Chapters

Where: Waggy Tails Play Pen (SL Fair) 

When: Saturday the 13th, Whenever

“Hey buddy, come here, yeeeah, good bo—” 

“Oh no! No, no, no. That kid can’t come near. Block the fence! Don’t let him in—” Jordan yelled out to the nearest person, standing from his puppy play pen position, “Where’s his parents?” Throwing his arms out in question when clearly the last time little Bundy was in sight nothing worked, “Never seen anything like that, he’s relentless.”  

It appears that no one else nearby was prepared to do anything in response to the yells from inside the play pen. Finley bolted to block the fence, brows furrowed in confusion. “Why can’t he come in? Is he a tail puller...an ear biter? Did he try to eat puppy poo? I’m gonna need details man so I can figure out the appropriate defense to mount here cause this kid has a stubborn glint in his eyes.”

❪ ⠀ * ⠀ ─── ⠀ starter ⠀﹕ ⠀jaden && @slchat​ / #slvday ⠀ ❫

details : sunday , february 14th - love guru hut .

what had he signed up for ?? when he’d put his name forward to help with valentine’s festivities jaden hadn’t had any plans for the evening or any inclination of what would actually be asked of him , and now there was the cloud of an evening meal storming above his head alongside the duty of token-taking and curtain-pulling . “ i swear to god the people that come to these things are deluded . do they really think somebody’s gonna stare into a crystal ball or pick out some tarot cards and decide their romantic future ?? believe me , i love a bit of the supernatural , but seriously ?? i’m not looking to blame my romantic failures on the tea-leaves or the turn of the tides . “ there was always a silver lining though , and he thanked his lucky stars he hadn’t been appointed to the first-aid stand .

“Tea leaves and turn of the tides make for a lot more comfort than having to take personal responsibility for your love life,” Finley answered, picking at a frayed edge on her blouse as she waited for her turn. “Personally I don’t believe in any of it, but I fucking love the vibe, the way they go all out. It’s a performance and I get sucked into the moment. Besides that who doesn’t want to get told that eventually all their fucks ups and issues are going to lead them to the person they’re going to be happy with? Who doesn’t want to believe that lie?”

when: saturday, feb 13th 

where: kissing booth at the love fair 

Baz had always had a sneaking suspicion that nothing good can come from being charitable, and as he finds himself sat stoney-faced with arms crossed manning the kissing booth at the fair, that suspicion was confirmed. 

“Yiiiikes buddy,” Finley noted, spotting the male’s off-putting sour expression. “Look, if getting kissed is that big of an agony for you, at the very least try and tap into your competitive side. Do you wanna be the guy that earns the least amount of money at this booth because you look like no fun?” 

for: open where: dungeon event: leather and lace party

At least he remembered his tie, though it’s incredible he’s found a suit for the occasion. It’s an all-purpose night: a successful gig? Check. Have a few drinks and be among other people for once? Double-triple check. “How do they even come up with these names?” he asks the person beside him at the main bar, pointing to The Annabel Lee in front of him. “I’m lucky if I remember half of these Edgar Allen poems.”

A red lace blouse and a black leather corset, skin tight red leather pants tucked into black leather boots. Finley took dress codes seriously, and leather and lace was an aesthetic combination she was fervently fond of. She’s got a Morticia Addams, but The Annabel Lee looks amazing too. “Because it’s the business,” she answers. “This place is goth vibes, that’s what it sells on, I mean look at this. Is this a valentines party or a dark horror movie night? The point is not to be able to tell the difference.”

meanwhile at the Dungeon...

“So… this guy comes up to me and says. You cant wear that its against the clothing code for the theme of the night.” Axel said pointing to his satin outfit. ”Excuse me!.. I replied and then said… Listen you degenerate preppy boy who has the dress sense of a potato, I’m wearing leather shoes.” Axel huffed and gave a sarcastic pout. “ He then says to me… OH REALLY! where's the lace then?” Axel crossed his arms and gave a smug grin. “ So I showed him my lace underwear… bra and panties. I literally thought he was going to kick  my ass.” He sipped his drink and gave a smile. “ Instead I got his number, Valentines day seems to make people crazy.”

“This is why macho guys are such a delightful mystery. You never know which ones are just legit assholes with aggression issues and which ones just never got past elementary level bully flirting.” Finley let out an amused chuckle, appreciating the satin outfit which quite frankly deserves an award. “Call him up and I’m willing to bet he bottoms in the bedroom and is just a teddy bear looking for cuddles.”

-

Remi felt almost stupid not to have thought of the distraction herself. Obviously the only way to distract a drunk from doing dumb shit was to dangle more alcohol under his nose like a carrot. “Thanks,” she said gratefully as the man left the wall alone. “I thought of that, but I don’t think people want big red tape in their selfies. Orla would kill me.”

“And so you’re stuck standing here like the flower guard all night?” It wasn’t in Finley’s nature to question why the woman cared so much about the display not being touched. She respected passion without question. But it seemed unfair that this poor girl didn’t get to go off and enjoy the party like everyone else. “Is anyone going to take over your post tonight? Make sure you eat, drink, have a little fun?”

That first sip of coffee after a heavy night was always welcomed, the buzz from the caffeine quickly working to keep Vinnie from dozing, even if they were sat at a table in Intelligentsia. Since reaching thirty, hangovers had started to reflect hell and he’d usually spend the day lethargic in bed.. though he was very much enjoying Finley’s company, damn she looked beautiful sat opposite from him. 

“I’d say that leather jacket goes well with your dress..” He complimented, lifting his mug of coffee up in front of him. “The rocker vibe suits you, Fin. You look like you should belong in some new girl band..” He laughed, though stopped as the movement caused his head to pound that little bit harder. Vinnie sighed. “Maybe I should have popped some aspirin before we came out.. Hangover’s have become so hard to deal with since the second I turned thirty.. not that I’ve become too wrecked in the last five days. New Year was just an exception to drink like a fucking twat.. Do you even remember much? Last I knew I was drinking with Sloane and rest just draws a blank right now.”

~~

She’s had coffee before, she’s had coffee with people whose beds she’d just climbed out of before. But Finley has never been as nervous as she feels right now, her emotions carefully tucked away beneath the table in the way  her fingers tap anxiously against her knees. “Mmm damn shame my skill was in violin and they don’t really have space for that sort of instrument in a rock band,” she answered with a warm chuckle. 

Normally she likes her coffee a little sweeter, but when she’s desperate she takes it almost black, a pure shot of bean juice to combat the rattling in her brain. “No, no I don’t remember too much.” Her brows furrow as she pulls her purse up onto the table and roots through it till she finds her stash of aspirin. “Here we go,” she mused, pushing two across the table towards Vinnie. “Last thing I remember was flirting with a pretty bartender. I remember thinking I heard your voice at one point and getting excited but I don’t remember actually finding you in the crowd.”

where: Los Globos when: idk probably late, definitely after 9 

“I’ve never seen it so busy in here!” Gus had probably said that a few times tonight, but it bore repeating- the place was practically bouncing from the amount of people chatting, mingling, and getting absolutely sloshed at the bar. And Gus was one of them, though he was trying to pace himself. Despite that, he’d already had a few and was finding it easier to talk to people- those he recognized from life in Silver Lake, and even those he’d never seen before in his life. Why not make some friends? What was the harm in having some fun? “You ever had a green tea shot? I used to get ‘em all the time at Barracuda back in NYC. They taste like a jolly rancher!” 

@slchat​

He wasn’t wrong, it was busier tonight than it had been on New Years Eve. And Finley was craving that, the noise, the hum of conversation, the way she could bleed into the crowd and soak it up without having to carry too much of a conversation. “Green tea shot?” Intrigued, she raised a brow. “So if I didn’t like jolly ranchers will I not like this? Is it less sweet? In college they made jolly rancher shots and they were just kind of too much for me.”

Before Vinnie could even discourage Finley from paying for their Uber, she’d already placed an order. Damn it. There was something about other’s paying for him he disliked – always the gent. “You’ve hardly used this shitty apartment as a hotel..” He disagreed with a laugh as he moved in closer at her request to zip up the dress she wore. Naturally his eyes ran over her body as he was stood behind her, placing one hand towards the bottom of where the zip sat while the other worked at closing the toothed edges together, before it become stuck. “Shit.. Why are these things to easy to undo but so difficult to zip back up..” Vinnie exhaled a laugh as he tugged. “Ohhh..” His lips pursed together as he looked down towards the zipper now in between his thumb and index finger. “So uh.. I think I owe you a new dress?” He informed as he now stood in front of Finley. “I mean.. It’s half way up at least..?”

She tells herself not to hone in on his fingers against her skin, not have visions of them wandering her last night...because that hadn’t happened. She had to tell herself that hadn’t happened. “Imagine getting into them by yourself,” she shot back over her shoulder. Finley had ripped her own zippers off more than enough times in her life to realize what Vinnie had done. Instead of being angry, she let out an hysterical bubble of giggles. “It’ll do the trick. Especially if you give me a jacket to borrow. I’ll just get my friend to sew in a replacement zipper. We don’t waste perfectly good dresses.” She checked her phone again, and then gripped at Vinnie’s shoulder with one hand while she put her heels back on, quite reluctantly. “Alright let’s go before fatigue wins out over hunger and I end up back on your bed.” 

Nic knocked on the door of Finley’s apartment, carefully balancing a heaping platter of nachos in his other hand. He was mildly pleased to not just be mooching off other peoples’ food, but rather being of use for once, and came to the conclusion that he really should have tried this basic culinary stuff earlier. “Oi, it’s me,” he called, stuffing a pile of chips in his mouth. “Open up before all this gets eaten.” @finleymichaels​

She hadn’t actually expected him to show up with enough Nachos to feed an army. Or one very emotional girl and her friend who was about to get an earful. A snort of laughter greets the sight of Nic with his mouth full already as she opens the door to him. “I’m surprised there’s this much left. Remember the time I sent you for cheese friends and you had more than half eaten by the time you got here?” Stepping aside she gestured towards the coffee table where they did all their best binge eating. “What are you in the mood to drink? I’ve got every beverage your heart could desire.”

Nic: Can do

Nic: I can bring nachos. Made em myself but they’re edible

Nic: Glad you aren’t dying at least but uh oh, that doesn’t sound ideal

Nic: When should I come over

Finley: No, definitely not ideal.

So Finley seemed calm about the situation? Or was it a false sense of calmness? Nevertheless, Vinnie tried to shut down his racing mind and listened to his friends explanation, though said nothing more. He had to really pull his sights away from Finley as she dressed, his feet padding around the bedroom as he dressed into a pair of black skinnies and a white tee before planting a snapback onto his head - anything to shade the light from his eyes. “Intelligentsia?” He suggested as he turned back to eye Finley, looking beautiful as ever. Should he just be straight up honest with her? “Oh fuck.. I could murder a greasy breakfast.” Vinnie almost moaned as he could feel his mouth salivate with the thought. “Shall we Uber? I don’t think I’d survive the walk over there.”  

There’s a hollow voice in the back of her head telling her it’s not right she’s so calm about this, that this numbness will wear off and panic will settle in eventually.  People are complicated, messy, impermanent and the ones that did stay...like her father...drained you dry till there was no love left for them inside you. She liked the way it felt right now, this moment, to look at Vince as he agreed to a greasy breakfast and feel calm, safe, stable. Finley tells herself that disrupting that will only lead to disaster, pushes thoughts of that bed and what might have happened in it to the back of her mind as she pulls out her phone. “Yeah, I’ll cover the uber. I owe you since I used your place as hotel.” She orders their ride, grateful that there’s someone nearby so she can head for the door. “Shit...do you see my other shoe anywhere? And can you...can you come zip the back of this dress up for me?”

Luke: Just because I'm always at work

Luke: Does not mean my garden becomes flamingo dumping ground

Luke: These things are plastic, they're not reproducing by themselves

Finley: I have not added to the flamingo party in your garden.

Finley: But...if I had...

Place: Near Silver Lake Meadows Who: Korra x friend / passer-by

 Korra was sitting on a bench eating her frozen yoghurt and looking at the couple of buskers dancing Tango to Camila Cabello’s ‘Havana’ “No mistakes in the tango, not like life. It’s simple. That’s what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, get all tangled up, just tango on.” she mussed looking mesmerized at the dancers.

“It’s simple but not simple,” she added. “I mean the steps by themselves are simple but you could give me the easiest dance in the world and I’d be a mess trying to match my rhythm to another person’s. The way they move is like...they take the simplicity and make it feel complex and rich.” She watches the buskers with envy. “I can manage at a club when it’s me doing the dancing against someone else, but ask me to do shit like that and I’d be a trainwreck.”

“At my job, I have no problem giving advice, it’s par for the norm. People come in to Quartz with a goal, they know what they want. But I came here knowing that all I wanted was ice cream,” he huffs out a sigh while he though. Maybe let the fates decide and the first thing he sees is, “Brownie blast is calling my name tonight,” he orders what he wants, and then steps back beside the woman, “Yeah, then I wouldn’t feel so bad about sample. I want a flight of samples like they do at breweries.”

“Oh you work at Rose Quartz?” She didn’t jot in there consistently enough to remember any faces. “I’ve been dragged in there a few times now, it’s pretty. I don’t really vibe with that stuff, but it’s all very lovely and the shop has a calm feel to it.”  Finley gives a grin when he settles on a choice. “Brownie blast sounds bomb.” She swoops towards the cashier with money ready. “A large brownie blast for my friend here and I want a large of the white chocolate raspberry.”  She turned back to him, practically licking her lips at the thought. “God could you imagine that. I’d be out having ice cream every night.”

Nic: You alright?

Finley: I mean...am I in mortal peril? No.