BEAUTY FALAFEL

She’d thought her dismissal would be enough for Safiya to get the hint and go the fuck away, but apparently Reina isn’t so lucky. Her patience is wearing increasingly thin with this girl and it’s evident in the way she slams her pen down in annoyance as Safiya continues to spew bullshit, finally looking away from her work to give her employee the time of day. “You suck it up and deal with it like a fucking adult. If he scheduled you a double on Tuesday, there’s a reason for it. End of story.” The reason is no doubt that Miles has heard about the girl’s little tryst with Jason and wants to punish her for it, and of course Reina can’t blame him. She’s having a tough time keeping her own temper in check and the more Safiya runs her mouth, the harder it is for Reina to keep her cool. Finally she’s had enough, and Reina realizes the only way she’s going to get this bitch to shut up is to confirm that she knows what Safiya did, and she’s not happy despite the fake smile she’s sporting. “I think you and I both know you’re in no position to complain about anything right now.”

Under any other circumstance, maybe Safiya would feel sorry for the tone she’s taking with her boss. But when it came to her career in showbiz, she didn’t care who she had to hurt or talk back to to get what she wanted. It doesn’t even occur to her that there is a possibility that Reina might know of her husband’s infidelity, till she says that. “...Reina, it’s not what you think. I was only having a conversation with Jason. I don’t know what kind of disgusting rumors you’ve been hearing, but they’re all false, I swear.” She feels dirty, but if Jason hasn’t gotten in any trouble, then she refuses to go down sinking either. “It’s really unfair that you’re taking your anger out on me, especially in a professional capacity. It seems like some kind of violation, and if I were to go to a union rep...” 

There was a fleeting moment when the bar wasn’t overflowing with orders. It was a rarity but it was the opportunity for Pandora to catch her breath. Schwartz had been far too occupied with a group of ladies on his side of the bar. Meanwhile, the blonde had to deal with the misfortune of elder men, who could’ve passed as her grandfather, attempting to hit on her and schmooze her into their beds after the shift. A wearisome, lifeless expression over her overlay had no desire to further converse with the men unless it meant further taking their older and falsing a hefty grin to receive a sizable tip. A towel was thrown over her black-clothed shoulder, seafoam hues drifting toward the hostess in reference brought to life from Safiya. “That drink was for me,” she began. Only to allow her digits to grip lightly on the bottom of the glass giving it to Safiya figuring the other needed it more than her. If there was one thing Pandora learned about her best friend, it was never to shy away from the conversation but to be head-on with thoughts. The girl didn’t have time for drama. Nor did it fascinate her. Yet, it always seems to end up in her general direction. Tilting her tressed platinum head to the left side, a slight upturn of her mouth corner shot up in hilarity, “What happened now? Who did you fuck to get on their bad side, Safiya?” Index finger tapping diligently against the bartop. “I feel like you’re coming to me for some advice.”

Safiya had patiently waited her turn for that mojito and she would be damned if some older men wanted to ogle her friend’s tits while getting drunk, and she had huffed and puffed loud enough till they moved along. “You’re a lifesaver, my love! Thank you!” She was quick to pick up the glass, raising the glass to Pandora before she downed the alcoholic beverage, letting all the flavours swirl and leave that cool feeling down her throat. “I swear, your cocktails might be infused with actual magic, because this is good. Like, magic good.” She was going to savour this drink and the bubble of a moment in which nothing bad could touch her, till Pandora hit her with the hard questions and she shook her head. “I didn’t fuck anyone at that table! Or their male partners, I swear! It’s not my fault a guy doesn’t tell me that he has no plans on leaving his wife anytime soon, and then makes me all gooey on the inside...” She was biting her lip at the thought of Jason, but she was quick to snap out of it. “It’s one of the Halliwells, I think. Their friends are stupid intolerant and I’ve have about ye much till I throw someone to the ground.” 

“What can I say sweetheart; you’re good at what you do,” he replied, putting his hands up. “And thankfully, I’m good at what I do, so…” He hit the button, replaying what they’d recorded and mixed so far. “… And there we have it.” Though Austin was in the business of making music, he was also in the business of spotting the makings of a young star. Safiya happened to have that young, bubbly, yet authentic energy people loved nowadays. “You ready to become Pop’s next big thing?”

“That I am!” Unlike what people thought, there had been a time Saf had ventured into music. Albeit almost stunting her career, her first music video with Ark Productions still floats around YouTube, occasionally memed by the some channels and content creators, and honestly, she doesn’t care. It helps her image, and despite the autotuned mess, she’s proud of what she achieved at fourteen. “We’re such a dynamic duo, I’m telling you, Austin! And I’ve always been Pop’s big thing, people are just taking a while to find my excellence! Thank you so much for helping me out, honestly! So...” Here was the part where she was going to ask for something more, already sweetening her tone. “...where do we go from here? Because I had ideas for the bridge, and I think it might require more finetuning than I thought...” 

MILES ELLIS.

“Kinda worse since….” Miles paused as Safiya sat down, trying to wretch at the overpowering scent of whatever perfume she had decided to torture everyone else around here with, “….you sat down with us.” He wasn’t looking for company, and his friend had literally just gone to take a shit when the girl occupied his free seat. “You plan on staying here for too long, Torres? Don’t make yourself comfortable, Nate’s coming over soon.” 

Walking back to his table from the bathroom, Nate spotted Miles at the table with someone he didn’t recognize, and he plopped back down, turning to whisper to his friend. “What the hell, man — don’t hog the women for yourself!” And whipping his head back around, award-winning smile back on his face, he extended a hand. “Nate. Don’t pay any attention to this guy, he’s an idiot.” 

Safiya was more than ready to ignore Miles’s snide comments; she was hoping that whatever she had done to piss him off could stay at the workplace, and not when they met outside of Iris and Eve, and the context of their jobs. She watched the new man take his place at the table, whispering to Miles before turning to her. “You must be the Nate Miles couldn’t stop raving about. I’m Safiya!” Smiles brighter than a bulb, she reached out to shake the hand Nate had offered. “Oh, I wish I could stop. He’s my boss at work, and apparently when we go out as well. Anyways...” She wasn’t in the mood to talk about work when there was friends to be made, connections to be had. “How is it going, gentlemen?”  

Being cooped up for the past week and a half in Westington estate in Ventura, the need to get out was becoming perilously to him. While he wasn’t the most communal individual right away, which should’ve been known from the weight upon his broad shoulders as muscules tightened in his face. A female decided to companion Ledger and his colossal table for a party of ten, occupying it for himself like an egotistical individual one. “Are you sure about that?” Cavernous tone retorted as an arched sly brow shot to her. “Casual you are to make yourself feel welcome without invitation, I suppose.” Commenting with a minimally amused tone, leaning back in the chair as his arms crossed over his chair in a safeguarding manor. Motioning his head to the rather dwindling occupancy of the other, his words followed shortly after, “I’ll let you know how I’m doing if I can get your name and order you something to drink. I prefer to work that way.”

“Aren’t you a darling? I haven’t seen you around before, are you new in town? Or maybe it’s just me, I mean....” Safiya shrugged; her time residing on the island might have been shorter than some of the people, but her effusive personality found it easy to make friends. Seating herself in the company of people at a communal dining space, she found, was the easiest way to make friends and find someone new. “I’m more than okay, and I hope no one else is joining you in this seat. But you know what they say, the more the merrier....for your server.” She laughs at her own little joke, throwing her head back in laughter. “As in, more tips and the works, you know? I work as a server at Iris and Eve, it’s a little joke I have with some of the others.” She blushed under his attention, turning on the charm even more than she could, “well, you could call me Safiya. Remember the name when you see it on the Billboard’s Top 100, won’t ya? And hmm...I could go with some lemonade, what about you?”

Reina’s in the back office, doing the books to ensure their restaurant income and the income from the illegal side of their business line up in a way that isn’t suspicious, when none other than Safiya fucking Torres — probably the last person she wants to see — interrupts her thought process. “I’m a tad busy, Safiya,” Reina hums in annoyance, as if the younger girl can’t fucking see that with her own two eyes. She’s really not in the mood to deal with the home-wrecking whore that fucked her husband at the moment, and even if Safiya doesn’t know she knows, it’s evident from the way she barely gives the girl a side glance before rolling her eyes and going back to her work. “If you have a problem with the schedule, you’ll have to take it up with Miles. I don’t deal with that.”

“Well, that’s the thing...” Safiya takes a deep breath, annoyed at the mere mention of Miles Ellis, her (incompetent) manager, and how he didn’t seem to listen. Or worse, he listened and didn’t give a shit. That’s why she was in Reina’s office, even though she could feel the animosity, hoping it wasn’t about the whole thing with Jason. Doing her best to squash rumors in the bud, it had been working alright. “I told Miles that I wouldn’t be free, but I don’t think he listened and he’s a buffoon, pardon my French. So I’m coming over to you, because you have final says on schedules and I can’t find anyone to cover my shift! Reina, what am I meant to do?” 

“Oh, fuck.” As soon as Jason lays eyes on the girl he’d fucked not a few days ago in his restaurant’s kitchen, he wants to turn and run the other way. He’s not afraid of her — if he wanted to, he could snap her fucking neck and be done with it — but dealing with the fallout from his escapades has never been his strong suit, and he’s really not in the mood. “Listen, sweetheart, we had fun and all, but I’ve got kids. And my wife’s also your boss. I can’t be seein’ anyone long term, you understand?” They rarely did, but what the hell was he supposed to do? Give it all up for a server at his restaurant? He may be a man, but Jason’s not that fucking stupid. “She goes through my phone and shit, I can’t be texting you.” Rubbing his neck, he takes a look around, trying to scout out anyone who might be eavesdropping on their conversation before he leans in and lowers his voice. “That said, if you wanted to go back in the kitchen for a repeat, I’m sure I could clear everyone out. Perks of being the boss.”

Oh fuck indeed. Safiya didn’t like the dynamic between them. Jason was her boss yes, and they had made use of the empty kitchens to have some fun, but it had been different before she found out about his still married status. It had been fun, and she was looking forward to it again, but after knowing what she did, the very thought of the kitchen and their escapade made her feel dirty. “I wasn’t asking for long term. I was just asking for an orgasm.” Maybe the second time would have been different because Safiya wasn’t relaxed on their first encounter, and she wasn’t one to complain about that, but still. “Sounds like a lovely marriage you two have. No love lost between you two, huh?” She’s not ready to leave without a fight though, at least an acknowledgement that something had happened between them, but then he moves closer and propositions her and Safiya is only a woman, and she’s weak at the knees for him again. Jason may not be the classiest man, but he was a good looking one, and she hates herself for saying what she says. “...Right now? It’s the middle of day. My car is parked further out back....” She’s not saying no, not right now. 

@scfiyatcrres​  “how much britney spears i’ve listened to in the last 72 hours is none of your business!”

Up until recently, Rowan didn’t really have a problem with Safiya. But when a rumor about her and Jason began cycling, Rowan couldn’t help but take notice. Jason’s wandering dick isn’t anything new. She has been watching the fall out of it for he entire adult life, but she’d been hoping Jason would last at least half a year before he started fucking girls who could pass for teenagers — especially ones that Reina had to see every day. “Yeah, you and Britney aren’t any of my business. To be honest with you, I don’t give a shit what you do —- until it involves you having your hand down my brother in law’s pants. That is my business.”

Safiya had been listening to a lot of Toxic and Britney’s discography from the two thousands, trying to get ready for her next recording session with Austin by following along to her favourite popstar and inspiration for everything in life. She should have known that Rowan’s staring wasn’t because of her off-key rendition of Baby One More Time, and because of fucking Jason. “I can assure you that whatever you might have heard is nothing but speculation. If smiling at people could count as fucking, then I must have impregnated all of my friends by now.” 

“So I said, ‘if you’ve got a problem, buddy, you can leave, ‘cause this is my goddamn bar’ and then he said, ‘actually, I do got a problem’ and then, uh —” Jason smirks as he takes a gulp of his whiskey, recalling the memory of how he’d beat the shit out of that pompous asshole with ease. “Let’s just say he didn’t come back again. Anyway, I ain’t allowed to do that anymore.”