and i'm the beauty queen of disaster

Well, technically her name was Callisto, but she preferred a more feminine “Callista” and Callie still. 

“Do you remember the Coke bottle where no one could find their names because of how generic they were?”

.

“I can do that,” Finn assured her, his voice soft and careful before he wrapped his arms around Callie in earnest and pulled her against him into an embrace. There were few things in the world that frightened Finn more than the thought of losing the people he cared about and in the hours he’d spent fearing for Callie’s safety he’d felt as distressed as he thought he might had his fathers or his brother been the ones in trouble. It was enough to force him to quickly process how much the woman in his arms truly meant to him in spite of the fact that they hadn’t known one another properly for very long but it wasn’t a surprise so much as it was a delight to hold someone in his arms and feel the embrace full of comfort and love that felt much like settling into home.

“I don’t know if it’s funny or… completely insane,” He continued after a moment, pulling back both to look at Callie properly and guide her back into her villa without breaking whatever point of contact they could maintain in doing so. “But…” Finn paused again and exhaled a huff of laughter as a flush burned deeply in his cheeks, “I think I might be a bit in love with you, you know? In the split second I thought something might have happened to you… I lost my mind. We don’t have to do anything at all with that information but I thought it’d uh, well, I thought it’d be fair for me to be honest. So long as that’s alright with you, of course.” His smile was the slightest bit nervous before he raised Callie’s hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles tenderly, “I’ve always moved a bit faster than most folks– but I don’t think I had much of a choice with you. You’re a bloody hurricane of a woman in all the best ways.”

√

Love at first sight was such a tired trope because it wasn’t realistic. There was lust at first sight and there was interest at first sight, but looking someone in the eye and feeling completely safe from the beginning? That was something else. From their first conversation, being around Finn felt so familiar. Callie could completely be herself around him. 

Home. He felt like home. Maybe home really could be a person.

She listened to him talk and he basically confirmed everything she felt. Love. It was love and it was deepening. Evolving. It was the reason for the flutters in her stomach and a thrill running through her like the feeling of a thunderstorm above her head. Every cell in her body seemed to come alive when he ventured too close. 

“I think I love you, too,” she admitted with a small smile. “I think I’ve felt like that for a long while now, too. Probably...instantly. And it’s never, ever happened to me before in my entire life. My exes, all of that happened where I really got to know them and I just...never felt that instant connection.”

Matt: My grandfather but I haven't talked to that guy in over 12 years. I THINK he's still alive???

Matt: Hey now! I've stumbled across some people who don't know certain classics! Like this one chick didn't know Rocky Horror! My inner Dr. Frank N. Furter was not happy.

Callie: He is undeserving of my funeral/birthday lap dance.

Since the mess at the coves, Callie had done her best to keep low. It was stupid to go off by herself like that, especially to the coves when the water level had been rising due to the sporadic thunderstorms. She had been an expert sailor and knew how to read the waves, but it appeared that she had left that knowledge with her common sense on the sandy shores. 

Even worse, she’d admittedly dodged Miles. Out of sight, out of mind. 

Her hands slid into the back pockets of her jeans as she made the hesitant approach to Miles once he came into sight. “On a scale of one to ten, how much do you hate me?” she asked.

📽️ - tv tropes / cliches

“Friends to lovers. I’m such a sucker for friends to lovers.”

Matt: OR and hear me out, what if I pretend I died and then you dance around my casket while I'm off in the corner or behind a plant laughing my ass off???

Matt: Idk what I'm talking about anymore.

Matt: And mad props to you for knowing that movie! You made me muy happy.

Callie: do you have an elderly relative that is very uptight.

“Hi, beautiful,” Finn breathed, his voice the slightest bit high and airy as a warm, relieved smile bloomed on his features. His eyes stung with tears in an instant and though he recognized that were he a different sort of man he might have been terrified by how quickly he was overwhelmed with relief and appreciation for whatever force in the world had kept Callie safe he felt nothing but a gratitude that seemed to settle into his very bones. He stepped forward almost gingerly– raising his hands to cup Callie’s face between them, his calloused thumbs brushing tenderly against the high bones in her cheeks as he pressed their foreheads together and breathed deeply. “I’ve never been so scared in my life,” He admitted, a slightly choked laugh catching in the back of his throat before he leaned back the slightest bit and kissed Callie– a soft thing that was little more than a brief brush of their lips together as if Finn were trying to reassure himself that the woman he was growing to love at an alarming rate was truly alive and well. “And I’ve been held at gunpoint before,” He continued dryly, his eyes bright as his gaze returned to Callie’s. “What can I do for you right now, Cal? Tell me. I’ll do anything. I just– I’m very, very glad you’re all right. To say the very least.”

Finn helped her breathe. A soft, breathy, relieved laugh left Callie when he cupped her face with the most tender of touches. The saltwater she’d swallowed still felt raw in her chest with every pull of her breath, but it mattered little when he looked at her like that. “I’m just really glad you’re here,” she murmured. It felt as if the tension that had tightened her muscles had long gone in his wake. “Just...just be here. Please?” 

Finn Pryce was the greatest juxtaposition she had ever encountered. Exhilarating, yet so completely safe. He was such a mystery, yet she felt like she had known him her entire life. Callie wanted to be careful, yet she found herself falling quick. 

Matt: No kidding! The Matt special, then birthdays and funerals...hmmm. I should go ahead and book you for my funeral. Not sure when that'll be. But make sure you dance to Pour Some Sugar on Me. 😂

Callie: On God, Davidson, if you die on your birthday, you'll get TWO.

Matt: I just might!

Matt: What you been up to Cal? Giving anymore dances?

Callie: Nah, you're the lucky winner of my tipsy lap dance.

closed starter for callie antanas. ( @deadlytidetinkerbell​ )

It was safe to say that Finn had developed more than a passing affection for Callie since their first kiss what felt like a small eternity ago— he’d always been perfectly capable of falling in love with people far too quickly for his own good and in the time since their kiss, though they’d both been working and time alone had been difficult to come by, they still spoke when they could and he felt himself growing fonder and fonder of the woman by the day. Whatever high he’d been on post-bonfire had left him immediately following the news that Callie had been trapped with others at the coves and Finn hadn’t been able to sleep or do much of anything productive until he’d gotten word that she was safe. It took every bit of his self-control for him not to race down to the infirmary the moment those who needed treatment had arrived, and it was all he could do to wait an hour or two before he’d rushed to Callie’s villa and knocked at the door hurriedly– blood rushing through his ears and threatening to drown out everything else in turn. “Callie? It’s Finn. I’ll talk to you through the bloody door if I have to but I wouldn’t mind if you’d want to let me in for just a second. I’d really like to see you.”

After ten years with two people, Callie had sworn she would take her time in order to fully heal and dedicate herself to herself. All of it clearly went out the window when she met Finn. What had taken years for former partners, it seemingly took days. Following their kiss, she hadn’t had much of a chance to discuss it with him. Or even see him, really. The fact was, he’d rapidly consumed a fair amount of her thoughts. 

Nearly drowning in the coves had terrified her to the point where she wasn’t sure whether to let him go or actually make the leap to see if this could go anywhere. 

She chewed on the inside of her lip as she stared out the window from her villa when a knock on the door. “No, you can come in,” she called, twisting the locks back and opened it. Her breath left her lungs in a whoosh when she came face to face with him. “Hi.”

Matt: memento...sure......was kinda thinking about trying them on. hahahaah

Matt: Do you want them back?

Callie: Keep 'em as a memento or toss 'em.

Matt: Think you left your panties here. You want them back??

Matt: *attaches pic*

Matt: I THINK they’re yours.

Callie: [view picture]

Callie: 😬 Yeah those are mine.

Lorne glanced up in surprise, looking around to see who had the nerve to mouth off to him. But his scowl turned into a grin when he recognized Callie. Moving to help her with what she was holding, he said “You know, normally I’d be annoyed you called me Asshole. But considering the fact that you’re holding something heavy, I’d rather not tempt you to throw anything at me.” He didn’t need to end up back in the infirmary.

Callie shifted the heavy post and could feel her arms starting to give out. Thankfully, her upper body strength had been sufficient enough thus far, but now her arms were starting to feel heavy. “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I get it, I’m a jerk for calling you “asshole” but I really need your help, if you wouldn’t mind.”

The coves were a place Callie hadn’t fully explored as of yet. Exploring them alone was a big no-no; with the plethora of thunderstorms plaguing the island, the sea had grown temperamental. Yet she hadn’t resisted breaking away from the crowd and making her way the coves. The water lapped at her bare feet, the smell of salty air filled her lungs. 

It called to her like a siren song and Callista Nefeli Antanas was powerless to fight it. 

She splashed her way into the cove and traced the raised lines of the cave walls. It was almost easy to pretend that she could imagine pirates of legend making their home on the island, or some wayward discoverers taking refuge for the night. 

The further Callie ventured, the higher the water lapped. Upon getting knee-deep in the water, she knew she needed to get out. And it was then that she realized it was likely that no one saw her venture there, let alone know that she had made her way in there. Her fingers groped for the cellphone in her pocket, only to see an X where the signal bars should have been. High tide seemed to have arrived just a little too early and now she was stuck.