peace.

🐞

While River did not play dirty, Kenna did. While the two may have been cut from the same Vocal Adrenaline life, Kenna disliked New Directions. The club had ‘ruined Aunt Terri’s marriage’ according to her mom so the girl had a disdain for the team since birth. It’s not like Vocal Adrenaline had to play dirty often because they were simply the best team in the Midwest area, but Kenna would be the first to admit that she loved the adrenaline rush of messing with the New Directions. Seeing the look on their faces were priceless. “Hell yes we are,” she nodded with a giant smile on her face. “I mean, if that’s what we bring to just a freak out, can you imagine how good we’ll look at nationals?” Kenna didn’t want to get ahead of herself, but they were just that good for an Ohio team. “Right? She’s a dream, I have to admit,” a nod. “Oh my god! If we talk about it for too long he’ll probably come busting in here and think we’re conspiring against him,” she said with a laugh. Taking another sip of her drink, she tilted her eyes up to look at River. “Exactly. I think if we talk to Davis about it he’ll love it, but I think we need a few more extra practices. Just to like get prepared. We shouldn’t go easy just because we know we’ll win.”

*

River believed that being raised by her mother and having the blood of two ex-Olympians running through her blood for her enjoyment of sticking to her moral code. She wouldn’t be caught dead trying to sike out her competition at a swim meet, but it seemed like the show choir world was a different story. River’s main issue was that she was not going to throw a spanner in the works of her senior year by stirring the pot. As long as River didn’t have to betray her own standards, then she’d keep her mouth shut. “We will be talking home a trophy and we will go down in history yet again,” she said with a nod. Losing wasn’t an option in the Washington household. With a cackle, River slapped a hand against the table at the mental image of Davis barreling in, face all red and acting the fool. “I would die, but I don’t put it passed him. The all-knowing Mr. Goolsby. As much as I hate him, I also love him.” Davis was ambitious and dedicated, something she admired, but he was also laughably intense when it came to glee club of all things. But, hey, the man needed a hobby. “Facts. We shouldn’t let our guards down or they’ll hit us when we don’t see it coming.”

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 // PARA

𝐖𝐇𝐎: Kenna Giardi & @riverwashington​

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍: Monday, January 25th. After school.

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄: The Lima Bean.

It was after Vocal Adrenaline’s performance in the McKinley auditorium and Kenna’s body was bubbling. The look on everyone’s faces was priceless. The entire team really worked their asses off and if they could bring that energy to Regionals? They had it in the bag. Fact. Inviting River out to the Lima Bean as a little celebratory afternoon, the two were seated at a booth in the coffee shop. Unfortunately, Kenna didn’t drink coffee, but she was sipping on a nice lemon tea. It didn’t taste the best but at least her throat would thank her for it later. Out of everyone on Vocal Adrenaline, she preferred to hang out with River the most one on one. Outside of practice she felt like her and River were most like each other in all the best ways. “River, we’re so going to nationals this year!” She enthused, taking a sip from her drink. Burning the roof of her mouth, she scrunched her face lightly, and blew on the drink before saying, “who knew Davis getting Ivy on the team would be such a genius idea? I mean, I kinda thought he was a complete bonehead for thinking that was a good idea, but she’s like really good.” Maybe hyping up Ivy was too much, but she did think the idea of psyching out the competition was so smart. It wasn’t cheating. Maybe playing a little dirty, but if it meant securing multiple wins? Sign her up. “We should talk rehearsals though, for regionals. We have to be in the best possible shape. I know the Unitards aren’t any competition, but we might actually need to worry about Aural Intensity. This is probably best for a Davis convo though, isn’t it?”

*

While River was pretty dang proud of the show her team had just put on, she still had a strange feeling in her stomach that maybe it had been a little much. Julien looked pretty...distressed over the whole thing. And River liked Julien, he was a cool guy and they’d had their little thing before Ivy came into the picture. She felt like she was playing dirty, and River Washington did not play dirty. Ever. Despite this, she had been able to put that aside for a trip down to the Lima Bean. Taking a sip from her chai latte, River gave a nod of agreement. “Oh, for sure! And we are so winning.” River was excited to see that her Senior year had been pretty successful so far, and she had to admit that the success of Vocal Adrenaline this year and definitely been in part of Davis’ plans that she had originally been against. “I agree, Ivy is a star, I think I may just be a little bit in love with her,” River said with a chuckle, before taking another sip from her drink. Davis was a pain in the ass, but he was a smart guy and he knew a hell of a lot about show choir. “Yeah, the more we talk about V.A stuff without Davis, I think he’ll wake up in a cold sweat. But you’re right, Aural Intensity are the only people we need to step it up for.”

DOM: Considering I have to deal with some of the guys here at McKinley, the bar is set pretty low - so I believe you haha

DOM: Maybe... or maybe I'm just being honest~

RIVER: yeah the mckinley kids sure are....something lol. my mom used to coach their years ago and she did NOT have a good experience.

ALEX: omg I can totally be your hookup, no worries! need to fall asleep? call me, i'll talk your ear off and you'll be asleep in no time!

ALEX: okay wait, that actually sounds so awesome! i am totally there.

ALEX: also, i'm not sure how busy you are but my brother austin is throwing a party for my birthday and if you're not busy, you're totally welcome to come. it's at renzo's house and it's byob, but i promise it'll be a fun time!

RIVER: ha you know what i'll keep that in mind!!

RIVER: sweet!! it'll be a blast! a silent, library appropriate blast.

DOM: I'm definitely down for that - I'll never turn down an opportunity to get to know people.

DOM: Especially ones that look like you ;)

RIVER: awesome!! it'll be a lot of fun!! the carmel kids are pretty chill and the dalton lacrosse team are super fun!

ALEX: it was a lot of fun! I swear the AV club gets such a bad rep!

ALEX: ya know, I would have to agree! I adore chill hangouts over wild ones!

ALEX: I would be so down for that!!!! What did you have in mind? 🥺👀

RIVER: for sure!! the carmel AV club is basically non-existent and if i wasn't so busy w/ glee and swimming i'd totally consider joining bc just chilling and talking about movies was fun af.

RIVER: hey!! so basically i'm just checking in w/ some of my fellow student athletes!!

RIVER: thinking of maybe organizing a lil get together at breadstix so we can all chill and get to know each other better.

RIVER: hii just saying that i actually had a lot of fun during the ski trip, chilling in the theater with u, leo & lj. it was a lot of fun!

RIVER: probably my fave art of the trip tbh

IVY: ugh i'm so glad u agree

IVY: he has a vision but...it's often like a questionable 1!

IVY: i feel like i should give him another option + he'll def say yes

IVY: any suggestions?

RIVER: he really tries his hardest but styling is not his strong suit.

RIVER: i feel like we look out best when we're wearing something that isn't too extravagant. sometimes it's best to focus on just the performance, not on the crazy costumes.

LEMON: oh my god of course to both of those!

LEMON: i was literally so scared i was going to get stuck with someone crazy or that you were gonna live up to those VA stereotypes but you were totally cool

LEMON: if you ever wanna hang or anything let me know

LEMON: you know, if it doesn't break glee club protocol.

RIVER: ahh nah, i'm a swimmer first and a glee clubber second. i know that some of the V.A peeps can be...a lot, but honestly they're not too bad when you talk to them out of the context of show choir.

RIVER: hey ex-roomie 😋

RIVER: just wanna thank u for being an all around legend and super cool chick!

IVY: ok so on a scale from 1-10 how bad of it is an idea 2 tell jean baptiste white is SO not a move 4 our regionals costumes?

RIVER: i think it's a damn good idea to let him know tbh

@ riverwashington posted on instagram 

↳ 530 LIKES, 15 COMMENTS

the long haul - a river washington bus ride playlist

Bentley really had no idea how he had ended up at a party over at the St. James’ house – even though he had been there before, he sure as fuck didn’t think he would ever set foot in the place where Ivy lived ever again, especially not after all of the hard time that he had given her. He really didn’t know anyone, but he did know that Ivy’s sister probably kept a stash hidden somewhere in her room – so of course Bentley had to look for something that would make this party even more exciting.

Bentley really didn’t care about the rules that Ivy and Eli had set for the party and that included that it didn’t take him a long time to find Eli’s room and start looking for the stash she was probably hiding somewhere. Not even five minutes earlier, he found it – she probably should have kept it hidden in a better place.

As stuffed the drugs he had managed to steal from Eli without her noticing that anything was gone, Bentley made his way out of the other’s room and made his way downstairs, before he was intervened by River. “What? I didn’t steal anything, what the fuck are you talking about?” Bentley answered, before actually realizing that River hadn’t said anything at all, instead she had greeted him. “Oh, sup’?” He recovered, before shrugging his shoulders. “Sure! Do you wanna do molly? I just stole from Eli but you can’t tell her or she’ll fucking kill me.” Bentley said with a small chuckle, not being able to keep it a secret from River.

*

As Bentley began talking, River couldn’t help the chuckle that escape her. The last thing River would find herself doing is ratting people out at a party. While she made a point to play fair and be cordial, but who was she to stop some people from having a good time at a fairly safe party environment? As Bentley began to lay out his offer, River felt her body tense. Who did he think he was, taking about Molly Pearce like that?! “Excuse you, talking about women like that is sick and -” suddenly, like being hit in the face with a bucket of water, River’s brain put together the pieces of what had just been said. Not Molly the girl, molly the drug. “Wait, did you mean like molly molly? Wow...uh, I’ve never done anything like that before,” she said, voice hushed just in case someone happened to be listening in.

River had never tried any sort of recreational drug before, she wasn’t going to risk failing the drug trials at swimming competitions, but she didn’t have another swim meet for a few months and she trusted Bentley enough...What harm could it really do? It wasn’t as if it was going to be like in the movies, with her seeing the stars talk to her or anything. It might not be half bad. “But, uh, yeah, sure, count me in. Your secret will be safe with me.”

River had to admit, she was a little disappointed in herself. She wasn’t a heavy drinker in any sense of the word, she was happy going the night with a beer or two or just playing designated driver, but tonight she couldn’t help but notice how bored she had gotten. Being the only sober person in a sea of drunk people wasn’t exactly a blast.

As she made her way around the St. James residence, doing her best not to interrupt people’s conversations and drinking games, River kept her eyes pealed for anyone she could try and spark up a conversation with. She paused mid-step at the sight of a familiar face. After scanning her brain for where exactly she knew this guy from - ah, a fellow student athlete! He was on the McKinley hockey team - River took a few long strides over to him.

With a smile and a polite wave, River started off strong with a warm - “Hi!”, before she started to look around the room, aimlessly. She had not thought this one through. “So...I don’t know if it’s just me, but I’m actually kinda bored. Do you wanna...hang somewhere and chill?”

boot scootin’ boogie //

𝐖𝐇𝐎: miles pearce & @crhqstarters​

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍: saturday, jan 9. late.

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄: st. james house

Livestock. The people in this town took it upon themselves to throw unborn livestock at one another. Pathetic.  Miles was somewhat grateful for the party invitation extended from Ruby Zizes to him and his sister, but from the looks of it, a Lima Ohio hootenanny was exactly what he’d pictured. The smell of cheap beer wafting through the air immediately made him miss the aroma of blue agave tequila that blanketed most of their favorite bars in New York City. He half expected to hear Garth Brooks blasting through the speakers, but instead, it was some try-hard rap song. That, like everything in this godforsaken town, missed the mark.

Being detached from his sister always felt weird, but things were exasperated now that they were in Hicksville. He wasn’t completely sure where she had wandered off to, but in his efforts to find her, he’d discovered the world’s tackiest Barbara Streisand portrait. It made sense for Broadway has-beens to hang a tasteless portrait of one of the greats in their home. She was something to aspire to. Something that no one in this godforsaken garbage infested shanty town would ever come close to. The fact that he had to slum it at a party with these hillbillies made his skin crawl.

He brought his flask to his lips and took in a small sip. Obviously, he wasn’t about to drink whatever Bud Light or Burnett’s they had flowing around that party. He’d brought his own stuff. The good stuff. That he didn’t plan on sharing with a single soul. Reaching into his pocket to grab his phone, he sent a quick text to his best friend, Warner, making another quip about the redneck central he was currently living in. He pulled his head out of his phone as the door opened, realizing he was no longer alone in the room. It was not  a surprise to him that someone would have eventually sought him out. “Hello,” he greeted with a buttery smirk. “You can join me. I’m just acquainting myself with the natural inelegance of the place,” he explained, motioning around the room. “I’m Miles, but I bet you already know that.”  

River wasn’t exactly a party animal by any means. She preferred to occupy her Saturday nights by watching The Color of Friendship or whatever old school Disney Channel Original Movie she could find on Disney Plus with her mom, but River did put team efforts first and if she had to sacrifice her weekend tradition to mingle with some McKinley kids, then so be it. Beer in hand and nodding her head to the beat of the Top 40′s song playing throughout the house, River made her way through the hall aimlessly. She was attempting to locate at least one Carmel kid so that she could devise a plan to split up and cover as much ground as possible, see if it was possible to see if anyone here was on the McKinley swim team so she could add them to the ‘Mermaids of Ohio’ groupchat for student athlete swimmers she had created but instead she opened a door to see a face that was only vaguely familiar. She was pretty sure she followed him on Instagram.

With a polite wave, River closed the door behind her and took a long sip from her drink, finishing it off. Looking around the room with a smile, River couldn’t help but agree. The St. James certainly was something, nothing like the minimalism and walls of trophies that adorned the Washington household. “Well, it’s not that bad. Very St. James of them, ya’know? Or maybe I’m just trying to be nice because Ivy’s my friend.” As the other boy - Miles, she’d have to remember that - continued to speak, River couldn’t help the way her smile twisted into a look of an unimpressed nature. “I...No, I don’t really know who you are besides, like, social media stuff and I try not to trust that. But it’s nice to meet you regardless, I’m River.”