noah-atwood

[noah-atwood]

Noah: It's alright, some people pull one over on us sometimes. Noah: Even send an S.O.S. text out to someone. Noah: Hinge??? I thought that one was supposed to be more reliable about actual dating than Tinder? @missmilliemay

Millie May: I needed a game plan. I went in with none. Millie May: This is the advice I needed to hear. I just wish I knew of it sooner. Millie May: Hinge! It might be time to delete it!!

[noah-atwood]

"I've seen plenty of stupid mixed with bad ideas and easy solutions to make these bad ideas avoidable, but I also call that job security," Noah jokes, albeit with a nervous laugh. He hopes it lands. He doesn't actually want anyone hurt.

Of course, he does often think 'play stupid games, win stupid prizes', but that's what he, Nico and Billie are for.

Noah then stares at Edie, incredulously with eyes as wide as the moon, and he spits out, "Like that makes me feel any better!" Think versus want, whatever the wording is, suicidal ideation does nothing to calm his nerves. Why is it both times they've talked, Noah has considered the worst?

Then he unclenches his jaw and faces forward at her final thought, her openness stunning him into a temporary silence. Noah blinks, once, twice - maybe three more times while awkwardly shifting his gaze about the party. "I mean, any plus counts, doesn't it? Whatever you bring to the table in terms of, uh, that, I guess." He clears his throat.

"I'll nix the seventy two hour hold idea, huh? I don't think you need it, but aside from that, some people do deserve being slapped upside the head, and I'd so look the other way."

@edietello

"If someone ends up on fire then they're stupid and probably shouldn't have been allowed near flames to begin with."

Edie had a low tolerance for many things, but blatant stupidity was probably the highest item on that list.

It made it difficult to make friends but she often found that she didn't miss out on that so much.

"Just because I was thinking about killing myself doesn't mean that I would do it. It's the same as wanting to slap people upside the head and restraining myself."

Most of the time.

"Besides, I never actually would have gone through with it. Killing myself would have been a terrible waste of intelligence. And sexual skill."

@noah-atwood

[noah-atwood]

[noah-atwood]

“It takes more than someone trying to deep dive into my psyche to scare me off.”

God speed, Noah thinks. From his childhood, which he’s sure he’s navigated through with enough success, and seeing things on the job that can throw the most level-headed person off, there are probably some things that need to be looked at. Like a jigsaw puzzle of messy bits, jagged edges that just fit but don’t entirely.

“Not that I don’t think you could handle it, but thinking about it, I'm first responders should seek out therapy. We get exposed to some real nasty stuff. Just like you probably do, just in a different way.”

@thewildrosebriar

open starter: @aurorabaystarter location: anywhere

“Once someone discovers what I do for a living, they tend to run for the hills in fear of me psychoanalysing them to death.” She’s exaggerating, of course, but sadly, it wasn’t too far off from the truth. Then, at the opposite end of the spectrum, you had people who thought her job was to give advice - and would demand she tell them exactly what to do in order to magically fix all of the problems in their life. If only it worked that way; her own therapeutic journey would’ve been a lot easier if it did. “You haven’t done that ... yet,” emphasis on the yet, “so can I take that as a good sign?”

[noah-atwood]

Noah: Yikes. Noah: The moment he was five minutes late without a text, you should've left. Noah: Next time slip the server your card for your half and ditch before the end of the date. Then he's responsible for his half! Noah: How'd you meet? @missmilliemay

Text 📱OPEN

Millie May: I just went on the worst date of my life. Millie May: He walked in twenty minutes late, because he gets so nervous around pretty women. 🙄 Millie May: What a load of bull crap. The entire time we were together he did all the chatting for us. Millie May: This man child tells me he can hold his alcohol.... NO. He was so drunk, he puked in the bathroom getting us kicked out. Millie May: The check now comes, guess who doesn't have a wallet? 🙄 I paid and ordered him an Uber home. I also blocked his number. Millie May: I know this isn't the news you wanted to hear from me. As we thought this guy was going to be really promising. On to the next?

[noah-atwood]

[noah-atwood]

"Oh, alright. Yeah, okay." Noah tucks his lunch bag under his arm, gently cradling it against the bend of his elbow so he can open the invitation. Plus one, he wonders if there is anyone he could bring with him, or if he should just intend on riding solo that evening.

He waves the paper toward Will, his grin back. "I'll figure that out and send this back out right away." One of the firefighters, maybe? Or is it tacky to bring a friend rather than a date? He could always ask Priya, even though he doesn't want to give her any vibe after New Years. No matter...

"Just know I'm in for sure. This, uh... it's really great. You look great, you're doing great. A patient can puke down my shirt later, and it's not going to ruin my day after this."

@willxmeyers

"For real," Will repeats with a nod, his smile beaming. His happiness is he feels grows ten-fold seeing how excited Noah is to be attending. In truth, Will wasn't sure if it was a weird thing to do, but it felt right.

His smile lessens, just a fraction. "Thanks, man," his tone is genuine, even if he feels like he doesn't really deserve the praise. Will wasn't so sure how much of his recovery was due to him, or the people around him. Left to his own devices, he wasn't sure he would have lasted this long.

"That has a plus-one as well, so feel free to bring someone." No one liked going to an event where they didn't know many people and Will wasn't sure who else on the guest list Noah might know.

( @noah-atwood )

[noah-atwood]

“One of those you need to see to believe it? Or do you just have this need to witness it for your own satisfaction?” Noah is certain he would trade the adult Tommy Pickles for anything else. He also notes there is less entertainment chasing someone in an adult diaper around than finding someone with an appendage lodged in a place it shouldn’t be.

He takes the Skittles with a smile that lights up his face. “I think it’s funny when they try to say they fell. We know, and we just have to nod along.” The Skittles are dropped into his mouth so he can take a beat, then he asks, 

“What’s a call you never want to be on again? I don’t mean anything perverse, but something that actually almost made you quit?”

@billieconway

"In a weird way, I was actually grateful for it. It's one of those once-in-a-lifetime type of calls, you know? If I'd heard about it later from anyone else in the department, I would have been mad and hell that I missed it."

She takes a few pieces from the bag of Skittles that she's holding in her lap, dropping a few into her mouth before offering some to him.

"But, on the other hand, I could definitely do with having fewer calls about people having things stuck up their ass. I never knew that would be such a high capacity part of the job."

@noah-atwood

[noah-atwood]

Noah’s eyebrows furrow, and okay. He kinda gets it. Some moments are overwhelming, but anytime that feeling hits, he reminds himself that it’s for five minutes max, and if he wants to leave, he can just stand up and go. 

“Why’d you sign up?” he asks, curious. “Was it just some little bit of curiosity? I wouldn’t call it FOMO, not by a longshot.”

It’s hard to feel like one is missing out when they have such cynical views about it to begin with. “So, does this all just feel too rehearsed for you? Because I can get that. We try to make the most of five minutes, I guess.” Noah is definitely guilty of running through the introductory spiel right before he sits at any table. 

“Like a club setting? Or a party?”

@undervaalue

" Naw, it's not the small talk, it's the like... shit, I dunno'. The energy or something. The people. The fact we're bein fuckin' passed around like a cheese board or something, I dunno'. "

He eyes Noah, feeling bad that he'd chosen this poor guy to complain to, seeing as how earnest he seemed about it all. " Sorry. I didn't mean to shit on it that bad. It's just not for me. " Bucket shakes his head, shrugs, fiddles with the straw he's been carrying around despite his distinct lack of a drink. " People are hot n' stuff, it's just like, not the environment for me. Like, I need to be loose. I need other people to be loose. Just like - everyone loose, you know? "

[noah-atwood]

Noah shrugs, not so much in disagreement but regret for the morning that followed. He never would’ve pinned himself to be the person who need to down a few shots in quick succession because something stressed him out. And now? The stress was gone, but there was a sadness there for the friendship discarded. Or strained. Or whatever he is going to do with it in the next few months.

“Thanks. I’ll take you up on the talking, btu I’m going to try to avoid any future hangovers. It was, uh—” Noah sighs but chuckles at the memory of his own idiocy.

Dramatic.

He feels his face warm in a familiar way when she kisses his cheek, the chaste affection doing well on its own to lighten his mood. No more thinking about Halloween or Atticus or all the stupid things said and done. He’s there with the person who knows him best. He’s there to make the most of the last bit of the year with her, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Fifteen minutes to countdown, comes faster than he realizes, and Noah has quickly chased down one of the waiters to grab two champagne glasses. "We need to toast for the new year, make our wishes, or we can blow off all that traditional stuff and just wait for the countdown. Which is... also a tradition. Whatever, you get what I mean."

@priyaxdesai

"Well, sometimes we need to do dumb things like back to back shots. If anything, I'm proud of you for doing it." She teased him lightly, knowing that between the two of then, Priya was definitely the one more likely to knock back endless shots. "And just the same, if you ever need someone to do the shots with, or to talk with or anything...with whatever was going on, you know you can do that with me. Right?" Noah was her best friend, she wanted to be there for him no matter what he needed - just like he'd always been there for her.

"No one else I deemed worthy enough to come with." She told him easily, smiling once again as she kept her arm looped through his and she leaned up as she said it, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "So okay. We're gonna dance and we're gonna drink champagne and have fun and ring in the new year together and happy. Deal?" Priya reached her free hand up and held her pinky up to him, an expectant smile on her lips.

[noah-atwood]

“That’s true.” It does well to ease Noah’s guilt about it. Sterling will get her gift later, he has his to open now. “No, no, it’s fine. This is a better interruption than what I usually get.”

Between a cat that insists his presence on him or the EMS station pager sending out a call that requires that everything be dropped, including their meals, to head to a scene, being stopped from enjoying some brunch to open a Christmas gift is a pleasant interruption. 

Noah begins to pull out the tissue paper, excitedly pulling out the first thing he sees: the Pokemon blanket. “What! I love it! It’s so soft, too.”

@sterlingxlevin

"Sorry to interrupt you're eating but I've been looking for you." Sterling laughed softly as she held up the gift bag of full of his presents. "Merry early Christmas! Don't worry about it, you have a gift for someone else and I'm getting one from someone else. Now open! I'll hold your plate if I need to."

@noah-atwood

[noah-atwood]

“Wow, kinda messed up you’re following me around here, just tell me you want to hang out,,” Noah throws back, his attention diverted from the vegetarian refried beans to Duckie.

“It's wrong of you to assume background characters don’t have lives, man.” Though referring to himself as a background character could be a self-insult of sorts. It's not intended.

( But were Clerics ever the main focus? )

"Both of here, out in the world, nowhere near the cafe. Doing our side quests. How's it going?"

@accepptance

closed starter for noah atwood / @noah-atwood

located @ the pantry

" Wow. Kinda messed up seeing you outside of the cafe, " Duckie says, trying not to hover too closely to Noah, who he's spotted near the canned beans. " I started to assume you only spawned when I got within ten feet of the entrance. "

[noah-atwood]

Both flavors sound great, and a glass of wine or two won’t knock Noah out of commission in any way. “Yeah, okay for me. He’s upset by it, but I can’t do the ‘friends after dating’ thing.” There is an inkling of regret for ever dating in the first place, especially with a relationship so short, and risking their friendship. 

Noah can’t sweat it when the damage is already done.

“Oh, good idea. She’s funny, so I’ll make it like a crazy bowl.” Noah presses his fingertips into the clay to get a feel for it before even pressing the foot pedal. “For sure, but I told her it wasn’t so she would think she ate her own ice cream, and I was off the hook. Bad roommate award, but this will make up for it.”

@emersonxcassidy

"It tastes like strawberries! And I have a cherry one too, just in case." Not that she thought they'd go through two bottles of wine at this, but still. "And that's good? The non-regretting thing and that things are...okay?" Emerson rose an eyebrow slightly, admittedly trying to dig in a bit to see if Noah would further explain since she did worry about her friend and wanted to make sure he was doing well.

"I think a bowl for your roommate is a cute idea! Maybe do it in her favorite color? Or like, her vibe? Like flowers or chaotic squiggly lines...something like that?" She suggested with a laugh before nudging her foot against his leg, "And rum raisin is delicious for the record."

[noah-atwood]

Noah opens his mouth to argue, always ready to push aside his own needs to give his attention to someone else, but it’s cut off. The white envelope being the culprit, Noah takes it not at all expecting what’s inside. In fact, Will leaves him speechless for a good minute.

“Wait, for real?” 

Yes, for real, he chides himself. Noah shakes his head with a nervous laugh and quickly blurts, “That’s so — I’m so happy for you, man. This is amazing!” Nothing that day can steal this happiness from him, not with how it swells in his chest. “Give yourself credit, too. You’re doing great because of you.”

Noah looks down to the envelope he’s yet to open. His grin is just about ear-to-ear. “I’ll be there. I’ll put the time off in, and I’ll be there. Thanks, and congratulations.”

@willxmeyers

Will returns a pleasant smile as he stands in front of Noah. He'd been watching the comings and goings to the ambulances and paramedics toing and froing, it seemed chaotic. Will knew he worked well under pressure, but not this kind. "Well, I still won't keep you from enjoying your lunch," he takes a look down at the white envelope in his hands. "I just wanted to give you this."

Handing it over, he doesn't wait for Noah to open it before explaining. "I'm getting married," Will explains. "I didn't have your address, bit creepy if I did. But I wanted to invite you." His face is the picture of sincerity as he continues. "I obviously wouldn't have been able to do all this, if it weren't for you so—"

( @noah-atwood )

[noah-atwood]

“Well, no. Because if someone ends up on fire, then I’m here, but I don’t wish for it.”

He wouldn’t even if it meant job security. He doesn’t need to tell Edie the importance of event staff, from security to EMS, and everything that falls in between. It’s a bonfire, but anything can happen.

More or less, that’s Noah expecting the worst while hoping for the best, and it’s a habit he needs to smother.

“To be fair, you were walking some sort of a line. Not sure between what exactly, but I can’t say I had strong confidence you were alright after.” Noah shrugs, with his hands in his pockets, hoping he isn’t too frank about it. “I worry, it’s a natural part of who I am, but it’s good to see you.”

@edietello

"Well, then, unless you have a fascination with flames when it's silly for you to be here," she informs him, taking a swig from her flask.

Personally, she fell into the latter category -- and she was secretly hoping that someone would try to toss in something highly combustable.

(Hence why she was sitting a healthy distance away from the bonfire.)

"If I had anything I needed to burn I'd do it on my own time and not in public. I don't need people in my business like that," she answers, raising a slight brow at his tone, cocking her head to the side.

She wasn't a natural on cues, but she picked up on that.

"You seemed surprised that I haven't killed myself."

In fairness, she couldn't blame him after their last conversation.

@noah-atwood

[noah-atwood]

"I can't say I met another 'Bucket'." It's an interesting name, definitely a decent ice breaker. “You probably hear that a lot, huh? No judgment, it’s just different. But it’s cool.” And an easy way to break the ice, even if that crack quickly freezes over at the next thing said.

Noah cringes and sucks in a quick breath of air, then says, “Ooo, so then… you probably don’t care to do the whole small talk thing.”

It won’t be a long five minutes, though, not with how Bucket talks about the whole thing. “I don’t love it. I just figured I could step out of my comfort zone a bit. No one’s caught your eye at all yet?”

@undervaalue

It's been a long ass night. Bucket's snuck out no less than three times to smoke a blunt in between dates (and likely missing some as a result) and that's still not enough to numb him from the boredom that's building in his stomach. He's never doing this shit again - not even for a twenty from Atlas.

Still, he doesn't have it in him to be a dick, so when the fifty billionth person tonight sits down and asks some form of is your name really Bucket, he just smiles warmly and nods. " Yeah, dude. The one and only. Probably, I mean, shit, there could be other Buckets in the world. Nice to meet you, Noah. "

There's a little pause, and after a second, Bucket sighs. " Can I be so real with you, man? I hate speed dating. This shit blows huge dookie. It's shit from a butt. Why do people do this? "

[noah-atwood]

✈ - an eye-opening memory

"Easiest one is the one with my dad's ex - I don't think they've been together in years, but I don't talk to him anymore, so I wouldn't really know. Either way, coming home to find her overdosed really showed me what a shitty influence my dad was on the people in his life. When he met that woman, she was nothing like that, but I barely saw her spiral in the middle of mine.

Finding her nearly dead showed me I needed to get out, and it also showed me, as I felt so helpless in that situation, that I wanted to be able to help other people. And I do."