𝐈𝐬𝐥𝐚 𝐑𝐢𝐜𝐜𝐢

BASIC INFORMATION

Full Name: Isla Leonora Ricci

Nickname(s): Isla. she hates being called Leonora.

Date of Birth: 12th of April 1991

Hometown: Fallbrook, North Carolina

Current Location: Fallbrook, North Carolina

Ethnicity: White

Nationality: American

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Orientation: Bisexual

Relationship Status: Single

Religion: Raised Catholic

Occupation: Secretary

Living Arrangements: Studio flat Downtown

Language(s) Spoken: English, some Italian

Accent: North Carolina

“Mmm, so cryptic–here have some of this!” She chuckled softly, pushing another one of their fun drinks in her direction. Rori wasn’t trying to pry in any way, mainly she was just bored and teasing Isla. “Oh don’t worry about me, I’ll figure out where life is trying to take me, soon enough.” But the tether she felt to the fates and the journey that life had been taking her on had frayed considerably by this point. The words she spoke didn’t always seem to match the thoughts she had these days. “Physically yeah, mentally well–let’s just say, these fruity cocktails help a bit.”

 When it came to drinking, one rarely had to ask Isla twice. Taking the drink, she brought it up to her lips, only to take a small sip of it. “No I just mean, my family is here. My friends. Wes, who I just got back in my life!” She said with a small shrug. At the moment, it was more reasons for her to  stay, than go. “Hm so  you don’t have any plans at the moment? I could always ask Stevie if she had any openings at the cafè if you’d like?” She suggested, not sure if waiting tables was something Rori would like. “Hm I guess we are going to be having plenty more of these then in order to help more with that.”

“Bacon always” she said laughing. Smiling at the words the woman spoke, she nodded her head “a medium will do” she said shrugging her shoulders. “So is this your cafe?” She asked looking around the building and seeing how warm and inviting it was. “It’s nice reminds me of my favorite lunch spot back in Los Angeles.”

Isla chuckled while noting down the ‘b’ onto the order sheet. “Alright then. Should be coming right  up.” She said, and tore the paper off so she’d remember to take it over to the kitchen. It had happened that she had gotten distracted and forgotten before, but usually this method helped. “Oh I wish!” She said, even though her cooking skills or even her creativity  when it  came to food would never have made anything like this survive. “Oh my gosh, you  from LA?” She asked curiosity. “I miss LA so much! I have been there a couple of times. Where abouts did you use to live?”

steviexrivers​:

closed starter for @melisaosmcn​ & @islaricci​ at the Cherry Blossom Festival

It had taken some time now that both her best friends were in town to get the three of them together and it be just the three of them, but Stevie finally put her foot down and got it done. The twins were with Johnny, Ali with Javier, and there was nothing that was going to get in the way of the girls hanging out and having fun like they used to during this event and really any event. Plus, it helped push Melisa and Isla to be around each other and that’s what she really wanted so they could make up fully now. At least, she hoped. She made her way over to a table they were at with some drinks and she sat down. “Alright, figured we’d go slow before we get into shots or something. It’s been a while since I drank like this and I’m going to have to pump a lot before I can feed Ali, but worth it.”

&

It had been a long time since all three of them had been together. Besides Ali’s birth, which was really stretching if you counted that as them all together, then it had been at least 6 years. But, that had been the way it had been since Melisa came back. Isla hadn’t wanted to see Melisa, except to yell at her to stay away from Luca. Which besides her fumble when she saw him upon arriving, she’d been doing just as Isla had said. Ali’s hospital had helped thaw some icy waters, but some things were still awkward between them and really it was only a start. Melisa knew exactly what Stevie was up to, she wanted Melisa and Isla to get along again - just like they used to. Stevie had probably used volunteering to get the drinks as a way to leave Melisa and Isla alone at the table, but it had been awkward with both unsure what to really say and just commenting on the nice weather for the festival. The sight of Stevie with alcohol was a welcome sight and Melisa reached for a drink right away. “So, I guess that answers my question of if you can fully drink yet.” She gave a small smile. “When is that, by the way?” 

&

 Isla looked up for the screen of her phone upon Stevie’s return, only to clap her hands together in slight excitement, mainly at the alcohol that hopefully would help fuse the tension. The moment the blonde had left the two of them along, and awkward silence had taken over, and Isla had quickly pulled her phone out in order to try avoid any kind of awkward conversation with Melisa. What would she ask her anyway? She still had a million questions she hadn’t gotten to ask her, but she also felt like there was just still too much unspoken between them it didn’t seem appropriate. “Thank you Stevie!” Isla said before helping herself to one of the drinks, only to bring it up to her lips to take a sip of it. Looking at Melisa as she spoke, she looked over at Stevie as she didn’t know herself and was slightly curios. “I  guess you need to be off breast feeding, right? Have you decided how long you are going to do it for?”

“I live here.” He said before clearing his throat. “Um, I’ll have a coffee with two creams and a sugar.” He ordered and even that felt weird right now given he had run into the woman he used to pay while entertaining clients. “What are you doing in Fallbrook?” Of all places, the man figured she was still in Atlanta doing something. He hadn’t seen her in so long so he wasn’t sure if she was still an escort, but being all the way here was something else.

Isla felt her mouth drop open ever so slightly. “Wait what? Are you like.. Stalking me now?” She asked, not sure if she was being sincere or not with her question, but then again he really was the last person she’d expect to see in Fallbrook. “Jeez Jer, I know I am a delight and pretty, you know.. Unforgettable, but like.. Damn.” Her lips curved up into a slightly teasing smile, before she also cleared her throat as she went to scribble down his order, pretty sure the letters were unreadable as if she was honest running into him was the last thing she’d expect like, ever. Looking back up, she raised a brow at him. “I am from here. Pretty sure I mentioned it.” Not really sure if she had as it wasn’t something she bragged about unless asked. 

They might not get along anymore, but Melisa knew Isla. She knew when her friend was angry. When she was suppressing her anger. Isla still had the same ticks and Melisa could see the anger seething under the surface. She wanted to protest, she had hurt people yes but she had never meant to. However that all went out the window when Isla spoke. It felt like a slap and Melisa shook her head standing up more. “I never strung him along.” Her voice was harsher and there was a fire in her gaze. “I hurt him, I know I did. I left without a word and I hurt a lot of people when I left. But I never once strung him along. I loved him, Isla. You know damn well I did. I never once made him believe I had feelings when I didn’t. I loved him and when Dev died, I just bolted. I couldn’t deal with it. I feel horrible for what I did, but I never once strung him along.” Part of her wanted to accuse Isla of not judging her, she had no idea how she’d react if Luca ever died. But the words were too harsh, even in her head. 

 Isla stared blankly back at Melisa when she began speaking back at her. “Maybe not in the beginning.” She countered, sounding as defensive as she was. But it sure felt as if she had towards the end, but again that was likely just Isla’s own ego having been hurt while her friend had been grieving a loss she could never relate to. “You don’t need to remind me, Melisa. I am very aware that you left.” She told her with a simple shrug. “Yeah well.. I am sure it didn’t feel like that to him.” Maybe her choice of words have been poor, but Isla had never been the most clever of people. She could be quick in an argument, usually coming up with something to respond, but at times when emotions got the best of her, it was hard to put what she meant into a sentence, as she was usually overcome by her own emotions. “Yes, you bolted. Leaving a trail of broken hearted people behind. Do you have  any idea how worried we were about you? Not  knowing where you  had gone, if you were okay? No, you don’t. And not once did you bother to  reach out to let us know!” She shook her head. “Just stay away from him this time. I mean it.”

Anne-Marie had been having issues with her wifi at home for two days now which was largely in convenient, given her line of work. She had to cancel a lot of online appointments but she didn’t want to have to cancel any others and it just seemed like one of those stressful days where things couldn’t have gone less smoothly if she tried. She came to the cafe to use her laptop to answer e-mails, while also trying to contact the internet service provider again to find out what the issue was. He teenage daughter was not impressed, when she spent most of her life online. She looked up when the woman approached. “Well, unless you have some vodka back there, I guess I’ll take an Americano, please. With cream on the side.” She decided to try not to let her bad mood rub off on others and smiled politely. “How is your day going?” she asked.

 Isla looked at the woman, eyes flickering rather curiously between the laptop and the other. She wasn’t sure what the other was doing, but spending a day on your laptop in a cafè didn’t strike her as bad in the slightest. Maybe it was just her being slightly  unhappy with her life at the moment that were letting her mind slightly wanted. A small chuckle had left her, however, at the comment about the vodka. “An americano it  is then.” She said with a small smile, noting the order down onto the piece of paper, happy it was one she’d likely no mess up, but who even knew at this point. Shifting a little in her place, she thought about her question, deciding to take it  literally. “You know..” She began. “A lot  better than last week I’d say. I am just helping out here while my friend, who owns this place, is on maternity leave.” She said. “And yourself? Are you like, writing a book or something?”

“Ah.” Shelby hummed as she listened to the waitress. “Smoothies are good. Do you have popular bowl you recommend?” Shelby hated how indecisive she always had been. “You’ve really sold me honestly. I feel like a cooked breakfast might be too much.” She laughed sweetly. “Your good, you should go into sales. I’d buy anything for you.”

 Isla nodded eagerly in agreement. “Oh I love our berry one. Or the green one.” She told her. “I would say the berry one is probably our most popular one? But like, I feel like the green one is healthier, if you care about that sort of thing that is.” She smiled. Isla’s smile widened at the others statement. “Really?!” She asked. “I might just have to ask Stevie to give me a permanent job here then.” She chuckled. “But thank you.. I actually am just helping out.” She explained, not noticing one of the other waiters rolling their eyes at her statement behind her back as half the time, she really  wasn’t.

She shook her head. “I still should’ve sat down and talked to. I tried, but then someone decided she wanted to come early.” She said and looked down at the little girl. She kept her eyes focused on her, ready for any reaction, but it shocked her to be pulled into a hug and she hugged her back. “I feel horrible about it. I never meant for any of this to happen.” She said and closed her eyes as she hugged her a little tighter. “I just couldn’t deny how I felt anymore.”

 “Sometimes these things happen.” Isla said, not that she would know past the little she had read up about it. But the news about Stevie and Johnny had  certainly surprised her, but also not. The two had history, and that kind of history could be hard to complete with. “I know you didn’t.” Isla reassured her, as she knew Stevie didn’t have a single bad bone in her body. Feeling her hug her tighter had her hug her tighter back before letting slightly go. “And you are sure this time? Not the pregnancy hormones talking? Or post pregnancy hormones? If that is even a thing?”

Harper nodded at her. “That sounds great honestly.” She replied as she had a weakness for anything that involved cheese. The good thing about Harper when it came to food was that she wasn’t that picky.  “What’s on the burger?” She asked curiously as she hadn’t had any of the burgers from here before. 

 “Sure! I will double check for you.” Isla was all new to this waitressing thing and tended to over promise things she found to be logical when they didn’t necessarily do it. “Oh that depends on which one you’d like. But we do beef, chicken or vegan. With salad, tomato, pickles, red onion and our special sauce. Again, you can add bacon and cheese. Or I am pretty sure. That is pretty standard, right?” She chuckled.

Luca let out a small chuckle. “It really sneaked up on us this year.” He told her as he felt that this year was going incredibly fast. He felt that he’d blink and then the next thing he knew it was going to summer. “I just want for them to have a good trip.” He added as he felt that their parents deserved it.  “I am sure that they will appreciate whatever we do, to be fair. But I think more than dinner is necessary here.”

 If Isla was honest, she wasn’t as good with dates and such  compared to her brother. Maybe he was just being nice to her, but the shock on her face would clearly have given her away. “It certainly has..” She nodded in agreement. “Okay, a trip we can do...” It was their parents after all and they had always been kind to them and their friends growing up. “What did you have in mind then? Anywhere particular?” She was hoping he wasn’t thinking of a trip to Europe as Isla could barley afford to support  her own life style at the moment.

starter for @islaricci​ location: mixes record store 

Darius wasn’t looking for anything in particular, but he liked to pop into the record store every one in a while to see if they got anything new. He flipped through the records, nothing catching his eye as he did so. Darius didn’t pay much attention to his surroundings, getting lost standing in front of the crates of records. He’d take a few, look at them and put them back. As he was reaching for yet another set, his hand brushed against that of another, causing him to pull back with sudden movement. “Oh, I’m -” Darius looked up, noting that it was Isla. If this had been five years ago, he would have left the store immediately upon seeing her, but they had overcome their past. Though, he knew he’d always have a soft spot for the woman, “Isla, hi, it’s been a while,” small talk left his lips as he gave her a twitch of a smile against his lips. “you lookin’ for anything in particular?”

 Isla had been lost in her own little world, listening to her podcast on her airpods, while roaming the records for whatever was next on her fathers wish list. He rarely had time to go shop for records for his record player, so Isla, being the loving daughter she was (or tried to be), had offered to do so instead after finishing up work that day. She hadn’t even noticed the person in the corer of her eye, until her hand had brushed up against his own. She had been about to apologize when she turned, only to lock her eyes upon her ex-boyfriend. “Hey you --” She grinned, corners of her lips quirking up into a slightly teasing smile. “You are not like, stalking me now, are you?” She asked with a small chuckle, empathizing that she was only joking. “Just some old records for my dad. What about you?”

Sitting in the back of the small cafe, he observed the goings on and watched how the place was ran. The place was quaint, calming and he found himself wondering how the owner of the place had decided on the layout, the decor, and the name. It was what he hoped to achieve with Maggie’s. He knew by now that it was going to be a compromise on both his part and the town’s but was it so wrong for him to want to bring a sense of class to that part of town? No. Still, seeing Ruby again, reminiscing about all the time they’d spent there, made him wonder if what he was doing was right. He pushed those thoughts away as he focused back on the menu, clearing his throat just as the waitress came to his table. “Hmm, is it cliche to say your number? I never was very good at flirting but I thought I’d give it a try.” Finn chuckled, offering her a warm smile. “I’ll just take some cheese fries and a coke please.” 

 Isla looked a bit stunned back at the male in front of her, as those kinds of comments weren’t something she had heard in a very long time. Maybe not since her time in Chicago. However, never one to say no to any kinds of attention, the brunette quirked her lips up into a smile, all while tilting her head a little to the side. “In any other circumstance, I am sure it would be.” She chuckled in amusement. “But seeing this is a small town, I have to say I am flattered.” Even though she was fairly certain he had not been serious. “Cheese fries, and a coke!” She was quick to note down onto her pad, for once knowing what to write as it seemed to be people’s go to order in a lot of cases. “No dessert? The apple pie here is great!”

“Hey. Thanks.” Shelby looked up from the menu with hesitation. “Not sure.. I’m not usually a breakfast person.” It was a rare occasion as she usually worked late and slept in. When she did have it usually she went for the classic eggs and toast. “Thier’s so much to choose from on here. What do you recommend?”

 “We also go nice juices.” She said, “And smoothies.” Isla personally could not get enough of the smoothie bowls as she felt like it was a lot healthier and filling then if she had a full cooked breakfast. “Personally, I love the smoothies, or smoothie bowls.” She said with a smile. “But our cooked breakfast is probably the most popular.”

Harper was off after a stressful shift at her job and had decided that she didn’t have the energy to cook anything. So instead she decided to support local and had ended up at the café. She was thinking over her order when the waitress approached her. “I was thinking maybe just an order of fries.” She told the other woman as she wasn’t really in the mood for anything particular. When Harper had been looking over the menu there hadn’t been anything that had just screamed at her.  “Unless of course you’ve got a suggestion, because I don’t really have a preference at the moment.”

 Isla had looked down at the younger woman while nodding her head as she noted down her order. “Just fries, or would you like cheese and bacon in it as well? I am pretty sure we do that... I can ask if you would like!” She hadn’t learned the menu by heart yet, but she assumed as it was a pretty common thing to do, right? “Oh personally, I love the burger they do here.” She said. “And the salad.”

Closed: @islaricci​

“So, I was thinking that for mom and dad’s anniversary that we could pay for them to go up to that cabin we used to visit as kids. You know, give them a little weekend getaway.” Luca suggested to his sister as he wanted his parents to have a good time. “Although, I am open to other suggestions. I just feel that this year is a big one, so we need to do something special for them.”

 “Wait --” Isla frowned. “Their anniversary? I thought that wasn’t for another month?” But hen again besides her own, Luca’s and some of her closer friends birth days, she was useless with dates. “Um --” She paused, trying to run numbers in her head to see if she’d be able to make it work. “Yeah sure.. I think that could work.” Then again she had never been very good at maths either. “Oh yeah no for sure! It’s not like we could send them to Williamsburg for the weekend at a nice restaurant.” She low key suggested.