Stella Ashford At Your Service

She had to hold back from laughing out loud. Stretching her limbs to stay warm. "There really is drama in every career, isn't there? Sometimes I think it's heightened in my field but then you tell me something that honestly shocks me more than it should." She took a sip of her water, "Do you really think it's going to come to that? A civil war? I mean look at all the harm that's already happened, and the threat to education and the arts already is craziness."

Ben's brows lifted and he nodded towards her, not answering for a moment as his mouth was full. When he finally did, however, his response was simple. "Touché," he chuckled. "Better not to think about it, right?" Definitely better not to think about it, the second he started to dwell on anything, he found himself sinking into... well, he wouldn't call it depression, but there was a certain emptiness there. "Someone out there thinks we are," he answered her, leaning forward a little more in his seat and reaching out for his drink. "And maybe I was when I was, like, nineteen." A machine, an addict, what was the difference really? Both made things kind of easy. She was right though, none of it was actually okay, even if you were the type of person to push through it with the help of alcohol and pills. It probably made a lot of sense how he'd ended up where he had. "Numbers, okay... totally," he commented, pushing the bowl of chicken towards her. He didn't sound convinced, but what was new there? The longer this went on, the more difficult everything became.

She nodded, knowing she knew what she meant. "Sometimes, better to not even know their names. It gets less messy if you can just get up and walk out. I know I sound like a fuck boy but no one wants to deal with my bullshit as much as I don't want to deal with theirs. I've gone this long being alone, shouldn't that mean something? No one wants to be with me for more than a fuck, a roll in the hay, a good time, so why give that away anymore? I enjoy my life, I make good money, i've made a good name for myself. This is just easier." She took a deep breath the rant that played on repeat in her head laid out to air for anyone in the radius around them to hear.

She wrinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue, ignoring talking about her in the spotlight job and focussing on her "Ick is right. Glad you got out of there. Sounds like you made the right move. I honestly think someone is just going to pop out of thin air for us at this point. Fun fact, i've deleted my dating apps!" She agreed that that was a good plan and that they would set a date. She knew a guy and could get them tickets to anything. Perks of the job.

"because the police don't want to admit that they were incompetent in catching him, so they spun some tall tale about how he was so gorgeous and charming, they couldn't possibly catch him, he was just too good at fooling people." as beau spoke, his hands were moving about. he was surprisingly impassioned about the subject of ted bundy's appearance. "also, they cast someone hot because it's hollywood. you should know that better than anyone."

She shrugged, "Still hot." She knew she was being dumb, but it was more fun to play dumb in this moment than get into the larger conversation of how badly things are cast according to looks in hollywood. Something she's strayed away from since her last movie and leaned into theatre, where things are more real than ever.

Once Bella had sorted out the issue, well she hoped it was sorted and soon the server would return with her food correct because she really couldn’t be bothered to argue about it anymore. The blonde was hungry, and when she got hungry, if it went too far then she got cranky. Her tongue could be incredibly sharp in that case, meaning it could do damage, and like mentioned before she knew it wasn’t the waitresses fault but she would get the brunt of it. “Thank you darling, I’m obsessed with you too.” Shooting her a charming smile as she flipped some hair over her shoulder, following it up with a smirk. “Who was it? Like tell me more about them. Did they at least scratch an inch?” Raising an eyebrow as she nodded towards Stella, sort of down, she’d know what the ballarina meant. “Probably, but I’ll enjoy watching it from the sidelines. You know it entertains me endlessly. At work, anything fun? No I wouldn’t go that far. That PA I told you about - Maddie? The one that tripped me by mistake and practically ruined my career….she somehow still has a job there. Can you believe? I could have ruined my whole future in ballet if she’d caused me to like…break something. Which would have mean i'd have to ruin her - luckily she escaped this time. What about you, how are the kitties?” @stella--ashford

She took another sip of her drink before continuing on with the talk about her date. She outlined the details for her friend and even explained how bad of a kisser he was in detail, she was honestly just horny and bored and she went through with it. "But anyway, at the end of the day I learned my lesson and won't be going on any more random tinder dates. I have officially deleted the app." She let her eyes pop for a second, "She still has her job? How did you let this happen, she's going to get someone seriously hurt."

As they started walking, Roy in tow with them, Theo listened to the other and covered their face when she mentioned she was in fact an actress. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry. I truly am an old soul." They laughed a little at themselves for being so out of the loop, honestly a little embarrassed. "Wait, Cabaret? Oh my fiancée loves Cabaret and musicals! I should take her to see you! Well, except she'll need to pee every ten minutes or so." Theo chuckled. Immy was at that stage of the pregnancy where she could pee about five times an hour, poor thing. They really felt for her. "I'll ask her if she thinks she can sit through it. Or get an aisle seat, it's not like she doesn't know the show by heart. We used to go see it a few times a year in London." Their fiancée loved theater and musicals, it was a waste to live so close to Broadway and not take her to a show. "You think you could meet her after the show? She'd love that." The brit was smiling widely at the idea of introducing a Broadway actress to Immy. She has worked with actors and models before, they knew that but they felt this was a bit different.

"I didn't even think that you would be a theatre fan, and you come from some of the best theatre in the world from London! So you saw the original version of what we're doing!" She squeaked out like a pure fan of her own show. She was so lucky to be doing what she was doing and she knew it, "I would absolutely love if you come and introduce her to me after the show! I can show you around backstage as well if you'd like. It really is such a cool space, and how they've built this theatre around our show is incredible."

As the line kept advancing, it was soon time to place her order, finally. PJ moved one more place in line and placed her order with extra of everything to share at the studio with everyone for being so late. "No, yeah, he was fine." She said over her shoulder as she handed her card to pay and stepped aside to wait for the other to order. "He was as surprised to see me as I was. It wasn't like a stalker situation or anything. We went for a walk. He said he was glad to see me? I don't know." At the mention of her being hexed or something, PJ quickly crossed herself and looked up. "Fuck, I hope not? I'm gonna call my abuela tonight just in case."

"Well that's not confusing at all. The whole situation kinda sounds just rough." She looked ahead finally looking at the menu contemplating what she was going to get as they inched closer in line, "Is your abuela ever successful in getting a hex taken off of you?"

Ezra couldn't help but chuckle at the playfulness, not minding at all that Stella leaned up to kiss him. "I could shut you up - or I could tell you what's a huge turn on in case you're trying to find someone else to pass the time with next time you're out and about,". Without so much as a waiting for Stella to decide if that's what she wanted, Ezra gently pushed her back against a wall. He leaned in but only hovered his lips close, not actually pressing any kiss against her. He didn't care for the kissing all that much when it came to their arrangement, but he knew it would rile her up. "Lesson one," he breathed hotly with a smirk etched onto his lips. "Dangle the thing you know they want right in front of them. Kind of like this right now. Is it working?".

She knew this game with him all too well, and it was her favorite game to play. She yearned to close the small distance between them, wanted him to want her, wanted him to feel her. She knew he knew his way around her body, but yearning for him like this she could only think to herself. She could never tell him how much he effected her. She would always keep that to herself. "I don't know professor, I think you're going to have to expand on your lesson." She swallowed, her breathing shallow, and she could feel goosebumps forming on her arms, he was so close yet so far.

Despite the more than several times they've been intimate together, and despite them all being no strings attached, Ezra would be lying if he said Stella didn't have some kind of an effect on him. She was beautiful to say the least - and he counted himself damn lucky. He had known his fair share of other people who crushed on his friend but he always had the privilege of taking her home, whenever Stella wanted it that way. So when she touched him this way, it drove shivers down his spine. But Ezra would be damned if he let any ounce of weakness show already, and didn't take the opportunity to tease her. "Hmm," he hummed, setting his hands on her waist and pretending to contemplate. "I think your seducing game could use a bit of work. What kind of guy would I be if I just gave in at the drop of a hat?".

She couldn't get enough of this. The feeling of him perceiving her in this way always made her skin tingle. She wanted to feel like this forever, to stay locked in this moment where it was just the two of them. She let her senses take over and she stood on her tip toes getting close to him before her lips could reach his, "So teach me. What could I do better?" She closed the distance between them and placed a small kiss on his lips. Pulling away almost instantly but getting to feel him pressed up against her, getting distracted by the feeling of his hands on her waist, "Or you could just shut me up and we can learn at a different time."

Ezra's gaze was scanning the view, the people outside merely like ants when they were a bit of a ways up. At the mention of the woman and a dog, he tried to look for it, but that didn't last long when he felt Stella close the gap between them. He raised his brows, a slight smirk on his face as he looked down at the smaller woman. "Oh, are our lives more interesting now?" he laughed lightly, knowing her far too well not to understand what she was doing. But he enjoyed being a little shit. "If I had to take a wild guess, I'd say you're trying to seduce me,".

She let her hips fully brush against him as she suddenly forgot about the world outside and slowly turned around, not breaking their bodies from each other. She let a smirk settle on her lips and she found herself searching his features for any sign of backing away. She had gotten pretty good at reading him, but every now and again it felt different. Not today thought. Today she could feel the sensation of her own lust and need starting to heat up, "I would say you could win a couple of bets if you had put money on that statement." She let her arms push some of his hair out of his face and her arms settle around the back of his neck. Her fingers slowly dancing along his bare skin at the top of his shirt. "Thoughts and feelings on this seduction? We could always just put on another movie instead?"

"Um- it's at theokent, not dot or dash or anything." They tried to explained, not the most tech or social media savvy, that was Imogen. In fact, that had gotten them into trouble once before. Theo doesn't realize that the thousands of followers they have are in fact real people that follow them. "I can walk with you and we stop taking up half the sidewalk if you want. We were also on a long walk." They said refering to Roy. Nodding towards the direction she was headed when they first bumped into each other, Theo took a few steps. "It'll probably be a one night thing. But I'm going to be cooking at a few restaurants around the city, you can pop by whenever you're free. Do you work in theater? Are you an actress? Oh bollocks, should I have recognized you?" Their eyes went big as they blushed, a little embarrassed. Damn maybe they do need some younger friends.

She quickly pulled out her phone and followed them. She was pretty good with social media, she was able to find them fast and asses that they too had a good amount of followers. She didn't mention it though, kinda an awkward topic to be focusing on and she didn't want to compare and contrast. "Yeah, that'd be great. I'm Stella by the way!" She was impressed to say the least, "Oh wow, i'll absolutely try and come by." Had she let too much slip out, she was usually better at keeping her work life separate. Her cheeks went a bright red having to talk about herself. "No no, no need to know who I am! Never been in a huge huge lime light. Done a few feature movies, experienced the red carpet lifestyle, but my heart has always been musical theatre. I am an actress, you can catch me 5 days a week singing my heart out in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club." She stated proudly.

Starter for: Tobias & Stella @stella--ashford Location: Prospect Park

Stella was minding her own business reading a script when the dog came up to her with the ball. She assessed the situation and saw the owner coming up to her. She grabbed the ball from the dog and immediately knew the signs of an animal wanting to play. She tossed the ball back to the owner and looked up, "No no, it's not a worry! I absolutely adore animals, what's it's name?"

Imani smiled and nodded hearing the name of the perfume. Way out of her price range, but she was sure she could find a dupe somewhere. "Ohhh see I knew you smelled expensive." She said with a smile, pushing her long blonde hair over her shoulder. "Oh this? Broken Love. From five below." She said as she grabbed her strappy purse and threw it over her shoulder. "I mean.... I am looking pretty fine tonight." She smiled and turned, admiring her own ass in the mirror. "OH SHIT.'" She quickly grabbed the stranger's hand. "My SONG" With very little warning she started pulling her new friend in an attempt to get her on the dance floor.

She couldn't help but laugh at this whole situation. This is why she could never leave this city, this is why she could never leave this part of town to be more accurate. She grabbed the girls hand and was gladly pulled out onto the dance floor. This is what she was made for, this is her bread and butter. She immediately felt the song in her bones and went with the rhythm. "This is the best night!" She was so thankful for the distraction of the night, of being able to get lost in the music, and being able to just escape her life for a couple hours. "What is this song?"

"You might not understand, but that doesn't mean it's not possible. And I'm not saying it's the best thing in the world.. It's just hard to understand." He said to her. Even though he hadn't been with his mom in years, he understood where she was coming from and they were similar than he thought they were in dealing with things. "No.. It's not so wrong of you for wanting your family back. I've wanted my family back too. Have I done the work for it? No. Not really, but that doesn't mean I don't want the family back together. All of this is bigger than just a simple yes or not though Stella." He said to her. "That's where things are different. We aren't little anymore and things effect everybody differently and while I can and should be sorry, I can't say I'm sorry for taking care of me. The world is not as simple as that anymore." He said to her as he looked at her. "Well I want to give you something and you know I can't cook for shit so pleast just let me give you something for letting me live here, especially since you said it's not cheap and I am not gonna be able to provide much around here." @stella--ashford

"You don't have to keep repeating yourself, I know it's hard to understand. I've been living through it for years now and don't understand it. Sometime's i'm just talking to talk..okay?" She slightly snapped at him, she couldn't remember the last time she opened up about their mother to anyone and just wanted to be heard for a second, but maybe he was the wrong person. Of course he would defend her actions, because it seems as if that's exactly what he's doing. She took a big bite of her cereal and focussed on her chewing. She heard what he was saying, but she was so sure she could fix things, she's tried so hard to hold it all together for them there needed to be an end to this road, a way for all the pain to end and find a way to make things better. It wasn't easy, and they weren't teenagers anymore she knew this but she also knew that there was more to life than what she's been considered living up until now. She's had to mother her own mother more than she was ever parented. She couldn't fathom to even understand what Thomas had been putting himself through, and part of her didn't want to know. If she really knew it all she would want to help, and she wasn't sure she could save them both, she wasn't sure she could save this family. "I don't need you to provide anything, I promise i've got it covered. If you want to do something you can keep the place clean. A vaccuum and the dishes. I hate doing dishes!" She made a face trying to lighten the mood, there was no way she was taking money from him. She knew if it were the other way around he would do the same, or she hoped at least.

"Well," Theo looked at Stella's phone in her hand and pointed at it. "You can look me up in there, I have a page. An Instagram. I'm sure I'll post some info on the collab with the restaurant. I can make sure you have a reservation if you want." The brit was genuinely just being nice and not trying to hit on the woman or anything. If she had a nice experience there then she should have it again, and they loved nothing more than to cook for others. "I've been cooking since forever. Professionally since my early twenties but my fiancée's dad - thanks by the way - he was the one who made me love cooking. He grew herbs in the garden and taught me how to take care of them." Theo realized they were rambling and shook their head. "Oh god, you must have places to be and here I am chewing your ear off..." When they started talking about food or Imogen, they really could go on forever.

"Oh yeah? What's your instagram?" She didn't think twice about the fact that she had a following on instagram or what they might think about her for using social media as a platform. "I-I would love that, thank you a reservation would be perfect. I can message you on Instagram when I have a good date i'm free. I tend to work a lot of nights." She always struggled to balance her time right, and being in a show full time right now was not easy on her for spare time. "No no no, don't you worry. I really was just on a long walk enjoying the sunshine before having to be stuck in a dark theatre for the night. This is the most exciting part of my day by far, so thank you for talking to me. "

"Oh my god, it was the first thing that happened when I got here!" PJ had her arms crossed across her chest, letting out a huff an half turning to the other. "That's how I found out! Go into a coffee shop and boom. *Ahí estaba. What the fuck!" The brunette shook her head, letting out a sigh and turning more to the other. "I don't hate him or anything. We didn't end things badly but it was such a mess." Word vomiting was one of PJ's biggest problems; once she started, she couldn't stop.

"No way!" She felt like her jaw was wide open, such a small world. She had to stop herself from laughing, the whole situation was so much more than she ever wanted to deal with and she felt bad for the girl. "I'm so sorry, but that's just karma or something of the sort. Someone must have a hex on you or something." She was invested now, "How did he react to seeing you?"