Hotel California

Name: Jack William Huxley Nicknames: Hux Gender/Pronouns: Non-binary, he/they Age: 29 Birthday: April 2nd, 1993 Zodiac: Aries Sun, Aquarius Rising, Pisces Moon Hometown: Los Angeles, California Neighborhood: Greystone Complex Occupation: Radio Host at Rocket Radio FM / Fish Brains Guitarist Sexuality: Hetero. 

whenever someone looked at ezra for as long jack was, she had the habit of looking away. but there was something about them that kept her interested, kept her eyes on their face so she could take in every little detail. of course there was a pink hue to her cheeks, but she was hoping she could play it off as the heat getting to her. “i wouldn’t say i’m scared, per say. just…trying to be bold and probably failing miserably at it.” this time she meant her words as more of a tease, not wanting to show the fact that she lacked self-confidence when it came to things like this. ezra’s dating life was minimal at best, and even though jack was looking at her in the way he was, she still wasn’t sure if she was doing this whole flirting thing correctly. “oh, you can invite me, but i figured being bold was the best route here. i wouldn’t mind if you were the one to invite me though. a dream come true, really.”

                “Not failing miserably.. not failing at all.” Perhaps he did lie a bit - if only to make her feel better, but there was something about the blonde that made them keep wanting to talk to her - to have her by their side.. two things Jack never wanted. To have them for an hour or two, a night top, that was how they liked.. sure, Jack could talk to get what he wanted, but to talk simply without gaining anything in return, that hasn’t happened since.. ever. “A dream come true..” a chuckle escaped them, and they were closing to start laughing, but as they looked aside to the crowd where people were screaming to the songs they loved.. “You know I’ll go out with you,” returning their eyes immediately to Ezra, his words were nothing but serious. It wasn’t a promise, nothing of that sort, but he knew there was no way he’d take her for granted. “Whenever and wherever you want.”

              “No, I like rock music. I’m not a huge fan of it, not like you are, but I like it. I like some bands and I enjoy it but I could never have a show like you have. Am I talking too much? I’m so talking way too much.” When Edie was nervous, she talked a lot. Especially when she was talking to a hot guy who had a band which made him a badass. If she needed to be torpedoed back into her teens, that was it. “I’m Edie and just ignore me till the rest of my life; please.”

              Not paying much attention to her words, Jack caught only one thing. “You do talk too much.” Being mercilessly honest, never thinking of the consequences, the Jack Huxley, ladies and gentleman, the one not loved by many. Not that he cared. “I won’t ignore you, Edie,” that smile of theirs sneaked upon them, “but I will ask of which music you are a huge fan of?” If there’s one subject Jack wanted to talk about, it was music.

            Edie knew Jack from Fish Brains concerts, but she had never had the chance to talk to them. They were slightly older than her and not part of her circle by any means but she enjoyed their radio show. Being more of a Taylor Swift fan, rock music was not exactly her favorite but it wasn’t so bad to listen to while going through poorly written high school essays. “I heard you say that on your show.” She said with a smile. “I think you caught the essence of rock’n’roll and I’m not even a fan of rock.”

          A fan. Jack could be - and was - obnoxious due to many different things - music, music.. and music. Their ego couldn’t be scaled and many said it was only Jaden La Pointe who could pull some senses into them. That wasn’t entirely true, nor was it a lie. “You listen to The Music Education,” their show, “but you’re not a fan of rock?” Naturally, Jack had to smirk - his show was so good that everybody had to listen to it. Obnoxious much?

it was something jaden would never be able to understand . his parents adored each other — they had fallen head over heels all those years ago , been married within months , and welcomed their son quicker than society perhaps would have liked . living on the road allowed for all manner of arguments to break loose and yet they never did . cramped up in a trailer , kitted out with every amenity as they travelled the great states , there was never a single ill word spoken from either his mother or father towards each other ; ashwin and hilary were a beacon of love and parenting that jaden and juniper strived to emulate in their own adulthood . hating his father was something that had never once crossed his mind . sure , a teenage jaden — complete with septum ring and shoulder-length black hair — would have perhaps scolded the male , muttered venomous words beneath his breath , but wasn’t that what teenagers were for ?? now he was grown , the two people who had raised him were some of the most important people in his life , especially with his mother’s hands-on approach to not only raising jacie , but keeping him safe from throws of his own mental health struggles . “ what do you mean everything changes ?? ‘cus if you mean it in a sense of my medical bills are paid , we get to move to moonbeam , and my daughter gets everything she ever wanted , of course i’m gonna take that without a second thought . i don’t understand why you kept this secret from me so damn long . we’ve been struggling .. “ struggling , for what seemed like an eternity , for even a hint of a big break , “ you never thought to mention it ?? “ 

                 Old man, take a look at my life, I'm a lot like you.. Neil Young sang the song of Jack’s life. Jaden could never know, not even try to understand what reaching out to their father meant for Jack.. his life was the one of a lone wolf. To do what they wanted, when they wanted, to stay, to leave.. to not depend on anyone. Reaching out to Tommy Richards meant Jack would be chained. Their success would never be theirs, it would be always assigned to their father - the man who was nothing but a sperm donor, as cold as it sounded. Even more so, to make that call, to hear that much wanted hello, to ask for help, to confess he was down on his knees.. it would be a victory for his father. “Everything changes.” Jack was never the one who was easy to talk to as if all of his thoughts were firmly locked inside, but if one would listen to his music and hear his lyrics, it was Jack. Nothing was hidden anymore. What he couldn’t say, he wrote.. he played. It was the same with their father. The famous guitarist of The Vipers, the one everyone wanted to be, only for his son to actually be. Would they find themselves in their father’s eyes upon seeing each other? Would they recognize the same old habits? The vices and virtues? Though there were none of them. Some could say he was truly his father’s son. “I’ll make the call.” What would bring happiness to everyone, would also bring misery to Jack. “Just keep it for yourself until I say so.”

Seb cast a glance over in Jack’s direction, nose wrinkling very slightly as he did so. Honestly, he couldn’t say he had any kind of opinion, but then, he’d never been the most musical of people, never needed to have an opinion on it, it just wasn’t a part of his life. “You want me to answer that?” he questioned. waving a hand dismissively in the other’s direction. “Because if I do, you’re going to be majorly disappointed with the response and wish you hadn’t started this with me…”

              “You about to kill me?” Jack asked as they took a menu into their hands. “Because you sound like you’re about to kill me,” their eyes were trying to pick out the item on the menu, yet couldn’t decide between.. anything really. Why they were suddenly craving burgers upon reading a vegetarian menu? Someone up there really had something against them. “If you say you don’t like rock’n’roll, Seb..” taking his eyes off the menu up to Seb, Jack stayed serious for the whole four seconds before he chuckled.

lids flutter into an eye roll the second jack opens up their mouth to speak . gauzy whites of eyes making sure to flash before returning back to pupil forward . juniper tries hard to get along with jaden’s bandmates , but listening to jack drone on about music every possible chance made it all the more difficult , and she was no good at hiding her distaste . ❝ i don’t even know what you’re talking about , jack . it’s like the adults in charlie brown every time you start to speak . ❞ 

             Rummaging through his pockets for that old lucky plectrum of his, Jack heard what Juniper replied to him, but instead of being the usual self, the one that would throw a disgusted look at the other, he decided to reply back. Only because it was Juniper in question. “You’re about to marry a future rock-star, and you don’t understand it.” Though Jack was aware they were the one who couldn’t talk about anything else except music. There was nothing else to talk about, it was as simple as that. “What do you even listen to? Because I’ll make you-,” they looked up at Juniper as it dawned on them, “you should totally listen to my radio show. It will open your mind.”

ender and jack couldn’t be further apart in personality . ender was prim , proper ; she laid out her outfits the night before and ensured every last hair was in place before leaving her greystone apartment home . jack was , as they had so obnoxiously put it , a rock star . the term alone caused her lip to peel up in a sneer against her teeth , a shock of bright red lipstick against glistening pearl teeth . “ you’re hardly oscar wilde , huxley , but i’ll give you that one .. now , are you going to live your mick jagger fantasy all day or are we going to find some decent conversation among the wreckage ?? this coffee is nowhere near good enough for me to put up with your egotism , “ 

                His brows furrowed upon the mention of Mick Jagger. “Baptista, I’m a guitarist, not a singer.” Of course that would be the only thing Jack wanted to clarify. Even though they weren’t so far away from being Oscar Wilde. If anything, they did know how to write songs. “You would know that if you’d come to Fish Brains concert.” Though it was impossible to not witness at least one of those in Roswell. “Huh.” Nothing said to Jack could upset them, if it wasn’t connected to music or their father. What people thought of him, was something he definitely didn’t care about. “You should relax. Take it easy, Baptista. You’ll age too soon. No bueno.”

location: sanders’ autobody, late evening ! availability: open, @roswellstarters·

the soundsof loud metal music echo throughout the empty auto shop as a shirtless sevenfinishes up his last vehicle of the day. most lights were out, most doorsalready shut, and all he wanted was to wrap up on the motorcycle he was workingon before the owner came to pick it up in the morning after. a foreign soundcomes from somewhere in the shop and he’s quick to grab the nearest tool todefend himself, when a familiar face comes into view. he sighs, shaking hishead. “could’ve announced yourself, couldn’t ya? nearly gave me a heartattack.” he huffs, standing up and grabbing his shirt, throwing it onto hisshoulder. “listen, unless it’s an emergency—and i’m talkin’ life or death situation—, you can comeback tomorrow. we’re already closed.”

                   “Couldn’t.” Jack passed by Seven, not even taking a second glance at the guy, but stopping momentarily to recognize the music he was blasting. It sounded like In Flames, Soilwork.. something of that sort, it was a long time Jack was listening metal. Fuckin’ call, fuckin’ moron, it was way too easy for it to be true.. “Do you have a tequila, whiskey?” They weren’t shaking, but weren’t far away from it either. What they needed was a pill or two they’d drown in a tequila, but they’re not so lucky. Throwing an inpatient look at Seven, only then Jack realized it was perhaps a wrong decision to come over. “What, you waiting for someone?” 

               "Rock’n’roll has to to have an element of danger and an element of unpredictability.” It was more than just music. It was a lifestyle.. that was what they were trying to explain earlier today in the Music Education, their show at the Rocket Radio FM. When one would look at Jack, it was obvious that he embodies every element that you want in a rock’n’roll star. When one hears him play, they know he’s a rock’n’roll star. But.. too bad that rock’n’roll star was still sentenced to the cage known as Roswell. “That was such a good fuckin’ quote.. an element of danger and unpredictability. Damn.” At times they did surprise themselves. Not that they weren’t aware of their genius brain, but hey.. “Can’t put a value on a rock’n’roll energy, can you now?” 

Anton’s brows creep further towards his bleached hairline. It isn’t so much disbelief as it is amusement: Much of what he finds ridiculous in folks is packed nice and neat into this one person. The selfish solipsism and entitlement of waddling around with some sort of silver spoon– be it monetary or moralistic –shoved right up their ass. Anton has to hold back a sardonic little snort. Pick your battles, boy, as his grandma always says. This one– this person –evidently isn’t worth it.

So he turns back to his laundry, to the sneaker that had started it all, and gives the rubber toe of it a solemn little pat. He glances over his shoulder when the stranger pipes up again.

“Yup,” Anton confirms. He smiles, “not for you, though, you can walk. Peace.”

         Chuckling upon hearing the other’s words, Jack rolled their eyes before a voice from the behind stopped whatever they were planning on say backing to the man. Though, Jack was never the one who was in the fighting mood.. chilling, more likely. “Jack, Jackie,” the old Mrs. Rockwell came from behind, “Barry,” her husband, “dropped me off. He went to the hardware store so go catch him and he can give you a drive. Just remind him he has to come back to pick me up. And we’ll take your laundry. Don’t you worry a thing, sweetheart.” Turning his head towards Mrs. Rockwell, Jack firmly nodded. “Thanks, I’ll be sure to do that..” returning their gaze towards the guy in front of him, Jack shrugged before he sighed deeply. “Look at that, huh.. peace.” Chuckling, they left the laundry room, more than ready to go to that party.

it took a long moment for the words to sink in , jaden standing in dead silence with his jaw hanging open . they had fought for everything they had , handed out flyer upon flyer to the queues and crowds outside hometown shows , had played pride events and birthday parties , and this whole time they could have been out there playing arenas ?? stadiums ?? jaden wasn’t sure whether to scream at jack or to grab them by the cheeks and kiss them . all his monetary problems would have been wiped clean . any lost hope or misunderstanding would have all been worth it if he could return to a home in moonbeam gardens over jupiter valley . perhaps the main streets of roswell weren’t the best place for an arm-swinging , raised-voice conversation , but jaden could think of little alternative given the situation . “ you’re fucking with me right now . you’re telling me , all this time , you’ve been in fish brains and you failed to mention that your dad is a fucking rock legend ?! “ his name could have been in lights . they could have travelled to europe , to asia , to africa , and yet jaden was stuck in his rut of a life , unsure which direction to turn if he had any chance at success . “ when were you gonna tell me that ?? the fuck . what could he possibly do to help us , after we’ve busted our ass and got nowhere all these years ?? “

                They knew that keeping that little piece of personal information from Jaden was something that was in a way unforgivable, especially knowing Fish Brains troubles, but the hate towards their father would always be stronger than their thirst for success. Jack could still remember those days when he spent his days sitting in front of his front door, thinking every passing car was the one that belonged to their dad. One of those cars would stop and the glorious Tommy Richards would come out, spread his arms so Jack could run straight into them. But that didn’t happen. What happened were the screams and fights of their parents, sporadic child support checks, a meeting or two in which their father would curse himself because Jack really was his mini-me.. “I wasn’t going to tell you. I wasn’t going to tell that to anyone. It wasn’t mean to be known.” When the great Tommy Richards started paying attention to them, Jack was about twenty years old, perhaps twenty-one or twenty-two.. couldn’t care less for their father. He could still remember his mother calling him, urging him to make amends with his father, if anything just to get what belonged to him.. but Jack didn’t care. Perhaps they were too stubborn for their own good, but it was what it was.. there was no place for Tommy Richards in their life. “For the past couple of years he’s been regretting his decision of not being in my life, so at this point, he desperately wants to change that.. I just gotta make a call.” The one he really didn’t want to do. “If I do this, Jaden, everything changes. You know that?” A new chapter would begin for Jaden, for Fish Brains.. for Jack. He dreaded that moment.

“ born and raised . unfortunately . maybe that’s why i am the way i am — the aliens crash-landed and brought me along with them , “ and they would have believed their own logic , if they didn’t look the spitting image of their sister , if them and emmett weren’t of mirroring temperament ; it was harder to find similarities between them and rollo , only part of their DNA shared , but the more time they spent with their half-brother the more they realised just how strong the double-helixes of their father had been . “ if you ever have the chance to get out of here , don’t look back . it might be tempting . you might start thinking of all those you left behind — of family , of opportunity — but it’s all bullshit . it’s your brain telling lies . you come back , and you’re in the same dustbowl without any hopes of ever escaping again . write your songs and get your band out there , “ sparrow couldn’t say they were a particular fan of fish brains but , then again , they weren’t much a fan of any band without kurt cobain as their frontman . the pop-punk group hadn’t a chance . “ who knows , maybe one day you won’t just be playing the local talent stages . that’s the only way i’d forgive you for coming back — “ a playful nudge at jack’s shoulder as they sipped crimson liquid through a candy cane straw , “ is if your tour manager so happens to book roswell . i’ll be at the back , i’ll be waving the flag and donning your t-shirts , but if i see your ass back in roswell to stay ... “ a tutting sound omitted from their lips , “ you’re dead to me . “

                   Contemplating their words, Jack looked in front of him, his gaze focusing onto the people running all over the festival, trying to catch performances they were keen on seeing as if it would a bit of happiness into their trivial lives. However, in that small moment of crystal clarity that came to them, no vices clouding their eyes, Jack could see their life.. all the way from Los Angeles to Roswell. From the city of angels to the city of aliens. How fuckin’ poetic that was, huh? “I’m not from here.” Speaking more into the distance than to Sparrow, they chuckled upon hearing their advice. To leave and never come back. It was the life they abandoned that was waiting for them, and for now, Roswell was their safety net - keeping them safe from truths that were hard to swallow. “So you can already declare me dead to yourself, Sparrow, because I left the big city lights of Los Angeles to come here. On purpose.” A different Jack, the more serious one, the one he’d swore was a part of Sparrow’s imagination, has made their entrance. To come to Roswell was easy, to leave it.. he couldn’t explain to Sparrow what that meant. “But if you’re regretting so much your return to this hell of a town,” finally returning his eyes onto them, “what’s stopping you from leaving again?” Because the way Sparrow were talking, it was obvious they were speaking from their experience. 

a small laugh fell from gunner’s lips, shoulders lifting in a small, self-conscious shrug. “guess it just was never really my thing - i probably wouldn’t have gone if it wasn’t for the guilt trip,” he said simply, a faint hum falling from his lips as he did. “but yeah, that’s exactly what i did. feels good, being here, as weird as it sounds. guess you could say that i was always sort of a stray.” even at the height of his fame, he’d been someone other - on the outside, looking in on what everyone else was doing, feeling like he didn’t belong even though he’d earned it with his blood and sweat. (no tears, though, naturally, because gunner hadn’t cried since he was a toddler.) “well. i was the sports reporter at the radio station,” he started carefully, his head cocking to the side just a touch. “but i just put in my two weeks. got a call from an old acquaintance who asked me to coach the starships.” and manage it - but he didn’t feel the need to add that. especially not when that was going to point more at what he’d been doing with his life before he came to roswell, at his past fame, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to leave this bubble just yet.

           “Dude, you gotta live more.” Jack laughed because he could never understand someone saying yachting in Ibiza not being their thing, but hey, that only meant more space one day on a yacht for Jack. Because that would happen. “I can relate. Though I have always considered myself a lone wolf.. but stray, lone wolf, it’s really the same thing.” Yet Roswell was a city Jack chose simply because it was their mother’s hometown; otherwise there was no chance they’d ever come. It was easier to run to leave with their grandma than to be on their own in the world. Also, if you asked Jack, it was smart. “At the radio station? Really? How have I never-,” the only two people Jack actually knew there were Sparrow and the producer of his show, “forget it. I usually come to do my show and leave.” It was still insane to them how they actually managed to get on time for their radio gig. “Dude, that’s awesome. So, you’re on your way of becoming a star? Hell, Roswell will soon become the new mecca for the rich and famous.” It would sooner happen for Gunner than for Jack, that’s for sure.

to: open ( @roswellstarters· ) location: randomly around town 

“all i’m saying is, space is fuckin’ insane! did you know that the universe has the same temperature everywhere? no, seriously!”  soren had a way with getting excited over the smallest of things, especially if those things involved space facts. he loved to read up on random things like that, which is probably why his true crime tik tok account kicked off so easily. “but if you think that’s insane, you should hear the crazy, weird shit about the ocean. i won’t get into that because it kind of freaks me out just thinking about it, but it’s also crazy.” he was the kind of guy who fell in love three times a week and was also heartbroken all three times, so it should’ve came to no surprise that he loved the world around him. sure he wanted to set fire to half the dumpsters he saw, but he didn’t see anything wrong with a little harmless pyro fun. “anyway, are you going to join me at pizza planet or what? i told you i’d pay! how much more sweeter can a deal get?”

             “Dude.” One word, four letters, that was all they could give. Their head was still filled up with nonsense and noise from last night. It wasn’t possible for Jack to concentrate on anything, especially not universe or ocean. “It’s too early to talk about science.” It was always too early for Jack.. when it comes to everything truth be told. “What time is it even?” Going through their hair with their fingers, Jack was thankful for his old Ray Ban’s on their nose; the light was too strong and the headache was getting painful with each passing second. “Yeah, sure. Pizza. See,” Jack shifted his focus on Soren, “I can follow pizza. I can understand that, but universe, ocean, come on.. how much time do you spend watching documentaries about that stuff?” Jack only knew Netflix because of the whole Netflix & chill thing.