Realistic or Modern Westbrook

[A Little Cloud]

A L I C E
STATUS
Mood ~ Happy
Interacting with ~ Mads
Mentions ~ Dazzle
Alice tilted her head, considering what he had said. "How come I didn't think of that? Well, I'm not going to be the one drinking. I didn't think there would be fruit in the fridge either." She chuckled. Alice decided not to give him the 10-second lecture about how some fruits aren't supposed to be refrigerated, even if it was only 10 seconds. She raised an eyebrow when he asked for an apple, but turned around and grabbed a nice, scarlet red one. She handed it to him, smiling when he mentioned his name. "Nice to meet you, Mads. I'm Alice. Ester." She raised an eyebrow, looking suspiciously at his neck. "You ok? It looks like it hurts..."

Alice made note that Mads was excited about the mountain, and she blinked when he mentioned boarding. She exhaled and looked sideways. "Well, sorta." Alice smiled sheepishly. "I haven't gone boarding ever since I moved from Washington. So, I'm a bit rusty." This was an improvement. Alice was talking to some people, and they were talking back. She suddenly realized that the cold air from the fridge was still coming out, and closed the door immediately. She sighed, and muttered, "Now I'm cold." ​

 

[High5ives]

Kanen sat with his head in his hands, trying to just block everything out and calm down. He could still hear people outside the vehicle, laughing and talking, or whatever else they were doing. Something about it was ridiculously aggravating. It was illogical to get so upset over something so slight, and Kanen knew that, but it didn’t change how he felt. All he wanted was everything to be quiet, just for a while. That’s all he needed.

Kanen snapped up when he heard Ash’s voice just outside his door. All he wanted to do was be alone. Was that so bad?! Kanen didn’t look up at Ash, but he already knew she was probably staring him down, waiting to for him to get out, or let her in. She was right, Kanen knew that Ash wasn’t going to just leave him be. It was both a blessing and a curse, really. Kanen knew she’d probably sit out there glaring at him for the next twenty minutes or something.

Kanen lifted his hand, letting it rest on the lock switch for moment before he pressed the button. With the doors now unlocked. Kanen leaned back in his seat again. He could let her in, but that didn’t mean Kanen had to talk. He didn’t want to talk about anything.

Winona​

 

[PenguinFox]

​

As Nova sat down Ian followed suit and sat down on the steps too. He made sure to keep a few feet between them though so she wouldn't feel uncomfortable. The snow seeping through his jeans did nothing to help his cold situation but he soldiered through it. What was a little cold to him? He'd stay out all day if he had to. He'd rather not, but to Ian, others would always come first. He couldn't in good conscience have a good time unless everyone else was.

Ian noticed the sigh Nova of relief let out, giving him some comfort as well. Distraction didn't necessarily solve problems, but it was a good step in Ian's mind. "You're from Seattle? No kidding, we're both West-Coasters? I had friend from Seattle, let me tell you that girl was a firecracker." he grinned remembering his friend Faye. "I can get into some mischief, but her? She was never not up to something. Thankfully her girlfriend stopped her from getting into too serious of trouble." he shook his head reminiscently.

Ian leaned back on his elbows and stretched out his legs as they continued their conversation. He laughed at the sudden sarcasm that came from the brunette next to him. "No not yet, but I'm sure I will. It's just a matter of time." He went quiet for a moment as he thought. "I'm not sure anything's ever sunshine and roses. Maybe that makes me a cynic, but I'd prefer to think I'm a realist. Yeah there's good things, but there's also bad things. They're all interconnected and come and go in waves, you know what I mean." he looked over to her before looking back out into the distance thoughtfully. "There's a Robert Frost poem; 'Nothing Gold Can Stay' that basically says what I just said but more..." he searched for the right word. "Eloquent. The other side to that though is that the bad times; those are also temporary." Ian shrugged as he finished, as if shrugging off being philosophical. "But what do I know? I'm just some kid." There was a soft, genuine smile on his face that showed, in just this one moment, things weren't all that bad. txlos

 

[KingofAesir]

Sawyer

Before Sawyer could react or even attempt to move put of the way, Grace was tackling her and pinning her down against the ground. Sawyer's eyes widened and she let out a half laugh half yelp sound as her back collided with soft snow. When her initial shock faded she found herself relaxing under Grace's weight with a smile playing at the edges for her mouth. Sawyer would admit that she did, in fact, hit Grace first so retaliation was inevitable and maybe throwing a snowball at her girlfriend hadn't been the smartest idea in hindsight, but she was definitely enjoying herself now.

"I can give you no reason other than the fact that you love me." Sawyer used the arm that wasn't being pinned down to settle a hand on Grace's waist, "In truth, I did betray you first, but I am only a foolish woman. Can you fault me?" She moved her hand up to Grace's face, brushing stray flecks of white from the edges of her hair line carefully.

"Besides, I seem to have fallen for you again." Sawyer gestured to the ground briefly, "I also seem to recall that you think I'm amazing? Can you really end someone who you think is such?" She hummed and trailed her finger down Grace's jawline. If she was to be defeated here she wasn't going down without a fight. To hell if she didn't use what she knew how to do best.

"But end me if you will, darling. I am at your mercy."

Soap​

 

[txlos]

Nova

​

Nova couldn't help but chuckled at the tale of his Seattle friend, always getting into trouble. Maybe it was something in the water that made the city's girl so rowdy, always out late and looking for trouble, looking for something that would give off some sort of adrenaline. To be fair, it was Washington, and not much happened outside of Seattle. If you wanted to be someone, do anything, and you lived in Seattle, everything was just kinda right there. Nova knew that probably just as well as Ian's friend did, what with the trouble she had gotten into. And sure, it was trouble she sought out at the time, but if she had known it would've led to such awful men then maybe she would've steered clear. But that wasn't who she was anymore. At least, she hoped she had done a good enough job suppressing that part of her and leaving it far behind in Washington.

"Lover of poetry are ya?" Nova chuckled, shivering a bit as we rubbing her hands over her arms. The snowfall seemed to be cascading down in slow motion as flakes found their perfect place to slot in to, hugging the earth and reminding her of home, or at least the good parts of it. And while sure, Nova's inner pessimist was coming out, she couldn't help but take in the stranger's words and dig into their meaning. Yes, everything seemed like hell right now. She had lost all familiarity within a matter of months, her boyfriend in a matter of moments, and her sanity in- well, maybe she was begin dramatic. The thought of herself being such a drama queen threatened to release a smile onto the brunette's face, but she did her best to reel it back in. Anyway, so yes. Everything was kind of shit... but that didn't mean it was always going to be shit. Jace wasn't going to be the only boy to ever treat her right, but he had been the first one in a long, long time. And who was she to tell herself that a grieving period was irrational?

"I just wish people gave notice when they were gonna leave," The brunette groaned, weaving her fingers through dense brown hair before letting them fall back into her lap. She had no clue who this guy was, who he knew or where he had come from, but the poor man was now stuck in Nova's process of verbally filtering thoughts.

She laughed to herself at the idea, eyes still scanning the snow. "Like a two week notice, y'know? Just a quick 'hey, by the way, I'm gonna give you this time to begin separating'. This cold turkey thing is crap. And it's like they just expect you to be totally fine and do the whole 'I'll always love you' speech and my god give me a fuckin' break with that shit. You found someone new? Tell me straight and to my face, all the respect there, but to tell me that you still love me while you're falling in love with someone else? That's crap, dude." A scoff tossed from Nova's mouth as she rubbed her hands together, eyebrows furrowed. The brunette wasn't even directly talking to Ian at this point, her eyes too fixed on the landscape. "But y'know what else is crap? When you know that if that person called you at three a.m. saying they needed a friend, you would be there. They have that hold on you and even though you know that they aren't yours romantically, if they needed something you would drop everything."

PenguinFox

 

[Winona]

Drake


Okay so yes, maybe Drake was using again! It wasn't a big deal. He'd learned his lesson from last time, and he'd never go over that again. And despite Mason's best efforts to keep his brother from doing drugs, Drake was just a bit more desperate. Such as... shoving weed and a lighter in his underwear since Mason never patted him down near that region. And then perhaps he'd hidden more drugs in a nearby box to where they had been waiting for Carter. And perhaps while his brother and everyone else was distracted, Drake had been quick to shove those into his bag and get on the road. It wasn't a big deal. Really.

He did about fall out the window that he was perched on to try and keep the smell of marijuana from staying in the room. And with that in his mouth, and his attention focused solely on his arm, he had no idea that Maisie had walked in right away. Drake looked up at her, dropping the needle to the ground. Well fuck. He looked down at the needle, then to Maisie for a moment.

"It's not what it looks like," he explained, stammering, as he took the joint from his mouth and laid it on the windowsill in a very safe fashion, obviously. Drake hopped off of the windowsill, cursing to himself as he landed on the needle, breaking it underneath his worn sneaker. Well. He could always deal with that later. His silver gaze turned back to Maisie and he started towards her, his fingers tapping against his sides before he realized his sleeves were still rolled up.

Drake was quick to roll his sleeves down, to cover up the myriad of of self-harm scars and needle jabs that traced his skin. It wasn't something he was particularly proud of since many of the scars would never fade, and would remain forever crisscrossed across his skin as a constant reminder of every time Drake had curled up in his closet at home, and brought razor blades against his arms. "It's nothing, I swear. I wasn't acting weird in the car. It... it was normal."

Normal for Drake, anyway. "You... you won't tell anyone about this, right?"

Soap​

 

[Dazzle]

Carter


Carter didn't bother to turn around when she head Mason wave her off. She was ready for some space from everyone, and could only focus on getting to the lift. Even with Maisie in tow, she felt like she just needed sometime away from Mason mostly.

Carter turned to Maisie as she quickly excused herself. It really hadn't been a problem, Carter had mostly been using Maisie to get away from the Rivera's whether Maisie wanted to learn how to snowboard or not, carter didn't really care. "No worries, I'll see you around Maisie." She smiled turning away from the girl and heading over to the lift.

She tied up her boots, putting her headphones in to drown out the rest of the world. At least snowboarding was one thing she could count on for her to help forget the world.

Riding up on the lifts were always so quite, you could see the entire mountain figure out what path you wanted to go down. The world just seemed better from up here. It was like meditation for the people who didn't meditate. She leaned her head back, sliding her goggles down over her eyes. She took a deep breath taking in the crisp air. It felt like it might snow tonight, fresh powder for tomorrow would be amazing.

So many thoughts kept passing through her mind. Why had it even bothered her, Mason and her had always been friends. They fought over the same girls, and he protected her from the dumbasses. They were just friends. So why did it bother her, Raven flirted with everyone. Mason flirted with everyone, but this just seemed so different. She pushed the thoughts away as she pushed herself off the lift. She was over feelings, she was ready to just blast herself down the mountain a few more times before heading in and drinking more.

Soap Winona @Open



​

 

[Winona]

Ash


Ha! She knew if she just refused to budge, Kanen would give in eventually. Her friendship with Kanen was... strange, to say the least. Ash had never spent so much effort trying to get someone to open up to her, or so much time doing things like this -- refusing to leave, when she would never do this for anyone else. Then again, none of her other friends were so closed off, but if they were, Ash honestly wasn't sure she wouldn't spent the time to sit around and annoy them like she did with Kanen.

Whatever. It was just a good friendship, or... something. However unlikely of a friendship it was. Ash walked around to the other side of the car and opened up the passenger side door, climbing in and closing it after her. Well the car was still freaking cold, but at least it wasn't as bad as outside. Ash pulled the lever on the seat so that it felt back, and then she got laid back, slipping her hands into her pockets to try and keep warm. Kind of, anyway. Man the fireplace would be great right now.

"So I don't know what just happened, but I'm guessing it has to do with Stu since like you were all happy and stuff until I called him over. So I'm sorry about that." Damn it, did anyone actually not hate Stu? "And like, knowing you, I doubt you want to talk about. But if you do, I'm here and as stupid as it sounds... I'm not going anywhere."

However, Ash did have other questions, and she turned to look over at him, biting her lip for a moment. "So we haven't really had a chance to talk, and I guess I'm just wondering... are you like... clean?" Yeah, she obviously hadn't forgotten having to throw away the drugs that he'd given to her, and then everything had happened so fast, and Ash hadn't had a chance to follow up with him and find out how he was doing. And yes, she was worried about him.

High5ives​

 

[txlos]

Hunter

​

At least there was one person in this godforsaken town that she would know. For one in her life, for once in what seemed like fifty moves, there would be someone whose name she knew, whose life she knew, who could be something of a friend to her. Hunter didn't have many of those. Friends, I mean. Due to the nature of her parent's spontaneity, she was never able to stick around long enough to have anything of a serious friend. Sure, she met people along the way. Partied with them, hung out with them, slept with them. But it wasn't ever anything... intimate. Whether it be the short-lived friendships or the boys and girls who kissed her for a month or two, they were all fleeting from the beginning. At least, they were in Hunter's mind. But she tried not to have that feeling going into Westbrook, she tried so hard. She tried to imagine herself making genuine friendships, laughing with people without thinking of what was going to happen when she left because maybe she wouldn't be leaving anytime soon right?

God, the thought made her chuckle to herself as she pulled out her phone, eyes diverting from the snowy landscape down to her iMessages. Sawyer had been texting her for a week straight, asking if there was anything Hunter needed even though she had told her five times over that she was okay. Sawyer had been one of the very select handful of people that Hunter had bothered to keep in touch with. Sawyer was a genuine human being, who Hunter felt somehow... protective of. And being close to her again could only mean good things. Again, familiarity.

It wasn't long before the cabin on iMaps came into view, the cab slowing down before eventually coming to a stop. Hunter wouldn't lie, she was slightly impressed. A bunch of high school students, unsupervised in a place like this? That could only mean two things; booze and trouble. And damn, was she there for both. Quickly, the brunette pulled on a black leather jacket over a cream v-neck sweater, black high waisted jeans clinging to her legs and burgundy Vans laced on her feet. Her ice blue eyes scanned the cabin once more as she pulled her backpack from the trunk, slamming it up and patting it with her hand to send the car away before texting Sawyer.

New iMessage: Sawyer

I'm hereee xo

KingofAesir

 

[PenguinFox]

​

"Lover of poetry?" Ian chuckled. "Honestly, only sorta. Read the poem in a book once. I really liked it and thought it was highly accurate so I memorized it. Also-" he looked at Nova with a slight smirk. "Some people are impressed by that kinda thing. Makes you seem smart, which is a pretty great feeling when most people assume you're an idiot..." he trailed off as he realized that was a personal detail about himself that he usually didn't tell people. He typically acted like it was fine when people assumed him to be dumb, in fact sometimes he played up on that assumption and acted stupid. Ian supposed there was only so much of that an ego could take before it need some stoking.

The pair was silent for a moment before Nova started to verbalize her frustrations. From what she was saying Ian pieced together that she must be going through a breakup. A pretty rough one too. He nodded in understanding "Drop everything for that person..." he echoed blankly, recalling his own experiences. "I know that feeling." he added as he reached back over to his bag and pulled the bottle out again. "That's a tough cord to cut, but you don't owe anyone anything." he took a swig of the vodka and shook his head as is his body was trying to reject the liquid. Which it probably was. "At the end of the day the only person you have to answer to is yourself. Now I'm not saying cut that person off completely, unless of course you want to." he set the bottle down between the two of them so if she wanted more she could have some. "The point that I'm trying to make and not doing very well at is this; We're all a little broken, and you gotta look out for yourself first. Don't do things to make others happy." he pointed at her to emphasize what he was saying. "Do things to make you happy."

Ian wanted to roll his eyes at his advice. It was cheesy, but he felt true. Now if only he could follow it himself. "Don't bullshit yourself either. For the longest time I told myself that the path I was taking was for me, but it wasn't it was-" he cut himself off. Why was he telling her all this stuff about himself? First off, this conversation was about helping her, not an Ian pity-party. Secondly, why Nova specifically? He had just met her. Hell he hadn't told Danny or Ash about much of his personal life or background. Why her? "-Hey are you cold?" he asked changing the subject off of him. He dug around in his backpack and pulled out a towel. "It's not exactly a blanket, but you won't freeze to death." he said with smile at the ridiculousness of using a towel for warmth. txlos

 

[Soap]

Grace

Her girlfriend had a thing for the dramatics. Of course she did, she wouldn't be her without it. Grace's fake glare faltered and the 'tough' facade she'd put up quickly fell as her smile dared to show brightly. Rolling her eyes as she continued, though, only now noticing their proximity towards the other. And her blush from earlier returned when she brought up her compliments which were made to someone else, mind you.

Her mind went hazy as she found it a little too difficult to keep her thoughts from wandering to somewhere else, and much less public. But that wasn't going to stop her from continuing whatever this was. "My mercy, huh?" Grace narrowed her eyes at the girl under her and placed both hands on each side of her face, smearing the snow onto her own cheeks and releasing her pin on Sawyer for a mere moment before she pinned her to the cold ground again, but this time it was with her body as she placed her lips on hers.

She pulled away and suddenly the outside wasn't so cold anymore, Grace was almost positive that it had to be more than 90 degrees outside. She tugged on Sawyer's jacket to make them impossibly closer. "What do you say we... reenact this at the cabin?" She said moving her own leg between Sawyer's to entice the idea even further. While waiting for her answer, Grace felt a buzz from under her and was momentarily confused before she realized it wasn't her own phone. "I would ask if you're just excited to see me, but I'm more than sure your phone is ringing or something." Saved by the bell. Although Grace wasn't really in the mood for saving at the moment. With a small groan she lifted herself up from Sawyer and helped her up.

"Spoiler alert, your character dies at the end." She teased with an almost beaming smile.

KingofAesir




​

 

[txlos]

Nova

​

It almost pissed Nova off, all the sense this guy was making. Who was he to come in here and tell her to care about herself? And that what she was feeling was reasonable and valid? Yeesh... But he was right, wasn't he? Nova had never been one to put herself first. Quite the opposite actually. The brunette was infamous for putting others first, for making sure everyone around her was both physically and mentally safe. She was the one that people vented to, the one people confided in. Sweet Nova who was always there for everyone. And that's not to say that people hadn't been there for her, hell she'd be nowhere without Alaska and Drake (who she missed dearly), but something inside her always felt as though she was giving more than she was receiving. Even sitting here now, removing herself as much as possible and looking into her relationship with Jace, she was always sticking up for him. Fighting for him. Fighting to keep him emotionally and mentally up, as much as she could... and while she knew Jace loved her at some point, when did he stick up for her? He didn't... and the reality of that hit her like a million bricks. Her mind flickered back to Ash screaming in her face, Jace doing nothing. To when the blonde hid behind Grace, again doing nothing. The excuses she made to tell herself that she was put in place to protect Jace made her fists clench, her stomach lurch. Because in that relationship, who was supposed to protect her? A huff of air, almost like a gasp, scurried from her body as she fought back more tears. The last thing Nova wanted to do was cry more. She was done with it. Crying didn't gain her anything but exhaustion and aches.

Ian's voice pulled her from the little montage in her head, her ears drifting to his story and her eyes flicking to the bottle between them. Alcohol wasn't going to solve anything, it never did... but damn did it sound good right now. "But it wasn't," She repeated softly, giving a meek but grateful smile as she took the dry towel and draped it around her shoulders. He was right, it was much better than nothing at all. Grasping the bottle in her hand, Nova twisted the cap off once more, pressing the tip to her lips and pouring just a little into her mouth. The burn was a welcome shift of feeling. "It wasn't, it was for someone else. Someone you probably trusted," Of course, she was probably projecting, but god did she feel the same way. Her eyes flickered up to meet Ian's, a sort of knowing honestly lighting up her hazels. Ian sounded like he had probably been in a similar situation, and while she hated thinking of others, even strangers, in the same pain she was feeling it was nice to know that she wasn't alone. It's not like she was the only girl ever to go through a breakup.

"I used to think he was perfection, and I was blessed to be loved by him," A very weak, almost sad excuse of a chuckle blurted from Nova's lips as she took along sip of vodka before placing it back down between them. "I had found a boy who wasn't going to treat me like an object for once, someone I could play guitar with and take naps with, lay low with. I had to leave for... family stuff. Couldn't tell anyone. Came home to find he's into someone else. Practiced a stupid fuckin' song on my old guitar back in Seattle for weeks, was so happy to surprise him. And what for?" Another sad attempt at a smile made it's way to her mouth as she shook out her hair a little, shrugging her shoulders. "You're right though," The words barely a breath. "Maybe it's time I stop focusing on how lucky I am to have someone and find someone who feels lucky to have me. Protective, appreciative... y'know, all that good crap."

PenguinFox

 

[KingofAesir]

Sawyer


Sawyer was certain that she had Grace in the palm of her hand and was going to avoid getting smeared with snow. She was so certain of this fact that she almost didn't even notice when she did, in fact, get snow smeared on her face. Normally, she might have made a face or said a few words but all of that was forgotten when Grace's mouth was suddenly on hers. All thoughts about snowball fights or the fact that they were literally outside in the snow, in front of everyone, were immediately forgotten. Sawyer's hands found Grace's waist once more and she let out a literal dissatisfied whimper when Grace pulled away from her.

Grace didn't seem to be finished quite yet though as she tugged at Sawyer's jacket and said some very suggestive things about reenactment. Sawyer's breath hitched in in her throat when Grace's leg moved between hers and she had to take pause to catch her breath before she could even attempt to answer. Unfortunately, her phone chose this moment to go off and Sawyer could've smashed the thing against a tree because now Grace was climbing off of her. Sawyer groaned and sat up, taking Grace's hand to pull herself to her feet. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out her phone, wiping it off on her jacket before peering down at the screen to see who chose right now of all times to text her.

Hunter.

A smile appeared on Sawyer's face as the familiar name flashed across her screen right above her message. Sawyer simply snorted at Grace's joke about her character dying at the end as she went to respond to the message with a quick 'Awesome. I'm outside still.' before putting her phone away and looking around to see if she could spot her friend. She saw the cab driving away and brown eyes scanned backwards until they landed on a familiar face against the snow.

"Hunter!" Sawyer called out rather excitedly, taking her girlfriend by the hand as she raced over in the other girls direction. Despite never having really been much for affection, Sawyer had managed to become quite close to Hunter in the time that they knew eachother. Both of them at that time had been hopping from place to place because of family and it had just been an easy friendship. So, though it might come as a surprise to anyone else, Sawyer releasing her girlfriends hand to pull Hunter into an albeit brief but very tight hug wasn't unusual.

"I'm glad you made it. Welcome to the epitome of the West family wealth." Sawyer gestured to the cabin before glancing at her girlfriend and seemingly remembering that she should probably introduce them, "Oh, Grace, this is Hunter. We knew eachother back in one of the towns my dad and I stayed in. Hunter, this is my girlfriend Grace." She smiled over at Grace and gestured for her to come forward, still practically radiating excitement.

Soap txlos​

 

[txlos]

Hunter

​

The sound of her name being called by an all too familiar voice made Hunter's face twist into a smile. She whipped around quickly, backpack nearly flying off as she saw her friend's face come into view. Sawyer had always been kind, and inviting. Not to mention understanding of Hunter's entire situation. The two had clicked easily, like magnets, and it was something that the blue eyed girl had kept close to her heart throughout her travels. Not to mention Sawyer was just extra... special.

"You haven't changed a bit!" The brunette giggled, gladly accepting and returning the hug that the small blonde had balled her up in. And it was true, the girl before her looked just like she did when the two were forced to part ways. Same look of the beanie pulled over waved blonde hair, same clear skin and gleaming eyes, same excitement that seemed unwavering. Of course, some things were different. There was a light in Sawyer that Hunter couldn't recollect seeing before, this radiant happiness that seemed to flood out like a gross rom-com of a girl in love. It almost made her sad, considering that the blue-eyed girl didn't seem to remember Sawyer being that way with her... but it was soon resolved as to why the girl looked such a way.

Grace was absolutely gorgeous, and nothing like Hunter. She was thin, blonde, and put together. She looked like a girl who had a 4.0 GPA, was a cheerleader and could snatch the heart of any man or woman in the room. Above all, she seemed extremely likable. The type of person that people flocked to for fashion advice, life advice, love advice. The only advice Hunter could give was how to drink your weight in tequila without throwing up.

Plastering a smile on her face, Hunter did what any good friend would do and wrapped Grace in a gentle hug. "It's a pleasure to meet you Grace," The girl nodded, accent thick as she looked between the happy couple. "You're a very lucky girl. Sawyer is a brilliant woman." And it was true, she was. It wasn't that Hunter necessarily had feelings for Sawyer anymore, she understood that was happened between them was a one night thing and that they would remain good friends, but damn did she miss having someone. Anyone. But hey, if Sawyer found love in this old town, maybe she could to. Right? Yeah... right.

"Who're the Wests?" Hunter chimed before gesturing to the cabin, eager to get out of the cold. "People I should watch out for?"

KingofAesir Soap

 

[PenguinFox]

​

Ian listened to Nova's description of who was now her ex, and he had to admit, it sounded like a pretty good relationship. Until it wasn't that is. From what Ian heard it sounded like an impatient guy, who wouldn't wait up. If your significant other disappeared for a while, shouldn't you be concerned as to why first? Instead of just moving on? It almost seemed as though this guy might not have ever cared in the first place. Ian would not ever voice that opinion, that might make her feel worse. It might sound like he was saying 'Yeah you should have known from the start'. Instead Ian looked her in the eyes, with just the tiniest hint of what could be described as regret in his own, and said "Everyone deserves happiness, and to feel special. If both parties in a relationship don't, is it really a relationship?" he shrugged again before reaching for the bottle between them and taking another sip. "But again, I'm no expert."

Nova had mentioned practicing guitar, which very much peaked Ian's interest. His curiosity eventually became too much to contain. "This is a little weird, I'm sorry, but you mentioned you play guitar? You'll definitely have to show me sometime." he couldn't contain his excitement and his childlike grin said it all. "This sounds so dumb and stereotypical but back in California, wait-" he stopped and switched into a stereotyped surfer bro accent. "Back in California me and my bruhs had a band." Ian laughed at himself before returning to his normal voice. "I taught myself some guitar, but I'm wicked on a drumset. I can also do bass, less complicated for my small brain compared to guitar. Before I left I was also singing." Ian stopped suddenly. "Uh- sorry. I tend to ramble about things I'm passionate about. Feel free to tell me to shut up when I do that, I know it's annoying." he flashed her a sheepish smile txlos

 

[Soap]

Grace

She was suddenly being pulled by Sawyer towards... someone she didn't recognize, it was even more weird when she pulled her into a hug. And the only thought coursing through Grace's head was; please don't let it be an ex. She knew Sawyer had girlfriends before, yes, but she didn't want another to appear out of thin air. Like Natalie, or well, even like Theo did. Drama was the last thing they needed considering their family was basically at each other's throats.

Okay, Kate was at Sawyer's families throat. Nevertheless, they didn't need another problem. Not that whoever this... gorgeous woman was, was going to be a problem or anything! But, maybe, she was slightly, merely, and definitely intimidated by the girl in front of her. Grace awkwardly shifted on her heels as she waited for the two to finish their conversation before Sawyer had introduced her. Oh. Friends. okay, yeah, perfect. Grace was totally, amazingly cool with friends. Putting on a smile and holding out her hand towards her.

And Grace, yes, Grace out of all people was surprised when she was pulled into a hug. But she returned it nevertheless. She didn't want to seem rude. And... she seemed really sweet so, of course she wasn't going to not return the hug. "It's uh... a pleasure to meet you too." The accent put her off for a second, she was so elegant and acted so sophisticated. Say what you want, but British accents really made a person seem superior. At least, to Grace anyway. Then she was on about how her girlfriend is basically the greatest woman in the world. "I'll never know how I lucked out." She agreed with a smile.

When she gestured to the cabin Grace took that as a sign to get moving. She tilted her head towards it as they walked. For once, she didn't know how to explain the Wests. Considering her relationship with her only daughter was... well, it wasn't good whatsoever at this point. But that didn't mean it was unfixable. They always fix things, that's... who they are. Shouldn't be too hard to do... right?

"The Wests are the people who own the cabin, their kids invited everyone over. Ash, she.. can be a lot sometimes. But I wouldn't say you'd want to 'watch' out for." Unaware if the 'watch out for' thing was more of a, 'should I introduce myself?' Kind of thing or not, but Grace took it as otherwise, seeing as, even she, was technically 'watching out.' From Ash. "Oh. And Jace is a sweetheart, extremely shy though, might scare him away with all of that." Grace gestured to Hunter. It was a few seconds later she realized it might've sounded like an insult and she jumped to apologizing.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it like you're a bad all that. I mean, like wow. All that." It was only around now she noticed that she rambled... a lot. Grace decided to shut herself up by opening the cabin door for the two girls. And changing the subject completely.

"So, how long have you two known each-other?" Just because she was intimidated by Hunter doesn't mean she was going to hate her, Grace hated girls like that, so, naturally. She wasn't one.

KingofAesir txlos​

 

[txlos]

Nova

​

She didn't think it was possible to smile today, much less laugh, but somehow she couldn't even keep back the laughter that spilled from the brims of her lips. Ian was funny, the brunette couldn't deny that. He seemed extremely confident, and sure of himself. Like he had been through some tough times but was the type of guy that pushed through and took it one day at a time. And most of all, he was right. Nova deserved to be happy, she deserved to be able to protect and be protected but holy hell why was Jace still in her head? Why couldn't hours act as days, if time really does heal all wounds, and be done with it already? Oh right... not how the world works.

And so he liked music. Not only did he like music, he was a musician. A singer, bassist, drummer, guitarist, a true talent for his age. Ian talked about music with so much passion, like it was apart of his daily life, like it held the same importance as breathing. She could see it in his eyes, the way his face lit up, the way he looked so eager when he asked Nova to show him what she know, the same way that-

The same way that Jace got excited about music.

"It's not annoying," Nova quipped, shaking her head and taking the bottle directly from Ian's hands. She could feel the effects starting to take her, the warmth in her cheeks, radiating throughout her entire body and making her fingers tingle. None the less, she grasped the bottle by the neck and took another swig, wincing again at the taste. God, she hated it. Hated it. It smelled and tasted like rubbing alcohol. But then again, it was definitely numbing some of her earlier pain. "Music is one of the purest things we have," She sighed, shrugging her shoulders and swinging the bottle by the neck in small circles, watching the liquid twirl. "I genuinely think it's going to be one of the few things that keeps me sane. So trust me when I say I won't ask you to stop talking about it." A genuine smile graced Nova's face then as she looked up to meet Ian's eyes again, taking the towel from her shoulders and handing it to him.

"Are you doing anything the rest of the night?" The question was innocent, non-suggestive and friendly. More than anything, Nova just didn't feel like being alone. "I was gonna try to find a room and change into something warmer. I think I'm okay to go inside... just needed a breather."

PenguinFox

Hunter

​

Ah yes, Grace was most certainly the type that Hunter had expected. Spoke soft and kind, and even when she most certainly insulted someone, like the Wests, she was quick to correct herself. Never wanting to be on someone's bad side and most likely sticking up for anyone and everyone who called for her help. She almost felt bad for the poor girl. Hunter couldn't imagine exerting herself like that, caring for people who didn't care for her. Then again, very few had ever cared for her, so it hadn't even been much of a problem.

As for the Wests, they seemed like an... interesting pair of siblings. The lack of detail that Grace had provided on the two wasn't surprising, but Hunter was always one that wanted a leg up before she walked into a group of strangers. She was never one for surprises, never one to walk in and not know anything. Although it looked like that was precisely the situation she was putting herself in. So far, she gathered that Ash West was someone who could be 'a lot', so maybe a bit of a drama queen? Maybe someone not to associate with if it meant Hunter being pulled into any bullshit. And Jace, well... any boy who was going to run away from her seemed like they needed a pick-me-up, which... well, a different time perhaps.

"Oh gosh," The blue eyed girl was slightly taken aback by Grace's question of how they met. She looked to Sawyer with a wide grin, laughing as she pushed hair from her face. "It must've been a year, year and a half ago now. We were both living in New York at the time and we both managed to sneak into this party. People started noticing we were a bit young and we got out together and hung out in the city the rest of the night. Best friends ever since really," A shrug rose and fell from Hunter's shoulders as she looked between the two before looking around the massive cabin. If these were the types of people living in Westbrook then there was plenty of fun to be had.

KingofAesir Soap

 

[KingofAesir]

Sawyer


Sawyer wasn't going to say anything about the Wests. Considering that Ash was Grace's best friend, or whatever was going on with them right now, she figured it was probably best to keep her mouth shut on the matter. She let Grace explain to Hunter who the Wests were as they made their way into the cabin. Even if she might dislike Ash a little right now she agreed with Grace on the watching out for part. Ash was a lot but definitely not a bad person in the least and Jace was....well he was Jace. There wasn't much else you could say about that kid. All in all, Hunter had nothing to worry about and Grace seemed to think the same thing. She was glad she didn't have to say anything on the matter, though.

Sawyer could've laughed as Grace rambled, trying to recover from potentially insulting Hunter. She seriously doubted that Hunter had taken it badly anyway. She was an extremely attractive girl, Sawyer had excellent taste thank you very much, and she was fairly certain that Hunter was fully aware of that. Besides, Grace was too adorably rambly for anyone to take anything she said badly. When Grace asked how long they'd known eachother as they stepped into the cabin Sawyer looked over at Hunter inquistively as she brushed snow off her shoulders.

She smiled at Hunter's answer and kind of chuckled. Fond memories of entirely too many people crammed into one space and entirely too loud music. She could remember the taste of bad alcohol on her tongue like it was yesterday. Sawyer also remembered Hunter's hands and Hunter's everything else and the smell of alcohol that was on both of their breaths. It had been...something. But that was a long time ago and she had Grace now, who she associated with softness and promises and not alcohol and memories.

"Yeah. Was quite the night." Sawyer chuckled as she pulled her beanie off her head to brush off snow that had gotten in her hair, "I was an idiot kid, still am. I'm lucky Hunter was there or I'd probably have gotten drugged or something. I've never ran so fast in my life." Her beanie returned to it's rightful place, "I'm pretty sure that was the first and only time my dad has ever tried to ground me."

Soap txlos​

 

[High5ives]

Kanen didn’t move much as Ash walked around the car and got in. He just sat there, leaned back all the way with his eyes closed. His ands were folded neatly across his chest, which rose and fell with each drawn out breath. There were still clumps of snow stuck to his hair and coat, slowly melting in the relative warmth of the car. It was cold, but not cold enough to prompt Kanen to move.

He let Ash talk, waiting until she was done with everything before he said anything himself. “I’m clean. “Kanen said, pulling his sleeve up as proof. No tracks. “Almost three months now, though I have a drink here and there.” He explained. “I’ve got an apartment down by The boardwalks, Daniel visits sometimes.” Kanen went on, intentionally ignoring whatever she had said about Stu, at least for the time being.

He paused for a little while, running his hands up through his hair. “I guess I feel guilty about how things went down.” Kanen began, referring to how he had thrown Stu and then just disappeared. He took in a deep breath, holding it before letting it out slowly. “Gets to my head, then I just get unsure about everything, and it all just drives me batshit.” Kanen tried to explain.

He wasn’t really sure if he was making any sense, but Kanen went on anyways. “Like, sometimes it all just feels like it’s too damn much, and I just wanna crawl into a fucking hole. Sometimes me and Danny will go to lunch, and little things just drive me up the wall, and it makes me want to just lose my shit or just take off at a fucking sprint.” Kanen sighed again. “It’s like a damn, one little leak, and then all the sudden the whole things is falling apart.”

Winona​

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper​

Casper waited. And waited. And waited.

Within five minutes, his finger was in his mouth, other hand twirling his hair. He nibbled at the finger, wondering what was taking Stu so long. And then he realized he was being ridiculous- There were plenty of reasons for Stu to be gone this long. Maybe he had to go to the restroom. Or maybe he was getting his stuff. Things took time, after all.

At ten, Casper was starting to really chew at his finger, wondering where Stu was. Was he okay? Should he go find him? No, he hadn’t been gone that long. He was just getting too worried. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes.

By the time Stu actually came back, Casper’s hand was bloody. He’d almost forgotten why he was upset in the first place, having moved away from the cold window to sit on the lower bunk.

When he saw Stu, he immediately smiled, wiping his finger on his pants and covering that hand with the other as it rested on his thigh gently, doing his best to hide the bleeding.

“Hi, Stu!” he said, a stray tear slipping out. Casper wished he could wipe it, but his fingers looked disgusting, and he couldn’t let Stu see that, so he left it. “I meant to ask you which bed you wanted because- I don’t really care.” He sniffed, not really bothered by the fact he was lying.

Casper lied often- maybe more often than most people expected- so the novelty of the moment was lost on him.

Dede​

 

[Dede]

Neck Tie

​

Neck Tie shouldn’t have left Nova with the stranger. He didn’t trust the way the guy just shoved the vodka in her face to win her confidence. He almost wanted to tell someone about it. Maybe even Jace. But Theo was there, so he couldn’t. He lingered in the hallway awhile not knowing what to do. Little surprise he ended up doing nothing at all.

When he got back to his own room, Neck Tie already felt like the biggest loser in the world. Well, this was no new feeling for a kid who talked to ants in his locker, but it was still a bad feeling nonetheless. He shut the door with a defeated sigh and plopped his bag on the floor. He hurried over to the window trying to see if he could catch a glimpse of Nova from there. But the window was all fogged up and facing the wrong end of the porch. . . or was it a different porch? He didn’t have the slightest clue.

His eyes trailed over to Casper who sat on the lower bunk, only to focus in on his hands. How quickly and sharply he reacted to and spotted the blood, Neck Tie would have actually made a pretty decent shark! Come to think of it, he should have just stayed at that aquarium near Boston and never returned to Westbrook. It would probably have been for the greater good ofeveryone.

‘Cor! What happened to your hands?’ He pulled Casper’s hands out of their hiding for a careful inspection. ‘Is that frostbite?!’

Neck Tie had never seen actual frostbite before, so he had no idea what it was supposed to look like. Well, that wasn't entirely true. He guessed he’d seen it in a film before. It was about this guy who was stuck in the woods and was fending off a pack of wolves, while he excruciatingly froze to death. Then his fingers started to peel off the bone completely because of frostbite. It was awesome.

‘Does it hurt? . . . We should get someone to look at it.’ Neck Tie sounded either genuinely concerned or genuinely excited. ‘If you leave it. . . they might have to amputate your hands. I’ve seen it in a film!’

The bed wasn’t a priority right now. Though secretly he was glad Casper didn’t have a preference and had already settled in on the bottom bunk. This meant that Neck Tie was likely going to get the top one!

‘It’s freezing in here. We ought to get the fireplace going, so you can warm your hands. . . you know, before they fall off. Come on.’ He didn’t even wait to hear Casper’s opinion. Every second they hesitated was a second wasted. Neck Tie didn't even know how to start a fire, so he was probably going to have to find someone else to do it. At this rate Casper wouldn’t have a finger left by the time they got the fire going!!

mikaluvkitties mentions txlos PenguinFox
Dazzle (maybe?)

 

[Winona]

Ava


Great. So Mr.I-crash-into-girls-on-my-snowboard was also staying here. Well, not that Ava was particularly surprised -- it felt like everyone was staying here -- but it did manage to rub her the wrong way even more. Which, to be perfectly honest, wasn't difficult to do these days. Everywhere she looked, something was happening that just managed to set her off.

"Oh... great..." her disinterest and distaste in the idea of being roommates with the kid were definitely evident. "Hopefully we don't actually share a room. I prefer to keep the attractive popular jock types very far away." It was like holy water being thrown at a demon -- popular kids caused Ava to shrivel up and scream.

Ava then grabbed her backpack straps as if she was an excited kindergartener once again on her first day of school, back when everything made sense and she wasn't always hissing with hatred at the world. "As much fun as this has been, I currently have a date with a little thing called my Switch calling me, so I'm gonna head inside. Later, loser." She said, and started making her way towards the cabin, this time making sure to keep her eyes open in case someone else tried to knock her over.

Soap​

 

[Winona]

Ash


To say she was surprised was an understatement. Ash hadn't exactly had faith in Kanen to go through with it -- how many other times had she tried over the years to get him to stop drinking, only for it to fail? Of course she was happy, albeit still worried that something would happen and drag him right back into drugs. That's usually what happened, wasn't it? "Seriously? That's amazing. You should let me come over and visit sometime."

She was quiet, turning her gaze back to the roof of the car before Kanen started to speak again. Ash didn't want to think about the events that had gone down when Kanen had left. Hell, she'd been so wrapped up in everything that had happened, Ash hadn't even realized Kanen was gone at first. And yeah, maybe she hadn't cared enough to know at first after what he'd done to Ryder, and what Ryan had said to her, and just everything else that followed.

"It was... scary, to see you like that." Ash admitted. She'd never been scared of Kanen like she had that day, and it was still something that she didn't like to remember. "But... Well of course you feel guilty, but that isn't going to solve anything." She said, remembering faintly when Stu was tossed into the chairs. "But you did what you thought was right, I think, so... God I don't even know. Why did you leave? Why did you even do it?" She asked.

"I don't know what's going on in your head, and I'm sorry that you feel like that. But... you can't just keep running from your problems." She said slowly, biting her lip in thought as she tried to think it over. "Or your mistakes or whatever the hell it is. No one is mad at you, no one hates you. The only who is mad at you is, well, you. And I mean, Kanen, you can't just... Why do you just keep hating yourself so much?"

High5ives​

 

[PenguinFox]

​

Ian couldn't contain his grin. Music was what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. Maybe, he wasn't completely sure, but he was passionate about it and he was fairly good at it so it made sense. Usually when he talked about music this passionately it tended to scare people off, but this sweet brunette in front of him, who reminded him so much of his ex, was not only ok with his ramblings, she was encouraging them. He nodded to her sentiment on music. "I feel exactly the same way." he said tossing the towel back into his bag, along with the bottle the two had been sharing, which had quite a bit missing. Strange, it didn't seem like either of them had taken that many swigs of the fire water. He guessed that meant they probably had enough for a little while. You gotta pace yourself after all.

When Ian turned back to Nova he almost didn't hear her question as he was getting lost in her smile. It was soft, and genuine, and beautiful, and pure, and- no. He refused to let this happen. He was happy that she was feeling better and back to having a smile, but that was the only way he felt about that. Nothing more, nope. Ian stammered for a moment before regaining control. "I-uh...I don't uh, I don't think so." he offered a half smile, a tad embarrassed at how off guard he was caught. "Just you know, whatever everyone else seems to be doing I guess." he shrugged as he stood up and brushed snow off of himself. "I'm glad to hear that you're doing better." Ian gave a genuine smile, before it turned into a goofy grin. "-because between you and me, I think my butt was starting to freeze." he laughed lightly before offering her his hand to help her up.

Ian picked up his bag and moved to the door where he held it open for Nova. "After you." Once inside he turned and faced her. "We definitely should talk more later." he said in a friendly manner. He felt like he could be pretty good friends with this girl. Hopefully there would be no more of those...emotions that he definitely did not start to feel earlier. That would make things complicated. "I'll definitely be around." With that he let Nova go so she could change and made his way to the living room where he tossed his bag into a corner, effectively claiming it. He hoped no one asked him about it, but that was where he intended on sleeping; in the corner, on the floor by the fireplace. txlos

 

[High5ives]

“It was...scary to see you like that.”

Kanen blew air out his nose, almost chuckling. Ash didn’t know the half of it, and Kanen didn’t plan on correcting her. What had happened in the auditorium was child’s play, really. When Ash asked why he had left, Kanen shrugged his shoulders. “Why would I have stayed?” He countered. “No family here, no job, not even a house at the time. Just about everyone had made it perfectly clear I wasn’t wanted around. Why not just take off, try and start something new?”

Kanen was quiet when Ash tried to reason with him. Yeah, maybe she was right. Maybe Kanen was the only one who was so hard on himself. But, if Kanen just ignores what he had done, or somehow managed to convince himself that he hadn’t done anything wrong, wouldn’t that be worse? Besides, Ash was wrong. Kanen knew everyone still looked at him like a fucking addict, even if he was clean now. People in Westbrook might not hate him, but no one was going to let him just forget how many times he’d fucked up.

“Why do you keep hating yourself so much?”

Kanen shook his head. “You don’t get it.” He spoke. How could she? What had Ash ever done, aside from drinking a bit too much at a party, or having some stupid drama with the girls at school. Whatever she had done was forgivable. Whatever she messed up could be fixed. But Kanen would always be an addict. The people he’d hurt would always have their scars. Kane couldn’t just apologize and take everything back again.

“No one is ever going to let me forget the shit I pulled, I can’t forget. Ok.” He paused. “I go to sleep, and shit is just on fucking repeat. It’s like watching a fucking horror film almost every goddamn night. You try that and tell me if you don’t hate every fiber of your being? Pull a trigger, and let me know if you don’t think about turning that barrel on your self once in a while.” Kanen stopped.

“I don’t hate myself. I hate everything that’s lead up to this point. I fucking hate Boston. I hate this fucking car. I hate these fucking tattoos, and the piercings, and everything Ash.”

Winona​