darpow

[darpow]

"I do my best," he said with a bright smile. Which was true, Darrius tried to be many things in his life, and a good friend was definitely near the top of that list, at all times. "Yes," he nodded solemnly, "they're awful, and to be honest, we should probably never speak of them... I don't want to summon that energy." Football rivalries could be a bizarre thing, but when you were a diehard fan, you didn't really want to take your chances, he knew.

"You're a good friend," Sylvia giggled. Not everyone was willing to entertain their friends, sometimes strange, beliefs. It was always fun for her though, bringing others into her beliefs. Sometimes it was even more interesting hearing the skeptics point of view. She burst out laughing at the mention of Green Bay fans. "Is Green Bay like.. mortal enemy to Chicago?" Look, she knew it was football, but that was about as far as her knowledge went.

[darpow]

"I don't envy you in those situations," he shook his head. It felt like the kind of thing that someone would want to avoid -- butting heads with the subject of your article. Darrius was happy reading the articles in the paper and letting those who could handle that kind of thing have all of the… fun, if that was what they wanted to call it. "Oh! See, that would be more exciting. Did it make you feel famous, or was it nerve wracking? Although you deserve the recognition, so many of your pieces are truly amazing, Alice." And for their small town publication, that made it even more special. "Sometimes, it's just nice to eat ice cream in the comfort of your own home."

"A couple of times, but that was mostly because of miscommunication," Alice said. "When you talk to people, you expect them to at least give you a portion of the truth. Then it kind of turns messy when they read the piece and tell you everything you've written is wrong. But then you have the notes or recordings and they still deny everything," she nodded. It had been an experience or two in college, but it was to be expected apparently. "And some of the opposite too, where I've had a story that went viral. That was quite the experience too," she nodded. "Me too! And then I like to eat it on a night in when watching a movie or something."

[darpow]

"Probably more than most people in town," he said, a large grin on his face. It wasn't entirely true, there were so many people that loved those baked goods, he doubted that it was a competition… but if it was, he was going to win it. That was just the way that it worked. But either way, it was nice to be known as someone who frequented a place because they truly loved it and all the good food that came out of it. Not a whole lot of bad, there.

"Of course it is, you're just going to make me hungry this entire time, you know that?" And then his tour would be that much harder to do because he was thinking about all of the good food that he wanted to have when he got the chance. Preferably at Cobblestone. With a cup of coffee, to boot. "I'll do my absolute best! I think they might let you turn some of the lights on and off upstairs in the very top, so if you behave yourself on this tour, I bet we can let you push those buttons," he laughed. As they passed by the gift shop, he gestured inside, "that'll be our last stop, but here we go," he pulled open the door that led tot he long, spiral staircase. "You do have to watch your step, it's very steep."

"I'm surprised that you would forget about the baked goods since I've rang up so many boxes for you." Taryn teased. Darrius was a great customer and she was glad that he enjoyed the things that she baked. That was always her ultimate goal. To make people happy with her baked goods.

Taryn gave him a nod to his question. "I have to say it's perfectly glazed and very flaky." she grinned. She clapped as she entered the lighthouse after he opened the door and looked around the inside. This was not what she expected the inside of a lighthouse to look like, but then again she had never been to one before so did she really have an expectation? "Well, that's the whole reason I wanted you to lead it. I need my first lighthouse tour with flair." she smiled. "I also am hoping to press a button or do something cool while we're here. No pressure though. Just a delicious cronut or two."

[darpow]

"Good idea," Darrius nodded his head, although he knew that Aisha would be up for anything fun, even if the two of them together had made a mess in that kitchen more times than he could count. Maybe Tamika would be the magic ingredient to make ita ll ork out better, though, so nothing got completely trashed. Fingers crossed. "Oh, I do love those! And the root beer ones, too! But I like both when they have the ice cream in the middle, so that they have that extra sweetness there for you."

"We can see what Aisha's thoughts on it are on it, once we get back home." She figured it was worth looping in their other roommate to this idea and seeing if she even wanted to participate before they went any further with this idea of making ice cream themselves in addition to any actual meals. "You said orange and my brain went straight to creamsicle popsicles. We might have to take a trip to the grocery store to pick up some popsicles for the house."

[darpow]

"And yet… we love them anyway," he said with a laugh and a shake of his head. It was the truth, though. Darrius had two dogs that sometimes drove him absolutely crazy, but he didn't let that stop him from enjoying them thoroughly and thinking hey were the neatest things on the planet, either. "You'll end up teased for the end of all time, I get it. Every single time you leave the house from here on out, they'll remind you of that one time that you lost your keys." Sure, it was fun to joke, to tease, but it might not be as fun to be teased. Especially if you felt really silly about it. "I do," he nodded, letting out a laugh, "I'm happy to help out. Do you want me to go double check in the little store, make sure you didn't drop them in there somewhere, or set them down on a shelf? If you went in there, that is."

"It does feel like they are making fun of me sometimes. Or judging me." Ace let out a whine that reminded him that he still had the treats in his pocket. He pulled one out and gave it to him. "Yeah. I guess my family could let me in but they will not let me hear the end of it," he chuckled. And then he'd need to change the locks. There weren't that many bad things happening in town but, for his own peace of mind, he'd definitely be changing the locks if he couldn't find the keys. "I have. Tried with his help too," Nathan said, giving a small nod towards Ace to indicate that he was talking about his dog. "Do you have some time to spare? I could use a bit of help from someone who is hopefully less stressed at the moment."

[darpow]

It doesn't, but... thanks. I just feel like you're saying things to say things and to try to get away from what you mean, which is: you're my most handsome friend that I have ever had in my life, Darrius. And to that I say, thank you, I appreciate you. I figured as much. Complete with a seashell bra and red wig, right?

Well, you're the ugliest hot guy I've met, if that makes sense. Like you're the least attractive attractive man, because there are uglier but they're in the ugly dudes category. It's so hard to be adequately slutty and appropriate for these things. I think I'm just going full mermaid.

[darpow]

"Oh, oh, right," Darrius couldn't help his laugh when Taryn mentioned that she also baked things, knowing that from… far, far too much experience. He had eaten a lot of those baked goods, over and over again. But that was what good people in a small town did! They ate the baked goods and gave the small business lots of money for them. Really, Darrius was helping the economy, doing his part to help friends. And, of course, sating his sweet tooth, that too.

"You want me to lead the tour… to get a special cronut?" he asked, pressing a hand to his chest as though he were deeply shocked at this arrangement. When actually, it kind of made sense. He was good at history, he knew his way around the lighthouse. And the cronut would be worth it. "You're on," he grinned, pulling open the doors and gesturing for her to start inside. "Although I have to warn you. The official tour guide probably knows way more than me… but the presentation's all dry. I add flair to it."

Taryn had been in Merrock for about three years now. She had seen the lighthouse. She even thought it was cute. But she hadn't ever toured it. Of course as soon as Darrius hears of this, he insisted they had to tour it on Lighthouse Day. Taryn didn't mind. She loves learning about new things so she happily agreed.

After checking in on the cafe, Taryn made her way over to the lighthouse. She grinned as soon as she saw Darrius, rolling her eyes playfully at his joke. "It doesn't just smell like coffee. I bake treats as well. Today's special were the most perfect cronuts I think I have ever made in my life. I may or may not have saved you one back at the cafe. It's all dependent on how well you lead this tour." she smirked up at him.

[darpow]

That's exactly it! We were half grown adults, still with the brains of kids, it's something you can't hold us responsible for, y'know? But we made it through. I'm happy to be a grown adult, now. Mostly. Which is crazy to me -- you can get mad at professional athletes who are paid to play. But getting mad at teenagers...? Seems like there are bigger problems in the world to be mad at! I think so -- I've got my outfit put together, and I think I look mostly presentable! How about you, ready to go?

Yeah, we were still figuring things out and balancing all our classes and sports and everything else at once. It was a wild time. Yes! Oh trust me, it gets really intense. People get mad… like really mad when we get a loss. I mean… I’d like to think that I was pretty chill about it! It just is what it is, huh? You ready for the big gala coming up?

[darpow]

"I'm not going to burst his bubble, regardless." If someone thought that they were best friends with a ghost and it was their favorite thing that ever happened to them... well, good for them! Darrius knew that he would be bummed if anyone harshed his flow with something he cared about and believed in, too. "I think it's sad when people do. Even if someone believes in something I don't -- spirits, a religion, rooting for Green Bay -- I at least try to hear them out and listen to them, learn something. Well," he paused, pulling a face, "except the Green Bay part. The rest, though... we all have our things."

"I get that.. I will say that, yes, there is at the lighthouse. Whether your buddy has befriended him though, I can't speak to," Sylvia smiled. She could never be entirely sure of how people perceived her and her beliefs, some had assumed it was just a bit, but she found joy and comfort in it and that was what mattered most to her. She quite appreciated Darrius's openness to entertain her. "As long as you don't immediately shut anyone down," she shrugged. "Something like that," she chuckled when Darrius teased her in regards to her attempted community service.

[darpow]

"Not today. Today's about ice cream, but another time... I think if the three of us housemates put our heads together, we can make something in the kitchen without catching it on fire." After all, he didn't want to risk their kitchen... but he did want to make sure that they had good food. "I think so, yeah. There's a lot of places where that's just sort of the norm, stuff that we wouldn't think about using ends up being something that they're so used to using, basically?" And it didn't meant that they needed to love it, but. "I like a good orange cream ice cream lately. Nice and refreshing in the ice cream. Kind of like a dole whip."

"We'll never know if we can make something edible if we don't try, right?" he asked with a laugh, shrugging both of his shoulders. Something that they tried to make might end up being the best thing that was ever made in their kitchen... or not, but they had to give it a go, regardless. "Right, it just feels like you're eating... gelatinous perfume or something, makes you start getting visuals in your head that you don't want to have," he shook his head, taking another big bite of the ice cream that he had. "This is much better."

[darpow]

WHO: Darrius & @taryngramsey

WHERE: The Lighthouse

WHEN: Lighthouse Day (August 7)

This was one of Darrius's favorite days of the year. He didn't have to worry about school, that wasn't bad in session yet, and he could slip away from the historical society to enjoy something nerdy in a different way... added bonus was that he got to spend time with other people who also enjoyed the nerdy side of town. Or at least, they had an appreciation for Merrock, the ocean, and the lighthouse that stood watch over it. And sometimes, that meant bumping into someone familiar only behind the counter of Cobblestone Cafe, feeling a smile touch his lips as he lifted his hand in a wave, approaching Taryn. "Fancy seeing you outside of a place that smells like coffee twenty-four seven."

[darpow]

aldis hodge via instagram

[darpow]

"Nah, I get it, I've got one of those, too. Starts barking and running in circles whenever something gets him excited. Most of the time, I do feel like he's making fun of me," but it was kind of cute, a little charming, definitely hard for him to be mad at. And he was sure that Nathan could relate to that, any dog owner could. "Oh," Darrius frowned as he explained the situation, glancing around the parking lot as though they would suddenly jump out at them. "And I guess you're definitely going to need those before you try to head home, huh?" Or else he was going to have a hard time getting into his house, and that would be a problem. "Have you tried tracing your steps?"

"Well, to be fair, he just makes noises. Since he did it just after I hit my head, I just assumed it was laughter," Nathan replied as he pulled himself out from under the truck and back to his feet. Ace looked at him and made a whining sound, and he swore the dog looked worried. "Yeah, that would be an awful hiding place for a hide and seek," he chuckled, definitely agreeing with that part. "But that would be better than my actual problem," he continued, a frown showing up on his face. "The truck is fine but I can't find my keys. My house keys."

[darpow]

"Ever have a story go horribly wrong?" he asked curiously, leaning back a bit in his seat while he took another spoonful of ice cream. "You know, like you're looking into something that ended up getting you into trouble? Or maybe the opposite, where you've had something blow wide open without that being your intention?" Maybe not there in Merrock, it was a smaller town, that might be harder to accomplish, but he could still see it happening in that field of work. "That's true. I do that a lot, get a pint or a quart to bring home and put in the freezer, share it with my roommates later."

Alice agreed with a nod. Journalism was no easy task, or career field. She had dealt with contrasting points of view and people who were uncooperative, but at the end of the day, she did her job. It was a challenge, but that was also why she loved her job so much. It wasn't perfect, but she always found a way to make it work. "As long as we sound like we know what we're talking about and what we're doing... that is always a good start!" she grinned. "Mmm, that and fewer people out on the street. So you could either get a scoop right away or bring it home to enjoy,"

[darpow]

Listen... we can't be held responsible for what we said and did when we were in high school, our brains weren't even really fully formed at that point, you know? We had different lives! But yeah, I never played, but I watched, and I could see how intense it would get out there on the field! Wanting to win isn't a bad thing, it's how you handle yourself when you don't that kind of defines who you are. Yes! Absolutely, makes the world go 'round.

Most of the time, yeah, unless you’re teenage Vince and only wanted to win. Don’t worry, that part only lasted for a year and I learned to have fun with it. High school football can get very high stakes, if I remember correctly. We wanted to win, yeah, but we also wanted to just play the sport! Food and beer, something everyone can get on board with to some degree, right?

[darpow]

"Always," he assured her with a smile. Alice worked hard, she deserved the recognition that came with that, and a little bit of praise for everything that she put in. "It's a little give and take, in my experience. You might end up struggling with how to answer that hard question... but if you give the right answer, then you're going to make a lot of people that much more inclined to think you know what you're talking about," and like you a little bit more, too. That was the catch. "Ah, good point! Train yourself to like ice cream in the winter and soup in the summer and you can beat all the lines."

Alice smiled at him. "Well, I am glad that you've enjoyed them, and my work," she chuckled. She loved talking to the local businesses in town. The historical society was a huge place of interest because it was a frequent place that folks in town visited, including tourists. "Exactly. The ones that make you think are the ones that the people being asked hate the most, but the audience loves," she chuckled. She took another bite. "Maybe! I also think it's good to take advantage of the short lines, that definitely helps too."

[darpow]

The ugliest, really? Of all the men that you've ever met in your entire life, you look at me and you think to yourself, "damn, Darrius is one ugly dude?" I feel like I've failed. Anyway, bonehead. You getting all geared up for this gala?

Now you're trying to damage my relationship with my beloved mother? You're the worst friend and the ugliest guy I've ever met. Well...yeah. That's the point of the statement, Dare.