they may say i'm a dreamer

As he watched the Leila rotate the blade away from her, Foster realized the advice maybe wasn't so misplaced... He understood now why Phoebe felt so protective of her — for as smart as she clearly was, it appeared her curiosity could come at the expense of common sense. "Yeah, it is pretty dumb, now that you mention it," he agreed. And for as much as he worried about Leila, he thought Phoebe might be even more of a risk. He looked over to where the brunette was still chatting with CJ. "You think- I mean... should we trust Phoebe with this kind of activity?" He very much liked her with all her limbs attached...

Dumb as it may have been, Leila was glad that the activity was there anyway. It was something new to do and try and that was good enough for her. Whatever danger there may have been to worry about could be worried about if something bad actually happened. "A little dumb, but it's okay. No one's died from axe throwing probably," she waved off, not actually all that confident of that fact. "But, of course we should trust her. It's fun, so like, why would we not trust her?" If the guys running the place were willing to hand them the axes, they were the experts and she was all in. "I'd be more worried about us when she throws it, so maybe just like, duck y'know."

Unsure how to answer Leila’s question without flat-out lying, which he was super against, or without sounding like he was a dick towards Foster, CJ just shrugged noncommittally. Her not picking up on the vibe was a blessing, he guessed. That meant she wouldn’t tell Phoebe, and then Phoebe wouldn’t have any reason to give Seb shit. It helped that she seemed more interested in the smashing shit conversation anyway.

The fact that CJ didn't give a real answer bothered Leila for all of ten seconds before a smile came across his face and the conversation turned to paintball. As brilliant as she could be in a lot of ways, it didn't take much to distract her with something else. "Yeah? It was kind of fun, I would do it again! Is there a good place to go around here for it?" she chirped in agreement, more than willing to give the sport a second chance. She hadn't technically made it into an actual game the first and last time she'd attempted paintball, but sitting on the side modifying the paintball gun had been plenty of fun. Perhaps the second time she'd actually get in there and play a round instead of just shooting paintballs idly at a target after missing the match.

CJ recalled Leila being here not too long ago; her and Phoebe did 'random shit' together, as Seb aptly described, but the involvement of Foster in the two-some's plans had left the rage room operator confused. Especially since the chef seemed to walk away without an axe wounds when the session was over. Not that CJ had a chance to talk to the guy, Phoebe had intercepted any potential interaction early on, blabbering on about Seb's birthday in a way that she was impyling something he couldn't quite follow.

The man's words brought a pause from Leila's excited bouncing about, head cocking to the side in confusion as she tried to puzzle out why it was a bad thing that Foster had all his limbs still together. "Is it...are you not supposed to come out of the axe throwing with all your limbs?" she asked, not concerned that she'd missed part of the game and how to win. Her brows were now narrowed deeply, thinking back through the day in which she didn't recall a single person leaving with a missing limb. Unless, perhaps, she was just missing the whole point of what CJ was saying entirely.

Her explanation comforted him a little bit, knowing it wasn't just misplaced confidence and she actually had some experience. Unlike him, who had been spurred on in his carnival game failure solely by the desire to prove Phoebe wrong. All of his pointers seemed stupid in light of that, though, as his expertise in sharp objects was limited to slicing and dicing and ended long before they became airborne. His initial thought of 'chill out when you've got that shit in your hands' seemed more likely to damper Leila's mood, and the last thing he wanted was Phoebe thinking he couldn't get along with her friends. Seb and CJ were one thing, but Leila was easy to like... He decided instead to play it off as a joke. "Well, I find that, generally speaking, it's better to keep the sharp parts pointed away from you," he said, trying to make it exaggeratedly clear he was pointing out the obvious. "And your internal organs — you're gonna wanna try to keep them that way..."

Leila, who had already turned the axe towards her to look at it, shot another sheepish smile towards Foster as his first tip was to keep the sharper part pointed in the other direction. Slowly, she twisted the axe handle around to face it the other direction, giving a firm nod in response. "Sharp parts pointed away, that's easy enough," she agreed, taking the advice far more seriously than Foster was intending it to be taken. "No danger in my organs coming out either. Probably. I don't think these are all that sharp." Leila poked a bit at the axe, a small chuckle leaving her lips when she realized that it was actually a good bit sharper than she would have expected for an activity like this. "Kind of wild that they just trust people with sharp stuff like this," she mused, not counting herself in the group of people that shouldn't be trusted with them.

→ break room. closed for @leilabarak

After visiting the break room for axe throwing with Foster recently, Leila had opted for a return visit to check out the rest of the activities. While she wasn't sure that she agreed with the idea of busting up old things when they could very easily be repurposed and used for something better, she supposed it was worth checking into. "Hey! Owl guy!" she chirped out in greeting as she bounced inside. "I think that's why I'm here. I threw axes the other day and that was fun, so I figured, maybe smashing stuff could be fun too. Unless there's something more fun, then...maybe that instead." If he worked here, maybe he had some other secret, fun, only people in the know could be a part of it type of activity.

carissa wasn't one to say no to plans with any of her friends, even if the girl decided to bring her dog along. she brought her diet coke up to her lips and took a sip, attempting to bite back a smile as the other asked how her date went. "it went really well." she breathed out and tucked some of her hair behind her ear as she set her drink back down on the table. "actually, i'm going to be seeing him again soon. do you know mei's cousin, jacob? that's actually who she set me up with."

The news that the date had gone over well brought an immediate smile to Leila's face, even Brock getting in on the excitement even if he didn't know what for. "That's awesome! I'm glad it went well," she hummed back with a nod before grabbing another slice of pizza to her plate. Taking the pepperonis off, she tossed one down to Brock, keeping the rest set aside for further treats. "I don't think I know him! But, if it went well, I'd guess he's probably pretty cool. Where do you think you guys are going for your next date?"

Jessica tended to keep a variety of snacks around when they were working, tending to munch on things rather than having a whole meals. 'A grazier' their mother called it. While Jess always made sure to have a proper dinner, lunch was definitely hit or miss most days, the redhead rather keeping something in her pocket to grab and throw in her mouth between tasks. This week she was spoiling herself with something sweet to have on hand, and of course the Sugar Shack was the perfect place to get something. Apparently Leila had the same idea, though the other woman's focus seemed to be on one candy and one only. A laugh rose in their throat at the question that Leila seemed rather reluctant to actually ask. "No, you're good, add it to your stash." A wink at the brunette. @leilabarak

There was a visible relief that flooded through Leila when Jessica waved off the offer. As much as Leila could be a generous person, she also wasn't the best at sharing when she wanted something either. "Oh! Good, I wasn't sure if this was going to be enough," she admitted, looking back down at her basket. Even still she wasn't sure it would be enough to last until the next shipment of gummy bears came in to the store. Her hand patted at the packages of bears, hoping she could manage to ration them enough to get her and Brock through the week. "What are you lookin' for?" She knew her way around the store better perhaps than even some of the employees and figured she at least could help Jess find something if there was something specific they were looking for.

Once he found out the truth about Brock, it became readily apparent his proposal for a double date would have to shift a little. And with Misty currently going through her transitional territorial phase, he and Phoebe had decided it was best not to come home smelling of another animal just yet. The Break Room seemed like a good compromise, though now that he saw the glee with which Leila was wielding her axe, he started to second guess that opinion. "Uh, kinda," he tried to agree, though what he was really thinking was that carnival games didn't usually involve deadly weapons. And from what Phoebe had told him about the baseball game, he also wasn't sure he believed Leila's assessment.

Much like the baseball game she'd managed to spin out spectacularly from, Leila had a complete and utter sense of confidence that she would have no problem with throwing the axe. This time, at least, she had some basis for her confidence. She was good at carnival games, which felt at least a little similar to this. "One of the jobs I have I help build carnival game type challenges for a show, so I've gotten a lot of practice," she explained, trying to at least a little bit put Foster at ease. She could sense a bit of nerves from Foster and given her track record she couldn't blame him. This time, though, she was absolutely certain that he had no reason for concern.

She felt bad that her sister was pushing the stroller with her daughter in it. But, there was also no convincing her sister not to push the stroller. Dilan was grateful for the break, however, walking alongside the two of them, following Leila's weaves through the aquarium. It was one of her favorite places to take her daughter, "I think she likes seeing them swim over like that," she told her sister, "her eyes get so wide and she's so curious about it." @leilabarak

Leaning over the stroller a bit to peek down at Selvi, Leila could see the young baby looking up already in wonder as the fish started swimming around in the waters above them. "That's so cool," she mused, more enraptured with watching her niece than she was with watching the fish around them. "Maybe she'll be a marine biologist or like...she could raise fish or something." It was something she loved to think about, the many paths in life that Selvi had ahead of her.

carissa wasn't going to make something work that wouldn't work but she had high hopes for the date regardless and all of her friends seemed pretty encouraging. "what? fiji? i'm so jealous. that's like top five on my potential honeymoon list. you'll have to tell me how it is or have you already been before? you know, my dream vacation, honeymoon or not, is greece. i've heard it's beautiful and i'd love nothing more than to go," she paused and looked up at the waitress as she approached their table just long enough to give her the proper attention so that the two could order their food. once both of them had ordered, she gave her attention back to leila, "what are you going to work on?"

"Oh! I go all the time! It's absolutely the best," she chirped with a nod. It was one destination that Leila found herself on a yearly basis for her work and it was somewhere that she would always recommend for anyone that liked the beach. "Greece I've not been to before, though. I've seen pictures, though, and yeah, it looks pretty there." Generally Leila only ever travelled when it was for work, so Greece wasn't on her list of places to be any time soon, but the pictures definitely did make a case for it. "Mmm, I help design and build big puzzles for a TV show that films there. I've got a few different ones planned, so I get to go out there and help see the challenges get built, make sure they work right and all that. I've been doing it for a long time now, it's always fun to get out there for awhile."

Aarti smiled as the friendly dog bounded up to her, his paw raised in greeting. She chuckled and crouched down to pet the dog, ruffling his fur affectionately. "Well hello there, handsome!" She glanced up at Leila with a grin. "I actually just had a cheeseburger for lunch, so he might be smelling that on me. But I'll take the flirting, too." Aarti winked playfully. As she continued petting Brock, she noticed Leila hanging back a bit. "I love how friendly he is." Despite not having a pet herself, this was why she volunteered. She loved being around them. Animals, unlike humans, were pure. Standing up again, she greeted her friend. “How have you been, Leila?”

Brock was immediately smiling when the attention was given back, his body scooting in closer at the greeting. "For a cheeseburger, he's definitely flirting then. He loves a cheeseburger," Leila grinned, shooting an affectionate glance down towards the dog. He was, without a doubt, the light of her life, and she couldn't help but feel a swell of pride whenever he brought that same joy to other people. "It's the best. I'm glad he ended up being this friendly with everyone." It made things easier for Leila, who otherwise would probably never approach people in the way that Brock did. "Good, though. Good. Busy with work, mostly. Um, hanging out with Brock. Went to the movie thing with Dilan and Selvi the other night, so that was good. What about you, anything new at all with you?"

"You know that I will." Dilan smiled at her sister. She was grateful for them being close and wondered if she would be able to give Selvi a sibling or simply being close to those that had children her age would suffice. "Let's hope your auntie Leila is right," Dilan chimed in with another small before her smile fell from her lips. "We are close now," Dilan was happy to have her family in her corner as much as she did, "even if getting here was a bit tough, huh?" She gave her sister a smile, "I suppose that's what family is all about." Dilan partly teased, "Oh - uh, Erol and I said I love you," she sheepishly slipped in with reddened cheeks in the dark. @leilabarak

Leila hoped that she was right and that Selvi was just as perfect in the future as a teenager as she was now as a baby. With Dilan guiding her through life, though, she didn't doubt for a moment that she would be raised right. "Yeah, it was. I probably don't talk to mom as much as I should. I should probably call her sometime soon," Leila mused. It was something she'd always been bad at. Keeping in touch with people when they weren't right there in front of her was something she rarely did. Even with her own family, it wasn't uncommon for her to go weeks, if not longer, without remembering to reach out or return calls. "Oh! That's...that's really good! Maybe that wedding isn't as far off as you said."