goddess

Jimmy’s luck is… not good. He’s down a considerable amount of his paycheck already he only got paid two days. Maybe things could change. Just one more can’t hurt, right?

It’s blackjack, and he’s got an eight. Dealer has a 10.

“Hit me.” He murmurs, looking up at the dealer. Nine. 17 in total. He bites his lip, and shakes his head. Another 10 for the dealer. FUCK! Jimmy sits back with a frustrated huff and cups his face in his hands for a long moment before he gets up from the table. He has no chips left.

Time for a drink.

Jimmy heads to the bar and orders himself a whisky. It’s not even middle shelf. It’s just the cheap shit.

“What a bad fucking day,” he says.

@slchat​

Eris had never been the gambling type. There was the occasional trip down to Atlantic City with her friends, but she spent most of her time at the bar schmoozing anyone who would buy her a drink. Much like she was at the present moment. Already one drink into the night from some poor, drunk fool who was off gambling more money than he actually had, she propped her elbows on the counter of the bar. Glancing at the man next to her, she gave him a curious smile. “No such luck, huh?”

aspen: when I turned twenty one my dad got me the most amazing louboutins... then he and my mom told me they were getting divorced the next day.. so that kinda sucked...?

aspen:oh my god thats terrible! didn't they ever find out?

aspen: i'm just not one for surprises... i hate them.

eris: they told you the day after your birthday?? omg thats awful

eris: nope they kept hiding them in the same spot every year

aspen: i guess.. thats fair, and as i get older the presents only get better.

aspen: but i hate the surprise i just want to know what ive got.

eris: oooh what's the best one you've got??

eris: i know the feeling

eris: when i was a kid i would always find out where my parents were hiding my christmas presents so i knew what i got

“You can call me that..” Demelza answered. “I just have such great passion for travelling. I’ve always wanted to see the world and thought, why not start here? In the U.S?” Some would think it was a lonely adventure, though Demelza has met some wonderful people on her travels, and made great friends too. “I’m always willing to have others accompany me. If ever you find yourself with a few months off then I’ll always say, give me a call.” It was an offer she spoke of to everyone she came across. “But we’d have to share the bed.” She added, giggling. Demelza washed down more of her cider as she listened to the girl beside her, nodding her head every moments. Silverlake really did seem to be such a beautiful place. “Sure. There’s a great vibe going on here. I know what you mean..”

“I guess there are some cool places around the country to visit,” she responded with a shrug. Truthfully, there hadn’t been very many places around the U.S. that she had visited besides travelling for the occasional art show with her parents, and even then, she would usually stay behind in the hotel room or go shopping. “Oooh, that would be so much fun,” Eris giggled in return at the offer as she perked up in her seat. While isn’t wasn’t practical for her, she couldn’t deny that the idea had her playing various scenarios in her head given that she had never been on any kind of road trip, opting for a quick plane ride instead. “You’re in luck because I’m actually a really great sleeping partner. I won’t steal the duvet, but I should warn you, I love to cuddle,” she warned with a tongue-in-cheek smile as she took another sip of her drink through the paper straw. “So, how do you get around? Like, do you have a car and stay in hotels?”

aspen: if by fun you mean my parents trying to one up each other, sure.

aspen: not at all.. I really want someone to find out! lol!

eris: yeah but i'm sure you got double the presents right?? that doesn't sound too bad

“That’s definitely a valid reason to be here.” Demelza giggled in response as she reached for her drink, before smiling a thanks over towards the bartender. Indie bands were one of her favourites, and to be honest, any music live sounds good, right? But this evening, she just happened to step foot in this joint, which she was more then pleased with. As the girl beside her asked if she’d only just moved in, Demi nodded. “I parked up here last week and honestly, this place has a lot going for it, right? I’ve been travelling around for the last five years but, waking up with the view of the lakes here is just..” She sighed with content. “..So much happiness.” 

“So, you’re like a nomad?” Her eyes lit up when she asked. Eris was the kind of person to enjoy a nice, relaxing vacation, but she could never imagine bouncing from place to place. Not when she had too many clothes and so little room in any suitcase. Yet it still sounded like a pleasant daydream. “I’m so jealous. I really wanted to take a gap year after I graduated from high school and travel around Europe for the entire year, but my parents were too worried. I think they took that Liam Neeson movie a little too seriously.” And since she would have been travelling on their dime, Eris was stuck going to university instead. “I’m still getting used to everything, too. But I’m really liking the whole SoCal vibe so far, you know what I mean?”

Demelza clapped along with the rest of the crowd as the band on stage played their final song and took a bow. She’d placed herself towards the back of the venue and had watched from a-far, stepping on unknown territory. Silverlake had been so amazing in the week that she had decided to check out a few local hang out spots. As the crowd started to disperse into all directions, Demelza headed towards the bar and was lucky enough to find an empty barstool, which she claimed immediately. After ordering herself a small cider, she turned to the other next to her, offering them a friendly smile. “That band up there was amazing, right?” She gushed, her Texas accent still as strong as ever. “Do they have local bands play here on the regular? I think I’ll have to visit here more often.”

Eris had no idea what she was drinking, but the bartender had made it specifically for her. All she knew was that there was a splash of vodka and it was pink, and that was a good enough reason for her to continue drinking it. This was her first time at this venue, and the band that had been playing wasn’t too bad. She was still trying to get used to her new location, hitting up all the clubs and bars. “They were pretty good,” she agreed with a nod, turning to face the girl next to her. “It’s not usually the kind of stuff I listen to, but I’m super attracted to anyone that can sing and play an instrument at the same time.” Her eyes flickered back to the stage where the band was walking off as she sipped her drink. “I have no idea. I only moved here a few months ago. Judging from that adorable Southern twang you have, I’m guessing you did, too?”

aspen: perfect! Erm.. just in a weird place, my birthdays have never been.. the best? I dunno.. I'm excited to spend it with Tyler?

eris: aww that's so sad. i'm sure you had to have had a fun birthday when you were a kid, right? like a sleepover with all your friends??

aspen: so.. it's my birthday on Wednesday.. I didn't really wanna do anything but now I'm kinda thinking all day pool party/ cook out at mine? you game?

She looked at the pictures with great curiosity as Eris flipped through them, very tempted to grab the phone and do the swiping herself. Thankfully she knew the intense fear of someone else going through your pictures far too well, and she resisted. “So, it’s totally a vibe but maybe think about throwing a little more color in there. Like, blue and lavender are calming colors so they’re good to have around you… for quality of sleep or whatever.” Maybe her own house didn’t exactly have a whole lot of design to it, but she did just finish her latest attempt to redecorate a little bit, and her enthusiasm was still very much alive. “Or you could go full Instagram and just get a shit ton of plants… maybe fake ones if you don’t want to end up with a graveyard.”

“Quality of sleep,” she slowly repeated to herself. It hadn’t been a factor that she considered, but it seemed pretty important considering she would spend much of her time in her bedroom. “You might be on to something. I mean, Pantone did say that Classic Blue was the color of the year. Or what about, like, a blush pink? That color is pretty in right now. I can add the pop of color in the form of throw pillows or a cute chair for my vanity.” She swiped through the final pictures of her virtual vision board. All the pictures looked like something out of a social media influencer’s wet dream: the white sheets and pillows against the natural wood grain of the bed frame, a bright green plant in an intricate vase with the leaves dangling down the table, and very minimal clutter. That was the area where Eris was going to struggle the most. “I love that idea,” she mused. The vision was already quickly growing in her head. “I would feel like I’m falling asleep in a forest every night. I could get those cute little succulents that people put in little geometric containers. You know what I mean? Those can be pretty low maintenance.” She made a quick note in her phone of all the suggestions that she had been given, the plants and the color. Any free advice she received, the better. “Okay, I do have one more question. Are coffee table books still a thing? Like, do they even have a purpose besides being aesthetically pleasing? I was thinking of getting a few, or trying to find some old issues of Vogue.”

“And you have a point there. But when you’re sharing a space the subjective part needs to maybe co-habitate.” Sydney expressed with humor to her voice, her two hands coming together making one entanglement. “Now you’re speaking my language.” She joked at the Tim Gunn reference, though it wasn’t a joke, more a every Thursday night Bravo Nielsen rating grabber all four years in the Delta Gamma house. “Pull the Gunn’s trigger. If you feel even slightly off, play with your settings. Move the furniture around. Yes, maybe even add those mirrors,” she teased at that one, “You have a lot of options.” 

“Excellent pun,” Eris commended with a quiet clap of her hands. Her nodded along as the blonde gave her suggestions for the possibility of changing things around if she didn’t like the end result. “Wow, maybe I should just hire you to decorate for me. You wouldn’t happen to be an interior designer by any chance, would you?” The chances were slim, and her question had mostly been made all in good fun. The truth was, Eris had never really had a place of her own — and technically, she still didn’t as her parents were footing the bill — but now that she did, it was the first time she had an opportunity to express her designer prowess.

Zoe gave the other a smile when it seemed like she knew exactly what she was talking about. So maybe they had a little more in common than she had thought at first. “I think I’ve been there once, yeah..”, she finally agreed, not entirely sure though. But she had never been really good at remembering those names. “Drag nights, hm..?! I mean, definitely sounds like fun!”, she added with her grin growing wider. She could only hope she’d get a baby sitter that day then. “Honestly..?! Texas wasn’t all too bad but I think I still prefer it over here! The people are a little more openminded I think…”, the brunette replied even though that obviously hadn’t been the main reason they had left Texas. “I.. just needed a fresh start…”, she explained, running her hand through her hair, “I’m right in the middle if a divorce, so….” Trailing off, she shrugged before looking back up at the other. “New York sounds amazing though! Always wanted to go there once… what made you leave..?”

“Oh my god, it’ll be so much fun!” Eris enthusiastically clapped her hands together in glee. Before she had made the move out to Silver Lake, she made sure to learn all the different attractions in the area, but she had yet to visit any of them. There was also the small detail that she kept getting lost trying to find her way around town, but that was nothing that a quick call to Uber couldn’t fix. “Oh, duh, here’s my number. That would probably come in handy for whenever we decide to hang out,” she reached into her purse and pulled out a business card. It was an easy way to get the word out about her stylist services, but it also was a convenient way to give people her number. “I needed a change,” she responded with a casual shrug. Always one to get easily bored when things became too quiet and simple. “Plus, I was dating this guy — well, I would say dating, he would say we were just sleeping together for six months, but isn’t that basically dating? Anyway, we broke up, so now I’m here.” she gestured to her surroundings. “The traffic sucks just as much, but at least I can look forward to a warmer winter.”

“Just left work so honestly, this is already pretty relaxing! And I really needed some caffeine!”, Zoe replied with a grin, knowing this probably wasn’t the way other people would spend their day when the kids weren’t home. “I mean they can be loud but actually they’re real sweethearts most of the time so there’s no need for yoga in the park yet… maybe when they’re teenagers!”, she added with a chuckle, not really wanting to think about that just yet though. They already grew up way too fast anyway. “I mean.. yeah, why not?! Thanks for the offer!”, the brunette finally replied. Not that she couldn’t live without champagne or anything but she could definitely use a few more friends over here. And the other definitely seemed to be nice! Even though she somehow couldn’t imagine that she had lived in an apartment like the ones in Oasis before. “Originally? From Cuba. But I came to the US when I was little so we moved here from Texas”, she finally explained before giving the woman a curious look, “What about you?”

“Tell me about it,” Eris agreed, taking a sip from her coffee. Not that she had a difficult day at work and needed to relax. It was quite the opposite, really. With no set schedule and enjoying what she did for a living, she was just looking for a caffeine fix and chance to be lazy for a few minutes. “Awesome! I’m already thinking of all the places we can go,” she enthusiastically chirped. “Have you been to that Carousel place? I’ve heard they have drag nights every week, and I’ve been dying to go to one.” Not that she would have minded going by herself, but it was nice to find someone to go with since she had yet to make as many friends as she had back home. “Wow, I’ve always wanted to go to Cuba. I can’t really say the same about Texas, though. No offense,” she added with another sweet smile. “I’m from New York. It was kind of a spontaneous move, so this is a pretty big change for me,” she admitted with a shrug. “So what brings you all the way to Silver Lake?”

“Oh c’mon.. It’s good fun, and the rush of adrenaline makes everything feel so good..” Callan smirked in response, before shrugging at his shoulders. There was a hazy memory of something happening at Silver Lake’s most recent party, though he wasn’t too sure. “I might’ve done? I have like.. this blurred vision of me and my ex at this party recently but, fuck knows? I can’t remember shit from that night.” He laughed, and watched as Eris removed herself from her seat to leave. Glancing down at his own coffee cup, Callan quickly finished what was left and joined Eris’ side, leaving the coffee house. “I kinda got rid of all my weed so, we’ll either have to go and buy some or go over to yours to smoke.” He informed.

“So the possibility of getting caught gives you some sort of super orgasm?” Eris eyed him skeptically, but amused. “The only way I would try that for myself would be if I was super fucked up that I couldn’t remember either,” she giggled as she exited the coffee place. As soon as they were outside, she pulled her sunglasses from her purse and slid them over her eyes so she could actually catch a glimpse of him under the bright sun. “Sure, I live over on Redcliff. I have some there, but I don’t know if it’s any good. I haven’t tried it yet, but the guy at Peachtree said it was one of the best strains and it specifically does not smell like a skunk exploded.” For all she knew, he could have just been fed up with her incessant questions when she was trying to figure out what to buy and just told her what she wanted to hear to get her out of there. It wouldn’t have been the first time. Lingering outside the coffee house for a second, she tried to remember which direction her house was in. It shouldn’t have been that difficult considering she had just come from there, but having only been in town a few months, she was still trying to find her way around. “Okay, right. This way,” she said out loud, mostly to herself. “Sorry, I’m still trying to figure my way around this town. I was hoping I’d be better at it by now, but I really suck when it comes to directions. Have you been here long?” His accent was a dead giveaway that he wasn’t a local.