be happy

Carleigha smiles up to her and nods in agreement. "It's a lot easier to reach more people that way, or rather for more people to be included no matter what their fave genres are. Not all of them are run by one of the librarians, we just have the space open for them to hold their meetings." Tucking her tote closer to her arm she nods. "Definitely. I mean sometimes the book that we are choosing to read may not be something you feel like reading and that's perfectly ok. Even I jump around to different book clubs."

"Yeah, I think... Being peer pressured into developing a habit would work on me, but not if it's a book I'm not really interested in to start with. I don't know why I'm so surprised genre-specific clubs exist; seems like that'd be the norm." Beth laughs, well aware that unfortunately most of her knowledge comes from influencers online with actual readers as their intended audience, not her less-than-a-handful of books a year. "I should really get more involved with all these events and clubs and stuff. I feel like I moved from London to specifically my desk and bed in Denver."

"You got me." She sighs, hand dramatically clasped over her heart. "How do you always manage to foil my plans..." Shaking her head, she taps her now tied skates together at the toes. There's never a boring moment with Teddy. He tests her wit most of the time, though. "Okay. We'll pretend you don't want to hold my hand until you get your ice legs again." In truth, she probably couldn't catch him, her coordination usually leaving much to be desired and her reaction time another can of worms entirely. "Well, I'll either catch you or we'll go down together."

Carleigha grins up to her as they made their way through the booths of the fest. She loved being able to see the authors talking about their books. It was a big reason she loved setting up book readings at the library. She smiles and nods in understanding. "You'd be an excellent addition to our book club. There's a few, depending on what you'd like to read. Fantasy, Scifi, Romance, Historical Fiction. Can even jump around depending on what you're in the mood to read, sometimes I do"

"That's genius— Having different clubs for different genres." When she'd joined film clubs in the past, it'd always been a catch-all and she'd slugged through some truly awful pieces of cinema just to feel part of it all. Right now she didn't know what she'd like most, but once she's figured it out, being able to stick within her favourite genre will do wonders for building a reading habit. Once she has the consistency, she can venture back out again. She's excited for the future just thinking about it. "Are they really that flexible? You can just jump around whenever you want?"

"It's like you've read my mind." Alvaro agrees, chuckling at Roya's teasing. "Isn't that half the fun though? That, and sneaking some of the decorations to snack on while you're working."

"Wouldn't have it any other way, though, right?" Roya grins, tugging her coat closer around her body. "It is, you're right. It isn't quite as much fun as an adult, though, because you're constantly aware you'll be the one who has to clean it all up after."

"So basically...more icing and more sprinkles. Got it." Vince laughs, shaking his head a bit. "They don't need to be pretty as long as they taste good anyways, right? I mean, I'm pretty sure my kids won't mind either way."

"Can't go wrong with more sprinkles." She agrees with a warm laugh. "I don't have kids myself, but a lot of my friends do and in my experience, they also agree that you can't go wrong with more icing and sprinkles, so I think you're onto a winner. Not too close to bedtime, though."

"Great. Let me know what works with your schedule and we'll make it work." Vince confirms, nodding. He was always happy to spend time with family, especially Bianca and Samantha. "You sound like your mother." He teases gently, a fond smile moving over his face. "I know, and I appreciate that. Taking time for myself is something I'm working on, I promise."

"We always make it work." She grins again, cheeks warm. His next words are bittersweet to her, though. Sounding like her mother is the highest honour, but sometimes she'd like to sound like herself, too. "Thank you." She smiles. "Good. You deserve the best for yourself, too, you know. You and mom have always done the best for us; make sure you do it for yourselves, too."

If it had been up to him, Kevin would have spent the evening at home. Growing up, New Years Eve (or Old Years Night as it was referred to in his family) was a hectic ordeal. His mother had been a firm believer in the superstition that where you started the year indicated the trajectory for your year. So, the family had always, without fail, begun their year in church. Now that he was older and living on his own, Kevin preferred to start the year in the peace and quiet of his own home, in hopes that that peace and tranquility would carry throughout the year. This year, though, he'd been dragged out with friends. "Yeah, unbelievable," he agreed, turning his gaze to the person who'd spoken. He'd managed to slip away from his friends for a bit and was counting down the seconds until someone realized that he was doing the recluse thing of hanging by himself by the bar. "Trying to be more social, I guess," he answered with a shrug, "which is why I'm here. You?"

Beth's never really been one to believe in fate or destiny or anything like that. As much as she'd like to believe in things that would give her hope, she's always been the cautious, guarded type. Her friends have always called it pessimism, but they've also benefited from it, so she tries not to think about it too hard. All this to say, she still cracks a smile when her new friend replies. She'd somehow managed to find someone among the crowd who put how she felt into words perfectly. "Pretty much the exact same." She laughed softly, swirling her drunk in its glass. "Came with a few friends but I'd have just as hard a time pulling them off the dance floor as they would pulling me on it, so here I am." She shrugs, feeling a little embarrassed at her confession. "But, I'm still here amongst it all. Baby steps, right? Or something like that."

"Whoever went ahead and made that decision needs their head looking at." Layla didn't mean to be quite that abrupt but she'd thought as much since the first time she'd encountered one, who in their right mind had made that decision? "Really? Over a hundred? It kind of doesn't surprise me... I feel like they've gotten more random as time goes on," she commented with a thoughtful shake of her head. "I honestly don't need that thought putting into my mind," she said with a smile, taking a peek into the box herself. "Any Jaffa Cakes?"

"Makes me feel old." Beth adds simply. Neither of them are anywhere old enough to say it, but she certainly feels it sometimes in the way her bones ache and the days drag tiredly. Every decade of her life someone else tells her these will be the best years of her life, but she's not sure she'd know until it's too late anyway. "Some people have too much time and not enough hobbies." Though she supposed it was at least a harmless collection, even if she couldn't understand it herself. "Jaffa Cakes? God, I hope so." At the mention of the treat, all intention of making the surprises last had been thrown away with reckless abandon, hands digging into the box.

"You probably could." Truthfully there was absolutely no 'could' about it, Mei was always tempted when any kind of dessert came up —- there was a reason she did that for a living, after all. She had a real sweet tooth that showed no signs of letting up. "What were your plans once you got hold of your ice-cream?" she questioned with a gentle chuckle. It was pretty late already, but she couldn't help but be curious.

"After ice cream?" She repeats, as if the question is unexpected. Anyone would be curious what she plans to do this late at night with a full tub of ice cream, especially a concerned friend. "Well... Drowning my sorrows until I eventually fall asleep on the sofa, I would imagine." She laughs, light despite her confession. "Long day at work. Long week, actually. What about you? What are your plans for tonight?"

Chuckling at his niece's reaction, Vince offers her a reassuring smile, giving her a quick squeeze. "I think it's a sign that I need to invite you and your mother over for dinner soon." He says, nodding. "It was sort of a last minute thing. I don't get out on my own much." The kids kept him busy, not that he'd have it any other way. Being a dad was the best thing in life to him. "It's always nice to be on the other side and see how your hard work plays out."

"Well, I'll always say yes to that no matter when I last saw you guys." She grins, already feeling more at ease after their brief hug. Her personal relationship with how she feels about her family is complicated, but moments like this are just full of warmth. She wishes she could bask in only these feelings all the time; of kindness and quiet and time spent without expectations. "You should make more time for yourself." She scolds with a gentle smile. "You know you can always rely on Mom and I to lend a hand."

"Hiding the evidence, I like it." Vince laughs, looking back down at his cookie for a moment. It might not be the best looking snowman out there, but at least it was going to taste good. "Nothing a few more sprinkles can't fix, right? Those never made things worse."

"I find sprinkles tend to hide the monstrosity I've made underneath. They stick really well to the icing when I've smudged it so much trying to fix it." Roya can't help but laugh, eyeing the small blotch along the outline of her Christmas tree cookie. "Plus, they taste great, so it's a win-win."

"Same, It's hard for me to not get on Netgalley to see what good books I may be approved to receive to review" Carleigha tucked a curl behind her ear and grinned up to her friend. Free stuff was one of her favorites things about these events. She sometimes found herself overwhelmed with Advanced reader copies but still she loved them. She had a habit of throwing out an occasional giveaway on her bookstagram because she enjoyed seeing people get so excited. "You are welcome to any you'd like to go to. We've got some great ones. Book clubs, Movie nights, Advance reader copy fun"

Though she'd done similar in her own industry, Beth couldn't wrap her head around receiving advanced reader copies of upcoming books. Perhaps it's the implied deadline that scares her most; with a film, she can already see before she starts how long it'll take her to finish uninterrupted, but a novel has taken her from an afternoon to months to flip to the last page before. Knowing she'd held onto a story she didn't give the proper time to would eat her from the inside out. Maybe one day she'll be as consistent a reader as Carly, though, and she'll be able to venture into it. "Book club sounds like a good shout." She comments with a laugh. "Social pressure might force me to develop a more consistent reading schedule."

"Whatever your heart desires. You can't go wrong with cookie decorations." Alvaro confirms, nodding. He was pretty sure there was no such thing as a wrong topping. "I'm pretty sure we'll be the ones doing most of the decorating anyways, so get whatever you like. I'm not picky."

"A 'we do the decorating, they do the eating' type of deal?" She teases, already writing a shopping list in her head of all the toppings she'll inevitably spoil them with. Her cupboards are looking bare lately, so she desperately needed a trip to the supermarket in any case. "I'm sure it'll be equally as messy whether it's them or us decorating, anyway."

"Okay, so, I'm glad it's not just me." Alex had always thought the same and never quite understood other people's choices. He let a breath go slowly, and then added, "But I'm thinking I should have opted for hot apple cider instead tonight... or cocoa maybe. I'm not in the mood for mulled wine," he added with a chuckle. "It's not doing it for me."

"Cocoa's good this time of year." She comments, voice even as she contemplates another sip of her own hot chocolate. "Any hot drink like that, really. Breakfast tea, a strong coffee, chocolate-y things with mini marshmallows... That's what winter is all about." Though there's nothing stopping her enjoying them in the summer, she can never bring herself to do it. "I'm not sure they'll let you return that now, but you can always buy a hot apple cider once you're finished." She smiles.