"Everything is Alright"

[✦] — “Well… you could move into mine, then?” Cinnamon honestly would have preferred not to move from hers, after all, though she didn’t want to inconvenience Chase, either. Suggesting that had been an act done with much reluctance on her part, despite the fact that it wouldn’t be putting him out of his way… at least, according to his own words.

She nods. Right. This was fine. Not an inconvenience at all. “…If you’re okay with the arrangements,” If you’re okay with me, she forgets to say. “I would like it very much if we could stay together.”

“Sure.  I can move into your place.  That’s no problem.”  Chase was more than willing to move his things, especially since he was the one who made the call in the first place.  “I’m fine with everything,”

Her fingers hovered over the keyboard of the register, giving him a nod after offering her his name and placing it into the system. After a few moments, she turned to face him again, picking up a glass and filling it with ice, cold water for herself. 

Taking a sip of her water, her rbwo quirks as he began speaking again, this time indicating he had a question. She set the glass down, waiting for a moment for him to continue, before letting a slight grin come to her face, amused by what he had asked.

“Well…it’s every day but Saturday. Saturday we wear kitty cat outfits instead. And Wednesdays we wear pink; bunnies, dealers, and entertainers too.”

Chase wasn’t surprised by the answer, offering a “hmm,” and then taking another drink from his glass. Caturday.  Of course they were cats on Saturday.

Though the casino seemed busy, the bar was pretty quiet, or as quiet as a bar in a casino could be.  People would order drinks but then take them back to their tables or slot machines, but not many people would stay at the bar.  It left Chase with pretty much only the bar tender for company.  He didn’t mind it, though.

[✦] — Cinnamon nods, even though he couldn’t see it, and takes note of his tone of voice. Very… animated. Friendly. Those didn’t seem to be the signs of a mean person, or one who would make her too uncomfortable. “It’s very nice to meet you, Chase.”

Upon hearing that he already lived in the Inner Apartments, Cinnamon hums a bit. It made sense that he’d want to split the high rent with a roommate, then– same as her. “Oh, is that so…? Well, I would be willing to move into your apartment, if you prefer?” She didn’t have many personal belongings anyway, so it wasn’t as if it would inconvenience her. “…Or you could just move into mine. It’s fine, either way.”

So far, so good.  Chase was pretty confident he had found himself a new roommate.  As long as she was okay with him, he figured it might be a good change.

“Well, it’s a lot,” she replied and gestured towards the truck. Listing everything out to him would just be impractical. There were several boxes of fresh ingredients. Instead, Karin flipped the clipboard around so he could see everything listed, both the items and their quantities. 

“If there’s anything missing off of here, let me know. And then we can check the truck and make sure it’s all there too and that everything looks good.” If there was a problem, it was better to know now so she could start fixing it. After that, she could start unloading.

Chase took the clipboard, and scanned down the list.  He pulled out a receipt that his boss gave him and scanned down the list, making sure that everything was on there that needed to be.  After a few moments, he looked back up at the delivery woman.  “Everything looks good,” he replied.  Handing her back the clipboard

[✦] — Cinnamon hadn’t expected a call for her request so soon. Even though the number currently calling her was unknown, she knew exactly what they were calling for, since not many people called Cinnamon for things in the first place. Of course, it could also be a prank call, or scammer, or sales representative of some sort, but the area code belonged to Leuda, so she figured her first assumption would be the right one.

After letting it ring for a while (during which she tried to rid herself of the wave of social anxiety that came over her), she answers the phone. “…Yes? This is Cinnamon.” The voice on the other end sounded like it belonged to a man, and it was enough to make Cinnamon think about reconsidering her spur-of-the-moment request. “Yes, the ad… thank you, for calling and showing interest. Now, before we get started, can I ask who you are?”

There was hardly enough time to even take in the view before someone called out to her. Wow. Top of the world, and people still tried to rain on her parade. But attempt as they may, Maya would not let herself get drenched in that dribble. The climb meant she was above the clouds, metaphorically speaking, and she was also above this guy, LITERALLY speaking, who seemed to sprout out of the weeds and aim verbal nonsense at her like it was his job or something. (Because really? Too old? Too old??? THE NERVE OF SOME PEOPLE. LAST TIME SHE CHECKED, FUN DIDN’T HAVE AN EXPIRATION DATE.)

Maya pouted as they locked eyes, fully prepared to take on another battle and win. Yet, she only found herself staring. Something… seemed familiar about this stranger. Maybe it was the peachy hair, or the humorless line drawn across his face where another person’s smile might be. Combined with their location, all these things were reasonable hints to his identity. But no. It was the eyes that sparked recognition. How many people did she know with violet eyes? Perhaps it wasn’t so uncommon, but for Maya, only one boy came to mind.

“Heh. What are you going to do about it, push me?” A smile crept across her lips as she held his gaze, feet swinging back and forth on the branch as if they wanted to remind him of how far they were from the ground.  

“But I guess that’s impossible, because pushing me means you’d have to climb up here, and you’re just waaaaay too mature to do something so silly~♪”

So, it was her.  That was definitely something Maya would say, and from her tone, he concluded that she, in fact, hadn’t aged much since he last saw her.  It was weird seeing her older, though.  In the last letter he received from her, she was still a teenager.  In a way, Chase had always had that image in the back of his mind of what she looked like, and to have that image shattered now felt a little unusual.

Though he was happy to see her, it hardly showed on his face.  He was tired and cold.  His tone did nothing to hint any joy either.  Instead, he stood there with his hands in his pockets, looking up at the girl on the tree branch.  

“What are you doing here?”  he called “I thought you lived on the mainland.”  The last he had heard of her, she was still living with her parents.  Was this just a trip for old times sake, or maybe she lived here now.  The possibilities buzzed around Chase for the time being.

It did not take the man long to give Molly his order, the young woman a bit surprised at his choice. It was not often someone ordered the cider, and in all honesty, she wondered why she even kept the beverage available. Most would ask for a cocktail, a beer, a glass of wine, the occasional round of shots. 

But she supposed she could not judge a person and what they drank; after all, her own tastes were anything but refined. 

“Sure,” she said, turning to grab a glass and a bottle. She poured the drink out, careful not to spill any over the rim, before setting it down in front of him. 

“What’s your name,” she asked as she moved towards the cash register, thinking a moment before explaining why she was asking, “not to be creepy, just to put it into the system for your tab.”

Chase took a swig of the cider and set it back down on the bar.  It was nice being able to relax after a long day at work.  Even if the casino wasn’t really his idea of a relaxing place, it was better than nothing.  Normally, he tried to stay away from the casino.  The last thing he needed was to fall into a gambling addiction, especially when the rent was so high.  But, he figured if he just stayed at the bar and away from the blackjack tables, he’d be fine.

That’s when the bartender spoke.  “You’re fine.”  he replied back.  “You can put it under Chase Bennett.”  He took another drink from his glass, and set it down, looking into the swirling cider.  He looked back up at the bartender (What did it say on her name tag?  Molly?) to see she was still typing away on the cash register.  His eyes were instinctually drawn to the woman’s bottom, though more so the bunny tail then anything.  It only lasted a few moments though before he realized what he was doing and adverted his gaze.

Molly enjoyed her nights working the Casino’s bar. It was always fun to her, mixing different drinks meeting new people, and talking with whomever might be looking for a chat. It was fun, in all honesty, a way for the young woman to get to know the people of Leuda better, as well as to find out about all the happenings.

She had taken to cleaning a few glasses, having fulfilled the order of one customer and sending them along their way, most likely to play more casino games. It was a bit slow, a handful of people having stopped by the three hours she had been working, and while she was grateful it wasn’t too busy, she could only hope that another customer would come soon, boredom coming over her. 

Her hopes were answered, of course, in the form of a tall man with messy, peach hair, Molly waiting for him to approach the bar and take a seat before setting down the glass she held in hand and moving towards where he sat. She swiped the pair of bunny ears she had taken off after the last customer left, returning them to her head before greeting the man.

“Welcome to the Casino Bar; what can I get you?”

Chase had been there enough times to not feel awkward about how dressed down he was.  He was still in his work uniform as he went up to the bar, sitting down on one of the bar stools.  It didn’t take long for the bunny bar tender to hop over to him.

REQUEST BOARD: Arcadia / Leuda Explorer’s Guild

DATE OF REQUEST: March 16th, 2017

LOCATION: Leuda, Inner Apartments Room A201

CLASSES REQUIRED: N/A

NUMBER OF PEOPLE: One to two people.

REWARD: Lower rent…? Company? The pleasure of trying out my specialty dish, fish soup?

DETAILS: Rent is… high…. and traveling between the islands every day for work is rather costly. Unfortunately my current jobs just aren’t helping me make ends meet, so I was wondering if there was anyone interested in rooming with me…? I will not move into a hotel room or the Mire Apartments, but I am willing to take any interested parties into my apartment at the Inner complex. I will not be leaving Leuda, either, but this offer is also open to any Arcadians who are interested in moving to Leuda.

That’s when he found the ad for a roommate.  It was in the same apartment complex that he was living in, and from the ad, it sounded like the person was having the same problem that he was.  Rent was too high and they needed someone to help them with it.

Sure this wasn’t a decision to be made lightly.  Chase would be giving up his privacy.  He’d have a shared living space with, right now, a stranger.  But, he had to look at the pros, too.  If he had a roommate and they split the cost of the apartment, he’d have more money to spend on other things.  In the end, Chase decided to give Cinnamon a call.

@thethrill-ofthechase;

The last delivery of the day. It was strange ending her day on Leuda rather than Arcadia. It’d be awhile yet before she was back on the other island and in her bed. For now, Karin parked the delivery car and hopped out. It was time to deliver some ingredients! Grabbing her order clipboard, Karin went towards the back door of the diner. Someone was supposed to be expecting her and she was, Karin checked her watch: five minutes early. She smiled. Perfect. 

By the grace of the Goddess herself, Maya’s shift ended early. Cloudy skies and a nippy chill on the breeze didn’t create the ideal conditions for a stroll around the city, but, curled up in one of those cushy library chairs with hot chocolate warming her hands, she’d be as cozy as a hot dog in a bun. The walk wasn’t too bad, either—as long as she took the shortcut through St. Hermelin’s.

Her feet found their own way on the weaving roads. Good thing, because the realization that she hadn’t been on this route in FOREVER struck Maya hard enough to make her forget about paying attention. Right there was the corner where she found the bag of bagels that made her sick for three days. Oh, and over there was the spot where she dropped her strawberry ice cream on a poodle’s head! The lady holding the leash yelled at her for three minutes straight, not breaking for a breath. Maya was sure she never had so much of someone’s else’s spit on her face her entire life…  

Sigh. This whole place was just so full of memories. ♥  

Speaking of which, if she remembered right—

Aha! There it is! The Tree. The-The Tree. Hasn’t changed a bit. Well, other than looking a little smaller, but that didn’t count, because technically Maya was the one who changed in that regard. She approached the base of the trunk, oblivious to the fact someone else sat on the other side.

Wow, were the branches always that close to the ground? She remembered the fall being… a lot further. And the blood. Oh man, it must’ve looked like a crime scene!

You know what, this tree wasn’t so big and bad! Maya conquered it once, and she could do it again! She didn’t change THAT much! This wasn’t The Tree, she was The Maya! She came to climb this tree! SHE CAME TO DESTROY IT!

“Hup!” Cheeks puffed out in effort as she leapt, grabbing the lowest hanging branch and heaving herself up. Arms, she was good to you for twenty years. Don’t fail her now.

Leaves fell as the bark shook and rattled. Several yelps, wheezes, and splinters later, Maya sat firmly in the same place she did nearly eleven years ago, winded, but glimmering with pride.

“Tree, I am Queen of you.”

Chase’s time alone was a short one.  He wasn’t standing there long before he heard someone walking up to the tree behind him.  He didn’t turn around or venture around to see who it might be.  He didn’t want to deal with that at the moment.  This was his tie to unwind, and he’d be damned if he let anyone take that away from him.

But then he heard the sound of someone climbing the tree.  Now that was odd.  St. Hermelin hadn’t let kids out to play, and he really didn’t know who would be climbing up the tree.  Curiosity was starting to get the best of Chase.  Before long, he decided to walk around to the other side.

Chase stood at a distance as he quietly observed the girl as she made her way up the tree.  He vaguely recognized who it was.  Short blond hair–  Actually, just short in general, with a pep in all of her movements.  She might have been…  No….  Could it be?  Was that Maya of all people?  The girl who he had pushed out of this tree so long ago?  The girl from the mainland that he used to be pen pals with?  The girl who was probably one of Chase’s only friends growing up.  It couldn’t be, could it?

Chase continued to watch her as she climbed up, mauling over who in the world this person could be.  It wasn’t until he could clearly see her face that he really recognize who it was.  Once she was securely where she wanted to be on her tree branch, Chase spoke up.