" Ow, Ronnie ! " Ace Exclaims Dramatically As The Paintbrush Hits His Leg, Far Too Lightly To Warrant

" ow, ronnie ! " ace exclaims dramatically as the paintbrush hits his leg, far too lightly to warrant any reaction at all. " i mean, that's a guess. could be less, could be more. time feels distorted. " with a sigh, he follows suit and stands to his feet— they somehow no longer feel connected to his body, but the more he moves the more that changes. " surprise me, " he insists, hurrying now that his legs are no longer numb, " i'll eat anything as long as there are very little greens in there. " isn't longer before he disappears, only to reappear moments later with a relieved smile on his face. " what did you go for ? "

the confession from ace has a dry paintbrush flinging from ronnie's side of the room to his, counting on her aim to knock him in the leg. "a whole hour ?!" she's laughing despite her disapproval, standing to give her limbs a much needed stretch. "it's almost like you want a uti or something." her phone is pulled out, uber eats screen glowing like a beacon. "and a stomach bug apparently. but, not to worry, your saving grace is here. what are we ordering ?"

he has no business being there, sticks out like a sore thumb in the clothes he went to work in, motor grease still staining hands despite the fact he's scrubbed them what feels like a hundred times. camden isn't a big drinker, never has been. spent far too long witnessing the way it poisoned his father to ever indulge in it too much. but occasionally, after a long day, when he's not set to have his son, he likes to stop off for a beer on his way home. occupies the same stool every time, get's lost in his own thoughts. sometimes he doesn't even get to finish, phone ringing with another emergency, or yet another problem that needs to be fixed. there's a half-smile, forever a little rough around the edges, never quite meets his eyes fully. " if i'm at the point of having a usual, it might be time for me to avoid this place, " camden jokes with a slight dry chuckle, a nod of his head as he shrugs out of his jacket. " but i'll stick to it for now, save wild for another night. not sure palmview could handle it. "

the  soft  glow  of  the  bar’s  dim  lights  flickered  like  fireflies  on  a  warm  summer  night ,     casting  a  cozy  warmth  over  the  polished  wood  counter .     sadie  stood  behind  the  bar ,     her  hands  skillfully  mixin’  a  cocktail ,     the  rhythmic  clink  of  glass  harmonizin’  with  the  gentle  buzz  of  chatter .     she  glanced  up  and  spotted  a  familiar  face  sittin’  at  the  far  end     —     a  regular  who  always  seemed  to  carry  a  heavy  load  of  unsaid  thoughts .

“     well ,     hey  there ,     sugar !     ”    she  drawled,     a  bright  smile  spreadin’  across  her  face  as  she  sauntered  over .     “     you  wantin’  your  usual ,     or  we  feelin’  a  little  wild  tonight ?    ” ( @palmviewstarters )

" you should just be beautiful, perfect you. the right person is out there, and i would literally die and come back from the dead before i let you settle. but yes, maybe we let men better themselves because they want to be better, not because we want them to be. " a waste of time and energy, as she's come to witness over the years. she gives her friend a look that says just trust me, and maybe it is silly to base something off a choice of footwear, but she full of intuition— or so she likes to think. it could just be an excuse, because maybe the matchmaker herself isn't so sure what she wants when it comes to love. " okay, solo dates, love that for you. " she's quiet, with difficulty, stops herself from butting in and just takes it in, basks in her friends experience. her heart swells at the thought, glint of happiness for the other reflected in her eyes. even if it was an encounter that didn't lead to forever, what a magical encounter to have. " wow, " noa breathes out once celeste finishes, but being reserved last all of two seconds before she's beaming. " that literally sounds like a scene out of a ron-com, you know, back when rom-coms were actually good. but oh my god, letty, that sounds . . . epic. definitely not delusional ! sometimes the universe has to take matters into it's own hands, put two people exactly where they're supposed to be. are you seeing him again ? "

"i think that might be the nicest thing you've ever said to me," a fake tear is wiped away, hand over heart. the more noa explained her reasoning, the more celeste began to realize where she'd gone wrong. she couldn't count on one hand the amount of men she'd replicated the exact scenario with, much to her own regret. "okay, okay, i see your point," she laughs, hands thrown up in surrender. "what i'm getting from this is that i should stop trying to be caulk-over-it celeste." she had a tendency of giving her relationships the landlord special, and socks and sandals could easily be painted over. "i just think it's kind of hilarious how you came to that conclusion from socks and sandals alone, but that's why you're the match maker and not me !" with another sip of her wine, celeste can't help but share the excitement. she scoots an inch closer, clapping her hands together as she prepares herself for the tell all. "well, i went out and none of the girls wanted to come with, so i went by myself, obviously. i ended up trying out the cheesiest pick up line i could think of, and it actually worked ? and then we danced for a little, talked some more, and he walked me home. the part that's actually wild to me is that we got to my building and found out we're neighbors ? is that some kind of a sign or am i just delusional ?"

" a lot of bouncers are actually outsourced by security firms and not directly hired by the clubs and bars. mostly every job has a career ladder, it's completely possible to climb it. everyone starts somewhere, doesn't mean it's where they finish, " noa counters, suddenly reminded that she needed security for her next event. pulls out her phone, sends a quick email to the company she usually hires for such things. " all this bar talk, " she laughs, tossing it back into her bag before flipping her hair over her shoulder, " all i can think about is a nice, crips glass of champagne. i think i'll head home and pour one. what are your plans for the rest of the night ? "

"That is totally dependent on if that is his plan. I just mean that there isn't upward growth in his current position. How many times do you hear a bouncer going up the chain at their job from the door to bartender to like owning the place?" she pointed out. It was one of those jobs where you probably didn't move up much, just changed jobs. "Good for them then. Hopefully he keeps up the good work."

he pretends to ponder, to humour her. “ hmm, let me think . . . maybe livin’ on a prayer, because something tells me you’d need one. ” kyro tries to hold back a laugh, but it still threatens to slip out. however, he still makes a point of exaggerating her strength when he fist meets the palm of her hand. “ unless you have any better options ? ” uses hands to encourage her to keep the hits coming, knows sometimes it just takes a little practise.

"i'm so glad you're finally starting to catch on," her pads are tossed to the side in the same manner as his, fists lifting as she circles him in the ring. "what do you think my walk in song should be ?" she questions, throwing her best version of a right hook to his left palm. "for when i make my debut as the next big boxer of the lee family."

#mood