#dancie

Dante would say he was loving Florida already, and was pretty glad he was able to come. Sure, his basketball team got eliminated in the second round of the NCAA tournament, but being able to party and drink seemed a lot better than going back to L.A. to be upset about the loss. He was able to let loose for the week, and all he really had to worry about was running into his ex, Stacie, which he knew would happen at some point. It's not like he would try to avoid her, but he braced himself everyday for when the two would end up crossing paths. Of course it didn't take long at all as Dante stopped his tracks at the doorway of the kitchen for a couple of seconds when spotting Stacie near the kitchen table. He quickly snapped himself out of it though and made his way over to the fridge to get something to drink.

Stacie heard him at the fridge and felt her eyes rise in curiosity. It had been a whole two years since she had last seemed him and it was insane to be in the same room with him now. He looked different. Older, bigger, more mature. Like he had grown a lot from playing basketball at UCLA. Chewing on her lower lip, the brunette considered saying something to him and thought it over for a long moment. "H-hi," she finally stammered out nervously.

Dante knew he was quite a while since he's seen Stacie. And honestly? She did look different, but of course anyone would when they would age. The hair color definitely took him by surprise, even if he had knew about it since she put it up on Tumblr a while ago. Seeing it in person though was pretty new. He took a carton of orange juice out, taking out a cup right after and pouring himself a glass. He then took in a deep breath after hearing her voice, slowly turning himself around to face her. "Hey.."

Stacie "I'm sorry to hear about your team's loss," Stacie said politely, trying her hardest to keep the conversation light and general. She had promised Sarah no fighting, after all, and she didn't want to fight anymore either. She just wanted Dante back in her life. "So.. you look good," she said awkwardly. "Not like that.. just.. you know. Older?"

Dante took a sip of his OJ before setting it down next to him and crossing his arms. He tried his best to keep eye contact, but he found himself glancing to the side and down at the ground from time to time for a couple of a seconds. "It's no problem," he said with a bit of a nod. "I know what you mean. You don't look so bad yourself," Dante said, swallowing a little hard. "I like the hair."

Stacie could tell he felt awkward considering the fact that he couldn't even look her straight in the eye. It made her feel even more ashamed of herself. "Thanks," she said bashfully, reaching up with her free hand and running it through her hair. Sometimes she forgot it was brown now and she was always shocked when she looked in the mirror. "Spur of the moment change," she shrugged.

Dante honestly really didn't know what to say. It was no surprise this would be really awkward, but Dante was getting a little sick and tired of it. Plus he didn't want to be the one to ruin everyone's fun with drama, and he was sure Stacie didn't want that either. This was suppose to be a fun week, right? "Makes sense," he said, nodding lightly. "So... How's Florida been treating you?"

Stacie "It's been pretty sweet, actually. I've done like two paintings and five sketches since getting here, so," she trailed off, picking up her coffee and taking a sip. "What about you? Enjoying the change of scenery?"

Dante brought a hand up to scratch the back of his neck lightly, hopping onto the counter right after. "I hope at least you're doing your art thing outside and not inside," he said, raising one of his brows a bit. "I'm enjoying it so far. It's done it's wonders for now."

Stacie let out a little laugh and nodded. "They're mostly of the beach, as cliche as that is," she admitted. "Yeah? Meet a lot of new, interesting people?" Stacie inquired with a pointed eyebrow.

Dante playfully rolled his eyes, grabbing his cup of OJ again and taking another drink from it. "Yeah, I met some pretty fun people yesterday. Don't know if I'd see them again though since I don't even know where they're staying and we didn't say anything about meeting up again or anything like that."

Stacie felt a smile spread across her lips at the fact that they had been talking for five minutes now, without getting into an argument or making each other feel shitty for some stupid reason like they did online. "What if they're like, crazy stalker fans and follow you back to UCLA?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Dante lightly brushed his hand along his jawline, letting out a short small chuckle. "Well it was the first time someone actually told me they saw the game on t.v. and that was how they recognized me," Dante said, shrugging a bit and drinking more of his juice. "So, I don't know. Guess I'm gonna have to watch my back."

Stacie "Yeah, you don't want to end up like that movie with Leighton Meester and Minka Kelly..." Stacie trailed off, zoning into her glass as she spoke. "Anyway, it was nice seeing you," she told him, not wanting him to feel obligated to stick around.

Dante shook his head lightly, finishing up his cup of orange juice as he stared over at the girl by the table. "Are you trying to get me paranoid and having me flinch every time I turn a corner, Stacie?" Dante said, not even realizing he had just said her name. Something he hadn't really said openly to anyone in a while. "Umm, yeah, I guess. Nice seeing you too. And I hope you had fun out here." He said with a nod, his mind telling him to walk away, but his feet not really comprehending.

Stacie let out a little giggle, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ears. "Anything could happen, Dante. I'm just making sure you keep your eyes open for stalker fans... they could be lurking anywhere," she teased. Keeping her eyes on him, the brunette nodded and raised her glass in acknowledgement. "We're kinda good at this friendship thing, right? I mean, we're getting there," she said randomly when she noticed he had yet to actually walk away.

Dante "I don't think it works that way," Dante spoke softly, shaking his head. "If anything, I'd have to wait for a couple of more years before my name is known around," he said, shrugging a bit and not really sure if that made him sound cocky or not. It wasn't his intention to though, surprisingly. Nodding a bit, Dante glanced down at the ground for a couple of seconds before looking back up at the girl. "Baby steps.."

Stacie shook her head. "You don't think anyone at UCLA knows your name? College basketball is a big deal," Stace countered. "Everyone knows the teams' names," she told him. She would know. She watched a lot of college basketball back when they were dating. "Oh, come on. Just give me a smile."

Dante shrugged at her question. "Yeah, but if that happen, it'll most likely happen over in Cali. If anything, I'm surprised they didn't beat me for being on Florida turf," he said, letting out a bit of a chuckle. He looked over at her, staying quiet for a couple of seconds before nodding a little slowly. "Baby steps.." He repeated himself, letting out a soft sigh. "For now you're getting the chuckle."

Stacie shrugged. "Do they recognize you in California, then?" she asked, keeping her eyes on him. This was a longer conversation than they'd had since they dated. "Baby steps," she nodded in agreement. "For your sake," Stacie teased.

Dante "Yeah, of course. I don't think any have dropped the hint that I could wake up with them holding an axe over my head though," he answered, shaking his head at her. He gave her a bit of a look at her next comment, pouring himself more orange juice and downing the cup right after. "Well you can wait longer for this smile then."

Stacie "Alright, fair enough. Still cool that they recognize you," she said, glad he had accomplished some of his dreams. She watched as he refilled his orange juice, glancing down at her phone for a moment. "That's assuming we ever see each other again."

Dante nodded at her as he hopped off the counter and placed the orange juice carton back into the fridge. "Thought if I end up getting a stalker, I know who I'm blaming now," he said, joking with her as he closed the door and began to walk towards the doorway that would lead him out of the kitchen. "Enjoy that mystery, Stacie."