RUNAWAY

Who: @cleostjamess Where: Thornberry Adventure Park

the last thing that cleo was going to do was tell the other that she wasn't interested in tagging along with whatever it was she was wanting to get into. after all, emily had been persistent when it came to being her friend and she was thankful that the other had been so sure about being her friend, especially when most people would have given up. emily didn't though and that meant more to her than she'd ever be able to express.

Aarti's eyes lit up as her gaze flickered to Cleo. They knew each other from their time volunteering together at the animal shelter. A smile spread across her face as she approached the other. "Hey, you… Great seeing you here. Don’t mind if I do." She took a seat across from her friend, she peered around her. "What are you up to out here alone? I've been trying to explore more of Providence Peak myself," she confessed, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. “Can you believe I’ve lived here for so long, but haven’t seen everything yet?” To be fair, she was always working. But still, when she had the time, she wanted to spend it exploring the city.

aarti was one of those faces cleo had found herself comfortable around. a smile rested on her face as she watched the other sit down across from her, "well, i heard the brunch here is to die for so i thought i'd give it a go. i didn't really know if anyone was up for joining me on such short notice, especially since i just decided on coming this morning." and she didn't know who'd actually want to join her. "how long have you been here? i've only been around about a year and i still feel just as lost as i did when i moved here." she confessed.

"True but I can understand some reasons behind that and I never take it personally if someone says no," he responded with a smile. Wesley was someone who tried to understand others and see where they were coming from. He rarely got offended by people's actions or people words. "Nice to meet you Cleo," he added with a brighter smile on his face. Wesley thought for a moment at her question. "Let me see," he spoke thinking before answering.

cleo was normally the type to say no but not because she was rude but because she was afraid to get close to people after everything she'd be through. though, the more time that went on the more she was sure she could read people better. "nice to meet you too." she replied, offering him a small smile. this wasn't so bad. in fact, it was nice to talk to people outside of her job. "really? you must like it here then." providence peak was somewhere she could see herself settling down permanently too. "about a year. it hasn't been that long."

Time was always the hardest thing to wait for, even if Yas knew that was what it would take. That or just finding a way to scrub her brain entirely of any memories of Sage, which if that was an option she might have found herself signing up for. "Oh, a girl's trip would be brilliant," Yas piped up with a more genuine smile. Getting away for a night, maybe even a weekend, with people that she knew were in her corner and would do their best to cheer her up, was perhaps exactly what she needed. "What are the odds we could convince Mei to leave the kids for a day or two and come with us?" There were plenty of bigger cities around that could be a fun weekend getaway. A night out dancing, a day spent at a spa, just a genuine girls trip away to take the edge off.

cleo was more than willing to get out of town even if it was for the weekend. she needed some down time and who better to do that with than some of the only people she could trust? "i don't know. i think we could probably talk her into it. a spa day might be nice. a facial, a massage, all of it. god, that sounds amazing right about now." she sighed as if she were imagining it. she could tell her friend needed it. "even if she can't get away, we could always go. i think it'd be nice for us to go to a spa retreat for a weekend. i think we deserve it, don't you?" maybe it would be the distraction yasemin needed anyways. that was the whole point in cleo bringing it up in the first place.

If Aiysha was being honest, she was actually looking for a certain blonde hair among the crowd and failing miserably in finding her, however, as the beautiful brunette invited her over, Aish couldn't stand there and deny the company. "Well, you wouldn't have to ask me twice, baby girl." With that, Aiysha pulled the chair and sat down, hands easily picking up one of the menus that laid on the table. "Should we order some mimosas?" She asked the other woman. "Does that smile have a name, by the way?" / @cleostjamess

despite her invitation, she wasn't sure whether the other would join her or not. either way, she thought it was nice of her to ask and completely out of character. the pet name admittedly threw cleo off guard but she assumed the other was just being friendly and tried not to think too much about it. "mimosas are just what i came for. the peach one sounds like it might be good. do you think you'll get a normal one or add a flavor?" this was going well, right? sure the other had just sat down but a part of her wanted to have high hopes. "cleo. the name's cleo and you?"

Mistakes were a part of life, Yas knew that, but it was still a hard pill to swallow at times. Especially now with Sage, having been there before, she was carrying the weight of regret harshly. "You're right, everyone does. Time heals all wounds and all that," she agreed with a warm hum. It was hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel now, but with time, everything would fade. Sage would regress to the back of her mind, a vague memory that she'd eventually stop dwelling on. "Wouldn't have missed it for anything." And she wouldn't have. Even if she hadn't felt like being out, Yas was always the first to say yes if her friends asked anything of her. "We'll have to go out really dancing soon. Maybe a club a few towns over." A club far enough away from Sage Franklin that Yas couldn't have even the slightest chance of running into her.

cleo was trying her best to put herself out there and what better way to do that than with someone she knew she could trust? yasemin was a good friend and someone she knew she could rely on while she worked on herself and attempted to put the past behind her, "they do and that's just it, it takes time." and she wasn't in a rush to allow someone back in her life in such an intimate way anyways, not after what happened with her ex. she smiled at the other as the two moved to the music and nodded in agreement, "that sounds amazing. i'd love that. maybe we could turn it into a little bit of a girl's trip. i could use some fun time."

Jess wasn't exactly a stickler for the rules, and she was happy to improvise them if they came to some kind of sticky spot. Though Google also existed and was easy enough to access. "Can do." The redhead chuckled, tossing the bean bag up a down a few times in their hand before giving it an under-arm throw towards the board, landing on it but not in the hole. A laugh when Cleo asked if she invited strangers to play a lot. "Well, you never know who you'll meet when you put yourself out there." Dimples formed in their cheeks with the smile. @cleostjamess

cleo knew the other was right and she was hoping to take some advice from her. she needed to put herself out there more, she wanted to. she hated that she let her past hold her back but maybe this was the push she needed to get out of her shell. she watched the other in a curious manner and gave her a nod of approval, "looks like you're starting off strong. i'm afraid if i'm going to miss the board all together." she admitted with a soft laugh. "it's okay if you laugh at me. i'll probably end up doing the same thing."

"Ugh," James grunted, "I know, right? I was looking at the dishes they were displaying outside and already I knew it was going to be tough." The wait staff then brought him a menu that confirmed his fears. "Great, now I'm really conflicted."

"if i knew i'd eat it all, i'd order a little bit of everything." fortunately, cleo knew herself better than that and it would go to waste before she could get to it all, even if she brought them home as leftovers. she couldn't help but laugh a little at his comment. he was nice enough and she was glad he could relate to her in the same way. "right? i'm thinking about the blueberry pancakes with lemon glaze. they sound to die for."

There were some bonds in life that simply withstood the test of time and her time spent in medical school had given her a group of friends that she could always fall back on. Yasemin hadn't felt like going out that afternoon, but she couldn't have turned Cleo down if she'd tried and had dutifully pulled herself together enough to get dressed and meet her out at the raffle. The dancefloor had been an unexpected twist and Yas almost said no, but relented and let Cleo drag her out there. "Considering all the stupid choices I've made lately, I think there might have been some merit to that. I'm absolutely confident that parts of my brain are melted," she joked back, loosening up a bit as they hit the dance floor, her body starting to sway a bit with the music.

cleo didn't know what else to do other than to offer some sort of distraction. she missed the smile that graced her friend's lips every now and again, and she was determined to get at least one out of her. "everyone makes mistakes. i know i've made my fair share." giving her ex a second chance was at the top of her list of things she regretted but she was trying to overcome everything that had happened and move on with her life. "things will get better with time or at least, that's what they keep telling me." she spoke and lifted her shoulders up in a shrug. once the two hit the dancefloor, she could see her loosening up. "i'm really glad you came out with me. i know you weren't feeling all that up to it."

Wesley did not expect the place to be filled, it felt strange because he did not remember the last time he was social or out and about. Work had been busy and he had been pulling in more time with his son and finishing a few things up. It was interesting for the doctor how he had changed between now and five years ago. He was glad when she said something and he smiled. "Thanks so much, I did not want to assume or something," he spoke taking a seat, his voice warm and kind. "I was Wesley by the way," he introduced himself. @cleostjamess

she waved off his comment, "i get it. not everyone is willing to share." cleo was trying to do better at that. she knew how she could come off but it was in no way to offend others. she did it to protect herself. "wesley," she repeated and offering him a smile, "i'm cleo." it felt weird to introduce herself that way, even after a year of doing so but there were only two people in providence peak that knew her otherwise. "have you been here long? in providence peak, i mean."

As people milled about and he saw the tables full with people and food, there was one thing that ran through James' mind: Am I a brunch person now?

cleo liked to think that after everything that happened with her ex, she was good at reading people. that wasn't to say she wasn't still distrusting but she was trying to do better at welcoming people into her life, even if she kept them at arm's length.

The other didn't look super confident in taking the bag, so when she asked Jessie for patience, the redhead's expression softened. "Hey, I didn't say I was any good, so have a pretty good shot of beating me just on beginners luck." She mused, head tilting. "Besides, it's just a game. I don't think they're actually handing out prizes or anything. So you've got nothing to lose." On occasion, Jessica could get competitive, but she would definitely make sure she kept that in check. "I'm Jess. You want to throw first, or want me to?" She didn't think it really mattered to the gave overall, though she wasn't all that familiar with any technicalities. @cleostjamess

cleo knew the girl was right. it was just a game and there was no use in stressing over it. maybe the girl could actually have some fun for once, which she had a hard time doing. in general, cleo had a hard time relaxing but she was working on it. "jess, i'm cleo. why don't you go first? it'll kind of help me gauge how to go about everything." of course she'd seen a couple of people playing earlier but it was different now that she was in the game. "do you do this a lot? ask strangers to join you?" she attempted to joke.