#pinehaven.starter

Standing behind the counter, Jimmy looked out at the empty dispensary. It had been quiet for hours and he was bored out of his mind. The clock was ticking down. Normally he wouldn't man the counter, but his employee called out. He had already completed all the closing tasks, minus the register, and organized behind the counter. He checked the clock, 2 more minutes. As he started for the front door to switch off the neon sign in the window, his eyes met those of another person outside. "Great timing" he said with a sarcastic thumbs up.

@pinehavenstarters

"It's just been, you know, so?" Connor mused. "You get what I mean?" She flicked her hands from either side as if that would conjure up whatever she was thinking in the mind of the person she was talking to. Her head was in the clouds as always, thinking distantly about everything, but how the other person was looking at her. Especially with the weather the way it has been. It was hard not to let her mind wander to thoughts of beautiful ricochet flashes lightning storms and or the bittersweet breeze the morning after the rain.

location: loulou's diner

it was matthias' day off yet he chose to spend part of his day at his job at loulou's diner. he felt a connection to the small diner, it made him feel warm and reminded him of his family. he's only been gone for 2 years now, but it's feeling like forever. he would sneak in his mom's old recipes to get a taste of home, and he had anticipated getting caught one day. here he was, ordering a plethora of food that he surely couldn't finish alone, but they'd make for great leftovers. as he juggled holding a few plates in one hand, and a cup of iced coffee in the other, he ran smack-dab into another ‘customer’ and in turn, spilled iced coffee all over them. he locked eyes with the stranger, immediately rushing to place his plates down on the counter and muttering curses under his breath. “shit- i'm so sorry, i knew i should've made multiple trips instead of going straight for just one,” his eyes darted to their coat which was now drenched in coffee. his eyebrows furrowed and he felt extremely bad. he didn't want to intrude into their personal space and dab their coat dry with napkins, instead he ran to the back to grab some towels to hand to them. “i'll pay for your dry cleaning! and if you haven't ordered yet, i have enough to feed two people. not saying you have to, i wouldn't be able to finish all of these alone, and milkshakes would be on the house as well.” he shot them a small smile, hoping to not get attacked later on.

@pinehavenstarters

THE THUD OF the industrial dryer, jerking between the rows of identical machines, created a jarring rhythm that, in its peculiar way, was oddly soothing. saffy, pondering the nature of the sound, was uncertain of how it might have reached those with unblemished hearing, perhaps less synthetic and more genuine in its resonance. they liked the laundry mat for the stimulation of sound, plus it was a lot more fiscally responsible then finally biting the bullet and getting an in unit washer and dryer for her cozy little loft.

saffy sat atop the folding table, legs swinging idly and a neat stack of already finished clothing folded at her hip. the feel of a wet nose pressed into her hand drew attention down to the tiny dalmation that had been her patient companion during the errand. then saffy noticed the person lingering nearby and kinked a brow. "she don't bite," she announced, nodding in permission. "you can pet her, but she's a licker. you've been warned."

Maren stood behind the counter, a pen in their hand, staring blankly at the sales reports. The numbers weren't adding up. They knew Pale Fire hadn't been doing as well as their grandfather, Hank, had always touted, but this kind of deficit wouldn't be sustainable. Sales needed to pick up, and quickly.

Looking over at the boxes sitting open on the counter, spilling over onto the floor behind the register, Maren knew they were making the right choice bringing in new stock and modernizing. No matter how difficult it was to see something change after so many years. Practically growing up inside the store.

The sound of rain that was only a small patter grew louder as the door swung open with a ding of the bell overhead. "Hey! Looking for anything specific today or just browsing?" The asked, turning their attention to the door.

who: anyone! @pinehavenstarters where: pinehaven town hall

calla, or c.c as very few had the privilege to call her, preferred order. an organised schedule was like a confirmed start to a good week, she knew who to meet and when. which is why she is slightly miffed that she'd very abruptly been thrown into a last minute meeting. don't get her wrong- she loves to help the people of pinehaven. that was her whole election campaign, helping the people of pinehaven. she spent money to ensure people knew she was wanting office for that very reason. but she liked her fifteen minute window of drinking tea by the window at exactly two. it's fine. she is fine. "apologies again that there was a scheduling error, busy weeks." she speaks up, removing her reading glasses.

"what was it that you wanted to speak to me about? usually i would have some kind of idea but because of the clerical error- well." "not much can be done unless i suddenly become clairvoyant."

"Alright, confession time," Ollie said, voice low and conspiratorial as he nudged the person next to him in the raffle line. "I'm not really here for the money, though $500 wouldn’t hurt. I'm mostly here for the pumpkin pie. I mean, you can't beat homemade. That's the real prize. But if you have a secret strategy for picking the lucky ticket, please spill. I’m relying on luck, skill, or maybe just sheer charm. Whether I have any of those worthy enough, I'm leaving up to the universe." He bounced a little on his heels, bright eyes scanning around. "Honestly, whether I win or not, I’m just here for the tradition. But if the pie comes home with me, I won’t complain." The poor soul who got stuck next to his chatty self in line might have a headache before the night ended. "But this line moves sooo slow. Wanna play a game while we wait?" Ollie asked, but was quick to laugh. "And I don't mean in the creepy horror movie kind of way, although that would be fitting for this event."

"i'm so sorry!" diego exclaimed, immediately putting his hands up in surrender, thankful for the dimness of the night that covered the embarrassed flushed cheeks that occurred. he had taken at least two wrong turns by now and each one leading to its own little trick for him. normally he lived for things like this, being a huge horror freak and all, but it was frustrating him that he couldn't seem to figure out the right path towards the exit. maybe he shouldn't have taken that giant rip of his pen before coming into the woods, really had he learned nothing from the horror movies he's loved watching growing up? "i was just trying to find the right way out of here, you wouldn't happen to have a good idea...would you? i'd owe you one. hell, i'll even buy you a hot chocolate. i heard it's at the other end of the maze....wherever that may be."