-ˋˏ ‏‏‎ ‎꒰ ‏‏‎ ‎🪐 ‏‏‎ ‎꒱‏‏‎ ‎ ──‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎"  because  it'll  be  fun  once  you  learn  it  !  "  as  her  student  deflates  to  the  ground,  sade  tries  to  hype  her  up,  clapping  her  hands  like  a  lacksadasial  cheerleader.  there's  something  extra  nerve-wracking  about  teaching  saffron,  like  sade  needs  to  get  it  right,  make  a  good  impression,  especially  because  sadie  doesn't  know  how  to  talk  to  the  gorgeous  secondhand  style  owner  she  usually  likes  to  admire  from  a  distance on a good day,  let  alone  when  they're  both  strapped  to  precarious  wheels. but sadie  is  a  terrible  teacher.  she  hesitates,  before  slowly  rolling  herself  over  to  where  saffron  is.  one  arm  extends  out──  are  her  hands  sweaty  ?  god,  sadie  hopes  her  hands  aren't  sweaty──  offering  to  help  pull  her  back  up  to  her  feet.  the  way  she  starts  rambling  is  an  inevitable  consequence  of  her  proximity  to  a  pretty  girl.  "  you're  already  totally  like,  my  best  student.  it  just  takes  practice  !  when  it  clicks,  it  clicks,  and  then  suddenly  you're  like  :  oh  my  god.  i  didn't  know  i  could  do  this  !  like  riding  a  bike  !  you  know  how  to  ride  a  bike,  right  ?  " 

she doesn't like to quit just because she wasn't good at something on her first ever attempt. if she did that all the time, then she wouldn't know how to balance the books at the shop on her own or be a brown belt in karate. still, the temptation to untie her skates and march home in her socks almost forms in her brain. saffron has to remind herself that she doesn't own a pair of socks that cost less than ninety dollars in order to motivate herself to give roller skating another go. "thanks," she reaches for sade's hand but rises cautiously even with her aide. "i appreciate that," claims saffron in response to the enthusiastic reassurances. "i mean, i don't completely believe it, but i appreciate it. maybe we could start from the beginning again ? " she suggests, glancing down at her skates. "can we start with how i'm supposed to keep myself from wobbling even when i'm standing totally still ? "

"wait...you're serious?" salem whispered before looking around for a moment; there weren't any other people in sight so they technically could get away with it. would it be bad karma though? "i love the universe and it's creatures but a tarantula is completely out of the question." the suggestion quickly snapping her out of her deep thought. she chuckled as she watched drew struggle with the poor animal. "here, give it to me-" reaching for the cat she smiled while placing gentle pats along it's fur. "i see you didn't learn anything the whole month stevie was with luna. speaking of which, you think they'll be mad about us stealing it? what if we get caught and she has to bail us out of jail?" the potential consequences raced through her mind.

drew doesn't dislike cats at all ( based on what his social media algorithms show him, he seems to have a lot in common with the orange ones ), but he sighs in relief upon relinquishing the creature to salem. "what's wrong with tarantulas ? " he scoffs, frowning at her quick dismissal of his suggestion. "they're surprisingly clean pets to keep. one of my dungeons and dragons buddies back home is looking after mine while i visit luna and he says that norman eights hasn't made a single mess." drew receives a daily report on his beloved pet via texts or the occasional facetime call, but he thinks that faceless communication is better because if his d&d buddy caught a glimpse of luna then he would probably faint. "i thought the cats were up for adoption at places like this," he notes, glancing around in search of a sign that confirms his assumption. "maybe you can fill out an application."

               there   should   be   some   form   of   karma   for   showing   up   to   a   charity   event   in   hopes   of   looking   good   to   your   ex.   initially,   he   planned   just   to   bring   three   or   four   items   of   his   own   ⸻   just   enough   to   start   a   conversation,   but   not   enough   to   look   too   eager   (   whatever   that   meant   ).   out   of   fear   that   conversation   would   go   just   a   little   too   quickly,   he   opted   for   a   drew   sized   solution.   dragging   him   out   of   his   prison   warden's   place   with   the   promise   of   buying   him   an   entire   new   wardrobe   !   whether   he   wanted   one   or   not   !                it's   not   like   his   plan   mattered   anyway.   saffron   hadn't   been   anywhere   in   sight.   so   he   was   stuck   combing   through   racks   of   clothes   with   drew   who   managed   to   find   the   worst   colored   shirt   he'd   ever   seen.   "   i'm   not   buying   you   that.   "   he   said,   head   whipping   to   the   door   at   the   sound   of   the   bell   hoping   to   see   her.   when   it   was   just   another   customer   he   sighed   and   turned   back   to   drew.   "   i   thought   you   wanted   to   look   nice,   where   would   you   even   wear   that   ?   "

tongue poking out and brow creasing in concentration, drew slurps the extra large slushie that he demanded as charlie was dragging him out of luna's apartment ( and refused to shut up about until charlie parked in front of the juice shop ) and peruses a rack of shirts. upon discovering several of his own shirts that he believed to be missing for months mysteriously tucked into luna's wardrobe, drew has a surplus of clothing and doesn't need more. the neon green shirt that he plucks from the rack with one hand is something that he would wear, though. he turns his head ( to pout in confusion over charlie's apparent disgust ) but loses his companion's attention to the bell above the door letting out a screech. "are we waiting for someone else ? " drew's volume carries across most of the store, though as usual he doesn't realize it even as several other patrons turn to look at him.

she's surprised, but they're horrified. guilt-ridden. they look down at their two traitorous hands as though they had committed a heinous crime, a disgusting murder, and honestly, with the way everything went down, he is two hops and a skip from it. "my god," he gasps. "what have i done?" he presses his hands to his face. "you have my sincerest apologies—i—i don't know what came over me. the evil adrenaline . . . the rush of alluring power . . . i must not have heard you repeatedly rejecting the premise of the game. in my excitement for war, i completely disregarded your desires. what have i become . . . ?" he looks at her sternly. "please. throw a snowball at my face. it's only fair." they turn their cheek to her.

snow is one of those things that saffron likes as a concept but isn't interested in experiencing for herself, like riding in an aston martin racecar or going to coachella. she brushes off the wet chunks before the chill can seep into her scalp or slip beneath her collar, huffing. "i don't want to throw a snowball at you," saffron retorts, "this is partially my own fault. i heard this was supposed to be a shortcut to the fireworks show and i didn't want to miss the beginning." she could almost laugh how absurd it sounds now. it seems like a frivolous thing to be concerned about after being pelted in the head with a snowball.

"oh, my god, what is that behind you!" they feign horror; they feign fear; there's a high-pitched terrified scream on the tips of their tongue—and then they throw the snowball at ( hopefully ) what is the back of the other's head. "touchdown! or, i mean, score! tag? something like that . . . bring it on, my friend !"

saffron is not participating in the snowball fight. she cannot stress this enough as her silhouette zigzags across the battlefield, ducking and dodging because she was hoping that this would be a shortcut to the fireworks show that would be starting soon. she freezes when the cold, wet snowball smacks her on the back of the head, gobsmacked for a moment. "you either have horrendous aim or you were completely ignoring me when i said, repeatedly, that i'm not actually playing," she grumbles, using her gloves to sop up the droplets that were now descending the back of her neck.

               excited   laughter   was   half   muffled   through   the   kisses   they   began   planting   on   his   temple,   cheeks,   below   his   eyes,   on   the   tip   of   his   nose,   and   the   side   of   his   lips.   over   and   over,   not   bothering   to   keep   count   just   happy   to   have   him   in   their   arms   again.   the   worry   they   spent   half   the   day   burning   up   with,   completely   being   washed   away   with   his   appearance   at   their   front   door.   they   remembered   asking   him   questions   when   she   first   opened   the   door   but   they   could   no   longer   remember   what   they   were.   had   it   not   been   for   how   tightly   he   was   gripping   them   in   return,   luna   might’ve   thought   she’d   fallen   into   some   type   of   surreal   daydream.   something   akin   to   falling   asleep   in   a   nightmare   on   elm   street,   but   this   a   dream   from   to   fruition   right   at   their   front   door.   it   was   the   exact   kind   of   scenario   luna   fantasized   about   every   time   drew   had   to   leave   again.   she   was   floating   with   the   knowledge   that   this   time   it   was   real.                near   breathless,   they   pulled   back   enough   to   see   his   face   in   full   view   just   as   he   explained   his   surprise.   her   feet   may   have   found   the   ground   again,   but   luna   still   felt   like   they   were   floating.   “   of   course   it’s   okay,   are   you   kidding   ?   baby,   i’m   so   fucking   happy   to   see   you.   ”   they   assured;   her   hands   took   hold   of   his   collar   and   pulled   him   down   so   that   his   lips   could   meet   theirs   half   way   in   a   delicate   kiss.   “   of   course   you   can   stay   here.   ”   another   kiss.   “   i   didn’t   plan   on   letting   you   leave   anyway.   ”   another   kiss,   this   one   longer   than   the   last.   “   i   miss   you   just   as   much.   ”   another   kiss,   much   quicker   than   the   one   before   as   they   popped   away   with   realization.   “   no   !   i   missed   you   more   than   that   !   i   was   about   to   give   myself   a   tattoo   !   that’s   how   much   i   missed   you,   i   was   entering   psychosis.   ”   they   dramatically   pointed   inside   at   where   their   stick   and   poke   tools   resided,   but   as   he   took   their   hands   the   conversation   escaped   them   for   the   second   time.                never   missing   an   opportunity   to   kiss   him,   they   used   the   closeness   of   his   forehead   pressed   against   there’s   to   tilt   their   head   to   the   send   and   give   him   another   sweet   peck.   “   hmm…⸻   no   pizza,   let   me   cook   for   you   !   i   haven’t   gotten   to   in   so   long   and   i   know   you   couldn’t   have   eaten   all   that   well   on   that   flight.   i’ll   make   us   something   yummy,   okay   ?   ”   luna   loved   to   take   care   of   him.   it   didn’t   take   her   nearly   a   year   to   realize   they   wouldn’t   mind   waking   up   every   morning   to   cook   the   two   of   them   breakfast,   she   knew   it   from   the   first   time   they   kissed.   their   was   something   deeply   intimate   to   them   about   sharing   a   meal   they   made   themselves   with   him,   and   knowing   that   he   enjoyed   it.   she   couldn’t   wait   to   make   him   something   again.   after   another   quick   kiss   to   his   lip   and   cheek   luna   pulled   back   enough   to   reach   for   his   luggage   to   bring   it   inside.   “   are   you   sleepy   at   all   ?   you   can   take   a   nap   while   i   cook   !   i’ll   wake   you   up   when   it’s   done.”

when distance and responsibilities force them apart, drew tends to feel as though he's walking around with a vital part of him gone. back in luna's presence, it's like he's been resurrected with a big jolt of electricity in victor ( or henry, if you're a fan of the 1931 boris karloff classic ) frankenstein's laboratory. he grins at the kisses she showers him with, basking in the aroma of their perfume and the softness of their lips. "i missed you so much." it's an understatement so massive that even godzilla would be intimidated by it. unsure of how to explain himself, drew instead remains silent as he offers luna a solemn look. he reciprocates their gentle kiss with need, desperate for comfort. "dad is gonna be busy with the lawyers for at least the next few weeks," drew tells them eventually. years after filing for divorce his parents still haven't reached an agreement on anything besides who gets the manhattan brownstone ( mom ) and who gets the engagement ring ( dad, pawned it out of spite ). "it seemed like a good time to come see you, but shouldn't you ask rafael and your brothers if it's okay for me to stay first ? " drew glances anxiously at his suitcase as luna reaches for it. "sweetie," he huffs, rushing after her, "let me." as he steps inside the apartment, he notices the tattoo machine that she had pointed out to him and tries not to grimace at the sight of the needle. that wouldn't be a very cool thing to do in front of his significant other. drew can keep cool ( or at least keep his cool ) when he really, really wants to. problems arise when he's not so sure that's what he wants, though. he shakes his head when luna asks if he's tired, nibbling distractedly on his lip. "is there something i can do in the kitchen ? i'd be happy to taste test or kiss the cook if that's what your apron recommends." the idea of drew volunteering for a task that involves any actual cooking or contact with utensils that luna has deemed to be ' dangerous ' is silly because she would never agree to it thanks to previous kitchen disasters. the offer is made with a goofy wink which he hopes will earn the sound of his favorite laugh.

-ˋˏ ‏‏‎ ‎꒰ ‏‏‎🎵 ‏‏‎ ‎꒱‏‏‎ ‎ ──‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎“  i’ve  actually  never  seen  the  first  movie.  “  sebastián  admits.  he’s  settled  into  one  of  the  tables  in  the  lobby  of  cinéapolis,  waiting  for  the  next  hour  to  pass  before  the  next  showing  they  are  locked  into.  occasionally,  he’ll  raise  his  vape  pen  up  for  a  pull,  and  turn  his  head  into  his  shoulder  so  the  employees  pretending  to  look  busy  behind  the  counter  don’t  notice  (  they  look  so  exhausted  sebastián  isn’t  sure  they  would  even  care  if  they  saw.  )  he  promised  drew  he  wouldn’t  talk  about  the  movie  until  after  the  other  man’s  aforementioned  third  watch,  but  he  thinks  that  shouldn’t  count  the  other  movies  in  the  franchise.  “  i  don’t  really  want  to  watch  it  ?  i  do,  but  you  know──  luna’s  part  in  it  is  a  bit.  .  .  “  he  grimaces,  not  wanting  to  dwell  on  that  for  long.  “  .  .  .weird  to  watch.  for  me,  i  guess.  but i know what happens ! i watched recaps ! i hope that doesn't impact your opinion of me. i mean, you get it, right ?  " 

drew unwraps one of the chilean snacks he purchased at the concession stand. although unsure of what it is ( and diagnosed with several food allergies ), he takes a big bite. his tongue and throat don't feel funny in the familiar bad way that would mean he has to ask luna's brother to please call an ambulance, so he swallows and decides to take another bite. he glances over at seba as he chews. he's less intimidating than luna's other brother, though drew is equally as desperate for both of them to like him. "well ... " he thinks about luna's part in the movie they're discussing and grimaces, throwing the candy bar into his lap as his appetite suddenly disappears. " ... yeah," he mutters, fidgeting uncomfortably, "makes sense. i'm a top contributor to the synopsis section on the movie's wikipedia page, so i can assure you it's accurate. it's a hobby," drew explains, anticipating the same question he usually gets upon mentioning his contributions to wikipedia. "before luna i thought it would impress girls."

❝ drew , you free ? gonna watch ❛ mad max ❜ and make some champurrado , i'd appreciate company if you're interested ! ❞ he called through the door . ❝ i can order us something too ! ❞

after three or four straight hours of sitting in luna's desk chair, drew is no closer to completing his task than he was when he first sat down, and rather concerned about his partner's posture. he fidgets in the uncomfortable seat, rubs his stiff neck and stretches his arms above his head. he shuts luna's laptop without bothering to save the minute edits he made to his screenplay. though the sound of javi's voice startles him, drew immediately responds, "what's this max character so angry about ? " he stands up and rushes to the door, poking his head out of an opening just wide enough to fit his mess of curls through. "or do i have to watch the movie to find out ? " he uses contexts clues to deduce that ' champurrado ' is a food or drink of some sort, and now that he thinks about it, drew is sort of hungry. "i could make kettle corn," he offers, "i don't like to brag, but there's a decent chance it'll be best kettle corn you've ever had in your life, unless you've had the kettle corn that casey becker was making in the first scene of scream. i've always thought it looks really good, even though it's probably burnt by the time her parents get home."

-ˋˏ ‏‏‎ ‎꒰ ‏‏‎ 🪐 ‏‏‎ ‎꒱‏‏‎ ‎ ──‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎"  okay,  look,  i'll  go  over  it  one  more  time.  "  sade  doesn't  mean  to  lose  her  patience,  but  sometimes  she  forgets  that  she's  been  up  on  these  eight  wheels  most  of  her  life.  she  doesn't  remember  that one time when  she  was  four years  old  and  got  her  first  pair,  fell  flat  on  her  face,  chipped a tooth and  then  cried  every  time  she  saw  them  for  a  month and a half  !  now  she  makes  it  look  easy  as  she  comes  to  a  halt  in  front  of  the  person, toes dipping forward into the stoppers.  as  she  speaks,  she  mimics  the  movements  they're  supposed  to  be  doing.  "  arms  out  on  either  side.  legs  slightly  bent  at  the  knees.  keep  your  back  up  and  straight.  if  you  can't  follow  those  instructions  then  i  genuinely  don't  really  know  where  we  go  from  here  babes.  "

roller skating might just have to be one of those things that she likes in concept but not in practice, like floor length parkas or the vespa that's currently collecting dust in her storage unit in seattle. saffron has never been so unsteady on her feet in her entire life. she tries to follow sade's instructions, but bending her knees with both arms flung out and tiny wheels strapped to her soles feels too precarious. she straightens her back too quickly, though, and loses her balance when she panics. "i don't remember why i agreed to this." saffron mutters, not necessarily intending for sade to hear her. she hesitates to rise on her own, now painstakingly aware of how bad she is at this.

“so like….hypothetically speaking if someone wanted one of these cats could they have one?” she asked the person beside her while her gaze was fixed on a larger grey tabby cat. salem being at the cat cafe wouldn’t surprise anyone ( neither would wanting to take in a random stray ) and she knew it would have to be one of the first stops she made as soon as she came back to town. as she crouched down to pet it she wondered how much her own cat would object to a sibling. she seemed to do well with “boat cat” after all. “i mean obviously i would pay for it and ask if i could have it but like can the cats leave with human if they want to?” 

drew scoops up the cat with great effort, grimacing as the creature struggles and squirms within his awkward grasp. "open your bag," he instructs anyway. pets who couldn't be confined to a tank or a cage, shed often, made noise, emitted an odor, or all of the above were strictly forbidden by his mother, so he has little experience with wrangling common household animals. "excuse me," drew inevitably huffs as the cat continues fidgeting. "okay, are you sure that you don't want a tarantula instead ? i can recommended a few different species that are great to start out with," he offers, glancing anxiously at salem as the animal continues to wiggle around in his hands.

-ˋˏ ‏‏‎ ‎꒰ ‏‏‎ ‎🐚 ‏‏‎ ‎꒱‏‏‎ ‎ ──‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎rohan  pauses  as  she  scrutinizes  him,  glancing  down  at  his  scruffy  appearance.  "  it's  a  new  thing  i  learned  from  mother  nature  over  there,  but  i'm  thinking  i  might  make  it  a  staple.  "  he  bites  back  dryly,  crossing  his  arms  self  consciously  over  his  chest.  he's  always  been  practicality  over  aesthetics,  unfortunately,  even  if  it  makes  him  give  home  depot  iowa  chic  or  divorcee  or  any  other  oddly  specific  insults  he's  going  to  hear.  "  do  you  know  how  convenient  it  is  ?  the  number  of  pockets  alone  is  a real  game  changer.  "  fighting  the  urge  to  childishly roll  his  eyes  back  at  her,  he  returns  his  attention  to  the  plot  of  soil,  "  the  home  depot  employees  in  iowa  know  what  they're  talking  about.  " 

although she detects the sarcasm in his retort, saffron scrunches her nose in disapproval. "think again," she advises him. the ' function over aesthetics ' crowd is a familiar lot who often seems to frame their preference for practicality as though it awards some sort of moral victory over those who like for things to look nice. admittedly she doesn't really think rohan is that way, though. he honestly seems more clueless to her. "have you considered carrying a handbag ? i could give you some recommendations," she offers, "i'm sure at least one of the brands that i'm thinking of has something that's waterproof."

               luna   was   trying   to   do   better   about   spiraling.   they'd   been   long   distance   with   drew   for   nearly   a   year   by   that   point,   she   should've   been   use   to   texts   not   being   responded   to   for   awhile.   or   calls   not   going   through   for   whatever   reason.   a   dead   zone,   a   dead   phone,   drew   lost   his   phone   and   had   to   buy   a   new   one   (   something   that   happened   a   lot   more   often   than   it   should   ).   but   his   location   had   been   turned   off   too.   it   had   been   over   eight   hours   without   word   from   him.   outside   of   mallory,   there   was   no   one   else   she   could   contact   about   where   he   was   and   what   if   mallory   was   busy   ?   or   in   on   it   ?   doing   their   best   to   stay   calm   and   not   book   a   flight   in   case   he   called,   luna   did   the   next   best   thing:   gathered   everything   they   would   need   for   a   stick   and   poke   tattoo.                she   had   no   idea   what   they   were   doing,   so   the   knock   on   the   door   couldn't   have   been   better   timed.   all   of   their   practiced   attempts   on   the   clementine   and   the   banana   had   been   butchered   completely,   but   she   was   still   going   to   put   needle   to   skin   had   the   sound   of   someone   at   the   door   not   interrupted   her.   "   we're   not   home   !   "   they   initially   shouted,   but   the   sound   of   their   voice   only   seemed   to   make   the   doorbell   ringing   grow   more   incessant.   with   a   huff   they   picked   themselves   up   off   the   living   room   floor   and   headed   to   the   door.   irritated   and   worried   they   were   ready   to   put   an   actual   curse   on   rafa   (   who   they   thought   had   just   forgotten   his   key   again   )   when   they   swung   the   door   open   and   was   greeted   with   drew   instead.                "   shut   the   fuck   up.   "   it   was   the   only   thing   they   managed   to   get   out,   partially,   before   they   lunged   themselves   into   his   arms.   their   legs   wrapping   themselves   around   his   waist,   while   her   arms   held   tight   grip   around   his   shoulders.   "   oh   my   fucking   god,   why   didn't   you   tell   me   !   did   i   get   my   dates   mixed   up   ?   are   you   here   for   mallory's   birthday   ?   oh   my   god,   why   didn't   you   tell   me   ?   "   they   repeated,   a   soft   smack   being   given   to   his   back   as   the   worry   left   their   body.   "   i   thought   something   happened   to   you   !   "

his luggage crashes to the floor as he frantically flings his arms out to catch luna, wrapping them up and twirling around. "hi, sweetie." the faux - nonchalant greeting that he had practiced all throughout his lengthy flight is forgotten completely as he instead promises over and over that he's missed them so much. the ache of being apart from her is probably the worst pain he's ever experienced. ( unless the third time he cracked his head open hurt more. that particular concussion was accompanied by some brief amnesia so he doesn't actually remember if he was ever in any pain. ) relief is like fresh air rushing into his lungs as he emerges after several long minutes underwater, soothing agonies he wasn't even aware of as he clings to luna. "surprise ! " he answers all of their questions with the single enthusiastic word. "i missed you," he tells them again. "i wanted to see you and i thought it'd be fun this way ! hope that's okay ? i was thinking that i could stay here with you." booking a hotel room while waiting to disembark from the plane seemed like a good idea until he realized that all of the websites for local places were all in spanish, which drew is still a little rusty with. annoyed, his fourth phone in six months was dunked into his unfinished glass of orange soda ( which oddly didn't taste that different despite the additional ingredient ). about halfway to luna's apartment, drew realized that he probably could've translated the webpage and might have also benefited from a phone's navigational system when attempting to reach a specific place in a city that he's largely unfamiliar with, but it was too late. his phone was currently soaking up the last few drops of sticky orange soda in his glass somewhere on that plane. however, worrying about his waterlogged phone is the very last thing he feels like doing as he gently sets luna's feet on the floor. "are you hungry ? i'll buy us a pizza." as drew offers to purchase dinner, he gently leans his forehead and the bridge of his nose against luna's and clasps both of her hands, unwilling to relinquish their closeness quite yet.

˚₊·—̳͟͞͞♡. ❝ SAFFRON... SAFF... SAFFIE, ❞ Zak began, his tone playfully persistent. He knew how much she despised the nickname. The woman seemed to ignore him, but that didn’t deter him. He followed her from rack to rack of clothing, undeterred by her silence. ❝ Come on, just one date. One. Please? ❞ he pleaded, trailing behind her as she rearranged a row of vintage dresses. Zak knew she was a tough nut to crack, but he was determined. When Zak wanted something, he would do anything to get it. This wasn't just a trait of his personality; it was a big part of who he was. ❝ Alright, what would it take for you to say yes? ❞ he asked, his voice filled with earnest enthusiasm. ❝ New clothes? New shoes? New bags? Heck, a new store location? Literally anything, Saff, name it. Just say yes to one date with my buddy. ❞

putting out new stock is a simple but time - consuming task that saffron could just assign to a newbie who hasn't been taught how to operate the cash register yet, but she's hoping that zak will soon tire of chasing her through the aisles that she can navigate in so kates with her eyes closed. so far, no such luck. "i don't need your help getting a date," she huffs, peevishly shoving a few sweaters onto their designated rack. although becoming a widow had not completely soured romantic relationships for her, saffron is now quite selective about who she allots her time to. even if she was willing to go on a blind date, she wouldn't let zak orchestrate it simply because the way he's asking about it is annoying her. "your desperation is concerning me," she notes, "i feel like you're trying to set me up with some weirdo who can't believe i've never seen fight club."

eyes darting back and forth, reyna swears that they are not a believer in the unseen, but there is something about this place that sets their teeth on edge. leaning over, drink thus untouched so far ( they ordered the nightly old special, ghoulish dreams, without realising just how much gin and prosecco is used in the mixing, oops. ) dropping their voice into somewhat of a whisper, just in case the baddies were listening: "maybe checking out this haunted tale night was a bad idea." rubbing their bare arms, thin straps of camisole meant for the heat outside and not the chill within. "like. i'm down for scary stories, but this place has me thinking i'll be part of the story."

slurping down the last few clumps in his glass ( the beverage he had ordered was called something like ghostly grape, but drew had asked for crushed ice and no liquor ), he struggled to hear reyna at first. "huh ?! " his straw slips from his lips and crashes into his glass, condensation and corn syrup splattering across the table. "oh," he eventually realizes what she said and shakes his head, "the only way that there could possibly be a ghost in here is if they hired some hooligan to run around in a bedsheet ! and that would be the seventh biggest waste of money that i can think of off the top of my head. unless ... " drew took a long sip of his beverage. " ... how much do you think it would cost to install an above ground pool at camp crystal lake for jason voorhees ? because i admittedly think that a hooligan in a bedsheet might be a slightly less egregious waste of money than an above ground pool for jason voorhees, but i don't think that either of those things would be a bigger waste of money than my friend charlie's inevitable fifth wedding. what's your opinion on ice sculptures ? " he asks suddenly, "i personally think there are much better ways to use ice. like in a slushie, for example."

tbd. :)