lost in a crowd.

Olivia fights a silent battle in her head, originally coming in for a snack but now faced with the option of indulgence. She sighs at his question and shakes her head. "I did just come in for an apple empanada, but now..." She trails off, clicking her tongue. "I might have to get a little tres leches as well. They have them in minis." It's more of reasoning to herself than to him, but just in case he also needed to reason with that little devil on his shoulder.

"Can't hurt, can it?" The question was rhetorical, Aidan still mulling over his options, wondering whether to grab a couple of things for the office while he was there, as opposed to just for himself. Having heard all the options, the delicious scents surrounding them, the temptation was becoming almost unbearable. "I don't think I've ever come here and left the place with only one thing," he admitted with a laugh.

Vesper leaned back in her chair, a sly smile curving her lips as she watched Aidan’s reaction. “Offend you? Never,” she teased, her tone laced with mock innocence. “But, come on, Aidan, don’t tell me you’re not at least curious to see if the universe has anything nice to say for once. Worst case, you get a good laugh. Best case? Maybe you walk out of here with something to hope for that doesn’t involve Bella stealing the show.” Her gaze drifted briefly to the restless pup, and her expression softened. “Besides, if I thought you couldn’t handle a little cosmic intervention, I wouldn’t have dragged you out here in the first place.” She leaned forward slightly, propping her chin in her hand as she studied him. “But if Bella’s ready to move on to bigger adventures, I won’t keep you hostage. Just promise me you’ll humor me until the last sip of tea... and who knows? Maybe the cards are feeling generous today?”

Aidan's head tilted to the left momentarily, lips persing in thought. She did make a good point, one he wasn't all that keen to admit to just yet. Obviously, he wanted something good to happen in his life, who wouldn't? But behind that hope, there would always be a sense of paranoia that something else would go wrong —- considering what he did though, he knew it was ridiculous, that it didn't pay to be such a pessimist. "Maybe, but how often does that happen?" he queried with a playful smile. As she continued, he nodded, conceding more than anything, knowing he couldn't keep this up forever. "You know I'll humour you forever if needs to be," he mused lightly. "And perhaps, maybe it will all work in my favour for once."

“Oh, please,” Karmen said, skating alongside Elle with an exaggerated flip of her hair. “This is just the warm-up act; we are the main event!” She squeezed Elle’s arm and leaned into her friend. “I may not be spinning or skating backward yet, but I’ve totally mastered not falling on my face. Progress, right?” she grinned, the glitter on her cheeks catching the light as she gave Elle a playful nudge. “Anyway, I knew you’d show up eventually. How was work?”

"I guess I won't argue with that one," said Elle with a playful grin flashed in her friend's direction. She chuckled softly seconds later, especially so at Karmen's words, even if she could relate to them... relate to them one hundred percent. "Total progress," she responded. "Did you need me to tow you around?" The question was only asked in jest. "Of course, wouldn't miss it for the world, you know that." A grin accompanied the words. "Work was alright, no dramas today."

“listen, i know but every time it comes up, i’m mind blown all over again.” she shook her head. “you’re going to a few games with me next season. you will experience the magic of live baseball.” logan was determined to convert her friend. “sure, let’s order some appetizers too. i’m starving.”

"I really don't know why," Ellora mused with playfully raised brows. Then again, it was exactly the same when people heard she'd never watched a single Star Wars movie. A controversial opinion, but she loved it that way and had absolutely no intention of changing anything any time soon. "Fine, I'll come to a couple of games, I'll relent." She chuckled softly, and then nodded her head. "You know I'll never say no to food."

location: sports bar status: open @nycshqstarts

"You're seriously asking me that question? You should know by now I'm not a sporty person... at all." was Ellora's response, her eyes rolling playfully. "I'm only here because you dragged me." She still wasn't entirely sure why they were there, in fact. "Shall we play pool or something?" She needed to feel like she was doing something by being there at the very least.

"Of course." If there was one thing she did bring with her from home, it was compassion. That same fire had yet to leave her, the one that drove her to extend parts of herself for the benefit of others. This was a small ask, one that she was happy to perform, after all— she'd done more for less. She giggles along with him, a little hop as she moves forward in line. "I absolutely know what you mean." She lets out a sigh, pulling down the corners of her lips. Baked goods would be the death of her. "They have some good stuff here, though. Conchas, flan, tres leches, and a few fruit empanadas..." She trails off, now wondering how she could possibly choose between all the sweets.

As she began to list the options, Aidan's expression softened and became thoughtful. Making a decision today was going to be difficult, it seemed, the options almost endless. He doubted that it would help much if he could see them well either, only adding to his confusion in what to get. "Something fruity definitely sounds like it's going to fit the bill today," he commented lightly, a smile crossing his features. "What're you planning to get?"

"Seriously?" Madeline asked, looking over at the man who chose to sit at the same table as her. She was several drinks in at this point, which could be hit or miss for anyone around her because there was no guarantee of which version of her you were going to get. "It's a bar in Manhattan. Daylight savings time is here fucking up people's moods because they're pussies who can't handle an hour less of sun in the afternoon, people are tired of work, or their wives, or just life in general. So of course everyone is here drinking."

It would have been quite easy to laugh; the response that Aidan received just seemed so completely out of left field. But then, he supposed he should have been used to it by now, considering what he did for his job. Getting abuse hurled at him on the daily was fairly common. "You could have just said no," he responded with a light laugh and a shake of his head, though his tone was kind, his typical manner. "As soon as another table comes clear, I'll be out of your way." He figured she didn't really want him there considering her tone. "Standing with the dog in a crowded bar doesn't usually go well."

𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑 ╱ @tctteredwings !

Some would say it would never be a good idea, to fall for someone you very nearly worked for. Even more would say it wasn't a good idea to fall for someone already married either, but here they were, very much doing both of those things. A year had passed now, Dominic and Rosamund falling into a pattern of sorts, frequent weekends spent together, an opportunity to just... be. He did his best to push aside the thought of the lies that had been told for them to be together. This weekend, Elliot was supposed to be with him, but he'd escaped to stay over at a friend's, something about an all-night gaming session ( which wasn't at all a surprise for the youngest Brady ). No doubt he'd turn up in the morning just in time for breakfast, but for now, Dominic and Ros had a chance for some time completely alone in his brownstone. Hearing the door, and then the sound of her voice, cheerful and bright, carrying on the breeze, a smile quickly appeared on his features. He was at the door and greeting her in an equally cheery tone moments later. "You're in luck," he told her as he stepped back to let her inside, a chuckle escaping. "We have at least a day to ourselves for once."

closed starter for @hcmmersnstrings, @tctteredwings and @bctweenthelines but also open for @nycshqstarts

Dominic observed the collision from the other side of the bar, the beginnings of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips, just about reaching his eyes. So it had been one of those days, had it? A feeling he knew well, of course, he'd been through it himself many, many times. Once Alex began to make their way back over again, having dealt with the victim, Dom's brows lifted in amusement. "Having fun over there?" he teased lightly. "Need another drink?" he questioned after a moment, turning back toward the bartender and signaling casually. "That's definitely a sign you should have quit while you were ahead, though, you know that, don't you?"

" you better be okay with it, " aurora teased lightly as she shook her head with a playful grin. taking a deep breath, aurora really did try to bring herself to go and do the tarot card reading, but instead she just remained glued to her seat. " okay, maybe we should just go and drink. i don't think i can go and do it, " the blonde admitted, chewing on her bottom lip. what if things wouldn't get better ? what if she was stuck in her same shitty love situation ? " come on, we can leave before people think we're too weird. "

Aidan laughed at Rory's response, what else could he do in that moment? He appreciated what she was trying to do, though, so when she didn't actually move from the seat at all, he found himself tilted his head in her direction, a soft smile now gracing his features. "At least I'm not alone," he answered her. "We can definitely go and drink instead, sounds like the better option right about now, honestly." He nodded, and then rose to his feet, Bella immediately following suit and ready to lead the way wherever they were going. "Anywhere in particular you want to go?"