unruly

"Oh really? No plans the rest of the night bit doting on me then, huh," Sebastian said with a grin, his words coming out playful. After all, his friendship with James had never been one with chasing and he didn't think it'd start now, however, he did enjoy her company so perhaps the smile that soon followed was more genuine then he intended. "No I'm pretty sure that's the one and only reason," He was just teasing now. Obviously there were probably a hundred reasons why things wouldn't work out between them if only because Sebastian had his own issues and he was sure James wasn't perfect either so perhaps it was better this way. "Yeah well, getting comfortable isn't always a bad thing you know," He added with the shrug of his shoulders. Though he could agree with James about the unrealistic expectations that romance books gave to people about dating and relationships, Sebastian also thought the books in book club were kind of hilarious as the only male perspective in the club. "You were almost in a thruple?" Sebastian repeated with some surprise as he tried not to look so amused since it probably wasn't as fun as it sounded. "Well, considering you're single, I'd say you came out of it mostly unscathed, right?"

"Not sure you'd be able to handle me doting on you." Which was because she wasn't really the doting type, mainly the person that made people's lives more complicated and miserable than when she'd first entered it. A few marriages crumbled because she had bulldozed right through them and then there was the whole jail situation with Silas. Her eyes roll at him because they both know that's the furthest from the truth. She can think of more than ten reasons that have to do with herself alone. "You don't think so? Sounds like a nightmare to me. I'd rather be put down than be the couple who works just to come home and fall asleep." That life never appeased her and it explained the reason why she went for the people she did. People who weren't safe by any means. "I was in a thruple for a good forty eight hours. Then it got complicated very quickly." She didn't even realize she was in one until she was running away. "That's one way to look at it. Most people would assume I'm single cause I'm fragmented because of it."

Mar's brow furrowed as the other person described children as something comparable to gremlins. "It's a little weird we are teaching children capitalism, I'll give you that," she admitted. "But I don't know, I think they're so funny when they get all excited to sell you a box of cookies. Plus they always pull me in with the 'it's-for-a-good-cause' excuse." She opened her bag up wider so that all of the boxes were in plain view. "Honestly, feel free to help yourself, except for the Trefoils. Those are my favorite," she said.

"I don't think they're to be trusted and I'd like to know what the money is going towards, you know." A good cause happened to be what, uniforms or adventures? Were the people who created the girl scouts benefitting from all the money that was being poured into it by subscription and sales. Who knew, maybe it was the latest conspiracy theory. "Well, I'm going to take a few if you're giving them away because these cost so much money."

@philly-starters

"Thin mints aren't my favorite. What else do you have?" She understands that the others weren't offered but maybe she could take one of each because it looked like she'd sold the whole girl scout cookie stand out. "I personally don't like them because they're actually little shits. I don't believe for a second that they don't know what they're doing and they'd do anything to get money. Plus those smiles are freaky" She looks over at them. "I'll still take their cookies though." She points to the extra ones.

"Why don't you stick around long enough to find out," Sebastian added with an inkling of a grin before he gave way to an easy laugh. Truth be told, Sebastian wasn't really looking to take anyone home tonight. For the most part, he just wanted to hang out with his friends, James included. As James regaled him with her current living space, Sebastian couldn't help the amusement, "See, this is why it'd never work out between us," He joked. There were countless reasons why it'd never work out between them, for one, she was a friend, and despite his best efforts, he tried to keep those lines fairly clear. Though even Sebastian could admit that James was absolutely a catch. "My mother's book club, thankfully, did not include Fifty Shades of Grey. They're reading those Colleen Hoover books, which I personally think might be worse," Cringed at the thought and shook his head. "Well, at least you've thought about it, call it a back-up plan, but probably best you stay off that hell site. So what happened the first time exactly?" He asked with the raise of his brow, genuinely curious.

"I'm not going anywhere." She told him with a smirk because the night was young and she didn't have nearly enough alcohol in her tonight to ignore the leaky faucet that was keeping her up at night for the past week. She laughs at his explanation as to why it would never work out between them while her hands move to her hips. "There might be more reasons than one." A lot of it having to do with her more than anything. He was attractive but she wasn't an easy person to be with by any means. The idea of a book club was always ludicrous to her but only because she knew herself better than that and she would be the first to flake the meeting. But he was right about Colleen Hoover from what she'd heard on tik tok. "The girlies are obsessed but they're probably just in need of some good romance and most people know that isn't what keeps you going. People are usually heavy on the dates and flowers until they get comfortable. But you'll never see that in a book." Fifty shades was at least something that had kept up throughout the books. "Ended up sleeping with a married man until his wife tried to sneak her way into a three person thing. I had to leave after that."

"That's bad even for you." A raccoon mistakenly thought to be a cat? Christ have mercy. He was going to have to vet James and her bags before she stepped foot in his townhome. The last thing Luca wanted to be doing was chasing a rodent with a broom out of his clean home. "Not about the crocs...but the decorations," he nodded, trying to grasp the fanfare. He was pretty sure his goddaughter wore crocs and that was socially acceptable, because she was six. But what did he know? "So, what decorations would you get. A sun?" he chuckled before putting the dish in the oven. "Yes, I am taking over because I don't need you to mistakenly mix baking soda for sugar," he smirked before handing her the bowl of cookie dough. "Mix and form into balls to put on the cookie sheet."

"A sun is a joke." James says with a shake of her head as she looks at him with a judgemental air. The type of look that says he should be judged more for insinuating such a thing rather than her actually wearing crocs. "Maybe some type of skull or flower." It felt like a lot more aesthetically pleasing than a boring sun to her. Turning towards him to watch him start to take charge, she then walks over with a sigh. "Can I at least eat the cookie dough or did you put eggs in there?" She didn't think she had any eggs but she wasn't sure. Moving to the sink, she washes her hands because she isn't a monster. "This baking sheet?"

"According to some... You can." Dilara thinks back the number of disgusted people the last hour or so. Her head turns to look over at the blonde standing next to her as her fingertips graze the tops of the records in the box. "Blink-182 is good... Honestly, I love all sorts of music but I really enjoy collecting cool records so I would strictly want the Taylor Swift one because the record itself is pink or the teal one."

"I feel like there's some people who collect records to be able to flaunt that they do and others who genuinely just love listening and owning them." And she didn't know which type of person she was but she was kinda wondering if she was the first. Taylor Swift was a good choice and she was a fan but there was also a whole other world of classics out there that would be great to have on vinyl.

status: open

"Winner pays the tab?" she considers him before she shouting towards the nearest bartender to get his attention. "Keep 'em coming." Her index finger waves over the rum and coke that's likely to haunt her tonight when she's laying in bed with a bloated stomach and sugar rush. "Let me tie my hair up for this ass kicking."

“The fact that you thought that was acceptable to even bring into a person’s home is the saddening part of the whole thing,” he chuckled, throwing his hand up defensively so he didn’t get hit again. If it was him and he knew he missed or messed up an intricate part of a recipe he would have just tossed it in the trash. Equating the whole situation to lack of time or accidentally burning the dish. That was far better than mixing chocolate chips and raisins. The horror. “Crocs? James. Who are you even? Crocs? Might as well walk barefoot out here,” he said, shaking his head as he returned back towards the kitchen. “Are you gonna help me or am I just working over here for free?”

"You think this is bad? You should have seen some of the other shit I've brought into other people's homes. You gotta count yourself lucky that I didn't bring in a pet that I found on the street drunk one night. I'll tell you how that ended; it was a fucking raccoon that I accidentally mistook for a diseased cat. We couldn't find it come morning." And then she'd left and she remembered her friend telling her a week later that she'd finally gotten it. All ended well but crackers were innocent enough. "It's not about the crocs, it's about the little decorations." Those were what she wanted. "What do you need me to do? Seems like you've got it handled from where I'm standing at."

"You dined and dashed and ended up here?" He asked, huffing a laugh at how ludicrous it sounded. It wasn't a bad spot to treat as a haven to be fair, given there was free entry.

"Smart, isn't it?" More like childish because a thirty year old shouldn't be pulling that type of shit towards people who probably relied on tips but she was far from the epitome of maturity and responsibility.

"Cause I am, I always got three in rotation." He tells her, with an innate ease for someone who couldn't ever see himself maintaining an actual relationship of any actual merit with anyone but the cracker munching blonde next to him. Not that he was about to admit that to her -- that would be too easy and he didn't think she deserved easy after everything, even if his anger and ire at it all had wained some since he was first released.

"You wouldn't be able to handle three. Your hands, for one, you wouldn't know what to do with those. And let's be real," she smiles now, cheeks full of dry crackers that she's having trouble chewing and swallowing so they're stored there for the time being, "you can barely handle one." She goes so far as to twirl because she's gonna say it if he won't. "Don't feel bad, not a lot of people can handle me." Mainly because most people would also accuse her of having four other personalities to deal with too.

"You know just because a guy wants a few compliments doesn't make him easy. I'm actually a pretty difficult guy to land," Sebastian said in matter-of-fact tone as his stare narrowed on James. However, after only two seconds he managed to crack a smile and with the tap on his chest from her, it was hard not to at least snicker at the idea. "Yeah, the Uber might be a better idea. I'm a simple guy, if it's not a soft king-sized bed then I don't wanna sleep on it," He shot James another grin, unable to tell if he was actually joking or not at this point. After all Sebastian could be a little prissy when it came to the finer things in life. "Other than my mom's book club? Not a lot. It's kind of depressing," Sebastian answered with a sign as he took a sip of his newfound beer. He was definitely over-exaggerating. While nothing could truly compare to life on the road touring with his band, Philadelphia surprisingly had a lot to offer and Sebastian was still trying to find his footing back in his hometown. "I wouldn't go so far as the best company, especially if you don't even have a spare room with a king-sized bed for me," He joked with a smirk. "You are a smart, beautiful, and very charming woman, so if you wanna make money then do what all smart, beautiful, charming women do... feet pics," He said, grin widening as he let out a chuckle. It wasn't a real solution, that much Sebastian knew but that didn't make it any less amusing from where he was sitting, "Otherwise there's always crime. Or crypto. Maybe stocks? Honestly, I also don't know how the fuck people make money these days."

"Desperate, then?" James teases because she doesn't think that's the case with Seb either. She doesn't know whether he's easy to land or not because she hasn't seen him in action but maybe she would find out tonight and make a decision. "Well jury is still out on that but I'm sure I'll have better evidence to make a proper decision by the end of the night." There were a lot of pretty people here tonight so someone would end up trying to snag him. "A king bed? You must think I'm living the high-end life because I don't even have space in my living room for a king, much less in my bedroom." James had fit a queen in her bedroom and it was not the most functional space because of it but it works for her. "Not your mother's book club? Please tell me you were forced to listen to their opinions on fifty shades of grey." That sounded like a mom book that they would have read. The compliments were easily digested, smiling wider with each one before she ultimately grimaces. "I've thought about it, trust me. I don't know if I'll be able to stomach some of the things they ask me. I hear some of the request can be out there." Such as putting feet in certain items. Now she laughs because crime was something she tried and didn't work out too well for her even if it was still a part of her life. "Can't understand krypto and stocks and crime didn't work out for me the first time. I guess I could give it a second chance."

"Seriously James? This is what you do? No wonder you keep bringing shit cookies from the supermarket over," he sighed as she turned on the oven. They had been working on a full meal spread with a dessert when his sous chef got distracted by some noise coming through the wall. As he walked over, he placed his ear against the wall, surprised by the commotion. "Why are your walls so thin?"

"These aren't shit cookies," she swats his arm as if he insulted her first born or dog. "okay, there's like two times i mixed the chocolate chip with raisins." She places a hand on his chest when she needs him to quiet down but she realizes that its her own chewing that isn't allowing her to hear. "what did she say? I swear it was something about crocs. You know, i was thinking of getting a pair only for those little tiny things you pop in the holes. What are they called?"

"All I heard was that you think I'm cute," Sebastian was quick to retort with the same smug expression rising to his features once more. Sometimes he just heard what he wanted to hear and tonight his ego was choosing to focus on the compliments whether they were compliments or not. "Really? Midtown is gonna come through for me, huh..." Sebastian said, a bit in disbelief as his view panned to their surroundings. The bar had a decent crowd but it was still a bit early so Sebastian figured it could only get better from here. "Who says you need a flash of tits and some ecstasy to have a good time?" He added with the quirk of his brow and amusement written all over his face. Perhaps Sebastian a year ago would need those things just to feel something, but he had cleaned up his act since then and was trying to live a more authentic and drug-free life. "All I need is another beer..." His eyes drifted momentarily to the bartender so the man would get the hint on his refill, and then went back to James, "And the company of a good friend." He managed to keep a straight face for all but two seconds before he broke out in a small fit of laughter, "Alright, maybe I need a little more than that, but that's my problem, not yours. So what have you been up to these days?"

"Are you starved for compliments that bad? That makes you too easy Seb and that isn't great." She squints her eyes at him and taps his chest before grinning because they both know he likely doesn't have trouble getting attention from the right people. "You might become fond of partying here but don't text me each time because then I'm not gonna feel guilty when i make you Uber back to your place every night. It's too much of a workout to get my couch into a futon. Maybe I'll put you in the tub and the knot in your neck will make sure you don't ask again." Pausing to speak to the bartender, she looks back at him and laughs. "What else do you have going for you for fun?" After she thanked the bartender, she lifted her drink to bring it to her mouth. "Good company? You mean the best company." The bar wasn't super crowded which was a relief, allowing her to comfortably lean back against one of the empty stools. "Ruining lives and taking numbers." Now she laughs. "I was just googling how to make money without having to get on all fours so you know, there's that."

"Where'd you get these?" Marley's brows furrowed, though it did not keep her from accepting the crackers extended in her direction, happily taking two for herself and doing her best to chew quietly as she tried to listen in on what the other blonde had alerted her to. She had no qualms about eavesdropping, about being nosey regarding other people's business. If being a gossip was wrong, then she did not want to be right. "I'm almost positive we're listenin' to a murder plot right now."

"In my car." Which doesn't sound appealing given that she doesn't remember when she last bought them. After trying one and finding that they were a little stale but still edible, she chose to eat them. Pausing her chewing to hear, she turns to Marley and nods. "Fuck, I'm not wearing my good bra to be on camera as an eye-witnesses. You might have to stand behind me and prop my tits up just under the line of the camera." She put her arms together enhancing her cleavage.

Clem cracks a smile, and if anyone were watching them, the mixture of adoration and awe on her face while she's looking at her cousin would have been the brightest thing in the room. James is the coolest person she knows, which is totally crazy considering they're blood relatives and Clementine has never felt like the sort of person anyone would ever look at and think of that way.

James' nose wrinkles when her cousin tells her that someone yelled at her because of a bouquet. "I hope to fuck he didn't. You should have told him where he could shove those flowers." She refuses to believe that Clem can do any wrong, and while she didn't, it stood for any situation. But she pauses to think a bit about the idea of people being good and bad. Some could say that evil lives inside of her after abandoning the man who took the blame for her while he was in prison. But she has to believe there is also some good in her.