█ ▌ 𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐀𝐍

Katya was lucky to have scored a seat at the bar tonight, but a regular wasn't even half of it. Most of the higher members of staff found themselves here night in and night out, and it'd paid off for her in the grand scheme of things. Bemelmans was one of her favorite haunts, especially as the live pianist tattled away in the corner. It was atmospheric, to say the least, and something she found she enjoyed. There was a half chance she'd buy a bottle after this drink and head off to the rooftop, like she did when she had some free time.

The people around her were ever changing, seats occupied for ten minutes, sometimes an hour — she'd stopped looking at the people who occupied the space to her left and right. And yet, when she heard the scrapping of the chair legs against the floor, and something told her to look up.

Her phone was far more interesting, she told herself.

❛ Hm. Last I checked, I wasn’t a ghost. ❜ His voice carried the easy cadence of someone used to microphones, velvet smooth with just enough bite to draw attention. He leaned his tall frame onto the barstool, rain still dripping from the edge of his coat, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. ❛ Though you make it sound like I should apologize for existing. ❜

Luke shifted his gaze toward Stella, taking a moment to study her in silence, a gentle smile plastered across his face. Maybe, just maybe, he could let things move further between them if it weren’t for one detail ; her daughter was his best friend, practically family, and that line should never be crossed. Still, Stella wasn’t like most women. She was determined, charming, spoke like the devil, and carried herself with the kind of confidence that made his chest tighten. Few women ever made him feel anything, but she was exhilarating.

He leaned in slightly, his grin widening, playful mischief lighting up his eyes. ❛ What do you mean by ‘side hustle’? Aren’t you supposed to be the powerful woman in Australia? ❜ His brows waggled as he flashed her a toothy smile, teasing her. He leaned closer, testing the electricity between them.

tw: allusions to drugs / death / abuse throughout. change pronouns as needed

"You know better, babe."

"Honey, make this easy."

"All you have is your fire."

"I need you to run to me."

"It looks ugly, but it's clean."

"And it's worth it, it's divine."

"Calls of guilty thrown at me."

"Always a well-dressed fraud."

"Honey, please, try to love me."

"The purest expression of grief..."

"Jesus Christ, don't be kind to it."

"Rare is this love, keep it covered."

"I know who I am when I'm alone."

"In some sad way, I already know."

"I prayed my mind be good to me."

"Jesus Christ, don't be kind to me."

"Don't give it a hand, offer it a soul."

"That's a kindness you can't afford."

"My dearest love, I'm not done, yet."

"She loves like sleep to the freezing."

"Oh, but she burns like rum on a fire."

"Oh, please, give me mercy no more."

"I will not ask and neither should you."

"You soon find you have few choices."

"I called your name till the fever broke."

"She tells me I'm hers and she is mine."

"Honey, don't feed it, it will come back."

"We should just kiss like real people do."

"Run until you feel your lungs bleeding."

"Honey, don't feed me, I will come back."

"I will not ask you where you came from."

"Don't let it in with no intention to keep it."

"Leave it to the land, this is what it knows."

"I've known the warmth of your doorways."

"You'll hear me howling outside your door."

"I turned and ran to save a life I didn't have."

"I heard a scream in the woods somewhere."

"Why were you digging? What did you bury?"

"I knew that look, dear, eyes always seeking."

"I found something in the woods somewhere."

"You've done me wrong. For a long, long time."

"So, I will not ask you why you were creeping..."

"You don't understand, you should never know."

"What caused the wound? How large the teeth?"

"You know better, babe, than to look at it like that."

"Don't let me in with with no intention to keep me."

"You should never know how easy you are to need."

"I've no language left to say it, but all I do is quake to her."

"Her eyes look sharp and steady into the empty parts of me."

"Something in it had a power... could barely tear my eyes away."

"But my peace has always depended on all the ashes in my wake."

"Still, my heart is heavy with the hate of some other man's beliefs."

"What did you bury Before those hands pulled me from the earth?"

"All that I've been taught, and every word I've got, is foreign to me."

"I know who I am when I'm alone. I'm something else when I see you."

"Don't you ever tame your demons, but always keep them on a leash."

"I will not ask you where you came from... I will not ask and neither should you."

"When I was a child, I heard voices. Some would sing and some would scream."

elias was once more out on a coffee run, with a long list on his phone. cold brews, black hot coffee, lattes, macchiatos, and a singular iced matcha vanilla with three bumps of the sweetener in it. he had to carry the orders in two cup holders and he always hated when he was stuck with the big orders. for one everyone always threw him their order so fast he barely had a chance to jot it down and for another he panicked that the hot coffee wouldn’t be as hot as it should be and the iced beverages would be watered down by the time he got back to the news station. and again he had to question, what did this have to do with learning how to report the news? he just kept telling himself that there was a reason to every ting even if he did not understand it.

he had just gotten the trays to balance perfectly on each other and he was ready to head back to the news station. all he had to do was get there and deliver the order now. simple enough, right? wrong. as elias turned around he was greeted by a door being flung open, hitting him, making him lose balance while he tried balancing the trays. he ends up stumbling into another person and dropping the tops layer of drinks. "i'm so sorry! are you okay? please tell me you're okay!"

Luke had an important meeting at the station, where he had to decide when his interview would be done there and which topics to discuss. He was about to speak about the economy and entrepreneurship, he was a cover young millionaire under 30 twice in Times magazine. Once the meeting was done, hands shaken, he was heading out of the station and decided to grab a cup of tea or coffee, whatever was nearest.

He checked the hour on his Rolex, making a mental calculation of what time he had free before filming his podcast, and checking if his special guest was coming. Before he could think in anything else, he felt a body colliding with him, a male of 2,06m / 6 ft 9" height looked down, and felt the cold liquid hit his perfect Armani. ❛ Bloody hell! This Armani is brand new!❜

To Hans, there's just something thrilling about a room full of strangers — and all possibilities each body carries with them. Though, he's typically the first one to approach.

──Stella laughed a little and gave him a mock scolding look. truth is she could never be this cruel with Luke and joke about something that had happened to him. perhaps she has not known him for long, but either way, she is very fond of him, has a soft spot for him and she doesn’t think this will change as their circumstances do. she is glad he agreed to keep talking to her, even if nothing more is ever going to happen between them, ever again —and not just because of Claude and his outburst, but mainly for Liz and how bad she took it upon finding out.

Luke does not regret the little rendezvous between them before they both know their actual connection with Elizabeth. On the other hand, the Beaufort's are complicated. He knew how much his best friend suffered. ⎯ Either way, for the little he knew of Claude, and now talking to his ex-wife or wife? It is confusing for Luke, they have to solve whatever it is that they haven't chatted about. Once the topic shifted for him. ❛ My trip was good. ❜ It nearly feels like automatic words, in the way it is. The trip about his family was not a topic he likes to talk. He has a very complicated relationship with his father. As for his mother she is alright.