𝖺𝖽 𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢 abyssosque.

...That there is NO time limit or expiration date on asks, memes or threads.

...That your partners NEVER need to feel they have to apologise for not responding to a thread or ask yet.

...That you welcome replies to "OLD" threads and memes, even if they've been sitting quietly untouched for weeks or months.

...That there is NEVER any pressure or obligation for your partners to reply until they feel the drive and enthusiasm to do so.

...That YOU will happily respond to things at YOUR OWN leisure, and you would like your partners to feel comfortable doing the same.

but  he  couldn't  really  blame  the  man.  moving  the  car  inside  her  driveway,  he  saw  a  glimpse  of  her  standing  by  the  door  and  a  distant  sense  of  distress  settled  over  his  chest.  it  wasn't  that  she  wasn't  beautiful  now.  long,  blonde  hair,  arched  eyebrows,  sharp  lines.  she  was.  she  was  a  whole  lot  more  than  just  beautiful,  actually.  it  was  that  the  person  he  remembered  celeste  being  was  a  girl.  round  faced  and  energetic.

his  heart  whined.  god,  he  sucked  at  letting  go. 

aviator  sunglasses  on,  he  fixed  the  collar  of  his  hawaiian  shirt  and  moved  outside,  meeting  her  with  a  large,  "celeste!"  and  because  richard  was  richard,  when  he  came  in,  it  was  with  a  hug.  pulling  her  into  a  long  tight  embrace  before  holding  her  shoulder  to  lean  back  and  take  a  good  look.  —  this  was  bad,  this  was  very  bad.  —  "how  have  you  been?  well,  i  mean,  i  know  how  you've  been,  i've  heard  gossip,  but,  how  have  you  been?"  richard  smiled.  as  if  the  second  time  around  the  question  meant  something  totally  different.

and  there  it  was—a  slow,  creeping  smile  tugging  at  her  lips.  richard,  with  his  uncanny  ability  to  make  her  smile  no  matter  the  circumstance,  hadn’t  lost  his  touch.  she  almost  couldn’t  believe  it,  but  her  next  surprise  came  in  the  form  of  his  embrace.  though  richard  couldn’t  see  it,  celeste  buried  her  head  into  his  chest,  taking  in  a  deep  breath,  his  familiar  scent  pulling  her  into  the  comfort  of  their  past.

"  so,  you’ve  come  all  this  way  after  all  this  time  just  to  bully  me,  roosevelt  ?  "  she  teased,  feigning  seriousness.  "  i  suppose  you've  read  the  headlines.  i’d  watch  your  words  if  i  were  you.  according  to  the  rumors,  i’m  not  exactly  someone  to  trifle  with.  "  the  jest  was  light,  but  her  voice  wove  threads  of  sadness  between  the  humor.

wrapped  in  a  plush  pink  robe,  her  hair  in  a  careless  flow,  gold-rimmed  glasses  sliding  down  her  nose,  she  stared  at  the  uninspired  invitation  samples  on  her  laptop.  mediocre,  at  best.  perfection  was  her  only  standard.  when  her  phone  buzzed,  her  heart  hesitated, not wanting to spare her attention for anything or anyone else—until  she  saw  the  contact  photo.  a  photo  of  them  together,  too  big  of  smiles  on  their  faces.  his  voice  on  the  line,  so  familiar  after  so  long,  unsettled  her.

"Well, well... Five stars, then. I'll make sure to add 'end-to-end customer service' to my Yelp review." Sure, she's making fun. She takes little effort to hide it. But she's intrigued now, and it nearly eclipses her desperation. Unfortunately, the looming holiday keeps at least one foot of the ground of her haughtiness. "Alright. Trevor is out. Done. Buried. Bottom of the ocean." Where he's already been, in her opinion. Has been, since she first suspected the cheating. "And the role of my boyfriend will be played by Rudy. The hot, brooding, stoic type. At least, that's what I'll tell my mom before we get there."

“  clear  as  day,  ”  he  replied  with  resolute  conviction.  this  was  certainly  no  romantic  comedy.  if  her  family  were  to  discover  that  he  was  merely  a  faux  boyfriend,  and  if  that  revelation  somehow  infiltrated  his  professional  life,  it  would  veer  sharply  into  the  realm  of  the  absurd—an  imdb-worthy  thriller  with  a  9.9  rating.  “  that’s  precisely  why  we  must  ensure  that  no  loose  ends  remain;  we  have  to  work  out  a  few  details.”  if  rudy  didn’t  approach  even  the  wildest  of  endeavors  with  meticulous  care,  it  simply  wouldn’t  be  him.

"So long as you keep holding me, babe." A practiced line, but not insincere. He hangs onto the crutches of his playboy flirtation, but her words manage to wrangle a snort. Not out of derision, but irony. "Funny. I have been waiting for someone who has only ever been interested in my talent." It's not lost on him how diametrically opposed they are. Adelaide's perfection begets usury. Sebastien's privilege overshadows his substance. Which of them would win in the pageantry of misery?

Like everything else; Adelaide doesn't relent. Too smart, too obstinate, to fall for his song-and-dance to keep from the uncomfortable talk. She wants words. Black and white. Clear as day. He follows her every movement, glancing at her plate. "I thought you liked poached eggs and whole wheat toast." An obscure observation from their months working together. Sighing, he drops his fork, offering a softened gaze. "Adelaide - what do you want me to say?"

yet,  despite  the  playful  cadence  in  her  voice,  adelaide’s  seriousness  shone  through.  each  word  she  spoke  held  a  weight  that  shaped  their  unspoken  connection,  this  unnamed  thing  between  them  that  begged  for  definition,  for  clarity.

their  personalities  were  as  different  as  night  and  day,  and  perhaps  that  very  contrast  was  what  drew  them  to  each  other  so  intensely.  a  force  neither  could  resist.  with  every  forward  step  in  this  conversation,  they  also  moved  closer  physically,  as  if  proximity  would  draw  out  more  honest  answers.  so  when  sebastien  pulled  her  chair  toward  him,  adelaide  didn’t  resist.

“  those  are  lovely  things  to  say,  ”  she  remarked,  her  voice  soft  with  a  hint  of  concern,  “  though  i  must  admit,  your  dietary  habits  have  me  a  little  worried.  ”  she  tilted  her  head  slightly,  as  though  wanting  to  frame  her  sympathy  with  the  smallest  of  gestures.

but  then,  her  tone  shifted.  there  was  a  subtle  danger  in  it  now,  a  bittersweet  venom  lacing  her  words.  “  i’m  willing  to  be  the  one  to  enjoy  that  breakfast,  every  morning.  ”  she  began,  “  but  before  we  go  any  further,  understand  this—choosing  me  to  be  the  one  you  make  breakfast  for  every  morning  means  you  won’t  be  making  it  for  anyone  else.  nor  will  you  be…  making  them  happy  in  other  ways.  ”  her  eyes  gleamed  with  the  gravity  of  what  she  was  saying.  “  i’m  sure  there  will  be  plenty  of  broken  hearts  in  the  wake  of  that  decision.  i  hope  they’re  ready.  and  if  they’re  not—  ”

"Jesus left my arse out to dry a long time ago." Elena offers crudely, meeting his dry humor with a brush of obnoxiousness. The jokes end, however, and she finds herself simply looking at him with a critical eye. Was this his way of getting another few hundred out of her, or some backwards way of shooting his shot? Either way, her eyes dart back and forth in consideration. "Depends. What's it gonna cost me? And if this hypothetical person is drool-worthy enough to make my sisters and cousins ripe with jealousy?" She jests, even if the concern is laid barren. Rudy is beautiful, and there's already a twitch of excitement of showing that off.

"  let  me  meet  them.  "  the  words  left  his  lips  in  a  tone  so  casual,  it  almost  masked  the  gravity  of  his  offer.  it  sounded  like  nothing—like  he  wasn’t  volunteering  himself  as  her  pretend  boyfriend  in  some  makeshift  romantic  comedy  scenario.  like  it  wasn’t  the  strangest  thing  he'd  suggested  all  day.  he  straightened  up,  an  almost  unconscious  gesture  that  betrayed  his  unease.  there  was  a  flicker  in  his  dark  eyes,  something  he  quickly  hid  beneath  the  mask  of  indifference  he  wore  so  well.

"I think you might be the most talented dancer I've ever worked with." It isn't what she wants to hear. But as a professional dancer himself, she should know what it means from him. A depth of respect that he might not have for any other woman, personal or professional. Finally, he bites, lifting a bite of egg into his mouth. He swallows before he speaks, glancing at her from behind the coffee cup. "Fine," he sighs. "You are fucking maddening." But there's a roll of affection there, complemented with a smile back. "And I'm mad for your eccentricity."

his  critique  of  her  artistry  ?  it  earned  him  a  mocking  smirk.  she  had  heard  such  comments  more  times  than  she  cared  to  count.  there  was  a  time  when  such  praise,  especially  from  him,  would  have  carried  weight.  but  now,  her  threshold  for  amazement  was  set  much  higher—after  all,  just  like  he  said,  he  had  already  proven  quite  a  bit  last  night.  in  that  same  quipping  tone,  she  retorted,  "  thank  you.  i’ll  be  sure  to  hold  that  compliment  against  you  some  other  day.  "  of  course,  even  now,  she  couldn’t  resist  teasing  him,  just  like  the  old  days.  though  their  past  had  evolved  into  something  far  deeper,  that  playful  spark  remained.  but  then  her  tone  shifted,  just  slightly,  as  she  continued,  "  the  last  time  i  gave  someone  a  chance  who  was  only  interested  in  my  talent,  it  didn’t  end  well.  i  won’t  make  that  mistake  again.  "

that  was  the  crux  of  this  conversation,  wasn’t  it  ?  too  often,  she’d  been  pursued  by  those  infatuated  with  her  on-stage  persona,  and  once,  she  had  foolishly  let  one  of  them  get  too  close.  she  had  despised  it—being  loved  only  for  her  talent  and  beauty,  while  the  messier,  more  vulnerable  parts  of  her  remained  hidden.  but  his  next  words  stirred  something  deeper  within  her,  touching  a  part  of  her  that  wasn’t  her  public  self,  and  in  that  moment,  she  knew  him  too  well  not  to  question  his  sincerity.