(jessica alba, female, she/her) Welcome to Lakeview, ARIANNA VASQUEZ ! We hear that you are THIRTY FOUR years old. You’ve been in town TWO WEEKS? You should get to your job as a DOCTOR. I hear that it fits your KIND and STUBBORN personality. Don’t be out on Route 9 alone!

A LIGHT giggle elicited Sophie’s lips as she felt his strong hands pull her petite frame onto his lap, she settled into his arms contentedly, feeling as though their bodies were made to fit together. He was all she needed, and when the time would (hopefully) come, they’d have their child by their side. A family of their very own with the love of her life was all she wanted, even just the thought of not being able to give her husband what they’d been hoping for killed her. “Mm, I like the way you think. You’re very smart, have I told you that?” Her lips curved into a smirk as she gazed up at him, a look of adoration on her face. 

“I appreciate it, my love… it’s nice to know you have my back, and you know I have yours, right?” She knew the answer to her own question, but she wanted to be reassured of it, because Alex was her whole world, and the last thing she would want would be to let him down. “How did that go? Before bed last night I took a peek at what you had done yesterday… I’m very impressed, but I can’t say I’m surprised. You’re the best in your field.” Truer words had never been spoken. No one had the talent that Alec possessed, and she was so happy that he was getting the credit and accolades he deserved. “I’m excited for this gallery, and all our future projects…” She added, beginning to absentmindedly play with the diamond bracelet wrapped around her wrist. “I’m still excited about the possibility of this baby… if it’ll ever happen, but I’m just worried that I’ll never be able to give that to you.”

“I think you have told me that a couple of times, yes.” he joked, teasing her and repeatedly kissing the top of her head as he just held on to her and absentmindedly trailed his finger tips down her arms. He loved the way that Sophie looked at him, it had never changed from when they were just going out. She still made him feel like the guy he was 15 years before, moving to a new town and falling for the real estate agent who was trying to find him a new home, and there they were now happily married and doing their best to start a family. 

“And you are my wife so you’re completely biased.” he said, never having been one to do well accepting compliments, though knowing Sophie was proud of what he could do was definitely the highest compliment he could ask for. She was the most important person in his life, and her opinion was the only opinion  he really cared about. Other than the high regard he had for her coming from how completely in love with her he was, he also trusted her eye and put a lot of weight on her suggestions because he knew that she had exquisite taste. “You know what, this project is nothing compared to how excited I am about us starting a family,” he said, thinking of getting pregnant as the most important project trumping every and all other work related things. “Hey, Soph... it’ll happen alright? Somehow, someway. It’ll happen when it’s meant to happen. I don’t want you to worry about it too much okay?” he asked, kissing her cheek. He knew how much she thought about having a baby, and how much she wanted it - he wanted it too. But no matter how they ended up starting a family, all he needed was her. “I’m a lucky guy exactly where I am right now with you.” 

It was SAFE to say that in most situations, Sophie liked to have some control, and when it was out of her grasp, things didn’t feel quite right. That wasn’t to say she was a complete and utter control freak, not at all, but she liked predictability, or the skill to be able to know how to handle it. She wasn’t overbearing about it, but it wasn’t a secret that she liked when things went her way. “Hopefully it’ll pass soon. It’s almost my… window.” Ah, that important twenty-four hours during her cycle when conception was possible… would it work this time? She had her doubts, but only time would tell… that’s if they were going to go back to a house that wasn’t majorly affected by the storm.

“You read my mind! That was going to be my next question.” Over their years together, the woman had developed a knack for being so in sync with Alec… if she needed anything else to prove their perfect compatibility, that’d be it. “I arrived about 20 minutes ago. I had a bagel at the office earlier, I’m not that hungry at the moment, but I promise you I’m okay. You don’t need to worry about me.” She offered him a SWEET, reassuring smile before leaning up to press a kiss against his lips. “Was your day good, though? Besides the storm.”

Alec chuckled when he saw the familiar look on his wife and just looped the dog leashes around the leg of his chair and pulled her onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her and resting his chin against her shoulder as they just sat and watched the crowd start scurrying around the large high school gym, most people going around trying to find things to eat or spare blankets - another reason he was glad that he’d packed everything they would need for the night in the duffle bag. He nodded and laced his fingers with hers, “all the more reason to hope we can get out of this crowded gym soon then,” he said, knowing exactly what she was talking about on the account of trying for a baby being their main focus as a couple for the past few years, and he’d already scheduled those next few days off. “Why don’t we get a head start on that window as soon as we get out of here?” 

They’d been together for so long he wasn’t surprised when he’d hit the mark on what she was about to say - it happened pretty often, and there were countless times when Sophie knew what he needed even before he’d thought of needing it. “You’re my wife, I always worry about you. I worry about you when you walk on cobblestones with those heels of yours.” he said, rolling his eyes and laughing a little as he adjusted his hold over her, “Just a boring normal day of trying to finalize those drafts for the art gallery... storm discluded, I’m much better now.” he said, referring to the kiss she’d planted on him. 

The day had started out just like any other, and had been running pretty smoothly until the GLOOMY weather worsened, unlike anything Sophie had seen in town before. Unluckily for her, she’d been on a walk with her dogs when the storm escalated and the announcement was made, causing her anxiety to climb just a little, but fortunately, her husband was only a phone call away. He always managed to calm her down, even in some of the most dire situations, and she was thankful for that. Her emotions seemed to be more delicate lately, mostly due to the fact they were trying for a baby… her natural hormones, along with the affect fertility treatment had on a woman’s body, she was on edge. She didn’t know how much longer she was able to go through with the heartbreak of seeing the negative pregnancy test every cycle. How much more could she take? Still, she was trying her hardest to keep her mind off it, wanting to focus on the weather rather than dwelling on another thing she had no control over.

Blue eyes scanned the vicinity before turning to catch sight of Alec, the redhead felt her heart instantly melt, and their dogs start tugging on the leashes once they saw him. “Hi, baby.” She grinned, leaning into his embrace before grabbing hold of the pillow. “I’m fine, are you okay? I wasn’t expecting it to get this bad.” Shrugging, she ushered him over to a pair of seats against the back wall. “Thank you for bringing our stuff. You’re amazing. Was the house okay when you left? I’m pretty confident that it’s sturdy enough to last through it, but I mean… stranger things have happened.”

Alec kissed Sophie’s cheek before he took the leashes from her so that the dogs were two more things she didn’t have to worry about. He knew his wife, and he knew how her anxiety could play up in situations like this when so much was out of control and there were so many people just cramped into one area. When they got to the seats she’d saved it felt a little more relaxed, at least they could be away from everyone else and he could set their thing down at their feet. “I don’t think anyone was... or they didn’t think to make a big deal out of it till it got really bad.” he said shaking his head and wrapping one arm around Sophie, letting her lean up against him. 

“I popped in the storm shutters just in case but I’m sure the house will be fine.” He knew it would be, he’d designed it and he wouldn’t have built his wife a home that wasn’t safe. “How long have you been here? The line pulling into the school parking lot was insane. Have you had anything to eat?” He couldn’t help but worry about Sophie, after everything they’d been through trying for a baby, she didn’t need the added stress. “You’re sure you’re okay?” 

Alec had been at home for most of the day in his office, drafting some plans for a new art gallery that was being built in New York when all the alerts went off and he got the messages about the storm and what all residents had to do. Sophie was already out for the day so he sent her a text asking her if she’d need anything from the house other than clothes and their important documents, telling her he’d meet her at the high school and handle packing up some things for them. After locking the plans he’d been working on in their safe, pretty satisfied with the way their house had been built thinking it would handle the storm without too many problems he grabbed their bags and his wife’s pillow, got into his car and drove. 

When he got to the high school he signed in, duffel bag and pillow in one arm not really caring about what other people had going on as he just tried to find his wife. Auburn hair gave her away and he chuckled, walking up to her as she stood close to the center of the room, coming up behind her and kissing her cheek, “Soph,” he greeted her, smiling and passing on her pillow as the person his wife had been talking to excused themselves to give the couple their space. “Hey-- you okay? Weather’s getting pretty nasty out there.” 

ofhalycons​:

Franklin ran one hand through his girlfriend’s hair, smiling down at her. He could tell that she was being careful, but he actually appreciated it. Yes, he was sore, but he wasn’t going to let that get in the way of their plans. “Yes, I was.” He joked back at her, softly biting his lip at her question. “That depends… Are you going to go any lower?”

Franklin wasn’t about to tell Arianna that his wound had become sore because he was testing whether or not he could have sex without pain. Granted, he didn’t really have sex, unless one counted with himself. “Last night?” He admitted, grabbing her hands from his wound. “It’s feeling better now.” He smirked, pulling her closer to him. “It is sore, but nothing I can’t handle, Ari.”

Arianna laughed and let him pull her closer, his hands completely covering hers as she fit perfectly into his arms, being liberal about falling into him without putting too much pressure on his wound. “Right, because you were just being a big baby before?” she asked, teasing him and biting her lip as she tilted her head and stared right into his eyes, “Want me to kiss it better?” 

@ofhalycons​ (Frankianna)

Franklin had been a little sore. While he had been fully healed, all of the work was causing his scar to hurt. It wasn’t reopening, but he did worry. He approached Arianna, hand on his wound. “So, I think I need you to check out my wound. It’s a little sore.”

Arianna had been helping distribute blankets when she turned around to see Frankling complaining about his wound and keeping a hand over the wound site. Worry filled her features as she gave forgot about the blankets in her arms, “What? When did your wound start giving you problems?” she asked, ushering him into a corner of the hall where she could sit him down and properly look at the wound, only to find that it seemed okay, and was healed just like it had been before. “It looks okay to me, Frank... what were you doing when it started to hurt?” 

It had been a few weeks since the attack, and other than the cast around her arm the physical reminders of it had started to fade away and Arianna hoped that as they physical signs faded, so would the trauma that she kept every time she closed her eyes and tried to get some rest. She’d made a habit out of staying at Franklins’ place and her grandmother didn’t mind too much, as long as she came back for the odd dinner or lunch every now and then, just because being with Franklin was one of the only remedies to the nightmares that kept coming back. 

Fast asleep one second and then sitting up and wide awake in the next, eyes wide and breathing heavily she usually managed to settle herself back down and Franklin would remain asleep through the nightmares, but this time the nightmare was more vivid and she shot up in bed clutching the covers to her side, remembering the exact moment she saw the attacker move forward to stab Franklin, She yells out in her dream but also as she’s pulled back into reality, waking up Franklin as the lights turn on and Arianna is left shivering in his bed from the memory. “--I’m so sorry,” she started, shaking her head as her grip on the covers never loosens. “I didn’t mean to wake you..” 

open starter [ @lakeviewstarters​ ]

cody had spent a solid part of the day making some fresh, new ice cream flavors and had ended up giving his employees the afternoon off. they all seemed to have better things to do, and he figured he could handle the shop on his own for a few hours. it wasn’t like he hadn’t done that countless time before. he was deep in thought when he heard the doorbell jingle at the front of the shop. letting out a sigh, he made his way out from the back and behind the counter. “hey, what can i do you for?” he asked before looking up and offering a smile.

“Hi,” Arianna said absentmindedly as she peered into the ice cream display to look at all the available flavors. “Got anything new?” she asked, wanting to mix it up a little that night before she went home, making a mental note to bring back a pint for the freezer so her grandmother could have some the next day. “If not I think I’ll go for my usual coffee almond fudge.” 

“Oh…” Ellie said, not moving from her spot. She looked at the badge the other woman had on. Oh. This is her. She quickly put on a smile, holding the bouquet closer. Ellie didn’t want to say it but she found herself intimidated. “Yeah, we’re friends.” She said quickly. “You wouldn’t mind? I wasn’t going to stay long; just check in and leave these.” She said, gesturing at the bouquet.

Arianna noticed how the other woman drew into herself a little more, and was a little confused but she didn’t push it, and shrugged. “I don’t mind at all, like I said I was headed in that direction anyway and it’d be a shame for him not to get those flowers,” she said, giving her another smile. “Visiting hours so stay as long a you’d like... I’m Arianna, by the way. Dr. Vasquez, but Arianna is all the same with me -- I didn’t get your name..” she asked, trailing off for her to fill in the gap as they walked. 

ginny smiled as arianna walked in and moved to the back of the store where the arrangement that she had made for her was. ‘here you go.’ she handed it over with a smile and sighed softly. ‘it’s good to see you too, how have you been?’

Smiling as she took the flowers in exchange for her credit card, Arianna brought the bouquet up to her face so she could get a good whiff of them before her attention was brought back to the other woman. “I’ve been alright -- as good as anyone could be doing under the circumstances I guess,” the attack had been all over local news and Arianna knew that news in Lakeview spread quickly. “How are you? I don’t think I’ve seen you since homecoming in Senior Year.” 

Franklin wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “You should have kept yourself safe.” He whispered, allowing her to get into the bed with him. He adjusted, grimacing in pain as his stomach muscles tried to contract. “I’m glad I’m alive.” He kissed the top of her head, pulling her closer. He could feel himself falling back asleep. “I mean it.” He had been in love with Arianna since high school, though they were different people after so many years, he knew that those feelings wouldn’t go away.

Arianna gave him a look that had she’d perfected, one that she was sure her grandmother had passed down to her which basically told him to shut up. “Listen to me, saving myself and leaving you there with-- that person, was never an option that crossed my mind. And if I had to do it all over again I would make the same choices,” she said, trying to assure him as she bit her lip and looked over at him as he pulled her close, doing her best not to lean on him too much. “You had a strong cocktail of painkillers and anaesthesia that you haven’t gotten out of your system,” she insisted even if she had to admit hearing him say those things and tell her what he was feeling - however exhaustion-induced, made her blush.