* 𝐭𝐡𝐞 / 𝐬𝐤𝐲

JASPAR FLORENTINO: AN INTRODUCTION

“He looks really happy, actually.” Jaspar says to the person who appears alongside him at what must be the smallest table in the parking lot, as a hand reaches out to gesture at hat he can only assume must be a figurine of the Stompin Grapes’ mascot. “Look at that little face. He looks like he’s eatin’ grapes.”

who: open what: stress <3 where: back behind the equipment shed

Homecoming always looked fun in the movies. It was a quintessential college experience, and here Rory was, a complete nervous wreck hiding behind the equipment shed just to get some air. But she hadn’t really expected anyone else to come wandering back there. “Oh my god- sorry-” she blurted out. “I was just, trying not to hurl! Don’t mind me!” It was meant to sound like a joke (even though it was totally true), but nothing about her wavering voice sounded convincing, even to her. Her chest felt too tight, like her ribs were collapsing inwards under the pressure. “Sorry, I won’t puke if you want to hide out here too.” Her stomach turned again and she paled unconvincingly. “Probably.” 

👻

In between the bubbling excitement of having a semi-normal college experience and the more pressing thoughts of things yet to be explained, hiding behind an equipment shed seems semi-normal. A potential respite from thinking about the owntay uaresqay? The potential that the aranormalpay that the likes of Kamila and Jamie would be overjoyed to find out exists actually does? What he doesn’t expect is a fellow squarer (what he’s been affectionately calling them in his logbook) to be hiding there too. “That doesn’t sound too pleasant.” His mind scrambles between long car rides between states and looking after the children of ‘uncles’ and ‘aunts’ in motel rooms whose names he can no longer recall. “... Do you want me to get a tea? Or is that not very homecoming-y? I’m not really sure how these events work.”  

Maddie was naturally a little nosey, it wasn’t that she wanted to dig up the dirt on others or even mildly stir the soil for that matter, she just liked to feel as if she were a part of things. Since that was the case, it was rather fitting that Maddie was in charge of the ledger that contained everybody’s dorm assignments for the semester. She could see where everybody would be living, who they would be sharing their quarters with, with whom they would have neighboring walls and it was all very exciting to her.

As a recent transfer student, she didn’t know everybody on the ledger and it was a perfect opportunity for her to put faces to names and feel like she was contributing something to the CCU community in the process. More comforting than that, however, was to see the gang around the place, despite all that had happened as of late.

“Hey,” Maddie greeted, “Got your assignment yet? I won’t tell if you want to do a little swapsies, there’s still time,” more than half of the names in the ledger remained unmarked, which meant, in Maddie’s exclusive opinion that as the on-duty dorm assignment director, she also had the power to move things around for the right person…or the right price.

👻

The idea of having a roommate was actually quite exciting to Jaspar. Sharing a space... late night confessions of their future hopes and dreams... those little outfit sharing moments that he’d seen in countless movies over the years. And then there was the overarching reason why he’d even thought about moving out of the place he shared with the cats. It was less lonely and surely living with a stranger for the year had to be better than living with a house full of criminals he did back home! “I don’t think I’ve really met mine,” he comments, although he’s quite chipper about it. “He has a super cool name though, so surely that means he’s, like, super cool.” Because that’s how it went usually.  “How about you? Did you have any inside knowledge into the selection process?” 

🌱

Rory blinked in the morning light. Maybe she should’ve expected that answer, after everything he’d finally told them at their little midnight meeting of the Cherry Night Wanderers Society. Scratch that. She wasn’t keen on joining any sort of society, after everything with the LDB. “I’d sort of been hoping that having even half an answer might make the sleepwalking stop,” she sighed, but tried to shoot him a half hearted smile anyways. “Clearly, no such luck. Opened my eyes to Town Square instead of my bedroom ceiling.” Sleep didn’t even feel like rest anymore. And that was saying something, considering her usual track record with the night hours. 

“Any tips on how to stop doing that? Because I’m really gonna to need to buy better pajamas if all the early birds are gonna keep seeing them. I also might start sleeping in shoes. I had to get a tetanus shot last week because I stepped on some glass walking home.” 

👻

“Well... your waking brain knows what might be going on. Your mind when it’s at rest? Less so.” He offers with a returned small smile of his own. Whenever he looks at one of their little group he still feels mild pangs of guilt for not looking out for them better. Maybe if they’d all been in the loop (no time warp reference intended) for longer there would be no need for tetanus shots. “I’ve found it’s all about getting inventive and creating tiny experiments to try to overcome it. I’ve already tried tying one hand to my bedpost which is actually surprisingly difficult to do by yourself,” he laughs. “Another idea I’m considering is setting up a camera to see if there’s a set time that the wandering starts.. this could work better for you if you live with someone else as you could get someone you live with to guide you back to bed at that time through explaining that you’re sleepwalking. Not why, though. Obviously.” Even if it could ruin their memories for good, he also doesn’t want to get in trouble with Kamilla! “Creating some kind of noise system above your front door is also another option...?” 

who: @ofjaspars​ what: some arcade fun It was completely lost on Cam how people did shit like this. How was literally anyone good at video games. What kind of brain power did it take that he was clearly lacking. Which was saying something, because generally Cam considered himself to be a fairly intelligent person. He did well in school, maintained his grades, and was always on the top of his game when it came to his parents bi-weekly family trivia nights. But shit like Galaga? Mrs. Pac Man? Centipede? Mario Kart? It was like all the hand eye coordination he considered himself to be so on top of during his deliveries was somehow out the window. Which became ever the more clear when he found himself getting his ass kicked all over again despite it being his third try. 

“Dammit. I seriously don’t get how people do this. Are you any good at these things?” He asked, making a point to try and make conversation with Jasper. He was someone he definitely recognized from deliveries but that didn’t always mean they recognized him. “I think I was meant to be bad at video games.” 

👻

Truthfully, other than his cats and Kamilla, Jaspar knows very few citizens of Cherry. But his pizza guy? His pizza guy he definitely recognises. Put it down to the love affair he’d had with pepperoni all throughout the winter when he hadn’t wanted to venture outside. So, he’s all too happy to help the other when spoken to. “Oh c’mon, dude. Nobody’s meant to be bad at video games,” he comments with a warm, reassuring, smile. Because somehow - even through how tired he’s been since trying to solve the mystery of the lost town square memories - his smile stays in place. “It’s all about perspective.” He sidles in a little closer to the machine Cam is on, gentle gesture to ask if it’s okay to take over to show him how he gets through the level. He’s not an expert by any means but he does have a steady hand... part of wanting to be a doctor requires it but he’s positive (and certain!) it can be taught to the other. “Just about seeing your growth positively is all. If you can think it, you can achieve it with enough practice and all that stuff that Hallmark have nailed better than I ever could put in words myself.” 

who: open! what: trying to just be a normal teen where: getting some movie snacks!

Despite it all, Zev was in a pretty good mood. Sure, the fast approaching anniversary of Lux’s death felt like a lead brick in his stomach, and he still didn’t feel quite certain that people weren’t still scrutinizing him, but he was also at a drive in movie plus arcade! Like, his favorite things ever? It was hard to feel that bad when you were surrounded by (almost) everything you loved. 

“Oh, you can cut ahead of me,” he spoke to the person behind him in line at the Food Shack. “I know there’s not that many options, but I’m still not totally sure what I’m getting…” He wasn’t even sure what he was doing! Was he going to go get a ticket for a Junker and watch the movie with some snacks? Maybe. He’d already seen it though, so maybe his money was better spent on some arcade games and beer? Or bowling? Too many choices!

“Actually, what are you doing right now? I have like, no idea what I’m gonna do. So maybe I’ll just tag along with you? If that’s cool?” Just like the good old days. Man, he wished Lux was here too…

👻

Ah, to have an excuse to be at his favourite place in Cherry! It’d just be rude to turn down a party invite when he’s trying to fight against the instinct to go to the town square. Ruder not to get involved... and ruder still to not at least buy his body weight in candy... and fries... hell, he’s pretty sure that by the end of the night he’ll be lifting the economy of the Southside singlehandedly. 

Seeing Zev always manages to bring a smile to his face from their mutual love of skating, but tonight familiarity is just what he needs as it adds an extra pep to the “Hey!” that chimes out when he sees the other ahead of him in the queue. “Well, I’m stuck somewhere between cheese fries and ordering at least, like, five types of candy,” he says with a grin while taking a glance at the menu. He hates to admit it - loathes to admit it with Kamilla’s warnings - but there was just such a charm to the drive-in and all of its activities. “Then I was gonna do bingo bowling to spice things up so you can totally join.” His head cocks to the side, “you ever played? Can be pretty fun when there’s more than one person.”

who: ror & @ofjaspars​ what: a little run in at the asscrack of dawn <3 where: where ELSE tbh

Nightmares were old hat to Rory at this point. Nightmares, night terrors, blah blah blah been there done that. If Zev and Zahra are to be believed, she occasionally talks in her sleep too. But sleepwalking? That was new. And unwelcome. And it made for a grumpy Rory, especially when she opened her eyes in the damn Town Square in her pajamas(!) at 5 am(!!) on a Saturday(!!!). Thank god she didn’t sleep naked. Unfortunately, she also didn’t sleep with money in her pockets, as if she somehow did not foresee needing cash when she put her stolen Pit tshirt and sleep shorts covered in little rainbows when she went to sleep the night before! Luckily, the cocktail of exhaustion, stress, and frustration she was feeling also meant that Rory was severely lacking in shame. She was fully prepared to beg the next familiar person she saw for a couple dollars so she could buy coffee to fuel her barefoot walk home, but recognition flashed across her face as her eyes landed on Kamilla’s assistant. 

“Hey! Jaspar, right?” Running into him here sends the strangest wave of deja vu through her, enough to make her feel a little ill. Or maybe that was the no coffee / 5 am combination at work. “What’re you doing here?”

👻

Saturday mornings weren’t usually like this. They were spent with his head buried deep under the covers cuddling with the gang (disclaimer: not to be confused with The Gang who, as of right now, he’s far less warm to the idea of cuddling. They’re Jaspar’s cat buddies!). So when he’d woke in the early hours of the morning with the intense pulling sensation in his gut that he needed to be at the Town Square instantly he had been a little apprehensive to pull away from Lovelace’s morning head scratches but he’d done it. Tossed on his worn out converse and skated to the forsaken place without even his flask of tea to accompany him. He’d been told by Kamilla why the dreams happened. It still didn’t help the voice in the back of his head that kept asking why and more importantly how? Surely dimension hopping was outside the realm of possibilities? 

But he’s pulled from his reverie by a vaguely familiar face. A Town Square adjacent face. “Uh, hey!” he calls, adjusting his sloppy pyjama bottoms. Maybe he should have paid that much attention to the bags under his eyes. “I...” He frowns as he casts a glance around the square. “Can’t really explain why I’m here actually.” For more than one reason! “I’ve felt oddly drawn to here the past few days....?” He settles on before cocking his head at her. “How about you?” 

✍️

It’d been hard for Noah to place Jasper initially when they’d met in the town square. Partially because of everything they’d just been through, and partially because he really only recognized him from a few short run ins at school. But if he was hanging around with Rory and Mac he had to be some sort of ‘okay’ right? At least it’s what he told himself when Jasper returned his joke with a warm smile. One that brought down Noah’s walls just a smidgen. Just enough to make him feel like Jasper wasn’t going to be the next harsh judgement he had to hear from in regards to the damn polaroid. “Seriously?” Noah asked, a genuine curiosity present in his tone as he thought through his own experiences with school. Writing had been something that’d been encouraged of him from as far back as he could possibly imagine. It’d often been his saving grace in times when he thought he had nothing else. “Kind of fucked up from an educators perspective.” He added, as he tapped his pen lightly against the cover of his book. The question about what he’d been writing surprising him as he glanced down at it then back up to meet Jasper’s gaze. “It’s kind of a mix. Any time Candy comes around I try and write about my perspective of events. But before that I was working on a script and that’s actually coming along quite nicely.” 

👻

“Well, half the joy of writing is in having legible handwriting, so maybe I fell down at the first hurdle” he jokes. Although truly, Jaspar is not a storyteller. Not at a professional level anyway - he gets far too eager to tell the ending and skips ahead on the details. It’s why he’s much better at keeping a scientific logbook than a diary, so there’s something to be respected in the fact that Noah is creating something out of their torture. “You do?” He can’t disguise his surprise at it. The instant thought that if Kamilla were ever to take a foray into private investigation instead of paranormal investigation that it might be the kind of thing that she’d find incredibly useful. Not that he’s about to ask for Noah’s... diary? “That’s pretty rad, dude. Think I’d have... probably just curled up with a cup of tea and made a vow to never speak of it again.” But he hadn’t been psychologically tortured so he may never know! Just... tortured by an inanimate square. Hmm. “What’s your genre of choice? If it’s thriller I think you’re allowed a break.” 

Rocky didn’t admit when she overreacted much, but she definitely thought about those moments a lot. And this was one of them. God, she hated being so fucking on edge like this. But the god news was, he seemed too distracted himself to give a shit that she’d snapped at him. Or, less likely, a good guy in Cherry! “ You’re good. Thanks. ” She assured as she accepted lighter back. Not wasting much more time before she finally lit her cigarette, pocketing lighter safely once she was done with it. Flicking her out of her face as she blew smoke to the side. “ No, it’s cool. You didn’t scare me. ” Nothing scared Rocky Zhōu. That’s what she was always telling herself. Sometimes it felt true. “ Just surprised. ” She offered a small smirk with her words. A light joke, an easy one. Proving just how palatable she could be. How Proper, as it were. “ If you don’t mind second hand smoke you’re welcome to keep hiding here. I was kinda doing the same thing myself. ”

👻

‘Just surprised’. Jaspar could count on both of his hands the number of times a scared ‘ghost’ observer had said something along those lines in his lifetime. But, of course he’s not going to casually mention that he’s part of a family of con artists to a complete stranger. That’s at least fiftieth conversation territory. Preferably never. So, he lets out a chuckle, “if you ever meet me in the wild I am not wanting to become a doctor and betraying my own by lingering here.” He says, nudging his head in the direction of her cigarette. But it’s meant lightheartedly. He’d take secondhand smoke over the nightmares he’d been experiencing the past few days any day of the week. “So what’s someone who doesn’t scare easily hiding out in a back alley?” He quips, trying to muster a grin. If Jaspar had been a born and bred Cherriot he would know there were several reasons as to why someone may want to. But he’s still got that ‘relatively new’ scent off him! Naive, bright and bushy-tailed when it came to everything seedy underbelly.

who: open starter What: little writer boy, doing little writer things  Where: Town Square

And just like that they were back at it. Fear striking through them as the unknown showed it’s ugly face back in Cherry. Noah felt sick to his stomach just thinking about it. The box, the evidence, the riddle… Once again finding himself assigned with community service for the shit they needed to do to deal with Candy and her threats. It was frustrating to say the least. But recently that frustration, and anger had made great fuel for his writing. It all did really. So Noah made a point of returning back to the scene of their riddle. Sat himself down against the table and got to work. He’d started working on pages of his and Zev’s script. Thinking that the recent events would boost his sense of creativity, but that quickly delved into notes from what he recalled from the days prior. Notes similar to the one’s he’d taken over the course of the past year. Feeling that familiar sense of dread as each page left him feeling more and more like things were unfinished. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed but if the number of pages he’d gone through was any indicator it’d been at least a few hours before a shadow was cast over his book. Eyes squinting as he glanced up to see who’d approached. “Long time no see.” He started as he flipped his book shut. “See we had the same idea.” 

👻

Jaspar can’t help it. The siren song of the Town Square has been luring him to it even when he’s been en route to other places in town. It’d be the world’s greatest love story if it weren’t for the fact that there’s an ominous feeling attached to it all. But on this particular trip, he’s not alone. Noah’s “Good one,” he smiles warmly at ‘long time no see’ as if the two hadn’t briefly met in the square when he’d first felt the attachment. It was wishful thinking to imagine that he might have been writing about the Town Square too wasn’t it? To think that it might not have just been him stuck with the growing feeling of restlessness and the dreams. “Can’t say I was planning to do much writing though - my eighth grade English teacher let me down gently on pursuing anything like that...” He pauses for a beat, chewing at the inside of his cheek. “Got anything good going?” 

who: open what: rocky being a lil on edge to be back in proper where: around the side of surf’s up

There were many, many things Rocky could attribute the tight feeling across her shoulders to. The horrifically publicised funeral of Billy Rocks that she had missed, the drama that seemed to swell every time someone so much as mentioned Lux Lewis’ name, or maybe it was simply pain from carrying all the bullshit she had for so many fucking years. One thing she would not attribute it to, however, was an uncomfortable feeling caused by being back in Proper after so many years. It wasn’t the first time back, no, but it was sinking in that she was back. In a certain sense. Whatever. That totally wasn’t her problem. 

In the afternoon shadows beside Surf’s Up Rocky attempted rid that irritating and awfully humbling feeling, pulling rolled cigarette from a metal case and put it between her lips. Cupping hand around it as she tried to light it– but then she sees a shadow move, or thinks she does. Either way, causes her to jump, dropping lighter from her hand as she did. “ Jesus. Don’t fucking sneak up on me like that, ” Was it really sneaking or was it more likely they’d just rounded a corner and now had Rocky snapping at them? “ Total creeper shit. ” She commented irritably, grabbing cigarette before it had the chance to fall as well. She looked to the ground for fallen lighter, the faded red BIC lighter easy to spot, but unfortunately close to the approacher’s feet. God damn it. “ Mind passing my lighter? ” She asked, pointing to it. Irritability notably dropped from her tone now she was asking a favour. A small one, but a favour nonetheless.

👻

Jaspar’s walk to Surf’s Up had taken longer than expected. Mainly because every few steps accompanies a longing in his gut to turn around and walk back to the Town Square. It’s horrific really. Enough to sour usually sweet expression as he slips into the shadows of his destination to get a top-up from his bag. To the alley’s other occupant, it may look like he’s drinking as he whips out a flask and takes a hearty swig... but it’s tea! He swears! Chamomile to ease stress. Or it should do - except one minute he’s sipping his tea and the next he’s retaliating Rocky’s jump with one of his own. 

His eyes catch on the red of the lighter by his feet and he reaches down to grab it, before clutching it in his palm as if there’s something familiar about lighters from his eerie dreams. Not helpful for the creeper shit! “Uh, sorry! Got distracted for a second there.” He snaps out of it, shaking his head a little as he finally extends the lighter out for Rocky to take. As if determined to prove he’s actually a normal human, he throws her a smile. “Sorry if I scared you. Thought I could catch a break from the crowds back here.” 

🎸

“Oh good,” Mac says with a light laugh. It would be just his luck to survive the past year and then drown to death with a bowling ball and a Zippo. He can see the headlines now, Two Weirdos Drown, Kamila Yang Jailed for Manslaughter and Conspiracy Theories. At least then he wouldn’t have to face… well, he didn’t even want to think about it. Plus, he’s sure he’d rather deal with that than die before the new Star Wars came out. 

“Is that Bill Clinton? Do I even wanna know?” he teases, though he leans over to take an oar, “If they find us with him out here do you think he’ll be like ‘I did not have nautical relationships with those men?’” 

👻

A burst of bright laughter leaves Jaspar’s mouth at Mac’s comment as he take his own oar and brings it down into the water to start pushing them out to sea before his eyes land on the bobblehead. “I used to travel around a lot with my family,” he explains. “I got to, like, city four or five before I thought it’d be better with something to remember from it all. Slick Willie here...” His free hand reaches to pick Bill up from the bench who only nods his head, causing him to suck in a breath. “Is from when I lived in Washington for 2 months. But unfortunately, our good friend’s default state is stuck on ferociously agreeing to everything while grinning so I don’t think he’d even be able to deny it.” Wacky and relatable? Way to go Bobblehead Bill! Jaspar hoists the oar once more as Cherry starts to fade into their peripheral vision. “Can’t even trust a bobblehead politician these days... you see why he has to go, right?” 

who: open

where: blossom records booth

Pilar frowned as she rifled idly through the options at the booth. She’d practically gone through half the CD’s and had come to the realisation that she didn’t actually know what music her dad listened to. It made figuring out what to buy for him - an impulse decision that she was now committed to - a little harder than expected. “What do dad’s listen to? Is it 70s music?” she asked offhandedly as someone approached her side. Talking to people felt like more effort ever since… well. Ever since. But she wasn’t going to start shying away from small talk and casual conversation just because of something like that. She would not become a hermit, goddammit. “I worry that anything I give him he’ll play in the waiting room at the clinic and I’d so rather listen to something released in this decade if I or any of the Lambda Rho girls get hurt.”

👻

Was buying a CD the kind of item Kamilla Yang had meant when she asked him to bring a personal item for their research experiment? Probably not but honestly Jaspar’s a little stuck on what he wants to sacrifice to the ocean. Something with low impact on the ecosystem maybe... because he definitely doesn’t need the turtles on his conscience as well as all the deceived families across the nation. Thankfully, as Pilar starts to speak, he’s torn from his reverie altogether. Instead now caught up in the thought of what his own dad would play in the van. Lots of Tom Petty ... and Wings! Jaspar’s mind wanders. What is it with every dad ever and Wings anyway? Is Paul McCartney their agreed mascot? “I’m convinced that they’re all given a soundtrack in the delivery room. There’s a generic dad vibe that seems to be timeless,” he comments, lips quirking into a smile as long fingers skirt over CDs before landing on one in particular and pulling it out with a contemplative hum. “’Huge Hits 1998′”, he reads aloud from the inside of the cellophane wrapper. “That’s gotta have a bit of dad rock and a bit of the latest on it... right?” 

🎸

So maybe Mac’s day hadn’t been as monotonous as previously stated. Because how could B have predicted Mackenzie Walsh getting hot and heavy with Harvard Hargrove III on the dash? So lets disregard whatever I said about Mac’s day. There was no distraction better from what had just taken place than sailing out in the middle of the ocean with someone he barely knew, to assist the town crackpot in a research investigation he knew nothing about. Maybe the sea breeze or whatever would do him some good, it would knock some sense into him so he could process… whatever the fuck had just taken place only an hour or so before. 

“Um- yeah, I did,” he says, rifling around in his pockets. God, he hoped he hadn’t dropped it in Hargrove’s office. How the fuck would he explain that one? Luckily, he finally fishes it out of his pocket- a zippo lighter from the vast collection that was beginning to collect dust in his room, “This good enough?” He raises his eyebrows, mostly at the boat, “Well that’s two more times than I have, so this should be good.” 

👻

Although Jaspar’s still unsure why Kamilla has asked them to bring the items, there’s a touch of curiosity in his eye as Mac pulls out a lighter. Just because it was interesting to see what he’d brought when given a world of choice. He’s always had a big imagination - can practically see it being held up at some concert at some point, even if it’s probably not the case. “Yeah, should be good enough!” He chirps, skimming through scribbled instructions to see if it actually would be. “But just wait until you find out the two things I know about boats are, one: I know we need to take an oar each and two: there’s usually life jackets stored under the benches in case of emergencies,” Jaspar grins easily, nose scrunching slightly. It’s the kind of smile that should put Mac more at ease even if he is fully lacking confidence himself. Still, he loads the items into the boat, giving careful consideration to the orange bowling ball, the bottle he’d collected from the office, and his own personal item - a bobblehead of their current president, currently swaying his oversized head in the breeze. And the tea and pretzels, of course - sustenance was important, before finally taking hopping in himself. “I think we’re pretty much set whenever you’re ready to give up your land legs.” 

🎸

In the past year Mac had done… weirder things than this, somehow. He was surprised that anyone outside of the gang wanted to talk to him, considering most of the town seemed to tiptoe around them after they’d gone missing for two days. Or at least, that’s what it felt like. But Jaspar is a welcome distraction to an otherwise monotonous day, and out of all the real adults in Cherry, Kamilla Yang was somehow among the ones he trusted. He wasn’t all that convinced that what they were doing was going to add up to anything significant, but what the hell, right? It was the least he could do after he’d seen her precious Phantom and she’d never have the chance. 

“Yeah- sure, is there anything you need me to do?” he smiles, “I snagged a bag of pretzels from the store, so we’ve got snacks, too.” 

👻

A small hum pushes past Jaspar’s lips at Mac’s question before he’s reaching into the pocket of his multicoloured jacket to pull up a very crinkled sheet of paper. He’d never been the most diligent worker... with all the moving he’d done he’d never really seen the point when his jobs would last a few months at most, but he wants to be! Or be better at trying to be diligent, at least! “Well, I suppose the most important thing you can do right now is let me know if you brought your personal item?” He looks up from the sheet, wondering where he’d put the IKEA pencil that he’d scribbled the list with to begin with - it’d be handy to tick the items on the list off. “And then I’m probably gonna need some help with getting her,” he taps at the side of the boat with his free hand, “out onto the water. I can practically count on two fingers the amount I know about getting a boat going.” 

𝐖𝐇𝐎: debra foster & OPEN

𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓:​​ lil debs doing her dirty work 4 the day

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄: the block party, obvi!

The lines between Proper and the Southside had slowly began to fade. Well, if they could all coexist at a block party, maybe it would be! It also gave Debra the perfect front to actually be at the block party. Had she shown up of her own volition with no Southsiders in sight… she would have had a bit of explaining to do. Luckily, she had been tasked to mingling on the Proper side. There weren’t many girls in the Southside gang, and not many that could throw on innocence like Debra. Thus, she was given a dress code by Hasim, to wear something unsuspecting as if to say hey, Southsiders can look nice too! She tugged at the sun dress she was in, clipboard in hand, as she hunted down voters. She had been bouncing between her job at The Pit and the Southside Gang all day long and just needed a break. Was this what it would be like when she was inevitably split between both worlds? Maybe!

She wanted to sit down, maybe have a lemonade, but Debra had been given a goal. Get youngin’s to either register to vote or convince voters that Hasim was in the best interest of Cherry Township. It was a task that Debra wasn’t surprised fell on her. How could you say no to a face like hers? “Hi, sorry to be a bother,” she smiled softly, tapping the next person she saw on the shoulder. If she could secure them, maybe she’d be allowed a break. “I’m with Hasim Erdogan’s campaign. I was wondering if there was any way I could convince,” or bribe, “you into registering to vote? Or at least hearing about our plans for Cherry? It would only take two minutes, tops!”

👻

There was something oddly familiar about small town rivalries, in Jaspar’s opinion. He’d called home to so many small towns throughout his life that it’s the only reliable staple. New town, same old story. Because there’d always be some people with more and some with less, and sure as the folk tales about mystical beings that he’d grown up with - they were created about people too. It’d been why he’d been so determined to explore the Southside when he’d first arrived in Cherry; why he’s still torn about the growing distrust in his gut about the Southsiders since he started his summer job. 

“Ah I’m sorry, I’m registered to vote in... my home state.” Where was he registered to vote? Something for future Jaspar to dwell on, he supposes. The more immediate concern is the curiosity that piques up in him when he hears ‘plans for Cherry’. Surely knowing that may be helpful in the office. He’s supposed to be getting on with collecting items for Kamilla’s ‘big research project’ but when has he not been at the beck and call of curiosity? “But maybe I can hear some of those plans of yours and spread them to my friends to encourage them to vote?”