Evan Parker

Like one of those fancy espresso machines? I’m sure making your own coffee at home is better in the long run! It’s hard, haha. I don’t know how people do it without a cup or two even. It’s like a blue-ish, green-ish color. Very much an ocean color or a summer color.

You could probably call it something like that I guess... but hey, I guess everyone is kind of a nerd when it comes to some things. With me that’s music and coffee! And that actually sounds like a pretty great colour! I love pretty much everything that reminds me of the ocean.

If they hadn’t already gotten pretty far from his workplace, Mercy probably would’ve gone back to pay for it. If only to be petty and prove her point, but with the distance, there wasn’t any point. She’d let him claim his victory on this one. “You better not. My heart nearly broke at the thought of it.” His comment had her glance over him with curiosity, “New friends, huh? What’re they like?” She questioned if only to keep the conversation going. Though, she truly was interested in hearing whatever stories Evan would’ve been willing to share with her.

Evan had been somehow curious to see if Mercy was going to turn back around to pay for that sandwich and for a second it seemed like she was really considering it but apparently she decided against it in the end. “And how could I be responsible for that..?!”, Evan replied with a grin. He was a little surprised though to hear how curious she seemed about the new friends he’d made but since he had been the one to bring it up in the first place, he didn’t mind talking about it. “Well, first of all there’s this woman who somehow managed to get lost in a small town like this one...”, he couldn’t help but joke at first before continuing, “And then there’s this guy who actually lives in the same building and we still met when I jumped out of some changing booth in a pretty ridiculous outfit because I expected another friend to be standing there instead of him..”

“Accidentally or not, that sucks,” Julian was quick to point out. “I mean, especially if it was fresh coffee? I can’t imagine how much that would have burned- unless it was cold coffee…” he reasoned, only just then realizing Julian may have been the only one to still drink hot coffee during the summer. “Still, that’s rough. Glad they didn’t do it on purpose though, or else I probably would have demanded his name so I could have a word with him.” Julian made a fist and punched into his hand before letting a chuckle break his character. Julian was a lot of things, but a strong athletic fighter wasn’t one of them. Not to say he never got in fights when he was younger. Far too often, he’d run his mouth which would get quite a few violent reactions out of others - but despite the plethora of physical altercations he had been in, he couldn’t recall any where he rose victorious. “Oh, yeah sure-” he stopped for a moment, actually considering whether or not he should take the bear. Only for a second however, before he decided to follow his fuck it mentality. “I’ll take a beer, why not,” he said with a shrug. “Thanks.” Next time he could invite Evan over and he could take Julian’s beer and call it even. “I suspect these movies are probably best watched… not sober, anyway,” he said through a subtle chuckle.

“It was some iced coffee at least...”, Evan replied. Some freshly brewed coffee clearly would have been even worse so he could probably consider himself lucky that during summer most people seemed to prefer the iced version. When Julian mentioned how he would have a word with that person if they had spilled that coffee over him on purpose though, Evan couldn’t help but chuckle. Mainly because he tried to imagine just that and found it pretty hard. Of course he didn’t know Julian for that long yet but he still didn’t strike him as someone who got into a lot of fights. “Good to know that I have someone defending my honor!”, he joked, a wide grin still on his face. And it stayed right there when the other mentioned how watching those movies sober probably wasn’t the best idea. Which basically was the same thing he had thought as well. “Exactly! Two beer then!”, before turning around to walk into the kitchen and grab those beers, he waved his hand in the direction of the couch, “Make yourself at home!” Walking over to the fridge, he grabbed two of the bottles before walking back into the living room and sitting down next to Julian. “Ok so, which one’s first? The goats or the vampires..?”

Reaching a hand up to his head, he pushed his fingers back through wet hair before letting out a laugh. “I mean… sometimes I do. It’s very clearly a look, y'know?” He motioned for Evan to step further into the house and then to follow him into the kitchen. “Don’t worry about it, mi casa es su casa,” he gestured around him before pulling open the fridge, “do you want something to drink? Got water, beer, some sweet tea I think,” he glanced into the fridge, making a note to do some grocery shopping sometime that week. Something else he was getting used to. He pulled out a beer for himself before turning to look at Evan. “Absolutely, we can head out to the garage and have a look around.”

Seeing Ryders reaction, Evan couldn’t help but chuckle. “Why am I not surprised...?!”, he countered, shaking his head with a grin. He wasn’t entirely sure if the other was joking or really walking around with wet hair once in a while just because it looked good but he could imagine both. As he followed Ryder into the kitchen, Evan glanced around the house a little. It was the first time that he was actually in here and he couldn’t deny that he’d been at least a little curious how Ryders home would look like. “A beer would be great!”, he finally replied, seeing that Ryder had already pulled one out for himself as well. If Evan had been curious about the others home though, he was even more curious about those paintings and so when Ryder suggested heading out to the garage, he immediately nodded. “Lead the way then!”

“I guess I can kind of relate to that. I grew up on my family’s estate, so there was barely any noise. But when I started uni, I was living in a flat in Oxford, and I could here all the noise of the cars passing through, and people. It was so hard for me to sleep at night for the first few weeks, because I was so used to the quiet at home. But I had to get used to it somehow.” Jacob explained with a shrug of his shoulders, though he was certain that he would rather have the sound of the beach and the waves over the noise at his Oxford flat anyday. “When I first came to America, it was for a job interview in Boston… and then another interview in New York. Even though it was around Christmas time, the amount of people and the noise seemed too much for me. It wasn’t all that different from what I was used to in London, but I was desperately in need of some change. So, I just rented a car and drove up to Merrock, passing through some quaint little towns along the way, and realizing that I would very much prefer living in a town than a big city. The next thing I knew, I was in Merrock, hanging out with my friend, and I saw that my beach house was for sale… I bought it, and never looked back.” 

“Sounds like something to get used to as well!”, Evan agreed with a nod of his head, glancing down at the town beneath them. Too much traffic noise certainly wasn’t something you needed to get used to when living here but when he had been in New York, it had been hard to believe how loud a city could be even at night. But he had also heard of people who had moved from a big city to a small town and had found it hard to fall asleep because it was too quiet. So it probably just came down to what you were used to. “And we’re always glad to welcome new people to town!”, Evan finally replied with a grin before tilting his head with a curious expression on his face, “So you were saying you were working at the hospital...?”

It is. It’s vacation time, and who doesn’t love a good vacation? Do most people not like leaving or something? Mhmm. She will. First she will probably gush about you and then feed you. So when you do, make sure you’re hungry.

Probably the ones who can’t afford it.... but when I was younger, it still always felt like being on holiday when I was down at the beach. Even though it was only a couple of feet away from our home. Ok, she already sounds amazing! I’ll definitely have to visit at some point now!

⟪who⟫ :: evan @evanjparker· & ela

⟪when⟫ :: august 2022

⟪where⟫ :: Merrock Public Pool, Pool Party

Ela was standing at the edge of the pool, her towel securely held between her arm and the side of her stomach. She was looking around, scanning the faces of the people who were there. It wasn’t dark quite yet, but you could tell that the sun was slowly setting. She was looking for Evan, the neighbor she had become friends with over time. Usually they often met in their hallway, spending some time together when they were both coming home from work. Today, they had agreed to meet here though. Once she saw Evan, she walked over to him, a slight grin on her face. “Hey there, I’m supposed to meet my favorite neighbor, have you seen him?” @evanjparker·

Even though Evan usually preferred to swim in the ocean instead of the public pool, he had still always loved a good pool party. Especially with so many familiar faces around. Right now he was standing next to the pool with a towel over his shoulder, scanning the crowd for someone in particular though and when he finally found Ela, she was already walking in his direction. “Pheww, I don’t know...”, Evan turned his head in every direction, pretending to actually be looking for someone. “I hear he’s pretty handsome though so he should stand out from the crowd...”, he couldn’t help but joke as he fought back a grin that eventually appeared on his lips anyway.

Keegan was surprised but not disappointed when he saw a familiar face sit before him. A soft smile formed on his lips as the other asked about a celebration. Surely Evan knew that Keegan didn’t need a celebration in order to have a drink…or multiple for that matter. “No. No celebration. Just me, myself, and this rum & coke.” He chuckled. “Oh you know. I’m here. Living the dream really.” A drift of sarcasm flew out of him. “What about you? Staying out of trouble?”

It wasn’t like Evan had really expected Keegan to be celebrating something and judging by the smile that appeared on his face, he knew that as well. Grinning himself, Evan took a quick sip of the beer the barkeeper had placed in front of him before turning back to Keegan. “Yeah, looks like it!”, he replied, unable to hide some hint of sarcasm. When he heard the others question though, he couldn’t help but chuckle as he shook his head. “Hey, you know me! I’m always staying out of trouble!”, he stated, knowing very well that it wasn’t entirely wrong but not entirely true either..

“Oh- Hey! Sorry, I should have given you more of a heads up,” he quickly said. To say he was caught off guard was a bit of an understatement, but he still tried to remain casual and not completely give himself away. He stepped in, and couldn’t help his gaze lingering a bit as Evan hurried to his room. Although he was quick to divert it back to around the living room, curious as to how he kept his apartment. Your living area could tell a lot about you, someone once said… which was why Julian’s rooms were as barren as though he had just moved in within a day or two. As though everything else was still in boxes ready to be unpacked. “Better than yours, I’m willing to bet,” he offered with a slight laugh, returning his gaze back to Evan. Despite his claim, Julian still didn’t want to hang onto that subject for too long and returned the focus back to Evan. “What made it so stressful?”

“Nahh, it’s alright! Don’t worry!”, Evan countered, quickly waving it off before disappearing again to grab a shirt. He was probably lucky that his apartment, truth to be told, wasn’t the tidiest in the world but not a huge mess either. Getting it back in order clearly wouldn’t have been possible in such a short amount of time. Not that he believed that Julian would have cared about it much but somehow he still didn’t want to leave the worst impression. His ‘own kind of chaos’ his dad always called it. Something that included a couple of music sheets on the table, his guitars lying on the couch or leaning against the living room wall and a guitar pick in about every corner of his apartment. But this was how he felt comfortable. “It wasn’t all too bad actually..”, he tried to clarify as he reached for one of the guitars to lean it against the wall as well and make room on the couch, “Just some guy who decided to spill his coffee over me instead of drinking it.... accidentally though! So far none of them has done something like that on purpose...” Grinning, he waved his hand in the direction of the kitchen. “Want something to drink? Got some beer in the fridge or something non-alcoholic as well..”

I do agree though I much prefer autumn for long walks and not getting too hot or reading in cosiness or binge watching gilmore girls and harry potter. And hot drinks are just amazing in autumn, summer doesn’t feel right to drink hot drinks. 

Exactly, that’s what I meant! I love those long walks in autumn! Although I’m not really someone who watches a lot of TV-series but some good movie clearly isn’t too bad either! Especially when it’s like really stormy outside, there’s not much better than that.

I’m pretty sure my coffee maker is now a dud. It works, but it just doesn’t taste as good as the real deal! Haha. Or maybe I’m just lazy? I’ve always been big on blue too, it’s just a very nice color and there’s a lot you can do with it. And it has a lovely spectrum of shades to play and work with! But as for favorite maybe something along the lines of blue, pink and purple. Or teal. Now that I think about it… probably teal.

I mean I probably spent like way too much money on my coffee machine and coffee in general so that probably isn’t really better in the long run... at least that’s what probably every doctor would say but hey... can’t survive without it! ...and, exactly! There’s so many great shades! Although I guess I don’t really know what exactly teal looks like....

It wasn’t very often that Ryder had a day off of work; most of the time he would be called in even when he thought he did, but that day, he had somehow lucked out. Probably from pulling a double the day before to cover for one of his co-workers that had wanted the time off. Had its perks, he supposed. He had just gotten out of the shower when he heard a knock on the door, making his way down the spiral steps from his loft room to the main floor, pulling on a t-shirt as he walked, “hold on!” he called out, peeling the cotton down over his chest as he pulled open the front door and blinked, surprised to see Evan – of all people – on the other side. “Hey,” but then he was letting out a laugh at what Evan was saying, remembering their conversation on the beach. “Yeah, that’s fair, come in, I just got out of the shower.”

At first Evan wasn’t entirely sure if Ryder really was home but then he finally heard him calling out before he appeared at the door a little later. And judging by the look he was giving him, Evan clearly hadn’t been on top of the list of people the other had been expecting. But since he still didn’t seem to mind him being there, judging by his laugh, he didn’t worry about it. On the contrary, the way Ryder blinked at him a couple of times, apparently wondering why he was here, was even a little funny. “Ohhh, and I thought you’re always walking around with wet hair...”, Evan couldn’t help but tease with a grin as he entered the building, glancing around for a couple of seconds before turning back to Ryder with a slightly more serious expression this time. “Hey man, hope it’s alright that I simply showed up. I was in the neighbourhood and thought you might have time to show me some of your paintings...”

The summer vibes are just something different. The colors, the feel, the mood! It is! It’s a little place in Chinatown in New York called White Lotus. If you do go, ask for Auntie Mei and tell her Alice sent you.

Exactly! It sometimes feels like everything’s a little more easy during summer, a little more relaxed. Although judging from the work at the cafe, that doesn’t seem to be the case for everyone... Do I get like a vip treatment if I say that..? Because then I’ll definitely book a flight soon!

Daisy probably hurt a lot of people in high school. She was popular, always hanging out with the so called ‘bullies’ of the class and spoke her mind about literally everything. Even when no one asked for her opinion. She didn’t intend to hurt people or make anyone miserable but, she did it anyways. She couldn’t just erase her past no matter how much she wanted to. Being cur off changed her and her whole perspective on the world and this town. Evan obviously didn’t know any of that. She didn’t quite remember what she had done to him specifically but, she was sure it wasn’t nice. “Why do you care?” She asked as she was surprised that the male insisted on knowing.

Normally Evan would say that he wasn’t the resentful type but in this case, he realised right now, he probably was. High School hadn’t always been that easy for him anyway and some new kid, who made it pretty obvious how much she hated everything over here and on top of that started to hang out with the bullies as well, certainly hadn’t made it any easier. So when he heard her question now, he couldn’t help but let out a rather sarcastic laugh. “Who says that I care?”, he asked, shaking his head, “Although I’m not entirely surprised that it’s something you’re not exactly familiar with... but, no. Just curious. Didn’t make it in Los Angeles and now you're stuck over here..?”

“Indeed.” Jacob nodded, laughing softly before he shook his head. “Now I get to live on the beach, and go to sleep to the sound of the waves. I get to work in a stress-free environment, which has been really good for my mental health. I get to see my best friend every weekend now that we both live in the same town. And I get to hike up to this amazing view whenever I can. It was definitely a wise decision in the end!” When he had first told his family of his decision to settle down in Merrock, they had called him crazy, impulsive, confused, reckless, and so many other things. But if he could use one word to describe what he had done, it would be smart. He had been smart enough to put his own mental health and happiness before all, and that was all that mattered. “Yeah, the sense of community here is quite incredible. I started to feel quite welcome the moment I got here. You don’t get that kind of love anywhere else. At least, I wouldn’t expect to get it back in London. It was definitely one of the biggest reasons why I decided to stay in Merrock.” 

“That’s the best really!”, Evan agreed with a nod of his head, “When I moved into my own apartment downtown, I couldn’t sleep for the first couple of nights because I missed the sound of the beach and the waves...” Eventually he had gotten used to it but if he had the choice - and the money - he’d always prefer a house as close to the sea as possible. But at least his dad still lived in their old house, so once in a while he could still crash in his old room. “Yeah, I can imagine it’s much different when you’re living in one of the big cities. I mean I’ve only been in New York and Boston so far but when you saw those huge buildings, you couldn’t even imagine knowing all your neighbours, let alone anyone in the building next to you...” Of course he knew that quite a few people living there, didn’t really have a choice and that, if you made the effort, you could get to know a lot of people as well but he had still always imagined it as way too anonymous.