the world you want to see

"I don't know 'bout you, but I could seriously use a spa day." Gemma stated with a soft sigh. "Maybe even a spa weekend. A nice little recharge, ya know. What do you think, wanna come with?" she asked Lys with a smile. "Just get out of the city and pamper ourselves a bit?"

"Oh yes! Wait, let me show you what I saw," Lys pulled out her phone and swiped to a saved picture of a manicure, cotton candy colors with little clouds, "Is this not adorable?" She was practically swooning thinking about it, "Just say when and I'll be there."

                                       ⌞      ❀ .      nodding  along  as  she  listens,  percy  smiles  at  the  obvious  happiness  lys  has  when  talking  about  art.  it's  something  she  has  too  for  music  —  only,  it's  always  tinted  by  things  not  as  innocently  happy,  weight  of  being  a  so - called  prodigy  pressing  down  until  it  feels  impossible  to  breathe.   ❛   sounds  lovely,  let  me  know  when  you  have  something  new  !   ❜   still  though,  something  about  the  other's  tone  feels  slightly  odd.   ❛   ah,  really  ?  haven't  seen  them  in  quite  a  while,  hope  they're  still  doing  well  ?  that  or  their  vacation  days  must  be  superb  ...   ❜

Seeing the smile, Lys tried to follow along with it, letting their own lips curl as well. It was always a tale of two worlds, the person who got everything she imagined yet also threw half of it away. The opposite side of the coin from Percy. "I will! The gallery is currently showing some glasswork if you ever want to come by, it's positively magical at golden hour. All the colors and the shapes." A shrug, "Ah, yeah, well, she's a freelancer, I don't police where she is as long as we can chat on the phone once in a while she gets it done! Yes, she's doing lovely."

                    acoustic   guitar   is   on   his   lap   ;       an   electric   guitar   hooked   on   an   amp   and   a   bass   guitar   are   on   the   floor   to   his   right   .       the   living   room   of   the   apartment   gabe   and   lys   share   is   looking   a   lot   like   a   music   store   ,   but   lys   doesn’t   seem   to   mind   it   all   that   much   ,   and   it’s   surprisingly   easier   to   write   in   her   presence   .       “   sure   ,   yeah   …   ”       words   are   muffled   by   the   guitar   pick   resting   between   his   lips   ,   and  he  finishes   writing   into   the   leather   notebook   ,   before   playing   the   chords   again   ,   skillfully   plucking   at   the   strings   .       “   i’ll   be   honest—that   makes   no   sense   to   me   ,   but   your   concepts   are   always   spot   on   ,   so   who   am   i   to   question   it   ?   ”       he   shrugs   ,   a   laugh   escaping   lips   as   she   continues   .       “   that   was   a   joke   ,   lys   ,   god   !       we’re   kind   of   big   now   after   touring   with   ultraviolent    ,   alright   ?       it’s   at   irving   plaza   .       you’re   coming   ,   right   ?   ”

It was an obstacle course every morning, but the instruments were pretty, and they brought color into the space. Accented by the abandoned paintings and half-drawn sketches, it had an eclectic feel. "Okay... Okay. Yeah. I mean, it's giving, it's giving static? Not literally, figuratively." A buzz of activity, something tangible but hard to place. Swapping out a few colors, they disappeared into their own world, eventually turning an abstract piece towards him. Forms could be made out if you squinted hard enough, but they were all surreal, soft. "I mean, I don't know! Punk people like the gritty stuff, I think? It'd be cool... Yes, I'll be there! You know I wouldn't miss it."

     "dead serious, lally!"   alyssa is one of the few she likes to refer to by last name,  simply because it rolls off her tongue so easily.  and paige likes how it sounds.  "imagine we went around with disposable and polaroid cameras, too!"

"Do you want to come shopping with me to find some? Party City ones will be gaudy, but we can paint them! I have a lot of glitter." Too much glitter. "Oh yes! The way light flares show up on those, the soft focus, it'd be magical."

“ ever think about moving back to london ? ” // for lys !! @alyssalally

"Oh... truly? Yes, it's always in the back of my mind," Lys admitted. New York was wonderful. It was where she grew her wings, became Lys, but it wasn't home. "What about you? Do you ever think about leaving New York and going back home?" Having Akila around was a bit of a godsend when it came to homesickness.

               confusion  focuses  onto  his  features  as  he  listens  to  alyssa  talk,  eyes  widening.  he  was  way  out  of  his  element  here,  struggling  to  shop  even  in  a  thrift  shop.  he  should've  just  listened  to  jalen  and  called  his  stylist.  but  that  would  mean  he'd  have  to  call  his  manager  and  admit  he  didn't  save  the  number  that  was  given  to  him  months  prior.  “  not  an  event,  i  just  need  more  clothes.  apparently  having  like  five  shirts  to  cycle  through  isn't  enough,  according  to  my  daughter.  ”

"Can I see pictures of her again? Kids are honestly some of the best fashionistas! They have no sense of rules, and that's what good fashion is. Breaking the rules." Lys looked over at Toby again and walked down alongside one of the racks, peering at a few different sweaters until she stumbled across a chunky knit one - grandpa, but chic. Everyone liked the grandpa sweater look. "What about this?"

"nice to see ya too, alyssa," roman smiled, tucking his skateboard under his arm as he walked up to his friend. she made a point - one he'd been told many times, not that he'd ever taken it to heart. "i've got a hat," he shrugged. "i'll be fine." he had been so far.

"I don't think that's the same thing..." Voice trailed off. Lys wasn't a risk taker most of the time, but she wasn't exactly the best voice of reason either. In contrast to Roman though... it always felt like she was some sort of quasi-angel. "What kind of tricks were you practicing?"

          "oh, hello alyssa."   there's surprise in doe eyes,  rosalind looks shocked to see the dark haired woman walk in,  someone fixing the hems of the piece she was going to do a shoot in.  hair has yet to be fixed,  makeup is on  -  but this is genuine surprise.  she supposes it makes sense,   alyssa's thrifted vintage style,  and rosalind always looked good in period pieces.   "i didn't know it was going to be you i'm modeling for." [ @alyssalally ! ]

Lys wasn't much of a photographer or a director, but they thought that one of the easiest ways to draw a little attention off of them for a bit was to create a moodboard for their blog with a mix of models. "Uh, yeah! It's me. I've never really done this stuff with anyone else, so you're going to have to bear with me."

                                       ⌞      ❀ .      ❛   tell  me  what  you've  been  up  to  lately,  any  new  projects  or  anything  fun  ?   ❜   she'd  always  liked  lys'  artwork,  found  it  bright  &  playful  &  so  warm  that  it'd  been  impossible  to  not  be  impressed.   ❛   i  had  a  few  people  ask  me  about  commissioning  something  from  you  after  seeing  the  work  in  my  flat,  would  you  be  fine  if  i  passed  along  a  business  card  ?   ❜              /              washington  square  park,  with  @alyssalally.

Lys's cheeks flushed pink. Art was always her dream, but hearing that other people were actually paying attention never felt real. It felt like the dream was still going on. Pinch me! "Well, I'm helping our gallery owner set up a new exhibit from a guest artist." The 'day job' that really was her only source of income. "And my stuff? It's coming along. You'll be the first to know! - Oh.. Really? Oh, yes, yes, of course. You can tell them to contact me through instagram. My agent is away for the next couple weeks." And the next couple after that, and after that...

It wasn’t a comforting thing to hear that the person he had invested his money with was having writer’s block. He had enough to give away on projects like the one Lys was working on, but he had better fires to put out that actually needed his attention. Besides, Tomas Gonzales was far too smart to be scammed. If something was going on, he would have seen it coming from a mile away. “Not done, per say, but ready. The next time workers go on strike at my dad’s factories or something gets leaked to the press or some other PR nightmare, I need the exhibition ready so people have something else to look at. Does that make sense?”

"Yes, it makes sense." It felt weird in the pit of Lys's stomach, but it made sense. "My art isn't a political statement, Tomas... I want to help you, and I truly appreciate you having faith in me." And money... Definitely the money. "But I don't want to be your PR bandaid." Because that would open up a world of attention on them that they couldn't use right now.

"Yes, it makes sense." It felt weird in the pit of Lys's stomach, but it made sense. "My art isn't a political statement, Tomas... I want to help you, and I truly appreciate you having faith in me." And money... Definitely the money. "But I don't want to be your PR bandaid." Because that would open up a world of attention on them that they couldn't use right now.

          “  i’m  due  to  fly  back  to  paris  in  a  couple  days  .  not  super  exciting  but  i’m  flying  in  early  so  i  have  a  couple  free  days  before  i  start  working  ,  ”  they  offer  .  it’ll  be  nice  to  have  a  friend  accompany  them  .  and  with  lari’s  hectic  schedule  ,  it’s  definitely  been  a  while  so  she’ll  appreciate  the  company  .  even  if  it’s  for  a  couple  days  .  “  we  could  even  stay  at  my  place  there  !  ”

"Paris for just a weekend?" Lys frowned. The city of love, she could get lost there for months, more than just a weekend. "What are you going to be doing over there this time?" Keeping up with her friends's jobs made her feel important, still looped into the world that was sliding further out of her reach. "Oh, and, if it's not clear." Why would it be? "I'm definitely in!"

        "oranges, man. i only like them when necessary. like, for alcohol or something. or pan d’arancio."   he just won't eat it plain.  also,  he thinks they're ridiculous ugly.  he can't stand them !  he even would've settled for cherries.  but he's gotta commit to the peaches,  y'know ?  gives her a big grin,  flashing baby blues.   "play with me, please, lys???"

"What about orange juice? It's literally sunshine!" Lys beamed, thinking about the sweet-tart taste. "Well, you have to show me who's on your island first and then... maybe." The faux serious attitude couldn't last very long, because next thing you knew, they were giggling, "Of course I'll play."

he's not a shopper , it's usually brooklyn who styles him by ordering things online or the stylist that his manager probably pays triple to keep him from looking like a fool. thrifting was a whole new ball game. “ what about that ? yeah that one ! that looks cool , i'd look dope in that , right ? ri ... no ? ” he can see the disapproval on her face before her mouth even opens.

"What... I- I didn't say anything." Lys was still getting used to the fact that everything that went through their head passed through a filter with holes and splayed right back on their face. "It's, unique." Code for, please don't. "What are you looking for again? Something casual? An event... The trick is you have to look where you'd least expect. Do you know how many cool shirts I've found in the 'pajamas' section?"

had roman been paying more attention, he likely would've spotted alyssa coming and made an attempt to abort the trick before he reached the sidewalk. but, seeing as he'd barely remembered to check before crossing the street, that was probably asking too much of him. either way, he only just managed to jump off of his board before crashing into alyssa. "oh shit," he laughed as he took a step back, "i am so so sorry!" although his words were serious, he was doing a poor job of conveying his seriousness.

Vocals pitched up quickly and Lys stumbled away, quickly trying to comprehend if this had been intentional or not, brain flashing back to memories that they thought had long since been buried. "Oh.. Hi Roman. You know, you should probably wear a helmet." That was a thing people did with skateboards, right?