NeoAJ

Legends of Carnation Island (SHELVED)

Location:

_{Carnation Island Resort Receiving Area, Maldives}

Interactions With:

_{No one yet, fools! This is the intro! She ain't no lush!}

As a fine spray rose off the Indian Ocean while the party boat made its way towards the intended destination, the girl in the red tank top and jean shorts with the giant sunglasses on her face and a lemon vodka cooler in her hand was taking some time to reflect on the days journey that brought her to this point. That was days' not day's, and Jade Scott wouldn't be forgetting that fact any time soon.

Upon learning of her itinerary when she agreed to come to Carnation Island, the soccer star had to do a double take. Money was no object. The hush-hush payments from a certain major athletic apparel company gave her more than enough cash to make this trip many times over and still have enough for souvenirs for the entire school. Instead, 35 hours of her life was the asking price, spread across four different countries. The first leg wasn't terrible. Denver to Vancouver was no different than the Denver-Seattle flight she usually made when visiting her parents. Or when flying to matches for that matter. Even the five-hour layover in Canada was tolerable... until everything in the airport closed down at midnight.

That made it a little difficult to stay up for her 2:30 am flight on July 19 that didn't land in Shanghai until 5:40 am on July 21. That was an ordeal. There were no meals served until late in the 12-hour trip because most of the stewards assumed people would be sleeping. Not Jade. Not with her seat right near the engine, droning over her headphones until the battery power on her iPod finally gave out. Starving, she struggled to get food during another long stopover in China. Six hours in Pudong International Airport, trying to find an outlet for her electronics and a place that served better versions of food than the bastardized takes on Big Macs and venti lattes in the Terminal. After such a long trip, the Golden Girl was in no mood for the struggles of learning how to order a grilled chicken salad in Mandarin, so she sucked it up until the final leg, a seven-hour trek from Shanghai to Malé where she managed to get a little bit a sleep and a half-cooked airplane chicken breast. It was better than nothing. Recovery at her one-night hotel room in the Maldives' capital required the whole evening.

But the promise of free drinks and a summer of endless parties seemed to be worth it. If Jade Scott wasn't going to get to celebrate a World Cup championship with Megan and Alex and the others, then she was damn well going to match them in their drunken glory, at least if Ashlyn's Instagram was anything to go off of. That was her self-assigned goal for the vacation. Rachel was going to see to that.

As the boat finally pulled up to the Carnation Island docks, Jade was eager to wheel her duffel bag off to her private cabin and then take in the sight of the calm ocean waves as she sipped the first of what would be many daiquiris of varying flavors on the balcony. It sounded like the perfect way to prepare herself for this relaxation period. Of course, Rachel would have other plans from the sounds of things.

Her bonfire announcement was a spectacle. Naturally, given the girl invited half the campus to this picturesque paradise. Release the Kraken indeed. As Jade elbowed her way to the main stage and grabbed the stylized envelope marked "Jade S.", the packet revealed she would have cabana #9. Perfect, since it was her number on the pitch. Damn, Rachel. Just got all this figured out, huh? She smirked.

Her smile grew wider as she followed the boardwalk path towards her assigned home for the next couple months. It was a massive villa, two stories tall. The entryway revealed a level of opulence that even Nik that unnamed apparel company had yet to offer her. The living room area with the giant couch and a freaking hanging light shaped like a manta ray gazed over an elegant pool, perfect for soaking in. Jade dropped her bag and ran outside. The place had a damn waterslide attached to it! She walked around and discovered the mini-bar, well-stocked with fruits, chocolates and a few choice bottles of wine, along with water, shots of alcohol, and other mixing ingredients. She saw the master bedroom, a king-size bed with another gorgeous view of the Indian Ocean. Everything appeared to be layered in a calming bamboo color. I could get so used to this...

Leaving her duffel behind, she went exploring the other side of the villa... and found another bedroom. Huh. Guess the luxury villas must come with the option to send the fuck buddy to another room. All right, that's cool. That's cool. Jade worked her way upstairs and spotted a pool table and a TV, replete with game systems hooked up, as well as a gym for staying in shape during this binge she was about to embark on. Awesome. I can kick ass on multiple levels. Good shit. Walking down the hallway however, she found... more beds. A couple of them. On the other side of the pool table, an open door revealed more beds. What the... Six beds in here? I'm not having a damn orgy! What's Rachel doing giving me this? I don't need all of this.

Jade moved back downstairs and fished her cell phone out of her laptop bag. A quick connection to the Wifi gave her access to all her apps, specifically WhatsApp, which was the preferred method of communication overseas. Take that for data, Sprint. Locking in on Rachel's number, the Rocket sent a quick message:

To: Rachel Party Queen

Rachel, it's Jade. Just wondering what the heck is up with this cabana. I mean, I fucking love it, no lie. But there's six beds in here, and I definitely don't plan on rotating...

Jade thought for a second and a look of dread crossed her face.

I swear girl, if you set me up in a house with a bunch of randoms, I'm not going to be a happy camper, you got me? I'm a star attraction here! I need my own space! I'm not in for some Big Brother Love Island bullshit! Fix this before the bonfire!!!

The soccer star tossed her phone onto the bed and collapsed alongside it. Knew this was gonna be too good to be true. Fucking Rachel. She closed her eyes and again pondered her lot in life as the sounds of the waves breaking upon the stilts were the only sounds filling the villa for the moment.

REBOOT COMING SOON. INVITE ONLY.

_{Collab with @TootsiePop}

_{Mentions of friends, with a small focus on Val at some point @Dirty Pretty Lies / Interaction with Sami @BrutalBx}
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“Are you enjoying yourself, Goldie?”

Emilia was so far gone in her own little world, appreciating Kim’s warmth even if there was very little of it actually coming from the brunette, that the sudden words whispered in her ear jolted her upright, releasing Kim from Emi’s grasp. She turned around to get a look at who did such a thing, only to spot one of the people she was calling for not moments ago. “AJ!” she exclaimed, far happier to see him this time than their last encounter… and the previous few hours. “Heyyyyy you!” She tucked her hair back behind her ear… then repeated it a couple more times because the feeling of her own hair on her fingers was awesome. “Heyyyy, I… I gotta apologize for the ride here. I’m so sorry I was all sad and stuff. It will never happen again!” Sober Emilia would never be able to promise that, but this Emi was trying to spread happy, and it started with making up for the sad.

“It’s okay. I really don’t mind.” AJ observed the blonde carefully. Okay, that was a lie. The whiskey was hitting him hard and his primitive brain was leading the charge. He had endorphins telling him to stop having a pity party. Enjoy himself. Make sure the girl was okay. Simple thoughts, really, but at least he wasn’t thinking about Val, or Jamie.

His brown gaze softly rested on the ray of sunshine that was Emilia Seger. Her eyes were a deep, ocean blue, and her hair had a thousand shades of gold and looked so incredibly soft. Did AJ ever get this close to her before? He couldn’t recall because while she hung over Brandon, he was with Jamie, or Val. His attention went up toward the blunt being passed around and then to Sami: “I’ll pass, dude. I’m gonna’ take another walk.”

With a charming prince smile, he looked back to Emi, ignoring everyone else, including Aleks who seemed to be having a nice conversation with Ellie. Offering his hand while standing upright, he gestured for her to come with him, “Can we talk? I’d like to apologize too.” He seemed to be set on pulling her aside, with or without her permission. For as long as his patience would allow him, he would wait. He hoped she’d come on her own accord. If he can provide some comfort to her about her ex, he would sure as hell try. But first, she had to grab his hand.

Emilia tilted her head slightly, letting her hair fall back to the side. She definitely knew she had to do more than just apologize to AJ. There was a lot to talk about. The earlier incident near Bell Mountain. The prom. The past two years of football practices. All these thoughts were starting to circle in her mind. However, the drugs in her system were incredibly effective at preventing yet another breakdown. Hell, now, talking about all those things felt like a good idea. Emi looked over at Val, her usual outlet for her problems. She seemed busy with Jules over something. She couldn’t hear what they were talking about. Kim didn’t sound very pleased with the hugging she received. Umbra was… somewhere. Maybe she did need someone who saw the other side. Maybe AJ would let her talk. Even if he was probably more invested in the locker-room side of the story.

The blonde looked back up at the fire dancing off the sunglasses that dangled off AJ’s chest, the shadows in his hair flickering with the flames, the extended hand offering an olive branch. She offered a smile, goofier than she intended, but again, something else was in control of Emi now. “Sure,” she confirmed as she took AJ’s hand and hoisted herself up from the fire. “I mean, I dunno what you want to apologize for, but sure!” She dusted the dirt off the back of her dress and looked back at the Gearhead. “Let’s go!” Probably too enthusiastic, but it was still genuine.

“We’ll be back, eventually.” Holding onto her hand delicately, as if she were made of porcelain, too fragile to handle wrongly, AJ first went to his tent, where a backpack was resting outside of it, and retrieved his flashlight. Briefly letting go of her, he threw his backpack over his shoulder, just in case they strayed away from the familiar path, and gave her the light to hold. “We’re not going too far, but I think it would be nice to look around while we talk. There’s this big arch a half a mile away I’d like to take you to.”

Emi flipped the flashlight on, delighting in the light zooming across the Nevada landscape according to her whims. She giggled as she put a particular sage bush in the midst of a strobe light disco. As AJ straightened up, she nodded at him. “Sounds pretty!” She retook AJ’s hand. The physical contact just felt intoxicating at the moment. “Lead the way!”

AJ would be lying if he wasn’t taken aback, even in his inebriated state. Having gone to more than enough parties, as one of the hot jocks — though he did it out of boredom and not because he cared about the sport — he had more than enough experience in alcohol. Unlike most of his comrades, aside from Aleks who preferred starburst over a can of beer, he hated the taste. He did it socially, not because he liked it. That being said, seeing Emi like this was… weird. He knew she was a bubbly ass girl, but never to this extent. Maybe her mental state was temporarily allowing herself to ‘be happy’ until the waterworks came again. Honestly, AJ was preparing for the worst. With Emi, you never knew when she’d start hyperventilating, “Someone’s in a good mood, did you get a love confession or something?” Maybe that was a question in poor taste. It probably was. He started striding on, making sure that he kept a firm, yet gentle, grip on his friend’s dainty hand.

No one said he was the best with words.

Emi put the flashlight up to her face as she thought for a second, forgetting that it was meant to be lighting the way to the arch. “Hmmmm, I dunno!” she admitted. “I mean, I know I was really down earlier, but it’s just like, it doesn’t matter anymore! Maybe I just needed some sugar or something, because since I ate those M&M’s earlier, I just feel better!”

“You want some more? I got starbursts, thanks to Aleks.” For another second, AJ released her, hoping she wasn’t going to fall or anything while he retrieved the candy from his bag, “It’s good to see you smiling. You haven’t, in awhile.” Pulling it out, he brought it to her and waved it in front of her as they walked. “Here.”

The blonde greedily grasped at the offered candy and managed to grab a couple of pink ones. Strawberry. Her favorite flavor that wasn’t watermelon. She unwrapped one and popped it in her mouth. “Mmmmmm, yummmmy…” she said as the fruit flavors mingled on her tongue. They tasted even better than the M&M’s!

Satisfied with the candy, Emi’s attention went to AJ’s other remark. “I know I haven’t been myself lately, and it feels nice to be able to have something to smile about again. I don’t know what it is. It just…” It almost seemed like the MDMA was beginning to wane, but nope. Just another pocket of flavor in the candy. “It’s been hard. And again, I’m so sorry it didn’t happen sooner, because I know it made for a really bad car ride, and you didn’t deserve that, AJ. You didn’t do anything to have to deal with me like that.”

The archway was gradually approaching. The desert at such a late hour was like an eerie sea, with silhouettes of cactus, that resembled ghost ships on the wavy sands. The night made things seem different than they were, and yet the black tranquility of the sky made him feel at peace, even if he was a little tipsy. “Emilia, stop.” With his right hand, he gently grabbed her and pulled her toward him, so that she was staring at him face-to-face, eye-to-eye. “Stop apologizing for hurting. Stop feeling guilty because your ex didn’t see how fucking amazing you are. I should be the one saying sorry! I should’ve SEEN. I should’ve been able to help! But I wasn’t there. I let it happen. I let him hurt you. And that makes me awful.”

It was a forceful action. Then again, those seemed to be necessary nowadays to snap Emi out of whatever funk she was in. It seemed weird she would be in a position to pull someone else out of the depths, but AJ seemed genuinely hurt by everything. It made sense. The difference between junior year AJ and senior year AJ was noticeable, and it didn’t take a Swift fan to see why. Even from as far away as she was at the time.

Emilia put her hand up to AJ’s as it rested on her shoulder. “AJ,” she softly spoke. “You couldn’t have known. There was no possible way to know. I didn’t even know until I was left there at prom.” She rubbed his hand as if to put him at ease, but really it just felt great, on both her hand and her shoulder. “If anything I should still be saying sorry to you! I mean, I’ve been sitting at home, wasting my time thinking about that stupid fucker and feeling sorry for myself, when I could have been reaching out and getting some help with this…” She stopped moving her hand and continued to lock eyes with the Gearhead leading her among the phantoms of the canyon, seemingly giving their respective demons life in the night. “I just… I’ve never felt this kind of pain. This kind of hurt. It’s so overwhelming. I know Brandon is a fucking asshole, but you know that feeling when you just kinda give yourself to someone, and you make them a part of you, and then they just rip it away. You’re never OK after that. I’ve just been making it worse. I should have talked to someone sooner. Val or Kim or Umbra or… you, I guess.” A slight breeze picked up, blowing some strands of hair across Emilia’s face as she continued to gaze at the boy who had caused so many tears today, yet was now drawing some necessary confessions out of the blonde.

“You’re a champ for crying about it. You might not say ‘help, I'm hurting’ but it’s there. I see you.” Only letting his gaze lay on her face for a second longer, he looked away and allowed himself to fully drop the mask, showing his vulnerabilities. The black night held them close and although substance was the main reason they were sharing, their hearts were entwined for this moment in time. “And… you’re facing it. You’re not pretending. You’re in so much pain, and you release it. Like, fuck, Em.”

Unlike her, he kept so much bottled up. Yes, his friends knew he was still drunk in love with his ex, but he never shared the exact details of everything to them. There was no proper disclosure. They didn’t see what happened behind closed doors. He didn’t share how bad he hurt his ex. He didn’t share that he was the fucking asshole in their story. He just played it like Jamie was his property and he hated that someone else claimed him, when really, the guilt ate at him — for the pain he caused. “Y’know standing next to you, it makes me realize how much of a fucking coward I am.” His eyes became glazed with a glassy layer of tears. He looked up to the sky to put them right back where they came from. Crying was for pussies.

Taking a deep breath in, as they finally got under the arch, AJ shook his head and turned his miserable face to her once more. A face where memories weighed heavy. “Break ups happen for a reason. They suck. Fuck, they suck. I wasn’t there for Jamie when he needed me and then after he was gone, I couldn’t let go. And the same goes for Val! Our friendship is fucking over because I’ve never been good at making people feel good about themselves. I’ve never been good at seeing what they want. Emilia, I made him so insecure, and I do the same with Val. What-the-fuck is wrong with me?!” At this instance, AJ was just about to reach his breaking point as he aggressively started pulling his shaggy hair.

It was an unusual position for Emilia to be in, watching someone else struggle with their emotions and just break themselves down into a puddle. At least lately, it was unusual. Sure there were meltdowns at clubs because leaders didn’t think they would get off the ground, but this was a whole new level. This was something Emi recognized in herself. Hell, she had been there three times today. But for AJ, this seemed to be even more self-destructive than her own.

Emi grabbed a hold of AJ’s hands and pulled them away from his head, holding them down as much as she could, despite her relative lack of strength and her desire to keep rubbing them.

“I release it because honestly AJ, I don’t know what else to do. Like I said, I don’t know this. I’m so not used to this. I have no idea what to do with this. There’s a part of me that wants to hunt Brandon down and kick him in the nuts until he coughs up his balls. But then, there’s that other part that just wants to know why. Why was I so easy to cast off like that? And there is no way to get any closure on that. He just bailed. Scurried off to San Jose to leave me here in this absolute mess. Leaving me here to deal. And I don’t know how. So I cry. I cry because I’m stuck like that.

“I don’t think there is anything wrong with you, AJ. I think we all deal with our tragedies in different ways. They may not be the right ways, but they are what we got. Have you been a bit self-centered about the whole thing? Probably. I mean, we never really talked so I can only go off what you literally just told me. But if that’s how you deal, then that’s how you deal. And if that’s making you crazy, then dude, you need to realize that yourself and make that change. Kind of like you’re doing right now.

“And for what it’s worth, Val is pretty hard to shake. You’re going to have to do worse things than that to get her to completely cut off the friendship. I mean, do you know how many times I have sung Ariana in her face? And yet we’re still friends.” It was a lot for Emilia to unload in that instance but her goal was to help AJ in that moment. The fact that she was finally getting some things off her chest was just a happy side effect.

She was… making a lot of sense. It was weird that he was finding comfort in someone he didn’t know as well as Chris or Aleks. But, it was refreshing. Maybe hearing these words from someone outside his usual circle was exactly what he needed. The alcohol was like a truth serum and made him spill out his heart. He didn’t know when it would stop — when he would shut up. He needed to shut up.

Suddenly, he had an urge and rather than think about it, he just did it. He pulled Emilia into an embrace and buried his face in her luscious, blonde waves and as if he really needed to do so, he let himself silently cry. How unmanly of him. “I don’t know if I want to be ‘just friends’ with her.” AJ whispered in uncertainty.

Emilia's eyes widened upon hearing that news. “Oh… Ohhhhhhhh! Oh," she stammered as she patted AJ on the back. It seemed like the right thing to do. What wasn't the right thing to do is what she said. “I...I didn't know you were interested… in that way. I mean, with Jamie and all…

“Yeah, well. Shit’s complicated. I didn’t think I was interested either. Until today.” He closed his eyes, not realizing how honest he was being nor holding any regrets for sharing it with this ball of sunshine. Her hair smelled nice. It was part of the reason he was calming down. “It’s okay. She would never want me.” He admitted, knowing he was getting in over his head. “I’d hate myself, anyways, if she felt like my rebound.”

Emilia nodded as she continued to comfort her friend. “I mean, not to say you couldn’t, but it’s probably a hail mary throw at this time, and yeah, you never want to put anyone else in the position of being the rebound. Although, I could probably go for some of that right now. I mean, I don’t have a lot to compare to, but I don’t think Brandon was very good. He kept saying it wasn’t about the size, but he really didn’t know how to use it…” She was spilling way too much now. Definitely the “pop rocks” coaxing that level of discourse out of her. But it was Brandon, so who cares how many people knew. AJ probably knew. They had been in locker rooms together for years.

For another time, he was taken aback. He pulled away from Emilia and gawked at her. She couldn’t be serious? Did he hear wrong? Was she offering herself to him? That… seemed… wrong. Especially after this pitiful conversation they had just shared. Well, Emi was hot. He’d give her that. And too good for him. Double the points. But did he want to fuck her and show her a good time? “Em… I’m kind of drunk. Would you be okay if we just laid together? I’m not saying I’m not interested, I just… don’t want to take advantage of you. I’d rather be sober if I make the decision for us to test the waters. Is that okay?” Fuck, he was such a goddamn pussy. Who the hell declines such a good offer? He does obviously! “We can go in my tent and share stories? I can tell you a lot of stupid shit about Brandon.”

For the first time since she took the MDMA, Emilia had a moment of clarity. Did she really just offer herself up to another man like that? Right out of the blue? Especially another football player? Didn’t she swear off anything football related? All of a sudden she was very confused. However, AJ didn’t budge. He didn’t take advantage. It was clear he wasn’t a Brandon. If Emi had three Mike’s in her, Brandon would have been on her faster than he could ice a bro with the fourth one. It was sweet that AJ thought like that. Another point in his favor. Besides, having sex in the canyon sounded like a rough time.

The blonde held the flashlight up to her face so AJ could see her smile, even if the light did make it look slightly creepy. “That sounds like a great idea. Brandon did so much stupid stuff in private, it makes the Kardashians look like Harvard grads.” She gave AJ a soft hug before quickly retreating. “Oh! I can get the rest of the pop rocks from the cabin too! They are so weird! I don’t think they are a good flavor of pop rocks, I don’t know why Matt would give me brown ones, but I mean, I guess they worked all right, right?”

“Pop rocks…” A sudden and abrupt lightbulb went over AJ’s head. WHAT THE FUCK, MATT?! Oh-my-GOD. Emilia was on DRUGS. Now he HAD to watch her. Tomorrow, AJ would make sure to punch the shit out of that motherfucker. “I have a better idea. Or well, better candy for you to eat.” He paused for a second, before adding, “Where are those pop rocks, exactly?” He hoped he didn’t have to explain himself. He really didn’t want the sweet little bumblebee to have drugs on her, sharing it with everyone. That was a recipe for disaster!

“They are in the cabin, I think they are still on the bunk bed,” Emilia admitted, laughing after she did so. “I thought I could eat them all at once, but I only got like half the bag in my mouth. Guess I’m not as good with my candy as I used to be.” She was leaning right back into the endorphins now. “But hey, your candy is much better tasting. I like strawberry way more than I like... whatever the heck brown is.”

“You know… it’s getting pretty late and we have a big morning ahead of us. I don’t want to waste nice snuggle time, so let’s head back. You can make yourself comfy in my tent and then I’m gonna take a quick whiz. How does that sound, Bumblebee?” Yeah, he liked this nickname over Goldie. It suited her more.

Emi giggled as she retook AJ’s hand. “That sounds awesome!” She looked up at the stars over the arch. They almost seemed like they were dancing in the night sky. She felt like dancing right now. “Thanks for taking me out here, Shades. I needed to see something like this… and to talk about this too. You’re a good listener.” She leaned against AJ, much like she did to Kim earlier. Only this time, she was a bit steadier.

“Maybe…” He slid his hand around her waist, pulling her close. “We don’t need to rush. Do you want to dance?” As if AJ read her mind or something, he didn’t, he just felt it was right to offer, he waited with a caring smile, all the while looking down at her pale face. His mama didn’t raise a fool (okay sometimes he was foolish). Pulling out his phone, he added another question, “Any requests, milady?” Naturally, he assumed she wanted to.

A goofy smile spread across Emilia’s face. “Play me some Break Free, DJ!” Of course she was gonna ask for Ariana. She always asked for Ariana.

Word. With a quick swipe with his phone, he went to his dance playlist, which did have some Ariana Grande. Yeah, he could get jiggy with that. The song washed over the desolate area and under the archway, he let the good vibes flow in him, first, pocketing his phone, and secondly, dancing like there was no tomorrow.

Yeah, after such a shitty day, Emi was the perfect medicine and this song. This song felt so right. It let him forget about all his problems. The music moved him like a puppet and although it was dark as shit, minus the flashlight, he loved how this was just their moment. No one knew what they were doing. No one could take this away from them. No one mattered, but them.

And, ya know, AJ could flex his dancing skills. If there was one thing he wasn’t a fuck up at, it was knowing how to have fun on the DANCE FLOOR. This was only a sneak peak for what Las Vegas had coming for them. His feet moved to the beat and his hand took it upon himself to twirl his partner of the night, as he watched her blonde hair bounce. God, he loved her hair.

“Thank you, Emilia. I needed this.” He mouthed.

As the blue-eyed girl spun around, light flickering wherever her right arm cared to go, she could feel a lot of negative emotions leaving. This was fun. This was carefree. This was more like herself. It was like having someone else in that space she was living in lifted them both up out of that pit. Into this moment. Into this beautiful, unspoiled moment. No matter how the two of them got there. It felt so good.

The flashlight barely caught AJ’s mouth moving and Emilia continued to smile as wide as she had in a long time. “We both did,” she mouthed back before launching into another rendition of the chorus, her voice ringing out over the desert, breaking through the night. It didn’t matter what time it was, or where they were, this was beautiful.

It truly was. And she was cute.

This night they’d allow themselves to be a rainbow in the darkness.

They deserved it.

[Canceled]

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@Hoekage @NeoAJ @TootsiePop
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The smirk that played on her lips as the conquest of Natalia’s obviously fun night scurried by was paired with the teasing rise of her eyebrows as she made eye contact with ‘The Conquerer’. Out rushed one girl and in another entered, but this time it was the bearer of food and caffeine, and the cutest one of the three roommates.

“The usual thing this morning, kicking holes in punching bags and owing debts, except I was delightfully interrupted by Gennie again, oh how they love to ruin my day.” Khione grumbled leaning her hip against the back of the couch after having followed after Mina into the living area and away from the front door. With the innocent, and painfully oblivious, girl involved in the conversation Khione had to be careful about her words. Ever since the first slip up she and Natalia had been referring to Genesis as a person they both knew, and disliked, which wasn’t far from the truth, The Order was a growing pain in Khione’s ass and would soon become one for Natalia.

A growling stomach directed Khione to her usual iced americano and banana nut bread, “Thanks for picking this up, Mimi, what would we do without you?” Though the glittering of gold ink caught her eye and her attention as she opted for grabbing the thick letter addressed to her instead of the slice of sweetness and carbs.

If there was one thing Mina was good at, it was taking care of her small family. She loved doing it, even if it was in the form of a nice home cooked meal. “Probably starve to death and forget to shower.” Her wide, youthful gaze subtly glanced over to see the letter that drew Khi’s attention. Subtle action, but she noticed. There was a moment of curiosity, before the morning bird cheerfully made her way to the sofa arm, leaned her plump ass against it, and took a deep sip of her tea. Peaceful. To her, the Loft was tranquil. Her happy place and her only safe haven. If she didn’t have any responsibilities, she would never leave.

Natalia was quick to grab her usual coffee and donut order as it was offered to her. Sure, there were fancier offerings at the cafe Mina liked to go to, but the classics are classics for a reason. Donuts and coffees were the perfect start to the day, especially the double chocolate dip that she wanted to sink her teeth into immediately. However, there were a couple of name mentions that required her attention.

She took a careful sip of coffee, making sure it wasn’t too hot and had the right amount of creaminess and sweetness to it. She wasn’t too worried about the latter, Mina was usually 100% on the order, and the cafe didn’t muck around with it. It turned out the walk back had done its job in cooling the beverage enough that it could be drunk easily, without burning her most valuable instrument. “OK, first of all sis, how the fuck did you know who Becky was? It literally took her telling me her name this morning to figure out she wasn’t Britney or Bethany or Lavender or something else.”

She took a longer sip this time. “Second, yes, as far as I know, we are still on for tonight. We might even be able to get that record deal locked up for sure if my contact can stop pestering me about joining her cult to get the contract organized.” Nat was careful not to let Mina know just who was working on that deal, at least not yet. Since Angie came out as a vampire, her name was pretty well known in that circle, which meant Khione couldn’t be told about her either, since it wouldn’t be 100% that Genesis wouldn’t find out about her interactions with the vamps.

Which brought her to the other name brought up. “You would think Gennie would know well enough to not interrupt you when you are punching things. I mean, shit, they are starting to get really needy and annoying. Which Becky better not start doing. Already asking me to text her and shit. What kind of woman does she think I am?” She took a large bite of her donut to signify that she was done talking for now.

“The addictive kind! She just can’t get enough.” Mina teasingly giggled at her non-committal sister, as she sprawled herself on the sofa, all the while kicking off her shoes in the process. As she listened to their conversation, she contemplated watering the houseplants. Now or later. Now, or later.

Deciding to push it off till after her shower, she continued to listen to Nat and Khi. It intrigued her when they discussed Gennie, since really, Mina didn’t know who they were. Mapping the little things her roomates said about this mystery person up until now, just to create a whole person, was a fun game of hers. At least she’d like to think of this as a fun game, since she doubts she’ll ever meet ‘Gennie’. The person capable of breaking the peace of her closest companions — they must be a force to reckon with. Or maybe, Gennie was just misunderstood. She wouldn’t know though. All she knew was, they weren’t well liked.

“Also, Natty. Becky said your name like ten million times last night.” Taking it upon herself to act out some of the dialogue from their previous night adventure, Mina decided to take both the role of Natalia and Becky: “Barbara? No I’m Becky! Who are you again? I’m Becky! Betty, you say? Becky! Mina, can you tell her my name? I don’t think she can hear me! I’M BECKY.” Mina ended her display with a dramatic, lost-all-hope sigh. Silly, sister. It was obvious Natalia didn’t care about learning the poor girl’s name, and Becky probably still blames the loud music. RIP love.

Natalia took another sip of coffee. “And I still got her home. I am so good, it’s scary sometimes.”

Grinning to herself, bringing her cup to her lush lips, Mina couldn’t hold back a smile. “Well aside from the inevitable heartbreak of your one-time lover, tonight sounds like a big night for us. We’ll need to really wow the crowd.” Her soft gaze went from Nat to Khi, before asking with hope, “You’ll come, won’t you?” Waiting patiently for their response, she took a much needed, refreshing sip. Passion fruit tea. Her favorite.

Khione had been struggling to open the letter using a single hand (putting down the coffee wasn’t an option), but when she finally pried it open there was an instant regret that followed. The font was a swirling show of craftsmanship that carried the weight of secrets this Alexander shouldn’t have known. Though the mention of Comfort had the short-tempered huntress crumpling the thick parchment in her hand, a slight tremor along her arms the only indication of her seething anger. Whoever this Alexander was, knew exactly how to play this game. Relaxing her grip around the paper she turned her attention onto the end of conversation around her and pursed her lips in thought for a moment.

“I have to meet Leo at Envy tonight, but if it goes well I shouldn’t be there for long. I won’t make any promises but I’ll definitely try my hardest.” The two of them had been acquainted with different sides of the same man, the charm and charisma was saved for civilians like Mina, while Nat had seen first hand the type of man Leone ’Set’ Deveraux really was. Khione gave a quick smile to Mina, “if I don’t make it I know you’ll be killing it anyways. I need to shower and get ready for my busy day. I’ll catch you later Mims, thanks for the food-” finally snatching up the banana nut bread with the same hand still clasping to the letter shuffling past the girls to the stairs, “I need to talk to you about your training later Nat. Have fun at work Mina!”. Khione disappeared up the stairs the smile from before dropping into a stern frown as the screen of her phone lit up vibrating thrice with three different text notifications but she only paid attention to one.

From: Brandt

From Cent. Park this morning. One of yours? The Commissioner will want to see you.

Nat raised an eyebrow as Khi retreated to her room. She knew the training was a step up a little lately, but she thought she was doing all right enough with it all. Whatever, it was something that could be addressed tomorrow. Tonight, as Mina said, it was all about the show. “So yeah, we’re on, but we gotta just treat tonight like any other night, Mina. Just do our thing, kick the shit out of Amnesia like we know how to do, and this should be a lock. So, yeah, no pressure.”

“We’ll kill it, sissy. We always do.” After placing her drink on the coffee table, Mina stood up and made her way to the Euphorbia Milii, also known as the Crown of Thrones, which was staged right by the cart that held her supplies, as well as the brightest, sunniest window. It craved sunlight. She gently checked on the leaves and then reached for her plant mister. As she faced the gorgeous plant, her mouth opened to ask a question, but it only took her a millisecond to decide against it. Part of her was curious about what Khi and Nat did on a day-to-day basis, but if they didn’t want to go in great detail, there was a reason behind that.

“Today is going to be a good day.”

Legends of Carnation Island (SHELVED)

The Golden Girl

Name

Jade Christine Scott

Nicknames

Golden Girl, The Rifle Rocket, JayCee

Age

21

Gender

Female

Sexuality

Bisexual, but leans female

Relationship Status

Single

Relation to Rachel

Because every epic party needs some star power, doesn't it? It was a coup to get one of Woodford University's top athletes to come to this shindig, because everyone knows who Jade Scott is and what she is about. She scores goals, and lots of them. So she's a damn celebrity, and she knows it. Also, Rachel bailed Jade out of a tough assignment in her Journalism 304 class, so Jade owes her big, and showing up for a raging summer-long party before hunkering down and working on getting that #1 draft spot in the NWSL is a great way to repay a favor.

Appearance Details

• Hair: Dark Brown | Usually it's tied back for soccer reasons, but she'll occasionally let her hair down, straight to her shoulder blades.
• Eyes: Brown
• Height: 5'4"
• Body Type: Peak athletic body, as if there was any doubt.
• Clothing Style: She spends a lot of time training, so she was seen in tracksuits a lot around university. However, with an entire summer to take for herself, she plans to switch to standard beach wear: shorts and tanks. She did bring a couple dresses just in case Rachel decides to make things classy.
• Makeup Wise: She's proficient with foundation, but relies on her natural beauty to carry her looks, so it's mostly clear lip gloss and light mascara.
• Scars, Tattoos and/or Piercings: She has multiple piercings in her left ear, usually adorned with gold rings, and a single piercing in her right ear, though that could change in the future. There is a basic black Kraken tattoo on her left shoulder.

Personality Traits

Anyone who knows Jade Scott knows that this is a girl who can not be stopped. Once she decides she's going to do something, she will not rest until she accomplishes that goal. Usually that goal is goals, but even in getting back to shape following her injury, getting that invite onto the US Women's team, she is driven to achieve whatever she needs to do to get to the next step.

Which is why her exclusion from the team in France has been a little tough to take. There was only other time she felt this low, and that was as she spent months hobbling around her Denver-area home with a giant brace on her leg. The invite to the party was initially accepted out of obligation to the host, but maybe this is the opportunity Jade needs to start thinking outside of soccer a bit. She only chose a degree in Communications so she could continue to talk about soccer after she was done playing soccer. What if there is more to life than that? The time at the resort will give her the chance to think about it... and enjoy carte blanche to have all the things she denied herself while training.

Upbringing Synopsis

Jade Scott was born April 10, 1998 in Rifle, Colorado to an athletic family. Her mother Courtney was a track star in Arvada, while her father Vaughn spent two seasons on the Broncos' practice squad as a running back. Jade was introduced to sports at a young age and quickly took to the local soccer program in Rifle. She took to it very well. Too well. It became clear she was combining her mother's speed with her father's footwork to devastating results for the rest of the kids in town. When she was 10, the Scotts moved to Denver to give Jade a shot to play against some real competition.

It didn't matter. Jade kept dusting the competition. The Golden Girl was the subject of local stories, a challenger to the records of Mia Hamm and Kristine Lilly. Then she tore her ACL in her senior year of high school. That sucked. The universities she had her eyes set on spurned her, in fear that she would not be able to hit those speeds she did before. Only Woodford kept its offer of a full ride intact. It was a decision that Kraken fans would not regret. Jade came back strong as ever, blitzing the competition and pouring in goal after goal. She planted herself back on the soccer map, but was not rewarded with a call up to the senior women's team. So instead, she's going to take the time to enjoy her summer and focus on her senior year ahead, intent on making the doubters pay yet again.

Misc.

Mallory Pugh | 9F1F19
- Jade can talk a mile a minute if you get her going on the right topic, which makes her a very interesting podcast guest.
- Before every game, she eats the same meal of chicken carbonara, and listens to the same song, "1,2,Step" by Ciara featuring Missy Elliot, three times.
- Because the team she suffered the injury against was called the Wolverines, she cannot stand the sight of them...if she ever saw one of them. Are they like a wolf-bear-cat thing?
- On the day I started this sheet, I had lunch at Dairy Queen, because Tuesday is my cheat day. So a chicken sandwich, fries, pretzel sticks, a pepsi and a drumstick Aero caramel blizzard.

Legends of Carnation Island (SHELVED)

@spooner @Dirty Pretty Lies

I have added some things. I hope they are acceptable.

Legends of Carnation Island (SHELVED)

The Golden Girl

Name

Jade Christine Scott

Nicknames

Golden Girl, The Rifle Rocket, JayCee

Age

21

Gender

Female

Sexuality

Bisexual, but leans female

Relationship Status

Single

Relation to Rachel

Because every epic party needs some star power, doesn't it? It was a coup to get one of Woodford University's top athletes to come to this shindig, because everyone knows who Jade Scott is and what she is about. She scores goals, and lots of them. So she's a damn celebrity, and she knows it. Also, Rachel bailed Jade out of a tough assignment in her Journalism 304 class, so Jade owes her big, and showing up for a raging summer-long party before hunkering down and working on getting that #1 draft spot in the NWSL is a great way to repay a favor.

Appearance Details

• Hair: Dark Brown | Usually it's tied back for soccer reasons, but she'll occasionally let her hair down, straight to her shoulder blades.
• Eyes: Brown
• Height: 5'4"
• Body Type: Peak athletic body, as if there was any doubt.
• Clothing Style: She spends a lot of time training, so she was seen in tracksuits a lot around university. However, with an entire summer to take for herself, she plans to switch to standard beach wear: shorts and tanks. She did bring a couple dresses just in case Rachel decides to make things classy.
• Makeup Wise: She's proficient with foundation, but relies on her natural beauty to carry her looks, so it's mostly clear lip gloss and light mascara.
• Scars, Tattoos and/or Piercings: She has multiple piercings in her left ear, usually adorned with gold rings, and a single piercing in her right ear, though that could change in the future. There is a basic black Kraken tattoo on her left shoulder.

Personality Traits

Anyone who knows Jade Scott knows that this is a girl who can not be stopped. Once she decides she's going to do something, she will not rest until she accomplishes that goal. Usually that goal is goals, but even in getting back to shape following her injury, getting that invite onto the US Women's team, she is driven to achieve whatever she needs to do to get to the next step.

Which is why her exclusion from the team in France has been a little tough to take. There was only other time she felt this low, and that was as she spent months hobbling around her Denver-area home with a giant brace on her leg. The invite to the party was initially accepted out of obligation to the host, but maybe this is the opportunity Jade needs to start thinking outside of soccer a bit. She only chose a degree in Communications so she could continue to talk about soccer after she was done playing soccer. What if there is more to life than that? The time at the resort will give her the chance to think about it... and enjoy carte blanche to have all the things she denied herself while training.

Upbringing Synopsis

Jade Scott was born in Rifle, Colorado into an athletic family. Her mother Courtney was a track star in Arvada, while her father Vaughn spent two seasons on the Broncos' practice squad as a running back. Jade was introduced to sports at a young age and quickly took to the local soccer program in Rifle. She took to it very well. Too well. It became clear she was combining her mother's speed with her father's footwork to devastating results for the rest of the kids in town. When she was 10, the Scotts moved to Denver to give Jade a shot to play against some real competition.

It didn't matter. Jade kept dusting the competition. The Golden Girl was the subject of local stories, a challenger to the records of Mia Hamm and Kristine Lilly. Then she tore her ACL in her senior year of high school. That sucked. The universities she had her eyes set on spurned her, in fear that she would not be able to hit those speeds she did before. Only Woodford kept its offer of a full ride intact. It was a decision that Kraken fans would not regret. Jade came back strong as ever, blitzing the competition and pouring in goal after goal. She planted herself back on the soccer map, but was not rewarded with a call up to the senior women's team. So instead, she's going to take the time to enjoy her summer and focus on her senior year ahead, intent on making the doubters pay yet again.

Misc.

Mallory Pugh | 9F1F19
- Jade can talk a mile a minute if you get her going on the right topic, which makes her a very interesting podcast guest.
- Before every game, she eats the same meal of chicken carbonara, and listens to the same song, "1,2,Step" by Ciara featuring Missy Elliot, three times.
- Because the team she suffered the injury against was called the Wolverines, she cannot stand the sight of them...if she ever saw one of them. Are they like a wolf-bear-cat thing?
- On the day I started this sheet, I had lunch at Dairy Queen, because Tuesday is my cheat day. So a chicken sandwich, fries, pretzel sticks, a pepsi and a drumstick Aero caramel blizzard.

I'll probably add to this. I just wanted to get it up tonight to make sure I got a female character celebrate the official thread coming to life.

Palm Beach Royals: Senior Year

_{@Dirty Pretty Lies@HaleyTheRandom}

Cleopatra was growing impatient. She was sipping at her whiskey like it was keeping her alive, but it was definitely keeping her calm without anyone she knew here as backup. She watched as some half-naked athlete, had to be an athlete given the way he wanted to show off that body with his costume of what amounted to a cape and little else. His nipples were a bit weird, but that just drew the eyes to that chiseled chest. She went over his body before watching him slam three straight shots of vodka. That was a little off-putting. “Vodka? Seriously? Not even I’m that foolish.” The shirtless wonder wandered off though, sure to find some random sexy tree or whatever to go hit on.

Shawna was pondering the fate of that poor woman, when she was interrupted by a most welcome arrival. The Disney princess to her queen, the Snow White that would have gotten Prince Charming to do more than kiss her, even if the kissing part alone was a little icky with the whole being unconscious thing. As Kellie Anne wrapped her arms around Shawna, she could feel the anxiety melting now that there was someone she knew she could talk to. She returned the kiss quickly and set her drink down on the table.

“Maybe if I can draw them away from you! Shit, hun, I thought I knew which Disney girls already gave me the urges! Gotta revise my list, cause you are killing this party!”

It didn’t take long for the Lunchroom Trio to be reunited. Even under Dorothy’s wholesome look, it wasn’t hard to spot Sunshine, especially with her greeting and her prompt shooting of tequila. “Yeah! That’s my girl right there!” This was how Shawna was supposed to react to a friend fearlessly taking a tequila shot, if the Netflix movies were anything to go on. “Shoot, c’mon Cupcake, we gotta get you a drink too.”

"Oh, no thank you! I'm not much of a drinker!" Kellie said bashfully, remembering that the last time she drank she'd gotten tangled up in the kiss with Max that had started their whole relationship.

Sunshine laughed at Shawna’s encouragement as she put the cap back on the bottle of tequila. She didn’t want to get too drunk right now. Sunshine and Tequila had a certain relationship - one that often got Sunshine into trouble. It was best to save her wild side for later. ”Come on, Kellie. One drink couldn’t hurt.” Thinking about how that was definitely peer pressure, Sunshine went on to reassure her new friend. ”But if you’re really not comfortable with drinking, we understand that.”

“For sure!” Shawna agreed as she continued to drink in her best friend’s costume. That seemed to be the correct term for now. “It is written in the hieroglyphs that my subjects get to do whatever the hell they please! Besides, wouldn’t do much good for the Disney image to have you drinking now, would it? She winked as reclaimed her own beverage of choice and took a long sip. Her tolerance had spiked with her summer extracurriculars, so she was confident this first cocktail wasn’t going to do much to get her drunk enough to let a snake near her this early.

Kellie giggled uncomfortably, discreetly shifting her feet. Apart from Shawna, the only reason she was even coming to the party was to forget about Max.

“Alright, alright,” she said in defeat, taking one of the orange party cups from the table and offering it up to Sunshine and Shawna,

Sunshine didn’t know that much when it came to what to drink for other people. Tequila worked just fine for her, and the thought of Vodka made her shiver. ”Hmmm….. I’m not sure what your preference is, but it looks like Kavi has everything covered.”

Shawna nodded. The host of the party had done a miraculous job of acquiring all the hard liquor under the sun, and in copious amounts, for someone underage. “All right! Now we are cooking!” she exclaimed, encouraging Kellie’s choice of action. “Well, I went with the whiskey, ‘cause that shit is hard to get for me normally. I can tell you that there are a couple bottles of Stonewell’s finest reds, fresh from the vineyards of scenic Interstate 75 in Ocala if you really want that convenience store wine experience. But, I think you should probably get something that’s an easy mix, something sweet, for my cupcake… Could start with some Malibu, I guess?” She looked over for confirmation.

Kellie shot Shawna a look. “Malibu?” she repeated in disbelief. Malibu was the type of drink she and her friends from Silicon Valley would add to their piña coladas while hanging out at the Country Club the summer before freshman year. “No way! If I’m going down tonight, I’m going down with a fight!” the brunette declared before stomping over to the drinks table. She filled her cup with ice, poured herself a generous amount of Rumchata and about a shot of Fireball before mixing up the contents by swirling the cup around in her hand and taking a long sip that burned down her throat.

Shawna just stared as Kellie Anne went no mercy on her first drink of the night. Granted, she was getting bold herself with the 80% whiskey drink, but still. It was a sight to watch her best friend show as much gusto in knocking back the alcohol as much as she did. Strangely, it made her feel even more at ease with their relationship. Did it mean she would accept the other illicit facets of her life? No. But alcohol was now on the table, and in her mouth, and that would do. “Damn girl! Wasting no time! All right!” She took another long sip of her drink, barely tasting the Coke at this point. “But be careful,” she cautioned, pointing up at her crown. “You come at the queen, you best not miss!” This was the kind of posturing she saw in countless wasted daytime Netflix sessions, and she had gotten better at it the more she got out to these events. Heck, at this point, she might even be brave enough to embarrass herself at beer pong.

Legends of Carnation Island

All right. Think I know where I am going to go with this. My character's name is Jade Scott, FC is Mallory Pugh, and the hex color is 9F1F19.

Legends of Carnation Island

I suppose I am in on this as well, though I have no idea of character or color yet.

REBOOT COMING SOON. INVITE ONLY.

_{▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃
Location | Red Rock Canyon Campground, Las Vegas, Nevada (297 miles from Santa Monica, California)
Interacting with | Kim @Stanifly, Hugo (aka Guitar Guy) @BeastofDestiny, anyone at the campfire
Mentions: Val @Dirty Pretty Lies, Umbra @Severance, Matt @Legion02, AJ @TootsiePop
▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃}

The bag that once held a healthy dose of light brown crystals sat half empty on the twin-sized bed in the cabin. If Matt had known, he might have been worried. Actually, he probably should be very worried. But there was only one person who knew just what happened, and she was flying way too high to care at the moment.

The ride through the Mojave Desert might as well have been straight through Death Valley for Emilia. She thought she had recovered from her latest breakdown. That was until it was determined that the Gearheads would be offering rides into Las Vegas for all the Misfits and the only car that had room to take her belonged to the boy who set off Breakdown #2 in the first place. AJ Tyler would now also be responsible for Breakdown #3. This one was a slow burn, in that it wasn't a whole bunch of water works pouring out and more of a solid repetitive sob from the blonde girl in the back seat. AJ tried his best, but the depressing nature of the trip so far was working against him. Emilia didn't even bother to try and text back home about what happened. It had been less than a day. Her stuff was with the dead RV. She was riding with one of the friends of the man who put her here to begin with. The frappe was all gone and there were no McDonald's along the way that drew so much as a slight turn of the wheel from the driver. Emilia kept her eyes shut as she leaned along the window, not caring for the sandy landscape passing by.

When the convoy of vehicles arrived at the intended destination at Red Rock Canyon, Emilia quickly bolted into one of the rudimentary cabins that had been made available to large groups of people such as themselves, wanting to continue her crying in solitude. She didn't even get a chance to share the M&M's with Umbra as she promised, but she attacked them once she was in the room. The others seemed more content to take in the new surroundings, so Emilia ravaged the candy reserves she had been given by the running back with reckless abandon. She opened up the ziploc bag full of what she assumed were pop rocks and went to dump the entire thing into her mouth all at once.

It was about halfway through that she realized it wasn't pop rocks at all and quickly returned the bag to its upright position, nearly coughing up all the crystals that she did consume.

The fact that she didn't get the expected sugary treat left Emilia curled up on the bed again, sobbing that literally nothing was going right on this trip. But this time the crying only lasted about 30 minutes. Then Emilia felt neutral and at peace with the situation she was in. Ten minutes later, Emilia felt downright giggly. Twenty minutes later, she was standing in the tiny bathroom of the cabin, humming Ariana to herself and just admiring how pretty she looked, even with her makeup all washed off. It just felt good to have water hitting her face. Everything felt good really.

"I look good... I feel good," she repeated to herself for the 19th time. She brushed her hair back down. Feeling it against her bare shoulders now that she had shed her leather jacket on the bed. "I feel so good! I... I should share this! Everyone should feel this good!" Her sense of purpose renewed as the MDMA was fully taking effect, she finally left he cabin for the first time since they arrived.

Emilia could smell the smoke coming off the crackling campfire that had been built in the vicinity and was drawn towards it like a happy moth to the flame. There were people there. Her people. Her friends, and the people with the cars that drove way too fast, and ... a someone with a guitar. Who brought a guitar? Could they play Ariana? That would be cool.

The blonde looked for a person to plonk herself next to, and with Val seemingly not in the fire's glow, she found one of her other best friends and took advantage of the open spot next to Kim, sitting down beside the calming influence in her life.

"HI KIM!" she announced as she wrapped an arm around the brunette, blissfully forgetting Kim's stringent "no touching" policy. "Awwww, I'm so lucky you're my friend! You have the best music!" She turned her attention to the rest of the fire folks! "I'm so lucky you're all here! It's so great to, like, just be here and not thinking about that fucking asshole Brandon!" It was clear that the drugs had completely removed Emilia's filter, right down to the swear words that the sober Emi would never utter. "You guys are awesome! I wish I could hug you all at once!" She looked over at the unknown face, the guy with the guitar. "Even you! Man, Brandon would flip if I took a selfie hanging off you, wouldn't he? Damn straight he would, the fucker." She looked around the fire. "Shoot, where did AJ go? I have to apologize to him for being all mopey and everything on the ride here! He was so nice to drive me... And I gotta apologize to Umbra for eating all the M&M's... I'm not even sorry! They were soooooooo good!"

She leaned up against Kim for support as she breathed a happy sigh. "They were so good, Kim. You wouldn't believe. She mimicked eating them for emphasis as she continued to rest her head on Kim's shoulder, her arm falling by the wayside.