beautiful way.

“The French Revolution,” he answered. It was a good place to bounce right after the mandatory overview of the American revolution and happened to be one of his favorite chapters to teach. With a little smile, Oliver leaned back to give Everleigh his full attention. “I don’t, never developed the habit. But sure, dares on, I’ll eat tons of sugar this year, just you wait.” That grin made it obvious that he was joking, Oliver tried to stay healthy anyways, although he wasn’t a health nut and could do better, gorging on sugar was not on the docket for 2021. “It’d suck to lose my museum buddy.”

“honestly, i’ve… never dated, like, at all,” johan admitted, “i recently signed up to hinge but i backed out of that pretty quickly – i suppose i’d rather do things organically, if that makes sense? like, i dunno. i’m a hopeless romantic and i’m convinced that these things will happen by a chance encounter.” he knew it sounded ridiculous but it made johan feel a little better about being so inexperienced. “i like that though, i mean, i was actually so worried about the sort of gu- person, holden would pick,” johan quickly covered his mistake, hoping it went unnoticed. “so it’s nice that you’re not someone super gross and as chaotic as he is.” he chuckled.

after clinking their glasses, johan decided that he may as well make the best of a bad situation. eventually he’d come clean to everleigh and he hoped she would understand that the reaosn why he pretended was because he didn’t want to hurt her. but for now, the facade was in full swing. “ha! oh bless them, you know i do love that though, how kids are just so chatty and they say things as it is. i love when they give me all sorts of questions and they’re just so curious. i hate when parents will try and sh their kid if they ask about my leg, because that’s how ignorance develops and why some people view disabilities as different in a negative light. everybody should ask questions.”

"Ever? Can I ask why not? There's no problem with it! I didn't date until college, really, my family moved about a lot." She'd go on dates, but the cheesy teen ones, a night at the movies or ice cream, scandalous. "Oh, you're telling me! I've got the apps and they're fun, but they feel like a game instead of something real. Some people get lucky, I guess, but it's artificial."  Shaking her head, she looked up with a devious grin, "What if I am?"

Watching the other woman’s apparent unease, Fiona’s dark hazel eyes took Everleigh in with more than little bit of bafflement and curiosity. It wasn’t like there was any bad blood between them - at least she didn’t recall there being any - but she did suppose it would be a bit awkward, running into your ex-lover’s sister after all this time so she didn’t take too much offense. Fiona did smile wider, however, when she saw the familiar spark she clearly remembered return to the shorter girl, thrilled to see it. “Home stuff? Well that sounds exciting…What exactly are you doing around the house?” she asked, more eager to stand there and talk to Everleigh than she was to get that drink she’d been after and return back to her whiny-ass date.

“the number of times i’ve passed it just this week and haven’t gone inside after looking in the window like some lost puppy is amazing, really.” juni replied and laughed as the two of them made their way inside. god, it’d felt like forever since she really treated herself to a day of being pampered and spoiled. and what better way to do that than with one of your gal pals, right? “right? it’s almost amazing how this place changes your mood like, instantly.” juni replied and laughed softly as they made their way inside. and when everleigh agreed to spending the entire day doing everything the place had to offer, juni nearly squealed with excitement. “ugh, this is gonna be perfect. these roots of mine need a touch up bad.” she said, and could thank levi for pointing out her bleach job. god, she didn’t even want to think about him, but yet, she was. “so i was thinking, do our mani pedis first, then get a massage and face mask treatment done, then we can work on this hair as a finish and get it all nice and done before we go out and back to reality.”

“i never really was much of a cartoon guy, even as a kid,” he shrugged, “i was dragged to so many operas and musicals that was really all i watched. tv and movies weren’t my thing. so i think i’ve missed out on a lot!” he’d always told himself he’d catch up on his lost youth, but never really got around to it, what with watching the reruns of ancient aliens for the nth time. atticus huffed, and mixed the drink around in its glass, the ice gently clinking against the hard surfaces. “i don’t get nervous,” he said then, a bit proudly, and laughed, “i went to juilliard: i’d have been kicked out in the blink of an eye if i got nervous and it affected my performance.” though, really, he should have been kicked out for so many other things, he hadn’t had time to worry about possibly being nervous. “i pay for my own drinks with the tips i get. so, more often than not i don’t drink,” he laughed again, and shook his head, “i swear everyone comes here after the cheap drinks and can’t even manage a few dollars tip. but whatever. honestly, i’m glad you’re here and looking to broaden your horizons. jazz can be really interesting if you just give it a chance.”

“ha! you’re funny! did you know that? that’s such a revelation for me!” he teases her before they go out. he likes it when she leans into the kiss with the same passion he has. it means they’re on the same page. when they finally enter his apartment, luca turns on the lights and takes off his leather jacket. “oh, most definitely. just gotta have that tattoo of my face on your thigh and we’re set,” he jokes before grabbing her hand and spinning her under it. before she can make a full twirl, he catches her in his arms and presses his forehead against hers. “you sure you wanna do this?” he asks in a muted whisper. his hands gently trailing the sides of her torso through the fabric she’s got on. “just say the word and i’ll stop,” he breathes out as he licks his upper lip, eyes closed, holding her tighter by the waist against his own warm body.

nina offered a displeased grimace at the thought of a shirley temple, there was something about that drink which didn’t sit right with her; maybe it was the picky nature settling in, that often followed the circumstance nina was in right now. “ how about a virgin mojito instead? i may be sober, but i’m not thirteen. ” she quipped, playfully nudging everleigh as they strolled along together. “ oooh you’ve picked the absolute best sober captain!  i’ll carry you home if i have to, i’ve done that before and he was a lot heavier then you. —  also, stop worrying about it and let loose, yeah? i’ll take care of you if get a little too drunk. ”

“what about the bedroom?” he teases. when she gives him the green light to leave the place and go to his apartment, luca doesn’t even hesitate. they go hand in hand through the bar until they’re out in the street. it’s cold outside, but luca’s so excited that he’s about to take his jacket off. “come here,” he smiles at everleigh and kisses her roughly, holding her against him. “it’s a few blocks down,” he tells her and guides her through the night. once they reach his place, he struggles to pull the keys out of his pocket. “sorry,” he whispers. a few seconds after, he finally manages to insert the key in the lock and open the door. “please come in,” he smiles.

everleighhayes​:

Being back in Wyn’s bubble was one of the main reasons she came to San Amore after everything in Ventura fell apart, and not one day had passed since that she didn’t think that she made the right decision. Not a single regret. “But high schoolers can be mean. I’d be afraid of them posting TikToks trashing me!” What if she wore something that wasn’t deemed ‘cute enough’ for a judgy sixteen year old girl? “I do like the universe, mostly for my horoscopes.” Not sorry! Breaking a part of the cookie off, she passed it to him, “A five year old is not a baby. You have been great practice… I guess we’re the same though, they like art. It’s not hard learning.”

He’d be the first to admit that having everleigh around and back in his life fully and not just through a computer screen was more than nice. He loved having her around and couldn’t imagine not seeing her everyday. The more he stared at her the more he got the feeling she had things on her mind. Though those questions would come later. Maybe after he’d given her food and a piece of the dessert that was still cooling in the kitchen. “No doubt they can be. Especially if they fixate on one of the outfits you wear one day. But as you know it’s hard to take it personally when you are an expert on clowning yourself.” He happily took the half of her cookie and nibbled on it. His long dark lashes hitting under his eyes as he stared at her. “Art is hard I’ll have you know. What’s up with you? Sharing your cookie with me is normally harder than that. Somethings up?”

…

“Oh it’s okay,” she said offering a small smile. Sure she was slightly taken a back by the hug, but Everleigh had always been a bit warmer than the Bulut even since they were kids. She recalled their first encounter when the girl came up to her at a resort asking her if she wanted to hang out. Georgia looked at her for almost a minute with no response sizing her up before agreeing. Before she knew it, the two of them were good friends and had become penpals over the years. “It happens, we’ve both been swept up with life, nothing to be apologetic about. Oh, so much. If you haven’t eaten dinner yet, maybe we could now.” It was lovely to see a face from the past and she had a feeling not much has changed, but Georgia could be surprised by the events that has transpired since their twenties. 

“That’s true,” Oliver nodded as he ticked off an answer on the homework he was grading, “I don’t know, maybe. It’s not something that’s ever called to me much.” He always admired artists and writers but he was neither, simply someone that enjoyed appreciating what others made. “Oh it’s a dare?” He laughed. “Alright, I’ll do it.”

“this is the first time i’ve ever done a blind date, honestly,” johannes admitted, and he knew that if holden was going to have any involvement with it then it would be his last. everything inside of him was wanting to call the man right now and pop off at him, but the last thing johan needed was to make everleigh feel uncomfortable by any means. she was a sweet girl and he knew that she deserved better than that, which was why he had this bright idea to just… play pretend. maybe he’d figure a way out of this as to not hurt her feelings, but for now, it seemed far easier to just play along. 

“no, no, it will be fun,” johan said firmly, because fuck it, they were here now so they might as well make the most of it. he poured out two glasses of champagne, passing one over to her before lifting his to cheers with, “to a good night,” he said, before taking a small sip. “you know, i had actually been meaning to call you about that cocktail night we said about, but work has just been so busy. it must have been nice for you to have a little break over christmas and new year and not have any paint in your hair.” johan teased.

“i see,” they chuckled, “oh no, nobody here’s up my street because… they’re cat people.” devon gave a grin as they sat back, placing their now-empty coffee cup upon the table top. “what about you though, everleigh? you got your eye on anybody in here? or maybe, out there?” devon gestured to the door as if to say the big wide world of san amore. “mauled. like, some tiger king shit.” they playfully joked before shaking their head, “i wish. i’ve been looking at some online but i dunno, a lot of people don’t like them so i feel it’d just be hidden away. maybe i’ll settle for a rat or something instead.”

“Exactly. Just look back to some of the trends we all did the nineties and early two-thousands. We wouldn’t be seen dead in half of that stuff now.” Alyssa chuckled, though she had always liked a bedazzled jean jacket, and wouldn’t be opposed to wearing one should they decide to make some sort of a comeback. “Pintar en el cabello. Sound cool now that you use high school spanish instead?”

Will smiled down at Eveleigh.” Yeah I’ll be in from 9  till 6pm.  You going to need help with them or shall I just show them around while you keep them from wandering off and being eaten by lions?” He joked. “ Honestly I don’t think I could handle a class full of children everyday I can barely handle two pandas and a parrot most of the time. I’m just heading off for a Starbucks, want to come along and we can organise where you will be taking the kids around the zoo?”