* // DAYDREAMER

while she liked to think of herself as a badass with absolutely no fears, heights were admittedly…something she was scared shitless of. expression was annoyed as she waited in line, painted fingernails drumming against her arm anxiously. why the fuck did she play truth or dare? why did she always have to choose dare? her friends knew that she hated heights hence them daring her to ride the ferris wheel. a soft voice breaks her out of her anxious spiral, glance going from tilly to the worker, “sure…but warning…i might scream.” she said it with an effortless chuckle but honestly it wasn’t a joke.

Tilly raised an eyebrow when the blonde mentioned she might scream. “Not a fan of heights?” She asked, that was her first thought anyway. Maybe it was the safety thing or maybe it was the being trapped but heights was the first logical explanation. 

Austin was waiting in line for the ferris wheel on his own because he didn’t know anyone else heading to the fairground at the same time as him. He’d seen the posters for it around the town advertising the different attractions there. It seemed like something he would enjoy going to see. Although, now he kind of felt out of place, because everybody else there seemed to be with either groups of friends or on dates. It didn’t seem like many people went there on their own.  “No, I’m not here with anyone tonight. I came to this place all on my own.” Austin worked crazy hours and with that alongside his college work it left him with little to no time to invite anyone. “Have a preference which seat you want to take? I’ll go on whatever side.”

“I’m glad it’s not just me that comes to fairs on my own.” Tilly laughed. “I’ll hop in first then.” She answered. It didn’t really matter where she sat but more that she felt like she could give enough space to him if she got in first. “I’m Mathilde or Tilly, whatever you prefer.” She introduced herself just as the seats came around for them to get on which made her climb on to the ride and sitting against the side of the seat.

maisy liked spending time on her own - she also liked spending time with people, but she found that whenever she needed her inspiration for her stories, she liked to be alone and take a walk. this time she had found herself at a fair in town, and somehow had ended up in the line for the ferris wheel. she was waiting for her turn when she heard someone speaking and when she turned her head, she spotted tilly, which made her smile. “it’s fine by me too. and i’m alone too, don’t worry about it. who needs a partner?” she asked, shrugging her shoulders with a smile. “how have you been, t? i feel like i haven’t seen you in ages.” she greeted the other, as they got ready to get on the ferris wheel.

Tilly hadn’t actually recognised Maisy off the bat. She almost felt guilty that it took her a few moments to make the connection but at the same time, it had been a couple years since they last saw each other. “Oh wow, yeah it has been a while. I’m doing good, how are you, Maisy?” She asked in return. “And for the record, no one should ever need a partner to do things.” She told her in agreement to her first statement now that she wasn’t spending time working out where she recognised her from.

After Aurora had left her without a roommate, Callie was more than happy to welcome in a new girl to join her in her apartment. They seemed to get on on the phone so she figured it couldn’t be so bad. It was definitely better than being on her own. She’d offered to help Tilly unpack a couple of times before leaving her to it. Staying her room, she was doing some drawing on her tablet with Apollo, her dog, sleeping on the bed next to her. “Hey, glad to hear it!” Though a bigger smile grew at the offer. “You had me at food.” She pushed up on to her knees from her stomach and grabbing her jacket. “What are you in the mood for? Drive thrus? Sit in restaurant? Diners? Food trucks?” She suggested. Callie was a huge foodie so she knew way too many options.

Tilly was thrown off by the variety of options that Calliope provided her with and hummed while the blonde was getting her things together. “What’s in walking distance? I feel like I want to go for a walk. Unless you want to go for a drive then we can. I’m pretty easy on whatever food we have.” She told her. Food was still a bit of a funny topic with Mathilde - even after therapy. It was easier if she didn’t have to think about what to eat and found it easier to just go with what other’s liked. 

With the fair in town, Nolan had decided two things. He needed to get out, and he wanted some fair popcorn. He hadn’t planned on being there too long since he only really wanted to bring some snacks back to his place, but he decided to bring his tote and his camera in case there was anything interesting he wanted to film or photograph and who didn’t love a good people watching sesh? Before getting food, Nolan got in line for the ferris wheel, the sky was clear and the scenery was stunning with all the lights and the city, perfect to capture. While he fiddled with his camera, his head shot up when he heard a voice, not even realizing he was next in line. “Me?” Nolan turned his head a bit, even though it was obvious the girl was speaking to him, “Oh, no I am alone. I don’t mind.” Nolan gave the girl beside him a small smile, and when it was their turn he let her step in before getting in after. “I hope you don’t mind, I am just here to capture some stuff.” He raised his camera and chuckled. 

Mathilde was glad to know he didn’t mind sitting with her and once it was their turn, she climbed in to the seat and shuffled up right to the side so he had space. “You’re going to make me jealous that I forgot to bring my camera.” She laughed slightly. Usually she carried her camera with her to capture moments and this would have been a prime opportunity being at the top of a ferris wheel. “I’m Mathilde but most people call me Tilly.” She introduced herself seen as they were going to be in each other’s company for a little while now that they were locked in and starting to move. 

x

The fair was a welcome break from Drew’s studies. He was starting to get overwhelmed with the amount of work on his plate this year and he could use a little reprieve from it all. “Oh, no not at all I would love to share with you!” He smiled brightly and held out his arm to gesture for her to go first. “I’m Drew by the way. You seem familiar but honestly I have a bad habit of forgetting people’s names so if we’ve already met before don’t hold it against me.” Drew blushed slightly and dipped his head as he moved to climb into the seat next to her.

Mathilde was happy when the other agreed to sit with her on the ride. It was an opportunity to get to know someone new which she would never turn down. “Mathilde but most people just call me Tilly.” She introduced herself in return. “Don’t worry. I’m pretty new around here so I don’t think we’ve actually met. Maybe we passed each other or something?” She considered. After all, she’d only been here for a couple of weeks and was still out here meeting people. 

🍒

Coco hated fairs. The food. The rides. The musty guys operating said rides. It was all a shit show, but there was a pageant going on, and somehow Coco had gotten wrapped up in helping out at it for the day. She was hoping that the pageant was with teenagers, girls closer to her age, but no it was toddlers. She had basically been playing wrangle master for the last two hours and when no one was looking, she slipped out of the tent. She could have just left and gone home, but that was too easy… and then she spotted it. The coveted ferris wheel. If she was at the top of that thing there was no way she could help out. As she waited in line, she had already prepared she would be sitting with someone else, she just hoped it wasn’t some weirdo. As she glanced over at her partner, she looked Tilly up and down. Normally she’d offer an insulting line, but she softened instead. “Yeah, that’s fine,” she grabbed Mathilde’s wrist, pulling her up onto the ferris wheel with her and sitting down in the seat. Then she looked over at the girl. “I’ll be honest. When I saw you the other night, I thought you were like the Ghost of Sorority’s Past.”

Mathilde had spotted the other girl once before, appreciating the other’s make up but they hadn’t actually spoken at that point. She climbed on to the ride with the girl and laughed a little at the mention of being the Ghost of Sorority’s Past. “Sorry to disappoint but I’m definitely not a translucent as fun as that would be.” She smiled to her as the ride started to move. “I love how you do your makeup by the way. It looks fierce.”

the only thing that attracted asher to events such as the small fair was the food..and the hopes to see one specific person. the possibility of seeing joey was probably the only real reason why he even showed up. he had stood in place, looking down at his phone, he had been scrolling through his contacts to text joey until he heard the voice of an older man begin to speak. his eyes shot up, brows furrowed in confusion, and it was then he realized he had been accidentally standing in what seemed to be a line to ride the old and creaky ferris wheel. “i-i” stuttering, his eyes began to scan the busy environment that surrounded the pair. there was a part of him that wanted to say no and excuse himself, but he also needed a distraction. looking back over towards the girl, he gave her a warm smile. “you know what? why not?” his smiled widened. stepping up, he held the gondola in place. “after you.” he gestured towards the seat as he waited for the other to go in, quickly following suit and scooting in next to her. “you should know that ferris wheels really freak me out.” he joked, a soft chuckle leaving him as he shifted his body slightly, turning to towards her. “i’m asher.”

Tilly was happy when the other seemed to agree even if he stumbled a little first before agreeing. It seemed to make more sense when he stated that he was a little freaked out by ferris wheels while she climbed in to the seat, leaving enough space for Asher to sit too and yet still feeling like she was taking up too much space. “Is it a heights thing?” She asked. It was the first thing she could think of why someone might be freaked out by them. Maybe a safety thing? “I’m Mathilde or Tilly, whatever you like better.” Her accent falling more prominent on her longer name than the nickname. 

with her boyfriend gone for the weekend and all of her friends not answering her texts for some reason , noel wasn’t exactly sure what to do with herself at the moment. she could have stayed in and moped all day but she figured the fair being in town was the perfect excuse to treat herself to some terribly fatty food and overpriced ( not to mention definitely rigged ) carnival games. she had decided to take a break from aimlessly walking around and instead get on the ferris wheel , a smile spreading across her face once she finally got to the front of the line. “oh no it’s just me so i guess you and i are about to be trapped on this thing together” she teased , motioning for the other to get in first before she did. “i’m noel by the way - - do you go to evergreen? i think i may have seen you around but i also have a shit memory when it comes to people” cracking little jokes seemed like the easiest way to subdue the awkward tension between getting on a ride with someone she didn’t know so that was what she was going to do. “you’re really pretty by the way , i’d kill to have blue eyes like those” 

“More than fine by me. Better than being trapped on your own I think.” Although Tilly would count herself as an extroverted introvert, she found that she liked company than her own thoughts sometimes and being alone in a new place was lonely enough. “I do. I just started actually so maybe you saw me unpacking. I’m Mathilde or Tilly, whatever you prefer.” Her accent heavier on her longer name than the nickname. The compliment took her by surprise. “Thank you so much but I’m more jealous of your brown eyes. Most people I know have blue eyes so I actually loved brown eyes.” She confessed while climbing on to the ride. 

          lorenzo’s not sure how he’d let himself get dragged to this fair  —  actually, scratch that, he definitely knew, and it had to do with a friend named molly  —  but he’s truly perplexed about how he ended up in line for the fucking ferris wheel all alone. oh, well. he waited in line, might as well enjoy the view, right ?  his gaze dips down to the girl beside him, lifting his shoulders in a shrug.  “ we can go together  —  don’t expect some movie scene kiss when we get stopped at the top, though. ”  he jokes, shooting a wink at her. lorenzo’s only teasing, gesturing towards the cabin.  “ ladies first, or whatever. ”

Classes for Mathilde were starting after the weekend was over which meant she still had a lot of supplies to get. She’d found some places in town that did student discount which also overlapped with her getting things for her room to make it a little more homely. A little more personality. That was always the problem with moving abroad; you couldn’t take everything with you. She was carrying a few bags when she noticed a pair of small children’s dancing shoes in the path and just ahead, a small girl with her backpack open. The tights she was wearing were a good indicator of a dancer. She could recognise those anywhere. The brunette femme leaned down to carefully pick them up and sped up a little to try and catch up to the girl and the man with her. 

“Hi, sorry, I think you might have dropped these?”

However, the second the pair turned around to look at her, her heart dropped. The last person she expected to see was her ex-boyfriend from New York. The first person she ever loved. The man she had left behind on a one way trip to rehab. She felt sick. All those times she had wanted to call him and talk to him. All of the times she convinced herself it was a bad idea. She’d convinced herself she’d never see him again so why drag him back in to her life? Now he was stood in front of her with his daughter who she once knew quite well. Her eyes looked between the two of them for a second while her brain tried to think of literally anything to say right now. 

“Oh, er...” Tilly held the shoes out to Zoey, realising she was still holding on to them. “...you’ve, grown...” That’s what two years can do to kids, Tilly. Get a grip! Her eyes tried to make eye contact with JD’s but she could never hold it for too long, ending up looking at the ground or to Zoey. Her heart simply hurt. 

The second Mathilde heard there was a small fair in town, she knew she had to go. It was something she could do by herself and hey, maybe she’d meet some new people while she was out. She found herself in line for the ferris wheel and as people got on, she ended up at the front of line with someone next to them. The worker indicated how they’d be sharing, making her look at the person next to her. “That’s okay with me unless you’re here with someone...” She did glance behind her to make sure they weren’t with a partner or something, if they were she would have taken a step back for them to get on together. 

It was an extremely busy day for Mathilde; she was moving in to her new place with a roommate she could see herself getting along with very well. She’d assured Calliope that she was fine with her suitcases. That was always the thing about moving to a different country - you could never bring everything with you so it wasn’t so hard to unpack. Mostly, it was hanging up her clothes in the wardrobe and putting her makeup on the table as well as hanging up a couple of pictures (in line with the lease contract details about nails). 

Finishing up in her room, the brunette made her way to the blonde’s bedroom and knocking sheepishly on the door until she heard a greeting to come inside. “Hey, I’m done unpacking. I was thinking that I might go and get some food. Would you like to come with?” It may have been a slight ulterior motive of Tilly actually not knowing the area well enough to know good places to go but also a chance for her to get to know her new housemate.