the judge

@connell-howard

yawning while he entered the cafe, he tried to shake the sleep from himself when he heard louis. "good morning, louis. how are you?" he asked as he sat down in the chair that had been kicked out in front of him.

hearing that freya was proud of him, brought a feeling on that he wasn't used to. "it sucked and it was harder than i thought it would be but i've been searching for years, and now with me being stuck here i need to accept that i'll never see her again" he didn't think anyone would hold it against him for coming to the decision he did. he fought a smile at her justification that followed her suggestion "i don't know, maybe." he wasn't sure if anyone would want to take on the guy who had spend years waiting on a wife that disappeared. "i don't doubt it. you two are a great pair" he added like it wasn't salt in the wound.

"Yeah, no problem." Louis took the list off Connell then moved among the aisles. "Any luck with finding your wife in town yet? I'm sure the townhall has a list of names you could check out and find out where she is."

"thanks, it's much appreciated" he said as he followed louis through the aisles. he faltered at the mention of his wife. while he had come to terms with the reality that she's likely dead, it still was fresh enough to catch him off guard "uh, no...i checked the records when i first arrived. i don't know, given how long she's been gone and her not being here, i feel like i've been chasing a ghost. i took my ring off the other day. i think i need to accept she's gone"

"Yes." Louis nodded with a slight smile then sighed with a small roll of his eyes. "Okay, what do you need? I'll help you get it all together along with some tools."

"as charming and humble as always, louis" he chuckled and pulled a list out from his pocket, holding it out for louis "this was the inventory we took down that was damaged but we'll also need things like tools, nails, glue...basically anything to make beau's office as beau proof as possible. if that's possible"

he gave a nod of his head and let freya go about the business of picking out shirts, she would know better than he would. "i guess you could say that. i'm choosing to look on the better side of things, i've made peace with what's happened. i don't wear my ring anymore and i guess now that i've made that step it all feels more real" his eyes ran over the clothing rails while he talked. he looked over to ferya and gave her a smile "i can't imagine what it must've been like being there. the plus side is that you're safe" he offered "and tommy too, obviously." he quickly added.

“So I’ve heard… Just when I thought the ghosts at night thing was the weirdest.” Honestly, he was glad that the other hadn’t noticed how much more nervous he had gotten. That was for the best. “Disappeared? That’s— I’m sorry. I um, I acted on Broadway in New York City for years. You may have seen me if you both visited.”

"oh no, the ghosts are just the beginning. they also feel sorta less scary when you've got countless things trying to take you out in the daytime." a town full of things trying to rip you to shreds wasn't what anyone expected when they first arrived in huntsville. "she went missing a few years ago, i was searching for her and followed a lead that brought me here. i took her to some shows over the years but i was always in new york for business."

"yeah i know what they are. i'm pretty good at guess if stuff is going to fit me or not" he shrugged. clothes shopping wasn't something he enjoyed, at least freya was around to make it bearable. "i've been alright, how are you?" he asked following her to the mens section "oh that, yeah, i had left the party by then but jeez it sounded horrific. i'm glad you're safe"

"Oh hey gorgeous." Louis couldn't help the flirty manner that came out when Connell was around. "Beau proof? What did he do this time?" He moved away from the desk and headed over to one of the shelves.

"gorgeous? is that how you keep getting repeat customers?" he chuckled, leaning against the desk "to put it bluntly, beau smash. he's like the hulk in that office. someone pissed him off and next thing i know i've got half a desk launched into my office"

Louis looked up when he heard the bell jingle, putting the book down he used to check the stock levels and honestly? Things were slowing down again despite the giant hole that was still being fixed. "Can I help you?" That sounded harsh but hey, that was just Louis. "I'm still working on getting more stock but trade is slow."

connell walked in the store and gave him a wave. "hey, i'm looking for some supplies that would help rebuild an office? preferably beau proof?" he chuckled. the hr department was known for his temper, the most recent one bringing some furniture casualties.

"They're not as crazy as city parties but I've seen them get weird fast," Thomas replied, reaching out to accept the other's hand. His eyes grew just a little wider in realization before he checked himself. "No! No, town hall is important..." Jesus Christ, Freya. "I'm just a theatre teacher... Thomas! Sorry! Um, I suppose that's only wild if you really love art."

"city parties do like to go above and beyond, the parties here get weird in a more terrifying way" whatever it was that prompted thomas to have the reaction her did, connell was none the wiser. "theatre? that's cool. my wife used to love musicals and the theatre, she used to drag me there all the time before she disappeared"

"Huh... That's new. I don't think I've seen a local event like this since I was a kid. Then again, I lived mainly in New York so," he smiled, holding out his hand. "I'm Tommy, I work at the elementary and high school. Little different from prestigious town hall but..." He shrugged and laughed.

"i didn't even know towns like this did big events until i arrived here. i always thought it was one of those things you'd see in movies." he chuckled. connell reached out and shook the others hand "good to meet you, i'm connell. teaching is a great profession. one of my friends back home is a teacher, they love their job. town hall sounds fancy but it's a job like another other job here"

@connell-howard / closed event starter / connell howard setting: the lake

"for a town event, yeah. people love a town event around here. it's always been big turnouts since i've been in town and i've been here for a over a year now. people like a reason to get together and have fun, it's one of the benefits i get to see from working at town hall"