turbulence —

Though it wasn’t usual for him to invite people over — that wasn’t someone he was flirting with — to head to his place in the middle of the week, he decided to do so that particular Thursday night. Chidi didn’t know if it was due to the few arguments he had had with Omari back at the office, or if it was the fact that the past few days had been stressful enough due to the full moon. It was constantly like that, this back and forth, push and pull, switching from family drama to everything about the city he lived in. So, enjoying his evening with a friend would be perfect enough to let go of a few of those thoughts, and with that, before he would head back home and receive a ‘no’ from Leon, he shared the invitation through a text. 

Come by my place later, I’ll cook something for us, because I’m that nice, man. And I just got a new bud, so… win/ win! 

Cooking was one of his habits that would offer others the idea that he cared. It was also an activity that made him feel more relaxed, it was either that or boxing. And he didn’t want to head to the gym that night after work. Long minutes after a shower and changing clothes, he found himself opening the door to welcome his friend in “I kind of miss when I would only see your ugly face back at the court or when I was drunk enough to enjoy having you around.” Silly comments that were far from true and were all he said before pulling Leon close to a right and brief hug. “You know the drill already, make yourself comfortable. How’s life, daddy? Kid’s with Ally?”

Leon had just left the clinic when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Since it wasn’t his turn to have Andy for the night and Aleyna hadn’t texted anything that seemed like she’d be held at the lab later than usual, he figured he could stop by Chidi’s place for some food, weed and to catch up. It had been a while. Leon did message his girlfriend to let her know of his whereabouts, and then started the car to make way to his friend’s. He stopped by a liquor store on his way there, then went straight to Chidi’s building.

It didn’t take long for his friend to open the door and Leon had to admit--he’d missed the other woman’s quips and jabs at him. The only other person who did that to Leon without annoying him was Charlotte.

“I’d apologize for traumatizing you with a face that reminds you of your losses, but hey... that’s something you’ve gotta work with your therapist, not me, man.” He chuckled, raising his hand to show the beer pack, then leaning into the hug, before taking off his shoes by the door and stepping further into the other man’s place. “Calling me daddy already? Pour me a drink first to get me in the mood, sheesh! What kind of a man you think I am?” Teasingly, Leon covered his chest with one arm as he looked at Chidi. “Yeah, they’re with Ally tonight. I’m getting them tomorrow, so that’s good. As for life... it’s been alright. No complaints these days, which is more than I can expect when it comes to me... what about you? Besides missing me, of course. We both know how unbearable that is.”

status: open to friends

Yes! Another workout crushed, or at least done to the best of her ability, but she liked to think the former just to hype herself up. Starting and maintaining a routine like this can be a challenge, so any bit of intrinsic motivation she can stir up, Taylor doesn’t hesitate. “After I’m finished stretching here, I don’t think I’ll be able to move,” she admitted to her workout buddy. From her comfy position on her yoga mat, the Actor continued to run through her regular stretch routine. “I’ll give you everything I own for you to carry me out of here,” she joked. 

Taking another deep breath, she stretched her arms up in the air, then out in front of her and down to her sides. Speaking of sides, she then continued to lean to her right then she held that position for a bit. “What do you have planned for the rest of the day?” Taylor wanted to grab something to eat before heading home. 

Leon chuckled. He didn’t always run into Taylor whenever he went the gym, but it was simply because the shifts system at the animal hospital kept him from having an actual 9 to 5 routine, but he actually kind of liked the way things worked for him. He could pick Andy up whenever he worked night shifts, and he could program vacations. It was nice.

Plus, his run-ins with Taylor made things funnier than his regular work out sessions.

“Everything you own? That’s tempting.” He chuckled, offering his hand once Taylor was done stretching. “Besides showering because I’m disgusting, I’m not doing much. It’s my day off and the kid is still at school. Why? Got any plans for me, T?”

Laurel didn’t mind waking up early. It was a habit of hers. In fact, sometimes her eyes would open up and the sun was just starting to rise; it wasn’t an issue. In fact, it made her thrilled to know there was an entire day ahead of her. And this one, in particular, was an exciting one.

Despite the lack of action the past few full moons provided, Laurel had decided to focus on helping those inside her coven no matter what. After her own near death experience, she just hoped no one else would feel that way. Besides, as time would pass, she’d slowly notice how far from being like her father she would ever be, thankfully. And those examples, sometimes, would come in the form of aiding others, of being the head leader he’d never be. Looking at Leon, her eyes landed at Francia, Rosa’s young sister. “Why don’t you try something else, huh? Instead of focusing on the entire like just… try to focus on a small portion of water. It could help you get better at controlling it. Leon could show you something close to it but about his powers, can you?” Her question was directed at her friend.

It felt nice to feel included. To feel like he had something to give back to the coven that had helped him grow into the warlock he was getting to be. So, whenever Laurel asked him to join her in the training of younger witches, he would be ready for it. It didn’t matter how early he needed to sleep either the previous evening or how earlier than usual he needed to be up in the mornings. It was all about self fulfillment, he guessed.

Leon didn’t know Rosa prior to joining Laurel’s coven, and by the time he had, the woman was already great at controlling and displaying her powers... unlike her younger sister, who still struggled to get ahold of her gift... much like Leon was at the beginning. He could see the frustration boiling in her... he recognized the signs that had been part of his own journey.

“Here.” Leon took a seat by Francia’s side, raising his palm facing up and closing his eyes. He tried to conjure a little whirlwind, but, since he had no control of that part of his powers, the gush of wish blew straight past Francia’s hair, startling her a little. “See? I’ve been focusing on my abstract magic, so my physical powers aren’t sharp enough. But if we practice--” Leon then focused on the pendant around her neck, making it levitate and guide it gently towards him, before letting it drop back on her torso. “Everyone has to start somewhere, Francia. It can be frustrating, but no one learned anything over night. Let’s start again, okay?” Leon glanced over at Laurel, before pointing towards the lake in front of them. “Like Laurel’s said... Focus on a spot in the water. Now, close your eyes and picture it moving.”

While Francia took her time, Leon got up and stood beside his head priestess, leaning in to whisper close to her ear so that Francia wouldn’t hear them. “Maybe you can give her some training exercises like the ones you gave me back then? And monitor her progress... because it’s all in her head, I think.”

The afternoon was barely starting but Aleyna could see the excitement that was overflowing from Andrea while they were paying attention to the decoration Aleyna was able to come up with for the picnic. All those years spent over Pinterest and trying to go through a few DIY tutorials was now worth it all; a dinosaur themed party, having Pedro as the main attraction since the young child couldn’t let go of their plush toy while following both their mother and father. From the moment, Andy woke up, Aleyna made sure they’d be showered with love — one of the reasons why having Leon over for the weekend seemed the ideal scenario, especially now that they were back together. Every single action that she could provide to Andy as a reminder that for their birthday, they now had both of their parents being there and appreciating the gift that was to have Andy in this world, Aleyna would go through. 

Placing a kiss over the top of their head, Andy ran straight to their grandparents. While giving Leon a few balloons for him to fill up, she chuckled. “Just so you know… they know about– us.” Aleyna just hoped that her family would be happy for her, that was all she could ask for. “Look how happy Andy is. Do you think we should leave our gift for later? So, you know… we won’t overshadow everyone else’s.”

If anyone had told him a few years ago that this would be his life, Leon would have definitely laughed at their face. Granted, a few years ago he was still dating Aleyna, but given all they had gone through, it sometimes didn’t seem real that he’d been allowed a second chance at happiness. And now, the little bean they had made together a few years ago was turning six. Was it a concept hard to grasp? Him as a father? Sometimes. The concept was difficult, but being Andy’s dad wasn’t that hard.

He’d spent the weekend at Aleyna’s and after a tumultuous shift, followed by a good-night sleep, Leon was partially ready to face the avalanche of loud, overly excited children. He moved his head from one side to the other, popping his joints and letting out a sigh of relief once the tension left his neck. His gaze moved to where Aleyna was looking, acknowledging her parents presence. “Right...” He’d forgotten how open and close his girlfriend was with her family. It didn’t bother him, of course... but he’s never had that. Not even with the Min family. That was his own fault though... opening up had always been hard. “I haven’t received any threats yet, so do you think I’m in the clear?”

Leon chuckled while placing the balloon into the beak of the helium tank and opening to fill it. He wasn’t the biggest talker anywhere... more like an observer, but there was a smile on his lips as he followed his child with his gaze. Their laughter brought a smile to his lips. “Maybe we can leave it to before we gather everyone around to sing happy birthday?” His gaze caught sight of Skyler and her annoying parents arriving at the meeting point at the park, which made Leon close the helium tank and inhaled some of the air in the balloon as he discreetly nudged his girlfriend with his elbow, motioning his head towards the couple. “Aleyna, you look gorgeous!” He then laughed, which allowed his voice to return to normal as he went back to filling the balloons. “Do you want to go talk to your parents? I can handle the balloons.”

Catalina would never call herself a caffeine fiend but that didn’t make it not true. She had been in the cafe for what was probably hours, trying to get through her own blog post. Did she write up a post about now being a supernatural being after living life as a human? And if she did how would it be received? She had saved so many drafts and completely rewritten it time and time again. Her table was practically littered with coffee cups and she had probably taken up more than her fair share of time. After finishing what was probably her 6th cup, she felt a shadow fall over her table. Without looking up she sighed and ran a hand through her hair, “I’m sorry, I know it’s a mess. If you need the space you are welcome to it. Just uh…. move the cups? And probably ignore me. I’m just on the verge of either a breakthrough or a breakdown. I just haven’t figured out which one quite yet.”

Lately, Leon had been wishing for Fridays more than any other day in the week... dare he say, even more than the days he’d spend with Andrea, simply because he didn’t have classes scheduled for Fridays, therefore, once he was done with work, he could simply rest. His finals were around the corner and the warlock had been struggling to keep his head above water these days, barely sleeping and rarely finding time to himself... hence why he had stopped by Java, his old workplace, to get his caffeine fix of the evening. Something fell on the floor as he passed by and, on his way back, Leon picked it up, offering it to the person at the table. “You can always return the cups to the counter on the left.” He had always hated those kinds of customers. The ones that never cleaned up after themselves and left all the work to the baristas, as if it would hurt to be a decent person. “But I think this is yours?” He said, offering the object he’d picked up from the floor.

Sahid returned from the toiled with a huge smile on their face only to find the seat that had been occupied before by a young man who had spend about an hour talking to them empty. They sat down next to it and anxiously looked around hoping to spot him, but the bar was slowly growing quieter and he was nowhere to be seen. 

They really should’ve gotten his number, they realised then, leaning their full body against the bar, foreheard resting against the sticky surface. After about a minute of self-loathing, they felt a knee brush against their outer thigh, and their head shot up again, for a moment thinking he was back, but someone else had taken the same seat. “OH, hi, sorry, I thought you were someone else,” they said with an awkward smile. 

After weeks cramming over books and essays, Leon was finally on a break from uni, which had landed him in Lyons for the night. Andrea had a birthday to go to the next day, so Aleyna and him agreed on changing the date in which their child would sleep over and, for the first time in what felt like ages, the warlock was really on his own. Not that he minded, of course. Being alone had a different feeling this time, less lonely, he supposed. 

Leon ordered a pint of brew and pulled his phone out as he took a seat by the bar, clicking on Tinder to check if there was anyone interesting around. The voice drove his attention to its owner, prompting the warlock to get up. “Shit, sorry. I didn’t know the seat was taken.” He replied, before motioning his head to the bartender filling up his glass. “I’ll just grab my beer and go. Sorry again.”