Ryan Malta

closed starter for @notryanmalta ! 

     ❛  i couldn’t remember what kind of candy you told me to get, so i just grabbed pretty much all of them.  ❜  several boxes of different candies fell from his grip, landing right on top of the table as the male leaned back into his seat on the couch. he glanced at ryan, reaching for one of the kit kat bars and tilting his head a bit, tossing in a slight smile as he gestured towards the screen of the tv.  ❛  you pick something ? i think fight club is a classic and we should definitely go with that one.  ❜

“Oooh lemon heads! Where did you even find these? I thought they didn’t sell them outside of the states?” Ryan clapped excitedly, grabbing the yellow packet that had fallen with the rest of them onto the table. Ripping into it she put a ball into her mouth before turning to look at him. “I mean I didn’t pick fight club, but i’m down to watch that one if you want. I just thought you might want to get away from work since you’re not there at the moment.” The brunette smirked, her tone slightly pointed as she eyed him with wide eyes, knowing exactly what she was doing and trying to keep the giggle from bubbling up.

     his hand lifted almost immediately after the removal of her hat, tugging it off of his own head before tossing it onto the rack and raising his eyebrows at her new choice.  ❛  much better. you look like you’re ready to head out and conquer the day. it actually looks pretty damn cute. i wish they looked that good on me.  ❜

“I mean, I am ready to head out and conquer the day, but then again if I have you beside me I could conquer anything.” She whispered leaning towards him with a over the top wink. “I think imma buy this one actually, it’s cute. Covers my face to so we’re all a winner. Shit, did I bring my cash?” She muttered, letting go of the hat on her head, sticking a hand into the pocket of her jeans with a grin. “I did.”

“i suppose you do raise an excellent point there, my dear, but…” there always had to be a ‘but’, right? whether she liked or not, for some reason, ziva’s always had to have the last word; not always necessarily while being hostile, or anything in the negative manner – the blonde sometimes just liked to argue for the sake of it. because, in her own mind, there was nothing better than a healthy debate about the most pointless topics there could be. “get this – there are people… – have you ever seen ‘my strange addiction’, by any chance?” she asked, “there are people who could eat literally everything. from plywood, to a bed mattress, therefore… my point still sort of stands, now, doesn’t it?” ziva countered, taking her sweet time to send a playful wink followed by a gentle, yet still mischievous smile. 

“not really when you grew up not being able to afford to have a kettle, really,” now, while the comment might have sounded like she was trying to make the other take the pity on her, it was not the point. “the observation’s been purely made on my own family’s background – my maman kept waking us up at the butt crack of dawn, just so we could be fairly awake during the day, and be less of a trouble to put down to sleep…” ziva then trailed off, letting a silent laughter bubble up. she then figured it wasn’t exactly the best time to start reminiscing about the past, so she simply shrugged it off, as if it never truly mattered. however, in a way, it was something that helped to shape her up as a person. “— but, by the angel! how could i forget about the garlic! and… – and the constant repetition of the ‘hon, hon, hon’ sounds. if that’s not french enough, then i have little to no idea what it possibly could have been!” to be fair, the agent could ramble about this all day long, but for the sake of ryan’s eardrums, and her very own well-being, she stopped right before she could delve any deeper into it. “thank you, so much. you… have no idea how calming it is for me to experience that after a darn busy day, really…” she’d eventually trail off, sucking in a deep breath, and releasing it with a content sigh.

Ryan could have told herself that the but would come before she’d even bothered to speak, it always did with the blonde, but she never had an issue with that. It kept the conversation, kept her on her toes, which was after all something she liked in a friend. Causing the girl to smile slightly, biting her bottom lip so that she didn’t laugh at the push for the last word, yet again. “My strange addiction? Course I have, have you seen the one where the woman eats paint pens? Because that’s a really good one. She has to have this certain brand otherwise she thinks it taste wrong, it’s hysterical. I don’t understand why she doesn’t bulk buy them from like Costco or something, or order them online, then she’d never run out.” Her own voice ran out before lapsing into quiet at the mention of the point, shrugging with a nod. “Sure, i’ll give you that, but doesn’t mean you win. So don’t go becoming cock of the walk or something blondie.” Ryan joked, reaching out to give a strand of her hair a very gentle tug.

It always struck her how different their upbringings had been, where Ziva had grown up with no kettle Ryan could have had fifteen in one room if that’s what she wanted. She could have been bought one that was gold plated, not that it had ever held any attraction to her, it was just the total opposite of the other. Not that she’d ever say that out loud for several reasons. “I mean, that’s probably quite a smart idea, if you woke up earlier you’d go to sleep earlier. Maybe i’ll adopt that with my own children, your mama sounds like she might have known what she was doing. Although my bedtime was iron clad too, I was never gotten up at the butt crack of dawn though, gross.” Wrinkling her nose she started to run her fingers through her hair with a small giggle at the sound of her imitating her own countrymen, like a small child the brunette was easily amused by funny noises making her snort of hilarity. “I can play with your hair all night babe, it’s fun. I should have trained to be a … hair person instead of a barista. Well it’s not like I trained to be a barista, but still, if I started playing with peoples hair there i’d probably get fired. How is work going for you eh? Why was it so busy?” Her question was genuine, eyes trained on the others locks in her fingers.

“Perhaps, though it’s never been my strong suit to start conversations off with that intention in mind. But I’ll remember that,” She grinned back shaking her head. Elle had never been one for fashion, per se–work was also decently particular about what you wore so it never really mattered. But it felt oddly nice to have a friend to go try things on with, if only the hat. “What–no, not me. I’m not a princess. Sometimes, i think it’d be nice to be–but nope, I’m as real as they come. And besides, you’re just as pretty, if not prettier. Are you a princess?” She asked jokingly, her eyebrow raising in mock suspicion. “Mmm, I do like it–but you saw it first! You should get the honor of owning it.”

“Ah well it’s always my intention, you should now that about me honey.” Ryan giggled, grabbing a second hat from the rack to put on her own head replacing the one she’d just passed over. “Oh shut up stop talking crap to me. You’re all blonde and shiny, kinda like cinderella when she went to the ball after her make over. It’s actually rude, you should give the rest of us a chance.” The brunette teased, rolling her eyes. “Yep, i’m a princess, how did you know? Shit, I thought I was so good at hiding it as well. Looks like i need to work on my lying eh?” Pushing the idea of her owning the hat over Eloise she waved her hand, looking at herself in the mirror with the new one. “It looks better on you I think, I’d be screwing the hat over if I got it. Like a terrible parent who forced their kid to do something they didn’t want to do.”

“Smart shopper,” Ivy commended at Ryan’s decision to let the magical hat go. “I’d rather you spend the money on something you’d wear, even if the hat is magical,” the hint of amusement returned in her tone at the word they kept tossing around in jest.

“Aye aye captain,” smiling, Ivy led the way to the changing rooms, picking the first that wasn’t occupied she took the first dress and went inside. A few minutes later she emerged and went straight for the wall of tall mirrors. “Okay, so here’s option number one!” Ivy had enlisted her new friend’s help, once they decided to go shopping. Besides, what better way to get to know someone’s tastes than an afternoon of retail therapy. “What do you think?” She turned, giving the other enough angles to make a judgment on. “It’s for a date,” she hadn’t shared that information prior their arrival at the store. “My first one in…well, since my divorce.” Once again, the nerves settled in the pit of her stomach. Was it too soon?

“Why thank you, I give it my best go.” She put the hat back on the rack she’d picked it up from, turning to look around to look back at Ivy again with a small giggle. “We do need to find something else magical for me though, with no magic i’m really boring. Which will never do.” It also wasn’t really true in essence because the person Ryan was under…well Ryan, was incredibly different to most poeple. She just had to cover that in order to keep her own cover. Following her friend to the dressing room she leant against the wall while she waited for Ivy to come out clad in one of them, clapping her hands with a bright grin when she finally did. “Holy shit, that’s so cute! Wait, what is this for exactly? Or are we just getting things to make your butt look good and be the clothing version of you milkshake?” Her smirk was accompanied by sparkling eyes, joking in them, while she watched the woman appraise herself. “I think…wait it’s for a date? Woah woah woah.” One hand went up, walking over to Ivy until it was right in front of her face signaling she had to be quiet. “You have a date that you’re only telling me about now? No no. I need more information here. Like, yesterday.”

Shit! On one hand, she had a curious sales’ clerk’s interest and on the next, she spotted Ryan’s quick approach. There was no way to avoid either confrontation. Luckily, she was never one to shirk a fight, despite her attempts to remain undiscovered by her ex-something. 

“Is everything okay, ma’am?” 

“Oh yes, sorry about that. I’m rather clumsy,” Ciara joked, then continued to spin whatever web of lies it would take to get her out of trouble with the boutique’s staff. “I was just looking for a mirror and must have passed too close to the sensors.” Considering her proximity to the sensors and the nearby mirrors, the explanation seemed to fit. Once satisfied, the sales clerk returned to her post, and now Ciara was left to face those piercing blue eyes that belonged to none other than Ryan Malta. 

“Ryan,” was all Ciara said by way of greeting, before returning to the area where she took the hat and sunglasses from. No doubt she expected the brunette to follow her the short distance.

“If you don’t keep an eye on her she falls over her own feet.” Ryan laughed easily, looking over at the sale clerk with a light shrug, the teasing only in fun of course. As she retreated the girls looked at each other, a small smile spreading onto the discoverers lips. “Ci, it’s been a while.” Her voice was low, but soft because despite everything she was glad for this chance encounter. Their relationship, or whatever it had been, wasn’t long over and Ryan missed the other girl a lot. Probably because the end hadn’t been her choice, not even slightly.

Following her over to the hat and sunglasses stands she crossed her arms loosely over her chest, head on one side a bit. “How have you been? You were trying to hide from me, bit cold to be honest.” The girl was far from stupid, plus she knew when someone was using a disguise, she’d seen it enough times.

     ❛  you callin’ me an ass ?  ❜  head canted, just a single eyebrow lifting as he teased. one hand raised, patting the top of her head gently before he flicked at the brim of the hat playfully.  ❛  you’re … somethin’ else.  ❜  not an insult, but not a compliment. this time, both eyebrows raised and he just nodded once before letting out a short laugh.  ❛  i think you’d look better in one of those baseball caps. it’s a bit more casual.  ❜

“Maybe i’m calling you an ass, but that’s okay, donkeys are kinda cool no?” Letting out a small laugh as he flicked the rim of the hat Ryan pulled it off, putting it onto his head. “Pretty special I know.” The girl winked, picking up a baseball cap to put onto her head snugly. “Better? Actually I kinda love this look, it’s low key but kinda tomboy sexy right?” Looking in the mirror the girl pouted her lips, seeing the man in the reflection easily.

Freya nodded, smiling gratefully as she wrote down her rushed order. So far their encounter wasn’t going badly by any means, which she was definitely relieved about. “Oh, wow, I’ve never been out of the country actually. I’ve only ever seen Los Angeles in the movies, but it seems fun from that alone.” She kind of wondered how she and Paul had met, but she knew better than to ask her. The situation was awkward enough as it were without bringing their past relationship up to top it all off. “Hm, yeah, I suppose we are. It’s all sort of new.”

Freya may be managing to give off a genuine smile but Ryan was having no such luck, she was having to force hers a little more, but it was there. “It’s….very big. You should go there if you like what you see in the movies, honestly the whole city is like a film set. Although I didn’t grow up there, we moved away when I was about six, but it’s a cool place.” Her sigh was tiny, inaudible, but it was there as she heard about the shiny new relationship that the brunette wished was hers. “Well…new can be the best. I always loved that part of relationships.” She swallowed, coughing gently. “I should uh get your order started.”

All that teasing just earned Ryan another shake of her head from the author. “You’d understand if you met her,” she just said, the smile on her face widening again when she thought back about the two times she had seen the woman in question. “She’s a horticulturist. And honestly, when I first knew I was going to interview her, I didn’t think what I was going to run into was going to be this absolutely gorgeous radiant woman. I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t her.” She paused, grinning. “Either way, she works at Kew Gardens and on the weekend she actually gave me a private tour. Never thought plants could be this interesting.”

“Oh yeah, she’s that special is she?” Ryan grinned, glancing around the cafe to check everyone in there was content with what they had and didn’t need any more of it before turning back to her friend. “Okay, so tell me more about her.” Leaning against the counter she propped her head up with her hand, chewing the bottom lip absentmindedly as she listened. “Horticulturist? You don’t think of the as being gorgeous and radiant but I’ll take your word for it. Did you spend any time looking at the gardens or were you just keeping your eyes glued on her ass the whole time? Just saying that’s what I would have done if she was really as amazing as she sounds.”

“Oh my god, Ryan, can you be serious for once!” Nicola whined, yet the whine turned into a laugh a moment later. She loved her friend, there was no doubt about that, but this was something else. “I mean… I met her twice so far, and we’ve been texting a bit in between? Remember when I said I’d do that article series about jobs that are close to extinction? So I interviewed her for one of them and that was… I wanna say about a week ago, and I can’t stop thinking about her!”

“Does not compute, what is this word serious?” The woman frowned as if genuinely confused by an alien concept before pushing the freshly made cup of coffee across to the girl. “Twice? Okay why didn’t you tell me you’d met twice I was starting to worry you were investing too much in a new connection. That’s so my bad.” She broke out into a grin, the teasing all lighthearted although she was a little jealous of the woman’s so called connection. she kinda wanted something like that. “Well, it’s certainly making you look like you’ve won the lottery. What’s her job then?”

“Evidently, otherwise I wouldn’t be talking to you.” Nicola playfully rolled her eyes. The whole thing turned into a disbelieving shake of her head. Really, that was the route she was going now? “What I meant is…” she started, her grin getting much wider again as she thought back to the encounter. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been this interested in someone. “I might have met a woman…” She paused, pondering. “How soon is too soon to say it might be the woman of my dreams? Does that sound too cheesy? Shit, I feel like a teenager!”

“Oh my god are you talking about me? Nic this is too much all at once, how am I meant to control myself around you if I know you have these feelings for me?” Ryan laughed loudly, throwing a shot of coffee into the woman’s drink with lazy accuracy as they chatted, glint in her eye. “I know babe, i’m a woman, I double checked this morning so I can promise you it’s the truth.” Even the roll of her eyes couldn’t deter the joking because honestly the brunette was amusing herself too much for that. “It sounds really cheesy, how long have you known this woman again?”

Nicola bit down on her bottom lip, the grin getting slightly wider at the other’s comment. “Who knows, maybe I’m planning to murder you and it’s going to get scarier in a moment.” She chuckled. God, what was happening? She wasn’t usually this cheerful. Her fingers tapped the counter, tracing it, before blue eyes looked back up at the other woman. “I might have met someone…”

“Good luck murdering me darling, no one has managed it yet.” Ryan grinned, the comment meaning more in its essence than Nicola could even imagine, but she still managed to amuse herself with it. If the other knew of the loaded shot gun nestled under the counter top she probably wouldn’t have been smiling quite so much, not that she’d ever use it on her. “Met someone? Well you’d be hard pushed to get through a whole day without meeting anyone. Especially if you leave the house.” She teased.

“Well, I’ll take what I can get.” Elle chuckled, a smile playing on her lips. “Well–perhaps that does make you the best judge, and one with great experience.” She laughed and spun around in the hat. “Grace Kelly? Really? Wasn’t she like a princess or something? Y’know, I haven’t been told that I have a face made for a hat model, but it’s one of the nicer compliments I’ve ever received. As do you though–if it weren’t for you, I would have never even seen this hat!”

“The best experience, trust me it’s amazing, you should try it sometime. Just saying.” Ryan shrugged with a cheeky grin, watching the blonde spin in a circle with the expression not faltering even slightly. She honestly looked like some kind of disney princess with her blonde hair, like cinderella in the live action movie maybe. “She was a princess, are you telling me you’re not one? Because I don’t believe that for a single fucking second. You’re too pretty to be a normal person.” The compliments flowed from her easily, after all she was good at giving them, she always had been. “You do have the face for one, you should buy the hat. Would be a crime not to.”

closed starter for @notryanmalta

Ever since she ended whatever she had with Ryan (because labels scared her), Ciara had taken to actively avoiding the brunette. Thus far, it had been a task, but so far it worked. Ciara switched her self-defense class times so she wouldn’t run into her there. That class was where they met around 9 months ago. Sadly, not every chance meeting could be manipulated in such a way. Which brings Ciara to this moment, trapped in a boutique with the very Ryan Malta she planned to avoid, for the rest of her existence. Getting to the exit without being noticed would be a challenge. She sneaked around the store, grabbing random hat and sunglasses hoping to disguise herself. 

So far, so good, she mused once the possibility of a clean getaway was within her reach. Alas, when she turned to gauge Ryan’s position, Ciara passed to close to the security systems at an exit point. The RFID tags in her disguise merchandise set off the loud high-pitched alarms, thus drawing attention to herself.

For some reason her life seemed to run in patterns, she’d find someone she really liked and she’d fall hard and fast. Ryan would give them everything, but for some reason it always ended the same way and she always ended up on her own. That had happened with Paul, it had happened with Ciara, it had happened with her junior school boyfriend Aaron, the pattern was never changing but god how she wished it would. All she wanted was to be in a relationship where she didn’t wake up everyday wondering if this would be the day it would all go to shit, except even knowing this was a formula for her didn’t stop her feelings from having a will of her own. Didn’t stop her from feeling connections with people with her whole being. She wasn’t stupid, she knew that Ciara had been avoiding her, but she tried to put it out of her mind. The key word being tried.

Looking through a rack of sunglasses with vapid interest Ryan wasn’t really paying any attention to what was going on aorund her. There was no immediate threat to her she’d made sure on arrival, so now she was just passing the time until her shift started at the coffee bar. Only half an hour more. Hearing the shop alarm go off by the door she turned with a tiny crease between her eyebrows, seeing a flustered woman looking a little panicked. On further inspection it all fell into place, from behind the sunglasses and under the hat she picked out the features of Ciara, eyes widening. “Ci?” Ryan murmured to herself, making her way across the floor.