DEV PATEL 'Monkey Man' behind the scenes

@heroexxs

High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (2019-2023) 4.01 | High School Musical 4

“I’m homesick all the time … I just don’t know where home is. There’s this promise of happiness out there. I know it. I even feel it sometimes. But it’s like chasing the moon - just when I think I have it, it disappears into the horizon.”

— Sarah Addison Allen (via quotefeeling)

Verónica chuckled in amusement as Chase nudged her, the movie playing on the screen completely forgotten for a moment as she focused all of her attention on her bodyguard. She gave a dramatic sigh when he mentioned seeing her schedule. "It's really not that bad if you don't think about it." She said with a shrug. Still, she knew Chase had a point. Ever since she'd gotten back into acting, Verónica's time was constantly dedicated to staying booked and busy after fans, old and new, had welcomed her back with open arms. Naturally she wanted to keep the people happy but there was also a part of her that kept busy to keep her mind off of the lingering anxiety of being back in the public eye again.

Still, she knew it wouldn't hurt to take some time off every now and then to decompress and just enjoy herself. She took another bite as she listened to him discuss what he'd want to do, a small smile tugging at her lips as she pictured him sitting under an umbrella on a secluded beach in the middle of the ocean with a beer and his feet in the sand. It caused her to chuckle softly before he mentioned his other choice being an amusement park. Somehow both of those answers felt very on brand for him.

When he spoke again, mentioning how proud he was of her, the sincerity in his voice caused warmth to fill Verónica's chest and she couldn't help but blush a little, even as she smiled brightly at the compliment. It really meant a lot to her, that he cared so deeply, and not for the first time she thought about Chase in ways that exceeded their working relationship. He truly meant so much to her, and Verónica didn't even know how she could ever fully thank him for all he did. She reached out to cup his cheek as she flashed him an appreciative smile. "You're too good to me," she said, running her thumb affectionately across his cheek. "Honestly, I know I said I wouldn't make it through all of this without Max and Bi, but truthfully I don't think I'd be half as sane as I am if you weren't always here with me." She said, her gaze holding his for a long lingering moment.

Then she pulled her hand away, humming in thought at his question as she sat back again. "Honestly I'd love to get like a cabin somewhere out in the woods - far from people and the city, just surrounded by nature. I've never gone camping and while I don't think I'd want to sleep in a tent, I would love to get like a cozy little cabin where I can snuggle up next to a fire at night with a good book and then in the day go for a relaxing hike or maybe even go for a swim in a crisp cool lake. Hmm, now that sounds like such a dream." she said with a wistful sigh. | @heroexxs

A wide smile played on Chase's lips as he gave her a playful nudge. "h no, you've caught me. I'm trying to get you to relax, and you think I just want a nice paid vacation." He teased. While he knew that some would treat it like a vacation, he didn't know if he could ever have a relaxing feeling while trying to protect her. No matter what the environment, he had to be on his guard at all times. As he continued to die into his food, he gave her another smile. "See? Even if we go do something just for a long weekend. Trust me, I've seen your schedule and I'd personally be losing it if I had to run around as much as you did." While he still followed her to all of her events, she was the whole show. She had to be on at all times and wasn't able to take a breath, which he knew he wouldn't be able to do.

"I think it defeats the purpose if I pick something." He tased again as he poked at his food. "But, if I had all the time in the world, and could go anywhere I'd probably head to a little tropical island or something. Somewhere quiet would be nice." Chase said with a small shrug as he looked back over at her. "Or I'd do the complete opposite and go to an amusement park." He teased as his smile widened. "I have to say, all the shit you do I admire you for... don't let this get to your head." He said with a playful nudge. She was one of the most hardworking people he had ever met. Not only could he tell that she loved what she did, but she loved the people who supported her through it. "But you know I've been around for a little while and I probably don't say it enough since I'm supposed to be seen and not heard." He teased once again.

"I'm proud of everything that you've done, I really am." The closer the two of them got to one another, the more Chase got to get a look into her world and see everything she loved to do. It also seemed to bring the two of them even closer together. As he gave her another smile as they sat on the couch, he went for seconds and grabbed some for her as well. "How about you? If you could take a little break from all of this and go somewhere, where would you want to go?"

ANA DE LA REGUERA as Elisa Alvaro in Narcos (2015-2017)

Desiree kept close beside him as they walked, her attention moving between the male and the radio tower off in the distance as he explained he had some idea how to use it. A kind of sounded more like a yes in the brunette's eyes. After all, it was more than she knew. "Well that's good news," Des said with a smile as she glanced down at Mia and rocked the little girl in her arms as she slowly fell asleep.

She returned her gaze to the path as Satinago warned her of it being slippery, making sure to take careful steps. "You think they would have gotten damaged all the way out here?" She asked, brows furrowing softly. The destruction from the bomber planes didn't seem to have reached this far out, from what she could see.

The he mentioned them checking it out together but that she'd have to leave Mia behind. Desiree frowned at that, shaking her head softly. "I can't leave her on her own - she's too little." She said, glancing down at the toddler. Not for the first time Desiree imagined what would have happened if she hadn't taken her. She imagined Mia all alone out there, scared and crying, completely vulnerable. It made the brunette's heart shatter and she held the little girl closer to her, feeling fiercely protective of her despite having never really had much desire to have kids before the bombing.

Before long they reached the cabin and Desiree felt another wave of relief wash over her. Her body was aching and she was exhausted, both from the journey and what little sleep she'd been getting since the attacks. She placed Mia down onto the worn sofa that sat in the room once she stepped inside, careful not to wake her. "Wow... this place is actually better than I thought it would be." she said, somewhat shocked. She glanced over at Santigo at his question, leaning on the back of the sofa as she contemplated his question. As much as she longed to close her eyes for a bit, her aching stomach seemed to demand more attention. "I think I'd like to eat something first if that's okay?" Most of the stuff she'd been able to scrounge up she'd given to Mia and it was definitely starting to take its toll on her. | @archxngxl

"Kind of." Santiago was a mechanic by trade and profession, and during his time at the lodge, he found that one of the towers operators used to live there. Along with him, was countless material about radio towers and other things. "One of the guys who used to live up at the lodge was one of the operators. And as far as I can see, it's not too damaged." Santiago held out hope that if he could get it working, he could get in touch with the military...or anyone for that matter.

Santiago moved towards a steep path, carefully making his way down. "It's slippery here, so be careful." He advised the other two as they followed him. "It's not gonna work if the cords are cut though." He informed Desiree. The conversation seemed more like small talk now, but Santiago missed that. Just being able to talk to people normally, being able to talk to people without the overbearing threat hanging over their heads.

"We can go and check it out together, but the kid would have to stay behind."

Within a few more minutes, the lodge came into view. Santiago relaxed a little bit, his cold hands aching to be near a fire. The autumn wind pierced through his skin, and Santiago did not dare to think of how the winter was going to be. Santiago climbed the wooden stairs, and opened the door for the two of them. "Make yourselves at home." The man tried to joke, but it came out more sad than funny. "You can sleep, if you'd like. I've got some stuff to eat, if you'd rather do that."

gimme a ‘ my boyfriend just up and dumped me out of nowhere and even though we share a place my name isn’t on the lease so to add salt to the wound he KICKED ME OUT so i call you crying and you immediately offer me a place to stay with you until i can get on my own feet and find my own place ‘ kind of plot. extras could include :

you were my previous ex and we were really good friends but i cut you off because my new ex didn’t like me being friends with you and i really wanted this to work.

you’re my now ex-boyfriend’s best friend who has always told him to treat me better and we actually became pretty good friends over the time of my relationship.

alternatively: you’re my now ex-boyfriend’s brother/sister who has always told him to treat me better and we actually became pretty good friends over the time of my relationship.

oh and did i mention that i just found out i was pregnant? no he doesn’t know!

Quick PSA: I'll be changing Indio's name to now be Ignacio "Iggy" Pérez on all threads moving forward and all tags have been switched.

His touch was a comfort Maité hadn't realized she so desperately needed at that very moment until he was wiping away her tears to alleviate her worries despite obviously going to a lot himself now that the news was broken to him. She'd half expected, and feared, that he would be angry about it. There was even a small part of her that had pictured him running as far away from her and this situation as he possibly could. But Miles did neither of those things and the brunette could feel her body slowly losing some of the tension she'd built up in anticipation for a fight. She sniffled, nodding softly when he mentioned that she had nothing to be sorry for, though she couldn't fully believe it. She was kicking herself for not being more careful, never thinking she'd be the type to get accidentally knocked up. If her mother was still in the picture, Maité imagined the older woman would have had an aneurysm finding out her daughter was pregnant out of wedlock.

Instead Maité focused on Miles as he cupped her face and assured her that they'd figure this out. She wanted to believe him but then again, most of the other obstacles didn't completely alter their life in the same way a child would. Still, Maité began to slowly start to let herself think that maybe this wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. Miles was not upset and was even supporting her - going so far as to say he'd go along with any choice she made. This made her stop to really ponder for a bit, thinking about those options she had, and what felt like the right thing to do. It was all so much though, so many thoughts rushing through her head, so many emotions. It was overwhelming.

Maité shook her head softly as she finally spoke. "I don't even know what I want.... I keep going back and forth, back and forth. It's just a lot to think about - I mean, this is going to completely change our lives." She glanced up to meet his gaze again, her dark gaze swimming with worry. They probably at best had about seven months to prepare if they did decide to go through with the pregnancy, which didn't feel like much time at all. At least based on the timeline of events that she thought had led to this situation, but of course couldn't say for sure until she saw her actual OB to find out how far along she was.

She closed her eyes as Miles pressed his lips to her forehead and gave no resistance when he pulled her into him. Maité rested her head against his chest, listening to the rhythmic thud of his heart beat, as her arms wrapped around his waist as she held onto him for support and to help keep her grounded. After a moment he spoke again, and Maité glanced up to see the look of revelation on his features. She signed softly, nodding against his chest. "In the room she made a comment about being excited for us to be able to do play dates soon enough, I didn't know what she meant so I asked her about it and the face Lily made was like she suddenly knew something I didn't and seemed shocked almost. She told me she'd noticed I'd been glowing and figured I was pregnant. It hadn't dawned on me until she said it - then I started freaking out. it seemed so obvious then but I hadn't even considered it at all up until that point." She confessed, a small frown sitting on her lips as she recalled the evening. "She gave me the test so I could check." | @heroexxs

Her question silenced him since he didn't have a solid answer for how they would be alright. So far his words were empty. All he hoped was that they would some sort of band-aid for the situation, that they would mean it together before they had to think about what they would do. "You don't have to be sorry, there's nothing to be sorry for..." He muttered as he cleaned her face once more. It was both of them, and if he could pinpoint a chain of events it seemed to lead back to when they were stuck in the car together. In all of their years of dating, he had never seen her like this before and it broke his heart to pieces. He knew whatever he said wouldn't fix this, and there weren't many options in front of them. All he could do was try and be there for her as much as he could.

They had only spoken about this in the car prior, just a quick conversation about possibly getting married and starting a family, but it seemed like fate had other plans for them. He could see the fear in her eyes and she just hoped that she couldn't see it in his. His heart was beating out of his chest and he could feel panic start to set into his body but he tried to keep as calm as possible. "We've figured out other shit before this, right?" He muttered as he cupped her face. "We can figure this out, too."

"Plus I... whatever you want to do, you know I'm right here." If it wasn't the right time to have a kid and if she didn't want to he'd be right by her side with whatever decision she wanted to make. "I don't know how, babe but... we could figure it out if you want to." He could just picture all the late nights, the crying, the diaper changing, but he did think of this whole idea of the small family that they'd have. Tonight was a great example that they could handle a baby, even if it was only for a couple of hours. As he tucked some hair behind her ear, he kissed the top of her head and pulled her close to his chest once again.

"... Shit, is this what you guys talked about when you were putting the baby down?" He muttered as he raised a little eyebrow. Ever since then her whole mood had shifted, but if they hadn't talked about it, he knew that they probably wouldn't have found out this soon. They'd just continue to think she was tired and just getting sick when really it was something else completely. "What's your gut telling you to do?"

Riz Ahmed photographed by Danny Kasirye for The Observer Magazine

She continued to eye the man wearily as she tried to read him, taking notice again about that coldness that radiated from him that seemed to put her on edge. There was something about it that was different from everyone else she'd come into contact with and it made Vanessa think more and more that he really wasn't just a regular guy.

Yet even still, despite all that, Vanessa didn't expect for the man to claim to be a vampire. She wasn't really sure what she had been expecting him to say, but she could say for a fact that vampire had never crossed her mind. It sounded silly, and the woman couldn't help but to start laughing, believing the man was trying to pull one on her. However, his expression made it pretty clear to Vanessa that he wasn't kidding.

Her smile quickly dropped again as her brows raised up in realization. "Wait...you're actually serious?"She said, obviously confused. If ghosts were real then was it really all that crazy that vampires could be too? It felt utterly ridiculous and yet somehow Vanessa couldn't shake the feeling that this was real. "You're a vampire?"

As he mentioned keeping to himself, it seemed to dawn on the woman that this completely changed things. He didn't seem to be planning on leaving despite knowing she was there and Vanessa wasn't sure what to make of this new situation. Questions began to spring forward in her mind as her new reality sank in. "Wait does that mean you.... kill people?" She asked, taking a caution step back despite the fact that she was already dead and he probably couldn't hurt her. probably. | @archxngxl

George nodded. "You'd be correct." The Irishmen looked down briefly. He was somewhat ashamed of what he was. A vampire, a beast that fed on people's blood. It was too much to accept then, and even now he had a hard time coming to terms with it. "Look, I did not mean to offend you. I bought this house, because it was on sale. Now I understand that your husband built this place, and I intent to treat it with respect." George didn't have many things anyway. All he needed was a bed, clean sheets and working utilities. Decorating seemed like a waste of time, and he much prefered the dreary walls.

"I can't really explain what I am to you, but I...." George knew he needed to tell her sooner or later, since they had become rather involuntary roommates.

"I'm a vampire." He confessed finally. "I don't mean to disturb you in anyway, I will keep to myself and you can keep your peace." George simply wanted to be left alone, to be left to rest for a bit. He found strange comfort in being alone, decades of it will do that to you.

THE LOVE WITCH

2016, dir. Anna Biller

Zareen's gaze returned to her suitcase, deciding at this point she no longer cared about her clothes being wrinkled, wanting to just finish and leave so that this conversation could be done and over with before things ended up worse. She figured most hotels had irons these days anyway. It wasn't ideal, but it was better than trying to stay and pretend things were fine when they were far from it. Even as Tylio spoke, trying to convince her they wouldn't lose the house, she kept her eyes in front of her. "You can't be sure of that." Her bottom lip from quivering as she spoke, clenching her jaw to try and stop it. To Zareen, it was just further proof of how little he seemed to grasp, or possibly even care, about how much of a big deal throwing away that much money was. She grasped the edge of her suitcase, gripping it tightly as she tried to keep her emotions from completely overwhelming her. Finally she turned to look back at her husband, a frown still resting on her lips. "Not unless you promise that you're going to stop gambling from here on out." Zareen added, already knowing what the likely answer to that was going to be.

Her brows pinched together as her expression shifted from wounded to apalled when he brought up her moving money to where he couldn't access it. She could feel the bitterness dripping off of his words and it caused to to grow defensive. His tone made it feel as if she'd done it to spite him, rather than the real fear that he might gamble away. "And if I hadn't found out, would that still be the case?" She shot back. "You lied and kept this from me all this time, Tylio - How could you stand there and expect me to trust you with our accounts again after that?" He had a problem, that much was obviously with or without her nursing licence, and while what Zareen had done might seem excessive, she would rather be safe than sorry, even if it hurt him. It wasn't as if she hadn't devastated herself to even have to make that choice in the first place. But what stung even worse now was hearing him pleading with her not to leave.

She stared at him for a long moment, feeling the internal turmoil between her heart and her head. She glanced down, shaking her head as she let out a hurt sigh. "I don't want to go either," she muttered softly before raising her eyes to meet his gaze again. "But I also don't want you to end up resenting me later for this - or vise versa." She paused, licking her lips before she continued. "I love you more than anything, Tylio... but I don't know anymore that you feel the same." | @tyliocellier

The more she argued, the guiltier he felt and it made him panic a bit. Because she was right. There was a very real chance they may lose the house if he kept on going like this. It was strange, during moments like this one he could not for the life of him understand why he ever thought it was a good idea to walk into a casino. But whenever he passed by those shiny doors, whenever he saw the blinking lights inside and heard the sounds of those slot machines, it was like something possessed him. He had a problem. So far he'd been able to hide it because he had a decent job with a good salary, but now the money was starting to run out. Probably better she found out before all the money was gone. They still had some savings left that he hadn't gotten into yet. Part of him was insulted that she'd moved it to a different account, and yet another part of him could see that he had basically left her no choice. "We're not going to lose the house. Okay? We aren't. Zareen, please..." He reached out, intending to touch her arm but changing his mind halfway through when he noticed the way she was looking at him. There was so much hurt in her eyes...he didn't think he had ever felt so horrible.

"There is still money", he blurted out, because it was the only thing he could think of to say that might calm her down. It was what he always told himself too, whenever he'd gambled away another couple thousand. "Most of it is in your name now, I cannot touch it anyway..." He didn't mean for it to sound resentful, but it did. It bothered him that he had no access to most of their funds right now, it bothered him that she didn't have enough trust in him to handle their money. He still had some money of his own, and he was still working but there was indeed a tiny part of him that was angry. Because how was he ever going to earn back the money he gambled away, if he had no more money to gamble? On some level, he was still holding onto the hope that maybe if he just got lucky one time, he could win back everything and this whole problem would go away. Rationally, he knew this was not true. There was no 'big win' to magically solve all their problems. He just needed it to be true. "I'm sorry. I know this is shameful. And if you want to manage the money, fine, so be it, I don't care. Just please don't go like this. If you have to leave, at least let me bring you to the hotel."

A frown set deep into Kyle's features as he heard Angel's softly spoken words. His gaze moved over the large marks again and felt a shiver run up his spine as his bad feelings only seemed to grow. They had to get out of here and fast, hopefully with some supplies in hand but either way, the officer knew he didn't want to linger for too long.

As they made their way into the other room, Kyle was quick to start scouring the already picked over room for anything of use. He was pulling drawers, pushing papers around, checking under items strewn across the floor. "Shit," he muttered under his breath as he came up with nothing. At the sound of Angel's voice, Kyle raised his head in her direction, shooting his hand out to take the tossed item before he even had a chance to see what it was. Glancing down into his open palm, he saw it was an aid kit and quickly clipped it onto his utility belt. "Thanks," he said with a small smile.

"Ain't much left it seems." He mused aloud, sighing as he smoothed a hand over his curls that had fallen into his face in his search for supplies. Before he could open his mouth to say anything further, as sound just outside the room pulled his attention.

Whipping his head in the direction of the door, Kyle cautiously stepped back, raising his empty pistol towards the direction of the sound growing increasingly nearer. His foot collided with something and he heard the sound of clattering metal against the floors. Eyes shooting towards the floor, he saw a mag laying on the ground. Reaching for it, Kyle rose as he pushed in the mag, the click as it locked into place was a welcomed relief in the stressful moment. He aimed it towards the door, poised and ready to shoot anything that came at them. The sound drew closer and closer. "Is this our only exit out of the building?" He asked her in a whisper, basically trying to gauge how fucked they were.| @archxngxl

"I have no fucking idea." Angel whispered back. While she speculated it had something to do with the monster that was chasing her, Angel wondered if it could be something else entirely. Great, another monster to kill. The brunette didn't have a lot of hope that the armory would have much, officers probably took all that they could before either running for their lives or meeting an early death. "Let's just hope they have bullets." Angel commented. She moved towards the registry, looking into drawers and moving papers. Inside one drawer, she found a packet of bullets for her pistol, and a first aid spray. A small wave of relief hit her, it was the small things that got her through the day.

"Think fast." Angel chucked the first aid towards Kyle. Most people would be greedy with their supplies, but not Angel. She understood that others needed help too. Besides, she had more than enough supplies to last her for a long time.

"We need to get in touch with someone. Find out where the rescue is gonna land." The broadcast simply said any survivors meet at the police station, and as far as Angel could see, it was just her and Kyle. A sound came from the hallway, the sound of someone groaning. Angel readied her gun, she was going to blow whoever it was sky high. "Get away from that door..."

can we talk about this for a moment

Tigerlily found her grin growing even wider when the bartender mentioned that she worked her for an ego boost. "Well if that's the case, then you should try getting up on the stage sometime. It's a real rush to see everyone's eyes on you and hear the cheers of approval. It's the ultimate ego boost." she chuckled. Tilly imagined that Monique would look amazing on stage and do killer at. She could envision it vividly and the images brought on a smirk. "I know I'd pay to see it." She added in a more velvety tone as she took another drink.The blonde could feel jitters of both excitement and nerves start to build up inside her as she got herself prepared back stage. She wasn't normally the type to get nervous before a performance but this wasn't just another night at the club. This was showing off for the first time a routine that she had taken great pride in and she was getting to share it with the beautiful bartender that had been on much of the blonde's mind over the last couple months. She had an idea in mind - deciding now was no better time than ever to take things a step further from just casual flirting. No, now her goal was to seduce the gorgeous woman.

The track began to play, a sexy jazz number coming through the speakers as Tilly made her way out from behind the curtain. She swayed her hips to and fro as she made her way across the stage, warming up the other woman with a bit of dancing and teasing before slowly peeling away the layers of her outfit, tossing them one by one and she went through the routine. She never took her eyes off Monique as she stripped, feeling those excited jitters grow even more with each passing moment. Her big finale came when she was down to her panties and some matching heart shaped pasties. She was supposed to do a cartwheeling right into the splits and throw her hands up for the big applause, instead she stepped beside the bartender in her chair, placing a hand on the back rest before she twirled her leg over it, settling herself onto Monique's lap but not fully sitting, as the song faded to a close. "So-" she said between heavy breaths from the exertion, staring right into the woman's eyes. "What did you think?" | @ritualixtic

"Goddess, huh? I like the sound of that," Monique teased with a little scrunch of the nose. In any other scenario, Monique would have pressed for a detailed description of what the goddess entailed, but considering the effect the blonde had on her, the bartender didn't think it would be wise to follow her usual route. It was one of the most exciting parts of her interactions with Tilly —having someone win at a game she prided herself on having mastered. "I suppose it's about time. I confess the only reason I come here night and night again is the ego booster I get from the cascade of compliments serving drinks grants me." Then, leaning forward as if about to confess a sinful secret, she added, "One thing you should know about me is that I'm very conceited." A musical little laugh preceded a shameless wink. Monique had never been shy; she wasn't about to start now. No matter how much her cheeks wanted to tint red in the presence of the dancer.

While Monique wasn't the kind of person that usually found pouting endearing, she had to admit that coming from the blonde it was rather charming. And so, a light, hearty laugh managed to escape through her otherwise closed lips. "I'd like to think of myself as a very gorgeous knight in shinning armour," she winked, adding an extra dose of exaggeration to it to make the teasing obvious. "Honest is my second name," she jested, already rounding the counter to grab a seat in front of the stage. Nodding, even though it was unlikely the dancer would be able to see it, Monique worked on getting comfortable for the show. When the blonde's beautiful face peeked out of the curtain, she let out the loudest wolf whistle she had ever been able to conjure, aiming for her best impersonation of Tigerlily's devoted fans. "Was born ready, baby!" She shouted back, laughing, as she waited for the music to start.