simple melody

                  although her temples were not throbbing with a hangover from the past night, the natural happiness that radiated off the woman was shown the moment her smile moved onto her face and tugged on the corners of her lips. “ you should’ve stopped me from making a fool of myself! if i log onto any of my social media, i’m gonna probably have multiple messages of people sharing my video and having a laugh, ” she stated before shaking her head. “ i suppose i can give you a second chance. ”

“I tried, don’t act like I didn’t!” He exclaimed, trying to hide the smile on his face. “I stopped giving you drinks, you snuck them from me!” Harper tried to hold back his laugh at the thought of videos being shared on her drunken state. “Let me get you a coffee, make up for my mistake.” Putting air quotations around his words ‘make-up’ as he thought he did nothing wrong. “Prove I’m worth the second chance.”

[Harper]: Ugh, you’re difficult. 

A smile accompanied the roll of her eyes at his statement, always finding it ridiculous (but also, not quite) that he could have so many girls swooning over him. “Good luck, my friend. Let me know when the time comes, yeah? I’ll happily be your manager. I’ll even screen the interested ladies for you, or not. Depending on your preference.” She took another sip of her coffee and leaned back as her gaze went around the cafe, taking in the customers and the peddlers she could see from the glass window, almost taking a picture in her mind’s eye so she could sketch it later, then settling back on Harper’s face once again. Her right eyebrow arched at his statement, stifling a chuckle at the tone of disgust in his voice. “Aw, is Harper Bishop jealous that I drew someone who wasn’t him?” She leaned closer again, this time resting her elbows on the table, and patted his cheek gently. “If it makes you feel better, I’ll draw you, right here, right now. As long as you promise I get free beer later, and your undying love and affection.”

“I would be blessed to have a manager like you. Of course, I want them tested, I’m not a chump, I’ve got to keep myself clean.” Snarling his upper lip in fake disgust in Adeline. As her gaze left Harper, his eyes fell back on the drawings. His fingers traced the line of the jawline of what looked like a self-portrait, but what did Harper know it could have been a drawing of flowers, he had no clue.  Before he could ponder the drawing much longer Adeline’s laugh pulled his attention back up to her. Accusing him of jealousy, he shrugged in agreement. “Just thought I was better looking.” Leaning into her hand, feeling like a puppy who was finally getting attention. With her proposition, his eyes light up in happiness. “How about a six-pack? Also, you never need to ask for my love and affection, it’s always there.” There was a temptation to call the Pavilion to call out of his shift to spend the day with Adeline, but he knew the pain the bar would feel without him there. “You’re making it hard for me to want to go to work.” He said, really having no filter from his thoughts to his mouth.

[Harper]: Hey, listen...

[Harper]: It said to update your account, I thought I was doing a nice gesture.

[text] I’m just so full of love and alcohol 

[Harper]: You best be texting me to invite me wherever you are. Because it’s not fair you’re drunk without me.

[text] WHY WOULD YOU DRUNK DIAL MY HOUSE PHONE YOU IDIOT

[Harper]: WHAT ELSE WAS I SUPPOSE TO DO? 

[Harper]: I get nervous when you don’t answer. 

[text] I am not ubering you a puppy 

[Harper]: Mom… 

[text] If you bring me coffee and a greasy breakfast sandwich, I’ll love you forever

[Harper]: You were supposed to love me anyways…brat. 

Cassie gasped dramatically, “That would make an amazing movie! An eternally young and beautiful stripper vampire, eating the lonely men that pay her. You should write that! I’d read it.” She didn’t even know if he was creative, but she was excited and anything else had been set aside. Cass pulled her hand back, smirked at him, and snatched for another cube. She chucked it in the direction of his coffee but it chipped and shattered off the edge of his mug. “Shit. That would’ve been an amazing shot.”

“Just by your reaction, I don’t think there was any way of denying you,” Shaking his head playfully at Cassie. Harper ability to write was equivalent to that of a tenth grader, as he thought, but couldn’t say no to her. Before they could continue their blossoming idea, he let out a hearty laugh as the sugar cube exploded across the table. “I can not take you anywhere. Maybe this is why you stay in the dark.”

[Harper]: Baby girl...

Mai scoffed at his claim to humbleness, even he couldn’t get the words out seriously. Humble and Harper didn’t belong in the same sentence, but only he could pull it off without looking like an ass. “I love secrets.” She said earnestly, “Got any you could share? Completely anonymous of course, but what’s the weirdest secret anyone’s ever told you while they were drinking?” Mai had been in Devinstone long enough now but she still had lots to find out. Gossiping was a bad habit of hers, but she never had much to say about herself. “Don’t you dare. Besides, I have nothing interesting to tell you. You know enough, the rest you’ll just have to figure out.” Mai wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, as if she was some big enigma. That couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Harper cocked his head to the side, narrowing his eyes at her pondering if he should answer her question. Finally picking a story to share, his eyes lit up in excitement. “I know a very respected man from Devinstone that’s having an affair.” He smirked, sipping on his coffee before indulging more information. “He will have dinner with his business partner’s in the diner before he comes over to the bar area to meet with his mistress. I get a pretty good tip for keeping this under wraps.” Smiling largely with the information he held. “Yeah, but you look like if I fed you enough tequila, I’d get some juice from you.” 

( harper-bx )

Jolene’s eyebrows shot up as she heard Harper’s words, a small chuckle escaping her. “Hot and undeniable?” He had a good sense of humour, she’d give him that. She surrounded the straw with her lips, taking another sip as she let Harper carry on with his monologue. Then, she licked her lips before speaking, letting a somewhat mischievous look appear on her face; of course, her words would merely be a joke. “I don’t know, Harper, I might actually enjoy hurting you.” Jolene spoke, letting her words be laced with a teasing and yet somewhat mysterious tone, as if she was actually considering doing it. 

As she shot a response back, his artificially tense face resolved as it was replaced with a smirk. His eyes never leaving her, watching the drink from her smoothie. Even such a mundane action made Harper slightly turned on. “Maybe I would like it,” His words tainted with humor and challenge, wondering what could come from Jolene next.