𝐜'𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐚 𝐯𝐢𝐞 !

               LIKE CIGARETTES, RICKY WAS HARDLY A STRANGER to filling the void with nameless faces. replenishing himself whenever lips attached to his neck and nails found their way down his back. this hunger to touch, to moan, to feel sometimes burning deep within himself, like he’d be alive again if he made it out the other side. in someone else’s bed. against doors. against sinks. hushed whispers that represented moments of bliss just pieces of a trauma-colored puzzle that ricky couldn’t ignore. which was why he kept diving in. craving that sense of relief despite its flaws. those faults being him getting too attached, too caught up in the person behind the smile –– like mia. a woman who bared herself for the taking, letting ricky have what he desired, and selfishly, ricky relished in all of it. “ i’d rather you invite me to dance, ms. miller, “ he replied with his raspy tone, stepping toward the table and leaning onto the backside of a chair. “ but i guess hor d’oeuvres will do. “ to which he sat down beside her and offered his full attention.

it had been two weeks since mia bared her soul on chestnut drive’s park bench. in the midst of the mess they had made, she wondered if her red lipstick stains could still be found on the wood. she wondered if the people who sat on that bench after her could still feel her desperation, her need to be loved by someone, anyone. looking to her left, ricky seemed to have what mia needed. that sense of danger, that sense of risk he provided, it all scared her, but it was also something she secretly relished. she had thought he had felt the same way about her, or at least, she hoped. however, seeing him mingle with all the town’s beautiful women and act like nothing ever happened, she wasn’t sure if that was true, or if it was just a facade he presented to get her to check off another box on his list. however, she figured it was inappropriate to start a scene right here and right now. “ ricky, darling, the hours d’ouevres are divine. you really ought to try one. would you like to sit down ?? “ she gently called out from her seat.

name in her phone: lane.

picture in her phone: here.

his ringtone in her phone: here.

“So then just go eat at la belle vie”, Declan said with a frown, coming to a stop next to her. He was a goddamn millionaire, money meant absolutely nothing to him. He could spend thousands of dollars on dinner and he forgot people thought that was expensive. A couple really good bottles of champagne and wordl class food, the price hiked up pretty fast. “You still should always dress up anyway. Dressing up is fun.”

                with sammy on the leash , the blonde walked around her neighborhood that morning ,  taking in the fresh  autumn  breeze that caressed her cheeks .  mornings like these were a perfect way to start of her day , after dropping off her daughter at preschool , it became some sort of a  r o u t i n e   to walk back home instead of taking the car  ( despite the fact it was harder  &  harder by the day with a second coming ) . stopping by la belle vie solely to take a walk down memory lane , she turned her head once nina suddenly appeared beside her.  “ they’re really amazing , “  she agreed ,  “ i had my rehearsal dinner here a few years back  &  let me tell you … it’s worth every penny , “   

          he  knew  what  it  was  like  to  struggle  ,  to  long  for  something   he  couldn’t  have  ,  so  when  the  brunette  is  talking  out  loud  to  him  ,  he  figures  it  out  in  seconds  .  “  it’s  not  all  that  ,  really.  i  went  once  ,  a  while  ago  and  it’s  overrated  .  trust  me  when  i  say  you’re  not  missing  out  at  all  .  ”  a  lie  ,  he  knows  but  it  was  better  than  letting  her  know  that  she  really  was  missing  out  .

penelope  had  actually  eaten  at  la  belle  vie  before  ,  it  was  always  with  her  dad  or  that  one  time  for  olivia’s  rehearsal  dinner  but  she  much  rather  preferred  sharing  milkshakes  and  throwing  fries  at  lane  in  the  sunrise  diner  .  ❝  well  ,  the  foods  not  for  me  .  you’re  not  missing  much  ,  nina  .  it’s  nothing  compared  to  the  milkshakes  at  the  sunrise  .  something  about  an  oreo  milkshake  from  the  sunrise  just  reminds  me  of  being  little  .  ❞

linda cardellini fc. irresponsible estranged mother. was a groupie in her 20s. still mentally stuck in her 20s. kind of inspired by lorelai gilmore of gilmore girls, as well as people i’ve seen in my personal life.

hannah murray fc. doesn’t get out much. something’s going on up there. kind of inspired by allison reynolds “the basket case” in the breakfast club.