everything's still;

𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐒

Name: Elizabeth "Liz" Hall

Age: 36

Occupation: Private Nurse for the Santiago Family

Affiliation: Neutral

Gender & Pronouns: Woman (she/her)

Faceclaim: Rose Leslie

𝐁𝐈𝐎𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐇𝐘

For the first few years of Lizzie's life, Paxton meant happiness- it's too bad she can barely remember it. She had her mom's cooking and her dad's bedtime stories and her brother's piggyback rides and no matter how tight money got, there was always a loving home to get back to at the end of the day.

But then her father got injured and along with his body broke the fragile balance of the household. Her dad withered on the couch with no energy for stories, her mom hardly had any time to cook and she barely saw her brother anymore, the man having made it his responsibility to provide for all of them.

Every night that her teeth rattled with the heat cut off, she dreamed of leaving and every day she went to school and worked for it as hard as she could. She didn't find the courage to utter it for years, scared that her ambition was too unaffordable, but instead of cutting off her wings, her family made sure she would fly as far as she wanted.

A knife of guilt settled in her gut when they had to sell their land to afford her tuition, brutally twisting with her father's death. But greater than the guilt was the newfound feeling of freedom, the fresh air in her lungs in a new city, with new people and experiences and a future to offer that Paxton would only drown, like it did to everything.

She became a nurse, the call coming almost instinctively after taking care of her dad for such a long time. She rarely went back to what used to be home, but spoke to her family daily, happy to see that they seemed to be finding steady footing as well, moving on and building something new of their lives.

But then her sister-in-law disappeared and the world turned upside down again. This time, it was her that had to make a life-changing decision in order to support her brother, and after everything he had done for her, she made it in a heartbeat. She moved back to the town she hated so much, filled with memories of hunger and poverty and grief for good times that seemed so long gone, because through all of that, the only thing that had helped her survive was family.

She worked odd jobs to contribute as much as she could, got in fights with her brother and made up the same day, helped her niece and nephew study with the hope that they would also manage to get out one day, live the life she had put on pause, hoping it was just that and not a full stop.

And then she was hired by the Santiagos- first to care for Hector's mother and her declining health, but gradually becoming a bigger part of the household, often even giving the CEO hangover cures and IVs after company dinners, chatting away through the night.

With Alicia's disappearance, she can feel something shifting, another missing person close to her, adding to the feeling of unease that she has been trying to fight in order to call Paxton home again. And among Hector's words, below the charm and the rehearsed smiles, she can now see more clearly that there is something darker brewing and wonders whether she should dive in and see which rumors are true, or get away as fast as she can.

𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐂

"I'm more of a peach cobbler guy these days," he replied, that sting of nostalgia hitting him at the memories. "And I can actually do with a few veggies on my pizzas these days," Bear paused, his fingers rested on the counter as his large body faced her, "I guess some things do change, huh?"

So she turned her face forward for a second, as if scanning the menu above them, her hands gripping the edge of the counter a little too tight, before turning back to face him. "Everything changes, for better or for worse," she shot back, before putting on her most polite smile and carrying on with the superficial conversation between two old whatever they were. "And you, how have you been holding up? It feels like we haven't talked in ages."

The toaster finally dinged when Lizzie lightly kicked his leg. Gray, happier now with the bagel warmed and on his plate, considered the offer for a moment. Then, his sister's biceps. "You didn't go to school to work on roofs, Liz, but I'm working on a tile job, today. I think the customer's a big name model," he explained, eyebrows rising, "It's always a little weird -- getting hired by rich people to work on their rich people homes."

"You're just scared I'll be better than you, I get it," Lizzie accepted his refusal with a shrug, having seen it coming from miles away. "God, since when does Paxton house big name models?" she let the question linger, as if she didn't spend every day in the home of one of the main culprits of that. "Aren't their mansions borderline creepy, though? I almost prefer the kids' dirty shoes in the middle of the living room than that sterile minimalist shit."

"You should probably tell me your name, then I can listen for it. One more pair of ears to make sure you don't miss your order," he said, stuffing his napkin into one pocket and offering a hand. Who said the years on the road made him impolite? "I'm Jasper."

"Elizabeth," she instinctively replied as she shook her hand, her mind still stuck on her professional work mode. "But almost everyone calls me Liz or Lizzie. And I'm pretty sure the cashier might call me Little Hall," she said with a shrug. "The curse of everyone knowing your brother before you."

Shawn huffed out a laugh and shrugged. You just never could tell. Sometimes it felt like everyone in town had the same idea at the same time but it still was quicker and easier than cooking. And less exhausting.

She resisted the urge to shrug again. It wasn't a fun topic but she knew why people asked, they just cared. "He's been better. That stuff you told me about helped with his joints though." More often than not now, Shawn would call or text Lizzie with questions about her father. This was the side of places like Paxton that was rarely seen but definitely needed. They took care of each other.

Just as she knew that sometimes you needed something to just take your mind of all those troubles. "How have you been, though? You do know that I am a available for non-healthcare requests too, like margaritas or a really good tea, depending on the day."

' excuse me, are you waiting to order? '

a woman asked, her voice cutting through the ambient noise behind tiril and her two daughters, who stood wide-eyed in front of the chalkboard menu, filled with colourful items and enticing descriptions. tiril glanced over her shoulder at the woman who had spoken. ❛ yes, we are, ❜ tiril replied with a polite smile, trying to ease the tension of having to wait just a little longer. ❛ you lucked out, though! you just missed the rush; it seeed like everyone thought the same thing today: who the hell wants to cook on a monday? ❜ she added, her tone lighthearted as another smile broke through. as she spoke, she stole a glance at her daughters. her six-year-old, a little daydreamer, was already drifting away in thought, eyes glistening with fantasy possibilities presented by the menu. meanwhile, her three-year-old stood at her side, wide-eyed and looking up expectantly, as if waiting for their mother to make the decision for everyone instead of seeking guidance from her big sister.

Still, she seemed kind, which she always appreciated in a person, and which always made her want to help in some way. Giving the mother a reassuring look, asking for permission, she crouched down next to the older girl, grabbing a menu leaflet from the counter and a sparkly pen from her bag, guaranteed to earn most kids' attention. "See this one over here, sweetie?" she said, circling one of the pies with the pen, unsure on whether the girl could read. "It's full of strawberries. And this is a secret," she continued, lowering her voice in a conspiratory tone, "but they always give you the pink napkins if you order it."

"I'm waiting on getting, already ordered," Quincey said, and moved out the way for her. He seemed to recognize her, somewhere or somehow but in all honesty, he wasn't sure where. He'd seen a lot of people and came back with six horses from one of the sales he put on. "You look familiar," Quin said with a nod. "I think I've seen you around in some fashion."

"You're not from around here, are you? I feel like I would remember you if you were," she asked, giving him an investigative look. With everything that had went down since her return to Paxton, she found her memories from her teenage years to be more vibrant in her mind. "Oh, do you maybe have kids at the school?" There had been more than one occasion that someone recognized her from some sports game or other event and couldn't quite place the memory among all the faces.

At the question Bear glanced over a broad shoulder, his body already hitching to the side to move out of the way. "Pardon, hadn't heard anyone come in behind me," he said and tipped his head slightly. Somehow despite the wild youth manners had been instilled in him. The face was recognizable but Bear wasn't sure that she was one of them anymore. "I am but I haven't decided yet. Go on ahead, Lizzie."

She placed her order hastily, barely glancing over at him, but something tugged inside her, making it impossible to keep politely silent. "It's not double pepperoni and cherry pie any more?" she asked, a memory from her teenage years resurfacing in her head.

"Fuck." He turned to the girl and laughed, "not necessarily. But yes, only on myself though, so you might as well go." He shrugged, "not a lot of things in life you can take seriously, but pie is one of them."

"Rhubarb, Lane. The answer is rhubarb," she stepped in, in an effort to end his confusion. "I can almost see the gears turning in your head. I am pretty sure there will be smoke coming out of your ears soon enough, and I am off duty."

Jasper turned around at the question. He didn't want to assume that she was impatient, but a part of him felt like she was. "I already ordered, the lines are just overlapping," he explained, stepping off to the side as much as he could to make room. "I think they said it's about a twenty minute wait -- not sure if you were already here when they announced it."

"I wasn't, no. Thanks for letting me know," she said to the stranger, and silently cursing. She would have loved to be home as soon as possible, but that option felt more distant with every minute that passed without even managing to order. "I hope they don't get people's orders mixed up, at least. One time I went home with someone's 'no meat, extra peppers'. No one appreciated that."

Shawn could cook a few things. When she was younger, a lot of those duties fell to her since her father was the sole breadwinner for their family. The perk was that it was just the two of them. Occasionally friends. But more often than not, they were alone. She learned a few tricks when they fed the ranch hands for things like brandings but even those things took time. Lately she was just too busy. Between work and trying to fight with her father about everything, she didn't have time to make anything. Tonight it was pizza.

"Oh, hey Lizzie," she jumped slightly as her thoughts were interrupted while she waited for the food. "Uh, no. Already ordered. Just waiting. They're kind of busy tonight."

"How are you?" she asked, figuring some pleasant conversation would help pass the time. "Is your dad doing okay?"

Where: Hall Household

When: Present

Gray’s mood soured about halfway through the day. About a third of his current roofing team was going to have to leave town at the end of the year when their leases ended; some of them were looking for other rentals, but Paxton was a small town at its core. The pickings were slim on such short notice. He was still trying to figure out if he could help some of them find places nearby, maybe a town or two over, but it was a situation he resented being in. To add to the irritation, after waiting for a bagel to dethaw for fifteen minutes, he finally noticed the plug nestled behind the toaster. “Are you-” he bit off his curse, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath through his nose.

When Gray opened his eyes, he caught sight of Liz. “Morning,” he greeted, now pinching the bridge of his nose. He stabbed the plug back into the socket in the process. “They have you going in early today or around noon?”

"Actually, they don't have me going at all," she replied to his question, setting down the mugs in the sink. She knew why he was asking, no matter how nonchalant he made it sound, and she would always answer. "My lovely señora had some stomach issues during the night and they took her to the hospital- she seems to be doing fine, but they're keeping her there to run some tests just in case, so they called and said I can have the day off."