judgement. But He'd been very clear from the beginning, Kanen wasn't interested in cleaning up puke and scrubbing out toilets. Despite everything, Kanen was still a prideful S.O.B. "You try handing me a mop again and I'll break it over the top of your head, fucking idiot." Kanen snapped, shoving the mop back into the janitor's hands and pointing a finger in the gentleman's face.

The night was already off to a great start.

Honestly, Kanen didn't really see any reason for him to be there. Things were fine. Yeah, there were little hiccups here and there, this was Westbrook after all, but nothing was big enough for Kanen to bother intervening. Besides, everywhere Kanen went he was like a plague. Students spoke in hushed tones and did there best to avoid looking him in the eye. He didn't even have to say anything to keep things under control.

Apparently that didn't apply to everyone though. Some petite figure crashing into his back was enough to make Kanen to stumble and whirl around. He was of coursed pissed. You'd have to be practically blind to miss him, running into Kanen was like running into a wall.

"Maybe next time you open your eyes and check where you're going instead of running around like a fu-" Kanen trailed off before he could even finish his thought.

Ash looked like hell. More than usual even, which at this point was saying something. Funny how much things could change. A year ago if you'd told someone Kanen got clean and Ash was the drunk, they'd laugh in your face. Yet, here they were. Ash didn't seem intoxicated, she could at least stand straight, but her panicked eyes and clenched fists were some serious red flags. All the other bullshit going on wasn't enough to get Kanen's attention, but Ash hurrying down the hallway like she'd just fought a bear was a different story.

He sighed, dragging a hand down his face. "C'mon" He grumbled taking her by the arm and leading her into one of the dozens of unused classrooms. The art room apparently, judging by the shitty paintings covering the walls and the ink-stained table tops. "Sit down." He instructed, clicking the door closed behind them. Kanen wasn't interested in arguing with her about this, but he didn't think he'd have to. Ash didn't look like she could put up any deabte.

Winona​

 

[TYPE]

A L E X . S H A R P
@sharpattack


"SHIT!" Alex turned the Honda quickly, before the wheel could mount the sidewalk, cringing as he heard the chrome on the wheel-cap scrape off some more. It was not like there was much left anyway - the car was older than he was - but it still clawed at his spirit. Perhaps his father would not notice? A futile hope he supposed, already nervous for his return home. He notices everything. Often too much. As the car returned to the center of the street he made an effort to focus. There had been a turnoff there a few years ago. He had been driving on instinct for the most part. He needed to stop doing that.

As his eyes ran over the pathway, he could not help the long-winded sigh escaping from him. Malls. Buildings taller than anything he remembered from his youth. Brands that seems to have popped up out of nowhere. Thinking about the time he lost, the usual dull ache at the back of his head seemed to waken, radiating a numbing pain across his skull. To be fair, he barely noticed it these days. Pain seemed to be an old friend. While in the coma he had not been unaware. And laying down for so long - well, cramps happen. And they get really bad. Not that people know about that. Hard to scream when your brain has been unplugged. Then again... He reached down, running a hand over his thigh. Walking still hurt like a bitch. Eyeing the cane laying next to him on the passenger seat for a second, he bit his lip. Maybe today he could leave it? He was just doing desk work anyway.

Another drawn out sigh. Then tonight he would not be able to walk at all. And... his father would notice. It was humiliating. Biting down on his tongue, he felt a frown forming on his face. Like pain he supposed, humiliation was another thing he should be used to. The first few times he wished he had died, when the nurses came, and moved his body around like a ragdoll before they washed him, cleaned him... wiped him like a fucking child. Then over time he got used to it. She thought he could not hear her. He pretended he could not. Comparing a cane to shitting yourself? Another sigh - PRIORITIES Alex. Fuck... even his conscience sounded like his father these days. So many priorities.

It had been a relief waking up. Seeing the world anew. Then he found out that his mother and father lost everything. Lived in a two room hovel in the same fucking street he had been... he had been.... His head started hurting again. Debts. Debts. Debts. Work work work. Of course they did not mind. They had their boy back. Mulimillion dollar baby boy. Luckily he got used to hearing his mother crying at his bedside. If he closed his eyes at night he may as well still have been in that hospital for all the good the walls did. Strange feeling waking up, and learning that in order to allow for that two other people had to die as a price. His mother, now grey and tired, her eyes almost always teary... his father... tired. So so very tired.

So what was he supposed to do? Get a job of course. And smile. Always be so fucking grateful to be alive. Which he was. But yeah... Being thankful every second of the day so that the two people you ruined don't spiral further... it is fucking tiring. So now Alex is a happy boy. Happy to be alive. Living again. Smiling again. And when school starts... god. It is just gonna get worse isn't it? Especially if... he is there. Or maybe it would be easy. After all... he had been planning this for three years. He could not help the small smile, despite the pain he was in.

If his father had seen it, he would have insisted that Alex return to the psychologist again.

Arriving at the pizza shop, Alex got out, big smiles and chuckles, as a few of his colleagues noticed him. They had been helping him get back into things. Working here was cake. A little bit of number work. A little bit of admin. And smiles for tips. The kind of mindless drivel that made it easy to think of more important things in the back of his head. Like how hard one might need to hit someone with a block of ice to put them in a coma... but not kill them. It was not an easy thing - speaking from experience. Perhaps it will take a few tries.

Only halfway through his shift did he realize that he forgot the cane in the car.
​

 

[Winona]

Elise

She had never been a fan of Kate Jackson or her daughter, Grace. Perhaps it was how Steve had lamented after her despite being married to Elise, or maybe it was watching how successful, beautiful, and perfect Grace was at everything without trying. Elise had spent the best years of her life trying to groom her children to be successful, and had failed miserably. Meanwhile, Grace had achieved everything at such an early age, and Elise couldn't believe how everything went so perfect for her.

Until now.

"Well, our daughters were best friends. I figured I would come check up on Grace." She responded, coming to a stop in front of Kate. Elise remained standing, her hands clasped just in front of her as she looked away from Kate for a moment to peer through the door to look in at Grace. The girl didn't look like she was doing well, and then Elise looked down at Kate.

"Grace ended up on Homecoming Court. The students still miss her, and are praying for her to get better."

Her gaze trailed over the paper for a second, and then she leveled her gaze back at Kate.

"Are you really giving up on her?"

Soap​

 

[Elf_Ruler]

In only a split-second Tatum felt Raven’s fist connect with her jaw and she was knocked to the ground, she was ready to get up and fight back until Colby stepped between them and she stopped her motion. She flipped off the Raven hair girl as Colby shooed her away. Her jaw was sore, but her ego felt worse, it was like anything she said or did got her a new problem. She was silent as Colby handed her some ice, she was trying not to let her feelings show, not in front of someone she just met. She had held the ice to her face and shook her head at Colby’s words. She felt like she couldn’t catch a break from anyone, “I wasn’t trying to fight,” was all she could mumble, her words laced with sadness. She wished she could blame Ash, but she had pushed back at Raven and she shouldn’t have, but everyone had been on her case. Mason, JJ, Ian, Brayden, Ash, and now Raven. All she had wanted was to make some amends and she couldn’t. She let her eyes look to Colby and then back down. She couldn’t even find words to say. He was just Brayden’s friend and she was Tatum, the bitchy cheer captain that was hated. She felt a small tear escape and she quickly wiped it away.

In that moment she felt her phone buzz, she had gotten a text from Caleb. She looked it over and all it said was to meet by the Ferris wheel. She closed her phone and set it down, “Can I come back? A friend needs me.” She set the ice pack down and as much as she wanted to smile, she couldn’t, Colby was going to hate her just like everyone else.

She didn’t wait for Colby’s response, but she left her ice pack with him, “I’m sorry.” Was all she could say to him. The walk to the Ferris wheel was short and Tatum stood by it waiting for Caleb. She didn’t know what the boy wanted but she owed him his time after she made him uncomfortable, she felt bad about that too.

0k_mang0 Soap
--

Cam just rolled his eyes at Tadita but at least River wasn’t being a total dick, “Cam.” He gave a nod in response, but he still didn’t like the vibes he was getting off of River, something about him just told Cam he was an asshole and he didn’t want his friends around a dude like that, but he couldn’t stop Tadita. He took his dinosaur and Gia’s bear in his arms, “You gonna come back around when Parker shows up?” he questioned his friend. He could sense something was off with Dita after she witnessed the fight, hell Tatum had taken a pretty solid punch from Raven, but fights weren’t uncommon at Westbrook. Parker had gotten in one on the first day of school.

He waved at Dita before he made his way over to Gia and her friend.

He set the bear down in front of Gia, “My friend Tadita won this for you.” Gia looked mostly confused as she accepted the bear. She looked over to her friend with a confused look. Of course, Gia didn’t understand why she was being gifted a bear from a girl she hadn’t met. He could only shrug at the confusion. He couldn’t tell Gia that Parker had talked about her to Tadaita and now the girl was intrigued by her. Cam looked over to her friend and placed the dinosaur in front of her, “For you.” He wasn’t hitting on her, but he didn’t know what to do with a dinosaur.

dendygar
--

Gia liked Cam but she was confused by her new bear, “Maisie this is Cam, Cam Maise. I think you two will get along.” Gia smiled as she held onto her bear. She didn’t understand why Cam’s friend won her a bear, but it was cute and pink. It was everything she loved, and his friend had looked busy so she couldn’t give it back to her. She knew Maisie was probably confused but at least she got a dinosaur out of it. Gia knew Cam was trying his best and he probably felt uncomfortable because he didn’t really know either of them that well, but he had been pushed to come over and talk with them. Gia sent a smile up to Cam, “Thank you! Your friend is super nice. So are you. Do you want to join us in eating?” Cam had sat down with them and Gia handed him the rest of her sugar-coated deep-fried treat. It was a lot of food and Gia couldn’t eat all of it. At least not on her own. She was tiny after all. The bear was almost half her size and she was going to have to carry it around. It made her giggle just a little, “The bear is huge, and I am not big.” She couldn’t help but laugh just a little more at the silly thought.

Soap

 

[TheFool]

River Walsh

“Aw.”
Was all he could say as she gave him the stuffed bear. Or gorilla. River was never an avid watcher of Animal Planet. “That’s sweet, you… didn’t have to.”
He didn’t know really know what else to say. It was some cheaply made toy monkey being used as some carny prize. He’d probably end up giving it to one of his sisters. They still liked that girly shit, don’t they? He perked up at her mention of him paying for his food,
“That ain’t necessary.” He said, chuckling lightly. “It’s on me.”
He looked into her brown eyes.
“No ifs. No buts.”


“Fuck. Me. River?”


Already?
He looked back at the girl, realising that she wasn’t saying what he hoped she was saying.

He hadn’t even caught notice of the supposed fight going on across the way. He looked back at it. A crowd of people gathered around it. This shit’s common?
He blinked.
Right on.
Maybe he’d fit in with the rabble here more than he originally thought.

He sensed something was up.
The girl’s demeanour changed completely upon seeing the scrap. Maybe she was one of those “make love, not war” types? A twitter-head who went off at anything that could even remotely be seen as violent. River made love. And River made war.
They were two sides of the same coin to him.

Funhouse?

“Well, if ya’ insist. I don’t think I can say no.”
He laughed.
“Come on.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her in the direction of the funhouse. Or at least the place he spied LOOKED like what funhouse would look like. He thought it best to get her away from that fight, since she seemed to have such a reaction to it. As he gently led her towards it, he asked her -
“What’s your name?”
He looked down at her.
“Unless you wanna just keep it with you only knowing mine. Power dynamic like.” His eyes shined. His thumb caressing the palm of her hand as he held it.



dendygar



​

 

[Winona]

Ash


She was not paying attention to where she was going very well. Ash just wanted out, but she kept bumping into people. Most of the time, a mumbled apology and then continuing on her way was enough, until she bumped into someone that for some stupid fucked up reason wasn't so easily persuaded. She opened her mouth to give the standard apology, still looking down at the ground, anywhere but up, when he spoke. Ash glanced up as he took her arm, and her fears were realized.

Kanen.

Fuck.

"I'm... I'm, uh... I'm fine." The lie of the century, but maybe it would be enough to get Kanen to leave her alone. After all, they hadn't actually talked in months -- instead, their interactions had been boiled down to a lot of yelling and cussing. Other than like, a handful of times. When she locked herself in her room, when she ran away. And then, well, she hadn't punched Stu or interfered for her own reasons. Ash just... hadn't appreciated him being mean to Kanen.

He'd led her into the school, and Ash finally felt like maybe she could breathe. Being just... away from the crowd helped somewhat, and she tried to get Kanen to let her go, but he was on a fucking mission and Ash had learned one thing from being his friend. When Kanen set his mind to something, he was impossible to stop.

Finally, they arrived in the art room, and Kanen let her go. She glanced over at him, hesitating for a moment, and then decided to listen and hopped up on one of the tables in the front. Ash's gaze fell to her hands, and she started playing with her fingers for a moment, then her fingers started rubbing her wrist. Rubbing away the feeling of her wrist being touched, being grabbed. Or the feeling of Sawyer's fingernails digging into her flesh, a feeling that was still too fresh.

"I'm fine. You can go now."

High5ives​

 

[Hypnos]

Gus Windrift
​

As Fitz stood to go and collect their sister, Gus’ nose perked up, taking a brief whiff of the foul stench that hung ever-present in the air. The younger of the Windrift’s did not consider himself to have a very established pallette when it came to smells, as a history of poor decision making when it came to shitty wine could attest, however he certainly knew what a new apartment was supposed to smell like, and this certainly wasn’t it.

‘You’re just been working out this whole time? I’m impressed.’ As he said that, he got up, moving towards one of the stuffed boxes that continued to collect dust, and rummaging around in it for a few seconds, only stopping when his hands finally rested upon the target he was looking for.

‘Maybe up here in Westbrook, you’ll make football captain, and Walshy can be your lackey for once.’

Wielding a canister of air freshener as if it were a heavy firearm, Gus took aim at the room, his nose guiding him towards the source of this great stench before he started spraying indiscriminately towards the balcony.

‘You even gonna join the team up here? Seems pretty little league.’

As Fitz returned to the living room, Gus waited for his brother to start eating, standing just behind him, before brandishing the canister once more, giving him a face full of air freshener.

‘Come on dude! If I can’t leave my shit on the floor of the Benz, then you’re not allowed to smoke in the new place. You know I’m basically asthmatic.’ He wasn’t. He just liked being overly dramatic.

Putting the canister down, Gus joined his brother on the floor, hungrily grabbing a handful of pork-balls without care for the proper cutlery, throwing them lazily into his open maw.

‘Hey! I’m amazing behind the wheel. It ain’t my fault that no one from Maine can drive faster than twenty below the limit. You’d have thought I was driving a Honda for how slow I had to go. There’s no good roads up here for the Rolls to stretch her legs.’ He was talking with food in his mouth, every other word slightly muffled by the crunching and squishing of pork between his teeth.

‘If Zia wants Pizza then she can fucking well go get it herself. It’s pissing it down, I’m not going out again.’ As Gus spoke, he rose his voice slightly, meaning for his sister to hear him in the other room, though it was likely that she was too busy with her headphones in to properly care.

‘We could get delivery, I guess. We need to try out all the places around here.’ It felt strange talking about getting food whilst he was already stuffing himself with chicken and pork, but the fact of the matter was, the Windrift’s were living alone now, for the first time, and given the fact that of the three of them, the best thing they could cook was a slightly over charred piece of toast, they were most certainly going to be ordering a lot of take out for the next few weeks.

Not that they couldn’t afford it.

Braddington ailurophile