#verdadumaz

status: closed for @verdadurmaz

It had been a while since he had seen Verda - caught up in work and Lorelai and renovating his stupid apartment - so, when he found himself free on a random afternoon, he decided to take a stroll right to the eatery, smiling when he spotted her behind the counter. “Long time, no see,” He said in lieu of greeting, “And I have to admit, that’s partly my fault. Please tell me Zepp is beside himself for not seeing me for a while?”

Yao exhaled as he settled on a hand-carved log seat that overlooked the sprawling hillside beyond his Big Horn Hills cabin. He sat in silence for a minute, contemplating how lucky was he to enjoy such beauty out here, how lucky he was to be alive. The cold air was refreshing against his face, rapidly cooling the damp ends of his freshly-washed hair slicked back in a low bun. He rubbed his hands together, mindful that he’d have to retreat inside soon but before doing so, he took up his phone and tapped out a message to a woman who often occupied his thoughts.

status: closed for @verdadurmaz

Making good on his promise, Albie had showed up the dog park early, ready to throw the ball for Zeppelin a couple of times and surely oust Verda as someone with a penchant for dramatics. It was on the rather cold side of spring still, so he made sure he was layered up. It wasn’t long for his layers – an outer coat, scarf and sweater – to have been peeled off, Albie feeling sweaty and a little lightheaded, the sheepadoodle panting at him in a way that made the chef think he was being mocked. “Wow, you were…deadly serious that he just won’t quit.” He called out to Verda, who had been watching them in amusement, careful not to interact with the ball in anyway, hoping that if he acted like it wasn’t there, the dog would forget about it. But he didn’t, just barked in its general direction, until Albie picked it up and lobbed it as far as he could, giving the two humans a short reprieve before the demanding animal returned.

For the briefest moment, Albie wondered if there was a double meaning in her words. But he decided to shake it off, chalking it up to the thought conjuring from being knocked down by the sheepadoodle present, looking up at him as if the chef were to transform into a steak any moment. "Then I'll think I'll be okay." He said, giving his new furry friend a gentle pat on the head.

The threat, or promise, however he decided to take it, did scare Albie briefly, but he wasn't about to showcase that. "I'm sure there'll be a chance for you to gloat and tell me you told me so, and I will simply appreciate the icy hot." He agreed, nervously glancing down at the dog, who wasn't giving any impression of running him ragged. Though, from how they had met each other, Albie had decided to assume the animal was capable of anything and everything. 

He ate another one of the treats, contemplating the answer. The obvious one was yes, as it was the only thing he had thought about day and night until puberty hit, and even then, when going to restaurants or eating the appetisers at events, the food was the focal point of his evenings. And he risked everything for the chance to be someone in the culinary world, because he knew deep down it was his calling. But it wasn't what he was raised to do. He remembered countless evenings being holed up in his father's study, being taken on trips to the office, learning tips about the stock market for his own future, securing the legacy his father had built up for the Torres name. How he was just expected to follow those impressive footsteps, with cooking as a hobby, until he was informed about culinary school. "Kind of," He eventually admitted, the memories melting away. "I, uh, was expected to go down a different path, but I always loved it. Just needed the courage to do that instead of what my family wanted. You?" Albie nodded in agreement regarding the people from the past. He personally felt like he picked up where he left off with Lorelai, though he didn't know how she had felt in return, after their brief kiss. "But sometimes it's not, right? Reminds you of your past and all that?" It was more of a guess, though he knew if certain people from his past rocked up in Providence Peak tomorrow, he'd be less than thrilled.

status: closed for @verdadurmaz

Things here were going better than okay, Albie considered. Sure, he couldn’t reach anyone about Geraldine right now, but he wasn’t in any rush to leave. What did he have waiting for him outside Colorado anyway? A bunch of bad memories and a string of rotten luck. It was a fresh start, with the occasional old flame, sure, and things were really starting to look up.

Once he had made his decision to stay, finding an apartment rather quickly, and waiting to hear back from a couple of job interviews, Albie gave the town another explore, this time focused solely on the culinary places. He never knew that places that were not big metropolitan cities had such amazing local cuisine, which, if self-reflecting, Albie would consider ignorant of himself. But it was never too late to change.

He was on his way to The Sweet Spot, which various locals in town had raved about to him since he arrived, and thought it would be a perfect day. The weather wasn’t too bad, so he decided to take a little stroll.  When he was hit by what felt like at least a tonne of pure fluff and excitement. 

Landing on his ass, Albie had no idea how many people in the street witnessed him being tackled out of thin air, due to his vision being blocked by a big panting face, aggressively sniffing every inch of Albie’s chest. “Oh, uh, hey there, bud.” Albie eventually wheezed out, awkwardly patting the dog’s fluffy head.