Venus

What Are You Listening To?

Edenridge

TIMESTAMP: SOMETIME AFTER 9PM, AFTER “WHEN WE FALL… WE FALL TOGETHER” & "YOU ARE NOT ALONE"

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_{A @Venus, @LovelyComplex, @metanoia, @Aces Away & @BrutalBx Collaboration
Featuring Natalia Belmonte, Mitena Strongbow, Poppy James, Jade Taylor, Mordechai Boaz}

When they reached Aponi’s Heart, Penelope felt her surroundings caving in. A sudden, abrupt headache struck her head and vertigo washed over her as she stared at the Longhouse that led to a daunting truth. Charlie, her Charlie, had a sister. Someone he took care of. Someone he wrote to frequently. Someone he loved. Swallowing the pain and hiding her imbalance, she smiled at Jade, who looked back to check on her, clearly worried about her soul sister. There was no need to worry.

She’d catch up.

It would only be a moment.

She’d catch up.

Her green eyes pleaded for them to give her space. She needed to be alone. She needed to sit down. She needed to breathe. Mordechai was able to read her like a book without her having to say anything. They were doing so good so far, being transparent with one another, full disclosure, and not getting on each other’s nerves. They were treating each other right, like good friends should. They were no longer seeking forgiveness, only support. That’s what she wanted all along. To be someone worthy of his friendship and not because she was Rocky’s daughter. She wanted to be worthy of him because they grew up together and he was part of her world, so why couldn’t she be part of his?

Penelope was never going to be like his Serpent friends. That part, she knew deep down, was not her calling. She might have venom in her veins and sharp eyes that sees what’s happening around her, just like them, but the skin she chooses to wear, after continuously shedding her past, again and again and again, is a different shade, a different color, a different pattern, than theirs. And that’s okay. That’s her decision to make. That will never change that Mordechai held a piece of her heart and from this point on, she hoped he’d handle it with a bit more care. Jade too. They were her best friends after all. And maybe down the road…

Natalia.

Penelope’s eyes fell onto the beautiful woman that led their class senior year. She went from just another Scott Street girl to an incredible force to be reckoned with. Intimidating, smart, and on the surface, admirably strong. A leader through and through. The ‘Supreme’ as Reagan Ramsey put it. Poppy deeply stared into her green eyes, trying to get a read on her. Even today, with them spending more time together than they ever have, she didn’t know Natalia Belmonte, not really. The guard was still up and it reminded her of… well, it reminded her of Charlie. “I’m okay, really. I’ll come in soon. Promise.”

“Yeah,” Mordechai replied, giving Poppy a small smile for support before turning back toward the doors of the building. He could almost swear he could see the gears currently turning in her head as she stared at their token Northie. The look on her face said she was thinking about Charlie again, though he was also fairly sure that that look was always dangerously close to the surface. But Poppy could take care of herself, and being open with each other didn’t mean being physically present for every part of their lives, so if she wanted to calm down on her own he was going to respect that. He nodded to Jade before pausing for another beat, turning his head to call over his shoulder, “I’ll keep a spot warm for ya, Angel.”

He headed for the doors with the other two in tow.

Jade desperately wanted to say something to Poppy. So desperately wanted to say the words that she should have spoken to her soul sister weeks ago: I’m sorry I didn’t tell you what was going on in my head. I wasn’t okay then but I am now., but all the blonde could muster was a nod, a blue-green gaze lingering for a few moments before turning around. Jade really was in a better place. She still had some demons she needed to figure out. Demons of the past. Demons with her present and the family she ghosted for nearly a month (present company not included), but an improvement was made. Somehow, after her oddly cathartic conversation with Natalia, Jade felt like she gained clarity. She understood what she needed to do.

“Yeah…okay, see you inside.” Jade’s voice was as low as it could be at an audible volume. Her gut was twisting into knots, knowing she shouldn’t go inside, but if anyone knew that sometimes you needed time alone, it was Jade. So she followed Key’s lead, looking back once more, an intensely worried gleam in her eyes.

From the minute she had entered her bedroom, all the way through the trip to Blue Hill and ever since they’d reconvened at Adora’s for dinner, Natalia could feel Penelope James’ eyes fixated on her, as if determined to dig into the deepest parts of her soul. The taller woman had purposely avoided her when she could, afraid that the raven-haired girl might catch a glimpse of the secrets she’d kept under lock and key until fairly recently. The impromptu therapy session with Jade had been effective in permitting the Italian girl to release some of the weight she’d been carrying, but it also cemented her certainty that she was not ready to discuss her connection to Charlie beyond what was already said. The more time she spent around Poppy, the more opportunities she could have to poke, prod and inquire about the sensitive topic. So while the others showed hesitation in leaving Poppy behind, Natalia wasted no time in putting some much-needed distance between herself and the shortest member of their party.

Aponi. A word which here means a local bar. In indigenous speak it means butterfly. To the tribe that calls Blue Hill their home, it means sadness, the story of a girl who fell in love with someone she shouldn’t. Legend tells the tale of Aponi as a bright, inquisitive girl who lived off of the land with her family. When the white people first arrived in the growing settlement they had dubbed Edenridge, Aponi was but a child. Enamored with the newcomers and unafraid, she welcomed them with open arms. When the next boat arrived, she was now a beautiful young woman. Amongst the new settlers on this boat was the Carlisle family, headed by Nathaniel and with him came his youngest child, Esther.

Dubbed The Emerald of Belfast Town before her family's departure from Ireland for the new world, Esther was a ravishing visage of beauty. It is said by weavers of stories such as this one that Esther’s eyes were green jewels, stolen from Cú Chulainn during one of the folk hero’s infamous rages. It was these eyes that first caught Aponi’s attention when the assorted Carlisle family climbed off of the boat that brought them to Massachusetts. Having been raised alongside the early settlers for ten years, Aponi spoke enough English to strike up a conversation with Esther. It was a conversation that lasted for hours.

Hours soon became days as whenever either was free of their respective duties, Aponi and Esther were together, talking and unknown to those around them, falling in love. It was on a cold October morning when Nathaniel Carlisle, the newly christened judge of Edenridge entered his barn to pick up some tools for the morning grind. What he did not expect to find was his youngest daughter in the arms of her indigenous lover, in the yearning throws of heartfelt passion. It is said that the rage that Carlisle felt was so strong that his hair turned white. He grabbed the young native girl by her throat and dragged her before the burgeoning township, accusing her of witchcraft.

It did not take long for the Edenites to fearfully agree with the Judge and that afternoon Aponi was hung from the Elder Tree, in succession to being severely beaten. Esther herself was not far behind as Nathaniel immediately put his own child on trial and she too was found guilty. She wept for a lost love as she was placed beside her at the tree and burned at the stake. Esther’s tears and Aponi’s blood are said to have seeped into the ground, into the very roots of the tree and spread their evil witchcraft into the very soil of Edenridge, cursing the town forever with disaster and despair.

Nathaniel was quick to drive the once friendly Indigenous from the land they once called home. Eventually the tribe found its new place at the foot of the majestic Blue Hills, where the reservation stands to this day. The first building built? The Longhouse, to protect Aponi’s Heart.

Mitena stood firm on the stage as she watched the crowd bounce to the music. She could feel the vibrations in her caramel skin as her fellow band queens played their instruments around her, Tena the center of the universe. The girls were perfect for calming the nerves which struck the young native woman every time she took to the stage. Odina was a soothing, almost motherly presence, there to hold her hand and tell her it was going to be ok. Heather was an encourager, she would big the singer up and make her feel like she was the best in the world at what she did. And Ryan, well she was a pocket rocket and liked to motivate through fear. They were an eclectic bunch of girls and didn’t really fit as a band but they were a tribe, they were family.

As their last song finished, Tena had a brief reprieve to quickly smooth out her thigh skimming brown dress and adjust her turquoise scarf. It was a look but the dark-haired front woman was proud of her body. She was always a bit on the thicker side but she was also crazy athletic, having been a mainstay on Salem’s track and field team during high school. Music has taken precedent since she graduated so she didn’t run as much as she’d like to-- but there was always tomorrow, right?

Tena tightened the leather bracelet that she received from her big brother and took a step back up towards the microphone. It was mostly the usual faces in the crowd. She could see Chief and the twins serving behind the bar, Fallon was on the door being glamourous and badass and she could smell Resi’s cooking from there. What on Earth was he making? Jadyn and her ‘boyfriend’ were up on the balcony overseeing the proceedings like the deluded monarchy they likely thought they were. Tena loved her auntie with all of her heart, she raised three children when she was basically a child herself but she really did make some bad choices. There were strangers in the sea of people though, faces that Mitena did not recognise.

She narrowed her doe eyes at a trio that had entered the bar. A platinum blonde, flanked by a rough and ready looking boy and then there was the third in their party. Tall, athletic frame, with wavy, shoulder-length dark hair and the most startling green eyes that Tena had ever seen. She felt the air leave her body in an instant-- this strange girl had literally taken her breath away. She looked like the beauty from a storybook: a princess lost in an unfamiliar land. Mitena wanted to be her safe harbor but she could feel Ryan’s glare burning a hole in her back. She needed to restart the set now or her band mate would start a riot! With her eyes still on the newcomers, especially the green-eyed one, Tena plucked her guitar strings and pressed her lips to the microphone.

“If I saw you here tonight
In half lit melancholy light
I got you here under my skin
And tryin' to make you laugh again

When I open up my eyes
I wanna see your face
When you come here
Could you stay with me a while?
And gently break me with your smile?”

As soon as the beat of the song reached Natalia's ears, the woman suddenly froze on the spot. The drum was soon accompanied by familiar lyrics and matching guitar chords, all coming together in an emotional melody that tugged at the heartstrings. She looked up at the stage in disbelief, her green eyes already clouded with tears and blurring the performers’ faces. What the fuck was this girl singing? It was a coincidence, right? It might be. It had to be. It needed to be a coincidence, because the last time she'd heard this song was when--

Before she could stop herself, the memories of that night broke through the box she had locked them in and came to the forefront of her mind: a dark, messy room in the heart of the Southside. A gray plaid shirt being gently removed from a tall man's body by two pale, perfectly manicured hands. Tender fingers caressing and softly tracing lines on bare, tan skin. A moment of silence as brown and green eyes met in complicit understanding. Pairs of lips meeting halfway, bodies crashing into one another. Nude figures fervently intertwined in a desperate search for affection and comfort. Sounds of passion seamlessly blending together... To the melancholic song the girl on stage was performing so beautifully.

It was too much.

Without so much as a warning to Decky and Jade, Natalia scrambled into the crowd of Natives fawning over the singing woman. Her wide, wild green eyes desperately darted around, searching the building for any sign that pointed in the direction of a place to hide until finally finding it at the far end of the room: the ladies' restrooms. Tal rushed inside the restroom and dashed into the stall furthest from the entrance. She struggled to lock the door with shaking hands, panicking more with every failed attempt, but eventually succeeded.

Once safely inside the stall, Natalia pressed her back against the wooden door. Without realizing it, hot tears were streaming down her cheeks, and she covered her mouth with both shaking hands to stop herself from screaming. She didn’t know when she’d taken a seat on the toilet and started hyperventilating, or when her ears had started ringing, blocking out every sound of the longhouse around her. The agony of her heart ripping inside her chest had her doubling over in pain with her forehead pressed against the cool wall. The Italian girl kept her eyes tightly shut, hands still on her mouth, and slowly began rocking back and forth in an attempt to calm down...But it was useless.

Tal was unable to prevent it. The feelings she'd been suppressing for years overwhelmed her once more, and there was nothing she could do to hold back the gut-wrenching, body-shaking sobs that finally escaped her lips.

If she felt it or not, her phone vibrated. Waiting for her was a text from her twin:

Hey, just checking on you. Stay safe, Tal. This storm is bad. Love you.

Danny

“We have highballs on for half price.”

Back at the bar, two siblings who went by the name Winona and Tennessee were smoothly and casually serving drinks to most of their village that came to support Red Wolf Road. The woman, dark of hair, tan of skin, held herself in a reserved yet confident manner. While her brother was trying to do flair tricks for the customer that pleaded for it, a big NO in the bartending book (not the flair part, but treating them as if they were entertainers), Winnie was making bank in tips with the amount of people she was flattering with her words.

Glancing up at the balcony, she took note of the signal that Jadyn and her boyfriend had when they were ready for refills. Sighing, she nodded at the customer in front of her and closed his tab while glancing at the person she offered a highball to, waiting for an answer expectantly. Multitasking was key as a bartender. Her brother would get there. One day. As she worked the cash register, she instructed the young man beside her, “Your turn, I went up last time.”

Grabbing the bottle he had just flipped in the air, letting the young girls gawk at his skills, Ten glared at his sister, “You know Auntie’s boyfriend prefers you.” He grumbled while finally mixing the girl’s drink. Cranberry rosemary cocktail. He didn’t like that man who came to their reservation acting like he ran the place. The fact that Auntie was blind to the narcissism was baffling.

“So what? He prefers anything with a—” She stopped herself, smiling at the customer as she closed the tab, before preparing a highball for the customer that finally agreed to the deal. She glanced at her brother once more and rolled her eyes, knowing well enough she spoiled him, even at work. “Fine. But when I come back, all the people waiting, better be served. Got it?”

“Yeah, yeah, got it.”

Up on the balcony, ReyRey polished off his ice cold beer and placed the bottle onto the sticky bar table. He had to give the kid credit, Jadyn’s niece was really quite fucking talented. He wrapped his arms around the gorgeous Native woman as she leaned over the rail to watch Mitena’s performance of the melancholic song. This was a life he could see himself living a bit more. Any time that R2 escaped the reservation to spend time with Jadyn and her people, the strung together moments felt like a downpour of calm washing over him. He was away from the bullshit and the expectations. Here at the longhouse, he was just Rey, chilling with his girl with some good tunes and some good beer. Maybe this was what he wanted after all? A life without snakes.

As Jadyn excused herself to go to the bathroom, ReyRey took her place at the railing. He surveyed the packed bar, soaking in the faces. They were beautiful people, the Blue Hill tribe, and they looked out for one another. What they lacked in finances, they gained in love and respect for one another. As his deep brown eyes traversed the patrons, a small cluster caught his eye. He tightened his grip on the banister and clenched his teeth, the veins popping up in his arm as he recognized several faces from the place he left behind. Jade Taylor. Natalia Belmonte. And…

”Fucking Boaz.”

Mordechai had watched as Natalia ran from their little group and towards the bathrooms, head tilted as he processed all the emotion he’d just witnessed on the usually confident Northie’s face. There was no longer any doubt in his mind that there was more than just some friendship between Charlie and Natalia, as that girl never broke down over nothing, over smaller things. But the moment she’d heard Mitena’s song and seen her face- and honestly Mordechai had been a bit more focused on Charlie’s bracelet on her wrist- the girl’s mask had completely crumbled, leaving her emotions evident to anyone looking as she seemed lost in a memory. Before he could even turn to Jade to ask his friend if she was coming to the same conclusions he was, he felt eyes boring holes into the back of his head, and as if he could hear the venomous hiss of his former leader, Mordechai repressed a shiver and kept his breathing even. It was never good to show a nervous reaction if you knew people were watching, it showed weakness. Instead, he allowed his sharp eyes to trail after the bartender that had begun making her way towards the burning gaze he could still feel. Once she’d reached the owner of the glare, however, he regretted his need to investigate.

ReyRey was on the balcony that oversaw the stage, face turning an interesting shade of red that typically could only be drawn out by Sunshine himself and eyes now deadlocked onto Mordechai’s own. He was annoyed, probably even angry, to have seen Mordechai. The Fates seemed to have a funny habit of shoving him into an uncomfortable situation that he had only just barely begun to prepare for, and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about this newest slight from the cosmic entity. He’d come here for Poppy and Jade, for Mitena, and ultimately for Charlie, so, at least until Poppy was back and he could point out the newest development in their journey, he’d keep still. Not giving ReyRey any outward reaction to his sighting, Mordechai just nodded to the older man and turned back to the stage, giving nothing away on his face or in his posture that could worry Jade either. Everyone had their own focus now.

ReyRey could wait. Not long, the man wasn’t that patient when he wanted answers, but Mordechai trusted the man would at least wait until the end of Mitena’s set before demanding answers that had nothing to do with him.

Trusted, hoped, what’s the difference?

Edenridge

TIMESTAMP: A Flashback Of One Evening In March of 2018

_{A @Venus & @BrutalBx Collaboration
Featuring Charlie Decker & Natalia Belmonte’s First Conversation}

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It was becoming more and more difficult to focus on class now. Charlie was now spending every night on the corner, slinging ReyRey’s latest product to the nighttime creatures of Edenridge, Massachusetts. It was a great disappointment to the Southside boy that his occupation was now affecting his school work. Charlie actually really enjoyed school, especially Mr Beau’s class. Literature had always been his escape. The day was still clear in his mind when his love for the written word began.

Charlie was six years old. He has long black hair because his mother couldn’t afford to get it cut at the time and he was wearing massively oversized clothes that Rhonda’s friends had given him. They had travelled upstate to Maine, Portland to be specific to visit the only living family that Ronnie had left, her grandfather. He was a mean son of a bitch. He had all but scrubbed his son from his life when he moved to Boston, thus he never really tried to have any relationship with his granddaughter Rhonda or her son. But in his dying days when the dementia had taken hold, Arend Van Decker wanted nothing more than to meet his progeny.

Rhonda was taking care of Arend in his garden and Charlie was wandering around the house when he stumbled into his great grandfather's library. The room itself was small and three of the four walls were covered in books but to the young boy, this place might as well have been the length of a football field and the height of the Eiffel Tower. It was like a scene out of a movie in Charlie's head and when he reached out to grab the first book, he believed in his head that when he opened the pages he would be transported into a magical world of wonder and excitement and he would take his family on an breathtaking adventure. He may not have gone on that journey to wonderland but Charlie did set off on his expedition into the infinite universe of literature.

Beau wanted a book report done and wanted it done in pairs. Charlie looked forward to working with Poppy as always, at least until the moulder of minds decided to pick the pairs and Charlie was placed with the girl he was currently waiting to meet on the top bleacher overlooking the soccer field, Natalia Belmonte. There really couldn’t be anyone else in a completely different world to Charlie than Tal. She was beautiful, rich, popular, all the typical gimmicks one would expect for someone considered a queen of the school. Little did most know that Charlie already knew Tal a little more than one would think; he happened to be her weed dealer. Flicking through the pages of Stephen King’s Night Shift, his legs bouncing slightly as he soaked in the horror lord's words and waited for the Queen to arrive.

From an outsider's perspective, Natalia Belmonte's social life seemed to be on the up and up. Since becoming an integral part of the victories obtained by the Edenridge High volleyball Clovers, the young woman's popularity had begun to increase as her schoolmates began to take notice of her beauty, brains and athletic prowess. One of these schoolmates with a piqued interest in the fifth Belmonte child was Reagan Ramsey herself. The Asian beauty had approached Tal in the deserted showers after gym class, cornering her in one of the stalls. At first Natalia had thought Reagan was there to chastise her for staring at her bare body while she looked for her clothes and got dressed in the locker rooms. Instead, she found herself being initiated in the art of sapphic intimacy, surrendering to the queen bee in ways she had only imagined in her dreams. Their shower liaison had continued in Reagan’s bedroom during a ‘sleepover’, and after all was said and done, the senior offered the sophomore an opportunity she couldn’t refuse: a shot at becoming the next Supreme.

But what people didn't know, because Natalia was an expert at hiding it, was that the loss of her friendship/relationship of sorts with Niles Sinclair had been hitting her harder than anyone could possibly imagine. They had been joined at the hip for as long as she could remember; and for a little over a year, they had crossed the lines by becoming lovers too. Stating that she hadn't known what life was like without him, as dramatic of a claim as it sounded, was accurate. Although she would never admit it, Niles' absence had left a large void in Tal's heart that not even sleeping with the Ice Queen herself could make her forget. And without the distraction of volleyball to occupy her mind, the green-eyed girl had turned to the solution provided to her by Charlie Decker: weed.

"Hey," the Belmonte girl greeted her classmate with a nod of her head, dropping her backpack on the row in front of her while taking a seat next to Charlie. She wasted no time in pleasantries or small talk, and got straight to the point. "Same price, right?"

Charlie ignored her for a few seconds as he finished the page he was reading. Business was business but the words he read were food for his soul. Sometimes it was really the only thing that kept him going. And those who knew the lanky boy best, knew not to disturb him when he was reading. Once he had finished, Charlie licked the top of his finger to moisten it and turned the corner of his current page so he could find his place later. The native boy closed up the book, rested it beside him and turned his dark face to look at the new arrival. “Yeah, same price.”

Reaching into his bag, Charlie pulled out a small antique tobacco tin. Poppy’s mom had a massive selection at Well Loved Wonders and he had taken to using them for his deals. Depending on the customer, a tin might just have the actual weed inside or if Charlie liked you, he would throw in the papers too-- and for some weird reason, he did like Natalia. They were in completely different social circles. This old adage of coming from two different worlds applied dramatically to the two of them. She was a Princess and he was a Pauper. Yet still something in her soft green eyes made Charlie think that they weren’t so different. He saw her beauty-- of course he did, how could he not? But inside he saw a mirror: a mirror with a crack in the seam.

While Charlie concluded his reading session, Natalia fished her wallet out of her backpack, retrieved the designated amount of dollar bills for her transaction and returned the wallet to her backpack. Once the young man was finished, she handed him the money with one hand and clutched her product with the other, wasting no time in opening up the tin to examine the contents within. A grin spread across the Belmonte girl’s features as her eyes fell on the prize: beautiful forest green buds of Mary Jane, accompanied by complimentary rolling papers, all perfectly packaged in the Decker boy’s signature antique tobacco tin. The tins were something Tal had grown fond of during her time as Charlie’s customer. They made the deals less intimidating and more like a harmless exchange between friends.

“Thank you,” Natalia muttered to the dark-haired boy, shifting her sights from the tin to her dealer and offering him a friendly half-smile.

There was something different about their transaction today. Usually, once Natalia had received her goods from Charlie she would be up and out of there faster than anything. He was never offended by it, quite the opposite actually it made his life easier since it meant there was less chance of them getting caught by Principal Payne or one of his minions. Payne seemed to have his eye on Charlie ever since Allison, he was obviously one of the ones that believed that he had killed her on purpose. At this point that was just another name to add to the list, it didn’t mean anything. However, Natalia stayed after paying him, even thanking him, that actually meant something to Charlie.

“It’s no problem.” The tall Serpent returned Tal’s half smile with one of his own. There was a feeling, welling up in Charlie’s head, like a scratch. It was telling the Indigenous young man that something wasn’t quite right with the Belmonte girl, something was wrong. They were never friends, they had hardly spoken beyond their weed transactions and the odd class assignment which forced communication but still, he could see something was off. He reached into his jacket and pulled out his own tobacco tin. Flicking it open, Charlie Jay took out a joint. Holding it between his fingertips, he leaned his hand over towards the starry eyed beauty. “Want one? Free of charge”

The girl's eyes lit up, and the half-smile she'd sported earlier widened into a grin. "You sure know how to make a girl feel special," she joked, plucking the offering from Charlie's fingers. Natalia shot him a complicit wink, and wasted no time in lighting up the joint with her lighter and taking a long, deep drag.

Tal closed her eyes as she let the smoke fill her lungs with the scratchy feeling she'd become accustomed to-- the one followed by a mellow trance in which all her life's worries gently faded into the background. After a few seconds, the girl's eyes slowly fluttered open. "Wanna share?" she asked him, holding out the joint to Charlie.

Well this was a surprise! Was she…flirting? Charlie knew that this was likely just how she was, he shouldn’t read too much into it right? “Sure, gotta save the rest of the product right?” He reached out to take the joint from her, their fingers touching ever so lightly as he did. He brought the roll up to his lips and inhaled. Natalia’s taste was all over it.

He only started using it after Allison’s death. At first it was a marketing ploy, Charlie had to prove that his shit wasn’t tainted and was safe for consumption. Then after a while, it just became something he enjoyed, something that helped as anaesthetic for this pain and turmoil that had made its home in his head and heart. After breathing out the smoke, Charlie handed Tal the joint back and peeled off his leather jacket, resting it atop his book next to him. “You’re not as scary as Reagan wants you to be, are you?”

"I'm not? Fuck. I guess gotta work harder then. Wouldn’t want everyone to think I’m a big, cuddly teddy bear," the girl joked around again with a chuckle, taking another pull from the joint. "I guess it all depends on who you ask. People like you might be inclined to say no, but people like the freshmen girls on the team who see me spike the volleyball with no mercy might be inclined to say yes," she added with a small snicker, offering the joint back to Charlie. "I still have until the end of the semester to fix that, though. Plenty of time to turn into the big, bad, scary wolf people say you are."

“I mean you’re on your way,” Charlie took back the joint and inhaled again. This was some good shit. It was courtesy of some connection ReyRey had over at Blue Hill. It was somewhat comforting to know that his people were into the same shit he was, meaning he felt less like a disappointment. “Here you are, sitting in plain view of the world with a murderer. Careful, Natalia. I probably laced those joints with rat poison. Gonna take us down together Romeo and Juliet style.”

The green-eyed girl tried to hold back, but after a loud snort, she erupted in laughter. The morbid joke Charlie had just made would have earned him a scathing look from any other student at this school. Over a year had passed since the tragic passing of former Queen Bee Allison Davies of a drug overdose during a house party in the Southside, but her death still loomed over the school and Charlie Decker like a dark cloud. Although Charlie maintained his innocence, everyone blamed him for the girl's death. Natalia, on the other hand, was of the unpopular (unvoiced) opinion that willingly using any type of drug meant the consumer was aware of the risks it could bring-- one of them being death. No matter how much you trusted your dealer, you could never be 100% certain of the contents of what you were taking, or whether they were safe or not. Luckily for Charlie, Tal was in an emotional place where dying wasn’t a particular concern.

"Good thing I'm not afraid to die, then. Otherwise I’d be shivering in fright!" the girl answered in between laughs, pretending to fall back dramatically with a hand on her forehead for added effect before returning to her seating position.

After blowing the smoke out of his lungs again, he offered the MJ back to Tal. “Seriously though, what’s on your mind? I can tell something’s off and if you can’t talk to a stranger, who can you talk to?”

The Belmonte girl was quiet for a few seconds, mulling over Charlie’s offer as she took another drag from the joint. Talking about her feelings wasn’t something Natalia partook in very often. She was raised to believe that honesty and expressing too much emotion was a sign of vulnerability, not strength, and Belmontes were not faint of heart. But her thoughts about this topic had been weighing on her heart for months now, and she'd had nobody to confide them in. Although she and Decker weren't close in the slightest, he'd been the first person outside of her sisters to notice something was wrong and inquire about it.

"I miss my best friend," Tal admitted with a sigh, trying to downplay the world of hurt she'd secretly been in since she and Niles had severed their ties right before winter break of last year. She took another pull before handing the joint to Charlie. "It's hard to learn to live without someone that was an important part of your life since you were in diapers."

In certain ways, Charlie could relate. Sadly there were a lot of kids whom he had grown up with who were no longer living. It was the curse of living on the Southside: where gang violence was as commonplace as someone taking a dog for a walk. Death was as simple as breathing. He was lucky that he still had his closest friends-- Jade, Decky, and of course, his Poppy-- but that didn’t mean that he still wasn’t carrying the weight of the beautiful departed on his broad shoulders.

“I can empathise. I’ve lost a whooole lotta people.” He thought back to every time he had to put on a black suit, every sheepish look when someone mentioned his father and his mind drifted to another type of loss. Charlie’s Mom was losing her sight, getting wheeler by the day. How could she even possibly deal with that with as much grace as she was? It wasn’t possible.

“This… This is a different kind of loss.” Natalia politely added, hoping Charlie wouldn’t interpret her words as invalidating his own experiences. “You can’t call them with good news or bad news. You can’t hang out with them after school, or on the weekends, or during break. You don’t have that ride or die anymore. They’re physically present, yes. They haunt you like a fucking ghost lingering around you all the time. You can see them every day. You can hear their voice nearby. But the place that they occupied in your life? That’s gone.”

”I can’t say I’ve ever felt that” Charlie had never felt the same kind of pain. He had known people that had died, mostly under tragic and horrific circumstances. Yet he had never lost anyone in the same way as Natalia. She had given her heart to someone, the bravest thing a person could do and they had stomped on it. Charlie didn’t have that same kind of bravery. He guarded himself with words from dusty books and a leather jacket that barely fit. He was a coward and he knew that he wasn’t like the girl that sat with him. She was fierce and courageous, he was pathetic but he still wanted to help.

“You know, we may not be friends and I don’t know what much I can’t offer to you to ease your pain. But just know-- trust me when I say this, I’m a drug dealer-- you will get through this.” Charlie handed her the last of their joint. “Luigina Sgarro once wrote: When we miss someone, often, what we really miss is the part of us that with this someone awakens. You don’t need to learn to live again, you just gotta find a new part of yourself we haven’t seen yet."

"Like becoming a lesbian, maybe?" Natalia asked Charlie with raised eyebrows and a snicker, consuming the last of the joint before dropping the nub near her feet and crushing the remains with her shoe. The comment she made was half-joking and half serious. Although she'd secretly always been attracted to girls as well as guys, her feelings for and loyalty to Niles had prevented her from exploring anything with anyone else-- with the exception of a few heated kisses with Mika during the party Allison died at. With Reagan, that hidden side of her had been cracked wide open. Their pretty pink lips on hers, their soft skin under her fingertips, their silky long hair on her grasp, their heated touch so gentle and hungry at the same time... Girls were fucking amazing. She even felt a little stupid for having waited so long to experience their magic.

Charlie chuckled, a rarity for sure, especially given his usually somber mood around campus. Wow, he actually liked spending some time with Natalia. There was a lot more to her than being Reagan Ramsey’s next project or being Danny Belmonte’s twin. She was more her own person than maybe even she would care to admit. “Hey, if you wanna be a lesbian, I’ll support you wholeheartedly. I imagine most of the male student body will….and female too as it stands.” The would-be writer looked at the girl with stars in her eyes and smiled, while Natalia laughed and playfully shook her head. “Whatever you do, just be Natalia, whoever that is.”

"I guess I’m still trying to figure out who that is,” Natalia replied in earnest, thinking about Charlie's surprisingly wise words. Who was Natalia Belmonte? That was an excellent question. Throughout her life, her identity had been defined by and reduced to labels dependent on the people around her. Taz and Silvia's daughter. Danny's twin. Cat's little sister. Sinclair's best friend. Reagan Ramsey’s new pet. Coach's new volleyball Clover prospect. She was so focused on adhering and tending to each of these labels that she felt like she had lost herself along the way. "And honestly? I'm scared that, once I find out, I'll push people away by 'just being Natalia', you know?" She had already lost Niles and her relationship with Danny by being herself. She couldn't fathom the idea of repelling even more people she cared about by being her true self.

“I think we all pretty much share that same fear.” Charlie dealt with something similar every day. He didn’t want to be known as Allison’s murderer or some Southside scum. Hell, even the name Hard Times bestowed upon him by Decky was a label that he didn’t want. Charlie just wanted to be Charlie: a bookish dork, probably a little too tall for his own good, and living his truth. What truth was that? That was a different question, and involved another beautiful brunette with eyes you could get lost in. “But you can’t let that stop you.” The indegeous boy reached out, almost hesitantly and placed his hand on the young girl's shoulder, touching her warm, bare skin. “I think you’ll be fine. I mean, I quite like Natalia Belmonte. Yeah, that’s right: I said it, wanna fight about it?” Charlie stuck out his tongue. “Just don’t tell anyone, I’ve got a rep to maintain.”

"You? What does it say about me that the scary, murdering drug dealer from the Southside deems a prim and proper Northie lady such as myself as someone worthy of his liking?" Natalia teased, doing her best impression of the shallow, self-absorbed girls from their school by letting out a dramatic sigh of surprise, puckering up her luscious lips into a pout, flipping part of her dark-haired mane back while rolling her eyes at Charlie with pretend condescension… and quickly erupting into playful cackles.

Once she had collected herself, Tal leaned forward and placed a hand on the boy's knee. "You know what? You're absolutely right: fuck them. That goes for you too, by the way. Anyone have something to say about you? Fuck them. Too many people here talk shit about others to keep the rest distracted from finding the skeletons they keep in the back of their closets. Don't let them use you for that shit."

“Fuck them.” Charlie echoed her sentiment as he leaned forward to match her stare. He found himself looking deep into those infinite green eyes and was trying not to get lost. What is happening right now? Were they becoming friends? It felt that way, but perhaps there was more. He looked down and noted Tal’s hand on his knee and his hand on her shoulder which was now lower down upon her back after she had moved closer to him. They were touching and staring. Laughing and having fun. Their faces were mere inches apart to the point he could see the light freckles dotting her nose. Shit, the product from Blue Hill must’ve been particularly strong that week or Natalia’s pity had reached his level. Whatever the true reason, they had connected.

There was a strange electricity hanging in the air that had settled when the laughter faded away and the two teens remained locked in a shared stare. Whether it was the weed taking its effect on the both of them or a sudden, overwhelming need for physical comfort, Tal found herself slowly closing the distance between her and Charlie’s faces like a moth drawn to a flame. She could feel his warm breath on her lips as their noses nearly touched, their mouths just a wisp away from coming together in a kiss--

The sound of Natalia’s phone announcing the arrival of a new notification brought the budding moment to a screeching halt. The Belmonte girl immediately pulled away, her eyes wide in startlement. Muttering an incomprehensible apology to Charlie, she pulled out her phone from her backpack to discover a new text from Reagan: Time to head out. I am waiting for you in the parking lot, little love.

Shit... I have to go,” the Belmonte girl informed the Decker boy, with visible disappointment in her tone and her face as she stood up and swung her backpack over her shoulder. “Listen, I really enjoyed our conversation today. Maybe it doesn’t have to be the only one?”

So that just happened. What even was that? Charlie leaned back on the bleacher bench and smiled. “I mean I sell to you at least two times a week. I doubt this will be our last conversation.” He knew that wasn’t what the beautiful girl meant, not by a long shot. He felt somewhat guilty that he was now feeling some kind of way. He loved Penelope. She was his heart. Yet it seemed that in the last few moments, a magnetic energy had descended from the heavens and wrapped he and Natalia Belmonte, the Supreme successor, in its embrace. He was drawn to her. "You have my number. You know where to find me. I really enjoyed our conversation too.” Looking out at the open field that sat before them for a moment before returning his attention to the brunette, Charlie mused on what to say next but the words that followed were really quite natural. ”Remember, just be Natalia. She’s amazing.”

Natalia offered Charlie one of her biggest, brightest smiles in a display of gratitude at both his words and his actions. After feeling insecure about herself for a while, the Native boy's words had been a welcome change from the negativity that frequently visited her thoughts. They had raised her spirits, boosted her mood and effortlessly brightened up her day. “I can’t make any promises, Charlie D. But for you, I’ll try my hardest,” she assured him, shooting him one of her signature winks and blowing him a kiss before departing their place of business.

Watching her leave, Charlie checked the time. He still had an hour before ReyRey needed him on the corner. He could get some quick writing done, swing by and see Poppy and then cook his Mom some dinner before his shift. It was weird to think that in a brief moment that felt like a daydream, he had bonded with the future queen of the school. Princesses and paupers weren’t meant to mix, but for some reason, he and Tal did. He took out his journal and untucked the pen from his shirt pocket. Gazing upwards, the moon was starting to very slowly appear in the sky causing him to smile as he put penpoint to paper.

Charlie’s Notes: Eternity, infinite and unending. In her eyes, waves of green eternity, bedazzled with dancing flickers of gold. Joy and sadness crashed upon beautiful shores. She was alone yet surrounded by thousands and hundreds of thousands of specs of starlight souls waiting for the end to come; he was one of those souls.

Edenridge

_________________________________________________________________________________





_________________________________________________________________________________

Everything was so fucked.

Very. Very fucked.

It hadn’t even been twenty minutes since Mika left Anya and in those twenty minutes, on top of so much shit that was going through his head, Mika was drenched in a downpour. The storm had been on the horizon all fucking day and now it was here -- or at least, it was almost here. Mika wasn’t any meteorologist and he never will be, but even he could predict that soon enough, this would go from manageable to you-better-hope-you-have-good-home-insurance levels of wetness.

As he drove down Carlisle Avenue and went to the closest place that he could dry up at, Mika texted Ley he was stopping by. About five minutes after the fact, he stepped through the doors of the Gonzalez home as he unlocked it with the spare key he had, greeting the serpents that were standing guard. He didn’t live there full time, but he spent a good amount of time at the place he’d called home since he came to live in Edenridge. Soaked beyond belief, Mika took off his jacket, carried it with him upstairs and went straight for the bathroom. What he needed now was a shower. It had been bad enough that Danny thought he stank, but thanks to the rain, that only intensified.

During the time he spent in the shower, it wasn’t spent just trying to clean himself up. Truth be told, he finished that in the first half, yet the water kept running. Honest to the god that Mika seldom believed in or even acknowledged, he couldn’t stop thinking about his conversation with anya and what she had said about their brother. Hyde was watching him. Did that mean he knew he saw him go to Cece’s? Is that what Anya meant by ‘brother is watching’? He had to assume that was the case. Anya was concerned and Mika was terrified.

And then he told Anya he would protect Cece. What an idiot he was! Mika made such a declaration to Anya and he believed it. Of course, he meant it too, but that didn’t matter because he said it and now he had to make it happen. But what was he actually going to do? Protect her how? Every time Hyde came within five meters of him, Mika receded back into the scared kid who just wanted acknowledgement from someone and Hyde fit that bill to a T. For a time, their relationship was something Mika cherished above all else. An older brother that didn’t treat him like trash and maybe the blood tie was a big part of it too. ReyRey had always been good to him, but during a time when Mika was most angry at the world and at the place he was thrown into, Cameron Hyde was the only person that made any sense to him.

But now? Now he presented a danger to everything he held dear. His family - both the one who took him in and the ones he was blood related to - were in danger. Cece was in danger. His Southside friends, if they got in the way (they were naturally nosey and protective, so if they thought Mika was in any danger, they would) were in danger. Everyone that Mika held close to his heart was in danger. How could he be so foolish? So careless?

“Because you’re an idiot. That’s why.” Looking at himself in the mirror, Mika wanted to punch. He wanted to break the mirror, make him see the fractured reflection of himself that he felt like, but he couldn’t. As shitty as he felt right now, he still had the respect for Momma G and her home to not ruin any of her property.

So he just got dressed and left the bathroom. The light was turned off and Mika found himself brushing shoulders with Ley as he walked past her. “Sorry. Bathroom’s all yours if ya want it.” Mika muttered in a low tone, not waiting for her to even respond.

Aleyda, who had been enjoying some much-needed time alone after Big Rey and Lupe had taken Raf to a baseball game in Boston, felt her heart jump up to her throat at the sound of the front door of her parents’ house opening and closing followed by footsteps going up the stairs. She’d had her hand poised on the pistol she kept in her nightstand drawer, body tensed up and ready to feed the intruder some bullets, before she remembered Mikhail’s warning message from five minutes before. Letting out a sigh of relief, Ley closed the drawer back up and waited for her brother to get out of the bathroom so she could strike up some conversation with him. However, instead of greeting her or even acknlowedlging her, Mika brushed her shoulder, apologized for hogging the bathroom and walked away before she could even speak. In fact, he was already on his way downstairs when he heard the faint volume of her voice.

“Did you just say you were sorry?” Ley repeated incredulously, staring at Mika’s figure as it retreated down the stairs of the family home. She chased after him and leaned over the banister to continue the conversation whether her brother wanted to or not. “Did you fall and hit your head on something? Are you feeling okay?”

Mika made it as far as the kitchen. Despite all of his thoughts and what was plaguing him currently, that didn’t affect his walking speed. By the time Ley caught up with him, he was in the process of popping off the cap of a Modelo (the only brand of beer Big Rey seemed to buy). As Ley spoke, he almost chuckled. “...Or something,” he remarked, remembering the exact moment he fell face-first on Cece’s floor. Probably another reason why he felt like he was getting the worst migraine in his entire twenty years of living. “Why do you ask? Do I not seem fine?” He brushed off most of her concern as he took a large sip as he leaned his back against the counter.

Aleyda, who had raced down the stairs and reached the kitchen in record time (chasing after a very energetic two year-old was reaping its benefits), raised her signature defiant eyebrow in his direction. “Because in the twenty years that I’ve known you and the six years I’ve lived with you, you have never apologized for something like hogging up the bathroom before. The only times you ever apologize is when you fuck up something beyond belief,” the brunette declared in her usual blunt demeanor. Her words weren’t coming from a place of malice or with ill intentions-- she was just stating the facts. “So how about we cut the small talk and get straight to it like we always do. Tell me what’s bothering you, Mika.”

Looking at Ley, Mika tried to not let it slip past his eyes that she was right. He never did apologize and he certainly didn’t even remember he did. Probably one of those out-of-body scenarios where he said it but didn’t realize he did. It made sense because, again Ley was right and he wasn’t acting like himself. He sure as hell didn’t feel like himself. It seemed like everything in his life was piling up on top of each other and no amount of time spent in the shower reflecting on it, avoiding talking about it, and even drinking some crappy beer could change the fact that Mika was struggling and he needed to talk to somebody.

But the things he needed to talk about without feeling judged, he couldn’t say them to Ley.

But she was the only person here.

With a series of fast gulps, Mika finished the beer and set the empty bottle on the counter. “You mean aside from the fact that I was drenched in the heavy downpour outside?” There he went trying to avoid it again. “Got kinda soaked out there, which ruined my plan to stay dry.”

“Don’t try to downplay or change the subject! We both know that doesn’t work on me,” Aleyda reminded her brother in a sharp tone as she took to standing in front of him and staring him down-- a hint of her old, fearless personality shining though. The members of the Gonzalez family were stubborn in nature: once they were onto something, they wouldn’t back down until they saw it through. She also knew that the deeper Mika sunk her feet onto the ground when refusing to speak about a subject, the more the topic bothered him. “You don’t just walk in here making a beeline for the fridge and chugging a Modelo down as if you've been thirsty for years and tell me it's because a few raindrops fell on your clothes. Something is bothering you, and you know I'll smack whatever it is out of you if you don't stop playing games with me and let me help you."

God, he hated when she was right. He hated when she could read him like a book that had the assistance of a narrator telling her everything. Mika couldn’t hide anything from her. Not when he was seeing Natalia, not when he was dating Cece in secret. It wasn’t always a bad thing that she was so perceptive. Growing up on the southside, you had to be alert to bullshit. That was one of Ley’s superpowers that were usually working for. Well, not this time. She was using her powers for evil and Mika stood no chance against them.

Frustrated beyond more than what was happening right now, Mika sighed out, drawing the anticipation mostly because he didn’t know how to address it. Telling her what was bothering him never had been an issue for Mika, but this specific thing, especially with Hyde, that he couldn’t admit to no matter what. He had to make sure of it, but there was a lot more. “Fine, you’re right - as always - there is something going on.” That felt like venom from the Viper in front of him coming out of his mouth. “You know about these new letters making waves? The ones talking about David O’Hara?”

“Yeeeeeaaaaah?” the woman said slowly, leaning against the kitchen counter with a hand on her hip.

“The letters were written by someone.” As he spoke, he could feel his stomach already start to twist. “Someone who was close to David, but not just…close. They loved him. Not in some crush way, but they loved him with all their heart. And because of some misunderstanding, his reputation was ruined. Called him a pedo, child-diddler. He made a mistake, sure, and he wasn’t perfect-- but to drive him to his own death? They drag his name through the mud and now it’s happening to a person who doesn’t deserve it. All she did was love a guy who was a few years older. She wrote letters and now they’re being used against her. Being sent to people in town. And for what?”

Mika was angry and visibly so. He hated this so much. Hated that someone was going after Cece and they didn’t know who it was. Didn’t know who was doing this not just to her, but to David’s parents and Mika’s uncle and aunt. They were doing this to them and he couldn’t do a damn thing to help because this was all a big secret. Of course, not without reason. Hyde always presented a danger. Even now.

Aleyda pursed her lips together into a tight line. It was obvious that the letter situation was having a big impact on her brother-- although the reason why it could be was escaping her. As far as she knew, Mika had never been close to David O’Hara. They hadn’t run in the same social circles, they hadn’t played on the team at the same time, and she couldn’t think of any way in which the two could have shared any interactions meaningful enough to get him so fired up about the subject. The logical explanation, of course, was that the author of the letter in question was the actual root of his concern. When Ley thought about the women in Mika’s life who could fit the profile he was describing and who could elicit this type of reaction from him, she came up with only two names: Natalia Belmonte and Caitlin Cleary.

“I’m assuming the girl who wrote the letters is someone you care about?” the brunette inquired, her demeanor beginning to soften with concern for Mika. Maybe her question would help persuade him to reveal the girl’s identity so she could give the advice that was most fitting for each scenario.

Yeah, you could say that.

Mika didn’t think it would be this difficult, but then again, he was never that great at expressing himself in a way that made him vulnerable. Only two people in his life ever got to see that side of him: his mother and Cece. For all the bickering that happened between them, Mika always felt comfortable when talking to Aleyda. He never had an older sister until he was adopted into the Gonzalez family. He trusted her with more about himself than he did with anyone. Even Rey Rey, for as important of a person to him as he was, didn’t see certain sides of Mika.

But Ley was different. She knew about him and Caitlin. She had always known, but she didn’t know this. Nobody but him and Danny knew.

“You’ve always been more aware of things than I have been, Ley.” Mika said that with a smile. “It’s an annoying habit of yours. Even now, you could see through my bullshit. So I’m sure you have a good idea about who the writer of these letters are. I mean, you’ve read them: they don’t sound like Natalia, do they?” Mika chuckled, while Aleyda’s mouth broke into a little smile as she shook her head. Natalia could be soft when she wanted to be, but not that soft. “I kind of wish it were Natalia. I think she’d be able to handle herself better, but Cece? She doesn’t deserve any of this.” He felt himself seeing red the more he thought about what this was doing to her. “So you’re absolutely right. Cece is someone I care about. Someone I have always cared about and neither she nor the O’Hara’s deserve this being dredged up again. It was bad enough that this town turned their back on David in the first place.” Mika gripped the countertop as hard as he could, absentmindedly not realizing that he was gripping it with enough force to partially crack it.

No wonder he was taking things so seriously…

From the very first time Aleyda had become aware of Caitlin’s role in Mika’s world, she had witnessed how the redhead’s presence had been a positive influence in her brother’s life. Sometime after March of 2018, Ley had noticed Mika’s demeanor starting to change. He continued to be the same little shit he always was, but he seemed more chipper than usual, easier to get along with, and sporting a smile more frequently. On his birthday, Ley remembered him coming home later than what he’d agreed on with her parents-- but even with Lupe and Big Rey fussing at him and being annoyed about it, the biggest, brightest, dumbest grin plastered on the boy’s face never faltered. Later that night, after some poking and prodding from her, the Zima boy had coyly admitted that he’d spent his time with a girl he'd really, really liked for some time now.

That summer, she’d met the girl by accident when Mika tried to sneak her into the house thinking nobody was home. The short, shy, unassuming redhead with jewel-colored eyes and small freckles on her face immediately blushed scarlet at being caught in a compromising position, hiding behind Mika’s taller frame while Ley snickered at her visible annoyance in her younger brother’s face. The Mexican girl had recognized her instantly as Caitlin Cleary: one of her former underclassmen cheerleading teammates. After reassuring them that their secret was safe, she earned their trust, and they continued to cross paths throughout the length of the liaison. And the more she witnessed glimpses of the interactions between Mika and Caitlin, she knew that what they shared was a tender, genuine, caring kind of love… A love she could only dream of experiencing herself.

Caitlin was a kind girl with a caring soul and a huge heart that had brought so much joy to Mika during their time together. He was absolutely right: she definitely didn’t deserve for anyone to bring this kind of anguish to her life.

"Okay, so Cece was in love and probably dating David O'Hara at some point,” the dark-haired woman mused aloud, going over what Mika had just disclosed and matching it to the contents of the letter she’d tossed hours before, what the rumor of the mill was and what she knew about Cece’s current situation. “How is that even relevant to anything happening right now? David’s been dead for years.” A possible motive suddenly came to her in the form of social media posts the redhead had been consistently tagged in for weeks now. “Do you think it’s ‘cause she’s dating the doctor’s son or something?”

“I don’t know…” Mika fell silent as he looked down at the ground, clearly having multiple things run through his mind all at the same time.

In any normal circumstance, Mika’s reaction at even thinking about Niles SInclair would be a nasty one. All for the wrong reasons, of course. Mika interjected himself back into Cece’s life last month and all because why? He just wanted to be back in her life. Didn’t matter how much he hurt her in the past or how much he was hurting her in the present. And then there was the matter of him making things worse by saying some pretty hurtful things. Definitely not Mika’s finest hour. But that didn’t change that Mika never did like Niles.

Mika had to learn to not feel bothered that Sinclair was her boyfriend now. He had to make his peace with that. He was in a good place with Cece, but at the same time, maybe it was too good of a place. The more he thought about Niles and Cece together, the more it made him sick to his stomach. Again, for all the wrong reasons. He came pretty close to crossing a line he shouldn’t have thought about crossing, but with the letters and now David being involved and how Cece spoke about him and then what she elaborated on about their relationship.

Mika was overwhelmed with thoughts he couldn’t explain. About Cece. About David. About Coach. Everything that seemed to happen in the past twelve hours alone, it was too much. And Mika felt like he was nearing some kind of breaking point. “I don’t know if Sinclair has anything to do with this. Maybe or maybe it’s not even about him. What I do know is you’re wrong about David. But it’s relevant. He is relevant. He’s relevant to Cece, to the letter she wrote to him that’s being used against her, and he’s relevant to me.” As he spoke, Mika could feel it - the control of his emotions - slipping and he wasn’t able to do anything about it. He was past a point of trying to hide it. Everything that he had to experience today, everything that he found out: the extent of Cece’s relationship with David, Danny, Coach, Anya explaining that Hyde is watching him. He just couldn’t take it anymore.

Aleyda could tell that Mika was succumbing to whatever weight was crushing his shoulders. His posture, his death grip on the countertop, the way he was avoiding eye contact… Losing control of his emotions like this wasn’t something he did often-- only when he was under extreme distress, like after his breakup with Caitlin. "Hey, hey, calm down,” she mumbled softly, gently prying his grasp away from the counter, gripping him by the shoulders and slowly guiding him into a seating position on the kitchen floor. Once he was safely resting against the cabinets, Ley sat beside him and wrapped a comforting arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer. “Why do you say David is relevant to you and Cece both, Mika? Did something happen between the two of you, like a fight or something?”

When Mika sank to the kitchen floor, his knees stayed up. Even as his sister gently placed her arm around her, which he barely acknowledged, Mika sunk his head between his knees. His forearms rested on both kneecaps. His heart was beating so fast that his lungs could barely keep him. Mika’s emotions had gotten to the point where he was taking very short breaths, like was in the middle of a half-panic, half-anxiety attack. His head felt clouded with so many thoughts that he couldn’t think straight.

And then Ley did what Ley always did. What she did that late August night after Mika broke Cece’s heart into a million pieces: in that rare gentle way that she had about her, she asked him what was wrong. What she could do to help. Mika always felt like he could be honest with Aleyda. There was so much he bottled up, so much that he compartmentalized so what just happened didn’t happen every day. He made sure to bottle everything up and hope for the best, but with Ley, she never let him get away with that. She was truly a viper. Just as deadly her words could be sometimes, her ability to get what she wanted was unmatched. It didn’t matter if it was their sibling bickering or if it was truly being there for Mika when nobody else could (not in the way Ley knew how to).

He brought his head up, bringing his gaze to hers. His eyes were watery, puffy and showed clear signs that his emotional state was truly at its lowest. “No…we didn’t have a fight. Not even close.. Well, not me and Cece.” His thoughts were all jumbled. “Danny was there, but that’s not important. It’s…not relevant.” Doing what she told him to, Mika tried to calm down. He took in as deep of a breath as he could. But as he did, knowing full well what he was about to say, Mika’s chest tightened and again he was on the verge of worsening the breakdown he was in the process. “David, he…” God, why was it so difficult for Mika to actually say it? “Ley, David’s not just Coach O’Hara’s son.”

"What do you mean?" the woman inquired, curiosity melting together with the concern she felt for Mika. What was he saying? Did he mean David wasn't Coach's son or something? Had he found out Lizzie had an affair with someone else who was David’s true father? The young man's words only brought up more questions than answers.

In his chest, Mika felt his heart get to a point where it just wouldn’t let him speak, but he had to. “I know you know my father -- birth father, I mean. He’s a bastard and not worthy of being called father. But I never told you about my mother. Her name is Mary-Anne. She’s a lot like you. Fiery, temperamental, firm, but the only other person who I feel the safest with.” Thinking about his mom, regardless how close she actually was, always made Mika smile. And this was the first time he actually did smile. “But, my mom…she’s from Edenridge. She’s John O’Hara’s younger sister.” As he spoke, Mika looked at Ley’s face, at what she was thinking when he said those words. It was like a weight lifted off his shoulders. Ley is honest to god the only person he has told this secret to. He may have told Boa about his mother, but he hasn’t told anyone about his O’Hara connection until now. And honestly? It felt good to finally get it off his chest.

"Oh shit…" Aleyda cursed under her breath as every piece of the puzzle fell into place. John O'Hara was Mary-Anne Zima's older brother. Mary-Anne Zima was Mika's mother. John O'Hara was David's father. David and Mika were cousins. David had passed away under tragic circumstances after being accused of messing around with a younger girl, with all signs pointing to it being his secret girlfriend at the time: Caitlin. Mika and Caitlin later became secret lovers, with him eventually breaking things up after over two years together. Now someone was using the letters Cece wrote to David against her, hurting both her and Mika in the process.

Christ. That was a lot.

"Oh Mika, I am so sorry…" Aleyda said, wrapping her other arm around Mika and pulling him into a tight hug, kissing the top of his head for good measure. She couldn't even begin to imagine how hard it must have been for Mika to have kept this secret for as long as he did. She still had plenty of questions to ask, but they could be answered at a later time. Her priority now was to ensure her brother felt comforted and safe.

Mika leaned into the half-embrace Aleyda offered him. As he did, he felt a strange sensation overtake him. Like an oddly familiar feeling of warmth emanating from his adoptive sister. The same kind of energy he could vividly remember his mother gave off. Especially after that day that set the plans into motion for him to be shipped off to Edenridge in the summer of 2016. He was in a similar state of disarray and had a difficulty controlling his emotions. He was just fourteen at the time and felt the volatile anger that he had been all around his life, the anguish from Veronika’s death still ever-present, and all he could do was scream, wail, and express a confusion that made his ire even worse. But his mother always had that magic touch. She didn’t have to say much. Just being there for him.

That’s what he felt right now with Aleyda.

And in that warmth, in this new safety he found himself in, minutes passed. Mika remained so uncharacteristically quiet. It was a mixture of him not knowing what else to say. Both emotionally exhausted from holding everything in and physically exhausted from the weight of all the stress he had been under as of late, Mika didn’t have the energy to spare for words that felt meaningless at the moment. Yet, in his drained state, he did have the smallest amount of mental energy and he thought about Cece.

He had just poured his heart out to his sister about David and he still thought about Cece. And of course he couldn’t think about Cece without thinking about today. It wasn’t re-triggering his stress, but the fact remained that today and everything that happened, it was for a reason. Going to see her, having that intense encounter with Danny, Anya bluntly stating that Hyde was watching. After everything, Mika understood what was happening and what had to be done. His eyes were focused and he could see what he needed to do.

For five minutes, Mika was quiet but no longer. He politely (or as politely as he could) pulled himself out of his sister’s embrace, stood up and helped her do the same. “Ley, thank you. I mean it. Thank you for being the best older sister. I…” Mika was never great at this sort of thing, but he had to be, especially for what he knew he was gonna have to do. “You’re the heart and soul of this family and I mean that.” He smiled at her.

Aleyda offered the young man her brightest of smiles. While she and Mika bickered like nobody’s business, the times that they showed affection, compassion and kindness to one another were genuine and straight from their hearts. With the rough times she’d been having in her personal life and her struggles with depression and self-worth, hearing her brother’s words lifted her own spirits in ways he probably didn't imagine. "Te amo, mi amor," the brunette said to Mika, standing up on the tip of her toes to kiss his cheek. "]I told you when you first came to this family that I'd have your back no matter what-- and I meant that. So thank you for trusting me, Mika. I hope I was able to help you in any way." After a brief silence, Ley added, "And don't forget that you're a good man, Mika. A strong one, at that. You'll get through this with your head held high like us Gonzalez do. Trust me."

He took in a deep breath, walking forward a couple of paces. “There’s something I have to do. Somewhere I have to go. I might not be back tonight.”

"Something you have to do? Or do you mean someone you have to go do?" his sister teased with a smirk, knowing exactly where and with who Mika would be.

And just like that, things were back to normal. As they should be.

“Yeah yeah…” Mika shook his head and rolled his eyes. He half-chuckled. He’d say she was too observant for her own good, but it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out where he was heading. Frankly, Mika didn’t want to hide it. This was something he had to do and, as much as he knew it was probably a bad idea, given how much worse it got outside, this was a chance Mika had to take. It wasn’t that long of a drive and thankfully, Mika still had the code for the gate that surrounded Scott Street.

As he looked back at his sister, he just smiled. “Yeah, so do me a favor. If anyone asks, tell them I went to my apartment at Lost Souls. And especially if R2 or Pops asks, tell em I’m safe in that shithole of an apartment.”

Aleyda smiled at her brother, nodded and gave him a thumbs up “I got you, Badger. Just make sure you’re both safe and stay warm.”

Mika gave one last smile and a nod for good measure to Aleyda, grabbing his wallet and keys, rushing out the door, into his truck, and hopping inside. He didn’t move yet, but he saw just how much worse it was. Assuming he was the only idiot out on the road in this mess, Mika figured he could make it in twenty minutes tops before it would get down to the wire. Somewhere deep down, he knew the smart idea would be to stay at the Gonzalez’ house or just go to his apartment. Or hell, go to his mom.

But he couldn’t. Or to be more accurate, he wouldn’t. This was something Mika had to do.

So he drove, his gray Tacoma driving off into the rain, windshield wipers moving rapidly. Mikhail… Zima was en route to Scott Street and the clock was ticking.

Edenridge

TIMESTAMP:TAKING PLACE IMMEDIATELY ‘AFTER THE BLOW-UP’

_{A @Venus & @LovelyComplex Collaboration
Featuring Chase Warren & Introducing Maya Barrett and Baby Peach}

---

---

Driving with Megadeth blasting, Die Dead Enough, his windows down, TNT sped through the streets of Edenridge from Lyon Park to Westwood. Running through red lights, on a suicide mission, the explosive southie focused his sight on the ‘Pietro’s Pizzeria’ sign. It was far but with how fast he was going, the sign was growing bigger and bigger by the second. If a cop chased him, he didn’t care. If a car hit him, he didn’t care. If a person got in his way… okay he did care about that.

Lunch was ruined and it was because of him so all he could think about was, well, his brother. He could only imagine how this would’ve transpired if Conan were still alive. His brother would’ve gone in the line of fire just to break the distance. When he was close enough, he’d forcibly grab TNT’s head and make him look at him, right in the eyes. That’s all Conan had to do. He didn't have to scream. He didn’t have to say stop it. He didn’t have to cry. All he had to do was get Chase to look at him, really look at him, for the fire to extinguish.

Abruptly, Chase caught sight of a tiny white thing walking across the street. He could swerve around it but the street he was on was narrow. Did he have enough time? Seconds, it only took seconds to kill something innocent. Slamming on his brakes, likely fucking them up, even more so than they already were, Chase yelled, “FUCK!” He stopped in the middle of the road to see a stray cat walking across the street. Heavily breathing, he put his car in park, grateful there wasn’t any other car around, and got out to check it, “What the fuck!”

Approaching the little one, slowly, Chase aimed to grab it and get it out the road. Instead, the kitten turned her head and looked up at him, her big eyes wide. There was a long moment they both stood in their place staring at each other. Her coat was clean and her eyes were the prettiest of blues. Honestly, she didn’t look like she belonged on the streets. There was no collar, so maybe she ran away from her litter. He stood there, waiting for her to make the first move, and when she deemed him trustworthy, she was by his legs rubbing her fur on him.

Kneeling down, he offered his hand for her to sniff, and sniff she did. Scratching her ear, he ran his other hand through her fur on her back and noticed there were no fleas in sight. She was no stray. She was lost but she definitely had a home. “Hey, I don’t want anything to hurt you.” Hesitantly, he scooped her up. When he brought her to his face, she rubbed against him tenderly, lovingly, and meowed in excitement. “You remind me of someone.”

His moment was ruined by honking. Holding the cat close, he looked back and flipped the driver behind his car off. Going back to his vehicle, with the cat in hand, he slipped back in and put her in the passenger seat.

Starting his engine, he turned down the rock music, not wanting to make her jump. His vibe was kind of aggressive. Before he pushed on the gas pedal, she was quick to walk across the dashboard and onto his lap. Nestling herself on him, she curled up and felt the comfort of his warmth and protection.

“Well aren’t you just a little Peach,” he whispered. Smiling to himself, he went onward to his destination. When he was at the pizzeria, parked, he debated if they’d let him bring in a cat. He didn’t want to leave her in the car. It would get too hot. Sighing to himself, he took out his keys, scooped her up, and went onward into one of his safe havens. Taking a seat at a booth, he hid the cat in his shirt, thinking he was being clever, and waited for his friend to come by and take his order.

“Table 7: large pepperoni, thin crust, regular breadsticks, side house salad-- and don’t burn the damn crust this time, Toby! I swear to God if I miss another tip because of you imma whoop your ass with the pizza pan in the parking lot after close!”

The sharp-tongued, femenine voice of one Maya Barrett could be heard across every corner of the small, family-owned establishment. Upon first impressions, the average-looking Southie would strike one as your typical zillenial working hard at the hometown pizzeria to earn her dollars by serving her lifelong neighbors. But beneath the surface, young Mamba happened to be the best sales lady ReyRey Gonzalez had in his payroll.

Thanks to her enviable location, no-nonsense demeanor and blanket of protection that came with being the niece of Edenridge’s police chief and the stepdaughter of one of his officers, Mamba was responsible for 71% of the Southside Serpents’ cannabis revenue. She had started her career at the ripe age of fourteen as a high school student, eager to earn some money for her independence and the future. The hole left in the market by Charlie Decker made her transition into the business a seamless one, and her unsuspecting appearance made it easier for her classmates to approach and trust her with their purchases. Mamba had already been making a good profit at school, but once she got employed at Pietro’s, her earnings skyrocketed thanks to the long-standing agreement between the Santangelos and Gonzalez’ that allowed the Serpents to sell weed on the premises in exchange for protection. As it stood, nineteen year-old Maya was one of the most valued assets to the organization.

“Hey there, Boom Boom. Long time no see,” the young woman greeted Chase with her usual drawl, a mischievous smile spreading across her lips. The two young adults had known each other and worked together for years now as part of the diverse duo bringing only the best reefer and affordable baked Italian classics to the citizens of Edenridge, delivered straight to their doors. But most importantly, beyond their business relationship, Maya and Chase considered each other close friends. “Cherry coke and medium pan with extra mushrooms, just how ya like it?”

“I hate that nickname,” Chase lied, but she knew it was what he did. Truth be told, Mamba knew even more so than Fin and Dolce that he had a weakness to cute things. She had the best timing and caught him in the act of being cute himself, when he was around cute. And by that, Maya had awful timing and he hated it. “One day I’m going to die because of you,” He gave a morbid joke, especially in the town of Edenridge, with his mellow and low toned voice. While he loved cute things, he hated mushrooms. She knew that and time and time again, she was an absolute menace. A cruel sadist! The WORST. The texture was awful and it was slimy and gross. Why people liked mushrooms, he would never know.

Maya shrugged her shoulders, the smile still hanging on her face. “And the day you do, imma be the first one payin' my respects at the funeral, claiming victory in the name of them mushrooms,” the curly-haired girl joked right back. Just then, a hint of suspicious movement under Chase’s shirt caught her attention, and she immediately narrowed her eyes and pointed at the bulge settling near his lap. “Chase, that better not be some perv shit under your shirt, 'cause God almighty I will stuff mushrooms up every hole in ya body if it is.” she hissed at the boy out of instinct and impulse more than anything else. She knew full well TNT would never do such a thing, but the experiences she’d had with creepy, disgusting, testosterone-overloaded men throughout the years had led her to act first and ask questions later.

“Hey, hey! You don’t have to be so loud,” Chase grumbled, trying to settle the moving furbaby in his shirt. He bashfully glanced up at Mamba before looking around him, making sure there wasn't anyone being nosy. After a moment or two of debating inside his head, he heavily sighed, “Fine.” Putting one of his hands under his shirt, he scooped the small kitten out and protectively held her close, “I found her, and I didn’t want to leave her in the car, okay?” Part of him felt Maya was never going to let this one go. The other part of him was already melting the moment he stared into her eyes. “I couldn’t leave her in the streets either, she doesn’t look made for it.” Too many dangers out there for a small baby like Baby.

The second her brown eyes fell on the snow white kitten, Maya's initial aggression melted away into a puddle. The corners of her mouth turned downwards and her lower lip stuck out in a face her friend rarely saw her make: one of being overwhelmed with cuteness. “Oh my God! Chase! She’s adorable!” the light-skinned girl cooed, slowly leaning closer towards the kitten to get a better look at her. The small feline turned towards Maya with the cutest big blue eyes, curiously stared at her for a few seconds and let out what sounded like a little mew of approval. Grinning widely, Maya stood up straight and turned back to Chase again. “She looks so sweet… I wouldn’t've left her on the street either.” She gave another visual sweep of the dining room before lowering her voice to discreetly continue. “Listen, Boss is an absolute dick about animals inside the dining room. But I ain't no snitch, and he ain’t the one in charge today: Gianni is. Just make sure she stays outta sight from everyone else and doesn't make too much noise so I don't have to remind G of the dirt I have on him."

“I probably shouldn’t stay long either,” Chase absentmindedly ran his hand over the small kitten, who purred in happiness, grateful for the affection. “I did it this time, Maya. And now my dad’s cleaning up the mess I made,” Chuckling to himself, but not because he was amused, but more out of anxiety, Chase glanced down at the kitten who was now pawing his stomach. “No girl is ever going to like someone like me. Not when they realize I hurt people.” He gave a weak smile to Baby Peach, all the while scratching behind her ear.

Maya stared at Chase for a few seconds, her brow furrowed as she quickly evaluated the situation. In all the years she had known Chase, he had never expressed any interest whatsoever in the opposite sex. But a few weeks ago, she noticed him frequently in the company of a bubbly blonde she’d never seen before. He’d get closed off and shy when asked about it, but there was no denying the coy hint of a smile on his face whenever the girl was brought up in conversation. Eventually, he’d brought her into the pizzeria, and introduced her to Maya as his friend Tiffannie (who apparently shared the same initials as him but was nicknamed Peach). It didn’t take a genius to see the way Chase lit up around her, the pure delight Tiffannie radiated in his company, and how much they both liked each other. So what could have possibly happened for her friend to be looking so distraught and voicing crazy statements like how no girl would ever like him?

There was only one way to find out.

“GIANNI!” Maya shouted in the direction of the kitchen without warning, startling a few diners into a small jump in the process.

A young man with dirty blonde hair, piercing blue eyes and a strange resemblance to Gene Wilder came out to the counter. He wore his standard uniform of a white T-shirt, black slacks, a blue apron stained with the different ingredients he used for his mouth-watering creations, and a blue bandana on his forehead that kept the sweat of his hard work from running down his face. The locals would immediately recognize this man as Gianni Santangelo: the oldest son of Italian couple Buddy and Georgina Santangelo. He was to Pietro’s Pizzeria what Rhett Cleary was to Hole In The Wall: the heir apparent to the family business currently being groomed to take over once the stubborn family patriarch decided to retire.

“Yeah?” the man yelled back to his young employee, a hint of impatience in his voice. As chill of a boss as Gianni was, a guaranteed way to test his patience was interrupting him in the middle of preparing an order. Messing up orders or mediocre food was nothing short of unacceptable in his critical eyes.

“Large pan pepperoni, regular breadsticks, a two-liter of Cherry Coke, aaaaaand I’m takin' my break now!” Maya called out to the man, offering him an innocent-looking smile in hopes that it would soften his annoyance at her statement.

Gianni scoffed, rolled his eyes and shook his head. As irritated as it made him when his employees took breaks during rush periods such as lunch, exceptions were made when it came to Maya Barrett. Blunt and sassy attitude aside, she was a fantastic employee greatly valued by him, his family and the customers. The girl was such a hard, reliable worker who brought so much business to his establishment that it would be laughable to not grant her these requests whenever she asked for them-- which wasn’t often. “Large pan pepperoni, regular breadsticks, Cherry Coke two-liter. Got it.” he repeated back to the girl in his thick, Boston-Italian accent, giving her a nod of acknowledgement and understanding before rushing back to the kitchen.

Smirking, the young woman took a seat across from Chase on the booth and crossed her arms. “Alright, Boom Boom, tell me what’s goin' on. Did somethin' happen with the Peach girl? I thought things were goin' okay with her.”

Baby Peach squirmed out of Chase’s jacket. Before he could grab her, she shook her booty a little and leaped into the booth chair across from him, where Maya was sitting. The kitten found herself on the same side of her new friend and pawed the woman’s arm, giving a needily high pitched meow. Giving a nod of permission that Maya was more than welcome to show Baby some love, Chase clasped his hands together and bounced his right leg. “She was supposed to meet the family today,” and by family, Maya knew exactly who Chase was talking about. Minus her, because she had work, it wasn’t hard to know who Chase trusted.

Once you earned his trust, there was no way of breaking it, no matter how vulnerable it made him feel. If she didn’t have work, he would’ve extended the invite. It took an army to try to heal him from his past traumas, but it only took one of them to ruin years of progress too. Being in TNT’s life was a double edged sword, no matter how much progress was made with him. Committing to that wasn’t something you decided in a heartbeat, it was something you accepted for the long haul, knowing well enough you could be collateral damage. One did not simply stay with Chase because he was a good guy. No, one had to understand the repercussions of the days he isn’t at his best. The days he loses his mind. The days he explodes.

“I already lost it this morning after picking up Tov and Ransom from their drunk shenanigans. I think today I was just… more susceptible to things that send me over. Almost killed a man for sexual harassment. Then I didn’t get much sleep and when we were setting up for a picnic, I fucked that up too.” Chase looked away from his friend, his leg bouncing even more intensely as he re-lived his day so far. “I could’ve hurt Fin, Maya. I wouldn’t forgive myself if she and her baby… Tiff deserves someone better than this. I do like her,” He shyly admitted, bringing his brown eyes back to her as she carefully observed him, “I like her a lot, but she and me? We don’t make sense. Not really.”

"Don't make sense to who?" Maya was quick to interject in her blunt manner, hands occupied holding and petting the adorable, purring white kitten in her lap. "Unless you're poly, a relationship is composed of two people. That's the only two people anythin' needs to 'make sense' to. I mean: look at Ma and Mitch. Nobody thought they made sense either. What coulda stripper with no man who had a kid at 19 want with a single guy 10 years older than her other than his money, right? Them folks judged and said sum smart shit: Mitch and Grandpa Eddie wouldn't hear the end of it, and they put Ma and I through the ringer. And you know what? They had to choke on they words, because Ma and Mitch-- you know, the two people who 'don't make no sense'-- have been happy since day 1 and for the last 10 years, which is more than a lot of grown folk who were talkin' can say."

Although she hadn’t been in a relationship herself, Maya had never been a fan of people projecting their own insecurities onto other people’s relationships. What was the point of poisoning people’s happiness like that? She understood the warranted concern this particular couple might have about their different upbringings and life experiences up to this point, but that didn’t mean they ‘made no sense’. As long as the two of them were honest, shared the same feelings, values and similar views on life (or, if they differerred, that they could come to a mutual understanding and agreement of meeting in the middle), things would be fine.

“I'm not sayin' you shouldn't give it to her straight about your outbursts, 'cause any type of relationship is based on trust, and I think she deserves to know before making any decisions. But I also don't think you should give a rat's ass 'bout what anyone else thinks, as long as the two of y'all like each other, and are upfront about them things."

“Is it weird I’m--” Chase hesitated on his next word, wondering if it would bite him in the ass later because it showed a less masculine version of himself. It showed him to be weak and not a boulder of a man that is confident in protecting his family. “Scared?” Before he said any more, the breadsticks and coke were delivered to their table. Not the pizza yet.

Out of her peripheral vision, Maya was quick to notice the way her coworker Mark’s eyes widened when they fell on the now-sleeping kitten she continued to pet in her lap. She wasted no time in whipping her head in his direction and shooting him a scathing glare: a silent warning of how she would choose violence if he dared snitch on her. Mark swallowed hard, gave a quick nod of understanding, and hurried back off in the direction of the counter. Once he was gone, a satisfied Mamba turned her attention back to her friend and resumed her petting of the kitten. “Nah. It’s normal to feel scared. Shit, I’d say bein’ scared’s actually a good thing. It means you really care,” the girl mused, grabbing a bread stick and taking a bite.

Chase went for a bread stick too, hastily since this was his first meal of the day. Taking a bite, he chewed in silence. Once he swallowed and poured himself a cup of pop, he explained, “I’ve never done anything like this before. A girl like Tiff can get any guy she wants. Why would she even like me? I have loads of issues, Maya.”

Maya shot Chase a scolding look. “Listen, boy: you gotta stop puttin' yourself down like this,” she chastised him in between breadstick bites, pointing at him with the remaining piece of it in her hand. Maybe she was coming across a bit harsh, but she needed her friend to see how valuable he truly was. “You a good guy, and if she likes you and you ain’t never done this before is ‘cause Miss Peach saw somethin’ special in you that the rest of them blind girls in this town didn’t-- except your friends,” she added with a smirk. “And about issues-- fuck that. We all got issues, Boom Boom. All that matters is whether we choose to deal with ‘em in a good way, deal with ‘em in a bad way, or not deal with ‘em at all.”

“Yeah, I hear you…” Sighing, Chase was caught in the thought of his fucked up past and the scream of his brother from when he was stuck in… “I feel like there’s someone better out there for her though and say she does want to work something out with me. What if I hurt her?” Once again the mention of his fear of hurting his loved ones was brought back to the surface. People knew his character better than he did at times, especially when he was in his head like this. No matter how many times he explodes and no matter how bad he gets, Chase Warren wouldn’t hurt anyone he loved. Not directly and never intentionally. He wished he could stop himself before he snaps. He wished he wasn’t like this. He wished he had his baby brother back to remind him he wasn’t a bad guy. That he was worth a life with a house, a loving wife, a decent job, and a small family. That he was valued and capable of pulling himself out of his dark place through his own strength and power of will. That he wasn't nothing, or at least that he was something to someone. Sadly, a wish was a ghost, and Chase didn’t believe in ghosts.

"You ain't gonna hurt her, Chase. I know that," the curly-haired girl reassured her worried friend. “You treat that girl like you treat this sweet lil’ baby right here!” she said with a smile, looking down at the cloud-colored kitten in her lap. “You ain’t gonna hurt her, but I feel damn sorry for whoever tries to.” she smirked, knowing that any person who so much as dared to think of causing harm to Chase’s Peach would regret it for the rest of their lives.

She did have a point there. He would like to think no matter what he was going through, he’d never hurt Peach. As he contemplated her words, Chase reached into his pocket where his phone should be. When it wasn’t there, he remembered he no longer had a phone. Crushed and in pieces at Lyon Park. RIP. He was going to check the time, see how long he had before people started worrying about him. That was out of the question though, due to the incident.

“So…” Chase got himself comfortable, taking another sip of his soda. He reached for a second breadstick and cleared his throat. “Hypothetically speaking,” He ripped a piece of bread off, silently chewed, and continued, “How would you want to be asked out?” Maybe, if he knew how Maya would like things to turn out for herself he could use her answer for inspiration.

Although the young woman visibly perked up in excitement at the idea that Chase was so serious about Peach he was contemplating officially asking her out, old habits die hard, and she didn’t miss a beat in responding to his serious question with their usual sarcasm. “Easy: on a luxury yacht in the coast of Santorini with a candlelit dinner, a violin player, and fireworks going off when I inevitably say yes,” she told him, letting her words hang in the air for a few seconds while she took a sip of soda before grinning at him and giving him the serious answer he was asking for. “But for real tho, I’d like to talk about them feelin’s: why you choosin’ me, what you feel for me, what you want with me, things like that. Bein’ honest, putin’ all your cards on the table and just goin’ for it.”

Chase let out a light chuckle when she joked about a confession in Santorini. Something so extra and out of reach for people like them. Maya was one always cracking jokes. It made sense why she got along well with Decky and Sonny, two people with quick wit. Even if one of the two boys were awful -- Sonny wasn’t a likable guy -- he was glad that Maya had her people she could be herself with wholeheartedly. He’d like to think he was one of them too, in a sense. One of her most trusted platonic friends. She didn’t give him a reason to question their friendship and honestly, she helped ease his worry which not many people were capable of doing. “That’s a lot of… talking, Mamba. Too much for the average guy. About feelings, I mean.”

Chase wouldn’t even know how to articulate his emotions in great detail like that. He could barely talk about his brother. What made him think he could talk about what his heart wanted. “How about this, hypothetically. The guy does say he likes you and then he just goes for it. Gives you a kiss and sees where that takes him. You. Them. That could go one of two ways, but whichever way it went, he’d get an answer. How would that make you feel? Hypothetically speaking.”

As serious as she knew this conversation was, Mamba couldn’t help the way her eyebrows rose at what Chase was implying, at the same time an amused, suggestive smirk lit up her face. Ever since she was a child, Maya had always had a problem with her impulsive facial expressions being the window to her thoughts and emotions. They had gotten her into plenty of trouble growing up, but her friends had grown to appreciate her transparency over the years. She just hoped her expression wouldn’t put her raven-haired friend off. “Well I’ll tell ya right now that if it’s a slow, saucy, deep kiss, there ain’t gonna be much talkin’ after that with me. And that ain’t a hypothesis: that’s a guarantee,” the girl replied, that knowing smirk still plastered on her face. “Take that as you will.”

No longer with a breadstick in hand, Chase leaned in his chair and crossed his arms, taken aback by her hint. He wasn’t an idiot. He knew what she was implying. If his fingers weren’t greasy, he’d be covering his mouth and looking like the Socrates statue, deep in thought when the reality was he was playing out the scene of his grand confession. Every right and wrong turn he could take, but all leading to the same end: nothing. Chase didn’t know how things would end because he had no idea what he was doing.

Chase didn’t confess. Chase didn’t date. Chase hadn’t even kissed a girl before and here he was trying to impress a Northie who could get just about any person she wanted, if she really wanted to. Maybe this was too fast, too daring. He didn’t want to push Tiff away by forcing himself on her, coming off too strong, or just sucking at kissing. He didn’t want to risk losing her solely because he was inexperienced. Chase never liked someone like he liked Tiff and it was not something he knew how to carry. It was fragile. Easily cracked. Shattered. Broken. Something that required gentle care. He didn’t want to get ahead of himself if it meant he might lose her. How was a sensual kiss a guarantee when he didn’t even know how to kiss? “Yeah no, these hypothetical scenarios aren’t worth thinking too deep into. I think I’ll start off by saying sorry. Sorry for fucking up our date and running off. How’s that sound?”

Maya nodded in encouragement. “See! There ya go! That’s a good start!” she replied enthusiastically while consuming another breadstick, confirming that Chase was indeed on the right path. “Anythin’ else?”

“Fuck, enough about me, how’s things been with you? Also, hold that thought,” Chase adjusted himself, straightening his posture and cleaning his fingers with a napkin, “Where’s my Peach?” Chase didn’t hear meowing and was worried she had run off to the kitchen. He didn’t want to look under the table because that was rude to do, especially when the person sitting across from it was that of the opposite gender. Maybe she had fallen asleep? God, he hoped so.

“Your Peach?” Maya repeated, her shit-eating smirk striking once again. Chase was so smitten about this girl-- if you didn’t see it from a mile away, this was definitive proof of how deep his feelings really went. “You named the kitten after Tiffannie?”

But before she could tease her friend any further, Mark arrived at their booth, carrying the star of the show in his hands: their delicious pizza, made with fresh ingredients and served to their table straight out of the oven. Once Mark had left, the freckled girl gave her friend a genuine smile. “There you go: a large pan with pepperoni and not a mushroom in sight. You’re welcome. Now you can’t ever say I don’t love you.”

What Are You Listening To?

What Are You Listening To?

@Yankee

DARK flashbacks <3

What Are You Listening To?

Edenridge

TIMESTAMP: AFTER 6PM, FOLLOWING ‘AFTER THE BLOW-UP’

_{A @Venus, @Aces Away & @LovelyComplex Collaboration
Featuring Molotov, Demo, Taz & Tiffannie}

---

---

The rest of the day waiting for TNT as the signs of the storm slowly grew into the storm itself was filled by its own little cloud that settled itself over the Dawson living room. Ransom had called them earlier and confirmed that the wayward son was at Pietro’s Pizza with Mamba, so all that had been left to do was sit Tiffannie down and have the much needed conversation. After they’d explained everything, from his and Conan's life before his parents’ arrests to their time after when the Dawsons first brought them in. They explained about his IED and how Conan had been the only one that could truly stop the blind raging in its tracks. Demo explained in minimal detail Conan’s death and how it had left a dark scar on the surviving members of the Dawson house, while Molotov clammed up at the mere mention of their late brother’s death, his eyes darting to the liquor cabinet as Demo kept a firm hold on his jittering leg. They even explained how different he’d seemed lately, filled with a happiness that they were reluctant to report they thought had been snuffed out alongside his brother’s life.

Molotov glanced at Tiffannie where the other blonde was perched at the edge of Demo’s recliner, her gaze on her cards as he finished dealing for the first round of Uno. It was an old deck, and a few cards were missing, but they were making due with what they had. Their power had gone out when the storm picked up and they had candles and flashlights placed all throughout the living room and kitchen. The conversation had ended when the girl had still remained adamant about being in TNT’s life if he still wanted her in it, and by extension risking exposing herself to him in that volatile state. Tov hadn’t said anything since then, caught up in shuffling the deck his father had shoved into his hands with the suggestion they play something to lighten the mood.

This girl had come out of nowhere and somehow found her way into a very special place in his brother’s heart, and while he was happy for TNT to have found another person in his life willing to fight tooth and nail to be by his side, his no longer alcohol-laden brain couldn’t help but think of all the ways she could hurt him with a single look. A single shred of fear shown during his rages stays with TNT forever, leaves his brother feeling like a monster for his disorder instead of the survivor that he is, and if this sheltered, bubbly Barbie can’t handle what she sees then Tov’ll be right back to round one of picking up the pieces of his broken brother. There’s only so many times he can scramble to keep both his brother and himself intact while promising to do better all at the same time. Dealing with problems meant smoothing the bumps out with a cup of whiskey and gaining motivation to continue with a few shots of tequila, not riding off last night’s hangover and desperately restraining himself from any more glances to the locked cabinet in the kitchen.

“So, Tiffannie,” Demo spoke up, bringing Molotov out of his reverie at the perfect time for the older blonde of the group to take his turn, dropping a green reverse card over his father’s card and forcing Demo to lay another down himself. “What do you like to do? I don’t think my boy ever told me about a hobby or trade when he’s spoken of you.”

"Well," Tiffannie replied, neatly placing a green card atop the one Demo had just dropped onto the growing pile. "I guess it’s different depending on where I am. If you would've asked me this question in California, I would've told you that I like to hang out with my Mamma and my friends, going to the beach, the harbor, the mall, the thrift stores, DisneyLand, the food trucks, to get coffee or food, cheerleading and dance team after school…” she trailed off, feeling a painful twinge in her chest as the memories of her time in Los Angeles flooded to the forefront of her mind. The coffee and mani-pedi dates with her mom, the sleepovers with her friends, the days spent bathing in the salty waves and under the bright rays of the warm California sun, followed by walks down the harbor and laughs shared in between meals… Even with how happy she was during her hangouts with Chase, Tiffannie still missed her mamma, her friends and her sunny life back home. Staying in Edenridge had never been a part of her plan. When her parents had agreed to send her to her uncle’s home, it had been with the underlying expectation that she would be back once things calmed down and after they deemed she had ‘learned her lesson’. And yet…

“Most of my time here at Eden has been spent taking care of Auntie Silvia and hanging out with Chase. He’s made things so good for me since the day we formally met. I feel really lucky to have found him,” she told Demo with a smile as soft, tender and warm as the feelings she had for his son. Chase really had made a world of difference in the short time they had spent together. In the beginning, although she'd been grateful for the opportunity to bring some peace and comfort to her Auntie Silvia during the most painful moment of her life, Peach had desperately yearned to return to Los Angeles. But the more time she spent in Edenridge, the more attached she grew to the place. The time away from home and the people she’d come to meet gave her a different perspective, given her space to grow and prompted her to truly evaluate her plans for the future. In just a few months, Tiff’s mindset has changed from a spoiled, naive rich girl mindlessly spending her days hanging out with friends to that of a young woman who wanted to learn to be independent, earn a living of her own and live a life with true purpose… With Chase as her companion along the way. Before the blow-up, that is. Now she had no idea where they stood.

Pushing the intrusive thoughts aside, Tiff decided to change the focus of the conversation. “What about you? Chase said you were a mechanic?” the blonde inquired, visibly eager and interested to know more about her friend’s family.

Tov sent his father a sideways glance before returning to his own cards, wondering how the older man would reply. Would he just confirm her question and leave it at that? Would he give this girl a deeper glance into their lives since they’d already explained so much of Chase’s own to her? Even with their little conversation earlier, there was still so much that Tiffannie didn’t know about him, about them, and about Edenridge in general. From the sounds of it, she’d barely spent time outside the Belmonte residence aside from her outing with his brother this past month or so.

And her life. Jesus. He thought the Northie’s lives sounded pretty lavish, but it seems even they have nothing on the rich LA lifestyle. As a kid from lower class Maine, and then even lower class South Edenridge, he couldn't even imagine half the things she’d probably done on a daily basis. And for her to go from all that to having an introvert’s life, taking care of her sick aunt in some small cursed town in Massachusetts? Christ, he almost felt bad for her.

“Sounds like a tough change,” His father settled for after a small, respectful pause. “But hopefully you’ll be able to make the best out of your situation. I’m glad that in part Chase has helped out with that, and I think you should know that you’ve helped him just as much. I know it doesn’t seem like it with what happened this mornin’, but you’ve opened him up from where he’s been closed off for years,” Molotov felt his face burn with shame when he caught Demo’s gaze on him in his peripheral vision. The message was clear to him, even if the ex-serpent never meant to send it; Now if only this one could start climbin’ outta his own early grave. Tov picked his rootbeer bottle up from the table and hid his red face by taking a sip and raising his cards a bit higher. “And I just wanted to thank you for having that effect on him, even if you didn’t mean to.”

“Lemme just turn on the waterworks in here,” Tov mumbled into the mouth of the bottle, feeling a bit of his guilt recede when Demo reached out to ruffle his hair before gently pushing him away, allowing his son to dramatically rock back towards him on the return and playfully bump into his shoulder. Tiffannie giggled at the exchange.

“Anyways,” The burly man continued, not commenting as Tov stayed leaning heavily against him. He was well used to the blonde's need for tactile comfort and affection. He’d been like that since the day he truly realized that this was home for him now. He also knew when his son was overthinking something, and he was definitely a little wrapped up in his own head at the moment. He sighed dramatically as Tov laid down a green draw two after Taz’s turn, forcing him to add to his hand and cede his turn to Tiffannie. “I am a mechanic like Chase said. I picked up the job at Phil’s place a little bit after me and Fiona brought Tov in to live with us. He’s a good man, supports a few other families around town by payin’ us better than he should. If you ever need somethin’ done with your car, Phil’s is where to take it. He treats everyone like family.”

“He’s got a great junkyard,” Tov was still smiling at his play against his old man as he put his two cents in, thinking of the good times when their whole family would spend an entire day in Phil’s Demolition Zone honing their knowledge while also just fucking around and having fun. It was a great outlet for all of them, back then at least. He wondered if Tiffannie would be horrified by what their family used to call a bonding experience, even while knowing that she almost definitely would be; fire melts barbie dolls, make up, clothes, purses, he could go on forever thinking of how their pastime could destroy all the things she loved. Hell, he still loved his job as the Serpents’ main demo man but fire has taken what he loved too, and he’s got enough scars of his own to understand most people’s fear of the element and its unparalleled destructive ability.

But fires also kept you warm on winter nights when your gas was turned off. His parents, his biological ones, had never told younger him what present Oliver now know’s with a solemn clarity: Even when they were both employed they had trouble keeping on the utilities some months, and by the end of their lives they were jobless and soon to be homeless and they couldn’t let their son know that they were failing him so young, so they made poverty as fun and safe as they could for the child they were trying to keep in what had become a fantasy world. No gas meant the crumbling fireplace was finally used, and instead of it being too cold to sleep in his room, it was We’re going camping Ollie! Let’s all sleep around the fire! His love for the warmth and life of the flames had been kindled long before he was adopted by the Dawsons.

"I don't think I've ever been to a junkyard," Tiffannie mused out loud, placing a blue Draw 2 card atop Tov’s to skip her uncle’s turn and grant another turn to Tov. As far as she knew, junkyards were places where unusable cars were gathered, and people who needed their parts would go find them. With her Jeep being fairly new and all, she never had any reasons to even give thought to going to such a place. “What does this one have that makes it so great?” she asked Molotov with the look of a curious child.

"Oh, y'know, tons of old classic cars or just their bodies," Oliver answered, breaking out of his reverie and fully willing to help hype Phil's up at any time. "Our old buddy actually built a workin' motorcycle from scratch with just the shit Phil had piled up. It took like seven years, but he was also pretty busy the whole time. Plus the cars are stacked high and he basically made a maze outta them so that every Halloween he could decorate and have a little haunted junkyard tour for the kids," he dropped a blue skip card onto the pile and started laughing as Demo threw his cards down and leaned back with a huff. "The guys at the shop all help out, and of course the Serpents do their parts playin' the monsters and all that. I guess what makes it different is that it ain't just a junkyard, y'know? Like Phil's said, he made sure the community felt as welcomed in his shop and yard as they made him feel when he moved here."

"Awwww, that's actually really sweet!" Tiffannie cooed, offering Molotov a bright smile. The more she learned about Edenridge, the more endearing she found it even with the many flaws people often pointed out. "It reminds me of something I did back when I was at school last year. So the cheer team decided to do a charity activity around Halloween, right?" she began, pausing for a second to offer an apologetic grimace to her Uncle Tazzy before dropping a black Draw 4 card on top of Tov's and excitedly declaring "Uno!" while holding up her lone remaining card. "So we gathered up some donations, dressed up like popular characters and went to the children's shelter closest to school to have a little Halloween carnival! We set up some stations and did some face painting, pumpkin decorating, played some cornhole and other lawn games, gave out food and drinks and candy… The look of pure joy on the kids' faces and the love and appreciation they showed us was worth all the work that we put into it," she reminiscenced with a soft smile, getting misty-eyed as she remembered how sincerely grateful the children were, and how hearing some of their stories had both broken her heart and made her want to work extra harder to make the event as perfect as it could be. What were the odds that the boy she was falling in love with was once one of the children she strived to bring a sprinkle of happiness to? It was crazy how the world worked. "I remember I came home crying to my mom because I wanted to bring all the kids home with me!" she confessed with a teary-eyed chuckle.

’Charity,’ Tov thought with a hint of bitterness, wishing he could find her story as cute and sweet as she obviously did. ’I hate that word.’

“Sounds like you like to help out your community, Tiffannie, Edenridge could always use more of that,” Demo said as Tov went quiet with a static smile on his face. “If only y’all were that kind to your elders durin’ Uno games. Taz, care to join me on the porch? It's got some holes I haven't had a chance to patch up but it keeps most’a the rain out and cuts the wind down a bit.”

At this point, any escape would bring relief to the Belmonte patriarch. Playing Uno and talking feelings in such an intimate, close proximity, was not something Taz had in mind when he woke up this morning. He was good at telling stories to those that came by Palermo. He was good at giving advice. He was good at listening. But when it came to direct feelings of the heart, especially when it involved his family, he found himself feeling more and more uncomfortable by the minute. “I do need a smoke.” Standing up, large and in charge, Taz peered down at his niece and then at the young man who reminded him of himself before getting out of dodge, “Next time we play poker. This game is not good.” Relieved to join the outside world, where there was open space and fresh air, storm be damned, Taz followed behind the other fatherly figure, gracious for the offer of freedom.

When the door closed behind the two older men, Molotov sent another yearning glance towards the liquor cabinet and dropped a red two on top of Tiff’s card with the knowledge she was going to win. When she dropped her final card beaming triumphantly, he continued staring at the one he had left in his own hand for a long moment before calmly setting it face down on the table and resting his elbows on his knees.

“Do you really think you’ll be able to handle what happens,” He finally asked, catching the other blonde’s eyes and holding her gaze while the triumphant smile she’d been wearing moments before was wiped clean off her face. “When- not if, when- he blows up again, are you gonna be able to hold your head up and look him in the eyes and honestly say he can’t scare you? Puttin’ on a good Halloween show for system kids may have made you feel good-- it may have made you wanna help people more. But this is the real in the dirt shit that you’re fallin’ into. You know that, right? T’s been through a helluva lot more than most.”

There, finally ripping the bandaid off of the elephant in the room. And yeah, he was mixing up metaphors but sue him, he never thought he’d be giving these conversations sober so she was going to have to work with what she had. This girl deserves just as much happiness as his brother does, but if she ends up getting him so twisted up about himself after he explodes that it regresses all the years of work the collective Dawsons/Taylors put into helping him heal…Well, Molotov was still a Serpent, and you don’t have a job like that for as long as he and his crew have without the ability to weather whatever storm comes your way. Eventually…eventually TNT might be, well…not fine, but the love of his family and friends could help him heal. However, absolutely no one was ready yet to be taking care of a TNT that damaged and rejected; it had been so long since he got close enough to anyone else to let them hurt him with their fear. It had been so long since someone outside of the family had the chance to hurt him. He had to know that this girl was the real deal, that she was up to snuff with the trials ahead of her, ahead of all of them, if this lady and the tramp relationship was to continue.

“I didn’t know about it…” the girl defeatedly admitted as she dropped her eyes to the ground, lips puckering up in a sad, sparkly pout. She wished she could tell Oliver that she was up to speed with everything about the guy she’d been seeing habitually for the last month, but the truth was that she wasn’t. She had no idea about the horrors Chase had experienced in his past-- but not purposefully. “The one time I brought up the question about how he came to be with your family in conversation he tensed up and changed the subject so quickly I knew better than to bring it up again. Today’s the first time I’m hearing anything about his past that isn’t funny stories about you, your dad, and the people he considers his friends, like Ransom, Dutchess, Findley, Maya… I didn’t know how traumatizing things were for him, and it makes me feel awful that I didn’t… But that only makes me more determined to make things different.”

After a brief pause, Tiffannie looked up at Oliver, sitting up straight in the worn wooden dining chair she occupied. There was no longer sadness or shame about her lack of knowledge reflected in her face: only a fierce desire to prove to the young man that her intentions with his brother were truthful and pure.

“I can’t sit here and tell you I won’t be scared if I’m caught up in between when he has one of his episodes, because I haven’t lived it and I can’t predict how I’ll react to something I haven’t experienced. But what I can do is hold my head up and honestly say that Chase is the most wonderful man I’ve ever met in my entire life,” she declared with the utmost conviction before locking eyes with Tov again. If he had any doubts about her words, her eyes would reveal she spoke with nothing but sheer honesty. “When other men saw me as the blonde bimbo good-time girl I was trying to be, Chase saw me for the girl I am on the inside and for everything I have to give. He’s been kind to me in a moment where I felt at my lowest. He’s listened to my problems with genuine concern and offers me advice with my best interests at heart. He encourages me to be myself and isn’t ashamed to be with me. He’s made me smile until my cheeks hurt, laugh until I could barely breathe, cheered me up when I’m feeling down, feel these giddy butterflies all over my body with his little smiles... He gives me hope that even when life plays you icky cards you can still try to get up and make the most of your circumstances. He makes me so happy… He deserves all the love, happiness, kindness and care in the world-- and I plan to give him every bit of it if he wants me to. When I say he means the world to me, I mean it. I… I think I’m in love with him.”

"Oh Jesus fuck-" Tov spat out before he could catch himself, picking his root beer back up and gripping the neck of the bottle fiercely. "Did you just say love? I mean, Peachy, you had me with the other shit, because T really is awesome and deserves to have the fuckin' world. He's a straight talker and he doesn't usually give a shit if the truth hurts your feelin's, and if he gives you advice lord fuckin' help you if you don't take it and somethin' happens bu- nevermind, off track, I'm focused." He was not focused. His heart continued beating at a rapid pace while he thought about all the things those words could do to his brother. They could make him, they could break him, they could grind him into shards that no amount of glue could fix and Tov couldn't have his now-only brother in that state. For months after Conan's death, it had felt as if he'd lost both brothers. He couldn't go through that again, especially not sober. He hasn’t been an only sibling for a decade.

And despite everything running through his head right now, he still clung to the feeling of pride he got when Tiffannie spoke so highly of his brother. He’d made someone outside of their circle laugh and smile and fuckin’ hope. Shit, he’s got this girl thinking about love. It gave Tov a bit of hope too.

"Look, this ain't nothin' against you. Seriously, you seem like a great girl-- even if I don't understand anythin' about how you've lived your life up until now," Privilege and money hardly ever lead to good morals or a real sense of duty, so kudos to her for that even. "But I don't think you understand me," he rolled the soda bottle between his hands and kept contact with her determined eyes. People are always so determined in honeymoon phases of relationships, but can rarely stick around for any issues that continued after. "If you say shit like that to my baby brother and some shit happens, either between you guys, or to you -because hey, honey: you moved to Edenridge- and I end up clingin’ to his hand in a hospital bed or pourin' dirt over his fuckin' grave, it will be made your problem whether you want it to or not. I will protect that kid to the ends of the earth and we have bled for each other and our family. This is a dangerous town in more ways than T's disorder causin' him to fling some soda cans with his friends near. We all have dead loved ones buried here, so if you say those words you better fuckin' mean it and make peace with where that puts you in Eden's nine circles of hell. We've been keepin' ourselves together for years now, so don't think you understand what kind of havoc you can cause if you say those words to him and then react like scared prey when he explodes. I'm sorry, but with the way you've got him wrapped around your finger you don't have the same liberties with your reactions as a simple friend would."

He had to do this. He had to be harsh, and biting and rude and dismissive because if she couldn't even handle him acting like a jackass then she would never survive in their world. He didn't want her to lose her rainbows and unicorns and happiness, he didn't think anyone deserved to lose that, but there weren't many people that could afford to shine so bright in such a small, dark town.

As strong and put together as Tiff wanted to appear through the barrage of harsh truths coming from Oliver’s mouth, she knew the fight was lost as soon as he mentioned the potential harms that could come to their loved one. Gut-wrenching visions of Chase unconscious in a hospital bed, lying pale and motionless inside a coffin, a gravestone with his name on it, haunted Tiffannie like a nightmare she hadn’t quite woken up from. The mere idea of anything bad happening to Chase because of her was enough to shake her to her core with a fear she had only ever experienced whenever her father was on the field working a dangerous case. She had been so certain about her presence bringing positivity to Chase’s life that she hadn’t stopped to think about the fact that maybe she was wrong and it was all a scenario she’d fooled herself into thinking and her being with Chase was the worst possible thing that could happen to the both of them. She felt like a real idiot about that little speech from earlier now.

Maybe everyone was right. Maybe she really was as dumb and clueless as they come. And maybe falling in love was a bad idea after all.

The young blonde took in a loud, deep breath in an attempt to recuperate the air that had escaped her lungs with the visions of earlier. But before she knew it, she had buried her face in her hands and began to sob so violently her entire body was shaking.

“Oh Jesus Christ really?!” Tov exclaimed, throwing his arms out in astonishment. This was exactly what he was talking about! That easy to creep in doubt that had taken her over already. He didn’t expect her to start bawling, and he certainly didn’t know how to make her stop. And despite everything he said to make her face reality, he could tell that his brother was just as hung up on Tiffannie as she was on him. “C’mon, stop that, I’ll get my ass handed to me if he comes home and you’re cryin’, I’m serious!”

"I. Just. Don't. Want. Anything. Bad. To. Happen. To. Him!" Tiffannie wailed, sobbing between each word, her button nose red and tears streaming down her face. "I love him so much and he means so much to me and if anything ever happened to him I would just die!"

“Shhhh! Stop, don’t say that,” Tov said, surprised at his own success at keeping the snap and judgment out of his tone and keeping it level. He looked towards the porch and saw the lights of his brother’s car shine in through the window as he pulled into their driveway. “Look, don’t say that so easily, I’m serious, I don’t think anyone wants to hear someone say that to them, that they’d die. I’m just tryin’ to make sure you understand how serious things are. I know I’m bein’ a buzzkill but don’t go talkin’ about dyin’ and shit okay? And T just pulled in, so please just stop cryin’!”

---

Meanwhile on the busted porch of the Dawson home Francis pulled out his own zippo lighter, engraved just like those of his sons, and brought the flame to life. He cupped a hand around it to protect it from the wind and held it up for Taz to light his cigar, and once the other man was able to release the thick cloud of smoke into the wind Francis took a spliffed blunt out of his chest pocket and lit it before flicking the zippo closed and replacing it to its own pocket inside his jacket. He made sure to stand downwind of Taz so that the man didn’t get hit in the face with his smoke as the wind took it along, not minding the rain dripping through the roof just to the right of him. He took a long pull and held it for a second before releasing it, giving the older man the moment of silence that he was sure he needed. He wished he could give the man more, but he didn’t know how much time they had before either one of his little firecrackers appeared. Ollie didn’t seem like he was doing so great earlier, and Francis honestly didn’t want to leave him with the temptation of the liquor cabinet for too long, locked or not. And then he was of course hoping for Chase’s swift return while trying to have a serious conversation against the clock.

“I want you to level with me, Taz. Do you trust Chase with her, or all of us to keep her safe for that matter? You know her, do you think it would work- or, I guess keep workin’?” He’d never had to deal with a situation like this before. His son had never shown interest in anyone the way he had in Tiffannie, and Francis wasn’t sure if he had ever planned for this. Fiona would have. She would have had a journal filled with sticky note tabs to quickly get to each possible scenario, and she would have looked at him teasingly and gone, What’s wrong baby, you didn’t think to write your own? There’s no cheatin’ on these tests, and then she would have tossed the journal to him for him to read and by the time he got through it she’d have already had the conversation with Chase. In times like these, Francis beats himself up for not making her go to the doctor sooner, and he wonders if having their mother’s attention would have been better for the boys over his own.

“She’s a special girl, Taz, but you know what our lives are like.”

“This isn’t about my trust,” Taz grunted, as he blew on his cigar to make sure it was evenly lit. When the entire end glowed, he nodded his head in satisfaction. He turned the cigar around and drew in the smoke through his mouth, puffing and making the most of his stogie. This is what he needed. This is what brought him peace. “Do I think your sons, or you, will hurt my niece? No. You raised good kids. He might tick but he has restraint. You see it, I see it. And if he wants to make good with my niece, he will make good.”

Holding his cigar, Taz took a step forward to scan the neighborhood and take in the misty air. It was a beautiful day, even if it was stressful getting to this place of peace. Taz had a fondness for rainy days. Without rain, nothing grows. “Ten years ago. I don’t think I told you but it was my Vivia that found a dead body in the park. I made sure they didn’t mention her name. She was thirteen at the time. First child I ever got help for but she didn’t last long in therapy. She assured me that she was okay. I know she wasn’t. And still isn’t, but I cannot tell her what to do. She is her own woman.”

Taz stuck his free hand out to feel the rain, he continued, “Because of that discovery, you were able to adopt the Warren boys and try to put their broken pieces together. From what I see, you did just that. Not perfect, of course. What parent is? And hiccups because they are rowdy boys. But they are kind, they are wise, and that’s what’s important.” Turning to look over his shoulder, back at a kindred spirit, Taz gave Francis a rarity for someone like him, he smiled, “Tiff has Belmonte in her. She might cry too much and she might not know many things like we do, but she is a fighter. And she loves deeply. Something that could ease your burden. I can’t say if they will last but I know she won’t break him. This I swear. Tiff is like my sister and will feel the storm inside him before the lightning strikes. That’s how my sister was with me,” Taz went for another leisure puff and after he released the smoke, he motioned his hands around as he talked, “I guess I ask you, do you trust that you were a good father? Do you trust you taught him well to be good to her? If you do trust yourself, we have nothing to worry about.”

Francis wished he didn’t hesitate there. The shock of it being Vivia that found the first body that led to the Jawbreaker being caught was its own, and it was something he could process later. But here Taz was, so sure of their little timebomb family around his easily bruised peach of a niece. Francis could only help that he aged so gracefully, that by the time he was in his fifties he had the calm to weather the storms his children, and maybe even grandchildren, threw his way. But today, in the honest soft glow of the porch’s serpent green light, Francis did hesitate to answer. It had absolutely nothing to do with him not trusting Chase and everything to do with the fact that the answer to do you trust that you were a good father? is…complicated at best. Oliver was an alcoholic, Chase jumps forward and regresses at pretty equal rates, and Conan…

Then there was the whole reason Oliver had come under his and Fiona’s care in the first place. It wasn’t like the day there was a shootout between the Serpents and the Gorta Demo and Zippo didn’t have guns. When the Tomlinson family car got caught in the crossfire, bullets had already been let loose from everyone’s guns. Just because they had been the first ones to realize what was happening and call a ceasefire didn’t mean they weren’t also firing beforehand. Because of the strings they pulled to take care of him and later bring him into their homes, they’ll never know if one of their bullets were the ones that did it.

He and Fiona honestly hadn’t thought of bringing more children in so soon after Oliver but then their boy brought up the Warren brothers and they had just known that it was the right thing to do. The two of them, Francis and Fiona, making a home safe for children damaged by this town. Then it was just him, and it was Charlie Taylor and Kamilla Briteson, Phil and the guys at the garage propping him up when he couldn’t stand anymore, helping him pretend to be strong in front of his boys even when he couldn’t. And they’d seen through him to his weakness anyways, joining the same Serpents that Demo and Zippos had left a few years prior. They left the gang to try and show their kids that there were other avenues, and by the end of it he had driven his sons to feel the need to hit the pavement and lessen the load weighing him down, crushing him as if he were Atlas struggling to hold the sky. He would never regret the extended family his boys created for themselves, but he will always regret not being enough in the first place.

He had never planned to do this without his twin flame. The woman that had kept his fire burning after his parents died and they transferred from Fallen Angels to Serpents, kept their home warm and inviting to traumatized children in need of a guiding light.

So did he think he was a good father? God no, but he was doing his best. With no paternal grandparents for the kids and Conrad, Charlie, and Jade Taylor being their only other living relations, he was trying his damndest.

“No,” He finally answered honestly in the face of the man’s smile, scratching the back of his neck before taking another hit and huffing the smoke out in a short laugh. “I don’t think I’m that good of a father, but I trust my boys more than either of them think, believe in ‘em more than they’ll ever know. So I agree with you, Chase has a lot more restraint than anyone includin’ himself gives him credit for, and I trust he and your niece will do just fine together. With her in the mix, I think the southside might finally see some sunshine outside of Cernis’ grumpy mug.”

“Grazie a Dio,” The Italian man listened in understanding. “See, you don’t lie. This is a good sign. The only thing I worry about is your son getting my niece pregnant.”

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. TNT’s old Volvo parked in the driveway and the car lights went off. The two fathers silently watched as they smoked their chosen poison. When Chase got out of his car, the rain heavily falling, he went to the passenger side and took out a pink carrier with a white kitten inside, as well as a bag of Purina Healthy Kitten Formula dry food. Closing his car door with his foot, Chase rushed up the porch stairs. His eyes went from Taz to his father, before he lifted the crate, “Dad, I got a cat.”

Taz was distracted by the pink collar the cat was wearing and the pink crate. He couldn’t help but snort in laughter. Simply by this, he could tell: this kid loved his niece.

Francis’ final weighted sigh of the evening was one of sheer relief, and he simply shook the rain off his beanie as he shook his head and laughed along with Taz. He held the porch door open for his son and new charge and said, “Of course you did, Firecracker. Let’s get y’all warm and dry inside, you got two anxious blondes waitin’ for you in there, and one of ‘em is your brother.”

’He came back like always, Zip. You would’a known there was nothin’ to worry about in the first place.’

Delbrook Academy Senior Year

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Tiffannie Taccone

_{“Whoever said orange is the new pink was seriously disturbed.”}

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_______________________________________ N A M E Tiffannie Noelle Taccone 🍑 Peach 🍑 Tiff 🍑 Bubbles 🍑 Princess Peach O N L I N E - N A M E S @PeachyBabyyy A G E 18 G E N D E R Female S E X U A L I T Y Heterosexual P L A C E O F O R I G I N Los Angeles, California C U R R E N T R E S I D E N C E Long Beach, California E T H N I C I T Y Italian-American _______________________________________ A P P E R A N C E Height: 5’8” Weight: 146 lbs Hair: Blonde Eyes: Blue Body Type: Slender | Hourglass Figure Body Marks: No noticeable scars. | Four earlobe piercings on each ear. | Black outline tattoo of a small heart in her groin _______________________________________ R E L A T I O N S H I P S T A T U S Single, of course! Crushes: ∞ Carlos Santiago Benefits: ∞ TBD Current: ∞ TBD Past: ∞ Brandon Murphy F A M I L Y ♡ Mommy Dearest ♡: ∞ Melina Taccone-Belmonte | Meteorologist for the 6PM News of KABC-TV Channel 7 ♡ Daddy Dearest ♡: ∞ Tyson Taccone | LBPD Major Crimes Unit Captain P E T S A white chihuahua appropriately named Peaches H O M E S W E E T H O M E ∞ 1833 Nipomo Ave Long Beach, CA 90815 ∞ The Peachiest Bedroom You'll Ever See™ _______________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________ L I K E S ♡ The color P I N K ♡ The beach ♡ Shopping ♡ Hanging out with friends ♡ Cheerleading ♡ Peaches ♡ Makeup and Beauty ♡ Y2K Fashion, Music, Rom-Coms and Aesthetic ♡ Pop Music ♡ B O Y S D I S L I K E S ✘ Lemon and orange pastries and sweets ✘ Heavy Metal music ✘ Mood killers ✘ The stench of weed and cigarette smoke ✘ Unpleasant smells in general. ✘ Colors like army green or mustard or bright orange... ✘ Oysters ✘ Seagulls ✘ Getting grounded ____________________________________________________________________________ P E R S O N A L I T Y 🍑 Sweet 🍑 Flirtatious 🍑 Outgoing 🍑 Cheerful 🍑 Vivacious 🍑 Affectionate 🍑 Loyal 🍑 Passionate 🍑 Caring 🍑 Compassionate 🍑 Bubbly 🍑 Needy 🍑 Attention-Seeking 🍑 Impulsive 🍑 Pretends to be Naive 🍑 Spoiled 🍑 ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ S C H O O L I N F O G R A D E Y E A R 12th grade G P A & A V E R A G E 3.84 F A V O R I T E C L A S S Cheerleading of course! ♡ E L E C T I V E C L A S S E S 🍑 Jewelry Design 🍑 Cheerleading 🍑 Dance E X T R A C U R R I C U L A R Cheerleading & Dance Team T R A N S P O R T A T I O N ∞ Hot Pink Convertible Jeep Wrangler ∞ P L A N S A F T E R G R A D U A T I O N Unsure at the moment, but maybe becoming a stylist or doing something similar in the fashion industry! ____________________________________________________________________________ A F T E R - S C H O O L I N F O F A V O R I T E P L A C E S ♡ Junipero Beach ♡ Shoreline Village ♡ The Pike Outlets ♡ Flaunt Salon ♡ Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier ♡ Disneyland! R E S P O N S I B I L I T I E S 🍑 Keeping up her grades and not getting any traffic tickets! ____________________________________________________________________________ O T H E R 🍑 Is often compared to the PowerPuff Girl Bubbles, or Daria's Brittany Taylor. 🍑 It was her father who bestowed the "Baby Peach" and "Princess Peach" nicknames to her after her resemblance to the character. 🍑 It became a tradition for Tyson to give Tiffannie a Princess Peach figurine that represents each stage of her life. Her collection has its own proud, visible display in a corner of her bedroom. 🍑 Has a sizeable social media following, and is very active in all her accounts. 🍑 She will have at least one pink item on her person at all times. 🍑 Is fluent in Italian, as both sides of her family are from Italian descent. 🍑 Both sides of her family are extremely well off. Her relatives include a retired deputy director for the FBI, a successful restauranteur in Massachusetts, a record label owner, a CEO of a cosmetics company and an OnlyFans model. 🍑 In honor of Tiff's sixteenth birthday, her aunt Renata Taccone launched the “Baby Got Peach” cosmetics collection. It contains some of the best-selling items of all time of Doll Face Beauty up to date. 🍑 Her signature scent is Doll Face Beauty’s “Peach Paradise” perfume. It smells like, you guessed it: peaches. 🍑 Her role models include Elle Woods, Cher Horowitz and Sharpay Evans, while her style icons also include Regina George, Poppy Moore, Shelby Cummings, and 2000's Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie and Britney Spears. 🍑 D E R R Y G I R L S 🍑 The Tiffannie Playlist T H E M E S O N G Barbie Girl by Aqua Face Claim: Jamisen Jarvis | #EA60A5