Realistic or Modern You've Got a Friend In Me (WUATHW SPIN-OFF)

[nova.the.alien]

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mood geared up and ready to go

location their apartment

outfit this

mentions nala

tag dikdik

odette castillo

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The guitar solo for Welcome to the Jungle filled the air in Odette's apartment, and they took a long enough break from packing to shred a playful air guitar. Admittedly, they hadn't really been in high spirits, which was their usual modus operandi around the holidays, but the promise of seeing their sisters and dad broke through the icy layers of whatever pissy mood they'd built up over the last couple months. That, and the sound of Guns N' Roses blasting through their speakers raised their hype levels quite a bit. They were nice speakers too, a gift from an ex of theirs who was a sound designer for local theatres that they could never give up now that they'd discovered the bliss of bass swimming in their ears at their convenience.

With a dramatic sort of flourish, they zipped up their last suitcase and flopped down on the bed in relief, feeling the tension ebb away as they came ever closer to being around their family. It was an event that was long overdue. Unfortunate circumstances led to Odette's absence from family Christmas for the first time ever, but now that the New Year was said and done, the opportunity had presented itself, and Odette took it without hesitation- and for this particular trip back home, they decided to invite Nalani to come along. It had taken some effort on their part to finally convince Nala to take some time off and road trip down to New Orleans. But they'd hardly met a challenge they couldn't rise to, and ended up successful.

They rolled their suitcase to the door with a pet carrier stacked on top for Junkyard Jim-- leaving him home alone for an extended period of time would only cause a disaster, and they wouldn't dream of letting a friend take care of him. He was a friendly guy, but he was saucy and mischievous, and Odette figured that was their burden to bear alone because they were the ones that took on a pet raccoon in the first place. Beside the suitcase was a small bag of items for Jim, a food and water dish, some canned food, and his favorite blanket. It was really just the camping gear they needed to gather up, it was already all together of course, it was just a matter of hauling it out of the closet. First things first, however, it was time to call Nala and make sure that he was just as ready as they were.

They picked their phone up off their dresser where they'd left it after connecting it to their speakers, and swiped away the Spotify app as the sounds of Welcome to the Jungle faded away. They opened up their contact list, and under 'frequently contacted' sat Nala's name with a heart and a cocktail emoji next to it. Without thinking, they initiated the call and headed to their closet where they flung the door open. The sound of ringing split the quiet and almost sent Odette into a panic as they raced to disconnect their phone from the speakers before Nala answered the phone. They were successful by only a miniscule number of seconds before Nala's voice greeted them on the other end of the line. "Nala!! Babe! You packed and ready yet? I might need help getting this tent out of my closet..."

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© weldherwings.

 

[dikdik]

Nalani Emery jolted awake from one hell of a dream faster than he ever thought possible, his wired earbuds were still dangling from his ears, blaring some sort of obnoxious tune he must've found at least mildly entertaining last night.

Last night? What day was it again? Rubbing his achy eyes with hands that felt, and reeked of, the sweet stick of grenadine and lemon juice, he sat up, taking in the sight that had become his room. He could've sworn last night was spent in the break room at the bar, perhaps on the ruddy beige corduroy couch that had inhabited it since long before Nala bought the place. Wherever he fell asleep originally didn't matter. He had his phone, locked in a vice grip with that dangling cord in tow. He had his keys or he wouldn't have been able to get into the building. He had his wallet stuffed in the tight back pocket of his black jeans. The ones that hugged his waist just a little too tight- barely enough to leave thin red trails around his back where they rested.

That was a success, then!

Nala beamed around the room, the soft light entering from behind the curtains feeling just a bit too loud. He located his keys on his nightstand beside a mysterious fish-shaped purple and blue bowl stuffed with half-burned, crushed flower. The curves of the bowl felt more intriguing than he assumed they might, had he been a bit more coherent. They melded into the blown glass fins that kept the bowl sitting upright on the black table. Nala's eyes eventually found the daunting analog on the wall near the window. It was a bit more blurry than he would've, but suggested he'd slept in a proper amount, given the night he must've had.

Releasing the vice grip he'd clutched his phone with, he noticed the date. The... The date! Fuck!

Nala leapt from the bed, still fully clothed in something sticky and just a tad too pungent for a re-wear. He stripped down to his underwear and opted for a sprint of a shower to start off his mid-to-late morning. It was Road Trip Day!

Entirely too lost in his own apartment, he scrambled about, sniffing shirts here and there and trying to remember which mess of a stack was his clean laundry. Gray pants identical to those he'd just taken off, a black shrunk-in-the-dryer t-shirt, and a short-sleeved lemon printed button up he knew he'd just leave undone were the finds of the day. Oh, and a clean towel. The man might not have a fresh shirt, but he sure as hell washed his towels religiously.

Just as Nala swept up the pile of fabrics great and small into his arms and began his trod the whole 5 feet to the bathroom, his phone blared "Whoa-oh-oH-OHH Sweet Child-a Mi-ine" into earbuds that were somehow still connected to his head. Scaring the absolute hell out of him, it continued to ring for a few seconds before he remembered he had set it to ring with Guns 'n' Roses for his dearest, Sweetest Odie.

His eyes shot wide open and he dropped the pile, realizing he was in his underwear, stinking of liquor and who-knows-what, and he now had to tell Odette he'd be late.

"Hey, Boob! I am definitely not ready. I can help you get the tent out!" He laughed at himself quietly, starting to get dressed and opting to-

"For a price. I need dry shampoo."