* ALECTO STERLING ( thetcsteofink )
“hi, guys!” alecto greeted the twins with a peppiness she was surprised she had today. “it was sort of creepy, right? unsettling, even.” her tone dropped to a more serious one when speaking to cecily, but she maintained a smile with the children present. “of course!” alecto grabbed a menu for cecily and two children’s menus for the twins, including a pack of crayons for each. “here you guys go! um, and the specials are up on the board behind me.” she also grabbed them fresh squeezed juice and poured a mug of coffee for cecily. “what do you make of it all? i mean if you don’t mind me asking. i know it’s not everyone’s favorite topic to discuss. i’m just curious.”
SHE SMILES WHEN THE TWINS both chirp back what sounds like greetings , although kaz is staring around them distractedly although karo is smiling widely up at alecto . “ incredibly unsettling . ” cecy says , thanking alecto when she hands her the menu and reminding both children to say thank you when they accept the crayons and menus . “ thank you . ” she repeats when alecto points out the specials and gets their drinks . she shrugs , “ it’s concerning . makes me worry for the safety of everyone . ” she glances at the twins .
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* LEELA PARIKH ( ofoxglovcsx )
she was incredibly wary of neighbors, and the risk of sounding rude ( not that she had any qualms of being rude when it was warranted ) some of them were flat out strange or weirdos. leela quickly discovered her worries for naught since cecily turned out be a delightful woman with two rather adorable twins. leela was great with kids and so not long after the woman moved in and them running into each other did she approach the younger woman. she knew little of the mother of two, only that leela would noted how exhausted the other woman look most of the time. that afternoon she found cecily with the twins at the park and approached with a sunny bright smile , “well, hello neighbor, fancy seeing you here.”
CECILY HAD BEEN MORE WARY when she’d first moved in , especially with two newborns . but she also likes that she does have a good relationship with most of her neighbours . most were lovely , and she’s glad that no one seems to have any issue with the twins , even when they’d been babies and cried at late hours . meeting leela had been just as much a delight . she was good with the twins , was nice to be around . cecily likes her . she had brought the twins to the park , deciding all three of them needed some time outdoors . and she finds her smile brightening when she spots leela approaching her . “ hey ! how are you doing ? ”
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* CHARLIE ROSE ( ch-rlix )
“I have no idea how I get m’self in these situations, but I really appreciate it, Ma’am.” Smiling brightly down at the little pup, Charlie couldn’t help but crouch down to hold out a testing hand for them to sniff, only giving a pet once she was sure it was alright with the animal. “That’s a right darlin’ lil pup you got there.” Standing as she glanced in the direction that had been mentioned, Charlie realized just how lost she really was and nodded her head. “That would be real nice’a ya. I’m Charlie, by the way. I’d mention I’m new in town but I’m pretty sure it must be real obvious by now.”
“ SOMETIMES IT’S JUST how things go , ” cecy shrugs . she smiles when the woman bends to offer a hand to her dog and then pets him once he accepts the greeting . “ i’ve been wanting one , and my kids begged . i was going to wait until they were older , but i apparently can’t ever deny them anything , ” she chuckles . cecily watches as the other glances in the direction she’d indicated , nodding when she speaks . “ i’m cecily , and this is jade . ” cecily smiles . “ i moved about three years ago , and even after having visited before because my ex grew up here , i still managed to get hopelessly lost multiple times . ”
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* XAVIER BHANDARI ( xbhandri )
“It’s just, hand turkeys weren’t supposed to be part of my portfolio. You know?” Sure, Xavier as an artist was still a relatively new development in terms of how long the 29 year old had been a working artist, but even doodles on the side of his law notes didn’t ever feature what he had tattooed the other day. It was someone’s tattoo for their nephew, a little hand turkey he created in class for them. While he’d never judge a person’s tattoo openly, or to their face, he was still in the era of tattooing whatever walked into the shop, minimal questions asked. He was here to be successful, right?
He threw a pack of paintbrushes into the cart, having dragged Cecily out and about before they could go sit in his studio and actually do something creative with their time.
CECILY CAN’T HELP IT when she giggles , “ maybe fate just has a different plan for you . ” though she does find it endearing that the client had gotten something for their nephew . “ i think it’s sweet . i think it’s different if they come in and say they drew it and want it done , right ? while i do not think i would ever get something my kids drew tattooed on me permanently , it’s sweet they did ? ” cecy chuckles .
she reaches for another few paintbrushes , shrugging . “ i think there are definitely worse things you could be asked to do . ”
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* CHRISTOPHER ROSE ( tophxsc )
Topher was sociable. He had to be. He had to be a natural salesman of himself since he was a teenager. Now that he was an adult with his own house and a new label, a new lease on life, he could worry about other people. Like his neighbor. “We’re going to find you a new outfit, and we’re going out of town to find a club or something to get you in. You need a life outside of your kids. So get your ass off this chair and go put on clothes you can be seen wearing in public.”
ENZO HAD NEVER been very sociable . he’d grown up with a small number of close friends , many introduced through his sister , and then in university he’d always been a bit standoffish , or at least awkward ... though he’d managed to befriend jackie , so he’d met a few people through her . even if he’d mostly just cared about getting to know her . he looks at topher , frowning . “ what’s wrong with this ? ” granted , he doesn’t think he’s worn much different than black pants and t-shirts other than for work before moving . and for events .
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* JACKIE LOCKWOOD ( justjacquelined )
Enzo was right. Giada was a daddy’s girl through and through. There were days she opted to go work with him rather than stay home with her and Jace on one of Jackie’s days off. She nodded at the offer. “Yeah, I can get them ready to go while you wrap up?” she suggested. It was rare that she turned down an opportunity to spend time together all as a family. Life had changed so drastically for them in the past few months, Jacqueline wanted to make sure their kids’ perception of family was always one of togetherness and happy times, as much as possible.
She wiggled her fingers at Giada as she reached for her. “Come on, Gi. Let’s get ready for the park, hmm?” she said in a light tone. “Is their stuff back in the office?” The little girl settled on her hip, gaze still on her dad as if to make sure she wasn’t being tricked into leaving him altogether.
HE PROBABLY IS NOT making future school drop offs easy , considering he has almost as much separation anxiety from their children as giada has from both him and jackie . although in his defence , he’d been betrayed by someone he’d trusted more than anyone , so he is disinclined to trust strangers . the only times he doesn’t mind leaving the children is when they’re staying with jackie or with her family . “ that sounds good , thanks , ” he nods .
he watches , amused , as giada reaches for her mother when jackie wiggles her fingers at her , but then immediately looks back at him as if she’s being tricked once he’s handed giada over to jackie . “ yep . i don’t think she pulled much out , so it shouldn’t be too much , ” enzo chuckles . “ i’m going with you both , don’t worry , ” he smiles at his daughter , reaching out to smooth her hair for a moment before he starts to close up the register .
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* MIKO TORRES ( tenderhecrt )
taking children to the park was one of those activities that miko knew that most people his age dreaded, if not actively avoided, but one that he loved. he had been a babysitter in his teen years, weaving around his apartment building to pick up kids and take them places their parents didn’t have the time to, and he liked hanging out with friends who had kids now as well. hanging out with enzo was fun even without the benefit of children. it was just nice to hang out! he hadn’t gotten all that much sleep, between waking up for alecto’s shift and staying up to come here, but that wasn’t really that big of a problem. he’d just nap before his shift. he turned to enzo. “we’ve got snacks, water, all the essentials. you ready for the park?” he asked, even if it was odd to ask after they’d already arrived. hell, they could go back home if enzo wasn’t up to it.
ENZO APPRECIATES THAT MIKO does enjoy the times they hang out with the kids . he’s also glad that jace isn’t too fussy , and giada is always fairly easy . except for the separation anxiety that enzo definitely isn’t helping much to solve . it’s strange . he’d always been fairly indifferent towards children . he likes them , but he’d never really cared whether he had kids or not . now , he can’t imagine life without them . and he likes hanging out with miko , too , with and without the kids . he nods , when miko asks if he’s ready for the park , chuckling when giada makes an impatient sound and tries to pull both of them towards the playground . “ i don’t think we have a choice . ” he laughs .
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* CHARLOTTE ROSE ( ch-rlix )
“How do ya get y’self into these messes, Miss Charlie?” Muttering to herself in disbelief, she once more pressed the button on the side of her phone, only to watch in mild dismay as it did absolute nothing be remain completely dark. Of course it had been completely silly of her to go for a walk without first making sure she at least had enough battery on her phone to gps her way home should her get lost. Which of she course she did. Mama always had said that she as ‘directionally challenged’. Sighing softly in resignation to her situation Charlie realized now was the time to muster up the courage to approach a stranger on the street, ears burning with the flush of embarrassment that filled her face as she did so. “’Scuse me… I’m real sorry’ta bug you, but I happen’ta be real lost and my phone is dead, but could you possible point me in the way’a Copperfield Crescent?”
CECILY SMILES DOWN at the dog she’d been convinced to adopt . the twins had begged , and she does want the dog . they have the space , and cecy spends enough time taking the twins to the park and outside in general . so when the twins are back from their day with their dad , they’ll get to surprise them , since her ex had been in on it as well , and had agreed to dog sit when cecy is out of town for work . she looks up from the chihuahua mix kaz had fallen in love with the other day , when she realises someone’s speaking to her . “ hi ! don’t even worry about it , we’re just walking around . it’s over that way , i can walk with you , if you want ? ” cecily offers .
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* ARACELI CALYPSO ( calypsal )
sally has been coming to festivals alone since she first moved to moorbrooke seven years ago . she enjoys them , but they are bittersweet all the same : her late husband would have absolutely adored the festivities . he would have loved moorbrooke , too , but something about the spark of excitement that permeates the fall air tonight makes her miss gilbert a bit extra . sally’s relief is evident when she spots enzo , his face a familiar and welcome sight as it has been since childhood . she ducks into the craft tent , eyes wide as she carefully positions herself out of sight of any passersby . ‘ one of my students is here and he has been relentlessly trying to set me up with his dad . i have no idea how to deal with that , so you’re hiding me until the coast is clear . ’
HE HAD SPENT THE FESTIVAL helping giada put together her versions of wreaths — mostly just making each piece of her felt as colourful as she can , although she’s created what looks more like a ball than a wreath . it’s been a good day so far , and the male looks up from the felt mess his daughter has created when sally appears , gesturing around when she explains her predicament . “ make yourself comfortable . i’d have no idea how to deal with that either . ” enzo chuckles . “ maybe you need to just trick him into thinking you’re seeing someone so he’ll back off . ”
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* ALECTO STERLING ( fckalecto )
with the news of the mayor’s strange disappearance, the town’s been a bit on edge. but no doubt alecto came across the mysterious podcast earlier in the morning and ended up telling her dad all about it. since it was her day off from the library and as it was saturday, there were no classes, her dad insisted she help out in the diner while she explained to him what a podcast even was. ( “no dad, it’s not like one of those tide pod things” ). she wondered if anyone else had heard of it. of course most if not all of the town at least was at the fest and witnessed the mayor not showing up. some patrons even today whispered over it during their meals. alecto went to tend to the customer seated at the bar with her notepad and pen in hand. and… there her dad went yelling loudly at the cook for something. “jeez,” she muttered to herself. “sorry, not at you. just,” she waved the pen around by her head. “lots going on. mayor missing, weird podcast. have you heard of it? anyway, sorry—do you need a menu or do you know what you want? and do you want coffee?”
WITH THE DISAPPEARANCE of the mayor , cecily is a little bit a lot on edge . she’d hoped to stay away from drama . she’d planned on just staying home with the twins , but karolina had begged for a trip to the diner and as stubborn as she is , she is a complete pushover when it comes to her children . and perhaps it will be good for them . so she steps into the diner , trying not to be too concerned about the mayor’s disappearance and the podcast she’d heard that morning while the twins had coloured and she’d drank too much coffee . kaz had insisted on sitting at the bar , so cecily helps her children each up onto a stool before settling between them so she can keep an eye on both . she looks up from karo when alecto appears . “ don’t apologise . ” she shakes her head . “ yeah , it’s definitely a lot . i heard it earlier this morning . it’s wild . ” she sighs . “ menus and coffee for me and orange juices for both of them , please ? ” cecy nods .
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* TONY FORTIER ( philcscphies )
October 1st had rolled around and with it had come the festive season. Tony couldn’t wait to see all of the ways that the town would celebrate. Halloween wasn’t his favorite holiday – that special place was reserved for Christmas – but it did signal the beginning of the most wonderful time of the year. Tony was especially excited because this would be his first year experiencing the holidays as an official Moorbrooke resident. “So,” he glanced over his shoulder at the person beside him, “any plans for the season? I’m thinking of getting dressed up and going trick or treating because you’re never too old for candy and costumes, you know?”
CECILY LOVES AUTUMN . she’d always missed out on halloween as a child , her parents too preoccupied with other things to care that they had a child who would want to celebrate , so she’s excited to get to celebrate halloween and everything else with her daughters . she’s thrilled that the girls had been as excited to start putting together costumes as they’d been the previous year , and she’s already almost finished both costumes , as well as something for herself because she fully intends to take them trick or treating and be dressed up for it . “ well , if you need help with your costume , i’d be happy to help . i’m also happy to bring you along when i take my kids trick or treating and insist to everyone that you’re also one of the kids and therefore people have to give you candy too . ”
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* CARLEIGHA ORTIZ ( xallmywolvesx )
Careligha looks back to him and chuckles. “I don’t think you can nearly reach the ranks of Karens and Medical companies. So you’re golden.” Her eyes turned back toward the table as she peruses through the selection. “This is an expensive book month, I’m not even sure how many preorders I have in your system. Don’t tell me, I’d much rather be surprised when I pop in to collect them all. You’d think working in the library I wouldn’t buy so much, but I like popping them on my shelves when I’m done. Not to mention seeing how many stacks I can place around the house before my roommate gets annoyed.”
HE SHAKES HIS HEAD , “ i can be a huge asshole if i want to be . sometimes when i don’t intend to be . ” the male chuckles , “ i can relate to this being an expensive book month . almost every new book we get here , a copy ends up on my shelf at home . ” even the books he isn’t as interested in , he still finds himself trying . worst case , he reads something that wasn’t very good . best case , he finds something he likes unexpectedly . “ there’s just something satisfying about putting together your own shelves that you don’t have to share with the entire town . ”
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* ANDREJ VARVIK ( candydripping )
“Well damn, I didn’t realise that people could come into a bookstore of all places and find something to be mad about.” Andrej’s voice was loud enough so that the woman leaving could hear him and he snickered to himself as he approached Enzo. After working in customer service for pretty much his entire life, he was definitely used to annoying customers. Maybe when he was younger he’d be a dick to them in return – some instances where he’d even thrown drinks over then when he was in a particularly bad mood – but now he was actually trying to KEEP his job despite the fact that he still got moody customers coming in often. Though he couldn’t say that he blamed anyone for being in a bad mood at 6am before they’d gotten caffeine into their systems. “I wasn’t expecting to get that entertainment coming in here,” he joked as he sent Enzo a smile. “Believe it or not but I’m here to buy a book. Got a few extra coins left over this month so I figured I’d treat myself with a new book before I’ve gone ahead and spent it all on nicotine.”
“ UNTIL TODAY , i didn’t think it was possible either , ” enzo replies , shrugging . he’s not used to the customer service part of running the store quite yet . running his family’s company and writing , he didn’t deal with the customer side of things quite as often . but he has the luxury to still respond in turn to rude customers unlike many . he laughs , when andrej jokes , shaking his head . “ usually there isn’t anything exciting happening . ” the occasional person who knows who enzo is , though he’s glad people tend not to recognise that he is the same person who wrote his books . “ d’you have anything in particular you’re looking for ? ”
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* JACQUELINE LOCKWOOD ( justjacquelined )
Regardless of anything else going on between them, there were still plenty of things that `Jackie loved to about Enzo. The no-brainer, of course, was him as a father to their kids, but she also loved to watch him write, face scrunching up in concentration, and, in moments like the one she just witnessed, there was a thrill in watching him stand his ground. He’d done it before, protecting her from his sister, but that was a whole other situation.
She side-stepped out of the disgruntled customer’s way before moving close to lean against the counter, directing a bright smile first at Giada and then softening as she focused on Enzo. “Well, I was thinking I could actually help you. I’m done working for the day, so I thought I’d take Gi off your hands - or hip, as it seems,” she said with a light tease, “and Jace and maybe go to the park or something.”
HIS GLARE FOLLOWS the woman to the door , but softens at the sight of jackie . while he is rude at his worst and awkward at his best with most people , she’d always been someone he was comfortable around , and always kinder with . she’d always brought out the best in him , and while he is still devastated at the way his sister treated her , he is glad they can still be around each other and are in a fairly good place , all things considered .
he watches giada smile back at her mother before she hides her face again in what is likely an attempt to go back to sleep . even if it’s probably better she stays awake the rest of the day , since she’s definitely napped long enough . he smiles at jackie , running his fingers through their daughter’s hair . “ i’m not sure she’ll let you take her , but my shift is basically done , if you don’t mind the extra company ? ” he asks .
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* LOGAN SANDS ( breaxdown )
“Well we can just call it even then since we can’t seem to agree on who’s fault it is!” She replied to him as she nodded. She figured it was just easier to call it quits since they could be talking all day about who’s fault it actually was. “Nice to meet you, Enzo., And nice to meet you Giada. That’s a lovely name. How old?” She asked him as she tilted her head to the side a bit. She then turned and began to head to the cafe that they were going to get coffee at.
“ WORKS FOR ME , ” enzo nods , humming . knowing that it is better not to keep arguing . it doesn’t really matter , in the end , anyways . “ thanks . she’s just about two . ” he replies , turning to walk beside her when she starts to head towards the café .
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* LUNA OROZCO ( breaxdown )
“Oh no, I’m sorry then, I didn’t mean to rush you. I just wanted to make sure that I was in the correct line. You don’t need to do that, that is awfully sweet of you though. I really appreciate it.” She said to him as she smiled at him. She wasn’t sure she had ever seen the other around town and she decided to introduce herself. “I’m Luna!” She said to him before extending her hand out so that they could shake.
“ YOU AREN’T RUSHING ME . but i’m about to order for my family . you should at the very least order first so you don’t have to wait for my whole order to be made . ” he knows he hasn’t met very many people outside of in the bookshop , and he’s a bit relieved she introduces herself first , since he does still sort of lose track . “ i’m enzo . it’s nice to meet you , luna , ” he smiles , taking her hand to shake .
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* LUNA OROZCO ( breaxdown )
Luna was a sucker for a good fruit smoothie. Even though Autumn was beginning to settle in, there were still some days that remained somewhat warm so a smoothie was a great way to cool herself down. She had just gone for a jog and she decided that she was going to reward herself with something from Seashakes. As much as she could’ve gone for a milkshake, it would’ve totally not made sense for her to get a shake. She looked over at someone as she walked in, a gentleman who was standing there. She was’t sure if he was in line or not so she decided that she was just going to figure it out herself. “Excuse me.” She said softly. “I was curious to know if you possibly were i line or if you were waiting for your order?” She asked, curiously. She didn’t want to be rude if he was just not sure what he wanted yet.
HE’D BEEN SENT BACK , having made the mistake of going home without anything from seashakes after having gone past it . now he’s waiting to order the list of things giada and her mother had requested . so here he is , back at seashakes , awaiting an order that will absolutely result in no one sleeping for the next two days . not that he’s ever been able to deny any of them . the male looks up when he realises someone is speaking to him , slipping his phone into his pocket . “ i’m waiting to order , what are you getting ? i can add it to my order . ” he offers . since the girls had requested more than they really needed .
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