one day at a time

“I’m kid free for the night, I’ve already danced and had some shots. I’m feelin’ good and I look good too,” Harley said to the person beside her with a smirk before taking a sip of her drink. She couldn’t remember the last time she actually went out to an event or even to a bar to have some fun for herself. As much as she loved being a mom, it took a toll on her some days and she was ready to let loose, especially tonight. “How’s your night been so far? You look great.”

Who: @harley–day​ Where: NYE Party 

“Harley!” somehow, he makes himself heard buzzed and above the music and the talk of the crowd of guests, weaving between them all to make his way toward the front of the room to his boss. “You made it!” with a smile, he plucks two glasses from a passing caterer with a tray, passes one to Harley before using his now-free hand to pull his friend and boss into a one-armed hug, something he’d never do sober. “Also you look gorgeous” Kendrick said eyeing the girl up and down. The room beyond them glitters against a backdrop of night sky and city lights, the party taking up the massive room of one of the area’s best hotels, every wall a floor-to-ceiling window that makes it seem like they’re hovering in midair, high above the rest of the world. “Come on, I want to take shots, and I want you to take shots with me” he said smirking, as he looked from her to the bar. 

Harley was leaning against a wall people watching when she heard a familiar voice. Turning her head, she saw Kendrick approaching and she had never seen him this way before and found herself laughing. “Hey, Kendrick,” she said, taking the drink from him with a chuckle, doing even more so as he pulled her into a hug and she hugged him back. “Someone has had some fun tonight,” she teased him with a grin. “Thank you, you look great too.” Everyone looked great tonight for that matter. When he was then telling her to take shots with him, she laughed and took a sip of her drink. “I’ll take a shot with you, just one though.” It was less than a minute later when they were at the bar ordering shots. “Alright, catch me up on tonight so far.”

Charlie was at her grandma’s tonight for a sleepover so it was time for Harley to let loose and she couldn’t wait. Already a few drinks in, she was feeling great and making her way around every room at this amazing event. When she approached the bar to order herself another drink, she looked around with a smile watching as everyone talked and danced. Sure, there were those who stood in the corners with their drinks, (mainly her south side crew) but it seemed like everyone was having fun. It was then her eyes landed on a very familiar face and her lips parted. “Leo,” she breathed, apparently saying his name loud enough as his eyes were then on her.

She didn’t know how to feel in this moment as those feelings for him still lingered, yet there it was, a smile was forming on her red, painted lips.

HARLEY DAY - New Year’s Event 2022

-

Christmas had never been Dylan’s favourite holiday but she did enjoy the events that popped up around the city. Typically, it was her and Angel’s thing so now they were on the outs Dylan had put off attending some of the events. In fact she’d only gone ice skating so far and Christmas was a week away. Being invited by Harley to join Olivia and her to see the lights was an invite she couldn’t refuse, so here she was bundled up in her big fluffy coat pulling up beside the pair. “Don’t you two look lovely,” she greets them, bending down to hug Olivia first. “Yesss, it’s so cold out, thank you,” she scrunches her nose as she stands, going in to hug Harley next. “Why can’t we have pretty lights in summer? It should be a thing.” Dylan holds her hand out for Olivia to take and asks “do we think we’ll see Santa out tonight? I have to update my Christmas list.”

-

Who: @harley–day​ Where: Tree Lot 

“I can’t believe you talked me into this. I haven’t had a tree since I was like, fuck, I don’t know. Twelve? Obviously it was hard to do any Christmas decorating when you don’t really have a place. We would decorate the dorm as much as possible but never got a tree.” Kendrick wasn’t one for the holidays outside of dressing up for Halloween. He stopped going home and visiting his family since the accident, but really he didn’t really celebrate any holiday. Now here he was picking out a Christmas tree for the first time. “What’s the point of this if you’re just gonna take it down anyways?” Kendrick said looking over at his boss.

Harley chuckled to Kendrick’s words, smiling as they entered the grounds, ready to look for the perfect Christmas tree for him. “The whole point of this is getting into the Christmas spirit! Getting a tree and decorating it brings in light and happiness through the long, dark, cold winter days,” she said, making sure that he was following along with her. “Now less talking and more looking,” she teased. “Now, how much room do you have for a tree right now?”

…

“Remember after you take off the saniderm, wash the area and spread the ointment all over the area, twice a day.” Reed murmured as he completed the finishing touches on the tattoo that he had been working on for the last four hours, “and no fucking scratching,” he eyed his client as he walked away, knowing that’s why he had ended up back in his chair sooner than expected.

Reed could hear Harley’s footsteps approach, “uh, yeah,” he hadn’t realized how late it had gotten since he had gotten so immersed in his work. Grabbing the sanitizer, he began to clean his station, “pickiest guy ever,” he smirked back at his boss. “Seemed to be entitled too,” he mumbled, knowing he couldn’t avoid anyone right now, not when he had only been here for a few months. He needed to build up his clientele before being choosy, “but hey, the money is the same, right?” Smirking back at Harley, “you’re here late,” he sometimes stayed at the shop later than the others because he preferred working at night.

-

“Picky and entitled, hm? Well, you know my motto when it comes to that type of person; in one ear, out the other,” Harley said with a chuckle before adding, “and yes, the money is the same.” She smiled at him before turning to head back to the front desk which was close to his station. “My daughter is at her grandma’s house so that means I get to be here later than usual. Closing time is peaceful and I don’t get a lot of quiet time these days,” she said with a chuckle escaping her lips again before getting back to her emails she was finishing up at the computer. “So, how has Bradford Springs been treatin’ ya? You likin’ it here so far?”

destination ink !  ( closed for — @harley–day​​​​ )

it had started with the crusted beads of dried blood , then a green-yellow pus that he hadn’t experienced for a good few years ; the oldest cannon wasn’t a stranger to strange odours or shades appearing on his body ( cropping up like multicoloured flower blooms ) but his newest tattoo , courtesy of his brothers taking it in turns on their not-entirely-legit tattoo gun , was undoubtedly infected in one way or another . with only buttons , pocket lint and old animal feed in the pockets of his blue jeans the male had one option when it came to questionable body modifications ; destination ink . a farm-hardened palm shoved against the door of the establishment with a ding overhead to announce his presence ; the moment a familiar face granted him access he was hiking up his jeans , revealing a strange splotch of ink on his calf that , in the right light , may have resembled a bull’s head . “ — this look infected to you ?? “

It was a quieter day in the shop but that was to be expected with the holidays just around the corner. Harley was in her back office working on her Christmas shopping when she heard the ding from the front door and got up and walked over to see Striker coming in. “Hey Striker,” she said with a smile before it was wiped from her face to see what it looked like to be an infected tattoo. “Of course it fuckin’ is,” she said obviously disgusted and shook her head looking back up to him. She was always annoyed when people didn’t take care of their tattoos. “The real question is, why did you wait this long to come in to check?” She asked and sighed before squatting down to take a better look at it. “What have you done so far to treat it?”

“No, you don’t need to remind me. I remember.” Hunter laughed, scratching the back of his head. Even when Olivia’s little voice joined in, the father continued to laugh and gave a not-so secret fist bump to his daughter. “Come on, kiddo. Not around your mom, that’s a Finn and dad thing only.” he reminded her and helped Olivia balance on her skates to get her to the rink. “Up you get, Elsa.” he said and his other arm was offered for Harley, but she’d probably be determined to do it without help. “Sure you are, like one of the retired ones that broke a buncha bones.” he teased her.

-

Harley watched as Hunter gave Olivia a fist bump and she shook her head, rolling her eyes playfully to him before reaching down to tickle Olivia. “You two think you’re so funny,” she teased, enjoying the sound of both of their laughs. As crazy as their past was, Harley could see that Hunter was trying to show up more for their little family and she appreciated that about him a lot. Olivia loved him like crazy so these moments were perfect. When Harley got up on her skates, she took a second to balance herself but grabbed onto his arm just in case. She moved herself to get behind Olivia to help her get on the ice as well and laughed at his tease. “Yeah, yeah, quit your yapperin’ and go get a beer. Queen Elsa and I have some skating to do,” she grinned at him before getting Livvy on the ice. “Hold onto me, baby,” she said and slowly got onto the ice as well, holding onto the railing for more balance. They then slowly started to make their way around the ice rink, slow and careful and she couldn’t help but grin.

“Uh huh, whatever you say,” he released a short breath of a chuckle. “I don’t do anything here Harley, you know that. But you’re welcome to come over to the junkyard and deal with all that paperwork and the calls all day. I’ll watch people get tattoos, your paperwork is probably fucked though.” He nodded to the bartender to get her what she wanted and he shook his glass to make sure another one was added in as well. “Livin’ the dream. Trying to keep up with everything and everyone.” Something that was proving harder and harder as the year came to an end. “How’s mini-Cook doin’? I got some things for her.”

-

“Hmm, the junkyard wouldn’t seem too bad ‘cause I’d just make Hunter do all the work,” Harley said with a smirk as a chuckle escaped her lips. Everyone would think that when there’s Hunter, Finn was right alongside him and it was true, but Harley didn’t get to see much of Finn so this was nice to get caught up with him. She nodded along to his words, chuckling again in agreement with trying to keep up with things. Harley found herself running around all over the city just trying to keep things afloat so she needed to remind herself to slow down from time to time. “Even though I gave birth to her, she looks like her dad so much,” she said with a soft laugh and a shake of her head. “You didn’t have to get anythin’ for her, Finn, that’s real sweet of you,” she smiled. “She’s doin’ well, thanks. Makin’ a lot of friends at school, been enjoying the winter festivities as much as possible and she reads off her Christmas list everyday to me to make sure I get her everything.”

“Here you go, honey,” Harley said to Olivia as she handed her the smaller cup of hot chocolate with a smile. Taking her own hot chocolate and taking a sip, she held her daughter's hand as they waited for Dylan to arrive. Harley had gotten somewhat caught up with her during Thanksgiving but she wanted to hear more about her life and enjoy looking at the bright festival lights as they did so. When she spotted Dylan, she grinned and waved to her. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted a hot chocolate or not so I figured I’d ask once you got here. So, do you wanna sip on some hot chocolate while we walk? My treat.”

closed starter, harley’s home with @harley–day​

“Hey hey hey.” DJ calls happily as he enters the house, a diner takeout bag in his hand but it is not including leftovers or a forgotten order. He gives a nod hello to Harley before his attention is moved to Olivia, a smile lifting his face as he crouches to her height. “Guess what I made just for you.” he says happily, reaching into the bag and pulling a homemade gingerbread man, decorated with candy buttons and a smiley face. He watches as Olivia takes the treat and thanks him but he pats her shoulder and shakes his head. “Don’t mention it, kiddo.” he smiles, standing back up again and revealing another one for Harley. “I didn’t forget mama bear either.” he gleams and hands it over. “You all good here? How’s it all going?”

“Hey hey hey hey,” Harley replied with a grin as she turned the corner to see DJ coming in with a diner takeout bag in his hand and watching him immediately go over to Olivia. She looked at them in awe, always appreciating how good he was with her and just how kind he was in general. Seeing Olivia’s face brighten up seeing the gingerbread man was so cute and right after he stood up, she ran to the couch and started eating it. “I think she already bit the head off,” she laughed before taking the one he made her as well. “You are so sweet, thank you,” she grinned before nodding and running her fingers through her hair. “Yeah, been real busy with work and keepin’ this one as happy as can be,” she motioned to Olivia with a chuckle. “How about you? Got some time to stay and chat for a bit? Do you want anything to drink?”

@harley–day​ at: destination ink​

-

“Harl.” Danny’s voice was for a change not as monotone as usual. It actually carried an urgency in it, because besides from Hunter he figured Harley could give him some good advice on being a parent. The first time around, he blanked out everything Harley told him because he was too busy wondering how he could get high as often as he did. Back then, that was his biggest worry. But now, he truly wanted to figure it out. Properly. “You got a minute? I needa ask something.” That wasn’t true, there was a very long list that he needed to get through. “It’s about…y’know. Koda. And all that stuff.”

It was a slow day for Harley at the shop and as much as she enjoyed it sometimes, other times it made her annoyed. Today, she was annoyed. When she heard Danny’s voice, she didn’t know how to feel. She knew there was some shit going on between him and Hunter but didn’t want to know the details and the urgency in his voice tugged at her heart. No matter what was going on between him and Hunter, she was always going to care about him. Did she think he could be a good father to Koda? Yes. Was she also scared for him? Yes. Looking up at him, she nodded. “Yeah, I got some time. Come on, let’s go to my office,” she said before leading him to her office and sitting down at her desk, motioning to the open seat where he could sit. “Where do you want to start?” She asked before realizing how that sounded and chuckled. “God, I sound like a therapist,” she shook her head. “What’s up, Danny?”

@harley–day​

ice skating rink

When Hunter said he’d take Harley and their little Olivia ice-skating, he meant he would stand outside of the rink and cheer them on. He had the elegance of a giant brown bear. Great with his fists, not so much on his feet. He finished tying up Olivia’s skates and looked over to Harley as he stood up again. “You need help tying laces too?” he teased her, pointing at her skates as he grinned. He purposely didn’t rent himself a pair, to avoid being dragged onto the ice. “I’m gonna be seeing if this place got some beer, and then trying to get all the videos of you falling flat on your ass.”