use it well

Seeing him in person, actually being able to look at him, instead of pictures of him she had on her phone (in a secret folder, of course) was almost too much for Gemma. She was buzzing from head to too, each nerve ending alight with want, and she wished, more than anything, that they were back on her tour bus at night somewhere between Los Angeles and Santa Clara, where no one could see them and no one expected anything of them.

Rowan moved slightly as if he was almost about to take a step forward but he stopped himself. Thinking better of it, he stayed where he was. "I think I'm good here. I don't know if I trust myself that close to you." The honesty slipping out before he could second guess if it was the smartest thing to say on his part. But he truly didn't know. Didn't know if he could sit there, inches apart and not let his hand slip onto her thigh. Not lean in and get a taste of her lips that he had become addicted to. They made the agreement to end things and he was going to respect that but he didn't know if he could do that when feeling the heat of her body radiating from being so close. He hated that he had to think about it. Yes, they showed restraint when in public but in these trailers was where they were allowed to be them. Their sacred space. Now even here he had to think about every move. Too focused on what his hands were doing, where before he could just reach out to her. Only careless desire ruling him.

It was a sad, or maybe not so sad she didn't care, truth. Georgia Sutton was a slut for the street fair. Something about the buzzing environment, she couldn't get enough. People were different versions of themselves, they were bigger, more animated, she couldn't place it, but she loved it. Her second favorite thing about, fair food. It didn't get better than that, and her fridge would be full of leftovers until the ultimately rotted from her lack of ability to eat leftovers, but she always tried to keep them in good faith, this time however, she'd fucked up the amount of sauce, and well, even she couldn't salvage it. "I--" She watched as he grabbed her one bite chicken leg, "you don't--" another perforated sentence as she watched him take a bite, "that one's, not... perfectly good."

His brow pulled together the longer he was chewing. "Yeah, I'm getting that now." Rowan tried to fight back more coughs. "I feel like this is my audition for Hot Ones and I have to see this through now or what will you think of me?" He asked as if genuine concern was attached. "If you could just ignore the sweat so that you don't lose complete respect for me, I would very much appreciate it. Unless you find the flushed look kinda cute."

The worst part of these events is how quickly things happen. In one second, Hayes was trying to enjoy the food from one of the stalls participating in the hottest chicken competition, then in the next, a crowd of kids came barreling into him, sending the paper plate in his hands to the ground. Letting out a low and frustrated sigh, Hayes scooped up the plate and moved around the crowd to get to the nearest trash can when he heard someone speaking. Looking up, Hayes opened his mouth to explain what just happened when the man before him just took a bite of his food without question. "Uh..." The blonde couldnt help but laugh. "I mean yeah you're right it was perfectly good...until I dropped it."

Rowan was mid cough and chew when the answer to his question was given. "Mmm," he gave a nod of understanding. His chew slowing down some but was already committed to the bite taken. "Is that what that sandy texture is. Thought it was just part of the breading." He threw the food in the trash as Hayes had intended. "You could have hurried up a little with that warning, you know?" He joked as if he believed the other guy was at fault.

"Oh, then I'm certainly not your dream girl because I would probably just join the murderer for the sake of survival and then I'd likely have to kill you to prove my loyalty." She said with a smile even though she knew she'd probably be the dumb girl going upstairs or in the basement if there was someone after her. "So you're telling me the number is great but you're also disappointed that I'm not aiming for higher? That's why you're not my dream guy. You cannot be pleased."

"That is just fucked up," he gave a disappointed shake of the head. "We could have come out of that even stronger than ever. A love story of the ages but you had to be selfish." He liked the way she so easily played along. Sure that many wouldn't humor him as much. "Whoa, now you are just putting words in my mouth," he put a hand out to protest. "I never said I was disappointed. I just pointed the fact out. Personally, I like an underachiever. Way easier to keep up with. And I'm calling bullshit on me not being your dream guy."

Marti knew in the moment Rowan said the words 'I like it' that she wanted to do just about anything this man would come up with. She wasn't necessarily the type to care so much about what a man wanted, but she found herself craving more of Rowan's praise. She lifted the glass in her hand once more, draining it entirely before setting it on the nearest flat surface. Making her way to the door, Marti flicked the lock closed with the kind of grace that came with confidence. She turned back to face Rowan, taking slower steps back toward him than she had moving away. "As if you haven't seen enough to prove it," she teased right back. When she found herself standing in front of him, Marti fought every urge in her body to pull him close, wanting to soak in the tension a moment longer. "Just words are boring, so why don't you show me something, Dashner."

Mixing business and pleasure was a messy game to play. There were certain things that should have been completely off limits to him. Marti was one of them. But Rowan was a selfish guy. His curiosity about her burning in his mind. The way each flirtation was laced with sarcasm. Making it feel like at any moment she could flip the script on him. The way that she moved like she knew that he was hooked on every turn of the head, every step. He was a confident guy. Went for what he wanted. He wanted her, but she had control of the leash that he and his desire for her was hooked on. "And what if I haven't?" He hid his pleased smile with a drink when she locked the door. Aching just to pull her in the moment she was in front of him. To feel her against him. Instead, he stood up, making that space between them even smaller, a knuckle just brushing down her arm. "You sure you want to give that permission? Do you know how much self-control I have to use every time I'm around you?"

It took Gemma hearing the door open to realize that her heart was thundering in her chest. She'd sold out arenas, won awards, and walked red carpets, but the mere prospect of seeing Rowan, of being alone with Rowan was enough to set her nerves off. She realized, half a second too late, that her trailer was almost too similar to her tour bus, the small, confined space that she and Rowan spent so many nights and early mornings in together. Fuck, it wasn't like she could take it back.

Quitting Gemma had been torture. She wasn't the kind of girl that you just closed the book on and moved on from easily. Maybe he should have known that. Known in the way he wanted her that she wouldn't be just anyone else to him. They had no loyalty towards each other, but when they had their weeks together, for him it was only her. He had gone on the tour thinking that he'd have some fun with a different person in every city. Yet, when they got involved, she was all that he craved. He yearned for when she could ditch everyone on her team and come to be with him.

CLOSED STARTER who: @rowan-dashner where: Gemma's trailer at the Nashville fair

When he first heard the song, Rowan didn't know what to think of it. While he was hardly the humble-mannered type, he wasn't self-absorbed enough to make any assumptions either. The lyrics were general enough to be a thoughtless fantasy for most but the small details he couldn't ignore pointed in their time together. A time that he missed and wasn't supposed to. Their time was done the moment that those tour buses parted ways and that was it. Yet, that didn't mean she was out of his system so easily. The temptation to text her, call her, find an excuse to see her. The finality of it after so many nights wrapped up in each other was a withdrawal he hadn't expected.

There was something incredibly attractive to Marti about a man who didn't feel the need to establish himself as the dominant one, the prize to be won. She hated men like that, and usually gained far too much pride from making them fall apart. Instead, she found herself softening slightly toward Rowan, even though she was already very interested in the man. "I certainly can, and often do," she added with a wink. Marti's gaze fell to the glass meeting Rowan's lips before she took a small sip from her own. "Because I'm not like other people, Rowan. I am an exception." She made her way over to sit on the couch in the studio, keeping enough space between them that it could look professional if someone were to barge in. "I do love a little intrigue, that's for sure. But not too much. Tell me, what's the most mysterious thing about you, Rowan Dashner?"

There was this pull to her that was undeniable. The playful banter that was backed up with genuine assertiveness. Her confidence was just as alluring as her natural beauty. He liked a woman that made him keep up and there was something about Marti that he sensed he would be doing just that. "A girl with a power trip... I like it." There was a subtle smirk on his lips as he took another drink. He felt like he was towing a line of being subtle and yet making it clear there was nothing professional in why he wanted his time with her to linger. "And you just want me to take your word on that? I think I'm going to need a reason to believe it." His eyes stayed on hers, a playfulness leaving a spark in them. "I'm not much of a telling guy," he leaned back on the ledge. "Just words are boring."

"It's a nice ass. Couldn't risk having it bruised." Not that Lita had seen him walking away from her to know if his ass was nice or not. Her smile grew at his comment and she shrugged her shoulder to indicate that she wouldn't tell him whether he was right or not. "Think so? I'd like to think that I'm fun." She had fun, didn't know if everyone else had fun around her. "I think you've got an idea. As disappointed that I am that I won't be able to stare at your ass while you're up there, it's best we give these babies a break." She rubbed her arms. "They've been doing a lot of heavy lifting lately."

"If only other people cared as much as you did,' he put a hand on his chest as if it was a meaningful sentiment. "Oh, I never meant to imply that I thought any differently. Usually, the two go hand in hand." Rowan missed that. Not giving a care in the world and doing whatever he wanted if he wanted it. Not that he didn't have moments still. He just had to be a lot more careful and catered. "Have they? Taking the 'picking up strangers' a little too literally?" He asked with a soft chuckle. ""Where do you want me"Ready when you are boss," he moved closer to the wall, hands locking for her to step in.

"Riddles? Depends if there's a prize to be won." Mainly depended on how much effort that she wanted to put into it but it seemed that she was the one being generous. "It's not that bad but not the best. I'd much prefer to aim for the one hundred percent but you don't peg me as someone who even knows what he wants." She teased with a wink. "So I guess 67% will have to suffice for now."

"It's not really about needing the skill for a friendly game as much as for survival. You know, in case we ever live some nightmare like Saw or some other twisted game-like thing where we have to try and live. My dream girl would know what to do," he explained. The whole thing had been him talking out of his ass. "Hey, I personally think that 67 is a great number, but gotta say in the three minutes of knowing you I am surprised to hear you're not more of a go-getter."

He nodded like he was ready to make up a good story. "That is a good one or you saved me over my phone that I was trying to save like from a cliff..." he made a face as he looked around. "Because you know Nashville has so many cliffs" he laughed. "Sadly you do but not many people can beat my little friend there" he smiled as he looked at his phone. He laughed "Yeah many people do when I say I had to replace my phone because my monkey got a hold of it" he put his phone away. "The downside of working in a zoo they are so smart and as I thought my zipper pocket was safe but nope" he smirked. Him to busy with another to be able to stop it in time. He had to smile at the other man he was good looking so he was happy to stop and talk to him.

Rowan began to nod in approval with the other's embellishments, an easy smile staying in place. "I am sure there is a cliff-like boulder-type thing somewhere around here. I mean, who is going to question us really? It would be rude of them to doubt what we've got." He gestured between them. "Are you saying that I don't have any chance at all to pull out in front even just a little?" Rowan took a slight step back now that the phone was put away but stayed a bit closer than before. "The zoo," he repeated back quietly but there was fascination attached to it. "Yeah, that is clearly on you for underestimating them. You gotta go with a combination lock."

Was Marti playing with fire, flirting with the talent manager in front of her who was very clearly married? Sure, but the real question came down to whether or not she gave a damn... And that, she knew, was a big, fat no. "Who said anything about being worried?" Marti shot him a look as she pulled two glasses out and filled them each half-full with Bacardi Rum, a Cuban tradition. Some parts of her heritage just ran too deep to fight. "Don't you worry, I can hold my own just fine." She handed one of the glasses to Rowan before lifting hers to her lips, pausing with it there as she looked him over once. After taking a small sip, Marti studied the man again, this time with a barely there grin. "You can't just make a comment like that and not explain what you're alluding to. At least not with me."

When he first started this job, he was smart about it. He kept his fun out of the office, so to speak. But the truth was there was too much temptation around him, and Rowan never really knew when to cut things off. Marti was one of those temptations that he was all too keen to give in to. "I've got no doubts about that, Garcia. You could put any man in their place." He thanked her as she handed him the drink. "Oh yeah? What makes you think you deserve any exception?" He tilted his head as he looked at her, bringing the glass to his lips for a sip. "Plus just to take any mystery out of it... Now what would be the fun that?"

He looked at the other, not to use to anyone noticing him anymore. That he did tend to stick himself but sometimes things did happen. "I think we can make a very good story from this" he smiled at the other. He chuckled a moment at him. "I mean the monkeys I work with are very cute...but you are another type of cute" he pulled put his phone so he could get the phots and showed him of him and his favorite spider money. "Look at little Beuno he's cute..." Marcos smiled.

"We could maybe embellish a few things for when we tell others," he suggested. "Like go with more of an angle of me saving your phone and not being the one to almost crush it. Makes me sound more heroic," Rowan nodded, giving a charming smile to match. He leaned in as the other man showed him the picture. "Damn it. That is a very cute monkey. I have some competition," he gave a disappointed shake of the head. "But gotta admit, I thought the monkey excuse was made up but an actual monkey destroyed your phone, huh?"

↦ closed starter  / @rowan-dashner ↦ location: recording studio @ applause entertainment studios

Recording sessions were always a hit or a miss for Rowan. Sometimes he loved being there. Seeing the raw talent and the magic get made. Other times it was tedious as take after take drew on longer than he liked. The technicalities his least favorite aspect. He knew his job was better than a lot of options out there, but he couldn't help the way he grew so easily restless. The promotional parties and touring helped. That was like having a taste of his old life again.

He was one that loved to work out and be in shape, why he was at the park to try and do a relaxing walk today. But he was now having a break to enjoy the city for the moment. But after he dropped his phone he has gaps as it was nearly smashed by the other mans foot. "I mean we can always try again..." he smiled as he looked at his phone. "But I dont think the phone people will will like me after last time I said a monkey got a hold of it and smashed it and second time some cute man stepped on it" he teased. He knew it was wild for him to add his part of the story but it was all true.

The man was attractive, in good shape. He was always quick to admire. "I appreciate the commitment, but I think we can make this scenario work enough." a breathy chuckle followed the words. At the mention of the monkey, Rowan's brow furrowed in curiosity but an easy smile stayed on his features. "Now be honest with me... Did you call the monkeys cute too or did you save that just for me?"

Marcos was at the park today, it being his day off he was trying to find something to do. That right now he was just enjoying a walk in the park. He came for a run as he was in his shirts and tank top. But at the moment he just felt like a good walk. That after a bit he thought it be nice to stop and enjoy the view. The city was so nice and he was one to enjoy to stop and people watch. That he was doing now but thought to look at his phone to go over his photos from the other day at work. He had photos of him with a few small monkey's and just them on their own. A mother holding her baby and them in the trees. He smiled he missed them already he he was just having one day off. He let out a sigh and was stretching his arms above and behind his hand his phone in hand and he over did it so he dropped his phone "Shoot" he said as he started to get up so he could get his phone.

He had been forcing himself through his run though the hangover he was nursing was winning out as he succumbed to a shorter distance. Rowan settled for a walk, using his t-shirt to wipe away the beads of sweat that he now felt dripping down as he slowed. It was because of the obstructed view that he was walking right in the pathway that the phone fell. He stopped himself short, foot just missing the phone. "Shit," he spoke out of relief, bending down to pick up the phone. "That almost became one hell of an expensive meet-cute," he joked, handing the man back his phone.