look into my works, ye mighty, and despair.

being called kiddo is kind of funny to bash, because that's what he calls his younger siblings and he's honestly kind of used to being the oldest big brother so hearing someone else call him that is kind of trippy. he smiles, he appreciates mikey's words. "thank you, mikey. that truly means a lot. so...do you have any holiday plans?" bash wishes he were back in san diego with his family for the holidays but his schedule unfortunately wouldn't allow this year.

"what can i say? i have some hope for you still." mikey laughed at their own joke. it wasn't untrue, but bash had been so consistently upstanding that they were starting to feel bad for wanting to get him looser. "netflix?? look at you go, little rockstar!" they gave him a playful, light punch in the shoulder. "looks like our cali boy is really going places."

"maybe, one day, you'll finally corrupt me." he's joking obviously which is made clear by the laugh he adds to the end of the sentence and the fact that he's basically incorruptible. or at least he'd like to think he is. "yeah, it's super exciting!" he was still not used to the whole fame thing, despite being in the industry for five years now. "i still can't believe this is my life, to be honest. sometimes, i think i'm going to wake up and it was all a dream."

OPEN STARTER - @luxearchives

the expression of sheer despair in caius' face had mikey nearly choking on their champagne as they tried not to laugh, but they did decide to comply, walking over to their friend's table with the flute still in hand. "oh, honey", they couldn't help another amused chuckle, "you must truly be desperate if you're willing to listen to me talk as you eat."

"were you expecting anything else?" he asks with a laugh. despite playing brooding male leads, bash was nothing like the characters he portrayed on the screen. so getting in trouble wasn't something in character for him. "it's on netflix. i don't know exactly how much i'm allowed to disclose yet but i'm really excited for it!"

"what can i say? i have some hope for you still." mikey laughed at their own joke. it wasn't untrue, but bash had been so consistently upstanding that they were starting to feel bad for wanting to get him looser. "netflix?? look at you go, little rockstar!" they gave him a playful, light punch in the shoulder. "looks like our cali boy is really going places."

benji   flinched   ever   so   slightly   as   they   glanced   up   upon   hearing   their   name,   not   expecting   someone   else   to   be   in   this   section   of   the   park   at   this   time.   they   had   grown   pretty   accustomed   to   having   their   alone   time,   some   peace   before   the   city   seemed   to   flood   with   people,   especially   this   time   of   year. 

ari allowed herself just a little bit of relief when benji offered her the seat. smile growing ever so slightly, she sat down by their side, and gladly took the offer for small talk. "oh, we're good." that was as true as benji needed to know, anyway. though she didn't know the details and didn't want to pry, it was clear that they had enough on their plate. "he's growing so fast, it's insane. these days he saw the snow for the first time, it was the cutest thing." ari nearly found herself getting sidetracked, thinking about the special moment, but caught herself in time, and focused on her friend once more. "we'd love to have you over one of these days, you know. i think you and him would get along well."

they   snorted.   “   oh   god.   not   the   violin   covers.   no   !   ”   they   groaned   resting   their   head   on   their   hand.   “   i   also   can't   wait   for   this   season   to   be   over.   i'm   over   it.   i   don't   know   why   but   it   has   me   feeling   all   ….   sad   ?   it's   gross.   me   ??   having   feelings   ??   gross.   ” 

the sincere confession caught mikey off guard, and they gave yuri a sympathetic smile. emotional advice was never entirely their forte, but they find themself encouraged to speak either way. "i think it's the whole... family-ness of it all. honestly, i don't like it either. i haven't actually opened instagram in a week."

bash nods as he listens to mikey talk. same old, same old doesn't sound too bad on the surface but there's part of the boy that worries that means mikey is still stuck in her self destructive ways. he doesn't want to overstep though so he keeps his worries to himself, for now. "i've been good! been working on a tv show which is exciting but also very busy." he laughs along with her when she mentions him getting in trouble. it goes against his very nature to do so. "no trouble here!"

"course not." they shook their head in amusement. their friendship with bash was an unlikely one, but mikey did care for the kid, even in his goody-two-shoes ways. and they very much still planned to get him out of his shell, no one lasted in new york city if they didn't live a little. "so, tell me about this tv show! who's airing it?"

bash isn't the type of person to complain, he never has been so when he was told the wait time he didn't think much of it. he just sat down in the waiting area and waited for his name to be called. he was scrolling through twitter on his phone because what else was there to do when you were waiting when he heard a familiar voice. putting his phone in his pocket, he turned to mikey and replied, "no, please, the more the merrier." the phrase might sound sarcastic coming from someone else but bash said it with sincerity. bash runs his hands through his hair before asking mikey, "how are you doing?" and it's not just small talk to the boy, he actually wants to know.

"ah, same old, same old." they replied with a small, albeit sincere smile. sue them, bash guerra's golden retriever antics can be infectious if one isn't mentally prepared to ward them off. "work is a lot at this time of year, but i'll manage. how about you? haven't been getting in any trouble without me, have you?" even mikey herself chuckled at the idea, the boy was near incorruptible even with her around, let alone.

absent-mindedly scrolling through her instagram feed, trying her hardest to ignore the faint jealousy that sat of the pit of her stomach as she saw all the happy couples and holiday pregnancy announcements. she knew that she should avoid social media this time of year, but she couldn’t resist and didn’t know why — perhaps her subconscious enjoyed her being miserable?

mikey rolled their eyes playfully, but there was no malice to it. "i have got to start listening to you one of these days." they detracted their attention from elise only long enough to beckon a waiter over, then continued to listen to her friends complaint, nodding along. "ugh, lizzie, when i tell you you're the only one who understands me." the waiter, already familiar with the likes of mikey, sauntered over with her usual mimosa before excusing himself, and they took a sip before continuing on their rant. "what is it with this time of year? people get so heteronormative about it. it's disgusting."

they  hummed,  swirling  their  drink  around  in  it's  glass.  “  well  it's  because  you're  just  so  damn  good  at  what  you  do,  ”  they  answered  with  a  little  shrug.  “  if  i  was  like  …  a  business  owner.  or  whatever  …  i  would  hire  you  to  throw  the  biggest  party  for  the  end  of  the  year.  crazy  stuff  too.  like  …  strippers  and  people  who  eat  fire  and  a  sushi  bar.  ”  they  stretched  their  limbs  out  in  front  of  them,  their  eyes  widening  in  feigned  horror  with  her  confession.  “  no.  babe,  no.  you  just  need  a  break.  a  trip  somewhere  nice  and  warm  and  then  you'll  rejuvenate  and  be  right  back  to  causing  problems  alongside  me.  ”

"well, you know what they say. work with what you love and you'll never love anything ever again." another overdramatic sigh as they extended one arm over the table, their hand reaching toward yuri as though they were the only one who could help them. "save me," mikey begged emphatically, an unusually bleak expression on their face, "before i actually start enjoying all those christmas violin covers."

“   felix   says   the   same   thing,   ”   they   answered   with   pride,   a   wide   grin   on   their   lips.   they   loved   being   such   a   nuisance   to   those   around   them.   it   was   such   a   test   of   who   was   really   going   to   stick   around.   “   they   are   pretty   good,   aren't   they   ?   ”   they   agreed,   snatching   a   roll   for   themselves   and   taking   a   bite.   “   what   have   you   been   up   to   ?   no   new   parties   this   week   or   you   just   simply   have   found   someone   better   to   hang   out   with   ?   ”

"ugh, i should be so lucky." mikey threw themself back into the comfy seat with an overdramatic sigh. they eyed the delicate basket wistfully before deciding to reach for another baguette. "i have so many unspecified end-of-year holiday parties to plan. it gets insane at the agency this time of the year" taken by sudden exasperation, they leaned toward yuri, as if to prove how serious the situation was. "it's actually making me resent partying. i swear it is."

“   ‘   course   i   mind   ”   yuri   mumbled   out,   their   face   still   completely   stuffed   with   food   but   words   still   managing   to   slip   out.   they   were   only   teasing   their   best   friend,   of   course,   and   they   knew   the   other   would   get   their   dry   sense   of   humor   better   than   anyone.   “   this   is   why   you   need   to   marry   rich,   ”   yuri   reminded   them   with   a   pointed   look,   reaching   for   whatever   overpriced   french   cocktail   that   they   had   ordered.   “   rich   spouses   don’t   have   to   stand   on   their   feet.   ” 

mikey rolled their eyes playfully, and gave yuri a light jab between the ribs for good measure. "i swear you're more of a brat every day. give me one of these." they reached out to the other's complimentary basket of baguettes and shoved one into their mouth, barely suppressing a moan. "you're lucky these are as good as they are, or else i wouldn't bother with the company."