in search of small gods

WEDNESDAY JULY 15, SUNRISE at WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH 

@wilmingtonstarters / open starter 

She drew a deep breath through her nose, filling her lungs as her feet found their place against the sand. The waves crashing against the shore lost to the puff of ragged breathing, and the music that filled her ears. The wires of her headphones bouncing in time with each step as she made her way down the beach. Despite having never lived close to the shoreline, Marianne had always loved the water. The beach. The feel of it so different from the downtown core that she had grown up. Of course, the sand was never a home, yet it had come close. A respite that had given her strength over those last thirty-nine years.

Her pace slowed as her attention was pulled more squarely by that early morning air kissing at her cheeks—sea salt left in its wake—as she smiled. Closed her eyes. How long had she been running, she wasn’t entirely certain, her mind unable to switch off from the night before, unable to shake the worry—the fear from the dreams that never seemed to leave her.  Running had been an outlet, something safe, and so she tugged on her sneakers and went off into the world. Yet this time had been a little different, for rather than remain within that concrete jungle the woman had boarded a bus and made her way towards the sea. Her came to rest then within the sand as she peered out at the water. Chest heaving with unsteady breaths, “Beautiful,” she murmured to herself, hand tugging a headphone free from its place as the sun began to rise.

          “It certainly can be.” Though, what had drawn Jason to this particular spot and to peer out at the ocean at the crack of dawn hadn’t been to marvel at it’s beauty. Or the sunrise he appreciated so much yet hadn’t really had nor taken the time to truly appreciate in quite some time. The anniversary of his older sister’s passing had come days prior to this moment, and his niece’s birthday was the following week. The day’s leading up to these emotional couple of weeks always weighed on him a little heavier, they put him in a place of deep reflection and longing. And hope. Hope that he was doing the little blonde girl in his care some justice in the world and giving her a fraction of the life she deserved. Mostly, he just missed Shannon terribly and felt some anguish over the fact that she never had been allowed to see her little angel grow, nor Kaya getting to know her amazing mother. “They say that salt water is a cleanse, it’s a healing agent...” The words slipped from the end of his tongue randomly, speaking freely because a moment like this he had no real guard up. “But it looks like you’re not exactly here for either, the beauty or the healing properties.” A smile adorned his features then, “just a nice backdrop for your fitness.”

@wilmingtonstarters​

“Sorry, you wouldn’t be Frankie — would you?” The brunette asked at the nearest individual who had their back turned to her. Francesca, Franklin, she didn’t actually know. All she’d been told was that she would be going out with someone who her work friends believed she’d get along with. Now, she was certain she’d been stood up. “Never mind, I think It’s time for me to accept the inevitable and realize I’ve been stood up.” She groaned then, wrinkling her nose in distaste. “I think it’s time for me to get a real drink now. Would you like one? My treat.” 

          From behind, in Wilmington, Jason no doubt looked a dime a dozen in his nice flannel shirt and jeans as he sat at the bar. It was a rare stop for a drink that he afforded himself after and especially hard week and with Kaya spending the evening at her friend’s house. Looking over his shoulder, his lips curved into a smile at seeing Claire. “Nope, I’m afraid not.” Thick shoulders shrugged and he soon shifted to offer the seat beside him. “How about a drink on me instead? If you’ve been stood up I think it’s the least I could do.” It was hard for him to swallow that some people had no courtesy or decency. “Hopefully this Frankie wasn’t someone you were eagerly looking forward to meeting.”

              “Then consider us there, Cash.” She was sure she could steal Jess away from her father, Thalia’s brother-in-law, long enough to attend the shindig for Kaya’s birthday. Not to mention that it’d be good for all involved. The blonde included. “It has the word ‘Harvard’ in, online or not, I’m automatically impressed. The only thing I’ve ever had from Harvard was a sweater I stole from a friend of mine.” And by ‘friend’, it was an old ex of hers that she borrowed way back when, which eventually became a permanent fixture in her wardrobe, the soft material still folded away in her drawers back home. So, it was safe to say it was no kind of class, or qualification, something that his own niece was well on her way to, or at least looking into the prospect of it. Thankfully, the topic continued to sway in the topic of something that the blonde was far more well versed in these days; event planning. More specifically, Kaya’s birthday party. Ultimately, it seemed as though her suggestion was a hit, Jason more than enthusiastic on the matter, leaving a smirk tugging at the corners of her lips, his own excitement obvious at the idea of putting something together that his niece would enjoy. It was adorable, really. How much he loved the little girl in his custody. “I can’t tell who’s going to be more excited about this thing. You, or her.” A laugh followed-suit as her admission left her lips, eyes darting up to the male, scanning over his features before settling on his deep cerulean’s. As the hand pressed against the small of her back, directing her to the location of the restaurant they were due to venture to next, head turned briefly to catch his gaze, before pondering at his question. “Of all the things you wanna know about me, this is the one you wanna know most, huh?” A smirk once more falling across her lips, before biting at her bottom lip for a brief moment. “It’s gotta be BBQ Chicken. Could never decline a slice of that beautiful pizza.” It was her usual when it came to ordering from the likes of Domino’s. Tonight would be no exception, except for the fact that her craving was more for garlic bread than anything right now, looking forward to tucking into the delicious starter. “So, did my answer deter you from spending the evening with me, or are we still good to go?” The soft chuckle followed, a shrug emulating thereafter, knowing what people were like when it came to pizza and it’s toppings. Judgements galore, apparently. The poor ‘Hawaiian’ fans got the worst of said ridicule. “Your opinion hasn’t changed on me, has it, Cash?”

           “Good.” A smile touched his lips at the thought: Thalia at a children’s birthday party. Even with caring for her own niece when and where she could, it was something Jason had yet to see of the leggy blonde. Something he found himself looking forward to when it came to her. As much as he appreciated their friendship, particularly what they really connected on, it had always been something in the back of his mind. Something he mostly thought of subconsciously rather than actively. Which was: how a woman was with children. No matter if he was entertaining dating ideas of them or not, pure fantasy in his head somewhere, as a man with an almost eight year old in his care looked for those things without looking. Thalia was a woman out of his league and remarkably different from himself, which was largely the reason he never blurred any lines between them to seek a date here or there. Well, aside from the wedding. Which he enjoyed. He was hopeless, he knew he couldn’t keep most women entertained but he often got a little lost in that reverie. 

          “I get it. Try arguing with a seven year old that’s looking to take some Harvard masterclasses.” An amused chuckle bubbled up his throat. It was never an easy thing to disclose, or even accept, that his little niece was smarter than he was. Jason was a man that had been one semester away from finishing college when Shannon had gotten sick, and that was the end of it all for him. He was in the police academy and working to make a living so he could help with medical costs and the soon to be niece that was going to enter the world. When his sister passed and Kaya was willed to him, there was no going back. Being a parent was tough, that was something he learned incredibly quickly and possibly even apologized to his parents over, and even tougher when doing it on your own. “A Harvard sweatshirt from a friend, huh?” There was a playful note in his words, teasing her slightly as he picked up the drift. “Must not like it too much. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wear it around.” Pointing that out was only his attempt to dig a little deeper. 

“I know,” she said softly as she looked at him. Her breathing regulated as she eyed the car and shook her head. “It was so stupid. I thought I had the car in drive but it was in reversed and I just pressed on the gas a little too hard. It’s embarrassing.” Cat wasn’t sure if she was more pissed that she’d have to explain the same thing to her mother or that she had to tell it to the hot laq enforcement who’d pulled up at the scene and tried to see if she was in a bad shape. How could she tell him she was merely stupid. Looking him over, she dramatically rolled her eyes. “Old — don’t even start. You’re aging like fine wine. Brad pitt, who?” She grinned then. Rising from her feet, she pushed a strand of hair from her face and smirked. “Well, I would have said that I’d kiss you but I don’t think it’s fair for me to be that forward.” Her eyes moved over him to her car, mainly because the male seemed to be a little uncomfortable with her forwardness so she didn’t want him to feel like he needed to play along. Especially if he wasn’t interested in being the target of her compliments. “I’d love that,” she nodded her head when he mentioned he’d park it over there. Slowly, she began to make her way over there as well. By then, her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment at the entire scenario and how he’d walked in on that. “I might need to contact you because I don’t know much and I’ve had horrible experiences with garages. Mainly, she’d paid more than twice what someone normally would because they’d taken advantage of her lack of knowledge. “Some people just see a pretty face and want to get as much money out of you as they can. Sadly, it’s worked.”

          At the explanation, Jason nodded his head along, finding some understanding in how that could have happened. After all, in his early days on the force when he’d respond to traffic calls he’d heard very similar mishaps. Beyond that, it actually seemed reasonable. Surely he’d done it before himself even, just caught himself before he drove into anything. “Don’t beat yourself up,” he attempted to soothe with a soft smile, “these are called accidents for a reason. Sometimes we have a little too much on our minds, you know?” It wasn’t challenging to fall off focus with life’s one too many distractions, so he smiled once more and hoped she’d take a breath and realize it really wasn’t too bad. The damage looked as though it could be repaired. His brows lifted and eyes widened as she paid him another compliment, an even bigger one. One that didn’t feel all that deserving. Jason was too humble of a man after all. “If you’re trying to flatter me, it’s working. I should tell you that it’s not needed, though. I’m not writing you up any kind of ticket here.” It was easier to play off her comments that way, not because they didn’t soften him up or make him feel any type of way, especially from someone so beautiful, but because he didn’t want to be misleading in any way. “I’m never opposed to a kiss on the cheek,” he winked at the brunette, finding a bit of his playful and slightly flirtatious side coming out. It was hard to resist when she was so open. Once he’d parked the car and met up with her again, his hands went on a search patting his pockets for where he might have a card. When he’d found what he was looking for, he handed his business card over to her. “You can contact me anytime,” Jason said firmly but with a charmed smile. “My, uhh, my cell is on there, so... yeah.” Subtly, saying she could reach him personally anytime she wanted. Whether it was for fixing her car or, well, anything else. “I’m sorry that’s been your experience. I suppose having such a pretty face isn’t always as advantageous as one would think.” With that ever present smile etching deeper into his expression, Jason’s hand draped over his breast bone. “I promise I will not let anyone take advantage of you. I actually think I can get a good bit of that fixed up myself.”

⇾  AT THE COPPER PENNY.                      ft. @wilmingtonstarters​.

           “So, what’s a girl gotta do to get a drink around here?” The brunette uttered, chin resting firmly against her knuckles as it propped her up, resting against the bar beneath her. However, it seemed as though the evening was fairly busy, as far as weeknights went at The Cooper Penny, but that wasn’t about to stop Gema from receiving an evening of entertainment, and a constant supply of drinks to keep up that buzz. After all, she didn’t have work until late tomorrow, allowing her time to recover before she went back to the whole ‘saving lives’ thing she signed up for. “I’m bored. Fancy taking a seat, or what?”

            He was right. For as young as she was, most of her chosen crowd were that of adults, and usually those close to her uncle; Jason. Which by proxy, seemed to include Thalia. An odd sentiment to the blonde who once was the furthest thing from acceptable where children were concerned. Hell, maybe she still wasn’t? But she’d been trying. For the sake of her own niece. For her late-sister, who thought she was capable of more, despite wronging her in the biggest way possible. So, when Jason specifically asked for her to attend with Jessica, she was shocked, and appreciative in the same moment. “If she wants us there, then of course.” The blonde confirmed, knowing she wasn’t about to miss the eight year old’s celebration. “Are you serious?” Her tone shocked, exclaiming as much in her question, at the idea of the young girl attending Harvard, purely because she could. She was the brightest kid that Thalia had ever countered. Hell, she was smarter than most adults, including herself amidst the statement. “Have you thought about the Science Museum for her birthday? It’s got a ton of activities there for the kids to have a field day, and it’s educational, something that Kaya would enjoy.” It had the best of both worlds. “Not only that, but I’m almost positive they have a side area where they host lunches for birthdays and things, so you get to have your party concept too.” ‘Cause, she figured that was more for Jason than anything. The cakes and balloons. “Just something to keep in mind.” Whatever he decided on, she was positive it would be the best outcome for his niece, ‘cause at the end of the day, he put her first. As it should be. Either way, she was going to be thrilled with whatever he decided for the day. “I could eat. But then again, I can always eat.” A smirk crossed her features at the detectives question, not particularly fussed where they ended up, as long as it involved feeding her. “There a pizza joint nearby? I’m thinking I could eat my body weight in garlic bread and other doughy goodness right about now. You up for that?”

Catalina looked at him and pouted. “I didn’t need the reminder. It’s enough that the back wheel isn’t even touching the ground anymore.” The brunette said in exasperation as she lifted her hand towards the back end of her car with a pout. “I swear I’m a good driver.” She shook her head but stilled when the male knelt down to look at her. “You’re cute.” She said without shame as she looked him over. If there was one highlight to all of this, it was that she had a hot member of the law enforcement looking after her. “Jimmy is kinda hot too.” The woman laughed as she took his hand and rose to her feet, wiping her hands against the back of her pants. “Sorry, was that inappropriate? We’ll blame it on the shock.” The girl said as she pushed some strands from her face. When the door popped open mid-way through her walk, she cried out of excitement. “God, I could kiss the both of you.” Just as she went to leap forward to close the car, she paused when the other did it. Peering at him momentarily, she nodded her head and stepped back. “I think that might be the smartest thing for everyone involved. I trust you better than I do myself right now.”

          It was too great of a challenge to resist smiling when she pouted and pointed out even further the severity of her accident. “I believe you,” Jason soothed, if only to keep from upsetting her. “I’m just curious and perhaps somewhat concerned at what happened here. That’s all.” Though, as he moved closer into her space and they were face to face, she actually proceeded to render him a little bashful over the compliment. “What? This old thing?” Gesturing to his bearded face, Jason made no attempts to hide the smile she put on his lips. He likely needed to check her for a concussion later, though for the time being he rather ignore that and soak up the little moment. “Despite your parking job—” The words died on the tip of his tongue, never to be released the moment he was able to get her to her feet and she upped the ante. Perhaps he was being too literal, doing a little overthinking on the ‘kinda hot too’ with an emphasis on the too... It had been so long since someone had flirted with him, he settled himself down and figured he was getting ahead of himself. “No, no... that was funny.” And a grin hopefully displayed he truly thought so. “Jimmy is saving your day here so I think that’s only natural.” Sending a wink her way, Jason soon got the door open and turned the engine off. At the mention of a kiss, some soft laughter spilled past his lips and he might have actually blushed. Usually he was much more controlled and much more of a gentleman but she kept catching him off-guard. Holding the car jimmy up, “I don’t think you’d like it much.” With his ever present smile at this point, Jason shoved the jimmy in his back pocket and nodded at her answer. “I’m just going to park it at the curb right up ahead.” He pointed out, and thankfully someone had just vacated a spot. As soon as he did so, he exited her vehicle and approached the pretty brunette with the keys in hand, offering them to her. “If you don’t have anyone that can fix that rear for you, let me know. I know some people or I can maybe do a thing or two myself.”

As embarrassment continued to consume her, Remy couldn’t help but cover her face for a second as if she was shielding herself from the feeling. She genuinely felt bad. For both saying it out loud in front of Jason and for judging the man. It had just been so unexpected that it was like word vomit. “Oh god, I’m so, so sorry.” She confessed—completely apologetic in her tone. “I totally didn’t mean to say that out loud. Didn’t even know what it was. Saw the notification and bam… full frontal.” It was her attempt to try and explain her case. “A nice personality? I don’t even know. I uh, I’ve never talked to him. I guess that was his way of breaking the ice or something. Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to be such a jerk there. I just wasn’t exactly expecting…well that.” 

          He had plenty of time to figure things out, and Thalia wasn’t about to let him give up on the idea, and resort back to that of games and cake. Especially considering he was aware it wasn’t necessarily her thing. “Hey — this is a kid whose favourite thing is learning, so why not use that?” She didn’t need some big get-together with the friends who differed from her so heavily, not every year at least. What was wrong with taking her to a museum, or allowing her to roam the biggest library they could find? “Does she want friends involved, or would she prefer it was just the two of you?” It was crucial for the blonde to know if she was going to be any kind of help in this situation. She’d come to know the eight year old fairly well since her return to town, and it was one of the biggest things that she and Jason had bonded over, considering her own niece had become a crucial part of her life since her sister’s death. “Can we just hire her out a library and let her go wild?” A small smirk crossed her lips, a laugh soon following, the idea less serious, but also not entirely off the table.

@wilmingtonstarters​

“No, I’m fine.” Cat spoke from beneath the curtain of tresses that hid her face. “I just can’t look at the fucking thing. My mother is going to murder me.” For some reason, she’d decided to take her mothers car to run errands and while backing out, she’d somehow went over the sidewalk where she proceeded to hit the pole that then dented the car. As if that wasn’t bad enough, she rushed out and locked the keys in her car while it was running. Hence the position she took on the sidewalk with her head lowered in shame. Without triple A or any sort of roadside assistance, she was at a loss. Her head lifted slowly to peer at the individual. “You wouldn’t happen to have a coat hanger, would you?” Tough fucking luck. “The car is ancient and I just put a full tank in. — Fuck.”

          Typically Jason didn’t stop for routine traffic accidents and let the patrol handle them, yet since he was right there and had nothing else to rush off to he came to see what he could do to help. He’d also decided against calling it in. “You sure? Because you kind of drove over a curb and backed into a pole.” If there was any damage that would be very expensive to fix. Squatting down in front of her, he kept his tone modulated and offered a bit of a smile to an unfortunate circumstance that she was already beating herself up over. “Can you just look me in the eyes a few moments? I just want to be sure you’re alright. I’ve got a jimmy to help you out with the locked door so don’t worry about that.” A brief assessment told Jason that she was just stressed and not under the influence of anything, even off-duty old habits died hard. Soon enough he righted himself to his full height and offered her a hand. “Can we get you on your feet and have you take a few deep breaths for me? I’ll go get the jimmy, just take some pressure off yourself and move around a bit.” Within a few minutes Jason had walked to his truck, got the jimmy, returned and opened up her door for her. The first thing he did was reach in and turn the motor off and pull the keys free. “Want me to drive this to the nearest parking space for you?”

          “So yeah, her birthday is in three weeks and I have no idea what I should do for her.” To say his niece was a complicated child was an understatement. The little blonde didn’t enjoy the same things the majority of soon-to-be eight year olds did; Kaya preferred adult company and was far advanced in her reading and math. For fun she did research in books and on the internet, and most nights Jason laid across the couch with her sitting on him and gabbing on and on about the things she’d learned that day. “In the past I’ve thrown the usual parties with games and cake. It’s just not really her thing, though.” With a smile curving his lips Jason glanced at the leggy blonde strolling with him and listening to him rant. Something he was sure Thalia wished she could get out of by now. In fact, since he’d brought this up the last time they saw each other was reason enough for her to be rolling her eyes and tuning him out. “I need help.”

OPEN STARTER: @wilmingtonstarters​​

LOCATION: Big Burger Diner 

“Wow, okay…is his dick even supposed to be in the picture?—I can’t find it.” Ideally, those words were meant for her head. Something she should’ve just kept to herself as she looked at the new message on the damn dating app. She wasn’t even sure why in God’s hell she even downloaded it in the first place when she knew something like this was going to happen—yet here she was. And in the midst of realizing what had fallen from her lips, Remy looked up with wide blue eyes and crimson cheeks that so clearly illustrated her embarrassment. “Oh god, I said that out loud, didn’t I?” 

⇾ AT KING NEPTUNE RESTAURANT             ft. @wilmingtonstarters​.

           “I wouldn’t leave just yet, if I were you,” Cleo began, immediately taking off the otherwise soaked-through jacket she was sporting on her way to King Neptune, where she was mostly taking refuge. “Unless you’ve got the sturdiest umbrella to ever live, or you wanna look like me?…— aka a drowned rat.” The woman chuckled, droplets of water dripping down her body and her hair into an increasingly growing pool of water at her feet. “Apparently it decided to torrential pour out there, just as I decided to take a stroll.” Wasn’t that always the way? Admittedly, she was by no means prepared, nor did she check the weather, but alas, she hardly anticipated the shift in weather today.