𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬!

“I still get carded even though I’m twenty-six.” Ty mused before his hedgehog made a noise and retreated further into one of the hideaways in his cage. He could hear passerby’s make noises and hellos at his pup, little tail wags and miniscule barks were what they got in response, leaving ty smiling at mochi. “Hmm, I think I’ll take a long island iced tea. I have my own secret drink menu, but I don’t really know if they’re stocked with everything I need.”

––

“Honey, I would kill to still be getting carded.” Grace laughed and shook her head as she gestured the bartender over to where they were sitting. After a moment, she continued, “You do have that boyish charm, I feel like I would want to protect you.” She mused lightly before she smiled a nodded. Grace handed Ty over his drink and lifted her own, “Here’s to, what I would hope, the beginning of a great friendship.”

“Isabel, you wanna hold the basket while I spread out the blanket?” Isbeal nodded, looking pleased that her dad trusted her with such an important task. She planted her feet and held the basket carefully by the handles. It was just heavy enough to make her feel strong for holding it up. He spread out the blanket and took the basket from her. “Thanks, baby. Go ahead and sit down.” He sat beside her and looked over at Grace and Lucas. “Come on, buddy.” He patted the blanket beside him and Lucas sat. “I’m glad you could make it out,” he said to Grace, with a little smile. “It’s a beautiful day. I try to get them outside at least a few days a week. I just don’t want them on screens all the time, you know?” 

Grace stood, sort of, off to the sidelines as she watched her ex-husband and their children prepare for a picnic they’d briefly discussed. She had been keen on the idea and spending more time with them, and with warmer weather, it was certainly the time of year. So, she had haphazardly agreed. The blonde chuckled to herself as she countered her daughter’s tense stance, as she cradled the basket low, almost at blanket-level. When Liam took the basket back, Grace smirked and nodded, “You did good, sweetie. That looked heavy.”

The woman beside him peaked his curiosity. She didn’t seem to fit the traditional mold of a mother. He had issue with trying to hold people to certain criteria. He had issue with trying to box people in. This town did it very well though. He knew first hand how being not of the norm caused heads to turned. Ash didn’t seem to receive ridicule though - he knew this had more to do with him being a male than anything. He understood his place in life and how certain things gave him advantage. “Open bar is always alluring.” He responded softly. “But, I understand not being as moved as if you knew the one’s getting married.” Ash mused softly.

“Where are you from originally?” He asked cocking his head.

––

The blonde was something of a rarity and she knew it, she used to think she was something of a unicorn but, now the more she talked to people, and they judged her in return, she knew she was more of a ‘black sheep’ than anything else. She enjoyed being the one with the variation, it meant her life was never boring, and she would curse out anybody who thought any less of her for her life choices and current living situation. With the gentle, soothing tone from Ash, she was softly brought back to their conversation and she chortled a little, “Hey, that’s universal, I think.” Grace replied, “Does anybody really even enjoy weddings?” At the slight change in pace and conversation, Grace quirked a light brow, “Connecticut. New Haven. You?” She posed, as she lifted her beverage to her mouth.

“Perfect! I’m thinking sushi. Whatsabi sound good?” 

––

“Okay, I’m living for that name. And, yes. sushi sounds good.” Grace smirked before she gave a gentle shrug.

“I hear that. Without the open bar, weddings are a waste of time,” Kaiya agreed. She didn’t hate weddings, she had fun with them, but she also would prefer just about any other form of party. Brow lifting with a bemused look, she turned a little more towards the woman, hands folding together. “In that case, let me order you a few more drinks.” Sending a drunk woman Skylar’s way would be endlessly entertaining for her and though Kaiya had promised Skylar to not cause any trouble, she figured this was an acceptable level of chaos.

––

She laughed and agreed with Kaiya, “Oh, you are not wrong, at all.” Grace was known to be a fan of a good time, regardless of the price; her ex-husband had learned that a couple of months after the birth of their son. The blonde swallowed a little before she allowed her eyes to widen; she threw her hands up in the air and laughed again, “Shit, I’m in.”

“Not everywhere, I don’t take these two everywhere but I wasn’t about to leave them home alone since I didn’t know when I would be back.” Ty explained as his hedgehog slipped into one of the many hiding places inside his cage. “Doesn’t mean you can’t make the best of it even if you weren’t invited. People are gonna be too drunk and too into the vibes to care about anything tonight, so have fun. Life’s way too short to keep holding onto silly things that won’t matter in a week.”

––

The blonde looked over the young man beside her and smiled, there was something about him that was just gave off the sweetest energy. She liked that. Grace nodded and flicked her eyes between his before she focused on the little guys in his company, the hedgehog was pretty cute, and she was not an animal person. She gave a little laugh and tapped at his lower arm, “You’re alright kid, I like you. You old enough to drink? What do you want?”

Declan was sure that the woman would’ve asked him the same question if she was sober. She didn’t appear to be someone who shied away from conversation, given that she just admitted she had an affair to a near stranger. “A bit over six months, I believe? I uh, I lapsed a while ago so sometimes I get sort of confused with what my actual ‘sober anniversary’ is,” he chuckled. Declan’s memory was shit, but he also didn’t want to over-focus on the days, minutes, seconds that his blood was clean from any toxins. It made the cravings that much worse. 

“I don’t have kids, but it sounds like it was heading toward divorce whether you fucked someone else or not,” he shrugged. “Might’ve been a bit cleaner had you kept your bedroom clean, but what’s done is done, y’know?” Declan reached in and grabbed his own handful of pistachios, reluctantly cracking the shells. “You still see your kids?” he asked, curious as to what went through an actual parents mind. 

––

Grace nodded, her vision was a bit fuzzy, blurred around the edges and her mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton balls but, she tried her best to focus on what Declan was talking to her about. She smiled at him, “Six months is good, congratulations.” She nodded again. Sobering up was an achievement, those who could do it had sticking power, the determination and drive needed to get themselves over the hurdle. She admired that. 

“I miss them.” She blurted out before she sighed, “I don’t know. I don’t think so.” Grace shook her head, “It was pretty stupid, actually. I had a --” She gesticulated with her hands for a brief moment before the blonde tapped them back onto the bar top, “A lapse in judgement and I guess, in character, too.” Grace nodded slowly, “I’ve seen them once since I arrived in this town a few months ago.”

Rose felt like she could have just burst into flames at that moment from the severity of her embarrassment alone. She opted instead to say, “Wine, I don’t care what kind of wine just make it strong as hell.” She lamented as she buried her face in her hands, her cheeks getting rosier. When she was sure the date was absolutely out of complete range, she faced the woman and said, “Honestly I should have known it was too good to be true when the hobbies section in their profile just said ‘anything and everything, I’m always up for a fun time not a long time.’ God, just end my misery.” She stuck her tongue out at the idea. “I’ve just never had to sit through someone being so into themselves over…nothing!” As soon as the cool glass of wine was in her hand, she raised it to the blonde. “To you, my savior of the evening.” 

––

She wasn’t the best company, but she made the effort whenever alcohol was involved. She allowed her maternal instinct to take over and she rested her hand on Rose’s lower arm, she provided her a little comfort, she hoped. Or, at least, someone she could rant to about what had happened. Grace nodded, she’d been there before, since her divorce and leaving her ex-husband and their kids, there had been many swipes right on profiles and meeting in person had not been as tasteful of an experience for her. The blonde sighed, “They’re not all that bad, I promise. I’ve had my fair share of ‘em too, I started a game of recording the dates when I knew they were going badly, and laughing at them with my college girlfriends.”

“I love being the talk of this fucking town,” Leslie replied, leaning in with a deepening smirk. It was rare she felt anything but indifference or contempt for people, and even rarer that someone seemed to nod along with her energy. Again, she realized that she probably would have loathed Grace if she wasn’t drunk, and for the moment, she was grateful she was. “Drowning may get the cops called. Is that something you’re willing to risk, or do you have something to lose?”

––

“Well, I’m glad met that I almost drowned you with my drink because, I see there’s a theme happening here.” Grace smirked, she mirrored Leslie’s reaction. The blonde wondered how and why this unlikely connection was going ahead, the previous meeting she had just reminded Leslie of had not gone well for herself. Still, she gave a non-committal shrug and broadened her smirk, “Story for the grandkids then, huh?”

“Thank you, I feel seen,” she joked. “All this is basically just my long-winded way of asking: have you eaten lunch yet or do you want to grab a bite with me?” 

––

Grace smiled at the round-about way in which Astrid requested some company, she gave the other woman a nod and smiled, “You’re in luck, I haven’t eaten yet. I’m a breakfast skipper, so I’m about to start getting cranky if I don’t get something.”

Cris was a little taken aback and shocked by her dogs behaviour. Some of the trauma her dogs had been through surfaced at the oddest times and she knew that Arlo didn’t always do well in chaotic or busy spaces. The move into town had been an adjustment for him but they’d been working on it. Luckily, someone walked by and handed her the leash so she could get him sorted and let go. “Not normally. I mean, he darts but it’s been a few years since we’ve been in such a public setting so I think he got excited and a little scared.” A hand swept across her forehead. “He’s a rescue and didn’t have the best start in life. So he has better days than others.”

––

Grace, although confident the dog was under control wasn’t certain he would try to bolt again, so she kept her distance. She was not a pet person. She could probably see herself with a fish or something non-dependent, maybe even go as far as a bunny but, she knew they were smelly and she wasn’t about the poop everywhere. The blonde eyed Cristina incredulously before she gave a minute nod, “Rescue’s will do that. It’s difficult to break that habit sometimes, I guess. Never know what they’ve gone through before you take ‘em on. He is cute though.”

Liam smiled a little. “Yeah, it will, but that’s okay,” he said. “You know what Lucas is like. It takes him a while to adjust to change. And, you know, he knows you, you’re his mom. It’s just gonna take him a little bit to adjust.” He chuckled softly. “Isabel, though…she always tackles things head on anyway.”

––

She shifted a little, she was uncomfortable. The blonde cleared her throat before she nodded, “They’re already their own little persons, aren’t they?” She nodded bittersweetly. Grace winced, she knew it would take Lucas a while before he could trust her again, he could know her again. It was the same for her whole family. Still, she re-situated herself and blinked expectantly at her ex-husband, “So... we should talk, I guess?”

“Gets me every time. What can I say, love me some free booze,” Kai laughed, shrugging helplessly. It was an easy way to get her to do just about anything. Plus, she was always down for any situation that could lead to fun or at least provide plenty of drama to watch. Romance in the air and an open bar was the perfect catalyst to something ridiculous to watch. “Ah, let’s see where this bitch went….” Kai mumbled, scanning the crowd until she spotted Skylar over talking to some people. “Idiot over there. She’s my best friend and she’s lonely and desperate so if you’re at all interested, she’s super single.”

––

“Hey, that’s one of the main draws to a wedding, am I right?” Grace smirked, “Open bars, pre-paid tab, it’s the life. The only way you’ll get me to a wedding.” She laughed. The blonde followed the other woman’s gaze, taking in the extravagance of the event. She shook her head in displeasure, “You know, with enough liquor in me, I probably wouldn’t say no.” She smirked again.