half of a whole

“Hey,” Maggie scolded, “Keep givin’ me shit and I’ll kick you in the butt,” Maggie said with a laugh as she playfully punched at Ryan’s shoulder. “I’m happy to see you made it out. Is Allison with you?”

Ryan flinched, rubbing his arm and flashing a puppy dog expression. “Hey, ow? Watch the strength there, will ya?” At the mention of Allison he could help but smile, lifting his gaze across the way to where she stood, clad in a baseball jersey and backwards snapback. “Yeah, she’s over there gettin’ somethin’ to eat.”

“Okay, that chili is amazing but holy shit,” Maggie took a long swig from her glass, “It’s so freakin’ spicy,” Her hand waved at her mouth, “I’ll be damned if it doesn’t burn off what taste buds I have left!”

Ryan blew out a breath. “Oh, come on,” he chided, making a face. “It wasn’t that spicy, please. Can’t believe you’re being done in by a bowel of chili, Blackwell.”

“Oh my god, this chili is to die for. I don’t even know how to choose my favorite.” Sophia said as she took another bite from the several bowls in front of her, Max sat happily beside her. “I can’t ask this one for help, he’s on a strictly mac and cheese diet currently.” Sophia said with a chuckle as she looked up at the person standing to her other side.

Ryan froze, as if he’d been caught red-handed, arms full of numerous different bowls full of chili that he had borrowed from each pot --- was she talking to him? Because he defiantly hadn’t been able to pick, either, which was why he had so many in his arms now... “Impossible to choose,” Ryan concluded before flashing Max a wink, “That’s why it’s called chili mac for a reason. Just throw some in with the mac and cheese and he’ll be golden.”

“I’m not going to say that the Fire Department won the softball game because of me this year, but you cannot deny the coincidence.” Sam was in a better mood than she had been in ages. She was dusty from the field, and had a couple stains, but she felt alive. She had missed playing sports and knew that she’d have to figure out how to incorporate that into her routine from now on. The things that gave her pleasure were few and far between these days. But being part of the fire department had made her feel part of something again. And being on the team had been even better. She could have run around the diamond all day. It was a wonder what being a vampire could do for your strength and stamina. She grinned brilliantly at the person who had come up beside her, usual gruffness dropping away with her pleasure.

Just the simple mention of sports had Ryan’s competitive blood running --- he felt like he was back at Cal, sprinting down the sideline with a football in his hand, the roar of the crowd urging him on. “I will not deny it one bit,” he admitted with a chuckle. “That was a pretty awesome game. We gotta get this place to do this more often --- if not a community game then at least something competitive. It gets people goin’ and I love it.”

“I cannot believe this town actually has a ‘Town Wide Cleanup.’ Tell me is this mandatory? Will I get my ass kicked if I just stand here and watch?”

"If you live here I’d pretty much say it’s mandatory. Sorry ‘bout it, man, but you gotta get your hands dirty every once and a while.”

Thalia bit her lip as she surveyed the ingredients on her counter. Her eyes roved over each item, checking off a mental list. Arms wrapped around herself, Thalia supposed it was a good thing that none of her bids had won herself a basket. She tried to ignore the pang she felt at that, absurd as it was. It wasn’t like she wanted to go on blind date. But with half the town out on dates she couldn’t help but feel left out. It was just a left over feeling from her childhood, and a silly one at that. She knew it was silly. Besides, she would much rather be in Nurture. Nurture was her safe place, where she always felt confident and capable, and every inch the successful businesswoman and chef rather than awkward, horribly normal teenager. In any case, this freed up her afternoon to start on her chilli for the cook off tonight. At least if she won there it would be due to her own merits. She wouldn’t even think about losing. 

The sound of the door opening and closing had Thalia arranging her face into a bright smile as she turned around. “You can come in, but no peeking at my ingredients for my chilli,” she chided, laughingly.

"Oh I wouldn’t dream of it,” Ryan replied, hands lifted in the air in surrender, though his gaze did flick briefly to the table. Not that he couldn’t smell the contents, but he reserved himself to not think about it. “Why’re you held up in here and not outside? It’s a beautiful day.”

She woke at sunrise on Saturday and threw on some clothes before jogging down to the convenience store a few blocks from the Inn and picking up a pint of ice cream. She spent some time, while invisible, poking around the things left at the curb and tossing a few gems into the trunk of her car. The trucks were out early though so she retreated with her ice cream and a spoon to enjoy a typical breakfast. “The joys of being homeless,” she muttered to herself as she watched a family hauling trash out to their curbside.

"Ice cream for breakfast, huh?” Ryan commented absently, flashing a smile as he adjusted the baseball jersey across his shoulders. “What kind is it?”

“How funny would it have been if I’d actually won all the baskets?” Joslyn smirked in amusement to herself, imagining the ideas. The bachelors she could care less about in this case, but all the gifts that were hidden inside each basket deliberately put together, so many presents and surprises hidden like gems in the sand. “Buuut I think they noticed my name in there more than once. Fairness and all.” 

"Can someone win them all?” Ryan asked, furrowing his brows. He hadn’t submitted a basket --- he wasn’t a bachelor anymore --- but that didn’t mean the whole concept was cool. “Oh. Oh, okay, so you can only put your name in once? Sorta sucks when things had to be fair, huh?” a small quirk of a smile creased his lips. “It’d be sorta fun getting all the baskets.”

Ezra was happily sipping a lemonade as he sat in the sand, his long legs folded neatly as he sat Indian style. He smiled at the person as they approached him. “Want one?” he asked, lifting up the up and smiling again. “It’s really good, there’s a stand over there.”

Ryan wondered distantly why the town didn’t have more events like this --- though, with summer right around the corner he was sure that would change. “Is it fresh?” he asked, like it mattered. Which it didn’t. “Looks good regardless. This is all pretty awesome, huh? I dig stuff like this.”

ft. Ryan Carroll 

He buttoned a the fresh shirt as he walked down the street, fresh of the win of the softball game that had been far more entertaining then he realized. Seeing someone near by he offered a nod, “Having fun so far?”

Adjusting his snapback more comfortably on his head, Ryan flashed a smile. “Hell yeah, man,” he nodded. “That was a fun game. They should hold stuff like this more often. It’s good to see everyone out and about.”

ft. Ryan Carroll 

She’d been up since early that morning, cleaning up with the rest of the town quite willingly, the spring fling not something she’d been excited for in the lead up but now it was here, she was feeling a little different about it all. Now, standing idly at the sidelines of the softball game, she winced a little as someone practically smashed into the base. “Taking bets on whose going to be first to wipe out.” she muttered to the nearest person.

"Isn’t that the fun of it, though?” Ryan questioned, turning to her. While the game was slowpitch and more to grow town community than to actually win, the young wolf couldn’t help the strong competitive streak from rearing its head. “I’ll wipe out on purpose if it gets me to home place faster.”

It’s Sinday!

“Just once. And, again, that was back in college. But it wasn’t bad? Pretty wild, actually.”

It’s Sinday!

“Between a woman’s legs, first and foremost. But when we get down to it iris or the oath are pretty good ones. My yogo instructor back in college was... well versed in a lot of that stuff.”

It’s Sinday!

“A lot back in college. I couldn’t even guess a number. It was all good fun, though.”