liquid sunshine

sloane waited until her brother had disappeared out of the room, arms crossed tightly over her chest. "you can sit there and pretend like nothing ever happened but i can't." she said, voice low but sharp. "now you're with him and every time i see you sitting beside him, i feel like i'm losing my head. tell me you don't think about it too — about me — and maybe i'll believe i'm just being foolish."

lumi continued to stare in the direction her boyfriend had just left in despite the fact that sloane had started to speak. it wasn't until a few moment had passed when she finally looked over in other females direction. "you're just being foolish." a lie slipping from her lips as she shrugged her shoulders. it was easier to lie, less complicated and she didn't need complicated in her life. she liked it simple. "what happened between us was just a stupid moment of given into temptation. it was never going to be anything more. she leaned forward, voice lowered. "i'm happy, your brother is happy. why can't you keep the past in the past?"

" trust me , neither does anyone on this flight . i feel like if you're going to take a baby with you , might as well take a train . or drive - but flying ? think that's a little out of its way , if anything . plus , you can't forget the turbulence . " gabriel shrugs his shoulders , nonetheless , keeping his eyes on the other as he toys with the seatbelt , fiddling with it , ensuring that it's on his lap before he actually clips it on , but the conversation he's currently having is nice , good to know he's on the same page as a stranger . " oh , man . between a crying baby & a snoring man , i think i'd choose the guy , " he quips , a laugh coming out from his lips , nodding his head . " hawaii for work , never thought i'd hear anyone say that . " a contemplative gaze - silent for a moment . " i'm going to a wedding . "

"i don't think anyone could forget the turbulence." she gulped as she looked around, hoping that there was going to be a delay to allow her time to prepare more for the flight. she was starting to wonder if the money was really worth it. "i spent years living in a one-bed apartment with my parents so i got used to really loud snoring. surprisingly from my mother more then my father so i can handle snoring a lot better then babies crying." she rambled on as she took a sip of the water she had brought with her to allow her to take the tablets the doctors had prescribed her to make the flight more comfortable, well it's what they had claimed would help. "no way!" she slapped him lightly on the arm, getting too comfortable in the strangers company too quickly. "sorry." nora muttered as she pulled her hand away, deciding it was now her turn to fiddle with the seatbelt. "i'm going to hawaii for a wedding as well. i'm a wedding photographer, you see. wouldn't it be funny if it was the same one?"

" don’t go. just a little longer, okay? "

"stay a little while longer?" katina laughed, shaking her head. "babe, you asked me that a few days ago and here i still am. i think i've outstayed my welcome. besides, i'm not paying a ridiculous amount of rent on a place to hardly spend anytime in it."

" wouldn't say hero , but .. i'm glad i could rescue you from being bombarded with a crying baby , " he lets out , immediately standing up , allowing for her to take her seat after she puts her bag in the overhead locker , eyes on her as he lets out a short laugh - merely studying her for a second , nodding his head to note that he was listening , in fact . " at least we won't be bothered by .. loud noises , i tend to keep my headphones on during flights . " a joke , a bad one - yet , he sits back down - making himself comfortable beside the other . " so where are you headed ? "

"i'm not one of these people who can't stand children. i think if i was i would be a disappointment to my mother but when you're lacking sleep and want some peace and quiet, being near a crying baby is not something i want." she didn't mention her fear of flying, not yet anyway though she was sure it would become evident when they took off. she snorted at his joke, covering her mouth when she did, her cheeks turning a shade of red as she leaned in to whisper. "i might have to share those with you. i'm not one to judge a book by it's cover but the guy behind us looks like the type who snores really loudly." she sat back up and looked across out the window, thankful they were still on the ground. "i'm off to hawaii, for work, not play." it's not like she would ever get on a plane for fun. "what about you?"

" i've got an empty seat here , you can sit by me . "

"thank you so much. you're my hero. i was supposed to sat near the back but the moment i saw that i was going to be sat near a baby. i knew i had to try and find another seat." nora rambled as she placed her bag in the overhead locker, a lack of sleep and a fear for flying wasn't a good mix. "you'll hardly notice i'm here, i'll be as quiet as a mouse." she finally finished speaking as she shuffled into the seat next to the kind stranger.

"well that's not fair, why should you be the one who gets the fun of punching someone?" tsking as though she was genuinely offended by the idea. shrugging at his next words, she made a conscious effort not to look behind her at the other guy. "every job comes with some drawbacks. that just happens to be one of mine." it irritated her sometimes, but she thought it was a decent enough trade to get to do something she actually enjoyed. "besides, if i didn't work here, who'd get you free drinks?"

"if you punch them then you'll probably lose your job and i'm not going to see you get fired because some asshole can't keep their eyes to themselves." tommy shrugged his shoulder, a hint of a smirk tugging at the corner of his lip. "besides, it might throw some attention my way." madison's next words had him sliding his empty glass across to her. his plans had changed, he wasn't going to leave until either they left or madison ended her shift. "talking about free drinks, do you think i could have another?" he grazed his hand along hers gentley. it wasn't to make the one with their eyes on her jealous, it had just been a mistake. something that had come so naturally to him the past. "sorry." he said as he pulled his hand back.

“ my hero. ” she mumbled, sarcasm laced in her tone. ines pinched the bridge of her nose, heavy sigh passing her lips. “ what exactly made you think he was taking advantage of me? because i happened to be enjoying myself .” she questioned, arms folding across her chest in her attempt to stop herself from checking him over, letting him think it was ok. “ you know… if i didn’t know any better i’d say you were jealous. ”

samir's focus was on his swollen knuckles that were throbbing rather then ines. it had been worth it though it had wiped the smug look off the guys face and had left him with what he was sure was a broken nose. "enjoying yourself, huh? okay, sure." he nodded as he finally looked up at ines. "you can keep telling yourself that you were enjoying yourself but we both know you only truly enjoy yourself when you are with me." he shot her a wink as he shrugged his shoulders at her next words. "i wasn't jealous. i was just saving you from a wasted seven minutes in heaven, or maybe five, he didn't seem the type to last long."

just give me plots where shit is hard and trying and sometimes they think their careers won’t pan out but there’s also a lot of crazy stories and great memories to carry on ok

"Don't you dare condescend me, Pardo." The words were growled, however he relented and let go of the other man's shirt, shoving him once more for good measure as he stepped backwards. "I can assure you... I wouldn't regret a single millisecond of it."

"woah, that's a pretty big word coming from the mouth of a very pequeño man." salvador said as he adjusted his shirt which had becoming crumpled from where henrique had held him. a laugh soon followed as he was given one final shove. "you need to start getting up on the right side of the bed." eyes focused on the man in front of him, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lip. "try it again and then we will see if you don't regret it."

"i didn't save you for a reward, i did it because i don't like assholes harassing people outside my store when i'm trying to count inventory." her eyes don't leave the mugger for another moment, almost waiting for him to get up again before turning back to the woman and pushing open the back door to her shop a little wider in offer. "come in, you should at least sit for a minute before you try to go anywhere. why are you walking through a dark alley in the middle of the night, anyway? do you not watch, like, any movies ever?"

"oh, i'm sorry. i didn't realise i had disturbed you while you were counting inventory. next time, i'll try and not get mugged outside your store." nora's words were laced with sarcasm. it wasn't often that she found herself using sarcasm but she thought it may help distract her from what had just happened. "that's very kind of you. i can count your inventory with you as a thank you if you like." she made her way into the shop, in awe of how much antique stuff there was lying around. "i don't tend to watch those type of movies. i'm not a fan of unnecessary violence." she spoke as she moved further into the store, trying to stay clear of the valuable items as she was known to be clumsy. "it's not something that i do regularly. my car broke down so i had to walk home tonight. i was trying to use the quickest way home but maybe, it wasn't the safest."

"nea, will you please chill out for just a minute." it was a statement rather then a question as she began to help him up and out the window. "i don't understand why it matters so much if you mother sees us together again. i know the woman doesn't like me but surely who you invite into your bed is entirely up to you." kodjó hadn't been a perfect boyfriend when the two of them were together so he knew that nea's mother didn't like him but if being with him made her daughter happy, surely that's all that matters. "we ain't kids anymore ne. i don't need to be sneaking out of your bedroom window so you don't get caught by your parents. let me go out and there and face her." he shrugged his shoulders as he made his way back into her bedroom. he may be tall and the height may be small but kodjó was scared of heights. the fact he used to sneak out her bedroom all the time when they were younger just showed how much love he had for her. he nudged her out the way and sighed with relief as he landed back on the bedroom floor. "she doesn't even have to know that we slept together, i can just say that i came round here because you found something of mine." he winked at her as he wrapped his arms around her. "i'll just work my charm on her, it always worked on you."

dionne froze at the sound of his voice following her out into the hallway, " hmm ? " she turned, blinking like a deer caught in headlights, lips pressing inward as her eyes went wide. " no i, i'm not running, " she could feel her face heating as she tried to find a lie that sounded even semi believable. " okay yes, i was running, but not because you kissed me. i'm not that petty... " she absolutely was, but she was also a grown-ass woman now. she was supposed to be able to handle her emotions. her gaze flicked up to his face again, like seeing him under fluorescent hallway lights might confirm he was real. he still had that same easy laugh, the same warm tone, just… less braces. less teen awkwardness. more jawline. " you uh, you grew into your face. " she blurted before she could stop herself. then grimaced. " i just mean, you still look exactly the same, glasses and braces or no. " back then dionne was a twig with big bushy curls and glasses that hid her perpetual teenage embarrassment. she'd been so stunned by the kiss that she'd avoided him until he got the unspoken message and stopped trying to talk to her. " i just didn’t think i’d be seeing anyone i knew this week. least of all you. "

jayden ran a hand over his jaw and laughed. "i'll take that as a compliment, i think." he had lost a lot of his teen awkwardness over the years, grown into more of a man but he was still the maths geek at heart. the geek who had one day grown courage to kiss the girl that he had a crush on. the girl who had made it clear that she wasn't interested. they hadn't spoken since, hadn't seen one another for years. he didn't hold a grudge though, they were only kids after all. "i knew it was you from the moment you walked back out my classroom, you looked at me with those beautiful eyes of yours and then you hurried away like you did the day i kissed you. i'm just glad you stopped this time." jayden has thought about her from time to time over the years, wondered what she was doing these days and where she was doing it. "i'm one of the only ones that stuck around from school. most people got out as soon as they could. so, you're the new guidance counsellor, huh?"

"trying isn't the same as changing," carmen said quietly, arms crossed as she leaned against the doorframe. her voice wasn't cold, but it wasn't soft either—just tired. "you think i haven't heard that before? that you're trying? you mess up, say sorry, promise better… and then we're back here like it's a damn rerun." she paused, eyes flicking up to meet his. "i never needed perfect. i needed effort that didn't come with excuses."

"i know you're probably tired of hearing me say this but i'm sorry." kodjó placed his hands in his pockets and shrugged his shoulders. in the moment, he felt like a child being scolded by his parents. he didn't have a plan for how this would go until he was stood on carmen's doorstep and now, he is was just winging it."i know i've run out of excuses, i knew that the day that you told me to leave. i pushed you to the very edge and that's all on me. i like to think i've changed though. i ain't expecting just to walk back into your life and things be how they used to be." he removed his hand from his pocket, he almost reached out for her but remembered she was no longer his. he then placed his hand on the back of his neck. "i thought maybe there was a chance we could start again from the beginning."