stained glass

ᴠᴀᴅᴀ.

   ” you’re heaven sent, v. do i tell you that enough ? “ the man remarked, the smell of tomato and basil wafting from the kitchen as he wandered further into the house. his eyes immediately settled on the cake on the counter, brows perking at her mention of frosting the remainder of it. “ i’d be happy to, “ he hummed, dropping his bag down in one of the chairs. taking the spatula from the other, etienne grinned, making his way towards the cake and bowl of frosting laid out on the kitchen island. dabbing the tip of the spatula in the bowl, etienne worked carefully to distribute the frosting evenly across all layers of the treat. “ i’d never call you crazy, “ etienne began, his eyes raising to meet the other’s, “ more along the lines of determined or PASSIONATE ? “ he continued, his gaze turning back down to his task. “ and you’re thinking of ‘ surprising ‘ him there ? “

vada pressed her lips together in thought for a moment before shaking her head “no, i don’t think you do” she teased “but thank you, i only do what i can” bashfulness setting in just as the timer went off on the stove. turning around quickly she turned the alarm off and grabbed her oven mitts to pull the freshly baked pasta out and set it on the countertop to cool. “well look at you go” the blonde sang as she turned around to see etienne frosting away “you’re probably the best kitchen helper around” the loose hair that had fallen around her face was pushed back, shrugging at his words “you can say it, i’m crazy.” she exhaled “well, yeah..he won’t know i’m going. he probably won’t even recognize me, so this is probably just a stupid idea.” vada could feel him staring at her, she didn’t want to look at him, feeling so vulnerable all of a sudden. “it’s been ten years and i’m tired of hoping that one day he’ll walk through the door. i hate him for me not allowing myself to be fully happy.” 

   Sebastian looked up from the rows of books on the table, clutching one in his hand and leaning over to read the title. “The Devil All The Time,” he acknowledged, “I’ve seen the film on Netflix but never read it. Sounds like an interesting book, yeah?” He’s in the store looking for something read as usual, although he tends to explore the used-books section and check the new ones in passing. “Was it written in the third person?” Seb wondered, tilting his head.

Vada’s thin fingers trailed over the cover of the book, admiring the large words and the dark background. “i haven’t got to watch it yet, did you like it?” she asked as she read the back of the book “it does sound really interesting. it seems like it was, that’s so cool.” she mused quietly, already wanting to dive in and read the whole book right there. 

lorraine had been looking through books for something new to read to the kids at bedtime.  she was always looking for something cool to read for the kids and not read the same stories over and over again.  she had yet to go as far as write her own stories down for them, but did sometimes come up with stories to read to them.  lorraine hummed, turning her head at the voice.  “uh, sorry, i don’t think i have.  have you read the wallace books?  they’re pretty good, if you’re looking for a long story to keep you entertained for a long while.”

vada listened to the woman’s response and rocked on her toes slightly, she’d been meaning to read those for the past ten years and here she was “um, no i haven’t. unfortunately. although i could probably tell you the title of every one in order. my grandfather has all of them, they are his favorite.” she looked down briefly, embarrassed that she had such easy access to them but had never picked one up, only admired them from a distance. “maybe i’ll have to finally give those a go.” 

It’s been a long time since Cooper actually stepped foot into a bookstore. As he used to read a lot when he was younger, but of course that all had changed as he became interested in other things. Browsing the “new releases” aisle but hadn’t finding anything yet, Cooper walked over to the “classics” aisle and picked up a book by Ernest Hemmingway, one of his favorites but then noticed a blonde and smiled “I haven’t. What’s it called?” He asked and then bit his lips “Have you read Hemmingway?” He questioned again and then showed her the book.

there was something vada loved about being inside of a bookstore, it was cozy, smelled of old old books a favorite scent of hers and the bookstore cat that roamed around kept her company. she smiled kindly when he asked what the book was called “don quixote” she responded “no, unfortunately I’ve never read Hemingway.” a light shake of her head as she examined the book in his hand. “I hate that there are so many books out there and I’ll never put a dent in when it comes to reading them all.”

it was rare that jas had a day off these days, but she did today and she’d ended up in the local book shop. she’d not read anything awhile and she wanted to get back into it, it was nice to read, when she had the chance. jas was busy looking at books when she heard vada speaking, “i’ve not read it, i’ve heard about it though. it’s meant to be really GOOD”. 

vada pressed her lips together and nodded at the other woman’s response “well i hope it is. i need something that’s going to completely take me away to a fantasy land” she laughed quietly while pushing her hair behind her ear “anything special you’re looking for?” she asked with a bit of eagerness behind her voice. 

all of gabriel’s most recent experiences with reading were based entirely around children’s books – or perhaps more accurately, the three books his daughters demanded he read them over and over again. it was no surprise that he found himself drawn to the clearly labelled ‘ adult section ’ in the bookstore, then, silently praying something with just a little less glitter would draw him in. gabe blinked thrice then squinted, peering at the book held up to him. “uh, no. i’m not really into the whole… murder mystery thing. bit too much of a baby to be reading things like that,” a pause. “though, i do know that one’s been recommended in loads of magazines and lists, if that helps?”

vada let a small laugh out when she heard the males reasoning “well at least you can admit it. I wish I could scare that easily.” she mumbled as she flipped through the pages of the book. “yeah, that helps actually. I haven’t done much research on top sellers here lately.” the blonde tucked the book under her arm and went on looking for a second book “normally I just scan and then pick up the book I feel most drawn to. it’s fun that way.”

   at the latest text from vada, etienne knew he needed to scramble. he’d been at the grocery store with sebastian upon receiving the notification about her father, and immediately sensed a bit of urgency - he all but abandoned the cart and his roommate along the produce aisle before sending off a quick text in response. after stopping by his own place to unload his groceries, etienne made the quick drive to vada’s - hopping out of his car and making his way up towards her door with HASTE. “ i’m starving, “ the man hummed, offering a small smile before stepping inside. “ it smells amazing in here, as per usual, v, “ etienne complimented, making his way into the kitchen - eyeing the goodies displayed on the counter. “ d’ya need any help with anything? “

hearing etiene’s response that he was starving she clapped her hands together in excitement. she loved feeding people almost as much as she loved cooking, nobody would ever be hungry around her. “thank you, you know how i am though..there’s always something yummy cooking” vada closed the door behind him before following into the kitchen “i’ll let you frost the rest of the cake if you’d like” she smiled kindly as she handed the spatula over “lasagna should be out of the oven in a couple of minutes.” the blonde moved over to her desk that sat in the corner, grabbing a couple of papers before heading back to the island “call me crazy, but i found out he’s going to be in new york for a work conference in two weeks.” 

( ic: sydney sweeney, twenty-five, cis female, she/her ) did you see VADA COLE walking down main street earlier?  you know who i’m talking about, they’re a BARTENDER.  everybody in town says that they’re OUTGOING & INDEPENDENT, but have a tendency to be NAIVE & SARCASTIC too.  VADA has been in town for TEN years.  c'mon, they’re always requesting I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY by WHITNEY HOUSTON at karaoke nights.  well, i’m sure you’ll see them soon! 

it’s s, back with my vada bean! 

tw: cancer, death