we are infinite ;

“you think so? i don’t know why, but i simply cannot picture victoria or dad showing your suitors any of your baby pictures. not to mention i have a good stash myself, including some incredibly hilarious pictures from grade school. you sure those wouldn’t be embarrassing? because you definitely had a look.” although emma hadn’t changed much, which was something the older brother truly appreciated. there was something almost nostalgic about his sister’s personality: it was warmth, it was his old bedroom, it was the park near dad and her mum’s house. emma reminded him of good times. one of the many reasons harry simply had the urge to protect her.

“can’t blame me for asking — or rather, warning you. but it’s good to know you’re smarter than you look,” he teased, scrunching his nose back at her, in a completely different manner, though. 

hearing her speak about her mother made harry want to roll his eyes, but he didn’t. he simply sighed and shook his head — something their father did often. he guessed having the old man around sparked up all the mannerisms harry’d caught from him throughout the years. “well i’m glad you liked the doughnut wall. if it weren’t for you, we’d have a tonne of stale ones hiding under the rug,” he teased again, but in a more reassuring way. “you think? that’s… sweet, actually. never thought i’d say that — no offense.” a pause to raise his hand, to emphasize his words. “he was? good ole’ lars, yeah? he’s a punk. he did seem happy though, from what i saw. penny keeps asking me about her grandad now, and i don’t have the heart to tell her the truth. but i should tell dad, i’m sure he’d love to hear he’s missed on this side of the pond.”

“You mean a frazzled and concerned look?” She snorted, “with my hair going every which way? As opposed to now, of course.” It was easy to joke about these things because they’d never really bothered her as a child either. She was always a bit messier, a bit less put together than her mother would’ve preferred but Emma thought she’d turned out alright despite it all. 

Making a face, she finished her drink and sat up from the beach chair she’d been lounging on, “if I ever make eyes at Elliot bloody Windsor,  you have my full permission to knock sense into me.” She crinkled her nose at the very thought, “what an arsehole. Really. What a completely dick.” And though she knew Cece had likely forgiven her brother his interruption of her wedding, Emma certainly had not. 

“I’m not sure I’m going to be any good at this,” Emma said with a hand pressed up against her cheek, eying the violin. “Maybe I should’ve tried to start with piano. Everyone always starts with piano, right? Would that make it easier?” She glanced at the other blonde who’d come to her apartment to give her first lesson. They were sat in her living room, apart from the space that had been converted into her studio and were going over some basics as Emma tried to absorb it all. “I don’t have a piano, obviously, but we could always go to Cece’s and use theirs?” Violin had seemed simpler a week ago when she’d asked Valeria about learning but now it didn’t seem so easy. 

“Well...this is really just not a lucky week, is it?” Emma mumbled as she was pressed into the train car with the sea of commuters jamming their way into the busy 5pm train. She hadn’t even noticed whom she’d accidentally elbowed until she looked up and saw none but Nate. Since their run in at the Spring Festival a few weeks back, she’d been stuck replaying their conversation and trying to forget it at the same time. So for fate to have jammed them together again, in an inescapably uncomfortable situation was just grand. Emma cleared her throat, doing her best to make herself smaller by crossing her arms and keeping her bag close as she attempted not to elbow him again. “Sorry about that.” What was she supposed to do? Ask how his day was? 

“Yeah, it’s a….its a great city to be in.” Nathaniel wasn’t the type to ever get caught up with his words, but seeing his ex had definitely caught him off guard. He felt awkward, and it was his own fault because of the way he’d ended things. “Oh right. I heard about that wedding.” it was a royal wedding, after all. Who hadn’t heard about it, honestly? “It’s a lot different than London. I figured a change in scenery would be good though…” maybe part of him had been hoping to come to New York and end up changing his mind about expanding the family business over to this city, but so far…the man was actually loving this place.

Aside from running into a few people he thought he’d never see again. Not that he didn’t want to see Emma again. She’d been nothing but kind to him. “So do you ever get homesick living so far away, or has this place become your new home?” an indirect way of trying to ask Emma if she was living here permanently or if she was planning on returning to London one day.

“Absolutely! I’ll be sure to send a lot of pictures, especially of Harry trying to figure out which fork to eat with during the dinner,” Cecelia said, letting out a laugh. “We leave May first and will be back on the sixth, so it’s a quick trip but it will be nice to be home.” She loved New York City, but England would always truly be home to her. “Did I tell you Theo is nearly crawling? He’s almost got the hang of it. I can’t believe how fast he’s growing.” 

Aside from his brother and sister, Nate hadn’t actually thought he’d run into anyone he’d known from back home. So seeing Emma again after all this time was a bit of a shock to him. Still he wasn’t the type to show emotion so easily, which was why his expression remained pretty blank at first. “Yeah, I’m in New York now.” he started, wondering if there was any point in telling the woman that he was now living in the city. Odds were he probably wouldn’t see her again after today. It’s not like he’d ended their relationship on good terms with her.

“I have family living here so I thought I’d come see them…” it was only half true. He’d definitely been looking forward to seeing his sister Mila again, but the main reason why he’d come to the city was because he was thinking about expanding his business here. Opening up an office in the Big Apple. “How….um.” he paused. “How have things been for you?”

Emma didn’t really know what to say. She cleared her throat, though, nodding as she tucked back unruly strands of blonde. “Right, that’s...that’s great, are you enjoying it?” Better to be casual about it, than to get stuck in past feelings that didn’t mean anything anymore, and maybe never had. “Same, actually –– Harry and Cece, they just got married so I was here for that and,” she chewed the inside of her cheek, “it’s been nice....different than London, isn’t it?” 

The blonde smiled at the other as they continued walking, nodding to her at her words. “I can imagine it being cleaner, as I’ve seen from the pictures. Is it less traffic there, too?” Traffic was a prominent part of life in NYC; she couldn’t help but ask. “Yeah, I do think people here are one of the loudest in the world. But London’s like… duller? In terms of weather. I’m not sure this is the right term to use, but I’ve heard people complain about its weather mostly.” Regardless of everything she heard, it’s still a place she’d love to visit. It was a beautiful country nonetheless! “Hmm, I don’t know, honestly. I’ve never really considered it,” she replied honestly. She did have the chance of being a member of the orchestra fresh out of graduation, but rejected the offer out of spite for her mother. But a one man concert was never something she really considered. “That’s fair! A well-deserved break.”

Ollie covered his mouth with his hands when he watched the other jump, letting out a giggle. “I’m sorry! Did I scare you? I didn’t mean to! I just got excited!” He squeaked softly, his hands still flailing at his sides. “Yeah, I’m Ollie! I’m doin’ great, how are you? I didn’t know you’re an artist! That’s so cool! What kinda stuff do ya make?!” His eyes already started scanning over the table, but he wanted her to show him her work herself.

At the question, Ollie nodded and let out a squeal. “Of course I do! Lemme show you my new baby! My other babies are still adorable too! Never foget Wolfie or Ginger!” He smiled, pulling out his phone to flip through his photos and show her all of the photos he had taken of the golden retriever puppy. “You can just keep flipping through, they’re all Dodger! I’ve taken so many pictures of him! He’s so doggone cute!”

Emma shook her head, “only a little, it’s fine –– I know, that’s what I figured. I’m also easily startled so it’s not just you.” She reassured him before smiling brightly, “well, this is actually stuff I’m considering buying,” she held up the necklace she’d been inspecting earlier, “but I am actually an artist, I paint, mostly, but also work with most mediums. What about you? Do you like art?” 

“This is exactly it. I think it’s because everyone’s always busy, too. It’s the vibe. What’s London like? I’ve always wanted to travel there, but I haven’t gotten the chance yet.” Valeria could easily think of places she wanted to go to at the top of her head, but with how busy she always was at work, she hadn’t yet found the right time for this. “I’ve never played concerts. Events yes.” She smiled brightly at her. “Thank you so much, I appreciate it. When I have an upcoming event, I’ll be sure to tell you.” She was a stranger to the different forms of support and compliments even though the past few years she’d been slowly trying to adapt to it. It still meant to her hearing positive words. “How was the Hamptons? I hope it was a lovely time! What projects are you working on? Oh, that’s amazing news! Is it a friend?”

Ollie was a huge fan of art, especially paintings and sculptures. He went to museums often to look at it and learn about it, but he also collected quite a bit of it for his apartment. One place he liked to go was Chelsea Market, where he could buy unique pieces and support local artists at the same time. It was a win-win situation in Ollie’s eyes. He was spotting a lot of great things, but he was waiting until something really popped to him. Since he just adopted his new puppy, he was doing his best to make sure he was focused on buying things for him. However, being as impulsive as he was he was certain he would leave the market with something for himself. 

As he continued to browse the different booths, Ollie did notice some pieces that interested him. He was looking them over, about to ask the artist about them when he froze. He tilted his head, his eye twitching as he smiled at the familiar face. He recognized the blonde woman and it took him a moment to remember where he had seen her before.

“Hey, I know you!” Ollie squeaked. “You…… you saved Wolfie from eating an empty bag of Doritos!” A snort came from him as he flapped his arms happily. “You’re Emma! It’s me, Ollie! Do you remember me?! I had Wolfie and Ginger, my doggos! Guess what?! I got another puppo! An actual pupper! A golden retriever puppy! His name is Dodger and I love him!”

@emmabvandenberg​

“It’ll be his second time. His first time was when we all went home for Christmas, he was only two months old at the time, though.” She wanted her children to grow up knowing that they also had a home in England. “It does negate that. I’m an exception to that law.” As Emma spoke of the plans for her art, Cecelia listened intently. She found the whole process fascinating. “Right, that makes complete sense. Thank you for putting up with me and my lack of knowledge about art. I just know whatever you create will be absolutely brilliant, and of course I’ll support you in any way that I can.” 

{ { @emmabvandenberg​ } } 

It wasn’t a usual sight— to see Nathaniel out at a festival full of live music, and crowds of people. He’d felt out of place from the moment he’d come here today. The only reason he’d decided to stay on and force himself to try and enjoy his time here, was the fact that it had taken a lot of effort to get himself to the event in the first place. He would have much rather been back at his home on Staten Island, working, or watching TV alone, but he’d gotten himself into this situation and now he could deal with the consequences.

He was making his way around the area, not really paying much attention to anything around him. In fact, he was just concentrating on getting away from people and finding a quiet spot he could smoke. His rushed pace in steps was what caused him to collide with another person, and he stepped back quickly, about to apologise when he realised who it was. His words caught in his throat for a moment, and when he finally did speak, an apology was the last thing on his mind in regards to what he wanted to say.

“Emma.” fuck. “It’s been a while…”

Emma had been at the Spring Festival with Cecelia and the kids, along with their nanny and had only broken off to grab some food and look around some of the vendor stalls for a bit. Since the wedding, she felt like she was in a constant state of busyness and hadn’t slowed down for several weeks. She had several deadlines for her work to be submitted for gallery considerations and had been heads down. So getting out was something she’d been looking forward to for a few days now. However, she hadn’t expected to run into someone and she hadn’t expected that person to be Nate. 

“I’ll be taking the kids along, and I’m hoping Harry will come too. I haven’t asked him yet.” She knew he didn’t particularly enjoy formal events, and they’d have to attend one while they were there. “Oh? What kind of pieces? I’m sure they’re amazing,” she said, smiling at Emma. She thought she was an extremely talented artist. “Of course! We wouldn’t miss it. Just let me know when it’s open.” 

“Ouch!” he said grasping his arm. “What? I’m just a concerned brother is all. So sue me.” Emma was incredibly dear to him and he wouldn’t let another asshole come and try to hurt his sister like her ex did. His sister had an incredibly big heart, somewhat like he did when he was committed to Charlotte. But being jaded, he was overly protective now more than ever. “I think people could sense my exhaustion and just let me be, so that is a no on that front.” Not that Harry wouldn’t have welcomed entertaining a pretty face. The timing was just off and besides, they may have a skewed idea of the Vandenberg boys thanks to Harry. “So, you working on any new projects?” 

“I am perfectly capable of making good decisions, Finn, just so you know. I’m not sixteen anymore, though I know you forget sometimes,” she said with a laugh. Emma understood that both her brothers were protective, and for good reason. They were the ones she told about Alex when he’d first broken her heart and they were the ones that came to her side and helped her through it all. They were her rocks. 

“never,” he answered simply. harry wasn’t particularly upset at his now brothers-in-law, but he was annoyed at how selfish they had acted. he didn’t really know the reason behind the altercation, nor did he really care — your sister’s wedding should not be the time to air your grievances. “i’d like to embarrass you on your wedding day, but in a less destructive way. maybe pull up your baby photos? that one time you cut your own hair. that’s a good one.” he smiled. “they’re going to be in a magazine, did you know that? i feel so popular.” the eldest added, a proud smile on his features. he didn’t love the attention, but he didn’t hate it either. a sigh of relief left him as he heard his sister speak. “good. no reason, but you know. keep your distance.” a little shrug followed the sentence. “he’s never up to any good. don’t want you involved, is all. anyway — what did your mum think of the wedding?” he thought he’d ask emma, since he hadn’t talked much with victoria that day, and even if he had, harry always had trouble reading her.

“Listen, if I’m getting married, the poor fellow would’ve already seen those baby photos. There’s very little you can do to embarrass me, Harry, not when I’m a professional at doing it myself,” she laughed and took a sip of her mimosa, rather enjoying this vacation home Harry now had by way of Cecelia. “They are? That’s actually incredible. Are you okay with that, though?” she asked as an after thought, “not that you weren’t already but ....that’ll take what little anonymity you have left, wouldn’t it?” It was a genuine question without a clear cut answer so she let it go.

When he kept on about Cecelia’s brother and wrinkled her nose, “a warning without reason isn’t really a good warning. I’m not about to bloody jump Elliot Windsor’s bones, though, you don’t have to worry about that. It was rather shit that he started a brawl in the middle of your big day so, really –– put your mind at ease, Har.” The though twas almost laughable. “Oh, you know my mum, very little good to say about anything.