"i Guess I Just Figured The Person Who Owned The Cafe Actually Owned The Cats As Well. Maybe They're

"so you basically have to pick a class for your character? it's not something that's already set in stone? interesting..." salem replied as she looked over the page a bit puzzled. when she randomly decided to learn how to play dungeons and dragons she didn't realize just how much had gone into it and had to give drew props for knowing so much. "the weird ten sided dice confuses me a bit. how often should you be rolling? would i potentially get sent to jail for speeding like in monopoly? that's really the only board game i've ever played so it's probably not the best comparison." she let out a small chuckle and nodded. "i love kettle corn but i'm not sure if i've ever told you that so don't feel too bad about it." salem smiled reassuringly. "i haven't had a chance to try the churros here but i've heard leon talk about them before. are they really that good?"

when drew first met salem, he never would have been able to guess that their futures would be entwined at all, so sitting with her at his favorite place in chile while she asks him about dungeons and dragons of all things feels like a level of surreal that he's never before experienced except for during a twin peaks marathon. "let's just focus on one character for now," he suggests, sliding a page across the table. "if you want to be an elf than we can go right to your character's class, which is sort of just their job. the basic ones are fighter, wizard, cleric, rogue, and ranger. we're gonna need to roll later, too," drew announces, showing salem the dice he's been fidgeting with for hours now. "and probably some snacks. have you tried the churros here in chile yet ? do you like kettle corn ? i can't remember if i know that you like kettle corn," he confesses to her, frowning apologetically.

status: open @valpostart location: el café de los gatos

“so like….hypothetically speaking if someone wanted one of these cats could they have one?” she asked the person beside her while her gaze was fixed on a larger grey tabby cat. salem being at the cat cafe wouldn’t surprise anyone ( neither would wanting to take in a random stray ) and she knew it would have to be one of the first stops she made as soon as she came back to town. as she crouched down to pet it she wondered how much her own cat would object to a sibling. she seemed to do well with “boat cat” after all. “i mean obviously i would pay for it and ask if i could have it but like can the cats leave with human if they want to?” 

"i figured maybe we could just hang out like we used to. i also have this song i've been working on and i need your musical genius." salem said after stepping inside. the tension between the two of them lingered in the air as she made her way to the kitchen to set the food down on the counter. "i also came over because i feel like i need to apologize. i know things have been weird between us lately and i just feel really bad about it. plus im actually sober this time so maybe it won't be a complete disaster." she nervously laughed at the last part, the last time she came over things went horribly and resulted in her leaving without the two of them really getting a chance to talk about the breakup or even about how leon felt about everything. salem wasn't sure if that would even be discussed tonight but above everything else she really just missed her best friend.

sundays can be a drag. especially since you still haven't recovered from partying -and more- from two days ago. the headache was gone but he was just, so tired. maybe it wasn't that he went that hard with the booze or the drugs, he doesn't remember doing too much. but seeing salem there, it made him miss her so bad that his body was literally aching for her. he sits on the living room sofa, scrolling through the ubereats app on his phone when he hears three knocks on the door. frowning, leon wonders who it is. he opens the door and is surprised to see her. she looks so good in his bowie t-shirt, and whatever she's got in her hands, it smells great. when salem opens her mouth, his heart melts. a small smile creeps onto his face and he pinches the bridge of his nose before letting her in. "i haven't," the blond closes the door behind him. "thank you."

FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS A SALEM WEST !

On behalf of all residents in the Valpo Region, we'd like to wish Salem West a very Happy Birthday ! A heart as beautiful as the voice who owns it, the Valpo region is better with you as a resident. Your talented and whimsical mind has brought joy and comfort to multiple residents with us. We're all waiting on the edge of our seats to see what you're going to drop next, and we know the Valpo region will be your number one streamers. The unwavering support you show to your friends, to the point of willing to rewrite history for them is admirable. We hope you feel as loved here as you make those you cherish feel, and we can't wait to ring in your 30s with you next year. While you're in LA we wanted to send a care package of all our favorite Chilean snacks to remind you where your heart lives (with us) ( @cybermuses )

salem shook her head and chuckled at the mention of avia. she told birdie should would get them something big and here the two were eyeing a large monstera plant. she wondered for a second how birdie's cousin would react to them bringing home such a large plant after essentially banning the other from owning one again. "i kinda feel like i'm setting myself up to get in trouble with aviva but i can take the heat if it's for you i suppose." she nervously glanced over to birdie for a moment. they were on their date that wasn't a date (truthfully neither of them could tell you what exactly it was) but she was trying her best to be normal about it. just two friends shopping for a plant. "it's nice but if we're going to potentially piss your cousin off we should at least go bigger."

closed / @cybermuses location / plantas altas

          ꒰ა  ♡  ໒꒱  --— "  okay,  so  –  aviva did say  no  more  live  plants,  but  it's  fine ! i  think  if  i  use  the  defense  that  you'll  be  over  to  check  up  on  them,  she'll  be  more  open  to  it.  "  birdie  says  it  with  a  grin,  eyes  scanning  the  monsteras  in  front  of  her.  they  very  pointedly  aren't  looking  at  salem  –  she  might  puke  from  nerves  if  she  does,  too  distracted  by  the  fact  that  salem  looks very  pretty  today.  does  she  always  look  that  pretty  ?  of  course  she  does,  birdie  just  never  really  let  herself  think  about  that  before  all  ...  this happened,  "  what  do  you  think  ?  it'll  be  your  kid,  too,  you  get  input.  " 

the reaction didn't surprise her but salem couldn't help but laugh at her response. "milani stop!" she said before playfully rolling her eyes. "not too much okay? he's actually great. i'm just starting to feel like he may be better off without me and my bullshit." salem didn't have the best track record with men, her last relationship was an absolute dumpster fire. traumatizing would be an understatement. "this is going to disgust you but i'm actually so in love with him it makes me want to run away from him you know?" it sounded crazy but it was the truth. she flashed milani a smile at her compliment, "you're sweet. i'm not even sure if i'm in the place to hook up with anyone truthfully but it may be nice to meet some new people while im here."

               those   were   always   such   great   words   to   start   a   conversation.   milani   wished   she   was   sitting   in   a   swivel   chair   so   that   her   turn   towards   salem   had   a   much   more   ominous   affect.   she   settled   for   clutching   her   luke   warm   cup   of   coffee   up   to   her   chest   as   she   watched   salem.   milani   didn't   even   need   to   hear   the   rest   of   the   question   to   give   out   her   very   sound,   thought   out,   and   unbiased   opinion:   "   HELL   yes.   "   there   was   plenty   of   emphasis   on   the   hell.   "   are   you   joking   ?   easiest   answer   i   ever   could've   given.   i   never   understood   what   you   saw   in   him.   or   why.   just   know   that   you   should   get   out   while   you   can.   "   she   concluded,   eyeing   the   dress.   "   honestly   ?   you   could   walk   into   divine   in   a   trash   bag   and   hooves   and   still   get   attention   with   a   face   card   like   yours.   "   milani   said,   playfully   taking   salem's   chin   between   her   thumb   and   index   finger   for   a   brief   moment.   "   but   i   would   go   for   something   shorter   and   boobier.   "

truth is, im a liar….

"unfortunately my black cat stevie is so territorial and eats up so much of my attention that even if i could ethically own a real flamingo, she wouldn't allow it. she's basically my landlord at this point." she teased before giving birdie a playful nudge. the comment about the dominguez-herreras made her giggle. "funny enough i actually have. guess they're rubbing off on me." she smiled and gave birdie a reassuring nod at the choice of necklace. "that's actually perfect for you! the color suits your personality, you're like human sunshine. it'll be my birthday gift to you and anything else you come across here that you may want." salem had a habit of spoiling the people in her life but she didn't mind it, plus birdie had been such a great friend to salem in the short time they'd known one another.

birdie stops herself from apologizing again — old people pleasing habits die hard, and it takes them a moment of opening and closing their mouth before their brain catches up, “ okay — fine, but you know that’s hard for me. i think it would look cute !  i’d say you could get a real flamingo, but that just seems cruel. “ eyes widen for a moment as she looks at salen, a little nervous laugh falling past her lips, “ you been hanging out with the dominguez-herreras recently ? that’s a them thing to do. “ which birdie can rock with, in the event it’s not their own blood. a pause, “ i like amethyst, it’s pretty. buuut — what about this one — ? “ birdie holds up a little citrine necklace, the bright yellow color stunning in the light, “ it matches your amethyst one, even the shape. so they’ll represent us both ! “

"okay, we can talk about it tomorrow." she said quietly while quickly wiping the tears from her eyes. salem watched leon as he walked out of the living room before shutting the light off. her mind was racing for what felt like hours. she couldn't sleep and for some weird reason, maybe out of habit, found herself knocking on the bedroom door. "can i come lay with you?" she asked after peaking her head in the door. leon was half asleep and told her to come in. salem crawled into bed with him and cuddled up against him. it was comforting to be this close to him again and all she wanted was for things to go back to normal. "im so sorry for how much i've hurt you." she wasn't sure if he was awake or not but she needed to get it off her chest. "i don't want things to end and how much i love you actually terrifies me. but i don't know how to be the person you deserve..." she turned to him and realized he was sound asleep. salem ran her fingers through his hair and kissed his forehead gently. she turned back around to cuddle against him before eventually falling asleep.

when morning rolled around salem was woken up by the sunlight peaking through the curtains. she looked around the room and then over to leon who was still sleeping. her hangover was raging and the thought of the inevitable talk they were supposed to have made her stomach turn. she got up out of bed and quietly tiptoed out of the bedroom slowly closing the door. leaving this way probably wasn't the best decision but she felt like there wasn't much left for her to say anyways and she truly was tired of hurting him and that's what the end result would be anyways. so she grabbed her shoes and her bag and left the apartment.

this is too much. he hates seeing her so heartbroken. absolutely destroys him. but at the end of the day, he really can't be just a punching bag. he has a lot to think about. "i can't do this right now," he looks down at her with tears bubbling in his eyes. the fact that she can't promise not to break his heart again, it kills him. and he wants to trust her. they both bring so much baggage into this relationship. but he sees himself in her, and it really feels like she's the only one who understands him. the only one for him. she's his soulmate. "i'm going to bed," the man says. he presses one hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her in somehow. "the bathroom's that way and the kitchen's stocked. we'll continue this tomorrow, okay?" it fucking hurts to pull his hand away, and it hurts even more to leave her in the living room as he goes to the master bedroom. he just wants to hold her, fuck her, make her feel good and trust her to not fuck him up again. is that really possible? leon takes off his shirt and climbs into bed with just sweatpants. he scrolls through his phone for a few minutes, but he can't concentrate on anything. so, he switches off the light of the lamp on his nightstand and tries to sleep.

status: closed for @alkaliineee // solana

salem beamed as she strolled through the vineyard with solana. she couldn't contain her enthusiasm as the two picked grapes and placed them in the basket. "i'm super excited for this, can you believe i've never done a wine tasting before either?" she said to the other. grape picking and creating your own wine was completely different from salem's typical idea of fun but she was quickly starting to adapt to trying new things while living in valpo. "please don't roast me too hard on how little i know about it all." she said a bit embarrassed. "my parents are more of the whiskey in a dive bar types than wine sipping on a vineyard you know?"