say you'll remember me

“it’s too left!” her head thrown back in laughter, daphne’s hands itch to reach out and fix it, but she knows he’ll only catch them, so she has to be smart about this, strategic. “there’s gotta be a tattoo place in new york that’ll write l and r on your hands for me.” daphne’s eyes roll as she watches him tilt the frame all the way in the opposite direction, laugh bubbling through her again. this is the reason they left their small town; to build something new together, something just the two of them, no uncertain gazes or disappointment hidden behind barely-there smiles. they can prove they’ll last now, without anyone’s interference, anyone’s doubt. just love. “no! any further and we’re gonna be lying down!”

august  glanced  down  to  his  hands  and  shrugged,  "  that's  not  a  bad  idea,  you  know?  "  he  was  joking  with  her  but  if  she  was  even  remotely  serious,  he  would  totally  go  along  with  her.  august  thought  he  would  do  just  about  anything  that  daphne  asked  him  to  do.  especially  now.  she  was  all  he  had  in  new  york.  "  that's  not  a  bad  idea  though,  you  know.  "  august  chuckled  before  he  turned  to  look  at  her.  another  moment  and  he's  moved  forward  to  wrap  his  arms  around  her  waist.  he  picked  her  up  and  pulled  her  towards  the  mattress  in  the  corner  -  they  hadn't  been  able  to  get  themselves  a  bed  frame  yet.  once  they  were  close  enough,  he  flopped  so  both  were  laying  on  their  sides.  after  a  moment  of  laughter,  august  moved  to  his  back  and  looked  to  the  frame,  "  see,  it  looks  perfect  now.  "

🌺 kara wondered what this moment would be like. that the moment the siblings came face to face there'd be this cinema-esque moment where it became abundantly clear that this person was the missing link in her life. but really, kara just feels nervous. she see's a man tired at work, and something within her wishes she'd picked a better time to do this. but the mixture of jet lag and excitement brewing within her meant she couldn't help herself when she saw him in person for the first time. twenty three hours of travel, just to meet one person. "hi — sorry." kara settles her hands on the couter in front of her. "you haven't met me before, maybe you've seen my picture..." that felt a little pressumptive. "i'm kara."

he  wracked  his  brains.  kara,  kara,  kara.  did  he  know  a  kara?  he  was  sure  that  they'd  never  met  but  then  she  thought  he  might've  seen  a  photo?  he  couldn't  really  place  her.  "  hi  kara...  "  august  gave  an  awkward  smile.  he  was  trying  to  think  a  little  more  about  who  it  was  that  was  in  front  of  him  when  the  name  seemed  to  click,  "  oh  shit.  kara?  my  dads  other  kid?  "  he  stood  up  a  little  straighter  -  he  wasn't  really  sure  why  it  just  felt  like  the  right  thing  to  do.  he  wanted  to  put  on  a  good  face,  make  a  good  impression.  "  you  -  i  thought  you  lived  in  australia  or  something?  "

🪐 it's not like saul didn't want to speak to star, he was fighting his better judgement for some reason he hadn't quite put a name to yet. and it wasn't as if they'd done anything wrong either, but maybe saul was sending the wrong message by avoiding her. so when he see's them at his doorstep on yet another afternoon swamped in work, he knows it's time to bite the bullet. "hey." he looks shabby, like he usually does when lost in his studies and forgets to take care of himself. he keeps his attention centred down at his feet, which he nows notices sports socks of two different colours he doesn't remember putting on. "sorry i haven't... called." called, texted, smoke signaled...

it  wasn't  even  that  star  cared  that  much  about  the  fact  that  saul  hadn't  spoke  to  her.  obviously  she  wasn't  thrilled  but  they  were  more  concerned  about  if  something  had  happened  to  him.  when  he  finally  opened  the  door,  it  didn't  help  to  ease  their  worries.  he  didn't  exactly  look  well.  "  are  you  okay?  "  she  questioned  as  soon  as  she  saw  him.  a  part  of  them  wondered  if  this  was  just  a  way  for  him  to  end  things  without  ever  actually  having  to  end  things.  "  can  -  is  it  alright  if  i  come  on?  "

⚓ she's the first person riley told about the purchase, and maybe it was wishful thinking, but he'd do anything at this point to get frankie's attention. to seem impressive to her in some sort of way. "it's a ship." clearly. riley pauses, walking under the hull hoisted up onto the old marine scaffolding in the back corner of his dad's business that he begged to be able to use. "well, it will be. and it'll be all mine." he places his hands on his hips, clearly the only one in the room that see's the vision. he'd spent his life helping to build boats for rich people he could never use, now he'd finally have his very own. "it looks like shit now, i know — but work with me here." reaching out his arms he welcomes her into the creation inside his mind. "this is the stern, the back part. there'll be a small deck, seats on either side." he demonstrates with his hands, though whether its causing more confusion when elaborating his point is up for debate. he steps a little further to the right, "the cabin will be here. the galley just as you head in—" the kitchenette "—then sleeping quarters. and the mast is above it." another few steps. "and then the bow at the front." he's likely lost her by now, but it's clear riley's in his own happy little world. a pause follows, glancing over to frankie expectingly, "you'll go on it with me, right? when it's done?"

"  doesn't  look  like  a  ship.  "  she  retorted  with  a  roll  of  her  eyes.  it  seemed  a  little  crazy  to  her  that  one  day  that  thing  would  ever  be  able  to  be  out  on  the  ocean.  as  frankie  watched  riley  describe  where  everything  was,  she  almost  felt  envious.  there  had  never  been  something  which  she  had  ever  felt  as  passionate  about.  she  was  supposed  to  love  things  that  much  and  yet  frankie  didn't  think  that  she  had  cared  about  anything  like  that  for  a  long  time.  maybe  she  needed  to  work  on  that  ...  she  probably  wouldn't.  as  he  expected,  she  had  lost  track  of  what  he  was  telling  her  a  little  while  back.  either  that  or  she  had  zoned  out  ...  she  wasn't  sure  which.  "  yeah.  i'll  go  on  it  when  you're  done.  "  frankie  nodded.  though  there's  a  part  of  her  that  didn't  think  he  would  ever  get  it  done.  "  i  better  be  your  first  passenger.  "

luke doesn't hate christmas, hasn't since the windsor family gained elias, then corinne and marco. but he has to admit that as he's gotten older and they've stopped relying on him to make it everything it's promised to be, he's found it harder to find joy for himself in it. he's tried, trying currently, but parties aren't really his thing so a christmas party is doomed to fail. he lifts his head to the voice, glances between her and the empty chair beside him. for a moment, he forgets to reply before he lets out a soft hum, leans back in his seat. small talk. he can do small talk, for sure. "help yourself. having a good night?"

"  thank  you.  "  nesrin  beamed  and  sat  down  beside  him.  she  sat  on  the  edge  of  the  chair  -  her  knees  bouncing  with  an  excited  energy.  "  a  wonderful  night.  "  a  thought  struck  her  that  maybe  she  needed  to  tone  it  down,  to  calm  down  a  little.  she  ignored  that  voice  -  the  voice  which  sounded  distinctly  like  her  father.  "  there's  just  something  about  this  time  of  year,  don't  you  think?  there's  something  in  the  air.  a  magic!  it's  lovely.  "  she  glanced  around  the  room,  a  dreamy  smile  on  her  lips,  before  she  turned  back  to  him,  "  are  you?  having  a  good  night?  "