"like I Said, Wholesome And Innocent. If We Were Better People." She Teases With Another Nudge, Eyebrows

she beams as he turns to her, eyebrows raised as he wastes no time in luring her in, not bothering to answer her question without inviting her along. just the kind of things she likes from the people she sprinkles in her life. "i was just curious, but you may have put an idea in my mind." she steps out of the way of a couple walking by and tucks a long strand of hair behind her ear. "i can be persuaded to be carted off somewhere to disappear into, you off anywhere in particular or should we make our own way this afternoon?" she had nowhere to be for the time being, and could always make room for a little bit of fun.

Zakir had been lost in a world of his own creation, where everything he saw was made of words, imagination simply at the tips of his fingers, edge of his mind. So deep that the words did not reach him, but the physical touch was like a shattering of glass, a boundary broken. For a moment he stood confused, until he recognised Taylor. “Habibty, of course not,” he said, an easy going smile quick to appear on his features. “My mind must’ve been spinning, how could I possibly not have seen you,” he added without delay. “Anywhere busy? Are you looking for places to disappear in the crowds, the bustling of people, the sensations of bodies?” He asked, his mind still spinning with words. He pulled her into a side huge. "If so, yallah, we'll go somewhere."

@gravefed selena & otis stoneage industries

otis is reclined back in the chair, ignoring the screen above him as he lazily works through the rubix cube. a relic of childhood they carry around to occupy their time when their bored. like now, when the day is full of waiting, of anticipation, a growing anxiety settled in the pit of their stomach. but they swallowed it, keeping it locked away as another presence entered. at this otis straightens, not wanting to be seen as lazy or slacking, smiling as it registered that it was selena. "hey." he nods, fingers still fiddling with the cube. "you ever solve one of these?" though he figured they had. "i'm trying to break my personal best." they chuckle, holding it out to them.

@murdcrofcrows essie & frankie heian-kyo

"frankie please, have some class." essie sighs, taking a sip of her wine as she observes the other across from her. "i invited you out for a nice dinner, you can turn the flirting down a bit." though she wouldn't admit that she adored it, loved frankie's attention. she just didn't always have time for it. "you wanna tell me everything you've been up to recently?" she pushes now, leaning forward a bit, not shy in the slight plunge of her dress.

it was something of 'staff bonding' though tennessee would prefer a higher class place, she knew it was important for morale or something like that to show up where her co-workers and subordinates were. so here she was, sitting in a bowling alley, listening intently (or at least pretending to) while the girl next to her droned on and on about whatever was plaguing her life. essie wanted to shake her and say wake the fuck up, but that felt unprofessional, so instead she nodded along.

that was until suddenly their was a buzzing and she looked just as a bowling ball came soaring by, landing between her and the other. the girl shrieked and essie made no move as she looked up to see the culprit behind the ball come rushing forward. "did you just through that...anita right?" she pointed to the ball and then back to her. "you know it's supposed to go that way right?" she points to the lane in front of them. and though she's playing it cool - it's honestly the best excuse to get out of that boring conversation. so she pushes away from the girl without a word and toward anita. "i'm not expert bowler, but i can give you a pointer or two if you'd like."

open starter — any muse !

location : some random ass bowling alley

blend   in   ,   blend   in   ,   blend   in   —   that's   the   task   here   !   &   when   your   co   -   workers   ask   you   to   come   out   for   a   drink   ,   as   the   new   girl   ,   you   say   YES   .   .   .   nevermind   if   you   short   circuit   while   staring   into   oblivion   as   they   ask  you if you have any plans  .   .   .   it's   all   apart   of   the   charade   .   it's   what   weasels   do   best   right   ?   W   E   A   S   E   L   into   any & all situations . gain their trust . . . or whatever you call it . never bowled before , never even held the ball — but she's observant enough to understand ; to pick up what the others are doing with little effort . until it's her turn . okay . . . don't panic , you got this . is this how the fingers go ? okay , feels good . . . now knock down the pins . cranking her arm back , anita looks straight at the bowling pins ahead ; only to let it go . . . but it wasn't going where she anticipated . every single eye watched as the fifteen pound bowling ball flew threw the air . mouths slightly ajar , irises following where it was going to land . it was all in slow motion but it missed whoever it was going to hit by a H A I R — caving in the surface that it connected with instead . " HOLY . . . SHIT ! i . am . such a CLUTZ — i'm so sorry ! " first & last time bowling .

with ease she picks out a small bag of chips, a candy bar, a pack of twizzlers, moving to check out the options of slushies as the cashier, donovan, perks up. their fingers pull at the twizzlers and pull one out, taking a bite. "you've had three and you're alright? hm..." she cocks her head to glance at them before moving past.

for some reason a twinge of guilt and nerves flashes through her. he doesn't recognize her, would he? she's unsure if she would recognize him if she hadn't been keeping tabs recently. taylor could never just be normal either and give him a call or show up and introduce herself, no for some reason they always had to turn things into a game. maybe it was just the boredom of life. with a shrug they step up to where he is, placing their items on the counter and taking another bite of the twizzler in her mouth with a smile. "any other deals i should know about..." she pauses studying him, memories flashing back to childhood, ones hidden deep down that she never wanted to address. "donnie." this time the smile is innocent, begging almost, hoping he'll recognize it. that he'll smile and be thrilled by her presence. that's something they were always afraid of - showing up back in their siblings lives and being rejected.

he'd be lying if he said that it didn't eat at donovan how his sibling had turned out. a part of him, a secret part, had always laid awake and thought about how the others must be doing, having happier lives than him. raven had been smarter, taylor had been sweeter, the two deserved better than what they'd all collectively been given. donnie knew he was trash but...that didn't mean his siblings had to be as well.

he should've done more. tried harder. why did life shit on them, then continue to deteriorate further? life seemed to have set the kowalski's up only to immediately smite them down afterwards. only through sheer defiance and a constant need to survive was donovan here today, behind the counter of the gas station he worked at, smashing the different slushie options together in one overly-large cup to create something...different. boredom had struck, it seemed.

"hot dogs are 50% off," donnie calls out to whoever just walked in. "on account of them...well. they were sat defrosting in the room for a while. i've had 3 though and i'm still seeing straight so, it's not all bad!"

tag drop

@murdcrofcrows otis & rafe old world casino

never really one to gamble, and certainly not a talented poker or card player, otis never had much luck or fun in the casino. but there were few times they made exceptions of their usual avoidance of the place, and that was whenever rafe dragged them along. "you ever thought about sports betting?" it had been very popular once upon a time, "less strategy but bigger rewards right?" or something like that. they shrug, leaning back in the chair as they sip on the now warm beer.

"satan? that's so unoriginal of you vinny." essie cocks her head to the side, smile unwavering. she'd been called worse, and frankly satan was only mild. it was boring. "i came looking for you, can't exes check in every now and then?" though they both knew that wasn't happening, essie never checked in because she cared. and he never did the same. arms crossed over her chest she steps closer, giving a look around before turning her attention back to him, sucking on her teeth briefly before opening her mouth again. "first, you have to get your guys in order, they're an absolute nightmare to deal with, us poor civilians." she started though she knew it meant nothing. not that tennessee actually cared. "i got word that you're poking your nose around. did you miss me that much that you had to stalk my place of work?"

there was an audible groan that left the older mans mouth, almost involuntary, when he heard tennessee gant's voice. pain in his ass was an understatement at this point. "think i should be saying the same to you, what're you doing in a cop joint, satan?" they really ought to up the security at the door, just letting anyone in those days it seemed. "how would i know, you seem to find dirt where there isn't any - so why don't you come out and tell me about some minor inconvenience some beat cop gave you the other day so i can tell you it's not my department again." though if she knew some of the things he'd uncovered recently she would be knocking down his door every damn day. "good to see you, too, by the way."

@murdcrofcrows taylor & silas the slow down cafe

"si," taylor begins with a soft sigh in her voice as she steps into line with him. "if i was a better person, i'd love to open a cafe where you match a coffee or tea with someone's favorite book." tucked under their arm is a worn edition of emma. "what would you say your favorite drink and book is? we'll start with your combo and build out from there." she teases with a small nudge, biting on her tongue. though it's obvious that this would be a life that would bore taylor to no end, it's fun to imagine what being good and wholesome could lead to from time to time.

@wrvtchedhearts taylor & zakir where: out !

"hey!" taylor calls out, turning around and doubling back to the familiar face that had just passed her by. their hand reaches out to stop his arm, smiling brightly up at zakir. "wow, just gonna pass me by without stopping to stay hello?" she teases, head cocked to the side as she looks at him, waiting for his apology, or explanation. not that they really needed one, but it would be funny to see one provided. "you off to anywhere busy?"