FEMININE

“  Not even!  ” Lupe exclaimed, though there was nothing but humor behind her tone, “  Don’t be like that. You know us better than that.  ” Besides, it hadn’t been the whole of Welkin's present, Lupe had almost added, but chose against it in order to avoid giving Belle more fuel to run off on. Her eye roll came without much effort and she laughed, “ Right, let me put in a request.  ” Though she was sure they’d be able to find some gear in whatever color. If not they could simply get some dye and color it themselves. Anything that would entice Isabelle to be a little more adventurous, though the sight of her merely launching on the ground - stripped to her bikini - wasn’t an unpleasant one to have. Sun kissed and gorgeous as only she could really be. 

the air surrounding them grew thick, as it did every time they found themselves in this exact position. like many times before, belle had crossed the very faint line they'd drawn for their relationship. the one they'd set before agreeing to live together as friends. though the redhead never really put much effort into keeping things platonic, she'd only agreed to try her best in order to keep lupe in whatever capacity she could. "fuck, lupe." and if she sounded flustered, it's because she was. her little game had completely backfired, affecting her far more than she'd expected. still, belle's eyes never strayed, only darkened. as she watched the other woman get the last bit of whipped cream from her lips, belle could feel her teeth softly digging into her own.

She rolled her eyes, knowing far too well that Belle had meant what she said, and smiled despite herself. “  The dress looks great, by the way.  ” Lupe recognized, choosing to let her have her fun. The crowd around them seemed to be mingling and enjoying themselves quite well. The regular occurrence of public gatherings which she was well used to by this point. “  Right, of course. The queen has entered the building.  ” she teased, half snorting. Though she knew nothing of purses, she took a close look at it. Complementing its features and Belle’s color match. “  Oh, I helped set up a bit. Didn’t really have much better to do, and I didn’t want to interrupt your - what should I call it? - jam? Rave? I bet that loud music didn't help you remember much either.  ”

belle's outfits were always carefully chosen for the attention. for the compliments, never passing up an opportunity to stand out. but drawing that reaction out of lupe gave her a different, more meaningful, kind of satisfaction. "you really think so? thank you." she said, genuine smile on her lips. she wanted to return the compliment, to give lupe something just as sincere, but she didn't know how. how could belle possibly tell her how beautiful she looked without overdoing it as she usually did, inevitably tipping into territory that might make the other uncomfortable. the redhead lifted her drink to her lips, buying herself a moment as she took a sip. maybe that would be a compliment best saved for after a handful of these.

“  That’s not exactly making me want to drink, you know.  ” she replied, not bothering to coat her words in kindness when Isabelle was too bold to mind herself. Lupe’d been about to ask what the contents of the cup were, but the moment she raised it to her face, the scent answered it for her. “  Why’re you so late, anyways?  ”

belle shook her head, despite knowing it probably wasn't the most appropriate joke to be making to a sober lupe. "i was kidding. relax." she quickly glanced around the rooftop, as if she were taking attendance. "the party doesn't really start until i get here so does that actually make me late, or is everyone just early?" she asked, thinking about how the party could certainly liven up. and what she could do to make that happen. "by the time i finally decided on a purse," she proudly lifted the one she'd chosen, "i realized i'd completely forgotten about the gift basket thing. so i had to call in some urgent favors and throw something together. what time did you get here?"

event: rooftop inauguration written for: @fem1nine

upon reaching lupe, belle did a small spin to show her dress off in its entirety, laughing at her roommate's response. as if any of her outfits weren't carefully selected for each event. "maybe it was intentional." she said, a smirk already tugging at her lips. "should save you some work after you've had a couple of these and decide you wanna play a little." finally handing over her signature drink she'd grabbed on her way in.

"oui, oui, mmhmm," geovanna nodded towards her sister while she was getting a grasp on where the conversation was going. supporting belle's endeavors was always straightforward enough: if her little sister liked it enough to do it, then geo would support it no matter what. her mini-me happened to love the fashion world, so working as an editorial assistant seemed to be a step in the right direction. geo owning each and every issue was the least she could do, until she could frame one of belle's articles as her own keepsake.

belle knew exactly how this would go before she even opened her mouth. like every time before she'd ever had to convince her sister to go along with one of her crazy plans. it followed an extremely familiar pattern- like the five stages of grief in a way. first came the questions. then the excuses for why she couldn't. the excuses eventually turned into a semi-convinced geo once belle had buttered her up and promised a good time. and finally, the inevitable yes or no. okay, so maybe the four stages of grief.

Lupe shook her head, impressed at how selective Belle’s hearing could be when her interests were otherwise engaged. “  I, technically, invited myself, only for Tomas to not show and then it was me and Dante. We had a grand ol’ time - remember, I brought those wildflowers home for our kitchen vase?  ” Leave it to her brother to skip out on another play date. She even went as far as knocking on his door to make sure he was awake! “   I’ll remember to self invite you for next time, though I highly doubt you’re down for wearing fishing gear and rain boots.  ” It would be funny to see however, and if they did end up going Lupe would ensure to bring a camera. She definitely needed a photo for her album. 

at the mention of tomas, belle stiffened slightly. her mind drifting somewhere she'd rather not go. she wondered if his supposed presence was the real reason she hadn't been invited. she knew better than that- yet she still carried a quiet resentment over never having been introduced to guadalupe's brother. she could understand it back when they were in whatever unlabelled relationship they'd been in, but she thought she would have met him by now. as her roommate at least. she shook the thought off quickly. belle knew their friendship was an uncommon one; she understood the internal struggles lupe carried. instead, she laughed. "oh so it was essentially a welkin day out that i wasn't invited to. gotcha, gotcha!" exaggerating was her forte. "those were beautiful." she nodded, more so because lupe had picked them than the flowers themselves. isabelle adored the homey touch lupe brought to their apartment through small details. "oh, i wouldn't actually go fishing, but i'd tan while the rest of you did. no waders for me- unless you can find a cute pink camo pair."

@fem1nine

she could never tell when ethan was being sarcastic, so the safest thing to do was assume he always was. but that didn't stop her from taking even the snarky remarks as compliments. "you're right, i am the jewelry expert between us." she conveniently left out the part where most of her knowledge originally came from binge-watching 'hardcore pawn' when she'd first arrived in the states, as if it were some kind of cultural initiation.

This wasn't an uncommon conversation between them. In the last six months since Filomena was hired the female constantly complained. She wondered if the attitude she received was reserved for her specifically or everyone in the office, but beyond her purpose there - and frankly all the other chaos Mena absorbed on the daily - she didn't care to ask. “  I suggest you watch your language, and the tone in which you address me. This may have been fine with your previous boss, but cross that line with me and you will - as quickly as she did - be finding a new job.  ” Mena didn't know much about the other host beyond being fired for violating policy. But insubordination was also against policy, and Isabelle liked to thread the line. "  You don’t want to get the coffee? Then, tell an intern. It’s as simple as delegating, you’ve been here long enough to know so; as you so often like to mention. ” Filomena didn’t often meet the interns, let alone have a conversation with them. Just as Mena was about to dismiss Isabelle from her presence, another email came through. “  Now, grab yourself a clipboard and take notes. Unless that’s also not within your job description.  ”

belle thought about testing filomena a little more, always one to push her luck. mena's posture, her tone, her unbreakable eye contact- it all felt like a challenge to the assistant. and she loved a good challenge. just perhaps not the kind that might eventually cost her her dream job and what she'd worked so hard for. "if you must know, i was never this way with my previous boss because unlike you, she actually treated me with a little respect.” not a whole lot more, belle had never been good with authority; speaking her mind in unfavorable situations came easily to her. but she’d never admit that, especially not to her new boss. “see, i didn’t mind it at first. i thought it’d be a great way to get into your good books, show you that i'm super eager. but apparently you’re impossible to please. or you just hate me.” she replied with a scoff. an odd way to fish for a compliment but she was grasping at straws. the redhead's expression flattened, partially at how unprepared she was for the sudden opportunity. brown hues scanned the room until they landed on a clipboard tucked onto one of mena’s shelves. “i’m just gonna…” she trailed off, already helping herself to it, along with a pen from the brunettes desk, before taking a seat in front of her. “ready.” she stated, lips pulling into a tight smile.

“  Nah-ah!  ” Lupe disagreed, pushing the now empty milkshake out of her way so she could lean forward and speak, “  Last I checked, I was the only out there in the water fishing with Dante, not you. And I happen to go out and do quite a lot of things. Outdoorsy and fun things!  ” Yeah, most of them through church and as a way to connect with her younger crowd but she still did them. Didn’t that count as adventurous? Guadalupe could definitely think of more if she wanted to, but for the time being she felt her words had conveyed just the right amount of evidence to contest. With the tip of her finger, she traced the mouth of her cup, wiping off some of the whip and brought it to her lips. She never actually got to eat the whip before it melted into her shake. “  The way you contradict yourself will always leave me boggled.  ” Lupe observed, being sure she just heard Belle say she was going out and that she couldn’t afford a hobby in the same breath. She watched the red head for a moment, trying to see if she was serious or janking her chain. “  Simple things. Reading is an amazing hobby, we can go to the library and pick out some books. Get you a card! Oh it’d be so much fun. Journaling is another fun one. Drawing, painting, pottery. Anything can be turned into a hobby.  ”

a breath hitched in her throat as lupe leaned forward. a reaction belle had often, though little by little she tried training herself out of it. and while her roommate wasn't completely wrong about being adventurous, belle could think of a way or two the other could step out of her comfort zone a little more. "wait- you went fishing with dante? and you guys didn't invite me? rude." not that fishing would ever be at the top of her list when it came to how she'd want to spend her free time, she just always wanted to be invited. "i do outdoorsy and fun things!" belle protested but when it came time to list them, window shopping and taking arty to the dog park- twice, were the only things to come to mind.