in my dreams

When Rory invited his younger sister to dinner, he’d half-expected her to say no. After all, it wasn’t unusual for his open invitations to be rejected, whether it be due to work or other pressing issues (or, perhaps, even the simple fact that they had not felt comfortable dining with Rory at all). However, his rare action of extending an olive branch was met with an even rarer premise—Bianca had said yes. It had taken some effort to transform his admittedly messy one-bedroom apartment into one halfway-respectable, and even more to prepare a hearty dinner, to which he’d almost surrendered mid-way had he not enlisted his chef neighbor’s extra help. Everything appeared presentable, at least, and he couldn’t help but be chuffed at how well he’d cleaned his act up.  

“Er, so yeah, I got carried away.” Rory remarked, massaging the back of his neck. Carried away was one term for it; the assortment of dishes laid out on the dinner table befitted four people at least. His smile was sheepish as he continued, “but, hey, at least you could bring some leftovers to my brother-in-law later. I got some Tupperware you could borrow.” ( @bianca-hirsch​​ ) 

Her stomach twisted with a knot of uncertainty and unease as she made way to her brother's apartment.  It was a strange feeling, reuniting with Rory again. For many years she saw him as the brother who moved away and forgot to call home, barely paying mind to the issues left in his wake. His absence was felt throughout the years, especially when she needed a shoulder to lean on. Yet Bianca harbored no hard feelings towards him, in a way she understood why he'd done what he did. People heal in different ways and that had been his. All she could care about was that he was back and they could try to make up for lost time. As soon as her eyes landed on him, she flashed him a smile so genuinely sweet with just the right touch of shyness before she pressed a kiss to his cheek. "All this for me?" she asked as her gaze fell on the table. "This looks lovely, Ror. Did you cook all this?" she said with the warm smile still playing on her lips before turning back to him

Bianca resisted the urge of rolling her eyes at the mention of her husband, instead, she replied with a dismissive flick of her wrist. "He's out of town, but I'll take them for myself." The corners of his lips pushed into her cheeks as she placed her handbag on the couch. "I'm so glad you invited me over. I'm sorry I—" She felt as if she needed to excuse herself from not calling him since the funeral. "I've been a bit busy with the moving to new house and all that. Anyway, how are you?"

She’d spaced out of the conversation minutes ago, not like she had missed anything important. Just another story about the latest charity ball or her friends ranting about their husbands. It was pretty ironic how she ended up becoming the vivid image of her mother; having weekly brunches with her high school friends and then go on a shopping spree, only to end up recapping the day to her husband. It was monotonous and tedious, the typical life of a Newport housewife and the one her mother had dreamed for her. The corners of her mouth curved into a polite smile just to prove she was still somewhat immersed in the conversation. She tried to get back into the conversation but it felt as if she was watching them live from the sidelines, masquerading behind her veil of independence. Letting out a sigh, she looked through the window and there it was, a glimpse into her past. Back to the time where she was away from all the Newport social etiquette.

Bianca looked down at her phone as if she had just received a call or a text and stood up abruptly from the table. "I'm so sorry I have to leave, there's a... furniture emergency," she said to the women at the table before waving goodbye and reassuring them that they would meet next week, as they always did. She left the restaurant, looking both ways to see where he'd gone. Finally, her eyes landed on him and she didn't hesitate to approach him. "I hope you just arrived in Newport and you were about to let me know, otherwise, I don't know if I'll be able to forgive you for not telling me you were in town." She fought the urge to break out into a smile, but that didn't last long and soon enough there it was, a beaming smile. "What are you doing here, Matty?"

WHO: Open. WHEN: Friday, November 1st. WHERE: Coffee shop, cafe, diner, any similar type of establishment. TAGGING: @newportstarters​

               “Okay, I’m not proud to admit this,” Evie stated to her neighbor, interrupting the silence, “But I need some help.” She had been working on a crossword puzzle and was stumped, there were only four words left and she knew she had one of the four hints absolutely correct. The problem was that it didn’t fit with what was available. “I’ll buy you dinner, wine, whatever you want really if you can get this right for me.” It was too embarrassing for her to even mention just how long she had been working on the puzzle — she had the mind of an engineer and programmer, not language. Her frustration alone was great enough to deem the large prize worthy if it were to be settled. “The clue is Pandora’s domain and the answer is thirteen letters.” The answer seemed as though it should have been relatively easy, Evie was drawing a blank regardless. “You know what, I’ll buy you a coffee just for putting up with my interruption of whatever you were doing.” How boring was she? The crossword on a Friday afternoon?

Pinching the bridge of his nose with two fingers, Liam closed his eyes. The attending he had been assigned to was giving crap to another resident who had messed up, and he, along with two other residents, were caught in the middle of it, without really having anything to do or say about it. Opening his eyes again, he looked around, hoping to spot something he could focus his mind on while the yelling lasted, that way he would stay awake. He was almost through a 36 hour shift, and this was the last thing he needed.

A few minutes - which for him, lasted an eternity - later, after the whole ordeal was over, he was finally ready to go home. Making his way to his locker, he was barely able to keep his eyes open, so he decided to sit down for a moment at a nearby gurney, if he found one, that was. He was almost sleep-walking, and because of that he didn’t notice when he collided face on with someone. Why did he have to keep meeting people like that? Turning around to apologize, he was slurring his words, barely able to be understood. “Oh God, I am so sorry, I just - yeah, I’m sorry.“

@newportstarters​

There was something about hospitals that made Bianca feel sick as if her entire blood has been sucked out of her body. To her, hospitals were nothing more but a place of sadness, held bad memories. Everywhere she looked she saw people in pain, in agony, in an unsatisfying comfort, except perhaps for the maternity ward where of course new mothers were glowing with shine as they hold their newborns in a room full of flowers, chocolates, cakes, and balloons. That was the reason why she was there that afternoon, carrying pink balloons, flowers and a box neatly wrapped with baby clothing inside. One of her childhood friends had just given birth and now she had the social obligation to visit them.

She was looking for her friend's room, roaming around the halls and only realizing that she'd never been to the maternity ward. She could place the ICU perfectly as that where her father had spent his last moments and the cafeteria. She stopped to ask a nurse for some directions and just when she turned around she collied with someone, the box falling to the floor. "It's fine," she said as she kneeled to pick up the box and now juggled to not let go of the balloons and not drop the bouquet of flowers. "I wasn't paying attention either, sorry." She flashed him a quick apologetic smile. "Would you mind helping me with this box?" she asked, somehow giving it to him without dropping the rest. "As you can see I'm a mess and also I'm lost."

Open Starter @newportstarters​ Location: Any coffee shop in any neighborhood Time: Evening

As the last notes of her guitar faded away, Cassandra gave a quick nod of thanks in place of a bow, grinning widely as she carefully stepped off the stage and made her way over to a side table. While she tucked her guitar back in its case, she chuckled softly to herself, remembering just how nervous she had been to stand up behind a microphone again. It had been awhile though, so open mic night at a local cafe had seemed like not only the perfect place to get back in the saddle, as it were, but also the perfect place to hopefully socialize and make some friends. 

With the guitar safely stashed away under the table, she made her way up to the counter, perusing the case of baked goods. There were so many good choices… When her stomach grumbled, Cass let out a burst of laughter before turning to the person next to her. “Anything here you recommend more than everything else?”

She had walked into the coffee shop just as the woman was wrapping up a song, she didn't get to hear much of it but what little she heard, she enjoyed. Just seconds later, the woman was now standing next to her. A polite smile graced her lips as she looked back at the case, her face lighting up at the sight of her favorite baked good. "I'm biased, but the cinnamon rolls here are to die for." Bianca tried to think of another option, in case, she was one of those people who didn't find cinnamon pleasing. Why would someone hate cinnamon? She would never understand. "If I remember correctly, the banana muffins are also very good." Really, it was hard for her to point out something she didn't like. She had yet to discover a baked good she didn't like, even those with raisins, although if she could avoid any dessert with them, she would.

"You were really good up there," she added, her way to carry on with the small talk. "I didn't get to hear the whole song but you have a beautiful voice. Did you write that song?" she asked, before turning to the cashier and placing her order. One cinnamon roll and a vanilla latte.