but-theylovehim

[but-theylovehim]

travis tried his best to wipe the concern that was clearly etched onto his face off. he wasn't supposed to be dwelling. look on the bright side, right? everything was fine. even the docs were saying so. travis tried again to flash him a reassuring grin. "i know, i know... you've got this. which is good 'cause i don't know how many more wheel barrows worth of 'get well soon' cards i can collect for ya from the shrine. i mean...," he paused before laughing- "no, i mean shrine."

where: henrik's place who: open

henrik slowly made his way over to his sofa and carefully lowered himself to take a seat. he let out a huff of a breath, still feeling the effects from his time in hospital. "it's fine...i'm okay" he answered when he saw the concerned look from the person across from him "it's taking longer than usual thanks to my heat condition. the doctors said i'll be good in no time"

[but-theylovehim]

Pumpkin spiced season was in full swing and Travis was definitely distracting himself with errands. The more he had to do, the less time he had to think. The less time he had to worry. He'd just got done delivering some very hefty pumpkins to a couple of neighbours when he spotted Sally. Never one to turn down the opportunity to help out, his sleeves were practically rolled up already---

"Sally? Everything alright? Y'need a hand with anything- I've got, at least, two."

@happieststarters

Sally could feel herself almost vibrating with excitement. It was the momentous occasion of the changing of the guard, swapping the Labor Day decorations for the exuberant display of the upcoming Halloween season. Halloween, what glorious holiday, Sally thought with a wide smile, quickly bringing all the boxes with the old but timeless trinkets, along with the new arrivals, to the front of the shop to begin preparing the windows.

Only once she got to work, she noticed a nasty surprise on the front window. Someone had graffitied an elaborate cuss in bright neon yellow letters. Sally huffed. She ran to the little storage room in the back, picked up a rag and went outside to rub and wipe and scrub the words away.

[but-theylovehim]

Travis had been spending a lot of time at Dezi... Ree's place, lately. Ever since the unspeakable 3AM incident. Ever since the news broke about Henrik in the papers that Travis had delivered to the neighbours. Even right now, in these wild winds, he was carrying a bag of full of strawberries and fresh ground coffee beans that way.

He'd been pretty focused on not letting the bag blow away that he almost didn't spot Ella. "What?" he yelled back to little results. Making his way over to her, hair flying in every direction imaginable, Travis furrowed his brow-- "Hey, are you okay?"

“I could really use a hug right now.” Ella Fontaine whispered the words to herself as the wind howled outside her window, rattling the old panes of glass. The storm had come out of nowhere, much like the chaos in her life recently. She pulled the sleeves of her oversized sweater over her hands, trying to ward off the chill creeping through her bones, but it wasn’t the cold that made her shiver.

It was the weight of everything.

Her heart felt heavier than the storm clouds overhead, weighed down by secrets she never meant to carry, promises she couldn’t keep. she glanced at a photo on the mantle, one of her stepsisters hugging their mother. How long had it been since they last spoke?

With a shaky breath, Ella curled up in the corner of the couch, wishing more than anything that someone—anyone—was there to tell her it was going to be okay. But the room remained silent, save for the wind.

It was time she faced the storm. So she went outside. The wind was strong, and a part of her knew she shouldn't be out here, but as strong as the wind was so were the thoughts raging in her head and with the storm she actually felt like she could breathe again. It was then when she noticed a figure. "You should head back!" she yelled barely noticable due to the wind.

@happieststarters

[but-theylovehim]

Travis Montgomery lived on the bright side, y'know? It was no secret to anyone in Redwood Hollow. So, when news spread fast that Henrik was in the hospital... He'd done everything he could to keep spirits up. He even endorsed the overly dramatic, drove-Phil-nuts, 'shrine' that was put in place at the gym for Henrik. There were candles, energy bars, sweat bands-- the works. Laugh or cry, right? That's what it came down to as they waited for him to wake up.

Because he had to wake up.

He hadn't realised quite how much that sentiment, that hope, had been holding him together until he was sitting by Henrik's side in the hospital. Of course he'd had people in and out all day. Everyone loved Henrik. Who wouldn't love Henrik? Travis had never thought the worst, he couldn't. He knew Henrik would wake up and when those first three words left his lips, Travis almost sobbed.

Instead, with tears glistening in his eyes, he moved closer to his side-- "The day the town renames after you, bro. This is gonna go down as a national holiday, just you wait." And then, in a much smaller voice-- "Are you okay?"

not much was remembered by henrik. the last thing he remembered was going about his usual day and coming down with some flu. the flu was the worst one he'd ever had, so much so he spent days holed up in his house and tried to fight it off. that was it. that was the last thing he really remembered from the whole thing.

odd dreams and high fevers were intertwined in his brain. the came in waves, they came in tsunamis.

his body ached and his skin screamed in agony. his eyes burning when they took in light for the first time in thirty-two days. while the nurses did their jobs tending to him, doctors came in to give henrik a check over and gave henrik some sunglasses to wear to allow his eyes time to adjust to the harsh hospital lighting. his head felt fuzzy, nothing quite clicked together the way it should. something felt off. then the news came. he was poisoned, and he was poisoned in an aggressive manner. had henrik kept up whatever was poisoning him he very likely wouldn't have been in the bed waking up, it was a stroke of luck that he had apparently passed out before taking whatever it was that was there to wipe him out.

"wh-what day is it?"

[but-theylovehim]

"I dunno what else to tell ya, that's just what I heard."

"What do you mean there aren't any chicken nuggets left?"

[but-theylovehim]

"Better safe than sorry, huh?" Travis gave a sympathetic smile and a little salute to her car they were leaving behind. He waited for Fig to clip in her seat belt, flashing a grin in response. In the back of his mind though, he was trying to remember if he knew what 'S.O.L' meant... Was this what a midlife crisis felt like?

"No worries, it happens to the best of us. Give it 'til tomorrow, I'm sure you'll be back up and running before you know it," he encouraged. "Me? Good, good. Ms Hart's got his working what feels like quadruple time at the firm but ah, I can't complain. Maybe legally... I'd have to read my contract again. How's about you, kid? Car trouble aside."

Fig looked over the car again. This was out of her wheelhouse, which did not go too far past jumping a dead battery, and changing tires and oil. Travis was right, this was far more a job for Gogo.

Fig gave an annoyed, frustrated sigh. This was looking to be one garbage day. She appreciated the company though.

"Yeah, let's get going before it gets too slippery out." Fig got into the car and adjusted her seat belt.

"Thank you by the way," She said, "I'm not annoyed at you, just so you know, just S.O.L. How have you been?"

[but-theylovehim]

"you're somethin' special, you know that, fawn?" he smiled back (not that she could see it). a little kindness goes a long way... she really believed it too which made him smile more.

he paused at her question, subtly (at least he thought so) trying to squeeze his shoulders back out from where they were. he eyed the pipe under the sink-- who knew this was his greatest enemy all along? damn it. travis let out a sigh, setting the wrench in his hands down in what little space there was under there.

"i'm not gonna lie to you fawn... i am very much stuck under here."

"nothing wrong with being a softie" she smiled down at him "the world's harsh enough, a little kindness goes a long way"

while she waited on travis emerging from the bowels of the sink, fawn went about pouring a drink for herself and him, it was the least she could do for him after he had been fixing the sink. "lucky me" she had always found travis to be charming, he always knew what to say. that paired with his good looks was both a winning and dangerous combination. fawn raised an eyebrow at his sudden change of heart "travis? ar-are you stuck under there?"

[but-theylovehim]

Travis was sound asleep.

His face was half-smooshed into his pillow, hair a mess, duvet haphazardly kicked off to the side while his left leg had no regard for any monsters under the bed. In the middle of another sweet dream, he started to stir. Travis’ phone was tucked under his pillow, but it was on loud.

You know, just in case…

The first notification PING! might not have done the trick but the second and third sure did. His arms flailed, knocking over the contents of his bedside table. If there was a way to wake gracefully, Travis hadn’t learned it yet. On the third attempt, he managed to paw the light on enough to find his phone.

Squinting, he could just about make out the D-E-Z on the screen before unlocking it.

Now, he’d already decided he’d deny it if pressed but he listened to those voice notes in reverse order.

To be fair, nothing about –  “You can just ignore it. Seriously! Everything is actually fine. Go back to sleep or fixing your car or whatever, just pretend you didn’t even see anything. Bye! Goodnight! Fu–” sounded okay.

Travis was shoving on his shoes to the unfiltered demands of – “DON’T LISTEN TO THAT LAST MESSAGE IT WASN’T SUPPOSED TO SEND IT WAS ACTUALLY AN ACCIDENTAL RECORDING AND IT’S NOT IMPORTANT!!!” and pouring freshly brewed coffee into a thermos to the rest. 3AM was a dangerous time to speak your mind. Things didn’t count at 3AM. She didn’t say ‘I need you’ but she didn’t have to. The very fact that Deziree Tremaine had picked up her phone in the first place spoke volumes.

Travis’ heart squeezed in his chest. He couldn’t start the car so late so instead, he was skateboarding down the quiet streets of Redwood Hollow, in his pyjamas. Hopefully, Mrs Hasagawa was asleep and wouldn’t peek out her curtains.

It wasn’t lost on him that he and Deziree had been dancing around each other for a long time now. He wanted to be there for her, and he played the part well. He could be the hero; he could swoop in just in the nick of time. He could linger a little too long as he clipped expensive, sentimental, gifts around her neck. He could even kiss her – sort of – under the ‘get out of jail free’ card of masquerade.

Because it didn’t have to count, right? Because she could always deny it.

The distance between them now was a fingertip’s.   

But here’s the truth: Travis wasn’t the hero.

He wasn’t Prince Charming; he couldn’t save the day. He tried – he tried very hard. He performed. He was a fraud. At least, he felt like a fraud. Who was he to pretend that he could be there for her? That he could be stable and trustworthy? That he could be someone who was worthy of… The word faltered, dying on the tip of his tongue.

Despite the doubt, he was still showing up.

Travis thought about Deziree, a lot. He used to like pushing her buttons. He liked the snark, the haughty outrage. He saw the selfishness, the impenetrable, designer, armour wrapped around her. And it was all in good fun, right?

Until it wasn’t.

Travis didn’t have to hear it in her voice to know she was hurt, that she was in pain. That she was lost. That she’d had something once – however good or bad – and now she didn’t. He knew that look; he knew that feeling.  

It was 3AM and Deziree had been too honest, she’d been too vulnerable. It didn’t have to count; he’d take her lead on that, but he had to show up. He wanted to.

And here he was.

It was 2am. How the hell was it already 2am? How the hell was it only 2am? Deziree should have been asleep at least 4 hours ago! Beauty sleep was a highly valued commodity when you could no longer afford Botox and the 111SKIN Celestial Black Diamond Eye Cream. Why wasn't she sleeping?!?!

Ah, that's right. She couldn't. Her stupid brain would not shut the fuck up. Every time she closed her eyes, something else reminded her of another something else, and another, and another, until her whole brain was very, very, very loud and oh-- were those tears?

The 111SKIN Celestial Black Diamond Eye Cream couldn't even save you from those. Not from the tears, or the necklace, or the kiss, or Charlotte La Bouff, or that other blonde, or--or-- Maybe she should dye her hair? Go Kardashian blonde or something. Oh my God, but the box dye! Ew! God, her life was so over!!

What would her mom say? Did it matter what mom would say? Eugh, of course it matter. It had been so long, and still, as ever, Deziree did not know who she was without mom's heavy stare and marked words.

She was basically a failure, if mom could call her something. All that practise to get a man, get money, have status, and here she was barely making her car payments and hung up on a no-name boy who was (at least in Deziree's eyes) interested in everyone and anyone. God forbid mom finds out about the buttons...

The truth was, despite her personal failings, she couldn't stop thinking about stupid Travis Montgomery in amongst how absolutely desperate she was to just fall asleep.

She couldn't help but think about that kiss, hidden beneath a dark veil in the corner of a party, or the necklace that was stuffed in a box at the back of a drawer. She couldn't help but think about the coffee, or the car ride, or... Anastasia puking in the back of said car. Ew! Way to ruin the moment again, Stas!

Deziree could only hope there wasn't another phone call to go pick her sister up tonight, because tiredness and driving wasn't a good combo, even if she could use someone's shoulder to cry on. She sure as shit wasn't going to wake up Ella at this hour.

It was 2am and Deziree was exhausted. She was hysterical. She was delirious okay?! Deziree did the unthinkable.

She picked up her phone, found his name, and hit record on what was only supposed to be a short, to the point voice note. "Hey, this is--"

Sniff.

"--This is gonna sound really stupid, but, like, um, do you remember that, uh, that one time that you came by to pick me up because Stas was a riot and you were like hey, anytime, no problem bestie? And there was coffee and you saw my-- nevermind! Not that point. The point is-- I don't know what the point is. The point is! That-- Look, I know it's like 3am and you're probably sleeping or off, I don't know, like making out with someone or fixing a car or something but I can't stop-- I can't-- I can't sleep."

Just enough pause for a deep inhale.

"I can't sleep and it's driving me nuts and I don't even know what I'm saying or why I'm even making this voice note or-- no. No, I do. You said if I needed you I should call you and... I know this isn't technically a call but..."

And an exhale.

"But if you're awake, I wouldn't mind..."

And thus, the voice note went on for a further 3 minutes, becoming no clearer as time went on.

Whoosh.

Turns out, holding your thumb on the record button for 5 minutes is quite tiring and... whoosh! The message sent the moment her too-tired finger was released.

Gasp.

The post-send clarity was a bit too real...

Oh no! Oh no, no, no! That wasn't supposed to send! Shit!! Shit, shit, shit, delete, delete, please del-- It's fine, he's not online! It's fine, this is-- wait-- he's online, why is he online?! Why is he online at 3 in the morning?! Deleeeeete!!

Deziree's heart-rate spiked well above safe levels when the read receipt lit up blue. The only thing she could possibly do was send another voice note to make it absolutely clear that he should not listen to the first voice note! (He'd seen it, she couldn't delete it yet. Then he'd know something was wrong!!)

"DON'T LISTEN TO THAT LAST MESSAGE IT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO SEND IT WAS ACTUALLY AN ACCIDENTAL RECORDING AND IT'S NOT IMPORTANT!!!"

And another.

"You can just ignore it. Seriously! Everything is actually fine. Go back to sleep or fixing your car or whatever, just pretend you didn't even see anything. Bye! Goodnight! Fu--"

If her life wasn't already over, it certainly was now...

@but-theylovehim

[but-theylovehim]

"unstoppable. i like that, we should get that printed on a couple of t-shirts, make 'em the look of the summer," travis joked. he couldn't help but smile as she excitedly detailed designers, hands clapping and all. there was something entirely infectious about the joy of lottie labouff. she could light the darkest day. and she deserved better than what she was getting.

not that it was his business.

"alright, you make a strong and compelling argument. my 'moulin rouge' is overruled for another night. me, you and tybalt's belt are about to have a ball." he leaned against the sofa, watching as she got up to get their drinks.

he made a show of thinking it over, humming and mm'ing before flashing a grin. "well, there is a bottle of some fancy pants champagne in the fridge. why don't we crack it open? give romeo and juliet the send off it deserves."

"we've ascended to a higher power. we're unstoppable." a movie night was just what she needed and she couldn't thank travis enough for arranging the whole thing. she had even been tucked into the blanket, it was perfect. for the duration of two films charlotte la bouff had forgotten about hans sør, and she laughed and shouted her way right through to the credits.

"we have to go with the baz luhrmann version, it's the best version just for the fashion alone. that custom dolce and gabbana vest that tybalt wears? pure genius!" she said, clapping her hands happily. "we should save 'moulin rouge' for another time, 'romeo and juliet' will have me crying enough"

she smiled and nodded her head "i'll get these ones, you were good enough to get the last ones. what would you like?"

[but-theylovehim]

"we'll have to wait for nanny's day in court but to be fair, i don't see anyone on the jury moving to convict. she'll have them eatin' out her paws in no time," he grinned. "love to hear it! ah, y'know, walking on sunshine. another beautiful day, right?"

"nanny isn't a fuzzy troublemaker, she's an angel and you can't prove otherwise" she smiled while nanny darted around having the time of her life. "i've been well, thank you. how have you been?"

[but-theylovehim]

@notasweetnightingale

[but-theylovehim]

"yeah, yeah--- ella's sister," he nodded. travis paused then, turning the words over in his head. "deziree is... me and deziree are--- we've been... i don't really know how to put it. i've kinda, sorta, been having a thing with her."

"i'll be sure to update it for future reference" he smiled. travis trying to explain himself had henrik concerned for his bro. travis also knew what to say and whatever was bothering him seemed to really have him flustered. "ella's sister? yeah, what about her?"

[but-theylovehim]

Travis felt like he'd missed the mark, like he wasn't making a very good first impression. He was almost sure he could turn this around though. This was salvageable, right? He'd do a really good job with the sink if nothing else. "Right, of course. I, um, I'm sorry for your loss and for-- I didn't mean to over-step," he apologised. "It really is a great place."

He nodded in response, taking in another breath as he started climbing the stairs. Stay cool, stay breezy. Then again, he doubted 'cool and breezy' would impress someone like Guinevere Bach.

"Hey, if there's anything else you need... I mean, after the sink, just let me know. I don't mind putting in the extra time, if you need it."

.

Guinevere slowly tilted her head, with the tiniest turn of the corner of her lips, as she assessed Mr Montgomery. Respectful. She liked that. And it was clear he was rather intimidated by her. She liked that too.

Her faint smile faded away at the mention of Sofia. Of course he knew Sofia. Maybe this was one of the dozens of crushes the girl insisted on babbling on about to her. "Yes, just us. Ever since my husband tragically passed away," she replied languidly along with a sigh. No need to get into further details. "... It's been just us."

To his next question, she simply bowed her head and gestured forward towards the stairs. "After you."

[but-theylovehim]

"peace, love and daisies," he smiled back. travis always had time for fawn and who wouldn't, right? she was a ray of sunshine. "i'll take two for my trouble but only if you'll join me?"

thankfully she had managed to avoid knocking his phone out of his hand. fawn let out a laugh at him, feeling shy all of a sudden. "i'm all about keeping the peace. please, feel free to take as many cookies as you'd like" she offered.

[but-theylovehim]

"Loose pipe-," he answered, finally breathing the fresh air from the outside. At long last, Travis got to his feet, his body protesting. If he'd been down there any longer, he might have fused with the sink. "Like i said though, it's all goo-----"

BOOM!

Before he could finish the sentence, there was suddenly water spurting out at them, the pipe burst underneath the sink. Shit. Wherever Lilo was, he hoped she was running fast. "I can fix that."

A voice from the kitchen floor startled Nani so thoroughly that a nearby tray of snacks went toppling to the floor, taken down by a karate chopping spin with her dish towel.

"AH! What the fu-- Travis?!" Nani had so many questions. "Why are you-- What? What happened to the sink?"

[but-theylovehim]

Travis let out a laugh, holding us hands up- "You caught me red handed, Ella. I'm an open book and you've got the advanced reader copy." He shot her a grin, quirking a brow when she said 'date'. "Ooh, a date? And a fashionable one at that! Can I ask who the lucky person is?"

"I have a feeling I'm getting to know you, Travis, and it seems that making you blush is not that difficult." She teased. "Thank you it is in fact one of my designs, not as grand as my other designs but i wanted to not outshine my date!"

[but-theylovehim]

Handsome. That spelled trouble more than her charm, more than her jokes. Travis knew how you ran a game and while it might have been a lifetime ago, he knew when he was about to be played. But what could he do? What could good ole Travis Montgomery do? If he was lucky, he'd manage to fumble his way out of this one. So, he took a breath and flashed a grin, hoping lady luck would show today.

"Hello yourself. Ah, working hard and barely holdin' on-," he laughed, re-balancing Simon from accounts' mochachino. "How's things going in the land of journalism? I bet you're run off your feet keeping this town honest." Travis let out a nervous laugh when she hit him with the question. Hook, line and sinker.

This was it, the big dance. He eyed Simon's coffee one last time before looking back to her. "Of course, anything you need. I'm all ears."

.

As interesting as Alba's little interview was, Chelsea knew with whom she needed to talk. Mr Montgomery was another intern, but his charisma, friendliness and overall way he carried himself told her that he might know a little bit more than the average Hart Law Firm employee.

"Well hello there, handsome!" Chelsea called with a wide smile when she fortunately ran into him. "Long time no see! I'm doing good, thank you for asking. How are you? Working hard, or hardly working?" she joked, glancing down at everything the poor guy had been tasked with carrying. Politeness first of all, at least at the beginning of every conversation. Oftentimes, as the discussion went on and she started to lightly press a few sensitive buttons, some people weren't as courteous. And, if you don't treat Chelsea with respect, you'd be hard-pressed to expect any from her.

"You're very busy, as I can see," she said, gesturing at his overall current situation. "But I was wondering, can you spare a minute or two to answer your favorite journalist's few questions?"