nessagates

[nessagates]

"I've never played, so it'll probably be pretty easy to annihilate me." Pool was more Nessa's thing, or beer pong. "Or maybe I'll be good, who knows," she said with a laugh and a shrug. She had decent hand-eye coordination, years as a gymnast sometimes paid off here and there. "What are the rules?" She took a sip of something that tasted a little too strong, but didn't care anymore. As long as she was drinking.

When: December 31st Where: Evolution Who: Open (0/5)

"Alright," Lou chugged what was left of her (virgin) drink before snapping the bottle down. "I've got an hour before it's back to baby powder and lullabies. Who's willing to get annihilated at darts?" She was a killer at the game, apprenticed throughout her twenties by flannel barkeeps and leather-bound bikers. "I've got an itch I need scratched."

[nessagates]

merry christmas, lupine lane!

@noa-markam, @monixoconnor, @ximenaserrano, @nessagates, @benji-parsons

To my neighbors, my gang, some of the best friends that I have ever had, Merry Christmas! I purchased a Christmas cactus for all of you (very seasonal, I know!), and made a batch of peppermint hot cocoa brownies for you to enjoy with your loved ones. And to make your holiday a little more cozy, I've included a gift box full of warm, festive things: a blanket, mug, soap, candle, scent satchels... everything you need. If you're free, please feel free to drop by my house on Saturday, December 28th for dinner! I'm happy to host anyone who is in town and wants to spend some time enjoying the Christmas spirit. Love you all!

xo Lena

[nessagates]

To my pals on Christmas! Thank you for always being great friends.

@lenavaz, @nessagates, @cagenewman, @owenryder, @gabbyellison, @noa-markam, @stellylee

[nessagates]

Cassidy's Candies was not a big store, and it was not the kind of store that was usually manned by a whole lot of people. Sometimes it was Nessa and one other coworker, other times, it would just be Nessa by herself. The holiday rush had been an influx of customers and at most, there would be three of them working the cash register but today, it was just Nessa again. She smiles when the stranger points at the chocolate and goes to wheel over the stepladder that helps her reach the higher shelves; at 5'0, she's not much help naturally either. "Oh I love this one," she exclaims, climbing up the steps of the ladder and grabbing it. "I've been eating it non stop. Like, too much. Those brits really know how to make addictive chocolate huh?"

Open starter

Where : Cassidy's Candies

When : late December afternoon

Harm wheels into the store and smiles as she looks around at the array of colorful candy. She notices something on a high shelf that she wants, some of her favorite British chocolate. She turns to a person nearby . " Can you help me reach that?"

[nessagates]

Nessa laughed when she passed over the next shot to Sav, as was her turn, and she missed. She was leagues better than both of her new acquaintances and the evidence was in how she was still dressed up: still in her sweater and skirt, with dark tights to boot, she'd take those off next in case she missed. "I think you both need help," she laughed, but walked over to Sav to help her out of her jeans. Did she really need help? Or was she flirting? Nessa had such a bad radar when girls were flirting with her. Guys were easy, they made it obvious, but girls, she could get caught up in doing it and not even realize. Her fingers brushed the taller girl's midriff as she helped fumble with the buttons. And then it was her turn.

"I guess Mr. Two Left Hands going to be paying for all of this," she said, swishing over back to the pool table when she was through with helping Sav, throwing a look his way. Maybe too much confidence would be her hubris. She took aim, positioned — and missed. "Oh fuck a duck," she swore. There went her tights, she shimmied out of them easy as anything, throwing them onto the corner chair with the rest of the discarded clothes. She didn't mind undressing in front of strangers, after all, her career up until recently had consisted of that, set to music. A glorified stripper, Meredith Rutherford's words haunted her again, but she chased out those mental cobwebs with another shoot back of the gross green drink. "Fuck it. Your turn." She pointed her cue at Aidan. @aidanbishop

It was like they were playing an endless game of musical chairs, the pool table acting as a central buffer as they rotated around it, one by one. Aidan dutifully slotted in on the nearest empty side, settling in to do what he did best: watch. His gaze was steady, unwavering and shameless as Sav did her thing, leaning over the table to assess the game -- and, in the process, granting him a pretty eyeful of her cleavage. But then she was standing again and declaring a proxy, making Aidan roll his eyes and automatically reach for the nearest glass. "Bullshit," he scoffed into the rim, taking a drink that tasted like instant karma. He cringed, making a point to set it far away from himself, a hand raised to wipe any pesky green foam from his mustache. "Are y'gonna try to tell me we put money on this game next, too?"

Maybe he was getting hustled. (Was that possible in a game of strip-anything?) The likelihood shot right up when Nessa had no qualms about subbing in for her fellow blonde, either, but Aidan didn't make another peep of protest. He simply got comfortable, stooping where he stood with his arms folded against the side of the table, poised beside the target pocket. All eyes were on Nessa, and it didn't even take a breath-holding second of tension before the ball was perfectly sunk. Well... shit. A silent huff of amusement had Aidan's nostrils flaring a bit, head shaking as glanced up from the table to look at Nessa again. "Maybe you should give her some pointers," he suggested, innocent as could be. Blue eyes slid over to Sav, brows lifting. "Or a little hands-on help." @savstone-rp

[nessagates]

[nessagates]

I never really understood the whole Elf on a shelf thing. What do you do? I thought you put him on a shelf and that's kind of it.

I don't know what I was thinking when I decided that I would join the crowds of people doing Elf on the Shelf, not to mention I bought one for each of the kids -- because it doesn't matter how old they are, everyone deserves to believe in a little bit of magic. Or at least play along but when I say these elves have been stressing me out, it's an understatment. Someone send wine and yummy food to soothe myself while I spend another night googling cute creative ideas for these damn elves. And yes, I may be complaining but I'm secretly loving every minute of it. Please someone tell me they have ideas or are doing this for their own kids? @merrock

[nessagates]

DECEMBER 8-14

What is your favorite holiday treat?

"All the seasonal drinks. Yes, I'm a basic bitch who loves a pumpkin spice latte, but also peppermint mochas. Mulled wine too, hot buttered rum...I even like eggnog. I know. A big, steaming mug of hot cocoa with marshmallows and cinnamon sprinkled on top on a snowy day, ugh, it's just perfect."

[nessagates]

"Yeah, it is kind of a dream come true type of job. We don't get paid all that much though, I won't lie to you," she admitted with a soft laugh. Hence her second job, which she needed or else she'd be just barely scraping by. "Oh the volunteers are great. Honestly it feels like everybody here loves animals. Which is another plus, they get adopted out pretty fast. We had a couple of calves in that somebody rescued, we couldn't find who they belonged but before a week was up a local farmer came by to adopt them. Lots of people even out of town follow our socials, so they stay up to date on who we bring in, what's happening here."

Nessa smiled when she saw Bryan pick up the grey kitten. "That's Storm, he is sooo playful. You give him a ball of yarn and he's set for the day. He loves lasers too, oh my gosh, he can't get enough."

“Maybe,” Bryan said with a grin. Their pup was adorable and cuddly and such a good boy. They had gotten lucky with him, even after some mishaps while house training but eventually, they were able to train him once he had adjusted to the new environment. “It must be the dream to get to spend time with them and get paid too,” he grinned. “The good thing about town is that it’s full of animal lovers. Even those who just volunteer or visit around here,” he said. “Oh yeah, I can imagine the process gets really intense sometimes,” he grinned as one of the cats came by. “Okay, this little guy is cute,” he said, carefully picking the cat up.

[nessagates]

"I think that's the beauty about having dogs. They force you to slow down and appreciate the smaller things in life, like when you're out for a walk. One day I'm totally going to have one of my own." Or a cat. Maybe a cat that liked going on walks, she definitely knew there were cats like that, they even had a few in the shelter. She laughed, covering her face with her hand. "A pet rock, yeah. That's a good idea. That way I can take a piece of Merrock with me wherever I go and never miss it. Have you lived in Merrock long?"

"Sounds adorable," Darrius replied with a grin. He would always have a soft spot for dogs. Any animals, really, but dogs were what he had at home, his own boys, the kinds of pets that he knew how to be around the most, and anytime that he was talking to someone who loved their dogs as much as he loved his, it was obvious on their face. And by the way they talked about them. "Those snuggles are all good until they're refusing to move and you absolutely have to get up… and there's just no way," sometimes it was too easy to get pinned down and stuck, no choice but to pet the dog and give them what they wanted. "Aw, no!" he found himself laughing as she admitted to the tears, "are we talking about sad tears, or laughing so hard you cried?"

Nodding his head slowly, Darrius could understand it -- after graduation, he had taken a job in Detroit, and it hadn't quite worked out. He had moved back home, only to make another move to Merrock, but he hadn't known if it would be long-term until it was. He knew what it was like to be in that space where you didn't really know whether or not something would be for you. "Maybe a pet rock?" he suggested with a smile, "you know, that way you can take it with you if you decide to move."

[nessagates]

Dude, Gen Alpha are legit kind of scary. They're tapped into some weird shit...like what the hell is a skibidi toilet? I still don't know. Oh my god, they asked if you know Gandalf?? Do they think he's a real person?

I’ve come to the realization that I don’t understand half of what middle schoolers say anymore. Maybe I am getting old or haven’t caught on to American slang as much as I think I have, but oh my. They also ask so many questions, which I definitely will always encourage. They are also brutally honest. Today I had a student ask me that because I’m from the 1900s if I know Gandalf. Sure. So I just let that one sink in for a bit. Does anyone else miss being blissfully unaware of what century we are currently in?

[nessagates]

Sabrina Carpenter for Versace Biggies Campaign

[nessagates]

Nessa was closing in on 10 months of living in Lupine Lane. As such, she had become accustomed to the place's ways, but she had yet to experience a Lupine Christmas or New Year's. As soon as she saw people decorating their homes, she felt guilted into doing the same herself. She didn't bring anything to Merrock but the two suitcases of clothes she'd came here with, so she had to go shopping. Several days of searching and thrifting later, she had a pretty solid setup going. Colorful lights, a wreath, the works.

She had just set up her light up Grinch right outside her door when she spotted a familiar face she'd seen around since moving here: Benji. "I found him on the clearance rack at Lowe's and I couldn't resist," she explained, straightening up, her cheeks rosy from the cold and her breath misting up. "The fuse in the plug was busted so I replaced it and now it's working again. Hopefully it'll be fine and I won't set fire to the whole trailer park," she said with a laugh. Nessa was pretty confident in her handyman skills, but she could never resist throwing out a self-deprecating joke.

Who: Open Where: Lupine Lane When: A December evening, 2024

Benji had never been a big fan of winter. He didn't like being cold, he always got sick and SAD plagued him every year. He often wondered why he moved North instead of South on days like this. New Orleans was looking mighty nice, to be perfectly honest, with its humidity and his beloved India House hostel. But he was trying not to wander anymore, trying to be as close to a sensible adult person as he could be. And Marrock was where he’d chosen to stay, at least for the time being. He had a job. He had his own place. He had friends, or at least people who didn’t seem to hate him.  So he was going to put up with winter.

Still, at the moment, he wasn’t a fan.

It was his day off and what he really wanted to do was hole up by himself, huddle in his chair with a blanket and watch stupid horror movies. Maybe even go with a Christmas theme; The Killing Tree and Jack Frost and The Gingerdead Man. Smoke a joint. Eat some pop tarts.

But.

There was always a ‘but’, wasn’t there? But. He was not only trying to be a sensible adult person, he was also trying to keep the melancholy at bay, and he could already feel its icy fingers latching at him. Isolating himself was not the best course of action and he knew it.

And so, feeling leaden, he sighed and got bundled up, complete with stripey scarf and flappy hat, and went out the door to see the neighborhood Christmas lights (though he allowed himself the joint before leaving). His own place was a chaos of multi-colored, mismatched lights and shiny tinsel trees to reflect them…and a vintage Halloween blow mold of a ghost that he’d forgotten to put away and decided to call thBoots crunching in the snow and breath puffing out in misty plumes, he paused at each residence, studying the displays solemnly. This was Benji being festive.

[nessagates]

You're not fooling me Sunny, you totally are a witch. The good kind, with the white magic. Find what you love, true...timeless advice. I had that actually, back in Philadelphia but I can't really do it here anymore. Also it never paid much so I needed another day job on the side to fund that job. I guess at that point it's more like a glorified hobby, isn't it? I just never wanna worry about bills again. There's probably no job out there that guarantees that. But you're pretty secure, right? I can't tell if I'm being too nosy or prying, please shut me up if I am.

The secret is that I am a witch. I have magic powers and I just wave a wand and it all comes together. Don't tell anyone though. I don't want to get burned at the stake or anything. All of that is a bold faced lie. I get stressed all the time but I am fortunate to have a great support system and a good staff that back me up. I think the best advice I can give is finding something that you are passionate with and won't get bored with. If you love your job, it makes it easier to overlook the negatives.

[nessagates]

"They sound adorable," Nessa said with a smile when dogs were brought up. She loved them, short stocky dogs like bulldogs especially. "Yeah," she laughed and nodded. "The guy who works here with me, he named them. Big Star Wars fan." Not her, she didn't really have a clue about any of that stuff, but somehow she knew which kitten was which. Yoda was always roaming around and getting in trouble. Padme was a quiet one who loved to sleep a lot. "That's kind of my job," she teased. "Honestly though, every night I think about leaving with one myself...it's hard."

Happy to let the blonde lead the way, she gave a nod of agreement. "Oh, for sure. Always seem to be getting into some mischief," she grinned, stepping into the room behind her. "Not so much puppies anymore, but they're a golden retriever mix and a bulldog, and definitely spoiled by all of us in the house," she admitted, looking at the kittens curled up, instantly melting a bit by their cuteness, and quirked an eyebrow at their names. "I'm sensing a theme with their names." she laughed, kneeling down slightly so she could give a few pets to them, before glancing over. "Good to know, but you're totally not making it any easier for me." she teased.

[nessagates]

"Oh shoot, I hadn't thought of that...yeah, babysitting that night is a tall order. Okay what about this, I'll come over with a bottle of bubbly and we can just have a chill one...I'll think about going out on the town, but I dunno. Don't wanna pull up to a bar all alone, that's weird, isn't it?" She remembered last year's NYE, cooped up in the apartment she was renting downtown. "Honestly I slept through it last year, I guess I'm trying to make up for that one."

"Honestly? With a five year old it sort of puts a damper on New Years Eve plans especially when no one wants to babysit that night. I'll probably just be hanging out. You should totally put an outfit together! There are some places in town that are definitely alive well into the night even on New Years!"

[nessagates]

Suitcase in your hand Wave goodbye to mom and dad Never thought I would see the back of you