- ̗̀ the epicurean ̖́-

“I do? That’s it, my goal in life has finally been achieved,” said Josh with a laugh. To be honest, the thought made him smile, because honestly, who wouldn’t want to achieve that? “When I was younger I did. When I was living here. It really interested me. But my family had other ideas and we moved to Savannah. Not so much call for boats there.” He shrugged. “As soon as I left, I figured why not fulfil a childhood dream?”

“A total achievement unlocked moment.” Thalia chuckled. “That’s pretty awesome, especially when it comes to fulfilling childhood dreams.” Generally, people let go of childhood dreams and fantasies for the most logical path in life. “Listen, anyone willing to take the risk of making a dream become reality deserves awards. I’m living mine as well by being a baker with my own business, however, I also want to own a beachhouse someday as well.” That was part two of her dream, which would eventually happen when the finances align and she finds the perfect house.

Hearing the grandfather clock strike five Jadzia grabbed her keys and made her way over to her shops front doors, ready to lock them for the night, when a knock on the glass made her lookup. With a friendly smile, she unlocked the doors, “Is there anything I can help you with?” She asked. Many of her regular customers knew that if the lights were still on Jadzia would happily open the doors to her bookstore, others just happened on Jadzia’s willingness to keep the store open late. Either way, if someone needed a book Jadzia was always happy to oblige when she could. “You’re more than welcome just to browse if you’re not sure what book you needed,” Jadzia offered, knowing how important the smallest of books could be. 

Avalon was her last stop that evening, and she almost missed the opportunity of checking for the book. Thankfully, the owner allowed her entry despite being in the midst of closing up. “Thank you,” Thalia had been hunting down particularly rare cookbooks. Collecting them became a passion of hers. “I don’t want to keep you longer than necessary. Can you point me in the direction of your cookbook section?”

Being told it was fine to cry, Leyla looked up and smiled, “Thanks, I’ve had enough of being judged for one week,” finishing her drink off, she ordered another one. “Oh, most definitely after recent events.” Just talking about it made her cringe, memories of that night came flooding back. Seeing everyone’s faces, the blank stares, it was something she hoped to forget. “Me neither, what started as a good night ended in a complete disaster,” came her reply before she turned to the woman next to her. “How are you holding up?” 

“Ugh, tell me about it,” Thalia sighed as she thought back to that night in question. “I was so excited to check out a casino for the first time.” Having never gambled before, the night was looking promising in the beginning. “I’ve been better,” she responded with a faint smile. With her ordered drink finally placed before her on the counter, she relaxed and took a sip. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take her long to catch up to the other’s drink count. “What about you? I feel like a lot of other people’s secrets wreaked a lot of havoc with their lives. I hope you weren’t in that boat.”

Josh had to laugh at her reaction, even if it was one he was pretty used to hearing from people now. The second they heard where he lived, the questions started, thick and fast. “I do,” he answered her with a smile. “Wanted a change, to feel a little more free I guess. So… boat.” Definitely wouldn’t be most peoples first choice. “Almost three years now. Headed over here, bought the boat, and then that was that.”

"Listen, that’s amazing! You sound like one of those mysterious characters in a novel.” Honestly, she lived for unusual characters, they made stories all the more believable and interesting. “Have you always grown up around boats?” She wondered aloud, thinking that learning to sail would be more of a hands-on experience that involved years of practice. 

Word had gotten around quickly about that night and it hadn’t taken long for the whispers to start at work. First it had been the looks, which she had ignored because she had better things to do but then the remarks had started, people wondering if she even deserved her place at the hospital or if she’d just ‘slept her way through her degree’. It obviously wasn’t true, she’d worked just as hard as everyone else but the truth didn’t seem to matter to anyone. The gossip was far juicier and though she’d rather have laid low and hidden away, she had a job to do.

Her last shift had been terrible, to the point where she’d nearly ended up in tears in the on-call room. In the end, she’d been sent home sick, and the first place she’d headed was the nearest bar, ready to forget the entire day, and week, by getting drunk. Sat at the bar, she felt someone sit next to her. “You might not wanna sit there, I’m an emotional drunk and believe me, the tears will start soon,” she said while staring straight ahead, glass at her lips. 

— notaking uploaded a new photo.

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“Look, it’s not like I’m an alien,” Logan says, somewhat exasperated. “Liking pineapple on pizza is perfectly normal. So is disliking mint chocolate chip ice cream. I like and dislike what I do just like anyone else.”

"Some people would beg to differ, and by some people I mean me.” She clarified with a grin. Thalia took another spoon of her mint chocolate chip ice cream, which of course had started this discussion. “However, I can’t fault you for your alien tastebuds, it will just take some time to wrap my mind around this revelation.” Thalia chuckled, now she was just teasing him. “It’s like you’re a whole other person right now. I don’t even know you anymore, Logan.”

Josh shrugged his shoulders casually in response to her question, his mouth pulling down into a thoughtful frown. She made a very good point, even if that hadn’t quite been what he’d meant. “Hey, I live on a boat, so my life’s pretty free…” was his immediate response. “Depends on the person, too, I guess.” His brows lifted a moment, because really, he hadn’t been entirely serious. He had no intention of leaving, not unless he really wanted to. 

Thalia’s eyes widened in surprise, “I'm sorry what? You live on a boat! That’s incredible!” Colour her impressed, this had to be the first time she ever met anyone that lived on a boat. “That must be amazing,” she could only imagine what a life at sea must be like. “Well, minus the storms and such, you’re living the dream.” She chuckled. “How long have you lived on a boat?”

“There’s lots of those around, though, just ask Starbucks.” Josh shook his head, thinking over some of the menus he’d seen before, a smile crossing his features. “I’ll look into it,” he told her simply, fully intending to punch it into Google maps the second that this conversation ended. As she continued, his smile softened and his lifted his shoulders in a casual shrug. “Depends,” he answered. “I’m here until I get bored or someone gives me a reason to leave.”

Thalia nodded, she saw no fault in his statement. “Great!” Now all this talk about iced coffee had her craving some. However, she already had enough for the morning. “Ah, interesting, so you’d let a person have all that power over you?” Thalia couldn’t imagine being in a situation where she had to leave an entire city behind because of an individual. Perhaps she was overthinking his wording. “I hope you enjoy your time here nonethless.”

“Right?” Finn agreed, nodding his head at the thought. Giving up your belongings and living out the rest of your life on the sand didn’t sound so bad, if he was being honest. “Beachfront property would be the dream come true. For sure. Actually —” he looked back toward the strand, the row of beautiful homes that lined the beach on display, “—pretty sure my boss lives riiiiight…” he trailed off, pointing a finger at one of the beachfront homes, “there.” He confirmed, turning back toward the girl beside him, “Must be nice, huh?” he added with a laugh. “Right, I feel like that one movie…Aquamarine? Really gave kids some high hopes in believing in Mermaids. Hell, I even cried watching that.”

Thalia looked to over to where Finn pointed. She knew that row of houses well, as she admired them from afar on several occasions. “What? That’s so cool! I hate your boss!” she said out of envy. “That’s such a prime location. I’m hella jealous. Have you ever been inside? Is your boss the type to hold lavish at home parties?” Thalia hoped that at least one of those questions had a positive response because she’d love to hear more about the gorgeous beachfront property. “It did! And same here, shameless tears!” Thalia laughed. “That movie is one of my favorites. I had so many mermaid-themed parties as a kid too.”

“Hey!” Danny called up, “Don’t forget you want to turn and face the wall, okay? I don’t want your back all bruised up by the holds. You ready?” At the other’s signal, Danny leaned back against his harness, the rope slowly inching past his hands as he lowered the climber to the ground, and once that person found their footing back on solid land, he slid more rope through the belay device to give more slack and allow the other to adjust properly. “How was it? Did you like it?” he asked, a beaming and proud smile on his face as he unlocked himself from the carabiner and approached the other to untie their rope.

So far so good, the lesson had been going smoothly. Aside from her gitters, Thalia managed to follow Daniel’s directions as best as she could. Now, with her feet finally back on solid ground, she felt a mixture of relief and excitement. “That was ah-mazing!” Thalia beamed as he came over. “Totally worth the adrenaline rush. I can’t wait until the next session. And to think I almost chickened out earlier.”

“You can never go wrong when the owner’s a great person,” Josh agreed with a nod of his head. “Don’t think I’ve stopped by there yet.” That was the thing about living in a big city, there were just so many places to go, it was pretty much impossible to pin down the best without help. “Mint mojito, huh? Sounds interesting. Might have to give it a go.”

Thalia nodded, “It sounds like weird drink for an iced coffee, but you won’t regret giving it a go.” She was once in the guy’s shoes, thinking that it was an odd idea, but then one of the baristas at Philz talked her into it, and the rest was history. “The full name of the place is Philz Coffee. You can find it easily on waze or google maps,” Thalia assured him with a smile. “So,” she paused, rocking on heels a bit, “Are you visiting Santa Monica, or here to stay?”

open starter. 

“I can’t see this ever getting old,” Finn grinned, his feet buried with sand as he stood watching the waves crash against the shore. He hardly ever went to the beach in New York — and knowing his apartment was just a short distance away from the coast was something he didn’t think he’d get used to. “I mean, how do people even go to work here without running off to the beach every chance they get?” 

“Tell me about it,” aside from her bakery, and her home, the beach was where spent the majority of her time. On some days she’d take on watersports, go swimming, or simply sit on the sand and just soak in the atmosphere, like now. “I’d live here if possible! I practically do already,” she chuckled. “Honestly, it’s my dream to own a beach house someday.” Thalia shared, although that wasn’t entirely the truth. “Actually, I wanted to become a mermaid, but I had those dreams dashed when I was nine, so I figured having a home on the beach wouldn’t be such a bad compromise.”

Josh definitely felt as though he’d missed something upon setting foot in Santa Monica again. He’d only been gone a couple of days, busy with work over in Venice Beach, but it really was easier to moor his boat at the marina there. As he made his way up from where his boat was currently housed, heading toward downtown Santa Monica, he caught the attention of the first person he saw. “So where’d I go about getting a good iced coffee around here?”

“Oh, definitely Philz! Hands-down they have the best iced coffee around. You can’t go wrong.” Thalia couldn’t stop singing praises about her favorite coffee spot. On most days the line at Philz is ridiculously long, but there's a good reason why. “Plus Phil is a pretty decent guy, too.” Which is why she had no qualms about supporting another entrepreneur like herself. “The mint mojito iced-coffee there is worth a shot if you’re feeling adventurous.”