DELETED398633

CANCELLED.

_{A @Lovely Complex and @Universorum collaborative project
Starring: Damian "Alpha Dog" O'Connor, Joy "It's Not that Simple" Darling, & Ophelia "Oh, But It Is" Brycen.
Location: Somewhere on the boat with rowdy boys → Somewhere else on the boat → Not the boat}

Damian was the life of the party. There was no getting around it, there was no other explanation for it. He was fun, he was hot, he was loud, he was rambunctious. He was rowdy, and! And he was a good drinker. Damian was not, however, a very good listener. Brian had said ‘don’t drink, and don’t party too hard.’ What was Damian doing?

Currently, he was upside down, supported by two football team members, with his mouth around the tap of a keg. Damian probably could have supported himself, but he didn’t mind the camaraderie that came with accepting the help of his team members. Joy, his girlfriend, who had been introduced as such to all of his friends, and basically everyone at the party — she was now a superstar, like it or not — was standing nearby with some kind of mixed drink in her hand.

Other couples were dancing, or kissing, or spending time together with some kind of dessert food. Damian, however, had brought Joy along to do what he did best: have a good time. As far as he could tell (he didn’t have a very good view of her from his current position), she was enjoying herself. And, hey, that was what mattered.

The alcoholic beverage Joy drank the most was wine, with her mother occasionally, during dinner, but ever since she started attending these massive parties, she’s been exploring unknown territory. In her glass was a full glass of Midori Pina punch. Strikingly green and kind of sweet. She bobbed her head to the music, taking sips every so often, and smiling at her boyfriend’s foolhardy spirit, as she quietly observed the revelry she was caught up in. As he went hard with the keg, a stranger approached her and gave her a smug grin, “You guys did it yet?”

What?

Dully, Joy looked up at the guy, who she knew nothing about, and replied, “Excuse me?”

“FUCKED! Did you guys bang yet? Y’know what I meant!” Wow, forward. After No Name replied, he cheered the Alpha on, “DAMIAN! DAMIAN! GO, GO, GO, GO.”

“I don’t think that’s any of your—”

Joy was unable to finish her retort because the drunkard rudely interrupted her. He seemed to only be half listening to her; completely in his own world. “I’d be surprised if Dam’s hadn’t. He’s got a way with girls.” The jock continued to watch the star football player in amazement and gave a nod of admiration and approval. “Consider yourself lucky, babe. I don’t remember the last time this guy has made one of his conquests into a commitment thing. The dude never commits!”

Babe.

His words lingered on in Joy’s mind and her eyes no longer were zoned in on her boyfriend. No, she started to notice the stares. Some girls smiled and waved at her like they’ve known her all their lives. Other girls ignored her and kept their focus on the boys, especially Damian and his unreal body. Tightening her grip on her cup, she looked past Damian, who was hanging upside down, and noticed a group of boys checking her out, like they actually found her attractive.

Before the random was able to talk more to Joy, someone came through the crowd to save her. Save of course, is a relative word — from Joy’s point of view, this was probably the second worst person who could possibly tap her on the shoulder. “Hey, Joy. What’s going on?” The voice, of course, belonged to Ophelia Brycen, Joy’s cousin (by adoption). As Ophelia spoke, Damian dropped his legs down and stood up on his own two feet, turning to look at the pair.

Damian smiled and high fived his friends, before he moved over to Joy and Ophelia. “Hey, Lia! Are you here to crash the party again? This one might be a bit tougher…” Damian laughed and winked at her, before wrapping an arm around Joy’s waist.

“Actually, I came to borrow Joy. We need to talk. Girl stuff.”

Unintentionally, and more of an action of her subconscious, Joy’s body turned rigid within Damian’s hold. She didn’t know what Lia wanted to talk about with her specifically. When did Ophelia ever want to talk to her? Never letting her smile leave her face, Joy calmly shrugged, “Sure, if that’s alright with you, Damian.” Something about Joy was off, as she glanced up and locked eyes with her boyfriend.

Damian looked at Joy and frowned, his boyfriend senses tingling. He knew that something was up with her, from the way she tensed up when he touched her — the rest of it was just sort of icing on the cake. “What do you mean if it’s okay with me? If you wanna talk with Lia, go for it.” He smiled at her, and Ophelia was quick to tug at Joy’s arm and pull her away, off into the crowd. Damian watched the pair of them go (for multiple reasons), and folded his arms over his chest. This night may end up poorly, for him at least.

“Dude, you’re like a robot.” Ophelia said, once she was sure they were out of earshot of everyone else.

“Good. I like robots.” Joy teased the blonde, not really caring how she appeared to her. As far as she was concerned, they were acquaintances, even if down the grape vine they were related, “Why does it matter?” Joy looked at the Candy Queen amused.

“Hey, I don’t judge. I like robots too. It’s just pretty clear that this totally isn’t your scene. I can smell the awkwardness on you. Or it’s just the fruity alcohol, it could go either way,” Ophelia responded with an eye roll. “If you don’t want to be here, why are you even here? And don’t give me that ‘Damian wanted to come’ crap, I know you don’t care about what any guy thinks except for maybe your Uncle and your father.”

This would be the first time Joy was exposed to this side of Ophelia, which honestly surprised her. If Joy was being honest, she saw Lia as one of Hailey’s pawns, therefore making her an evil bitch that was out to get her brother and everyone else that went against the Demon Queen. With a contemplative stare and a moment of silence, Joy took a sip of the drink she didn’t even like and examined Lia’s expression. Visibly concerned and a tad bit sassy, but far from fake. “Because.” She carefully thought of her words before continuing, “This is your guys’ world. I’m allowed to want to see how it feels. Turns out, I hate it. I came because it made sense at the time. The type of girl Damian needs is someone who fits in this scene. Not some future accountant or something like me.” Joy was human. Lia may have been right with saying that she doesn’t give a shit about what most people think, but Damian was different. She always cared about what he thought, even when they were little.

Ophelia scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Look, if you’re gonna date — and this is in general, not just if you’re going to date the man — then you have to learn this right now. Men are easy, dude. They’re chill. They’re usually relaxed, they rarely stress stuff like this. You don’t have to think you’re not the type of girl Damian needs because you don’t like partying.” Ophelia paused for a moment to shake her head, and brush some of her blonde hair out of her eyes, “besides, Damian could have had anyone he wanted, and he wanted you. Why don’t you compromise?”

“Compromise what? My virginity? Ophelia, I’m sorry, but you’re not Damian, and you can tell me all this — whatever this is — but it still doesn’t make sense. None of this makes sense. You’re right, he could have anyone, he probably has had everyone else, and yet now he wants the female version of Dexter, from Dexter’s Laboratory. All because I dyed my hair to look like my surrogate mother.” Kylie, who possessed everything she did not have. Charisma. Beauty. Exoticism. A welcoming presence. A body to die for. Don’t get her wrong, her actual mom, Jude, was absolutely gorgeous (and Asian), but there was something about Kylie that people couldn’t help but love. Joy didn’t know how to explain it, but it seemed like she would never possess that mystery factor that made her Mitty unbelievably attractive.

“No, idiot, that’s not what I meant… I like the Dexter comment, though, because I really liked that show when I was younger. Life was simple… But I’m straying from my point. I meant, you guys went to a party like a week ago. You don’t like parties. Why don’t you just say ‘hey, I don’t like parties. Let’s do something else this time, and we’ll go to the next party.’ Life is easy, dude. And no, you don’t have to give your virginity… I haven’t even done that yet.” Ophelia took Joy’s hand and gave it a squeeze, to try and reassure her that ‘Hey, you’re not wrong.’ “Also, I’d like to say that Damian knew you when you were younger, and you guys were like really tight, right? I bet he had a wicked crush on you back then — did you ever think that seeing you suddenly become immensely physically attractive to him reignited old flames? Because that makes sense to me… And it would explain why he’s still trying, even though you don’t want to put out.”

The last point, Joy couldn’t believe and she awkwardly laughed, “What? Damian DID NOT like me back then.” Complete denial, even if there may be some fond memories of him being affectionate and cuddly. That’s just what they did. As friends. Old memories slowly crept into Joy’s mind of the time before they went their separate ways. Before either of them had reps to live by, before he had a long list of ‘conquests’, before she closed herself off to others and built a secluded lifestyle… before everything. “We were basically brother and sister.”

“That’s what everyone says about people they crushed on when they were too young to know what a crush is. He was totally into you, and now he’s into you again, when he can act on it, and he is and all you’re doing is fighting it and trying to be the girl he wants you to be, instead of being the girl you know he wants, which is… you, Joy Darling. You have a chance to date the guy that girls drool over, like, even the younger teachers. And you’re scared of it because you think you’ll have to change, when you won’t, because he obviously, wants you. Ugh, let me try and put it into terms you’d understand: Damian is the legendary drop from the end game boss that dropped just for you and you’re not picking it up, you monkey!”

Huh. Lia was making perfect sense now. If her Uncle saw how she was acting, he’d shake his head because she was totally being a pussy, when she wasn’t one. When was Joy afraid of something, other than her mother, to the point that she felt inclined to change who she was? To the point that she felt the need to ask permission to talk to a girl obsessed with the concept of love? If what Ophelia was saying held any value, then the girl Damian liked was the girl he knew ten years ago and not the girl that he can easily get in bed with, only to grow tired of the next day. He was committed to her because she was a challenge, but also because she wasn’t just any other girl that drooled over him. She was the girl that he wanted to drool over him. “I got it.” Joy pushed her drink at Ophelia to take, before dismissing herself, “Thanks for the advice. You’re smarter than I thought you were. Now, I’d love to stay and chat but the boat’s about to leave and I need to get off.”

“Just stop being a whiny baby, geeze…” Ophelia shook her head, and took the drink before turning and walking off without another word.

Rolling her eyes, Joy turned her body and retraced her steps to find her boyfriend. She pulled out her phone, just in case she couldn’t find him. When she got to the spot where she left him, she noticed he wasn’t there. Finding the rando from earlier, she tapped his shoulder, “HEY!” He turned around, mildly shocked at the change in her voice. More abrasive than earlier. “Where’s Damian, dude?”

“Uh, he went somewhere with Justin, I think.” He leaned in, obviously drunk and having a hard time keeping his balance, “Oh! You never did answer my question.”

“He’s waiting until I’m ready!” And with that, she left the dumbass and took her phone out.

To: El Jefe
Meet me by the coat room.

Leaning against the coat closet door, Joy checked her phone for the time. It was three minutes before 8:45 PM. The boat would be leaving soon. Anxiety started building inside of her as she patiently, not so patiently, waited for her manly man.

Luckily for her, it was less than a minute, before Damian showed up, coming up to her at a slow jog, though he wasn’t smiling quite as much as he normally would be. “Hey, Joy. Are you alright?”

“No, actually. I just want to spend time with you. Can we leave?” She pocketed her phone and broke the distance between him and her, offering her hand.

Damian took her hand, but had to consider her words for a second. He’d told Brian he’d be around all night, and he’d look like a right fucker if he wasn’t. But, the thing about these kinds of get togethers was Damian always ended up looking like a right fucker. “Uhhh, yeah, that’s cool. I’ll just call Brian in the car.”

“Good.” She held his hand firmly and more assure of herself, then led the way out and off the boat.

For Queen and Country

𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗬𝗧𝗢𝗡 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗜𝗡

"Do you remember the lullaby? The one you use to sing to me." Reina Stein, around her early twenties, sat on a log, drinking a beer. Deeply in thought, she stared into the flames rising from the dry tinder. Her skin glowed the colors of rage and her eyes flickered those same colors, orange, red, and yellow, as if they were putting on a show for all those that got lost in her pupils. Twilight faded to blackness in the Wood and the only light given to two wolves, momentarily away from their pack, was the crackling bonfire, where the smoke disappeared into the night and the wind's whistle warned them that their glowing ember would not last long. As she waited for her older brother's response, she took out a single cigarette stashed in her left ankle boot — never one to carry a purse. After using the fire to light it up, she gingerly brought the cancer stick to her thin lips, placing it in between with a subtle display of dependency.

"That's going to kill you one day." The larger man, with a well-toned and muscular body, late-twenties, was standing with his thumbs hooked in his jeans, also fixedly watching the blaze move. The shadows on the trees imitating it's dance. Nothing about how he held himself spoke youthfulness. If anything, his innocence was replaced with doubt and lack of faith for his brethren (and sistren) a long time ago. A man who was trained at his coming of age to be fearless, heartless, and loveless. With no fear, he would not hesitate. With no heart, he would not question. With no love, he would not be weak. Clayton Stein was his name, a warrior unlike any other, that played it by the rules, ruthlessly, since the day he turned. He had no choice at the time but to submit and obey.

Putting a young boy, cursed with an unloving household and a better left forgotten childhood, between the hammer and the anvil had its merits. Any younger, a monster could've been made, but no, if there was one thing where lady luck was kind, it was infecting him when he was nineteen. That gave him enough wisdom to fight his inner beast.

Although he held promising potential, he could never be the ideal warrior for The Bisclavrets. A werewolf is known for being bloodthirsty and vicious; a primitive creature that lacks empathy and holds tenacious hubris, all which lurks beneath their supposed humanity. Stein could see the beast residing in him and the high he got from getting lost in a murderous frenzy. He didn't like that side of him and no matter what, he knew he could never be ideal. The reason always being, he had someone he wanted to protect. Since the beginning he had someone to shield. Someone that made this infectious disease worth fighting. Someone he wished didn't follow his footsteps on a path that was given to him, when he had no say in the matter. The girl who sits before him, with a gaunt and ragged visage. The girl that gazes at the fire with desire. Desire to be more than she could ever be. The girl he called his sister.

"Hello? Clay! Are you even listening?" Reina turned her eyes to him, with glaring annoyance, as she breathed out smoke. "I'm going to take that as a—"

"I was. Sorry... It's getting late." Stein cleared his throat, while he nonchalantly looked up at the rustling leaves hanging from the trees, that sadly masked the night sky. "The lullaby... The... lullaby..." He played it like he couldn't remember the song, but how could he forget? It was the one thing that Rei outwardly showed appreciation for.

"Clay." Rei uttered in exasperation.

"Okay, okay. Y'know my pipes have never been the best, but how about I sing it to you before we head back?" He gave a smug smile, not wanting to showcase his worry for her, yet glad to see she still wanted his company. Unfortunately, as time went on, they were getting further and further apart.

He blamed her lover.

"I'd like that." The tired woman flicked her cigarette into the flame, before leaning back and adding, "One day, you'll sing that to my children."

Crossing his arms, Stein protested, "Woah, woah, woah! You're thinking way too far ahead, Reina. Let me have a family first, then you can follow."

"To have a family, you need a lady..." The young adult muttered under her breath.

"I heard that."

"Sing the song already!" Rei barked at her brother. Truth be told, this was one of their last, dear moments together.

Before Stein (who is now thirty six) got to the part in his dream (inadvertently a memory) where he sang to his sister, his radio mysteriously turned on. He was woken up by an eerie voice: Do you jump at shadows whenever the full moon is out and shining bright? Keeping his eyes closed, he listened to the message closely. Undoubtedly, the message would rile up the people more so than they already were with the reveal of the Other two weeks ago.

Today was going to be a long day. He predicted that Aila would have to deal with phone calls of people, majority being humans and the supernatural pretending to be humans, freaking out. Phone calls where they told her how the police should do their jobs. What they're failing to do. What their next course of action would be with protecting the people from these creatures they refused to understand. Phone calls upon phone calls. As for him, he'd probably be presented with hate crimes and his boss most definitely stacked more paperwork on his desk for him to do before he was permitted to review his files for his last case, The Murder of Clementine Everleigh. A sex worker known as Diamond Girl that unfortunately suffered far more than she deserved. Details not worth thinking about on his bed.

Ever since the Other got out, there have been obsessive radicals spreading conspiracy theories on the web of cases that have been long closed. The human way of life! Either turning their back on things they didn't understand or adding fuel to the already blazing fire, like this Helsing group. Pardon him, not all humans were bigots, zealots, and annoying fuckers, but the pressure was on for him and his co-workers and it'll take a lot of willpower to persevere. The fight had only just begun.

Along with trying to make a better Edgetoun for him, Aila, and those few he cared about, he had his duties within The Zephyrus Accord, since he was Beta. He was most definitely taking on more than he probably should, being both a prime 'human' investigator and the Beta with the least years on his belt. Add the constant guilt for leaving a couple of people behind, yeah, Stein was biting off more than he could chew.

His mind left the broadcast, as the radio suddenly turned off. With that occurrence, his eyes whipped open. Not only did the ray of light from his window, which he was sure he closed his curtain, blinded him, but the face of his dead partner glaring at him, inches away from his face, laying right beside him, caused him to jolt back. Have no fear! He did not fall off. His bed was king-sized because he needed the space.

"Shit, Coli." He immediately, and awkwardly, scooted off his bed, looking at the ghost that demanded his attention in rude spirits.

Sitting up ever so gracefully, her blonde locks dangling over her business wear, Colette, his dear, dead partner-in-crime looked at him with livid eyes. What'd he do? She wore her dark skirt that went to her knees, her nude hose, and her favorite white blouse. The only thing missing was her suit jacket that she was never fond of, always saying one day she'd burn it. This outfit was one of her preferred outfits to wear when she testified at court (though, she would wear the suit jacket out of requirement on being professional). With displeasure written all over her face, Collete snapped, "Who is this man? The one that sleeps through his first three alarms and wake ups when Aila is already in his kitchen scrambling eggs."

Dodging her sarcastic reprimanding, he went to his dresser and applied deo on his armpits, under his plain white tee. He was a man that took night showers to relax himself to sleep, if, he came home that night to sleep. "Coli, this whole popping out of nowhere needs to come with a damn warning sign. When I don't have work to rush to, we need to set some ground rules. I'd be damn if you've seen me showering."

"It's not like you can do anything about it." She teasingly winked, before getting off his bed and heading to his desk, where his open laptop was, "Plus, you know you're not the guy I like! Sorry, sweetpea, but when I look at you, I think of a zit that won't go away." He narrowed his eyes at her. Wasn't she the zit?! Haunting him and nobody else. Why didn't she show herself to their other colleagues? Why did she add more work to his already heavy load?

WHY, COLI, WHY?!

Placing her bottom on his comfy office chair, fit for a big man like her insufferable Stein was, Coli surveyed his tabs, without permission, "This whole rut of your's has got to stop. I'm here, maybe not in the way you'd like, but I am here. You're not going to maintain the peace and solve my murder mystery if your brain is only half working." She scanned through his emails, nosily going to his drafts. "By the way, when are you going to send this unfinished letter to Preston, hmmm?"

Stein slammed his laptop closed. "Don't worry about it." He was already wearing pants and buttoning up his work shirt. He hated this outfit.

"It seems to me you want to make a big reveal. Wolf at Edgetoun police station. How well do you think that would go?" Coli turned the swivel chair around to face him, both her arms and legs crossed. He knew these questions were only because she cared and didn't want him to get hurt, but this was a matter she had no say in because she didn't understand.

"I don't want to. I need to. Eventually. The sooner I do it, the better it'll be for those... like me. We're getting the worst end of the stick due to a hiccup—"

Coli cut him off, "A hiccup? Nick Bloodfang's case was a 'hiccup'?" Man, was she always this feisty or was she simply getting impatient with him? It's only been two weeks since she even revealed herself to him talking about things like Undead Anonymous and her journey as a ghost, saying she thinks she's getting down how to appear 'more human' again! Solving a murder with no leads takes time, Colette Bonnet. "You're smarter than that, Clay."

After putting his wrist watch on, checking the time as he did so, he grimaced, "As much as I'd love to stay and chat, I have food to devour and work to deal with."

"You can thank me, by the way. For keeping you tuned in with Edgetoun's happenings." Coli stood up, grabbed Stein's cologne, and sprayed his wrist that didn't have a watch on it.

What he didn't realize was how tired she was getting, with every action she did making herself seem human, especially to him. Touching corporeal things drained her, but she missed being able to do little things.

In response, he rubbed that wrist on his neck and grumbled at her, "You don't need to baby me."

"Maybe you're right, but this new Stein, who SLACKS, definitely needs help getting his shit together." She slowly started vanishing before his eyes. "I'll see you later, but please do remember, my case is still on the shelf and I can't leave this world until you help me remember what happened to me."

Right before she completely disappeared, he yelled, "Warn me next time!" The last thing he heard of her was a giggle and a light 'we'll see'.

Great. Just great.

His eyes widened when his glass colagne bottle was now falling to the ground. With quick reflexes, he caught it then placed it back on his dresser. In the same exact spot that it originally was in. Goddamit, Coli.

Oh right, Aila! He hurried to his kitchen, grabbing his shoes as he exited the door. How did she get in, you ask? Well, that's easy. She was the only person that held a spare key to his apartment. Coli, however, didn't need a key. Every place they've ever been together, which was most of this damn town, was a place she could come out of nowhere and spook him.

Either way, they had to leave.

CANCELLED.

_{Collab with @BrutalBx
Starring: Stella, Lee, & Luna
(Bottom) Luna interacts with Verónica @Kitty}

The Locke twins stood out among the masses, as they danced beside the Hottest-Not-Couple, Marshall and Trixie. Two out of four greatest masterpieces of the night. They did a good job and now it was time to enjoy themselves. Thoroughly. Although models were a common stereotype at Beverly Hills High, Stella and Luna, especially when they were together and their presences brought out the best of their other half, were atomic. The mere fact that they were rare faces throughout the school halls made their beauty far from understated. Their beauty was blaring, blinding, and neither seemed to care that eyes were on them and the Not-Couple beside them.

They were better than two dimensional photoshopped models. The exuberance of Stella’s youth and naiveté complimented the sharp and steadfast temperament of her twin. Both beautifully elegant, but one with energy out of this world, whose twin’s wit, cleverness, and insight contained such energy from overflowing. Stella’s audacious desire to do things without thinking about the consequences ahead needed someone like the closest person to her, Luna. Her moon. Her guide and the one who puts rationality in her dreams.

The party was electric tonight, everyone feeding off of the good vibes and the fast dancing. Stella wore an elegant red embroidery dress that went to her knees. It had an eastern Asian aesthetic to it and like a robe, it covered her simple, black one piece. Luna, on the other hand, wore a flowing, white summer dress, but the feature that stood out the most for her was the striking red lipstick to bring out her snow white features, as well as match her sister’s ensemble. Her bathing suit was the same color of her dress so nothing would seep through.

Everything around them was spinning, including the music, as they held each other’s hands and they danced like it was their last night on Earth. They had pregamed before they arrived, in daddy’s car, and since then they’ve been feeling wonderfully amazing. The way they touched each other showed they were extremely close and weren’t afraid to display that. The strobe lights only made their synergy that more magnetic. The music was a drug and they were high, high, high on cloud nine.

Pure ecstacy.

Luna grabbed Stella’s hand and twirled her. As Stella twirled slowly, her smile shined and made her glow, her aura undoubtedly visible. As if time slowed down, she caught sight of a boy staring at her. There was probably more people staring, but the way he looked at her caused her attention to be taken away from the moment with her sister and solely on him. Her body continued to move like an uncoiling rope and her eyes kept returning to his face.

She wanted to talk to him.

Hyde had been talking non stop since he and Lee had arrived at the boat. The Lord of Dogtown was desperate to make some quick cash but it hadn’t taken Leighton long to realise that his darker half’s desire would not be met tonight. The party, of course, came stocked with all kinds of refillable drugs, meaning the boys weren’t exactly gonna move much merchandise tonight. Nevermind, that wasn’t what was on Lee’s mind. Not tonight. Tonight he was focusing on the delectable blonde in the red robe. There was something in her eyes, something naive it was more than enticing, it was enthralling. She was looking his way, looking right at him and something stirred. He had never been looked at like that before. What was that sensation in his fingertips? What was this feeling that was coursing through his body?. All he could think about was his want to talk to her. "Hyde, go find a whore to lay on top of. I got a game to play.” Cameron said nothing, doing as he was told not because he was told to but because he wanted to.

Stopping in her tracks, to catch her breath, Stella beamed at her twin, “Luuuuuuuu, can you get us something to drink?” With puppy dog eyes, she waited for her twin to reply.

Luna, actually not looking too into her sister’s words, shrugged and smiled back, “You got it, babe. Anything in particular?”

“Surprise me!” Stella lively shouted over the music. With that, Luna was on her way to the area of food and beverages. Whether or not she was onto Stella had yet to be determined. Immediately after her twin disappeared in the crowd, Stella turned on her heel and with a bounce to her step, she boldly walked toward the boy that looked at her like her mother looks at food being served to her while she's still in bed. Not being subtle at all, she went straight to the chase, closing the distance between them, “Excuse me, handsome, are you a magician? Because when I look at you, everyone else disappears.” She playfully, and cheesily, teased. Stella was never one to be anyone but herself. Adorkable.

Lee’s lips curled into the rattlesnake smile that had become his trademark. God, she was even more mesmerising up close. "Well beautiful, I’m no magician but…” he reaches behind her ear, his fingers lightly brushing against her warm, silky cheek as he did so and pulling a silver dollar from behind it. "...I do have a few tricks up my sleeve.” The American Psycho places the dollar in her palm, placing a hand on either side of Stella’s, he closed her fingers to secure the coin. "If chance dictates I never see you again, carry that coin and remember tonight that luck is on our side.”

“Or, like, I can give you my number?” Stella had a light bulb moment. Exchanging digits would solve the problem of never seeing each other again. She could call him, he could call her, she could see him, he could see her. The options were endless if they were connected. That being said, the Beauty let his charismatic words fly over her head. Her luck was purely based off of her honesty and innocence. “Here. Give me a sec.” Stella patted her body in search of her cellular device. Suddenly, she came to the daunting realization that her sister had her phone.

This was absolutely dreadful. How would she give this fine boy her number? This was the end of the world as we know it. Might as well count her losses. Farewell, stranger. In another universe we could’ve worked something out. In another world, we could’ve been sweeter than candy. On another day, we could’ve been together. The sad life of Stella Locke. No love. Forever.

“Looking for this?” Speaking of the devil! And hero (Sadly, Stella had yet to memorize her own number)! Luna placed Stella’s phone in her free hand. The one not holding the coin. There was a reason it didn’t take Luna a long time to get the drink and return to her twin, in the nick of time. Her twin radar could find her sister quicker than most people and well, she had somewhere she wanted to be. In other words, there was someone Luna Locke wanted to see. Someone that wasn’t her sister.

She held a single drink in a plastic cup. The bartender called it ‘happy juice’. Luna initially was going to share this drink with her twin, but someone at the bar caught her eye and she decided that maybe today was the day she’d loosen Stella’s leash. Let her explore her horizons and live for the night. The challenge was not so much letting her go and have fun, but more so worrying about her too much. Worrying about her getting in messes. Worrying about her getting hurt. Worrying about her. “Who do I have the pleasure of speaking with?” The platinum blonde shrewdly scanned the boy with her green eyes and gestured for Stella to take the drink out of her hand. It was her’s.

As her twin did her judgy thing, Stella slipped the coin in her bathing suit top, snuggled against her chest, and then took a sip of the juice. Mmmm, this tasted really good. Happy juice! Stella looked from Luna, then to the mystery boy, back to Luna, then back to the mystery boy once more. He was already meeting family! This was a good sign.

Was luck truly on her side?

Lee watched as Stella stashed his coin in her top before his attentions turned to the newcomer. She shared a similar facial structure to the girl that was giving him that awkward feeling in his gut. Body Language was key here. Leighton’s time as Beverly Hills resident hustler had allowed him to develop a skill for reading people, their voices, facial expressions and yes, their body language. This new girl has a tremendous aura. It was strong, powerful and protective, especially of the mystery girl. It was a familial bond, that’s all it really could be; sisters. Same age or thereabouts.

The game had to be played damn carefully here. One wrong word and any kind of magic that could play out would be squashed by the alpha twin. He searched mercilessly in his knowledge for any bit of random information he could pull out to use to place them. He did not recognise these girls...no they weren’t from BHHS. That helped matters. If they weren’t classmates, he didn’t have to know anything about them, tonight would be the learning experience all first meetings are. Would it be a meeting of legendary proportions? He certainly hoped so.

"Apologies, of course I should introduce myself. Leighton McCarthy. Most people call me Lee. And prey tell what do I call these two marvels standing before me? He took a mouthful of his own drink immediately following his question. There was something familiar about these girls, maybe he knew a relative? It didn’t really matter. They were both gorgeous and easy to spot in a crowd but it was the angel in red, she was the one he was desperate to know. There was a fever growing in his head and to treat it, he needed to its name, her name.

Stella glanced over to her sister expectantly. Waiting to see if it was alright to give her name. As a sign of permission, Luna nodded at her hopelessly devoted twin, whose eyes displayed only that of hope. Genuinely and sweet, with a radiantly warm smile, Stella met his light brown gaze, which reminded her of latte, with her own. She had eyes like hot chocolate with tiny flecks of gold for marshmallows. “I’m Stella—”

“Last name is irrelevant.” Cutting her sister off, Luna tilted her head to emphasize her scrutiny. Her stare never left the stranger’s face. The Locke name was easily associated with the Greens, since their father, was the father of all the Green children. Also, Hailey’s last name was in fact ‘Green-Locke’. Luna didn’t want this boy to treat her sister differently because of their stature. “And I’m Luna.”

Shrugging at her sister’s want to keep their surname a secret, Stella wrapped her arms around her sister, all the while still holding her drink, and exclaimed, “We’re twins. Could you tell?”

“Fraternal. We have our similarities but we have even more differences.” Luna added.

“The twin gene is strong in our family. Our mom is a twin, whose twin had twins.” Trixie’s mom, Isabel, is Julianna Locke’s twin and two of Trixie’s brothers, out of four, are twins, Emmanuel and Elliot Kingsley. “And ma's cousin had twins!” Selena and Sean Sterling.

“Okay, Stel. I think he gets it.” For a second, her sister was getting lost in their family’s success with twinning the world up, forgetting where they were and who they were talking to.

Bringing things back on track, Luna assertively cut to the chase, “I’m not going to ask you 99 questions. Maybe, if you intrigue my sister enough for her to mention you to me after tonight, we’ll come to that. But, for tonight, I’m here to have fun. And.” She paused and looked at her sister, sighing to herself. Honestly, she wasn’t sure if this was a good idea or not. “I want her to have fun too.” That meant no helicopter twin.

Getting out of her sister’s grasp, she broke the distance between her and Lee, “I want your number so I can check up on her. And it better be your actual number or I will hunt you down and castrate your ass. I don’t care about who you are as a person because as far as I’m concerned, you’re just a boy my sister wants as company, at a party filled with drunk and hopeless kids. IF you guys become more than that, then we’ll talk. Until then, you will respect her or I swear to god.” The menacing words contrasted her gentle complexion but they were still extremely real and razor sharp. Luna was trusting her sister for one night, to take care of herself, and she was trusting this stranger to not take advantage of her. ”My gut never lies to me and I will know if something is wrong. Give her a good time or I’ll keep my word and ruin you.”

Stella was quiet throughout her sister’s word spew of threats and confliction, nervously drinking some of her juice. This was exciting and scary, all at the same time. A night where she and Luna were doing their own thing? That should end well for the both of them! Right? The taller blonde didn’t know how to feel. Her sister was okay with her spending a night with… Leighton. Leighton McCarthy. A soft smile fell on her face when she replayed his name in her head. “I like your name.” She thought out loud.

Lee stood almost aghast. This was a lot to take in, a lot of pressure. He had said maybe ten words to the girls and already the expectations of giving Stella a night to remember was high. Lucky for him, he would thrive under the pressure or at least he hoped he would. "By all means, this is my number,” Lee took the phone and typed in his digits and handed it back to Luna. "I promise I’ll do my best to give your sis a night she’ll enjoy.”

The mere presence of Stella had shifted Lee’s priorities for the evening. He had planned to come to this party, have a few drinks, pop a few pills and make some proper bank. That wasn’t happening anymore, not at all. The night was warm, the moon was high and the neon lights of the stupidly expensive boat they were in illuminated Stella’s soft features perfectly. Little specks of stardust shone brightly in her dark eyes, an otherworldly beauty. Every second that went by and the longer he looked at her, Lee felt himself becoming more and more mesmerised with her.

It was make or break time. Lee has never truly felt fear before, it was strange really. His life had never really been terribly easy, the constant verbal assaults, the football injuries etc, even the day he was told he had Huntington’s and probably wouldn’t live beyond thirty, he still didn’t feel terribly afraid. This moment, this was different to that. Something instilled in him a sheer panic, or washed over him like a wave from the ocean below. He had to summon all the moxy and hustle that a little Jewish kid from Manhattan had in him. He took her hand gently into his, glancing over to Luna as he did so. "I feel like we need to start this night off right then, you wanna dance?”

With Luna having given her permission already to spend time with the boy, Stella was no longer on hold and she didn’t need to wait for her sister’s reply, “I’d love to!” She squeezed his hand in playful admiration and passed her drink back to her sister.

Before they left, Luna had quickly dialed his number and called it to make sure it ringed. After it did indeed light up and ring, she nodded her head. Okay, he listened. “Have fun you two!” She shouted, before leaning in, whispering something in her sister’s ear. Okay. Now, it was time to bid them adieu and walk away. The hardest thing to do for her, honestly.

“Let’s rock the house, Lee!” Stella giggled, as she looked into his eyes.

"You got it, gorgeous,” Lee followed Stella out onto the dance floor and pulled her close to him. Breathing her scent in gave him goosebumps to the touch. As they danced the night away his eyes darted over her shoulder and he could see Hyde in the distance, holding some freshman over the railing and threatening to drop him in the water if he wasn’t paid. In that moment, the yuppie boy made the decision to keep Stella away from his dark passenger. She couldn’t see what he really was. She couldn’t know everything. Secrets. Already he was keeping secrets. He pulled himself back to reality and towards Stella, the world felt warm again after the past moment where it fell briefly cold.

Meanwhile, there was one place that Luna wanted to return to, as she sauntered through the crowd, in hopes a single person was at the final destination still. After placing her sister’s drink on a random table, she adjusted her white dress and placed her light blonde strands over her shoulders. Opening her hand purse, that was hanging over her shoulder with a silver chain strap, she took out her hand mirror to do a makeup check.

Still on fleek.

Snapping her hand mirror closed, Luna decided it was time to make her move of the night, like her sister did with Mr. McCarthy. Returning to the bar, Luna’s face shimmered under the lighting (yes, she had faint glitter on) and a smirk fell on her face when she saw the girl that she desired hadn’t left her post. Taking the stool beside the lovely girl, Luna ordered a drink, specifically a classic Margarita, before bringing her full attention to Verónica Mendez.

“I seemed to have overheard that you have a type.” Pause for dramatic effect. She looked at the brunette with mischievousness in her eyes, “Your type could range, since in my experience—” Her finger carefully swept some salt off the rim. Flirtatiously, she licked the substance off her finger, before continuing, “—There’s different ‘types’ of fish in this big, deep sea. Enlighten me, dear, what is your type? But before you shed some light...” She turned her body, to face the girl, while putting herself and her white dress on display, her legs crossed, and her face graced with a tantalizing gleam, “I’m Luna, one type out of many. Care to tell me the name behind such a pretty face?” It’s been awhile, since someone caught Luna’s eyes. This girl here was definitely eye-catching. At least, for her and that boy she declined.

CANCELLED.

^{▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄
Bailee & AJ
Collab with @melissahart
THEY'RE ON A BOAT.
▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄}

While Scott was at the top, AJ was grumpily at his post by the dance floor. Sober. He may have looked composed and jolly in appearance, but he was irritable on the inside. Everyone enjoying themselves were like flies surrounding him that he wanted to swat. Everything they did, from their stupid drunk words to their stupid drunk games, infuriated him. His shades were hooked on his shirt, as per usual, his arms were crossed, and his back was leaned against the wall beside the DJ. Jax was good. He knew a good tune that would make everyone want to be all over each other like sex on the dancefloor.

AJ would give him that.

In addition to Jax being cool with his gear and head bobs, a girl was checking him out hard. Even if there was hardly any room for anyone to move on the floor, therefore making everyone mesh together, AJ’s stare fell on the slender, dancing queen at the right time and the right moment. Right when she looked over her shoulder just so she could get a glimpse of Jaxxy-boy. Not obvious at all. The dude was too into the vibes of the club scene to notice the hottie.

Sucks to suck, babe.

Hopping up on the stage beside Jax, AJ swayed his body to the tune to make it seem like he was enjoying himself and ‘partying’ like errrrbody else, rather than being a damn watchdog on the alert for the Weekend Warrior. He thought to himself: You know what would make the DJ better? If I could shoot up a 151 and start making out with some random hottie because FUCK BOUNDARIES. As fun as his irrational thought was, his swaying stopped when his eyes fell on the heiress herself, Bailee Helmsley, playing the field like she was Becca Helmsley. Her twin that she could never be, even if she tried. Like she was doing now.

Fucking really?

The rando was feeling up her body, pulling her closer to where the ‘arms-length’ rule was shot out the door. The worst part of it all was she, the most stuck up, no fun, overbearing girl he knew, was allowing it. Her hips pivoted and for the first time in AJ’s life, he noticed all the curves that made her a divine Helmsley. Her limbs matched the night, young and full of energy, and honestly? She was probably that rando’s wet dream right now.

He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Her eyes were on fire and there was no way in hell this Bailee was sober. She was dancing like no one was watching and the adrenaline she was displaying for some fucking RANDO made him hold his breath behind pursed lips. She was smiling. Giggling. Rubbing herself on him, like it was dark and they were at second base. Then the guy groped her ass.

Ah, fuck this shit.

Bailee was definitely not herself and AJ had to intervene.

Hopping off the stage, AJ strided through the crowd, his shoulders hitting those he passed roughly. When he arrived at his destination, he balled his fist up. What a fucking scumbag. Tapping the rando’s shoulder, not acknowledging Bailee at all, AJ plastered the fakest smile he could muster — it was fucking Kyle on the basketball team. Just another dumb jock. “Kyle? What’s good!?” He patted the guy’s back. “Sorry, I know you’re in the zone and this girl is DTF, but the freshmen, man. The freshmen.”

“It’s good, AJ! Real good. What about the freshmen?! Do we need to tell ‘em who’s boss?”

Although Kyle’s attention was on AJ, he still held Bailee, which if AJ wasn’t trying to be civil, would’ve ended the moment he got there. “Yeah, dude. They’re drinking all the whiskey! I was gonna’ stop them, but I’m helping B out. You know how it is.”

“Aw fuck that shit. I got you, bro.” Kyle turned to Bailee and gave her a drunk simper and a charming, not so charming, wink. “You, me, later. Room. I’ll find you, girl.”

The boy looked like he was going to lean in and kiss her when AJ yelled over the music, “The whiskey, dude!” Oh yeah. The whiskey. In a matter of seconds, Kyle was out of sight and out of mind. “How does it feel? Pretending to be a slut.” AJ hovered over Bailee, still irritated as fuck.

For the first time ever Bailee Helmsley was drunk. She was only three shots in and the colors on the dance floor all seemed to blur together as she danced with the random boy she had chosen from the bunch. The attention that Kyle gave her was unparalleled to the way any boy had ever treated her, and the way they moved together on the dance floor made Bailee feel some type of way. Confident. Sexy. Fun. For once in her life she was having fun- not spreadsheets and business deals fun, real fun. Why had she never done anything like this before? The feeling of being free from obligations, work, and conflict was exhilarating.

Well, she was free until she felt someone hovering over her.

Looking up, she was met with a familiar mop of slightly curly brown hair, and eyes that had disgust and disapproval written all over them. His words were sickeningly friendly and deceivingly kind towards Kyle, but Bailee knew that his intentions were far from being good-natured.

Fucking, AJ.

And just as things were moving in the right direction, the GPS recalculated and the boy she was dancing with vanished, his touch and grasp disappearing as fast as he did. Bailee seethed, possibly even more angry with her so called “friend” AJ than she was before. Her guilt flew out the window as she replied to him, the demeaning words he used ringing in her ears like alarms. “Well I’m clearly getting more action than you are, so I’d say it feels pretty great.” The sass was unleashed, fueled by vodka, and nothing was stopping her now. “It felt even more fantastic before you opened your mouth and ruined it.”

“Clearly you lost your goddamn mind!” He shouted over the music, so she could hear him in her drunk state. God, she was an eyesore and ever since she got back, she’s been driving him insane. “I bet it did feel fucking phenomenal being seen and treated like a piece of meat. Just how you like to be treated. Who cares about your name! Or your intelligence! Or the fact that you’re more than a pretty face. Nah, man. You want a guy to grab you —” Knowing he had more power in the situation, since he was the sober one and not her, he displayed his words and took her by the wrist, then jerked her to him, close. “—Touch you in ways you’ve never been touched before—” He brushed his finger on her cheek, letting it trail down her face, gingerly making its way to her chin, before lifting her head up for her to look into his adamant eyes. “—and take you on an unforgettable adventure you’ll regret when you’re sober.” He leaned in closer to her face and deviously smirked. He knew how the game worked.

“Of course!” He released her and pulled away. “What do I know? You want to be Becca for the night, then be my guest, be Becca for the night.” He gestured toward the crowd and pointed at a couple dry humping on the dancefloor. Miss Bailee wanted to live and experience. Be a true teenage girl which meant deep throating some asshole! That sounded fantastic.

Bailee’s breath hitched as AJ pulled her towards him. If she had been sober, she would have resisted, but she definitely wasn’t in the right state of mind to do so. She was not stable in the slightest, her center of gravity faltering dramatically at the introduction of liquor to her system, so the force of his pull caused her to fall right into him. She flinched at his actions and his words, the way he eerily touched her cheek sending shivers down her spine. Bailee didn’t like the way that he was in control; she was always in control, and no one else, especially AJ was going to take that from her. She was a Helmsley, goddammit.

Once AJ released her wrist she chose to step back towards him, nearly nose to nose as she gave it right back to him. Bailee couldn’t tell that her words were a little more slurred than normal, but what she didn’t know couldn’t kill her. “What do you know, AJ? The way anyone else treats me tonight can’t be any worse than the way you’ve treated me today. I’ll take a drunk regrettable adventure with some random who doesn’t know my name over you any day.” Bailee spat her words, a glare blazing in her eyes.

Oh my god, mother. Give me strength. AJ was so tempted to go off on her, but after thinking about things thoroughly, since he was right of mind, he didn’t want to make a scene that caused misunderstandings. He didn’t want to put Bailee in a position where she made it on the next Weekend Warrior. He knew what her brother wanted and if it meant using her, Brian would be content because he was one step closer to his goals. AJ, however, didn’t want to hurt her like that.

Why was he up her ass anyways? She was doing what everyone would do at a party where alcohol was being provided to a bunch of teens. He had no right to judge her or even protect her. If she wanted to put herself in a compromised position, that was her own prerogative. She was her own person and should be allowed to make her own mistakes, for better or for worse. He should tell her she won, but he was too prideful for that. That would’ve been the fastest way to end things on an ‘ok’ note. But instead, he displayed his true emotions and blurted, “What do you mean how I treated you?! How would you like it if the first thing I said to you, after a fucking long ass time, was you’re a fuck up, Bails! I get it. I need to get over Jamie and I need to be less of an asshole, but it is not my fault those two haven’t started dating yet. If me being honest ain’t the kind of friend you want, why are we even friends?”

His lips turned to a pout, “To add insult to injury, you played a card when you know that’s the one thing I ask my friends never to do.” He spent the entire day on a cliff because of her and now she was trying to play the victim when she was at fault too!

Bailee was stubborn and she knew it. What made matters much worse was that AJ was also stubborn, and when they argued, neither of them would let up. Which was what was occuring now. Bailee knew that he had a point, but she also knew that he was being a pain in the ass, and that wasn’t going to fly with her. Her reasoning skills were gone, and thus she yelled right back, “I never said you were a fuck up! I was the one being honest, and clearly, you can’t handle that!” She kept her eyes locked on his. “Maybe I shouldn’t have played that card, but it got your attention and I don’t regret that. Not at all. Why are we friends? I don’t know!”

Bailee took a step away from him, wobbling tremendously. Man, Vodka definitely won this round.

Bailee was insufferable and drunk. Very drunk. He crept close, so that just in case she were to tumble over, he could catch her. “You want to know why we’re friends? Because I won’t give you the satisfaction of leaving you alone! You’re stuck with me, Bails. Whether you like it or not. S-T-U-C-K. STUCK.” Tonight and the rest of her life! He would admit defeat by breaking their friendship.

She rolled her eyes. “I guess if that means I’m going to hell, you’re coming with me. Great.” Bailee sighed, and gazed over towards the bar. All of this arguing was sobering her up. She needed another drink, stat. Without any hesitation or warning, she marched towards the bar, meeting the gaze of her new bartender friend. “Two shots of the Goose, one for me and one for that asshole who claims to be my friend.”

“Says the bitch who claims to be my friend.” AJ pulled up beside her and then shook his head, “Don’t you think you’ve had enough? Do you even know your limit?” The bartender slid the shots toward them.

“I’ll have had enough when I say I’ve had enough.” Bailee nimbly grabbed her shot and looked over at AJ with a raised eyebrow. “My limit? I don’t know what it is, so I guess we’ll just have to find out, won’t we…” Tipping her head back, Bailee took the shot with ease. Becca was right, it did eventually begin to taste like water!

While she did that, AJ quickly dumped his shot out and then as her head went down to look at him he slapped the glass on the bar. If there was one thing about AJ, he didn’t break his word. No matter how much he wanted to. Brian said no drinking. He would not drink. “Woo! Well, sweetheart, if you want to party, you’ll have to keep up with me. This is my scene.” Might as well play along, but really, he was watching her like a hawk. AJ no longer cared about his duties of looking out for the Weekend Warrior. If he caught sight of the mystery person cool, he was sober, so he’d notice, but his main priority of the night was: make sure Bailee didn’t do something too stupid. It was his job, as her so-called friend, to play big brother.

She looked at him and let a drunk giggle escape her lips. So much for being mad a few moments ago, her emotions were all mixed up. “Oh, I’ll keep up. You up for another round?” She asked, a look on her face that was challenging him to say no. Bailee would keep up. Tonight she would.

“Make that two. Have you had a 151 Ways to Die shot before?” AJ smirked. Oh, he was going to have fun tonight.

For Queen and Country

_{Before the morning radio incident...}

Stepping carefully through the tight, Amazon forest that was Evermore, Caspian took in the vast smells that surrounded him. Smells that reminded him of sweet summer. Every colorful petal gave off a different texture and feel to it. The pivot roof windows allowed the morning light to seep in and brighten up even the darkest of crevices and corners. The sacredness transcended everyday concerns. The only thing that mattered here was peace, tranquility, and the feeling of timelessness. Individuals were given a moment to breathe, away from the outside world, as they immersed themselves in the beauty of nature and learned of 'wonders untold'. Words spoken from the owner herself, whose business only catered to those that resided in Edgetoun but who was always willing to talk to people about all things green.

From herbalism to botanical science, Zarah Sibley, in Caspian's eyes, was one of the most well versed and devoted individuals, in regards to her passion. She was unapologetic and never faltered from being her boisterous self. Her vivacious presence alone transformed Tudor-style old stone, white painted walls, heavy iron bound doors, and other Gothic splendour into a page within a storybook. The building itself was a beautiful relic and she brought out the best of it, while adding her flare to her little shop of flowers.

Not too long ago, she made herself an Other on everyone's radar. Something she believed would've been found out over time. Her act was a display that showed her fearlessness. That she carries her difference like a banner. Edgetoun shouldn't be afraid of change. Change was inevitable. He would know. Yet, with the amount of time Caspian has spent with her, he knows there's more to it. Why would a loved woman in the community where 'the Other' was not fully accepted reveal herself? Reveal herself as a witch who fancies Green Magic. This would not only put her life in danger but also be bad for business.

If he knew her like he thought he did, she was protecting something. Something other than herself. With her being a popular florist, no one would know who was directly connected to her since people entered and left her shop endlessly. The first Others to come out always got the short end of the stick, to pave the road for those they cared about. He didn't know her intentions but he wanted to tell her. Tell her that he was different too, but... if he did...

He too was protecting those he loved, by playing it in the shadows. In the shadows, he could grow stronger. When it was time for him to walk into the spotlight, he wanted to be a force. A force to be reckoned with. Almighty. Powerful. What he did know was she was an inspiration and he could only hope that nothing bad ever happened to her.

What would happen to Evermore if she were gone? She was the heartbeat to this timeless place. His home away from home.

Wrapped in small tissue, in his gloved hand, were wet stems and at the top of these stems bloomed green dusty miller and deep purple berries. He was in the process of building a bouquet for a woman who went by the name of Gemma Clark. Someone he heard who recently moved here. Her request was 'stunning silver' with 'starry blossoms' and a tad bit of 'rose and plum'. Oddly specific order. Reminded him of something he'd make for a dramatic winter wedding. Ms. Sibley gave him full control over this project, which showed how much she trusted him and his eye for beauty. The buyer wanted it in one of their ceramic vases they sold too. As Sibley told him, she specifically asked that the vase be stainless white, as if it were the color of untouched snow.

Whatever the customer wanted, he would abide. When the piece was finished and set on the counter, waiting for the Miss to pick it up, he caught sight of a note from his dear boss: Had to pick up some ingredients. If you need me, you know my number!

Okay, cool.

As Caspian waited for customers to come, he read the daily paper. More specifically he read the headliner article about Nick Bloodfang's case. The man who changed it all. A fucking werewolf. Typical. Werewolves were known for their stupidity, as he learned from his mother.

His attention was taken away from his Friday morning digest when he heard the chime of the door bell go off and a good, deep waft of something delicious entered his nostrils. The customer smelt like candied apple, orange, maple, cinnamon, neroli, rose, winter musk, orris root, and moss. Jesus, how did someone have such a distinct fragrance!? It smelt like delectable candy apple on a winter's day.

That oh so familiar burning sensation grew in his throat as he glanced up from the paper to see a tiny tigress of a blonde. Every fibre of this small woman's being craved maximum attention and all she had to do was stroll into Evermore. Or maybe this was him simply craving her. Wanting her — his lips close to her throat and his fangs piercing into... Since when did he ever crave something this strongly?

And then she spoke loudly, exuding more confidence than any person should. Something warned him that this woman, as sexually engaging as she was coming across, was questionably odd. "This bouquet is perfection! It reminds me of the best time of the year." Gemma let out an impish giggle, before continuing, "I don't have much time, but I'm so glad this was done before I absolutely needed it. My desk is unfortunately tragically drab."

Narrowing his eyes, giving the lady a quizzical stare, while keeping himself composed on his desire, Caspian questioned her intent, "So, this... extremely particular bouquet, meant for a bride, is just for your desk?"

"Duh. Why else would I buy flowers if I prefer them dead? I can't bare to sit there without some decor. Do you know how mundane the Capital looks on the inside? It's god awful!" This woman was extremely into herself. Under normal circumstances, he would not like this type of woman at all. Unless it was his twin. His twin was an exception for nearly everything.

"That'll be £130." Caspian shrugged, accepting that this woman was simply another weirdo among weirdos. Hey, if she had the money, he wasn't complaining.

"You got to be kidding me!" Gemma crossed her arms in protest. Even added a pout, as if she wasn't a twenty seven year old photo journalist.

"This honestly isn't bad for what you've ordered. It includes every specific flower to give it that 'perfect' look you wanted as well as the very specific vase you wanted. Color and all."

"Okay, okay. Whatever. Here's my card." She complied. If she didn't have to book it to work, this would've been a longer conversation, which would've led to a heated negotiation. The transaction happened and the tiny woman carried the big vase out the door.

With her out of the general vicinity, Caspian was given sudden relief. The need to feast dissipated and he could carry on with his duties. Thank goodness.

_{Sometime later...}

Zarah Sibley, with a hefty brown bag in her arms, came rushing in. As an immediate response, Caspian went and took the bag out of her grasp. Rather than greet him, she turned on the radio, which was beside the cash register.

...who cannot separate themselves from carnal desires and primal urges frighten you?

Placing the bag down, he intently listened to the broadcast and took out his phone to text his other half.

Suddenly he regretted not texting his mom first and the broadcast was no longer important to him as his cheeks flared red with his sister's... his sister's... forward... random...forward words. W-what?! The vampire should give himself some credit, though. At least this wasn't the family group thread. At least, Calypso was awake enough to not make a blunder such as that. Broadcasting her goal of the day to their mother or uncle or both.

That kind of thing never ended well. For anyone.

CANCELLED.

_{@Universorum @Lovely Complex
Location: A beautiful cliff overlooking the ocean where one can be contemplative
Featuring: Scott “I hate Katie” Lyon and AJ “I hate Bailee” Tyler
Interacting with: A little bit of shade to Katie and Bailee @melissahart @smarty0114
Time: It’s damn near party time, baby}

Scott was sitting in his car. The car was on, idling in the driveway. He’d made it halfway down the winding road, before he’d realized something was horrendously wrong.

Something was different. He wasn’t sure what it was yet, but something was different. His car was his baby, and even the slightest of changes were obvious to him. He tapped on the LCD touch screen and brought up the vitals. “What changed?” He asked, tapping around some more to bring up the audit log, containing a comprehensive list of changes made to his vehicle. He scrolled from the bottom up, wondering if he’d made a change himself, and forgotten about it.

Eventually, he got to the top, where it was noted that the tire pressure was increased in the driver’s side front tire. Scott made a face, knowing he didn’t do that. He pulled up the notes, and saw something written by his grandfather.

Borrowed car for date night. Leaning to left. Fixed tire pressure. It was very low, are you stupid??? What are you doing??? Do it right.

— Gramps

“That old slimy motherfucker, bummin’ my good car. Who does he think he is?” He grumbled, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel.

“I mean, he did pay for the car. I think it’s fair that you let him use it sometimes. Besides, you had his spare key minted. This is your fault.”

“Shut up, traitor!” Scott yelled at his Assistant, Marci. Shaking his head, Scott barked another order, “just put the tire pressure back to where I want it. Fucking car doesn’t lean to the left, goddamn.” He waited patiently, and after a few seconds, there was a confirmation from Marci that it was done. With that, Scott started driving again, heading toward the spot where he was to meet AJ.

His meeting spot with his best friend was a cliff, overlooking the ocean. They fairly commonly met there, where they could stare at the ocean and be contemplative. Scott tried not to think about it too much, if he did it got weird. It didn’t make sense, but he and AJ liked it. Maybe it was because the cars looked good there, or something? Who knows.

Driving down the ocean highway, Scott shifted the car and took his hands off the wheel, holding them up into the air. “Car doesn’t lean,” he grumbled, accelerating faster. True to his words, the car didn’t move, staying straight in the lane. He shook his head and put his hands back on the wheel as he slowed his car down, pulling off to the outlook. He shut the car down, and noticed that AJ was staring off into the ocean, being contemplative.

Awesome, they were a stereotype.

Rather than immediately interrupt his friend, Scott instead pulled his phone out. He clicked the screen on, and saw that Katie had posted something on Instagram, which immediately brought his mind back to their confrontation earlier. Scott tapped it and made a face. It was just a stupid picture of her with her siblings with a stupid caption.

A rare photo of us not fighting.

Scott scowled, and posted a comment of his own on the picture. GJ, Katie you turned the bitch off long enough to have a civil moment with your family. V proud of you. Scott posted it and then he finally got out of the car, absently scrolling through Katie’s instagram, and looking through the pictures. Didn’t she do anything interesting?!

Her profile was almost evenly broken into: family pictures where she was the clear center of attention, pictures with Joy and Noah where she was trying too hard to be cute, and pictures at an animal shelter and being cute. There was the occasional picture of her being cute alone… wait, what? Katie was not cute. Scott shook himself, “I’m thinking about this girl too much, fuckin’ hell.” Scott scrolled back to the original picture he’d commented on, and tapped the comment, deleting it — hopefully before she noticed.

After that, he tapped AJ on the shoulder. “Hey, you about ready to go?”

Prior to this moment, AJ Tyler had spent his entire day on this cliff, staring at the sea with his hot wheels behind him and his legs hanging off the rock, toward the great beyond. Had he eaten? No, he forgot to pick up lunch on his way here. Was he really in this position, meaning on his ass, all day? Nah, but he was here, on the cliff, all day. It was a combination of him pacing back and forth, kicking the dirt, throwing rocks, doing some push ups, debating if he should call his mom or not, and thinking about a girl. Since when did he think about anyone this much?! She fucked up and called him by his first name. Not him. She fucked up and slapped him in the face after he insulted her. NOT HIM. She fucked up and was just in the wrong, the full wrong, goddammit! NOT HIM.

That disrespectful, little, prissy bitch.

She should’ve known better! And who gives her the right to tell him to stop tonguing his ex? Like she had some kind of power over him. Just because she was a Helmsley didn’t mean shit. Helmsley was just a fucking name and she had to earn the value of what it meant to be one. Behind the name, she was just Bailee. Bails. B. A little, squishy girl who was sexually repressed and sucked the fun out of everything.

Always on her period, crazy slut.

Okay, Bailee was far from a slut. If anything, he had no doubt she was still a virgin, which made him even more piss because she didn’t know a damn thing about being in a relationship. What he had with Jamie was good! And Jamie seemed perfectly fine with kissing him back. She couldn’t tell him what he could and could not do. AJ was his own man. No bitch told him what to do. He’ll agree he came off strong, BUT if Jamie gave obvious signs that there was no chance in hell, he wouldn’t keep going back for more. AJ Tyler knew Jamie wanted more. He was a catch and only a turd would let him go.

Why would she welcome him like that? Reprimanding him like she was his mother, but ten times worse, because his mother would give him a hand clap and say her boy’s dynamite. If you want something, you go hard, or go home. AJ Tyler would always go hard and make his mama proud.

Yet fucking Bails didn’t like the guy he was, obviously! She attacked him as a person. If she was his best friend, she would know how he was and she would have not used that damn card. She wouldn’t have called him Alfie. It was him and Scott versus the world. Everyone else came and went. Including her. NO ONE ELSE CARED — about anything but themselves!

“I highly doubt she’ll be here for long.” Bailee Helmsley only cared about one thing, her future. Everyone else could burn for all she cared. If she was on top of her daddy’s empire, she would be content with life. AJ meant nothing to her. He was the soil beneath her feet.

Why did he care if he meant anything to her? AJ glanced down to his balled up fist, seeing that his nails was digging into his skin. Man, he needed to do something about all this pent up aggression. You know what? She could die and he wouldn’t shed a tear…

That was blatantly a lie.

He cared. Too much it seems. All because he missed them. His friends. Brian. Becca. Her. He missed her.

Fucking stupid, Bailee.

This was stupid. She was stupid.

His attention was taken out of the dark space that was his mind, with a tap on his shoulder. Honestly, this was for the best. He was thinking way too much about a girl. Someone who wasn’t Jamie, who was not a girl. A girl he knew all his life, but who never seemed to get him. Or maybe she just didn’t want to get him? Maybe she liked the way things were. Distant. Not really the friends they thought they were. STOP with the pity party, AJ! “What time is it?” Was it really already time for the party? AJ glanced up at his true, best friend. The one that’s been there for him through it all. Scotty Boy. The motha’ fuckin Lyon.

“Time to leave. Brian is expecting us, and according to a text message I got, I’m supposed to pick up some McDonald’s, too… So we’d better hit the road. Once we get on the boat, I guess it’s game on, huh? Hopefully Katie isn’t there. That girl is… way on my mind, way too much. Yo, throw her overboard for me, yeah?” Scott asked, grinning at his friend, before he pulled him into a hug. Scott liked hugs. He got it from his mother, mostly, but her infectious cuddliness had eventually transferred over to his father, and Scott had just been raised that way.

AJ’s anger sizzled down. He needed this. A hug. He didn’t get them often and truthfully, he’d only accept hugs from a select few. Like Scott. “Dude, McDonalds sounds tight, right now. I haven’t eaten all day.” To add to his comment, AJ’s stomach made a loud growl. “If I make Katie swim with the fishes, you got to push Bails off too.” He didn’t want to deal with her and feel inclined to apologize. He wasn’t going to apologize for scaring her shitless.

Scott thought about it. It was a good deal, as far as he could see. Katie was gone, Bailee was gone. But did he really want Katie gone? Who would he argue with!? So much of his life revolved around that girl… Scott blew at his bangs — which barely existed — and shook his head, “it’s cool actually. I best keep her around. I’ll still take Bailee down, though. If you want. What chu want from Mickey D’s? Brian’s payin’.”

“The entire menu.” AJ came to the daunting realization that he was starving and on top of that, he knew Bailee didn’t deserve that. She didn’t even deserve his scare tactics from this morning. “And nah, man, it’s cool now that I think about it. I should show her a good time, it’s been awhile since we hanged.” She made him feel bipolar, but he knew she was a good girl and only wanted what was best for him. What he was doing with Jamie was unhealthy. Showed that he hasn’t moved on. It took a slap in the face for him to realize that. Only Bails was that capable of hitting you with the ugly truth. And for sure, the truth was ugly. Jamie didn’t want him. No one did.

“You got it, man. You ever wonder why Brian always wants us to do stupid shit? Like party, sober. Or that time he invited us rock climbing, and then it was free climbing up a cliff? Or when we bungee jumped into the Grand Canyon? Which, I checked by the way, is not legal. Money buys you everything. I guess I could afford it too, huh? Fuck it, let’s go base jumping off of a building.” Scott shook his head, and headed over to his vehicle.

Time to go to work.

CANCELLED.

_{@Lovely Complex and @Universorum
Featuring: Brian “The Only Man Who Makes Phone Calls” Helmsley, Riley “Please Assist” Wells, Joy “Why Doesn’t Damian Brag About Me?!” Darling, AJ “No Alcohol?” Tyler, and Scott “Not even a little bit?” Lyon
Location: All over the place, baybay
Time: Right after the morning show. It’s a flashback, aight?}

---

---

Immediately after the outro of the show, Brian silently prepared to leave the area. He had nothing to say, and in truth, his mind was already made up. He had calls to make and plans to put into action. Mentally, he made a list of the phone calls he needed to make: AJ Tyler, Damian O’Connor, and Scott Lyon — if he wasn’t with AJ, which he probably was. Sunday he had made calls back home, and got a few people to set up a few modifications on the boat. Hopefully those were going well without a hitch, and everything would be ready by the time he arrived.

Brian had a few ideas to flush out the Weekend Warrior, though past that he didn’t know what his plan was. A confrontation? That might work, but he’d cross that bridge when he got there. His first and most primary objective was to expose them; plaster the face of the biggest problem in the school all over the internet and the campus. When he was finished, everyone would know. From there, maybe nature would run its course, and he wouldn’t need to talk to whoever it was that wrote the stupid articles. He would go to sleep, and wake up the next morning and piss on the ashes of their house.

Then, and only then, would all be right in the world. The Weekend Warrior had become an unwanted and even perhaps unwilling participant in the game that Hailey played with the student body, and Brian had no desire for such a volatile, unpredictable force to be involved. Besides, they’d attacked Parker, and he knew it was leading to people talking about her in a negative light. That, the prince would not stand for.

“Thank you again for your time,” he said over his shoulder, before he disappeared out of the room and away from Brynn and Riley both.

His presence would not be left alone for too long because right behind him, lightly jogging to catch up, Riley followed. “Hey, Brian! Can we talk for a sec?” Riley didn’t have much time, because he had first period to get to, but he didn’t want to lose this opportunity. He didn’t want this connection to sever, all because of bad first impressions. Brian had ideas for the show that could make it better and more importantly, long lasting. He could help Riley give RISE the foundation it needed to survive the years after he graduated. The darkly clad boy didn’t know how successful this would be, but it was worth a shot. He’d hate himself more than he already does for not trying to end things on good terms with Brian. For the sake of his show, of course. Riley didn’t necessarily know how they’d connect outside of business and it wasn’t like Brian needed to know any of his troubles. The boy had bigger things on his mind like throwing a boat party, this very day.

Brian paused as he was approached by Riley, turning his head to look at the other boy. Brian had to admire his tenacity; apparently, a no wasn’t good around these parts. While annoying, this wasn’t necessarily a bad business tactic. He sighed, and stopped in the hallway, turning to face Riley. “I suppose it’s the least I could do. What’s up?” He asked, before gesturing for Riley to follow him, “Walk with me. Talk and walk. Multitasking is the future.” With that, Brian began to stroll down the halls again, his hands in his pockets.

Matching his pace with the Helmsley kid, Riley was quick and straight to the point. “To be real, I want you on the show. Your return, along with your sisters, is going to be the hottest topic for at least the next week or two. On top of that, you not so subtly called out the Weekend Warrior. Everyone’s going to want to see your face.” Crossing his arms, he took a moment to clear his throat, before continuing his proposition, “You’re a busy guy, I get that, but part of me thinks you have some interest, don’t you? If you didn’t see potential, I don’t think you would’ve used the show to get your message across.”

Uncrossing his arms to glance at the time, making sure he wouldn’t be late to class, Riley finished up his spiel, “If not that, at least help me make it better. I know where my strengths are and I know where my weaknesses are. You just so happen to be better at producing than me. I’m here, extending an olive branch, for the betterment of our school. So, maybe, think about it?”

Brian stopped in the middle of the hall and looked over at Riley. He let his mind run through what he said quickly, before nodding. “Yeah, I can think about it. But I’ll be honest with you, I don’t really like having my face in the spotlight. This was a special occasion. I can possibly produce things. I’ll have to make some phone calls. No promises, but I’ll see what I can do.” Brian shrugged, and looked at a door. “Alright, this is where I take my leave. I’ll see you later. Maybe tonight at the party, yeah?” Brian asked, putting his hand on the doorknob to duck into the random room.

“Uh, you don’t have a class?” Riley rose an eyebrow, as he watched the other boy enter the vacant room designated for french lessons. French class was never first period and the teacher was okay with students using it when it was her free period, but still, for a kid that just got back, not seeing him go to class was odd. Slightly annoying. Was he already playing hooky? If Rye’s dad found out he ever ditched class, it would be his funeral. RIP Riley Wells. The day he decided to throw his grades out the door.

Having entered her Statistics class, Joy sat in her designated seat, which was the far back, closest to the window. As one of the favored math students, throughout the school, she was able to request her seat prior to the year beginning. She was tired of sitting in the front, so this year she wanted the back. In addition, this subject was easy and she didn’t really think her being in the front would be beneficial to the other students that needed to learn.

She took out her scarily organized planner, opened it up, making sure it was symmetrically centered on her desk, and took out her color-coding stickers. Most were circles and stood for something, like if a date had a dark blue circle on it that meant she had a doctor’s appointment or something medical related. This kept her monthly calendar less cluttered, so she can write more detailed descriptions in her weekly calendar. Behind the stack of circle stickers were star stickers that meant special occasions. She decided to change their meaning to Damion related occasions.

Taking a star out, she flipped the pages until she found today’s date. With quiet precision, she placed it at the bottom right corner of the box, then she turned the pages to the same date, but this time in her weekly section. Glancing up to make sure the teacher was preoccupied, she bent down to her backpack and pulled out her Star Wars pen purse. After rummaging for a second, deciding what color to use, taking out her blue and red pen from its holder, she wrote: Helmsley Boat Party with in blue and Damian in red. Going back to the blue pen, she wrote in smaller text: Attempt to convince parents.

A sudden thought popped in her head which caused her to swiftly swipe to her note section. It was important to remember this! Need birth control. Call Mitty. Her concentration was broken when she felt her phone vibrate in her bag, by her foot. No one called her this early. It had to be important. After closing her planner, she reached in her bag to see who was calling. Unknown number.

To ignore or not to ignore that was the question. Deciding that she wasn’t going to pay attention to her lesson anyways, Joy pulled out her phone, stood up and pocketed it momentarily, then shuffled to the front. “Can I get a hall pass, Mr. Lindemann?” The only time Joy got up from her seat was to use the bathroom, which was rare, so it didn’t take long for her to be given a pass and set free. The phone kept vibrating.

As she walked down the hall, she pulled it out and answered it, “Hello?” No need for formalities. This was her personal phone and a stranger was calling.

Sitting in his ‘office,’ a modified janitor’s closet that Brian’s parents had obtained for him following a sizeable donation to the school board, he faced a moment where he questioned if Riley’s show was even worth the effort. Before words came through the phone to Joy’s ears, there was a sigh. Then, Brian spoke. “Joy? It’s Brian.” Honestly, how did people not know it was him calling? He was the only person left on the planet that called phones.

“Brian who? There’s like six Brians I can think of and none would call me.” Not being a popular kids came with its perks. You didn’t know everyone. Including the person throwing the boat party you’d be attending.

“...Helmsley.” For Joy’s words, Brian chose to blame her mother. If Jude lived in one of the four corners, like the rest of the Lyon clan, then Joy would know who he was, and they could have skipped this entire fiasco and gotten straight to the point. “Brian Helmsley. Is this a bad time?” Women.

“Ah.” Was the first word to come out of Joy’s mouth. Somewhere deep down the rabbit hole they were related. Not enough for Joy to consider him an immediate contact, but hey, family was family. “I answered, so I’m free.” Men.

“Riley… Wells wants me to help him with his show. I told him I would, but I’m going to need help with a few of the more tech-y things. Can you do it? I assume you either can, or you can convince your uncle to do it. You know which uncle.” Interlaced with his words, was the noise of a keyboard, and the crunching of food — probably chips. “I figure you could do it. You’re hardly ever busy.”

“What makes you think I’m not busy?” Joy retorted. “Last time I checked you’ve been gone for an exceedingly long time. You don’t know what I do during my spare time.” Joy leaned her back on one of the lockers. Of course she could do the job, it was easy, but don’t make it seem like she doesn’t do anything with her time. She does. Her times just recently been consumed by a boy! Hmpf.

“Well, from what I understand, you spend most of your after school time babysitting. If not that, you’re probably playing video games — given your heritage and what I know about your family. If not doing that, the only other possible thing you can do, unless there’s been some kind of thing that happened that I haven’t found out about yet, is hanging out with Katie and Noah. I understand your schooltime is more or less completely consumed by academic pursuits and the occasional extracurricular activity, but this would just be another one of those. I’m sure it would look lovely on a college application.” More crunching. “That was a little rude of me though, sorry. I could have phrased it better.”

“Okay, you know me. Sure, I’ll help, but we’ll need to go over what you want exactly. I’m assuming you want to upgrade his set, yeah? It’s kind of outdated. I’ll need to know when I can have access to the room so I can do my thing while working around my busy schedule. Can’t have sporadic meetings. I, Brian, think video games are important. Thank you very much.” Subconsciously, Joy was also preparing for time spent with Damian, since it seemed like they were getting close again. And she liked it.

“We’ll look at tomorrow at lunch, and then get started tomorrow after school — so make sure you’re available. Assuming everything goes well at the party tonight. You should come, it ought to be fun. Damian’s going to give a speech.” Brian said, and there was more clacking on a keyboard to be heard. “You do know Damian, right? There’s like two or three of them at this school too. I’m talking about O’Connor.”

A faint blush graced her cheeks. “Yes I know him, you monkey! I’ve known him since diapers.” And they’ve kissed. A lot. At the New Years’ Party. Didn’t Brian know Damian for a long time too? Was he dumb? Or did Damian seriously not consider her important enough to mention? WHY was she getting offended over this?

Crunch.

Crunch.

Crunch.

“Your mother know how well you know him nowadays?” That answered all of Joy’s questions, all but one.

“I’m hanging up now.” Click.

“Well, I guess that answers that…” Brian tipped his head back and munched on the last crumbs. “Is that a full list?” He asked, speaking to his Assistant as he looked at the spreadsheet he’d worked on, organizing the majority of his peers — minus the freshmen and sophomore. Brian planned to take note of whoever attended the party, and then cross reference it with this list to figure out who the Weekend Warrior was. There were a few flaws in his plan, but he hoped to press on anyway.

“Yes, but I’ve been thinking myself: what if this is a Shakespeare scenario? You know; they say that it’s possible he wasn’t one person… What if the Weekend Warrior is group of people?”

“I doubt that’s the case. The writing style is pretty similar throughout all the blog posts, but yes. I’ve considered that possibility. If there’s more than one, then I’ll find them all. Besides, not that many people hate Damian enough to write angry blog posts about him. He’s actually pretty popular. Call AJ and Scott.” There wasn’t a response, as his Assistant set about making the conference call. Now, Brian just had to wait.

“HEYO, BRIAN!” AJ proclaimed. His voice was a little distorted and softly in the background the purr of his speeding vehicle could be heard. “What’s up, my dude? I saw Becca’s post. Welcome back. It’s been a good minute since I’ve seen my boy.”

“Yeah, well, I couldn’t stay away forever. Turns out if I leave, Damian makes awful decisions and people say Henry date raped Parker with a brownie.” Crunch. “One second…” Brian said, before there was the sound of someone else answering the phone.

“The prodigal son has returned. But is he here to wipe the blood from the pretenders off of the throne and reclaim what was once his?” There was Scott’s voice.

“That’s more Becca’s vibe. Look, how would you guys like to go to this party tonight — and just not be intoxicated at all?”

“Well! That sounds just fucking awful.”

“No alcohol… at all?” Aw shit. AJ wanted to forget what he did to Bails by washing it away with alcohol. This would be entirely against what would be good for him. Being sober at a party one of his bros was throwing. A bro whose sister he offended and who may or may not be there, depending on if she wanted to spend the night sulking and reading business proposals or some shit. “Why we ain’t drinking?!”

“Because I need help. I’ve decided that I’m done with the Weekend Warrior BMing everyone everytime anyone does anything fun. There’s no logical reason for it, other than they hate people and fun. This isn’t a party, this is a trap. We’re gonna isolate and decimate, which means I need you two to spend the evening people watching. Look, if it’s that big of a deal you can come to the house and drink the really expensive stuff that Mom saves for herself as a reward for dealing with all of us.” Brian explained.

“You can’t say you need help, that obligates us to help!”

“And if we don’t help, we’ll feel like shitty friends and we got to honor our friendship. We can’t let down a brother. We didn’t let you down ten years ago, we didn’t let you down five, and we ain’t gonna’ let you down today.” Sober AJ at a party. He could handle it. He could do it. Please have Bailey not be there.

“I guess we can be sober. But what if Katie’s there? If I’m not drunk I’m gonna get in a fight with her, dude.”

“Two things: First, can you just hate fuck her and get it over with already? I’m so over it. Secondly, good. More drama is a positive thing. The Weekend Warrior only reports drama, right? So make some. Make as much as you can. Start a fight, throw someone overboard. Make it loud and obnoxious, so I can review the tapes and see who was in range to get an accurate view of it. Then I can figure out what they write about, and maybe narrow the list — at least a bit.”

“This is a lot of work for an autistic girl…”

“She’s not autistic!”

There was a pause on AJ’s end. The ocean could be heard now. “I could make a scene…” He had to use his words carefully. “But it may involve your sister.” There was already a video circulating of them, which he just got notified of.

“Works for me. That will be all, guys. Show up early if you want, that way you can get a feel for where you want to do whatever you’re gonna do. Just make sure it’s good enough to be in the stupid blog. Again, she’s not autistic.”

Click.

What a productive use of his time.

For Queen and Country

-snipped-

For Queen and Country

-snipped-

For Queen and Country

-snipped-