starters !

Funerals and memorials were not a pleasant endeavour. Vik regretted coming almost immediately. It made him miss family, made him livid nobody had invited him to his grandfather's funeral years ago, made him bitter at the thought of no one coming when he died, either.

He'd hidden away by the catering service tent with a mortadella focaccia and a nicked bottle of Château Musar, his black suit stark against the damp green grass, his back against the perfect white tablecloth as he took a drag of a joint.

At the sound of someone rounding the table, he shifted one knee aside, silently making room on the grass.

It was late by the time Jake rolled up to the bluffs, hot off some last-minute MC shit that had gone longer—rougher—than expected. His adrenaline still lingered. His knuckles were still split, and the dried blood that wasn't his was still catching beneath the glow of the fire light in the distance. He snagged a beer from the six-pack he'd brought and kicked a boot up to the tire of his car, leaning back against the fender as he took a long, slow pull.

"Wasn't gunna fuckin' miss it," Jake muttered, his eyes fixed over the cliff. He lifted the bottle slightly, then shrugged once, offering them nothing else. "Shit just took longer than it shoulda."

where: kingdom bluffs + gabby’s memorial

link had never known gabby all that well. three years in grimmvale wasn’t long enough for that. but she’d been one of the first people to make the town feel like home, chatting with him while he changed her flat tire and insisting he let her buy him a coffee afterward as thanks.

now, all he could do was stare into the bonfire, hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket as the flames moved quietly in front of him. after a long moment, he let out a quiet sigh and shook his head, “kinda makes you realize how quick everything can change, huh?” he murmured, glancing toward the people gathered nearby. “guess that’s why you shouldn’t wait for a reason to tell people they matter.” link took a moment to reflect.

"How you holding up?"

"That was just so touching. What a speech." Alana said, looking over at the person next to her. She wished she could roll her eyes. Everyone being here in the same place, acting like they cared about some random girl, pissed her off. Sure, she was a nice girl, but the fakeness everywhere was astounding. "Anyway, you got something a little harder to drink?"

"I'm sure the township thought this was a good idea." Riley paused as she shook her head. Gabby was her best friend, her ride or die. She gripped her white cane a little tighter. "She deserved more than this. Whoever did this to her... they need to catch them." She let out an exhale as she took a step away from the fire.

location: kingdom bluffs by the cliffs

maybe she's still in shock but the urge to distract herself tonight was strong. rory found herself tipsy already, and desperate to get her hands on a blunt. "you know..." rory mused out loud when she realized she wasn't alone, a mischievous grin in her eye. "this is probably the only time they'll let you jump off the cliffs during nighttime. you think you can do it?" she challenged.

location: kingdom bluffs by the shoreline

it didn't sit right with him, how someone so nice, someone he had dated could just die like that, be found in pieces and yet no one had any clue what happened. there had to be something, and it frustrated him that there wasn't anything to be done other than to continue life as usual. tonight was supposed to be a celebration of gabby's life, but he found himself sulking, drinking from his flask in the near darkness, lost in thought for a moment before realizing he wasn't alone. "what? you want something?"