Ars Longa, Vita Brevis

     “I mean… doesn’t love and relationships make us all pretty pathetic?” And cheesy. And stupid. And crazy. What Eren was going through was certainly a doozy but it seemed everyone she knew had some significant baggage weighing on them in some way. “Not that I’m trying to use the L word when it comes to your infatuation but feelings and desires can be included in that.” The baker so desperately wanted to nab a bit of the brownie he was munching on. Not so much for the need for one but because on the hidden substance and how much she’d enjoy the high. Caleigh couldn’t really go down that road though, especially not while still on medication for her leg. Pain pills didn’t really mix well with anything and she didn’t want to screw herself up further. “What are you going to do?”

Alyssa sighed heavily as her eyes stayed trained on her car that was being hoisted up inside the mechanics. She liked to think that she was a sensible driver, but apparently kids still weren’t looking when they crossed the street - causing Aly to brake hard to avoid hitting one, another car colliding into the back of her in the process. Luckily there were no injuries and the other driver had been fully understanding, but being sat waiting for her car wasn’t exactly how she wanted to be spending her day. “I mean, kudos to you for at least giving it a try. Did you manage to work out exactly what the problem was, or just fiddled around?” She asked, her eyebrows raising in curiosity. “And hey, at least you had a problem to try and fix. My problem involved a Tahoe enjoying my rear end far too much.” She added with a laugh, her hand pointing towards her car.

“I did in theory but when I attempted to put in the work it didn’t take long to figure out I was in over my head. I didn’t get far but at least I know what the problem is and it’ll be hard for these guys to get anything over on me. So not a total waste of I guess,” he shrugged, looking up as the door chimed a few patrons walked up to the counter. He moved to the side to give them space.  He winced as the lady went into what had happened to her own car. “Looks like you came out on the good end of that wreck, and with a Tahoe too? I don’t know if I’d be laughing to be honest. Glad you made it out okay.” He commented, his light hearted tone unintentionally taking a tone for the serious.

 “Ooh, gifts. Well, I can’t possibly say no to that, now can I?” Sirena could see the cupcake box, and she swallowed hard. The cake she usually ate triggered nausea without fail, but hopefully these would be different since they weren’t the same ones. Pregnancy was a bitch. “I’m starving, so this is a great gift,” she said with a small smile, reaching and taking the takeout bag from his hands. “It’s not a bad time at all, come on in. Sorry in advance if one of the cats yells at you. They’re feistier than normal these days.”

“Have you ever had vegan, gluten free cupcakes? I figured your taste bugs might be finicky so I tried to get something that wasn’t too over the top. When she accepted the bags, Eren followed her inside her place and occupied the first surface he could find to sit upon. “I thought it might be; nothing fancy, just some salad, a couple sandwiches and some pasta. I figured keeping it bland was best,” he chuckled as his gaze appraised the woman then went in search of her cat. “So you’ve almost made the transition from cat mom to baby mama. How does it feel?” He asked as one of the cats bounded out of nowhere and landed between them. Eren swatted aimlessly at the air, mumbling, “this..this right here is why I don’t mess with these little fuckers..”

Nadia waited for the male to get adjusted, pressing her lips together. “I hope I wasn’t interrupting your day or anything like that,” she said as she sat up a little, holding the one page paper out towards him. “It’s my resume… It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these so I’m trying to get an opinion on it.”

“No worries, I’ve got some time to kill,” he sure. He arranged his laptop, coffee and notebook in their respective places then turned his attention back to the brunette. “Okay, I think I can handle that, in fact I’ve just been through a bunch of resumes for accounting position we just filled at my pub. Depending on how liberal you want me to be with your feedback maybe I can throw in some useful tips. What kind of work are you shooting for?” He asked, reaching out for the resume.

─ She had just gotten off of a thirty-hour shift and honestly, she was exhausted. But considering she had stuff to do, there was no way she could go to sleep yet. So ordering a triple shot of espresso drink was her best option right now. Of course, as she stood in line waiting, Remy played witness to something she wasn’t too sure about. All she could tell was that someone wasn’t able to pay, or well, just didn’t have the right card, but wanted a chance to go and get the right form of payment. Wanting to save them from the conversation, Remy then stepped up with her own card and dangled it before the woman behind the counter. “Here, let me—” she began, offering the man a sheepish smile. “Consider it my one good deed of the day. Really, I don’t mind.” 

In a childish moment Eren was  so annoyed he was tempted to knock a few displayed items off the counter. Thankfully the kind act of a stranger had curtailed that thought. “I’d hate for you to go to the trouble. Are you sure? My place is just east of here. If you want to stop by I can get you the cash, enough to cover yours too,” he offered. When he turned to face the blonde he could help but be enamored by the friendly gesture. It wasn’t often people went out of their way to help. From his experience most were tone deaf when it came to goodwill of that kind. Before the blonde could answer the cashier had taken the card out of her hand. Eren sucked his teeth and bit the inside of is jaw, diverting his attention back to the stranger. “Anyway,I’m Eren by the way. Like I was saying, my place is just a few blocks away from here. If you’re in the area again you should stop by my pub. I’m promise you won't regret it,” he assured, reaching for his coffee, taking it from the reluctant hand of the cashier.

        “Hey, yo… what’s up my dude.” Extending his hand to Eren, he squeezed the other’s hand some and pulled his friend in for a bro hug. Shoulder bumping shoulder and a pat on the back before he was pulling back and giving space back. “It has been a while, huh? Damn… since the wedding I think.” The Long Beach native couldn’t exactly claim that he had been busy since then. He and his wife were enjoying married life but they had already been living together and raising their daughter before they finally tied the knot, so not much was all that different. Raelynn did take up a good chunk of time for him though, as well as his work, but in the end he’d been a little quiet on his part. “How ya been? What ya been up to since then? The hell are ya doin’ around here scarin’ old ladies for?” With a golden boy smile, he flashed a wink at the elderly woman who then seemed to smile, shrug, and head off. “Ya wanna grab a beer or somethin’? Ya gotta stop by and we can grill or somethin’ sometime soon, too.”

     “Like it?” That seemed far too much of an understatement when it came to how she felt as everything grew and bloomed, and as more and more appeared and filled out her yard so beautifully. “I love it, Eren. Really. I’m beyond impressed here, I never knew you had such a green thumb.” And seemingly one a little better than her own, she was apart of the careful science that went into growing grape vines that would produce a spectacular wine. When it came to her own yard and the landscape of it all? India hadn’t done well. She could shamefully admit that. “I’m honestly kind of moved you’ve been doing this for me all this time.” The brunette winemaker’s hand lightly gripped over her heart as she tenderly smiled up at the big man. “The calla lilies are gorgeous, one of my favorites, but I’m curious why you chose them…”  Talking with Eren had always been one of India’s favorite things, and she loved getting into his mindset about the things he did because there was often a lot of thought and meaning that went into it.

     “Mm, thank you,” India hummed a little as she pulled away from the embrace. She’d always been an affectionate being, more so with her friends and the people she cared about, but Eren was big and strong and there was always a little something extra to the feeling of being wrapped up in his arms. Not that she’d ever say something about that out loud, not wanting make him feel weird and possibly ruin their friendship or make things awkward. “I wish I could say the same,” the winemaker teased, “but you’re kind of sweaty.” Her fingers pinched the fabric of his shirt between them and gently tugged on the sweat soaked material. “Again, really, thank you for doing all this. I’m still,” her head shook, a little bewildered, “kind of speechless over it all.”

    “I’m glad things are better. I was worried about you and thinking about you, and I apologize I haven’t really reached out.” Ever since Nico leaving and the hurricane, India hadn’t been in the best place. She was getting better, she always seemed to be in a healing state of some sort, but things were improving. Business was certainly going well and growing, and she had good friends in her life that kept her from feeling too lonely. “Anything more going on with Anya?” Naturally, she couldn’t help her curiosity and concern. “I’m doing okay,” the brunette answered honestly, “getting better, myself. The Vine is doing great, business has been back to normal for a good while now and were pretty much packed daily. It’s been great.” With a smile and nod, she suddenly felt so excited to cook for someone. India waited as he went for a clean shirt and watched him strip off the dirty one for something fresh, letting her eyes linger on the naked build of his top half. He was a physical specimen, that couldn’t be denied, and well, she was human, India couldn’t help but to have a look. “Did I tell you about my wine distribution?” As soon as he was back at her side and linking their arms, the winemaker continued. Eren was led to her door and let inside where she was sure the air conditioning would feel good against his skin. Cooking lately had been so impersonal, in the kitchen in the back for customers, rather than for a guest in her home. More than a guest, really. A dear friend. “Okay, so are you in the mood for something hearty or something a little more on the lighter side?” When they reached her kitchen, she parted from him and headed for the fridge to grab something cold for him to drink. Which turned out to be sweet tea she had sitting in a pitcher. Once she’d grabbed a glass and poured him a drink, India offered it over. “For now, just to cool you down at least. If you want to shower and have a change of clothes, you’re welcome to.” Her offer came with a bit of a shrug, it wasn’t necessary for him to hang out with her but if he wanted to India wanted to be sure he knew he was welcome to. “As nosy as she is… ah, who am I kidding she probably would have if we ever crossed paths. Thankfully I tend to miss her and she misses me. Funny thing though, her name is Karen.” Some laughter came then and she went back to her fridge to search for what she had that she could make for the two of them.

“I’m relieved, you have no idea. I kept thinking maybe it was too much? I don’t know, I kind of did get carried away. I’m glad I didn’t come off creepy though. And even if I did, you didn’t make me feel that way and that’s the important,” he teased. Truth was, the experience and time spent sculpting out the garden had been cathartic in so many ways. Beyond mastering his patience, once he fully committed, the responsibility easily became less of a chore and more of an act of care, and even love if he dared to be honest. “Oh,  please lady, don’t you dare go there, you’re more than capable, we all know this, mashallah,” he softly chided, his tone good natured and light hearted. “I imagine between running a successful business here locally and maintaining that vineyard of yours, there’s probably not enough time in day.” He knew from his own experience, running one business could be tough, but two...phew. He had a lot of admiration for the woman and her tenacity and had truthfully found her to be inspiring in a lot of ways. “There’s a whole mythology behind the calla lily, I found out...You for real want to go down this rabbit hole with me? How much time do you have because you know once I get started  it’s gonna be hard to shut me up or get rid of me for that matter. And you’re offering up some home cooked food and spirits too? Oh man...”

“Oh, oop...hold on a sec,” he cautioned mid-embrace. With gentle ease, his fingers slipped around a few strands of hair that caught in the chain he was wearing and he pulled them free.“Mhmm, you’re welcome. And pardon me for getting my DNA on you. Now you’re tainted, for sure,” he teased back as he reluctantly pulled back from the embrace. She tugged at his shirt and he heard himself let out an unintentional, embarrassing purr. A grown man through and through, the pheromones that lingered in the space between them were doing their job and despite his best effort to maintain some semblance of self control of respect for his friend, India’s alluring presence was not lost on the man. The attraction, he thought, allowing himself to muse for a beat, was beyond sexual. There was something ethereal about their connection and he decided just then this must be the reason he kept coming back there when clearly this woman was beyond his reach. That or he was just stupid with limerence. Either way he he needed to get a grip on himself.

They meandered a bit and he took a moment to change into a fresh shirt. As they found their way inside her place, Eren found himself on a question India a posed about Anya. It was then he occurred he hadn’t thought about his ex in a long while and he wasn’t bothered by it in the least. “I’m assuming she’s all good. I gotta assume because she hasn’t called and I guess I have up on trying to reach out on my end,” he said and gave a non-chelant shrug of his shoulders. “It stills burns a little when I think about all the time and energy I wasted trying to make it work when she found it so easy to move on, but I can’t do a damn thing about it so, I press on. Good thing is I’ve got enough going on to be distracted with work and all...plus I’ve been thinking about opening another spot on the pier,” he shared though so far the notion had been mostly just a thought. “I hate to bring up any bad feelings, but um...how bout you? Are you good?” He knew the subject of Nico was fresh so he didn’t want to dig to deep too soon. Finding a seat at the island in her kitchen, he listened for cues as she spoke to ensure he hadn’t crossed any boundaries.

Location~ random spot on the pier || July 15 ‘20

On the brink of losing his cool, he let out an exasperated sigh and tried to explain the situation to the attendant for the ninth time. “No ma’am I don’t have another payment. Not sure why this one isn’t working but as I said, if you allow me to leave and come back, with my coffee I’ll take care of bill plus leave a generous tip, I swear. Shouldn’t be a big deal when all you’re gonna do is pitch it anyway, right? Plus it’s not like you won’t see me again, my pub is down the street and I come here almost every day! Am I making sense? Why is she looking at me like we’re proofing a math theorem?!” He demanded of the stranger who been unfortunate enough to overhear the whole exchange.