Adrien Glances At The Crowd, Then Back To Muz.

"I can definitely handle that," Lucas replies with a snicker.

He looks up at Ana, smirk softening to a smile.

"And I appreciate you. Lesbian drama and all, because I know you've got my back too."

Anastasia smirks back, crossing her arms and giving Lucas a playful nudge. "Exactly. I expect a perfect balance of polite intimidation and subtle protectiveness. Think you can handle that?”

She raises an eyebrow, teasing. "I need you to be just threatening enough to keep her on her toes but not so much that she thinks she’s about to get ambushed every time she looks at you." With a laugh, she adds, “But really, you’ve always had my back and I appreciate you."

RAFAEL SILVA — via Instagram (2024)

Lucas feels a slight ache in his chest as they walk hand in hand. He didn't realize how much he missed this. Walking with Rae. Being with Rae.

"Hey," he says, soft but firm. "You are important."

They turn a corner, and they can see their houses. Only a couple of other residents between them. It had been a little awkward at first after the breakup, but then they eased into comfortable. Being close was comforting.

"I know you can. I just want to help like I used to. Moving bodies around. I saw how many you still had to do. That will definitely take forever on your own."

for most of the walk he couldn't stop looking down at his hands, constantly making sure the blood hadn't returned. that it was just a figment of his imagination. sometimes rae wondered if it was the town or his own sanity slipping.

it's ok. it wasn't, but having lucas' hand in his helped quiet the constant urge to check. he spent the rest of the walk relatively fine.

“luc, i don’t want to keep you from more important things,” he protested. "and don't say what i know you're going to say. i can handle it on my own, today was just...tough."

Lucas raises an eyebrow. Ana had said the talk with Cam had gone... as well as can be expected for the two women.

"I can do that, but I'm still going to tell her what's going on. She'd skin me alive if I didn't."

He can see on Cam's face that she's in the same emotional boat as Ana; which is to say: an old dinghy that's got more leaks than boards in the middle of the ocean.

"Maybe I should just take this all to Santi," he tries, testing how Cameron will react. He reaches for the folders he'd just placed down.

cameron nodded, "yeah, i have a feeling that the next few days are going to have a lot of work in store for us." they've never seen a storm like this before, who knows what slipped through the cracks when they were all locked inside for twelve hours. there were bound to be things they missed and wont even know about until they do a full count of everything in town. more work. "no let's just keep focusing on keeping everyone calm. no need to scare anyone and have people panicking." she could only imagine how some people would react if they saw the deputies doing rounds and watching them. "but hey, um, if something big comes up, can you come to me or santiago first? ana...she's dealing with a lot right now, i don't want too much going on her plate." she thought back to the things she told her at the bar and how defeated she was about everything. she wasn't sure what was going on between them but she will always look out for her wife.

Adrien gasps for air and drops to the floor since it's easier than standing at the moment. He weakly takes the water bottle and tries to slurp some water. It interrupts his breathing, so he stops soon after.

"Running with you was a mistake," he says between breaths. "I swear I thought I was in shape."

status: open to all. (0/3.) location: colony house.

the warmth of her forehead is slicked with sweat and decorated by strands of black hair that have fallen afoul of their usual tidiness. panting heavily, nic saunters through the colony house's front door and over to the closest available surface to sit on. limbs ache from overuse, making settling a slow process that's paired with a grunt of exertion. it's only once she's resting shaky legs that she finally looks up to make sure her workout partner has filed in behind her. in a surprising change from her regular stoic expression, nic lets her eyes soften and a smile grace her features. apparently, the way to her heart is through keeping up during a run.

"good goin'. how're you feelin'?" if she's tired, she reckons her companion's probably about ready to collapse. which is why she offers up the bottle of water she'd saved for this very moment. "here."

Adrien instinctually checks his pockets, though he knows he doesn't have matches or a lighter. He does have his mini-tool kit, though.

"Uh, hold on, actually." He pulls out the kit and grabs a couple of things from it. Then, he picks up a streamer that had fallen to the ground and rips a piece off. With some creativity, he manages to light the piece and then holds it up to the joint to light for the guy.

"There we go," he says proudly. "Mind if I take a hit too?"

He'd smoked at a couple of parties. It wasn't something he needed, but he likes the experience sometimes.

to: open event starter! (0/4)

“Got a light?” The words came out rougher than intended, the night pressing its familiar weight on him. Events like these typically followed the same routine: dress up, show up, drift through the crowd with vague nods to faces he was sure he’d seen before, toss back a healthy amount of shots, and then dive into conversations that inevitably twisted into something painfully awkward. This was a loop he coped with by fading into the background and finding some dark corner to lose himself in, if only to spare others from the cloud of smoke he’d bring along.

Tonight, though, he felt the strangeness more acutely. Maybe it was the ridiculous outfit his friends had convinced him to wear. Icarus—because apparently, that’s who he was. Light D’Angelo, the fallen star, tumbling back to earth after drifting too close to fame’s burning heat. A halo of golden twigs sat precariously on his head, while makeshift wings drooped from his shoulders, and golden leaves circled his bicep like some half-hearted tribute to mythology. The costume was more a collection of scavenged scraps than an actual outfit—an oversized white shirt knotted around his waist to resemble a toga, doing little to keep out the night chill. Still, the alcohol coursing through his veins dulled the cold.

He twirled the small blunt between his fingers, lingering against the doorframe as he finally turned to the stranger nearby. The words came out low, almost conspiratorial as he raised the blunt.

“We’ll keep it our little secret for the night.”

Lucas nods and places a handbon Mara's shoulder, gently guiding her away from the loud part of the party and toward the stairs.

"So, when do you think you'll be convinced to actually dress up for this?"

He asks it teasingly, not wanting to hurt her feelings, though he doubts he can, at least about this.

she was grateful lucas knew that she wouldn't understand the reference, but even with his explanation, she was still lost. sometimes she hated how little she knew about the world outside of this place. what was it like to watch tv and movies? "oh, okay," she says simply because she doesn't know what else to say to him.

when he offers to take her somewhere quiet, she nods enthusiastically, wanting nothing more than to get away from this party. "yes please."

Tanner Buchanan photographed by The Emma Experience, 2020

"I'll drink to that," he says, raising his glass to tap Cherry's, then sips some water.

"So I hope I'm not making bad assumptions right now," he says sheepishly, "but you give off the vibe that you know. What's the hook up scene here like? Mostly straight? There any gay or bi guys around here?"

Not that he's desperate for sex but since he's embracing himself more here, it's only fitting he check if he can.

" YOU'RE WELCOME ." cherry replies with a nod, although she truly wasn't expecting to be thanked . that said, she won't say no to it, beaming broad and warm at adrien's compliment . " oh, stop ." cherry replies as she gives him a playful shove to the shoulder . nonetheless she does flick her hair over her shoulder to lightly say, " i know . m'gonna age fuckin' great too ." she shrugs before moving to take another sip of her drink with a simple, " if we don't get fuckin' eaten in this place at least we're both gonna be hot in our old age ."