DREAM GIRL EVIL.

what a mess. she was still grappling with the aftermath of a hangover and pressing cold spoons to her neck, despite the party having transpired several days prior. the events of that night remained obscured, except for one particularly vivid recollection - brie and gabe.

Any outsider looking in on their conversation wouldn’t assume much — Two friends, presumably hungover from the coverage of sunglasses, opting for hair of the dog at brunch. Brie knew better — As convoluted as her own thought process often got, she knew that Gigi knew, and to make it worse, the blonde knew that Gigi knew that she knew. (Brie may have been over analyzing a few things over the last week. Maybe.) Her gaze doesn’t give Brie up — She simply arches a brow and gives her friend an unimpressed look. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that? All things considered.” She points out of the obvious, both knowing the party hadn’t devolved purely from MC members being shitfaced. 

@briebarlow

The last few days had been far more chaotic than Brie preferred. Truthfully, it wasn't in an entirely literal sense -- More emotional, than anything. From the moment Gabe shoved her into the back of a taxi cab, her head was spinning. With the fight at Inferno, sleeping with her ex, and having to consult her plastic surgeon about an unexpected broken nose -- Brie was overwhelmed, to put it lightly. The latter had been a good enough distraction to keep her thoughts from lingering on Gabe, and meeting up with Nico proved to be a good way to get her anger over the entire situation out. Had it not been for him and his short fuse -- The fight at Inferno would never have broken out (well, probably not to the magnitude it reached) and she wouldn't be having to deal with a broken nose.

gabe has always been good at compartmentalizing.

There were few things Brie truly felt fault for — Typically she could easily shift responsibility or blame to fit what she’d convinced herself happened. It worked well for her in the courtroom, and it kept her reputation exactly where she wanted it. But each time she finds herself meeting Gabe’s gaze, guilt threatens to consume her. She’d been the one to ruin their relationship — Long distance and her own insecurities had pulled her under, held there by her mother’s influence. Sure, once she’d blown things up Gabe had followed suit, but Brie had been the one to strike the first match. 

Elio had been outside for the better part of an hour. The party around him had ben loud and warm, and usually that was enough to get him through a night with strangers who didn't stay strangers for long. But tonight there was something off. It was suffocating. The furthest thing from an introvert, Elio found himself wishing for his empty apartment and a reality tv show instead of a party. Sitting with a cigarette between his fingers and his buzz slowly fading, the man glanced up when he heard a voice behind him. "Wow, thank you so much," Elio mused, glancing back out into nothing as Brie joined him. "You really know how to make a man feel good about himself. I wanted some air," He explained, glancing beside him and seeing how she crossed her arms over her chest. Tossing the cigarette into the dirt in front of him, Elio shouldered off his suit jacket and tossed it over Brie's shoulders. "What are you doing out here? Y'not really dressed for the elements,"

In the time Brie had known Elio, it'd become clear he's as social as she is -- He seemed to thrive around people. Or at least, he put up a convincing front in her eyes. Seeing him outside felt out of place, just as the cigarette between his fingers did. Brie takes a deep inhale, turning her head away from him so that she doesn't blow smoke into Elio's face. "I try," she teases, laughing lightly at her own words. A brow arches at his short explanation, unable to help the curiosity that comes with it. Her buzz has her wanting to pry for information more than normal. "Something happen?" She questions simply, accepting his suit jacket without a quick thank you. The warmth that follows has her shoulders relaxing, realizing just how chilly the initial temperature changing from indoor to outdoor made her. "I'm feeding a nasty habit," she says as if it's obvious, eyes rolling playfully as she holds up the hand with her cigarette. "And some drunk asshole tried to grab my ass, so it seemed like a good time for a break." Brie notes, shrugging a shoulder. "What are you hiding from? Or should I say, who?" The blonde questions, knowing that since she'd run into to Elio's ex, he probably has too.

gigi let out a small scoff, using it as a disguise for a brief chuckle. ' yeah, and we didn't talk for six whole months after that. you better make a black attire exception this year ', she teased, giving the other a playful nudge before taking the drink from brie's hand in between her sips. gigi took a generous sip before returning the cup to brie's c-shaped hand.

Brie can't help the smile that finds her features at the memory. It had been one of the blonde's more petty moments, but rules are rules. "We're nothing if not professional grudge holders." She notes, winking as she holds her drink up in a cheers. "We'll find you something dark green." She suggests instead, not willing to compromise on making the change. Especially not for one person. It was almost a game between them -- Making the other jump through hoops purely because they can. It's the basis of their entire friendship, at its core. It's unsurprising when Gigi reaches for Brie's drink, she's tipsy enough to not be fast enough to pull it back. Instead, she opts to simply call the other woman a bitch before pulling her drink back.

In Shay's opinion, the theme 'sinners and saints' is vague enough that she didn't really think anyone was capable of missing the mark. One could make an argument for just about anything that they wanted to wear — but apparently cowboy was where the line was drawn. She watches passively while the prospect is escorted out, leaning against the bar and sipping the tequila soda in her hand. "He's in for the worst week of his life," she quips, a brow raising at the spectacle. Shay remembers when Owen was a prospect and the shit show that that was. "They'll probably have him cleaning the club house bathrooms with a toothbrush before morning." Her eyes roll, knowing that despite the cliche of it all, it's probably not far off the mark.

Brie grimaces at the thought of what will come for that Prospect after tonight. She’d heard a few horror stories from Owen and Nico, the poor idiot was bound to be fighting for his life in the coming weeks. The thought of cleaning the club house bathroom had Brie fighting back a gag — She’d never step foot in the room in question, and generally tried to avoid the clubhouse. The lingering scent of beer and body odor was enough for her, she could only imagine the restroom was a thing of nightmares. “That’s —“ She pauses, shivering dramatically. “Horrifying.” The blonde pushes the thought away with another sip of her drink. “I don’t know how any Prospect makes  it. I swear these guys get off on making them suffer.” Admittedly, she would do the exact same to Prospects if given the chance, but some of the things club members come up with makes her stomach churn. “Ugh, I need that mental image scrubbed from my brain.” 

"Nah, nah," he says with a small chuckle, shaking his head. It's almost as if he's mocking her and to be fair, he was. Dom knew that he probably shouldn't hold everyone who even was slightly involved with the mob responsible for his wife's death. If anything he probably should continue to blame himself. But there was only so much of that a man could take. So instead, he'd poke the bear, enjoying seeing how far he could push the blonde. "Not going to happen. People like me. I know that's hard to wrap your head around that considering you're you," he explains. Dom was a charmer, in most instances, and since he joined the Club, he's found more people to rely on and trust. Sometimes he wonders how different things would be had he been a part of the Devils back in his bullshit gambling days. Maybe Lara would still be alive. "Weird, I know. It's too bad you're a lost cause on being liked. Lawyers are a dime a dozen."

The eye roll that follows anytime Dominic speaks is almost instinctual at this point. They have no real reason to hate one another, any issues between them aren’t from directly hurting each other — Purely association and annoyance. The latter is present now, becoming more and more apparent with each word that passes his lips. “People don’t like me? That’s so juvenile, Dominic. I know you can do better than that.” She points out with a scoff, giving him a once over. Brie pauses to sip on her drink, before adding: “Besides, it doesn’t matter if they like me. They trust me. That’s where we differ.” The blonde continues, glaring at him. “I don’t lose their money.” 

@briebarlow

Part of her knows that she's overreacting -- Brie has no right to be upset seeing Gabe with someone else. Their break-up was years ago, she has no claim or justification for her reaction, but seeing him with Catalina had hit a nerve inside her she didn't know existed. Brie couldn't help but wonder if this is what he felt when she'd been with Luke -- If he felt the same rush of anger, guilt, and sadness she did. It was overwhelming and unexpected, threatening to drown her with a speed she wasn't prepared for. While Luke's sudden departure and embarrassment he cause filled her with indignation, losing Gabe over misunderstanding filled her with an insurmountable heartache she's not sure she'll fully recover from.

she probably shouldn't have been there. but if there was one person who consistently defied societal ( or the mc ) norms, it was gigi. just as the commotion near the front door began to unfold, she swiftly made her entrance, sidestepping the impending chaos. gigi eventually found her place beside her blonde companion. she furrowed her eyebrows in response to the words exchanged but couldn't tear her gaze away from mitch. it wasn't the wisest decision to be at the forefront, particularly for someone who shouldn't of been there. ' a dress code is a dress code... ', the raven-haired girl nonchalantly remarked. gigi quirked an eyebrow and retorted, ' and what are you supposed to be ? '

Genuinely, Brie is surprised to find herself in the company of Gigi tonight. She enjoyed having her there -- But Enzo Lombardi's daughter at an MC party was bound to cause a bit of... tension. Brie took a large sip of her drink to push the thought of tensions rising further out of her head. "I suppose so. I've done the same at my last Christmas party, I admire the commitment." She points out, knowing Gigi will recall the ordeal that was Brie having security escort out any guest not dressed in red or green at her last holiday party. "I'm a saint," She gives her friend an annoyed look, scoffing as she spoke. "Fucking obviously." Eyes roll, as she gives Gigi a once over. She looks incredible, of course. "You look stupid." Brie notes, sipping her drink.

omar wasn't going to show. he really wasn't after the horrid week he's had. but he was tired of his abuela yelling at spanish soap operas on bravo all day and he needed to get out of the house at least for a little bit. by the end of the week he was going stir crazy. "i didn't pre game before coming here, was that potentially a mistake? i think it was judging by the thrown-out prospects. instead, i took four hours to get ready." he says brows furrowing as he tilts his hat off to respectfully greet brie and holding it to his chest. "did you just get here? and do you want to go to the bar to get a drink with me?"

Brie is skeptical about Omar Ayala, he's quickly become someone she doesn't seek out due to her friendship with Elio. He was among the short list of club members she didn't enjoy, so she kept a distance for the sake of peace -- And remaining off of Mitch's shitlist. The last thing she was interested in was the man in question showing up at her door with complaints and some bullshit about brotherhood. "Everyone will be shit faced soon enough." She shrugs, sipping her drink. She could play cordial. Brie understands how long it takes to get ready -- It had taken her just as long, but she is too petty to let herself relate to him. Everytime she looks at Omar, she pictures her conversation with Elio -- Hammered, staring at the ceiling as they discuss love and heartache, and those who brought it on. "I did." She answers simply, before her brows furrow. "Absolutely not."