and / DOT DOT DOT

“that’s one of the great lakes, right ?” ariel asks, eyes squinting as she tries to pull confirmation from her own memory. her parents are both oceanographers, which meant open bodies of water were a big part of her childhood ; she had a lot of knowledge on them, even without the mermaid memories. “maybe it’s the hippie in me but i think everyone should live near water at least once. it’s just good for the soul,” ariel laughs, fully amused at how she’s sounding to even herself. “so growing up near a lake still sounds lovely !!” 

dustin does his best to scowl at cady for laughing at his misfortune but he even he can’t hold off the smile that wants to break through on his face. he’s always been the kind of guy that enjoyed making other people laugh, even if it happened to be at his expense ( which, to be fair, it was most of the time ). “well, on top of being all business, i’m also all rude. so it’s pretty on brand for me,” he scoffs. dustin closes his eyes, mumbling numbers — as though he’s actually recounting. “survey says.. now you get three quarters of a point for questioning the system.” 

sophie had thought she knew most of her story. she caused some hi-jinks by invited some strangers to her wedding in hopes of finding her dad, that’s all. she didn’t imagine there was so much more. most importantly, sophie now remembered her mother was gone, and she had a newborn who was nowhere in sight. 

“i get really envious of other people’s lives. like… just seeing people seem so effortless happy is really hard for me. i know, i know… people have unseen struggles. instagram and social media is all lies, including mine. i get that. really i do… but… god damn it. it really makes you wanna hate specific people. i should hate social media, but social media doesn’t have a face or personality, now does it?

“alcohol,” the answer came out with a bad laugh. “but that clouds everyone’s judgement, right? other than that… my own self gain. kinda. like, if i think doing something will get me more well liked or… make me seem more normal, i’ll kinda forget there are consequences. i’m not great with pros and cons. i just see the pros. it’s not until things severely backfire or someone points out the obvious that… i realize how badly i fucked up.

“music means… a lot of things to me. i strongly believe that not all things, not all feelings can be expressed so simply through words. there’s something about music that really… that really makes you feel something. that can be really important to get the mood across. and isn’t that the importance of expression? to share a part of yourself? to release something? to have someone else feel what you feel, to some extend, so that they can better know you?

“i think it’s really hard if you haven’t found an outlet yet. or at least… some healthly form of expression. cause, you know, screaming into a pillow is still expressing something but… usually you need something more productive to… move on might not be the exact term, but to move forward at least. otherwise, things build up. the negative builds up. and it eats you and it eats you. sometimes, people just don’t think they have the time to express themselves. to find outlets. while i admit, finding the outlet may be difficult and take a lot of trial and error, and therefore time… i don’t think you need to spend hours daily on something. just… a few moments. just a small part of your day. just to release something. i think that adds up and is sometimes all someone really needs… 

sophie, with her entire being, wants to raise her child. just thinking of them growing up without her ( and she not seeing the person they become ) kills her. if she ran into them, they would be nothing but a stranger to her. what a terrifying idea. however, maybe if they had a nice family… things could be okay, eventually.

however, being in darkness all these years is quite possibly worse. first, sophie would break down at the idea that her child was abandoned in pure darkness, left alone with no one. not even a pseudo family. just… alone. secondly, as much as she would want to raise them herself ( which, again, she wishes with her entire heart ) , she fears failing. previously, she had the support of so much family and friends. but… then she remembers what her mother did. and she’s almost in the exact same situation ( escaped to an island, single parent, running a hotel ) . so perhaps it would be all okay. 

primrose is startled, and her expression shows it. it’s not very often that someone willingly wants to join her for anything. “please do !” she answers, perhaps a bit too eagerly, her lips parting into that of a wide grin. “i would really enjoy the company, but only if you hold to that promise and forgive me, of course.” her smile turns a bit cheeky and she chuckles, moving a few of her note pages out of the way so that she isn’t occupying the entire table.

     ❝ it happens, ❞ elle shrugs. ❝ sometimes. ❞ yeah, to creepy dudes who don’t look anything like their tinder profile pictures. not to really pretty, seemingly nice girls. but she doesn’t think it’s the greatest idea to say that out loud. ❝ it gets awkward when they cry. ❞ elle’s nose crinkles at the memories of slurred emotional customers doing their damndest to make their problems, her problems. ❝ i mean, it’s not all bad. the chef who doesn’t burn everything is working tonight, so any food you get won’t suck. and you don’t have to share it. ❞ can you tell she doesn’t date often ? ‘cause the live streamers can. 

“you’re talking to someone whose heart lies in the ocean,” ariel points out with a soft grin. “and there’s nothing cozy about an ocean in winter, unless you’re cold blooded.” which she happens to be.. when she has a goddamn tail. “though i definitely don’t hate the prospect of fluffier clothes.”

“i don’t fuck around. i’m all business — all the time,” dustin explains. and its almost believable until he nearly spills his water bottle.. all over himself. but luckily he’s able to catch it at the last second with only one or three pieces of profanity. dustin listens to cady’s answer with mild horror until she mentions that it tastes like toothpaste. “i think you can get half a point for that one. for a moment there, you sounded like a mint chocolate chip apologist, but you got real towards the end there. it was close.”