Maren Black

''Geez kid, give a gal a heads up next time we take the scenic route, my calves fucking hurt from that hike,'' Dee pretended to huff and puff as she handed Maren their steaming hot cocoa. A little something she liked to pay for, an act of appreciation, her way of saying thank you. ''I'm glad you like me as a hiking buddy, but please take it easy on me okay, I'm not in my twenties anymore.'' Coming to sit down next to Maren on the bench with a much needed sigh, ''haven't been in a while.'' Still, she gave them a playful shoulder bump, taking a hot second to try and take a sip off the hotter than hot drink. Watching the town people work on the big ass christmas tree, she rasped out loud, ''you got your eye on which lights you'd like to decorate with?'' A light exhaustion coated her voice, having experienced the same tradition for too many years now.

Realizing how long they had been going on about hiking, they pivoted back to the decorations. "Rainbow all the way" they said, picking up a bundle from the table. "How gay do you think we can make it?" they laughed before adding "Actually, do you think christmas trees are inherently gay?" probably a high thought, but Maren was stone cold sober...and just stone cold from the weather. "Something about all the balls just makes me feel like it is..." they giggled, apologizing do Dee, even though they knew she would find the question amusing.

"No, I try really hard to do small business gifts, but it definitely takes time to find the right thing." They often even went as far as doing thrifted gifts. Not just for politically or eco motivated reasons, but just because their love of antiques ran so deep. Most of it was purely for the thrill of the hunt. "basically if you hate shopping it's your worst nightmare" they let out a small laugh, breath billowing upwards in the cold.

Lost in thought, Maren hadn't noticed their dissociative state had been blocking the flow of traffic until a voice cut through the crowd. They shook their head, looking across to find the source of the sound and let out a small laugh at their own lack of self awareness. "No, sorry. A lot going in here" Maren said, pointing up at their head, which laid under a green and blue striped beanie with a pom pom on top.

SHE'S  LOOSING  HER  GOD  DAMN  MIND.      really,  that's  how  it  feels:  she's  no  fuckin'  carmen  sandiego,  but  where  in  the  world  is  lucky  whitley?  no  stone  left  unturned,  no  instagram  and  social  media  with  the  pinehaven  geotag  goes  unstalked.  she's  starting  to  feel  her  brain  turning  into  mush,  and  wavy  isn't  sure  how  much  time  she  has  left  before  she  turns  into  some  kind  of  facebook  demon.  so  that  only  left  one  thing  to  do,  which  is  actually  her  favorite  thing  beyond  knocking  down  as  many  shots  as  she  can  steal  from  poor  sucker's  at  a  dive  bar  that're  too  fucked  up  to  know  she's  playing  them.  shopping  is  the  other  thing. 

The bartender returned with their drink so they thanked them before taking a sip. Maren gave an approving glance at the drink in their hand. "How do you know them? Are you here with anyone?" their words barely cutting across the noise from the crowd as they looked around expecting to find her there with another person, typical of Kitty to bring a friend and if the two shots were any indication, she wouldn't be far behind.

although   she   really   was   only   there   to   look   at   bags   and   purses   .   .   .   she   wouldn't   say   no   to   some   new   shoes,   as   well.   though   the   town   was   small,   her   closet   was   huge   -   she   needed   a   look   for   every   event,   right?   at   least   maren   was   offering   to   help   her   look   through   the   new   items   in   stock,   and   missy   would   take   any   chance   she   could   get   to   gush   over   incredible   fashion   finds.

“   i   would   love   for   you   to   help   me   dig!   i'm   not   looking   for   anything   specific,   of   course,   but   if   you   see   something   and   you   think   that   it   absolutely   screams   ‘   yemise   ’,   by   all   means   let   me   know,   ”   she   grinned,   heading   to   the   apparel   section   to   sift   through   the   latest   additions.   the   fact   that   there   were   all   sorts   of   other   accessories   was   not   lost   on   her,   her   eyes   practically   gleaming   upon   spotting   them   alone.

her   nimble   hands   dragged   along   a   clothing   rack,   the   different   fabrics   sliding   beneath   her   fingertips   as   she   found   her   way   to   the   purses   she   was   so   desperately   searching   for.   it   was   definitely   a   better   selection   than   many   other   places,   and   she   took   looking   for   new   items   very   seriously.   she   slung   a   black,   leather   strap   over   her   shoulder   and   meandered   to   the   nearest   mirror.   “   does   this   look   cute?   ”   she   asked,   mostly   to   maren   but   almost   to   herself,   as   well.   she   turned   toward   them   and   raised   an   eyebrow.   “   or   does   it   say   i'm   trying   too   hard?   ”

“Uh—hey,” he said, voice a little quieter than he meant. “Mostly browsing. And getting out of the rain." Jude said, then after a moment's thought he shook his head. "Actually, I'm kind of here for inspiration? I've been having trouble figuring out how to get what's in my head to transfer to canvas, and I was hoping a walk in the rain might help. While the rain isn't too bad, at least. And when I was passing by I figured it wouldn't hurt to step inside, see if anything here sparks creativity," he explained, shrugging.

He drifted a bit closer to the counter, shoving his hands into the front pocket of his hoodie, eyes flicking over the scattered boxes and half-unpacked stock. “Looks like you’ve got a lot going on today,” he added gently. “What is all that, anyway? Anything interesting?"

"As far as inspo goes, there might be something worth it in there if you want to help dig?" the asked, hoping he could find something and help with inventory. "I noticed some books of sheet music and random art come in with the rest of these so maybe they have good taste?" Maren shrugged, curiosity shining in their eyes.

retail   therapy   was   one   of   the   few   things   that   could   bring   yemise   comfort   during   times   of   turmoil.   not   that   she   experienced   too   many   of   those,   being   from   her   family,   but   she   did   get   anxious   a   lot.   such   was   the   life   of   a   neurodivergent   shopaholic,   which   was   how   she   ended   up   in   thrift   stores   so   often.   she   loved   all   things   designer,   but   sometimes   she   could   find   designer   things   at   a   much   cheaper   price.   thrift   store   owners   often   didn't   know   the   value   of   some   of   the   items   they   held.

pale   fire   vintage   was   not   a   store   with   such   owners,   however.   they   knew   their   stuff   for   sure,   and   missy   was   glad   to   support   a   fellow   local   small   business.   plus,   a   rainy   day   was   just   another   good   reason   to   get   out   and   purchase.

“   just   browsing,   ”   she   called   back   to   maren.   a   face   she   recognized   from   around   town,   but   also   from   the   queer   spaces   they   both   seemed   to   frequent.   “   unless   you've   got   some   new   purses   in?   in   which   case,   that's   what   i'm   after,   specifically.   ugh,   i   love   a   good   bag,   i   can't   resist'em.   ”

“I love that kind of chaos, though. Makes finding something special feel like a real discovery.” She set the towel aside, brushing her hands together before stepping further into the shop. “Hmm… furniture, you said? Maybe I’ll start there. I’ve been meaning to find a little something to spruce up my apartment, something with character, you know?” Her voice had a light, easy cadence now, a little of the rain-soaked weariness fading as curiosity took over. “Lead the way?”

"I had a feeling we had to be getting close but I wasn't exactly sure-" His brain seemingly have picked up on the path they needed to take, at least today. Or maybe it was that hiking the same trail so many times was starting to stick with him. To be fair, James was never able to make much sense of his brain and the way it seemed to work these days. "I swear, it feels like we just took off from the start of the trail not too long ago." His cheeks lightly wind swept from the cooler temperatures but his happiness not wavering once. This, being out in nature, back on the trails, had been what he needed. To get back into old habits, pick up hobbies he had once loved, all the steps he knew was leading him back towards living and not just surviving day to day. "How much longer you think until we reach the top then?" He asked with a light tilt of his head, eyes brighter than usual as he looked over at them, letting the earth crunch beneath his boots as they kept walking along.

The two of them often went for black diamond hikes where they were required to use all fours or hug the mountain-side of a skinny ledge. Lately, Maren had been feeling a little extra mortal, a fear of heights they hadn't had before had appeared once or twice. They pushed the feeling down, but hadn't quite conquered the fear. James was the only one who had known about it since he had been there the first time. Otherwise, Maren would have been much more tight lipped about the whole event. "Do you think I'm too ambitious wanting to climb Rainier?" they asked as they rounded the corner, the start of the incline coming into view. The higher up they got, the easier the confessions flowed. "I just can't help feeling it might be too much" It was something Maren had wanted to do since they were young and didn't keep it to themselves. Not succeeding would feel like a complete failure at this point. They knew it didn't mean anything—reaching summit or not, but the possibility of not doing it felt crushing.