the trick to life.

“I mean, sure, a decade seems like forever now, but it’ll pass in the blink of an eye. 2010 seems like it was last week. I think you might be a little pushed for time,” Luis pointed out with an amiable smirk. A genuine smile came to his face at the other man’s words, and he nodded his head. “That’s exactly it. Backaches anonymous.” The thought of it was entirely ridiculous, but he liked it all the same. “Sounds like a plan. We’ve gotta get recruiting if we want this to take off.” 

Nick couldn’t help but chuckle. “You‘re definitely on to something. Here’s to hoping I can get the job done on a time crunch.” And speaking of time crunches, he didn’t know when there would be another opportunity to reach all of his neighbors in one place, so if they were going to get the ball rolling they had to act fast. “I’ll take the left side of the room if you go right — meet back here in an hour. First club meeting... sometime in the next few weeks? I’m thinking a Sunday afternoon so we aren’t stealing anyone’s date night.”

      the timing couldn’t have been any more perfect. just as she let the stroke of the paintbrush glide across the wall, she heard the door. she’d been dreading the process —— painting, that is. it wasn’t because of the task itself. oh no, it was a breeze — albeit the drying phase. it was due to the mere fact that she was indecisive. crazy seeing as it seemed like every other choice she’d made in her life was done on impulse. however, when it came to decorating — rearranging and the works — her decisions were meticulous. everything needed to be justright. at least, almost all the time. this particular instance, she was growing tired of going back and forth between color swatches. it got to the point where she’d dismissed them entirely, laid a drop cloth down and began … with the priming process. hey — she needed to start somewhere, right ?

      “y’know how i said you’d never catch me in a pair of overalls ? well —— times are changing.” erin descended from the stairs, stark white splotches decorating her bare arms and cheek. if it wasn’t for the white overalls, she’d be certain it’d gotten more on her than the actual walls. “i’m listening —” she cut herself off to greet him with a kiss as her free hand stole a beer from his offering hand. “—— why ?” what did he have in store for her ? god only knew; but, she was amused if anything. she took a step back and propped her elbow against the railing. “don’t tell me you have katey sagal dressed as a housewife tucked away in one of those bags. which reminds me —” reaching behind her, tucked away in the pocket of her overalls, she pulled out the swatches. “you need to help me pick a color; but —— after you tell me what you’re getting at.”

The corner of his mouth quirked up at the sight of her ensemble. “You look prepared. Very painter chic.” He had to admit, she wore the look well — not ridiculously like he knew he would. Maybe he could just buy an all-white outfit and deem it his ‘painter’s gear’ and forego the overalls altogether? “I wish, but she was held up with a Futurama fan thing.” He glanced at the swatches, noting that it was going to take a second to determine the nuances between a few of the hues. “Done deal. And I’ll order pizza — this might take a while since… a lot of those look the same.” But that was Post-Pitch Nick’s problem and, judging from the skeptical look he was receiving, it would have to be a great pitch.

“A busy decade for you, by the sounds of it,” Luis chuckled. He wasn’t exactly s history buff himself, beyond old movies, so perhaps his words were a little hypocritical. “You know what, that would actually be perfect. The best of both worlds.” He had forgotten how hard it was to make friends as an adult, especially solo. There had always been college or roommates or work or his ex to act as the buffer for meeting new people. Now he was single, living alone and running his business out of a spare bedroom, relying on Cove Club events to bring new people into his life. “Maybe if we find a few other like-minded couch potatoes, we could make it a regular gathering,” he suggested.

“Good thing I have a whole ten years to get it under control,” Nick grinned. Over the years, his circle of friends had grown smaller and smaller until they fell into two categories: business or childhood. But, seeing as his business friends were only seen in a more professional capacity and his childhood friends were back in New York and Boston, he was flat out of luck in the Cove. Unless this idea worked. “Like a lower lumbar support group?” Nick jokingly asked, a grin taking form on his lips. “Couch Potatoes United. I like it. Let’s spread the word tonight, get the ball rolling.”

Thiago smiled, “I blame my parents.” Laughing, he ran his fingers over his forehead and through his hair, “I need to keep it to a minimum. Just the other day I saw my daughter doing the same erratic hand motions, it’s hilarious. They’re like little sponges, they absorb things whether you want them to or not.”   

He hummed, “My agent doesn’t give me the time to get to know as many people as I would like. At book signings, you know, you want to talk to people. You want to thank them for investing in you. But he keeps me on a strict time limit. If I’m taking too long with one person he’ll swoop in and move the line along. If I could I’d talk to everyone for hours I would.” He raised his brows, “Oh, so you just moved in too? What brought you to The Cove?”

Nick chuckled, “So long as you two keep away from antique stores, you should be fine.” He’d always admired that about kids, at least until he thought about what he might have subconsciously picked up from his father.

“Agents have a habit of doing that,” he replied, nodding his agreement. It was the tradeoff of having a large event; you could either talk to two people for five hours or talk to everyone for a minute each. The latter worked better in his business, but he could understand how the former would be best for a published author. He didn’t have to worry about constantly forging new business partnerships. “Half work, half wanting a change. WadeTech just signed on with a company in Beaumont and having headquarters in New York was getting old. Besides, it’s easier to facilitate a partnership when you can meet face to face.” Then, smiling, “I gave my sister the keys to my apartment and shipped off. Easy beach access isn’t anything to scoff at.”

“Hey Armstrong, you around?” Nick had just put his finishing touches on the living room and taken the last of the large boxes out to the curb, coming inside to the sound of a door closing. One of the perks of a house over an apartment was the flexibility of space, which had proved hazardous to his wallet. With all of the focus on getting his place of business setup in tie to start the new year on the right foot, Nick had admittedly neglected filling up his place of residence. That had been fine, of course, when he had lived alone in an already-furnished family heirloom, but now his things had been lying around in boxes in a shared space. So, upon finishing a series of meetings and phone calls, he’d stopped into IKEA and come out with a bright blue bag filled with necessities — lamps for his office, a few shelves, a pair of black and grey beds for Aksel and Indy...

“it’s a pleasure, nick” derrick grinned as he thanked the other for helping him. while he registered the name of the street he had mentioned, he was still unsure where the streets were in relation to his own. “no kids if i have any say on the matter” derrick teased as he scratched the back of his head. that was a loaded question at the moment as he and his husband had been having the ‘kids discussion’ a lot lately. “well, i think if prompted to choose between the two i’d go with a hot bod and no kids” derrick laughed, “for now at least” the oncologist perhaps overshared. “what about you? dad bod with kids or hot bod?” he questioned with a laugh, finding the conversation interesting to say the least. derrick conceded that he was probably best to leave the airpods for times he wasn’t exercising, “air pods are great for public transit, but they definitely failed the light jog test” derrick reported, “might be time to whip out my clunky headphones” he admitted.

“It would be very Gatsby. I think that’s about all a lot of people know of the 20s,” Luis pointed out with a small smile. “It’ll be like coming home from a long day at work and jumping on the couch- the best part of the day. I’m over at Cove Court. It’s not too far from Sea Drift Lane.” 

“You aren’t wrong. Maybe I’ll make it my goal in the 2020s to fill out people’s knowledge of the 1920s. That should keep me busy the rest of the decade,” Nick smiled. “I’m glad one of us knows the layout. We should hang out sometime, crack a beer and just sit on the couch. That way we can’t be faulted for sitting around all day since it’s technically a social outing.”

“You come across as a very well cool and collected businessman, don’t worry. Me?” He laughed, “I have to talk like this.” He motioned with his hands. Thiago had always spoke with expressive hand gestures (when he wasn’t so exhausted all he had the energy for was to bring a mug of coffee to his lips that is). He couldn’t help it. Maybe that came across as excitable, and, you know, that was just fine. On his best days, Thiago was oranges and yellows and bursts of genuine passion.

“Oh, don’t apologize. You probably meet so many people, I can’t even imagine. I stay holed up inside most days – We’re on Lighthouse Way.” He exhaled, “ It’s finally feeling like home. No more living out of boxes. I actually, you know, know where things are… Most of the time.”

Nick laughed along as the gesticulations came into question. “Hey, it makes the conversation more lively.” To make his point, he did his best imitation of Thiago’s movements. “See? Ten times livelier. I could be telling you about what my dog ate on his walk but you’re interested because I’m enthusiastic. Pair that with saying something interesting and you’re golden.”

“You have the right idea. I’m like a steel trap with faces but,” a laugh broke him off. “Half the time my assistant’s whole job is telling me who everyone is. I’d much rather stay holed up.” He took another sip of his drink. “I’ve been told that knowing where things are is the final step to settling down. Congrats, give me another couple of months and I’ll be right there with you.”

In all honesty, Thiago had known of Nick Wade before meeting him in person. He did have a degree in finance after all; he still had subscriptions too all those business magazines. His chuckle was light, taking Nick’s hand and offering a friendly handshake, “I think you think you’re more restless than you actually come across.” He ran a hand over his chin, “Oh, don’t worry about it. We met in passing at an after party in L.A., with all the bustle –” He waved away the topic, leave it to Thiago to call the premiere of a blockbuster film a mere ‘party,’“No harm done at all. It’s Thiago. Rivas Herrara. Good to see you again. Small world, huh?”

Nick chuckled, “You’re probably right.” The mention of an L.A. after-party triggered his memory — he wasn’t usually in California for much other than to visit his sister, but there was one time fairly recently when he’d gone for a conference. It had fallen on the weekend of a movie premiere, one that he’d been invited to weeks earlier but hadn’t thought he’d have the time to attend. When his assistant had mentioned the overlap, they’d left the conference early and had a great time. Then came the man’s name; Nick could forget a face but never a name. “Thiago! Of course, sorry man. Very small. Where’d you move to? I’m over on Sea Drift Lane.”

Luis grinned sheepishly, fiddling with the brim of his hat. “I look like an old-time reporter or gumshoe or something. I didn’t realise everyone else would go so fancy,” he gestured to the outfit of the other. “I’m with you on that one. You look great, but the last time I wore a tux all I could think about was putting my pyjamas on.” he chuckled. “I’m Luis. It’s good to meet you, Nick. Are you here with anybody?” 

“Think of it this way, if everyone went fancy, it would be a pretty lame depiction of the '20s,” Nick offered. “I guess it does make going home to the couch all the more rewarding, so not all bad.” He laughed a little. “Nice to meet you too. I am — my partner, Erin. She’s around here somewhere. We’re over on Sea Drift Lane. What about you?”

derrick had always been forgetful, among other things. usually when he got something he had to make a careful, mental note about where it was located. otherwise, he ended up in a predicament where he couldn’t find something important. as the other male approached him, he eyed those powerbeats around his ear and shook his head. he hadn’t really even wanted airpods, but his husband had insisted. “thanks, man” he nodded his head with a smile before reaching out to shake the other’s hand, “i’m derrick by the way. i live on lighthouse way” he stated to try and give the other a better idea that he wasn’t some stranger roaming through the neigborhood. he chuckled at the other’s comments about holiday eating and said, “you’re damn right. christmas and new years takes a toll on my body. i go from being fairly fit to a total dad bod in two weeks” he agreed, a laugh escaping his lips. as he was sifting through the grass he said, “fuck yes!” in perhaps a too loud tone of voice for this early in the morning, “i think i’ve got it” he commented in a lower register. derrick then put the air pods in his pocket, “as far as i’m concerned this is a sign to go back to old fashioned headphones” the doctor chuckled.

“just saying–” benjamin, leaning against the bar in hopes that his drink order would actually come, had found himself there for the past half hour. the music was great, the outfits were incredible, and everyone looked like they came straight from a movie, and here he was, waiting on a rum and coke. waiting. and waiting. and waiting. “if you’re a penguin, then i’m a fuckin’… endangered puffin breed. you look great. seriously, like a greek god. that’s not even fair.” right as he shut his trap, a familiar short glass was slid in front of him, and his prayers were answered. “are you at least, like, having a good time? what are you drinking?”

He’d admit it, Thiago loved a good party. And he loved a theme. So this new years 20′s extravaganza did not disappoint. He was leaning against the bar, happily tapping his foot in time with whatever music the band was playing when he was spoken to, “The bow tie? I haven’t worn one of these in years.” He smiled, straightening his own, “You have to admit they’re festive. You look great.” bringing his own drink to his lips he paused to take in the stranger’s features, it hardly took a moment to place a name to the man’s face, “You’re Nick Wade, aren’t you?”

“I’ll give you that one, the look wouldn’t be complete without them.” At least he’d managed to skip the suspenders and still be on theme. Hearing his name, Nick quirked a brow. Though he hadn’t taken any steps to avoid being recognized, he was still surprised that one of his neighbors knew him on sight. Hopefully, they hadn’t met before, he didn’t like the thought of being that oblivious. “Was it the fidgeting that gave me away?” he asked with a laugh, extending a hand. “Just Nick works. Good to meet you. And you’ll have to forgive me, I’m shit with faces.”