ᴘʀɪɴᴄᴇ ᴏғ ɴᴏᴛʜɪɴɢ

her eyes settled into a pointed glare, though it wasn’t nearly as striking as it would have been if she actually felt any ill will within his light jab. afterall, if it were anyone else, she probably wouldn’t have made the joke in light of the current circumstances. but for reasons unknown, there was an understanding between the two that her words were not to be taken seriously and quite frankly, she couldn’t harm him even if she wanted to, what with the reputation on the line.  ❝  WOW… i didn’t think there was a place like that left unearthed. you’ve really monopolized nirvana here, now haven’t you? i’ll take the invite as the highest honor.    ❞ valentina didn’t just take his word for it, though she could have. it was apparent, how peacefull the chaotic surroundings were. not a lingering stare or snide comment had been passed ever since she’d stepped into the seedy underground haven, and while it wouldn’t have been her first choice for a relaxing evening, her body seemed to welcome the lack of attention, evidenced by the way her posture adjusted from it’s normally rigid and regal stiffness to a more relaxed, laidback stance.  ❝  so,  ❞ she started, her attention directed to him and him alone.  ❝ how have you been?  ❞

harding !!

        “  and  i  expect  nothing  in  return   .  ”   he  paused   ,   head  tilted   .   “   ...   aside  from  unparalleled  gratitude  and  three  favors  that  i’ll  collect  throughout  the  remainder  of  your  lifetime   .   normal  stuff  .   ”   as  if  right  on  cue   ,    the  bartender  returned  with  his  drink   ,   a  burger   ,   and  a  side  of  onion  rings   .   in  the  game  of  pouring  drinks  and  putting  assholes  in  their  place   ,   erica  was  the  undisputed  champ   .   there  was  a  secret  menu  with  only  one  item  listed             a  can  of  whoop  ass          and  she  would  deliver  it  to  anyone  dumb  enough  to  order  it   .   but  she  also  had  to  get  on  her  tippy  toes  to  reach  the  higher  shelves  behind  the  bar   .   with  bright  red  hair  and  an  even  brighter  smile   ,   erica  looked  like  a  keebler  elf  gone  wild   .   cute   ,   but  dangerous   .   she  turned  to  valentina  with  welcoming  eyes  and  asked  if  she  could  get  her  anything  else   .   “   i’ve  been  alright   ,   ”   he  answered  after  erica  walked  away   .   “   spending  my  evenings  drinking  with  unavailable  women  i  barely  know   .  is  this  a  cry  for  help  or  do  i  just  think  you’re  cool   ?  i  haven’t  decided   .   ”

    she gives him a fake and smile that was more venomous than anything else. “ gosh, mr. morrison, i’m like… soooo sorry that you’re not getting the customer service you wanted at the shithole, student-run campus bar. ” she says in an exaggerated, cheerful tone. “ believe it or not, i don’t have time to waste to fulfill whatever dominatrix wet dream you’ve got about being insulted. are you going to order something or not ? and don’t fuckin’ ask about the damn special again. it’s been the same thing since i showed up to ogden. ” she grabs a plastic menu from beneath the bar and drops it in front of him. 

harding !!

         his  shoulders  began  to  shake  as  silent  laughter  slipped  from  his  lips   .   “   hello  ,   rock   .   meet  hard  place   .   ‘cause  THAT  was  perfect   ,  ”   he  said  in  regard  to  her  rude  behavior   .   summer  refused  to  treat  him  like  garbage   ,   and  she  did  so  by  treating  him  like  garbage   .   “  guess  you  did  have  the  time  to  waste   .   ”    he  lifted  the  menu  in  her  direction   ,   “   i’ll  take  the  wings   ,   medium   ,   and  a  tall  blue  moon   .   thanks  .   ”

it wasn’t that she felt her relationship with her parents was strained. strained was for pasta water and other people’s finances. but she couldn’t help but feel sort of trapped. like there were all these rules she was meant to follow, only for someone to have intentionally hidden the cheat sheet somewhere she could never truly quite reach. at the best of times, she was fumbling in the dark for their approval. at worst, it caught her by surprise if they remembered her birthday (though that might be some executive assistant with their ducks in a row, more than likely). plus, there was this unspoken rule on the upper east side that when you spoke about your family, you spoke in rhetorical questions and long sighs. every sentence tuned to the note of ‘family, am i right?’ like any of this was something most people could relate to. she responds in kind, lifting her own cup, letting it hang there, before taking another sip.

“god, don’t be. it was my fault for letting them catch me off guard.” it certainly wouldn’t happen again, not if he hours of pre-emptive grilling she’d gone through the last couple of days had anything to say about it. “i’m surprised they haven’t asked us all to hand over our diaries yet. they’re going to make some insignificant little spat i had with greer in high school look like a motive. how was yours? your parents haven’t pulled you out of school, yet, so i assume it wasn’t the worst it could have been?”

harding !!

     “   for  letting  them  catch  you  off-guard   .   “   he  repeated  her  words  slowly  and  with  a  hint  of  disbelief   .    as  someone  who  was  raised  to  interpret  the  motives  and  emotions  of  others   ,   to  analyze  those  motives  and  emotions  ,  and  to  utilize  those  analyses  to  predict  their  future  actions   ,   he  was  still  surprised  every  time  he  remembered  that  such  a  hefty  job  was  rested  on  the  shoulders  of  a  man  in  his  early  twenties   .   he  was  even  more  surprised  to  learn  that  others  around  the  same  age  were  burdened  with  the  same  job   .    “   older  people  have  crumbled  for  less   .   y’know   ,    our  majors  are  in  a  similar  wheelhouse ...    so   ,   i’m  wondering  why  we  haven’t  had  a  class  on  ‘  keeping  cool  under  the  pressures  of  interrogations   ’    .   ”   he  mused  before  taking  a  sip  of  his  coffee    .  

Ollie snorted a little bit, “yeah sure same,” he said, though he was completely untraceable by even the most skilled people. Maybe not Anya, though. “Except for porn, obviously. If they are going to snoop through my shit I’m going to make them know all the deviant, disgusting shit I’m into. It’s on them really.” He was on the edge of sending Harding a look, something cynical and deeply amused that said he really doubted anyone like Harding would know much of anything about law enforcement beyond what he saw on tv. He would have too, but he managed to hold it back. Ollie thought it would be kind of a dick move considering his sister was missing and law enforcement hadn’t done jack shit to fucking find her for months. So, maybe he would know a few things. “Oh,” Ollie said, with a bit of a grimace, “maybe! I was banned from all game nights last year though, when I started a prison riot while playing monopoly. They’ve probably forgotten about that by now though.” Some people at this school had some good memories though. He then grinned brightly and nodded his head bouncing a little as he walked. “Yep! My twentieth. I’m so fucking hyped bro.” He doubted being twenty would be much different than anything before it, but still. Now his fake ID would only be slightly lying.

harding !!

as much as cooper would fervently deny that statement whenever he was sober, the truth was he could be pretty optimistic, as long his mindset was limited to romance. he didn’t believe in much else, but sell him a sob story focused on two star crossed lovers, and he’d bet on their success every time. probably because he hoped somehow somewhere it would work out, despite his own trackrecord highlighting just the opposite. just then though, cooper could anticipate defeat from his best friend’s tone alone, yet he clung to his nature in his inebriated state, focusing on his next statement rather than preemptively giving up.    ❛ it’s always your smile man, the only thing bright enough to light up this god forsaken room. i actually have NOT had luck tonight, i’ve actually run into my ex more times than a guy would care to admit and there seems to be a surprising lack of variety for a poor romantic in need. what about you? have you started pining away after some broad that told you to fuck off?   ❜  

harding !!

        “  keep  talking  like  that  and  i’ll  fulfill  all  your  poor  romantic  needs   ,  ”   he  mused  before  taking  a  swig  of  his  drink   .    harding  was  unsure  whether  the  boy  in  front  of  him  truly  understood  just  how  much  the  young  morrison  loved  him   .   in  a  family  filled  with  blood-related  sisters   ,   he  found  the  most  comfort  around  his  chosen  brother   .   atlas  was  left  to  keep  hold  of  the  world  without  a  modicum  of  help   .   harding  often  felt  like  that   ;   the  only  difference  being  that  atlas  didn’t  have  his  own  cooper  harris   .    “   see   ,   no  one  talks  about  it   ,   but  our  circle  is  getting  real  incestuous   .   everybody  has  dated  everybody   .   it’s  a  good  thing  none  of  us  have  any  shame  otherwise  we’d  have  to  make  more  friends   .   ”    he  let  out  a  laugh  at  his  friend’s  question    ,    all  too  aware  of  the  jokes  surrounding  his  apparent  ‘  degradation   ’  kink   .    “   coop   ,   if  i  pined  after  every  woman  who  ever  told  me  to  fuck  off   ,   i’d  never  have  a  moment  of  peace   .   ”

“It’s not funny.” Pippa was sure that the consequences he’d face for dropping out of school would not be good. She knew if she dropped out, her parents wouldn’t be pleased. Transferring even would get her in huge trouble. While Pippa liked school and was good at it, she also hated when there was unnecessary tension at home. “Why do you wake up before six? That’s so early. Even I don’t wake up that early. Even for classes that start at eight.” She was barely up in time for any of those classes. “School is important. Dropping out would be bad for me. I can’t imagine you’d fair much better.” Although maybe he would be fine. Maybe Pippa knew absolutely nothing about the life and world she was living in. She certainly couldn’t have predicted Greer disappearing or Penny being murdered. She was scared and didn’t want to show it to anyone. Being scared meant showing weakness and Pippa Morrison-Grant did not show weakness. That’s when the vultures would swoop in and tear her to pieces. “I’ll join you, but I’m fine with my coffee.” She sighed and took the napkin back, crumpling it before stuffing it in her pocket. Pippa had no idea what she was doing right now.

harding !!

          “  to  be  fair   ,   pip   ,   i’m  not  sure  you’re  the  best  judge  of  what  is  and  isn’t  funny  .   ”   harding  wasn’t  entirely  convinced  his  cousin  even  knew  how  to  laugh  .   he  was  an  overall  charming  guy         unless  someone  was  a  quintessential  rube  who  hated  pop  culture   ,  in  which  case  they  should  keep  their  fucking  distance           but  he  couldn’t  remember  the  last  time  he  saw  pippa  completely  at  ease   .   guess  it  was  the  morrison  curse   .    “   looking  this  good  takes  time  .   ”   he  replied  regarding  when  he  woke  up   .   in  reality   ,   he  needed  time  to  exercise   ,   shower   ,  cook  a  nice  breakfast    ,    listen  to  the  daily  npr  podcast   ,   and  catch  up  on  reading  for  class   .   it  could  be  argued  that  waking  up  at  six  was  actually  him  sleeping  in   .   

                                      (   some  time  later   )

Nate’s hand ruffled through his hair, sending water droplets flying before he gave his head a bit of a shake, finally feeling semi relaxed for the first time since having gone to the place he was supposed to call home for the holidays. Since before that, really - what, considering the shit with Penelope and having to live with Jesse for the week. None of that was something a good boxing session couldn’t get out of his system, though, his shoulders visibly less tense, the muscle in his jaw finally no longer flexed.

He let out a snort of air in response to Harding, glancing over his shoulder at him as an eyebrow arched up high on his forehead. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he said in a low grumble, unsure if the Morrison was being genuine or was playing some sort of mind game. With that family, you could never tell.

harding !!

      it was clear that he was trying to be cute, and maybe in another world, summer would have enjoyed a playful little distraction from her awful shift. but for some reason, she was much more inclined to hold onto this grudge she had against harding morrison ( one that seemingly existed for no reason — was it the status and privilege that gave her a bad taste in her mouth ? or was it the strained relationship with her good friend sloane ? or maybe it had the most to do with their last conversation ) and was adamant on giving him a different treatment. 

    “ — maybe you should go to c.ling. surprised to even see you here… isn’t that where you and your friends with their heads up their asses all hang out ? i know you can afford and enjoy those overpriced drinks they’ve got over there. ” summer hated it there, if it wasn’t clear enough. 

harding !!