coquette ;;

“If you even start with the ‘new year, new me’ bullshit,” Ryker cast his gaze on the other, pulling his cigarette from between his lips. “Then you can find your own fun for the night, got it?”

“Woah – hey – didn’t anyone tell you that the party is that way?” Maverick had snuck out from the main hall of the party, standing in front of the Callahan wine cellar. He was really just trying to gather his thoughts, leaning back against the door. He figured the other was doing the same, and Maverick pushed himself up off the wall just to make a joke, “I even have drugs if you really want to party.”

“That’s how I get by, I’m deceptively adorable to keep murderers away.” She chuckled then at her own surmise, an affectionate glance thrown at the other woman as a superhero name sprung to her lips after a brief moment. “Oh that one’s easy. You’re called The Blonde Bombshell and you have explosive powers. Get it?” Nudging her accomplice with one shoulder, Shay realized just how much more she appreciated Paisley without Harlow around. “Once or twice is generous, but I’ll give it to you. I kinda like when you’re in denial of your own mayhem.” Not that she wasn’t a completely willing participant all on her own. “Okay, don’t get crazy. There aren’t a whole lot of cute bartenders around here,” brows threaded together as Shay refused to voice his name; it would only provide a confirmation she refused to speak. “I don’t have a crush on him so there’s nothing to drunkenly admit. Unless you want me to tell him my driver’s license weight is a lie.”

“So adorable they couldn’t possibly consider murdering you,” she laughed with a shake of her head, finding the statement more amusing given the current murder situation within the town. “Hell yes, I will take it,” she smiled wickedly, leaning against Shay even as she pushed her shoulder into her. The night was already turning out way better than she had anticipated, running into Shay was proving to be a happy coincidence. “I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about. I am a pure and innocent woman, with no ability to cause any sort of mayhem.” She put on her most innocent of faces, smile light and showing of no teeth. She tilted her head, blinking a few times to show how innocent she could be. But oh how that hardly lasted, sweet smile turning wicked in a matter of moments. “Girl, have you seen his coworkers? I need to find out who does the hiring and buy them a drink, because that’s a damn good job well done.” Leading them down the street that would eventually bring them to the bar she intended to spend the rest of the night at, Paisley swung their still linked hands between them. “Denial, denial, denial. The truth always comes out when tequila is involved.”

A solid chuckle settled in his throat, a quick and easy way to slip past the unflinching tightness in his chest. “If high school musical isn’t in there, I’m really going to start questioning how well you know me.” Closing the door behind her, he stopped for a moment; staring a hole into the wood in some effort to pull himself together somewhat before he followed her through his house. “You look like you’re armed with enough stuff for us to go into hibernation, there something you’re not telling me?”

“If you ever have to start questioning that, then we have a serious problem on our hands,” she clicked her tongue with a shake of her head. Though he was a few years her senior, she knew him well enough. After all, being close with Harlow meant knowing Alexis, and knowing the Hawthorne girl meant knowing at least something of her family. “Excuse me, when’s the last time you even left the house? I’m simply ensuring that you don’t wither away in here. There’s few men in this town with a jawline like yours, we can’t let anything happen to you or this town loses serious brownie points.”

“I figure I owe the world a couple good deeds. Call it good karma. Also keeps me from being next on your list so…” Her own smirk mirrored the other’s almost perfectly before a chuckle passed through full lips. “You’re like a douchebag exterminator, it’s almost heroic.” Not that Shay herself had too much trouble with the less than savory, but the point stood regardless. “You know, I can’t think of a single night where you called me Shay darling and I didn’t end up in some ridiculous situation. We’re going to—” The name didn’t require speaking for her to know without a doubt who Paisley meant. “He’s probably not even working tonight, we shouldn’t waste our time.”

“Well, aren’t you adorable. Consider yourself safe --- for now.” It was so easy to tease and joke with the other woman, falling into this back and forth that couldn’t exactly be found in many others. Especially not with all that was going on after the news of Alexis. “All I need is a cape and a sexy superhero name,” she smirked before a look of mock hurt took form on her features. “Excuse me, that’s happened once, maybe twice.” In reality, it was exactly as Shay called it, but Paisley wasn’t going to give in so easily. It was when recognition of who she might be referring to spread across the other’s face, red painted lips curving into a light smirk. “It’s cute that you knew exactly who I was talking about. Tell me, does he know about your little crush? Want to drunkenly admit it to him tonight?” She teased with a laugh, dropping her arm from Shay’s shoulders to grab her hand, leading her down the street.

It was one of those nights. As rare as they were, they occurred more often than she’d like to admit. The nights where she chose to give tinder a dabble and go out; mostly so she could get wined and dined before ditching them. However, her date was the fucking worst — which said a lot given the numerous shit dates she’d been on previously. With a roll of her eyes, the brunette peered across the room at the closest person she could set her eyes on, leaning forward to mouth a silent ‘help me’ in the hope that they would come over and sweep her away from the creep.

The night had been spent mostly waiting on a text, waiting for one of a few individuals to reach out to her. So when she caught the gaze of another woman, Paisley was intrigued by the silent call for help. Raising from her seat with a wicked smirk on red painted lips, she easily made her way to the pair, taking a seat without even asking. Reaching across, she picked up the rose that was likely given from male to female, “Don’t you know it’s a cliche to given roses on a first date?” She sniffed the flower before setting it back down, not needing more context to determine it was a first date. “Now, if you don’t mind, my friend and I need a moment to ourselves. We’ll call you back over...maybe.”

“Spoken like a true debutante. Let me know when you get tired of all the slashing, I’ve got a couch you can nap on.” Paisley had always been a far easier pill to swallow than Harlow, their personalities clashing somewhat yet still mutually joined through humor. “That’s generous of you to do the lord’s work.” Now her own laugh cut through the air, chiming in unison with the blonde’s voice. “I live and breathe for you, of course. Pretty sure lucky is a matter of perspective, but I’m game for whatever. Where are we goin’?”

He wasn’t really feeling up to anything that comprised leaving his room and tearing his eyes from the fan that spun with a slight click that he could never fix; without it he couldn’t sleep, yet now the sound of it helped keep him awake. Sleeping brought on a whole new set of nightmares that only made the one while awake all the more real. Though she held a bag high enough to mask most of her face, Kaiden knew it was Paisley, nobody else apart from Delilah made the effort with him all that often. Luckily for her, he’d at least let her try. “How cheesy are we talking here?” 

“It’s meant to be a joke so I don’t have a heart attack,” she retorted. “What’s the criteria then? Virgins? Slow runners? People who don’t compliment your clothes often enough?” A slow grin began to spread across her features, the teasing meant entirely surface level towards the blonde she considered a better friend than most. “Clearly I was looking for you. No I just got off my shift, figured I’d save gas money. Why is small, blonde, and beautiful out though?”

Bailey had expected others to leave him alone, quite frankly. Most knew of his habits, most knew this is how he worked. So when the woman perked up, he couldn’t stop his snark. “And do you really think it’s wise to interfere with a widespread murder investigation? Do I look like I’m on the clock to you? I’ll have a drink if I fucking want to and I’ll solve this damn murder while I’m at it.”

“Do you think once she’s finished blubbering about being so sure she saw the body that I could convince her to give me her handbag? Vulnerability is a bitch.” And Harlow was even less forgiving than vulnerability. It had never mattered how much she’d tried to like Alexis, a term she used lightly, it never even became a slight possibility of progressing past near mortal enemies; not even for Raleigh’s sake. “And I could maybe feel less guilty about it with that on my arm.”

“—fuck, okay, this… this changes a lot.” The man racked his brain, ridging knuckles against his head in vigorous thought. She was found. Dead. That ruled out nearly all of his theories, his brain maps. “Fuck— I’m going to need Vodka if I’m going to figure this one out.”

Evening shift at the diner was always rough, it disrupted one’s natural sleeping patterns and forced a broke waitress to amble home in the dark at an ungodly hour. It also meant turning empty street corners and nearly colliding with unheard company, startling her half to death. “Jesus H Christ—!” One palm coming to rest on the fluttering organ within her chest, Shay attempted to still her quaking nerves. “You know, when you walk around by yourself at night, people are gonna start to think you’re a murderer.”