it was all by design ––

Good Girls - 2x08 (scene)

❝  now  c’mon,  everyone  has  a  catfish  story !  ❞  keeley  always  did  like  to  try  and  err  on  the  side  of  lighthearted  ––  nothing  was  ever  too  really  big  of  a  problem  unless  it  was  completely  unsolvable.  and  this ? totally was  solvable,  and  wouldn’t  take  that  long  if  she  managed  to  get  through  to  the  right  people,  that  she  was  sure.  a  squeal  of  her  own  echoed  around  the  area  at  the  sight  of  the  rat,  jumping  almost  out  of  her  shoes  as  she  resigned  to  the  fact  that  perhaps  this  was worse  than  even  she  could  fix  out  of  the  blue.  ❝  now  now !  this  murder  house  might  be  someone’s home.  ❞  even she  was  getting  a  bit  bored  of  her  attempt  to  make  this  less  awful  than  the  circumstances  had  already  painted  them  out  to  be.  ❝  okay,  okay,  let  me  call  rebecca right  now.  ❞  there  was  certainly  more  panic  in  her  voice  this  time.  ❝  call  an  uber,  or  a  taxi,  or  a  bus,  or  a  broomstick,  i  don’t  care  which !  ❞

❝  do  you  really  think  that ?  ❞  she  couldn’t quite  work  out  if  serena  was  agreeing  with  her  taking  advantage  of  her  panicked  state  and  poking  fun  at  her.  it  didn’t  matter,  she  was  already  on  the  spiral  that  would  take  a  lot  more  than  some  reassuring  words  to  get  her  out  of  it.  ❝  she cannot  have  another  child,  serena. i  am  enough !  do  i look  like  i  want  to  be  carrying  a  baby  around  with  me  as  the  worst  accessory  of  the  year !?  ❞  she  was  talking  as  if  it  would  be  her  own  responsibility,  but  she  always  viewed  the  world  with  herself  as  the centre.  ❝  you  might  have  to  do  it  for  me.  and  then  break  the  bad  news  to  me  very  gently.  over  champagne.  ❞  not  that  she  was  dramatic.

"The basement. They're nasty and persistent things but they're big and slow; we'll have time once we get there to figure things out." All the while Chloe is running down the stairs, Gisele's hand in hers. It's always so helpful when the lift is out of order, but it can't be changed. "You can ask me all the questions then if that's all right."

the  answer  that  she’d  received  actually hadn’t  given  her  any  more  information  ––  but  if  there  was  one  thing  that  gisele  could  do,  it  was  follow  along  with  a  plan.  for  the  most  part,  anyway.  legs  moved  furiously  down  the  stairs  as  her  hand  gripped  at  chloe’s,  knowing  that  it  far  safer  than  risking letting  go. ❝  okay  fine,  but  like  ––  am  i  gonna  get hurt ?  ❞

MELISSA BARRERA as Sam Carpenter SCREAM VI (2023) dir. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett

"Here," Adri passes over the card. "I've got three in a row in a few different spots, but nothing that connects." Close, but no cigar.

❝  let  me  see  that.  ❞  lips  pursed  together  as  addison  looked  over  the  sheet,  chuckling  quietly  to  herself  as  she  assessed  what  had  been  ticked  off,  and  what  was  yet  to  be  done.  ❝  oh !  see  this  one ?  ❞  she  pointed  at  one  of  the  boxes.  ❝  you  didn’t  hear  it  from  me,  obviously.  but  if  you  head  up  to  ortho,  you’ll  find  what  you  need.  ❞

hotch  didn’t  have  any  doubt  in  maeve.  quite  the  opposite,  actually.  he  had  no  doubt  that  she  would  be  a  vital  member  of  the  team,  her  skills  unmatched  despite  what  others  might  believe.  she  was  an asset.  and  one  that  he  wanted  to  ensure  stayed  that  way,  if  he  could  help  it.  ❝  i  know  you  think  you  can  do  this.  if  i  wasn’t  so  concerned,  i  could  let  you  do  it  and  know  you’d  get  the  results.  but  that’s  how issues  happen.  when  we  push  people  further  than  they  should  go.  ❞  it  was  a  hard  lesson  that  he’d  had  to  learn  for  himself,  and  not  in  the  easiest  of  ways.  ❝  i’m  not  sending  you home.  ❞  hopefully  that  would  provide  her  with  some  reassurance.  hotchner  certainly  didn’t  intend  to bench  her  entirely.  ❝  i  don’t  want  you  out  in  the  field.  you  can  be  just  as  helpful here,  with  garcia.  one  case,  that’s  all.  you  can  be  back  on  the  next  one  –– deal  ?  ❞

❝ and you take pride in a job well done, of course ― even if it means permanent insanity for me. have you no mercy for the smitten, woman? ❞ logan retorts, a light-hearted smirk hanging from his lips as he takes a bite off his pork sandwich. ❝ so: do i get a sneak peek of the mess you're gonna get into this week, or are you gonna leave me to my own sleuthing devices? 'cause that rarely ends well for my platinum card and some random dude's chin. ❞

veronica  leaned  back  against  the  kitchen  counter,  smirk  of  her  own  fixed  on  her  face  as  he  spoke  of  just  how  much  pride  she  would  take  in  keeping  him  on  his toes.  he  was  right,  if  she’d  become  predictable  then  she’d  consider  herself boring. ❝  are  you  sure  you want  a  sneak  peak ?  ❞  it  was  a  fair  enough  question  from  where  she  was  stood,  she  thought.  ❝  you  might  have  more  fun  doing  your  own  sleuthing,  and  who  am  i  to  deprive  you  of  that  very  joy ?  ❞

"To love someone is firstly to confess: I'm prepared to be devastated by you."

" the house tour ? " she enunciates, eyes roaming her surroundings as she crossed his threshold. " chris, this is a hotel room. " a beat. " a messy one at that- did a tornado blow through here ?? "

❝  no ?  tough  crowd.  ❞  he  wasn’t  exactly  known  for  his humour,  but  at  least  he  was trying.  ❝  c’mon,  don’t  judge  me  for  the  room !  housekeeping  haven’t  been  through  here  yet !  ❞  or  so  he  assumed,  based  on  the  cups  that  were  still  strewn  across  the  nightstand.  ❝  besides,  chris  keller  is rock  and  roll.  rockstars  don’t  have tidy  hotel  rooms,  do  they ?  ❞

" easy there, judgy – i get results ! " her back is already turned, heels clicking across the bullpen as she leads the way to her desk, eager to put her computer at the blonde's disposal. she has gotten way better at taking non-blurry photos on her phone, just for the record, but her skill is certainly an emergencies only kind of thing. why bother when you can outsource ?? " but this is one big fish i'm reeling in, no way i'm risking an unprintable photo. & jimmy has the nerve to be off on assignment this week, so that leaves me- " hand rests on the wooden surface, facing veronica with a smile. " -with you. let's see what you've got, miss private eye. " veronica's attempt to negotiate sharpens her grin, amused & cunning all at once. " alright, well... normally, i'd tell ya to wait until the story hits the papers, but you did spy on a very exclusive poker group for me & i'm assuming the security wasn't easy to dodge, so i'll tell you what – if i see a clear shot of the guy i'm looking for, i'll give you the gist of it in ten words or less. "

veronica  wasn’t  convinced,  but  that’s  because  the  trusty  camera  in  her  hands  was  far better  than  any  of  the  camera  phones  she’d  ever  needed  to  use  on  short  notice.  she  much  preferred  the  reliability  of  something  a  bit  more substantial. ❝  leaves  you  with  me ?  ❞  she  repeated,  look  of  almost  insult  on  her  face  at  the  suggestion  that  she  might  far  further  down  lois’s  list  than  she  might  have  hoped  that  she  would  be.  ❝  what  if  i’ve  got  more  than one  clear  shot ?  ❞  the  blonde  had  always  been  one  to  back  herself  and  her  abilities,  and  that  meant  being  able  to  extract  the  best  of  what  she  could  from  the  circumstance  dealt  to  her.  ❝  security  is  never  easy  to  dodge,  but  thankfully  most  men  don’t  see  past  blonde  hair  and  an  innocent  face.  ❞  exploiting  herself  to  get  out  of  a  sticky  situation  wasn’t  something  she  was  a  stranger  to,  but  it  was  a  sad  commentary  on  the  world  she  was  sure  that  she  was  able  to  do  it  with  such ease.  sometimes  a  flash  of  an  innocent  was  just enough.  ❝  one  memory  card.  ❞  she  flipped  it  out  of  the  camera  and  held  it  between  her  fingers.  ❝  prepare  to  be impressed.  and  prepare  to  divulge  the gory  details.  ❞

kinda reminds him of himself. the unwavering confidence, the yearn for knowledge despite constant signs of danger. it’s a wonder she’s even alive. emotional intimacy makes him feel uncomfortable, whether or not it’s with someone he knows or doesn’t. but he finds solace in knowing there are still people like them out there, “i’m not going nowhere, gisele. you don’t hafta worry ‘bout me. i’ll do just fine.”

DAKOTA JOHNSON as NINA THE LOST DAUGHTER (2021) dir. Maggie Gyllenhaal

Chloe stops and listens, hears the distinct rustling and footsteps of one, no at least two people. She can tell they're whispering, bagging up things. Her eyes dart around the room in the twilight, reaching a hand to her bedside to grasp familiar metal. "It's all right," she whispers. "It's all right." She gets up, moves past Mabel. "Stay here. I'll deal with them."

❝  what ?  ❞  mabel  hissed,  her  eyes  still  adjusting  to  the  dark  to  make  out  chloe’s  figure  as  she  reached  for something  to  equip  herself  with.  as  if  she  was  going  to  let  her  go alone.  ❝  we  don’t  know  who  they  are,  they  could  be dangerous.  ❞  or  they  could  be  armed  themselves,  which  would  do  more  damage  to  them  than  they  could  in  return,  she  was  sure.  ❝  let  me  come  with  you  at  least.  for back  up.  ❞

" you guys have rodeos here ?? " great time to take things literally, jess. " i don't think- oh ! bedroom rodeo, my mistake. " a beat. " ...now ? are you saddling up now ? " she looks around the bar, confused. " with who ? "

eyebrows  raised  as  she  watched  jess  piece  together exactly  the  sentiment  between  her  words,  head  moving  in  a  slow  nod  as  they  all  caught  up  to  be  on  the same  page. ❝  oh,  i  dunno  yet.  ❞  she  mused,  keeley’s  head  glancing  around  to  scope  out  just  exactly  what  her  options  looked  like. slim  pickin’s for  the  most  part.  ❝  you  know  what  we  need ?  ❞  she  didn’t  even  wait  for  an  answer,  ❝  a  bottle  of  something fizzy.  that’ll  loosen  us  right  up.  ❞  she’d  always  spoken  with  more  confidence  than  she  perhaps  had  in  reality,  ❝  bar  keep !  pop  a  bottle  of champagne for  us  please !  ❞