[center][sub][color=lightgray]Shortly after Keep My Head Above Water - Monday Afternoon
A Collab with the Heartbreakers, Nina Belmonte, Avery Kaine, and Rosie Hawthorne-Drake [@metanoia][/color][/sub]
[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220606/f42f44a4912ced8bef5afd62759f6ba3.png[/img][img]https://i.imgur.com/lMTh03w.png[/img]
[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220606/3ff9b55ba69b3b5aa292c06c48cb2b18.png[/img]
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[color=lightgray][indent][indent]Sitting in the parking lot of Palermo, Caterina leaned back in her seat, replaying her last moments with Clay. Closing her eyes, her heart aching at her stupidity, she tried to gather herself, settle her emotions, and focus on the now before seeing her sister. Ninetta had this scary intuition and was the only person who could see past Cat’s mask. That is what the eldest Belmonte child did not want.  

It was Monday afternoon at Palermo. There might be a customer or two but Mondays were rarely busy. If it was busier than normal, it usually was because it was a holiday. Struggling to put his face out of her mind, seeing how quick he threw on that token, dumb grin of his before leaving the apartment, her heart broke at the realization that Clayton Costigan was so much like her. She was terrified at how raw everything felt with him and how much she so desperately wanted to be with him. In such a short span of time too. 

All this time, she thought he was happy. His lifestyle was so carefree, so jovial, so… simple. This past week, though? Broke down her idea of him. She didn’t see him anymore as the boy next door who liked to joke and flirt. No, she saw Clay as a lonely soul who so desperately, like her, wanted to feel loved and needed. 

In reality, he wasn’t the only one that built a fantasy around the other. Cat somehow convinced herself that no matter how old Clay got, no matter how many times he made advances, no matter how much time he spent being there for her, even if it was small moments at her sandwich shop, somehow she convinced herself he was not a man. It made it easier to deal with the attraction. 

This feeling, the spark, the chemistry, the overwhelming adoration, she wanted to avoid because it scared her. It scared her to no end. In this moment, as she sat here thinking about him and only him, she realized she might’ve always felt something between them. Everytime she found out he slept with one of her friends, she got jealous. Even way back when, when he was an Elite and he slept with that Pinehurst girl, she had some kind of sensation that she needed to bury because she was married and ten years older than him. 

When the crowd went wild and she was sitting on the bleachers for his last game, she saw him alone and she gravitated to him, instantly. There was a natural pull, like magnetic attraction. Cat hated seeing him alone and deep down part of her always knew he wasn’t being completely honest with himself. Someone who should be happy… she caught sight of the exact opposite. She saw her own reflection through Clay and she found herself running into him, over and over again throughout the years. Did it really take a night at the Afterlife to realize how attracted she was to him?  

This was why she needed to slow things down and think twice. This is why she needed to search for the reasons it wouldn’t work and avoid the hurt completely. It was selfish of her to take advantage of his kindness. It was selfish of her to lean on him so much and be a burden. It was selfish of her for wanting him. He could be happy with anyone else. He certainly looks good with just about anyone he’s ever dated…

But he chose her. 

He [i]loved[/i] her. 

Why? 

Coming back from the depths of her mind, Caterina patted her cheeks and put her game face on. In a matter of minutes, she was out of her car and carrying a brown bag with italian cheese, ricotta cheese, porcini mushrooms, and anchovies inside of it. Making her way inside of Palermo, she grinned when she saw her darling sister behind the bar checking inventory, making sure it was well stocked and clean. Surveying the general 
area, Cat only noticed two girls eating pasta in one of the booths. Other than that, it was a quiet Monday. [color=9f1b3e]“Hey you, I got the goods.”[/color]

[color=c13637]“You’re a lifesaver,”[/color] Nina excitedly waved at her sister, before gesturing with her rag toward the kitchen, [color=c13637]“You know where to put it, then come back so I can fix you a drink.” [/color]

[color=9f1b3e]“Oh, day drinking?”[/color] Placing her free hand on her chest, in honest shock and awe, Cat curiously inquired, [color=9f1b3e]“Since when did you condone that behavior?”[/color] Making her way inside the kitchen, Cat’s eyebrows rose, wondering if her vanilla sister caught a fever. Was Nina enabling her problem? Or could she already tell that her older sister was severely depressed and no smile could hide that from her? So much for trying to play pretend. 

Damn empath. 

Nina shrugged as she put the rag away, washed her hands, and started fixing her sister a classic Aperol Spritz, [color=c13637]“We haven’t seen much of each other since my trip to Cape Cod with our babies. I thought we could celebrate!”[/color]

From the kitchen, Cat started putting some of the ingredients away and loudly replied back, [color=9f1b3e]“Celebrate what?”[/color] While not one to deny a drink, Cat found it hard to believe that her sister wasn’t up to something. 

What was Nina up to? 

[color=c13637]“A new era, of course!” [/color] Nina called back. 

Returning to the bar, the eldest Belmonte grabbed the gorgeous golden-orange drink and took a ginger sip. Bubbly, refreshing, and slightly bitter. Instead of saying anything, she watched her sister she was closest to lean against the bar, observing her with gentle, yet contemplative eyes. Taking another sip of her drink, Cat expressed her feelings through her face: [color=9f1b3e][i]what?[/i][/color] 

Puzzled and a little nervous that Nina had a good read already of her emotional turmoil, Cat guzzled down her drink. [color=9f1b3e][i]Stop looking at me like that.[/i][/color]

[color=c13637]“You know, you don’t have to down every drink that gets handed to you like that. It’s okay to savor it.”[/color] 

[color=9f1b3e]“[b]Hey[/b], you gave me this. It’s your fault.”[/color] 

Cat wasn’t wrong about that. 

[color=c13637]“That’s true, but I wanted to see something,”[/color] Nina admitted, her agenda steadily coming to the surface. [color=c13637]“How are you feeling? Since the fight.”[/color]

There it was. The worry.  [color=9f1b3e]“Like shit, but it only gets better from here. We haven’t seen each other since I dropped the kids off, but even then it was brief.”[/color] Pushing her glass to her sister, expressing with her eyes for another, Cat watched as Nina took the glass and rolled her eyes. She did make her another drink and this sparked a question that Cat thought she’d never ask Nina specifically. This was more of a Brooke and Harpy thing to do. [color=9f1b3e]“Are you trying to get me drunk?”[/color]

[color=c13637]“Just helping you ease a bit because I know you and I know the news you heard about mom last week is killing you, on top of plenty of other things.”[/color] In three minutes, another Aperol Spritz was made and pushed toward her sister. [color=c13637]“I don’t usually condone this but you’ve been… scattered lately. Your store hours have been sporadic, you don’t visit me as much, and I can tell you’ve just had a lot on your mind. The test is soon too, are you nervous?”[/color] 

This is what Cat gets for telling her sister almost everything. Nina knew too much. Well, one thing she didn’t know was the reason behind her shop not opening at a consistent time the past week. It was hard to leave her boyfriend’s side when she didn’t have the kids around and she could cuddle with him until he had to go to work. Cat wanted to spend as much time as she could with Clay which was kind of embarrassing now that she thought back on it. He made her feel like a blushing bride. He loved her tenderly but also fucked her senseless. The best of both worlds.  [color=9f1b3e]“I’m not nervous about the test. I’m more worried about—”[/color]

[color=c13637]“—how dad would react?”[/color]

[color=9f1b3e]“Yeah. But I don’t really want to think about that right now. Or about mom’s time running out,”[/color] A lot sooner than expected. Silvia only had at most two weeks left and only her, Nina, and dad knew. Guzzling down her second drink, Cat was not only thinking about how things ended with her boyfriend but also now her parents. 

[color=c13637]“You know what you need?”[/color] 

[color=9f1b3e]“More booze?”[/color] 

Ha. Funny. 

Cat did a funny. 

[color=c13637]“No. You need to [b]dance[/b],”[/color] Exiting the bar, Nina went to the TouchTunes Virtuo Smart Jukebox and swiped through the songs, [color=c13637]“That’s something I haven’t seen you do in awhile. It’s part of who you are, sissy, so you should definitely make time for it.”[/color]

From the booth over, [url=https://media.puntal.com.ar/p/eb1a184aeb5fc46a8596cdc7c4a537a5/adjuntos/270/imagenes/000/982/0000982391/20-04-22-maya-hawke-daily-mailjpg.jpg]Avery Kaine[/url], daughter of the owner of Swerve Arcana, silently chewed a mouthful of lasagna as she read the new Langley. Across from her was Rosalie Hawthorne-Drake, her fellow coworker, daughter of the Vice Principal of Edenridge High, and partner in crime when it came to them being bored out of their fucking mind. Glancing up from her book, Avery’s baby blues gravitated to Clayton’s dream woman’s ass and her attention was no longer on the next adventure of the Paper Warriors. With little regard to their privacy, Avery eavesdropped on the conversation between the two hot Italian sisters. 

[url=https://i.imgur.com/dIZFTOr.jpg]Rosie Hawthorne-Drake[/url] sat with legs crossed under the table, dividing her not-so-fixated gaze on both the issue of the latest Psylocke issue and the gathering of mature hotties that she noticed Avery just couldn’t stop drooling over. Giggling almost at the sight, Rosie tried to keep her nose out of it but Avery always managed to poke at her curiosity even if she didn’t mean to. So naturally, the blonde was also lending her ear to a conversation that they weren’t intended for.

Before Nina pressed on the song she decided on, she turned to Cat, who was already done with her second drink, and reminisced over the times when they were young, with no adult responsibilities, [color=c13637]“You had a big test? Instead of spending the whole night studying, you spent two hours practicing a new routine. You wanted number 7 to notice you? You spent the whole weekend practicing new moves just so you could impress him at a party. If there’s one thing you need, it’s to stop your brain for a little and just dance, like you’re in the club everyday. Ain’t got time to cry in it.” [/color]

[color=9f1b3e]“Okay, NayNay, I get it. You’re worried about me, but I promise you I’m okay. I swear,”[/color]  Furrowed eyebrows, frustrated and a little peeved, Cat crossed her arms to face her sister by the jukebox. What was she on about? 

[color=c13637]“How did your 2004 mix for the Shining Star tournament start? Oh yeah, that’s right,”[/color] While not a cheerleader, nor a dancer, Nina was the main sibling that helped her sister with her routines and gave her positive motivation when she struggled to learn new moves. Bringing the past back, she pretended to hold a mic (mind you, Nina was completely sober) and began to announce, [color=c13637]“Ladies & Gents, it’s time to get lucky!”[/color] Unbeknownst to Cat, Brooke crept from behind her, hiding within the bar and made her way to the two girls eating. 

[color=ae70db]“Hey babes, can you record us?”[/color] The [url=https://i.pinimg.com/736x/ca/bf/e5/cabfe50e6a559369bf0461dc2df23722.jpg]sexy goddess[/url] whispered. 

[color=c13637]“Prepare for the next chapter of the Edenridge Clovers.”[/color] Nina went on. 

Confused but distracted by the woman’s sex appeal and smooth, flawless skin, Avery grabbed Brooke’s phone and agreed dumbfoundedly. Whatever was going to happen, it was going to be gold. The comic nerd hoped it was what she was thinking. She prayed to something, anything, anyone that this would be one of her wet dreams come true. 

This would be a live lesbian porno. 

Only time could tell. 

[color=cd5c5c]“Whoa, now that was unexpected.”[/color] Rosie’s interest doubled, a pair of blue eyes solely on Avery, though they diverted to the gathering of Edenridge’s hottest milf or would-be milfs that totally didn’t serve as the immediate inspiration for the next arc in her graphic novel series.

Beside her sister now, Nina dramatically posed and pointed to the ceiling, like she was Michael Jackson. [color=c13637]“This is it, Sisters of Green, back to give you the best.”[/color]

Oh yeah. This was going to be good. Once she wiped her lips and fingers with her napkin, Avery started recording. First the video focused on Brooke’s mischievous smirk as she crouched in front of the young girls, waiting for her cue. 

Rosie immediately pulled out her phone, though she hid it between the Langley latest that Avery brought and the Psylocke one that Rosie brought. She had to capture this for…research and there was no way in the unforgiveable summer Boston hell that she was going to let not only the objects of Avery’s wet dreams, but now hers, call her out for being a perv. Of course, they’d be right, but Rosie could be a sneak. So as the recording started, Rosie just started to rapidfire the shots. Good thing her camera on her iPhone was the best.

[color=c13637]“The legendary Clovers—”[/color]

Quietly, Brooke took off her leather jacket to reveal her tight black tank. Unable to take her eyes off her, Avery thought to herself, [color=fccb8e]‘Gods, this woman is so fucking hot’[/color] and was wondering if she was caught in some fever dream. Little did she know what was yet to come. 

Brooke’s gaze went from Avery then to Rosie, all while a video was being recorded. [color=ae70db]“You two are about to experience a once in a lifetime thing. The Clover Heartbreakers, back at it again. Watch your hearts because we’re about to break it,”[/color] She said their cheesy slogan and even gave the camera a wink. 

[color=c13637]“—Let’s make the Monarchs kiss our…”[/color] Nina put her finger on her lips and gave a dramatic, loud, and expressive [color=c13637]“Shuush.”[/color] 

Cat was stunned.

Perking up, Brooke finally got her cue and baby was she ready. It was time for her to shine and cut in. Sauntering her way to her alluring mama friend, Brooke cheered, [color=ae70db]“We bleed Green: We’re stronger now!”[/color] 

Cat was caught off guard as Brooke latched onto her and forced her into a tight embrace. [color=ae70db]“We got you, bitch. We’re always here for you, you know that.”[/color]

Then from out of the kitchen, Cat heard [url=http://picture-cdn.wheretoget.it/dk6jfg-l-610x610-dress-kat+dennings.jpg]Vanessa[/url]. [color=B1E4FC]“We bleed Green: Can’t take our crown!”[/color] Her sister from another mister who too was unhappily married. Wait, did Cat miss her? Not too long ago she was in the kitchen. Was she in the kitchen this whole time? 

[color=9f1b3e]“Nessi?”[/color] She questioned, almost in disbelief. No longer with her arms crossed, the eldest Belmonte covered her mouth in heartfelt shock. 

What was going on? 

[color=ffbf00]“We live it, we breathe it, you better believe it!”[/color] [url=https://d1uultx1bn4pxt.cloudfront.net/items/pictures/511176/original/open-uri20131002-2-jkfcu4?1551258838]Harper[/url] in her cute, tiny black dress poked up from behind the piano. HARPY WAS HERE?! The blonde of the crew jumped in excitement, her boobs bouncing with every hop. Harper pranced with her heels to the growing group and crashed into her friends, giving them a big bear hug and kissing Cat all over. 

They were almost complete. 

In unison, like the sisterhood that they were, Brooke, Vanessa, and Harper shouted, [b][color=#AE70DB]“[/color][color=#AE7EDF]L[/color][color=#AE8DE3]u[/color][color=#AF9BE7]c[/color][color=#AFAAEB]k[/color][color=#AFB8EF]y[/color] [color=#B0D5F7]C[/color][color=#B1E4FC]l[/color][color=#BADFDC]o[/color][color=#C4DABD]v[/color][color=#CED69D]e[/color][color=#D8D17E]r[/color][color=#E1CC5E]s[/color][color=#EBC83F]![/color][color=#F5C31F]”[/color][/b]

And finally, from the second floor dining area, [url=https://pics.wikifeet.com/Kate-Siegel-Feet-4871660.jpg]Lydia[/url] with her fierce bitchface exclaimed, in the best attempt at a cheery she could do, [color=027c1b]“This is our NOW!”[/color] The moment her best friend, who worked an awful lot, came into the picture, Cat couldn’t contain her joy any longer. She started crying tears of joy, flooded with happiness. Like a wrecking ball, she ran to Lydia, who rushed downstairs and picked her tiny friend up and spun her around. 

Cat did enjoy getting picked up… it was something Lyds learned in middle school. Once Lydia kissed her best friend on the cheek, she whispered something in her ear that no one else could hear.  [color=9f1b3e]“What are you all doing here?!”[/color] 

[color=FFBF00]”We were sent an SOS,”[/color] Harper shrugged, adjusting her dress that was slipping down. 

Vanessa tied her hair up, preparing for the next surprise, [color=B1E4FC]“Lyds texted us all so we all took some time off.”[/color]

[color=AE70DB]“WE’RE GETTING FUCKED UP TODAYYYY!”[/color] Brooke shouted, pouring herself a quick shot of whiskey. Ready to get turnt. 

[color=#027c1b]“I can’t take all the credit, Nina caught me up so we wanted to do something for you. But that’s enough with being sappy. Let’s dance. I’m only doing this right now so make use of it. I’m too old for this shit.”[/color] Lydia explained. 

The moment was interrupted when Nina started one of the songs that was on their cheer mix. She played Destiny Child’s Lose my Breath and without hesitation, Cat’s friends got into position in front of the bar and broke into the start of an old [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJDN_OVKez4]routine[/url] that was ingrained in their minds.

With the bar as their backdrop, Caterina took center, with Vanessa and Brooke to her left and Lydia and Harper to her right. The dance therapy was exactly what Cat needed. Her deep emotions as well as her overwhelming amount of sensuality, with no restraints, flowed out of her. Flowed out of all of them, honestly. And at least for this moment, Cat was smiling and enjoying herself. 

For close friends, the Heartbreakers had undeniable sexual chemistry and together, when they danced, they were aphrodisiac, bootylicious, and dirty. Keeping the camera on these ladies as they danced, Avery looked at Rosie and mouthed, [color=fccb8e]“What the fuck?”[/color] This was no joke. A dream of hers was coming true. The Clovers were known for their sex appeal but these five ladies, the Heartbreakers? They brought it up to another level. They broke the goddamn scale of sexy. Why wasn’t Avery born in their year? She would’ve killed to see more of their performances because now watching all this, she was hot and bothered. She was [i]thirsty[/i]. Clay was going to want to see this, she just knew! 

If she had one word to describe what both she and Avery just witnessed, it might just be a damn miracle. On their damn break, not only were they going to eat some damn good food that not even her father’s world famous Drake Dogs could top, but to be given the show of a lifetime. Avery was salivating, there was no doubt about that. She knew her bestie and if she wasn’t showing it, then it was happening elsewhere that even Rosie didn’t need to know about. Meanwhile, the blonde was getting [i]so[/i] many ideas. How to articulate sexuality in a fun, unpredictable way. And those pictures? Yep, they’re going on her private blog as soon as she had a moment to…appreciate the photos intimately.

[color=cd5c5c]“All I can say is…wow.”[/color] Rosie, thy name is in awe.

Before the two observers realized, one song became another, but the next one was not in the Clover books and completely improvised (Cat and her friends choreographed this on their own). Something the Heartbreakers performed at the talent show (their senior year) and it was to Christina Aguilera’s [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwQOladSAgk]Dirrty[/url] [sub](watch the first dance set with the five girls)[/sub]. At this point, both Avery and Rosie were standing up and moving closer to the show. This was their own personal and metaphorical lap dance and they were [i]living[/i]. 

Clayton was going to be so jealous.  [/indent][/indent][/color]