#e.pride2024🏳️‍🌈

[archived-thecjwelford]

> Dancing Queen: An ABBA Salute Performance, Pride Event. For @quinweisz

"I think I love them!" CJ exclaimed as he watched the group of middle-aged performers on stage parade about to the ABBA songs.

He may have had something in his system, so to him they were just as good — if not better — than the real thing.

"Yo, do you think they get like, mad discount at IKEA?" He asked generally, eyes falling on someone near him, giving them a lopsided grin. He had no idea where his friends were, but right now didn't care, because the music was good and the crowd was vibey. "I love the meatballs there!"

[thephoebeyates]

> Getting Ready for Pride Event. For @just-foster

Phoebe was in the final stages of getting ready; sticking on her eye gems with precision, with a steady hand she didn't usually possess. She didn't do too much normally; her work look was normally just enough makeup she didn't look dead, and at home on her days off she went bare-faced. And currently, nights out to bars and clubs were few and far in between. But she wanted to go all out for Pride, even if the fucking eye gems were more of a hassle than she initially thought.

"Hey, do these look eve — oh." Phoebe had turned from the mirror for Foster to examine her face properly, feeling the air knock out of her as she laid eyes on him in his own outfit, too busy concentrating on the eye gems in the mirror to focus on what was going on in the background. She had been pleasantly surprised when he took up her offer of getting him a Pride outfit, and though he seemed hesistant about the see-through mesh tank top she discovered at Thrift Haven, made no protest. Phoebe was going to tell him that if he felt uncomfortable in it, he obviously didn't have to wear it, but once her eyes fell on him, her brain short-circuited a bit.

It left little to the imagination, the fabric sticking to his defined abs, the lack of sleeves showcasing his very, very defined biceps. The fact that every tattoo — including the phoenix on his ribcage — was visible...

"— Wow." She finished intelligently, voice slightly breathless, completely forgetting the initial question she had wanted to ask.

[theromandaniels]

Roman Daniels' outfit, Blue Harbor Pride 2024 🏳️‍🌈

[themagdalenaotiende]

> Tres Amigos Stall, Pride Event. For @doctornilaybailey

If there were one adjective to describe Blue Harbor, Magdalena would probably settle for 'welcoming'. Every person she had spoken with at the festival thus far had been nothing short of friendly, and it only encouraged her to truly do right by the town with the project she was brought in to oversee.

"I'd love to tell you about what we have planned so far!" She had exclaimed to the anthropologist, a Doctor Nilay Bailey, she had got talking to at the Mexican street food stand, the two women sharing one of the picnic benches near the stall, as she tackled eating her trio of tacos as gracefully as she could muster. "But first you must tell me about your wing at the museum, I haven't had a chance to explore it yet. My only visits there have been strictly business."

[thephoebeyates]

Phoebe had a golden rule she had broken immediately once she met Foster: don’t jump into something undefined. But she let the chef consume her fully. She considered the two of them one of the fortunate couples who could walk away from a ‘friends with benefits’ type situation mostly unscathed, forming a real relationship in the process, and she had just wished she was there when Dante and Linc started. Not to put a stop to it necessarily, but to help them through it so the rough patches weren’t the emotional equivalent to the destruction left behind by a hurricane.

“I get it.” She said softly, not wanting to push Dante into saying more than he felt comfortable with. When he asked what she meant about Linc’s own family life, her head dropped, staring intensely at her cocktail glass. “Dante…I can’t.” At the end of the day, as much as she loved the musician next to her, she considered Linc family. If he hadn’t told Dante, it was for a good reason. “I can’t, you know that. Linc needs to be the one to tell you, it’s not my place.” The sound of the festival around them brought back to where they were, and she felt bad that their time together had been tainted by such a serious topic.

“C’mere,” She held her arms out, offering Dante a hug. “It’s all gonna be okay, yeah? You and Linc, and…everything else. I, uh, I need to go find Foster. But I’m always here, if you wanna talk.”

Dante listened quietly as she spoke. The noise all around them nothing but silent at this point it seemed, when his focus was otherwise involved. It was much more difficult than just an arrangement for him and Linc. Their lives had intertwined as if destined by whatever force governed the world. Their existence even. “That’s the difficult part, I think.” He said, turning to glance her way before letting his eyes wonder once more, “Lincoln and I just were. That’s not to say we didn’t know what we were doing because obviously - just that-” Dante shrugged unsure of how to continue without so much as professing his love for the other man out onto their unsuspecting and mutual friend. It wasn’t something that he ever felt the need to address - feeling as though Lincoln should just know their bond was unlike any other - but for reasons unknown to him he took a pause. There was a lot of confusion when it came to ‘more than’ friends for Dante. He never felt that pull to be with just one person for the rest of his life, or to find comfort in the arms of just one. Truthfully, he couldn't think of a single thing about him for anyone to love when his own parents didn't. So he settled for the masses and the single sighted love that was his music. Nothing and no one he could truly disappoint, yet even as he held back he couldn't seem to do anything but hurt and disappoint those he loved. First Sawyer, and now Lincoln - when would it end? “What do you mean?” Dante asked and paused in his step, eyebrows furrowing with confusion. With everything going on with them and his grandmother’s passing, Dante had no idea what was going on in Lincoln’s home. He’d like to believe that despite their conflict, Linc would confide in him if need be. The thought that he’d been adding more to his friend’s plate left a sour taste in his mouth. “Phoebe?” he asked, once more.

[thephoebeyates]

Phoebe Yates' outfit, Blue Harbor Pride Event 2024 🏳️‍🌈

[archived-thecjwelford]

CJ Welford's outfit, Blue Harbor Pride Event 2024 🏳️‍🌈

[theromandaniels]

> Outskirts of the Festival, Pride Event. For @sebastianvora

Whilst, logically, it made perfect sense that the actual festival grounds wouldn't have a stall that sold cigarettes, the nicotine-starved Roman — a more unreasonable, irritable man than usual — found it absolutely outrageous, trudging back out of the fenced area in search of a store close by.

It seemed like quite a few people had the same, or at least similar, plights. The line was long, and he decided he could wait a few more minutes outside to grab what he needed, resting his head against the cool brick of the shop wall, squeezing his eyes shut as he took in a few deep breaths.

"I love your outfit."

He glanced up, expecting someone addressing his T-Shirt with the Pride flag and the articulate sentence 'kiss whoever the fuck you want' printed on it. But no, it was a couple of girls addressing a flamboyantly dressed young man, who seemed more concerned in re-dialling a number on his phone. When they eventually left, Roman couldn't help but speak up.

"I think whoever's rejecting your calls has a good reason. Also, isn't it rude to ignore people?"

[archived-thecjwelford]

CJ had a schedule, somewhere, though he guessed it was more like loose guidelines to make sure he got to all important meetings, and even those were more for, like, his accountant and Wren and stuff. When she thanked him, he merely shrugged, not wanting to downplay it but also not wanting to seem like…invested or whatever. “‘S’no problem, really.” He assured Jia, taking another generous sip of water, nodding over to the small crowd of families. “Sure, thanks.” He said of her offer, deciding to take a moment to really hydrate and catch his bearings.

End.

JIA'S GAZE SOFTENED, feeling all of a sudden that protective instinct kick in. cj was just trying to look our for her, in his own way. and even if his wants and needs went against her own he was only trying to be kind. "thank you for looking out for me, cj. i mean it. i promise you that i've looked over my schedule and it is manageable for me." she reached out and gently placed her hand over his. "i'm lucky to have this place, and to see placed like these exist. so thank you, as well, for helping it stay open." more families were entering the stall now, and jia felt that their time was coming to an end. "i think i'm needed now. but you can stay for as long as you need, okay ?"

[thephoebeyates]

> The Parade, Pride Event. For @mayanoelle

Phoebe didn't mean to get lost in the crowd watching the parade, but she supposed it wasn't the end of the world. Generally, the traffic of people were all heaing to the same location, and she was sure she'd spot Foster or Seb or someone soon enough. So, she just parked up at the nearest corner, enjoying the different variations of the floats parading by.

"Oh I love dogs!" She couldn't help but exclaim as the Happy Tails float passed, the animals and the handlers seemingly enthusiastic on top of their float. In her excitement, she subconsciously grabbed someone's arm as she leaned forward to get a better view. "Oh sorry — oh Maya, hi!" She exclaimed, recognizing the owner of Latte Love. She tried to separate the people from the town's drama, and truthfully, preferred the coffee over at her store over Cafféliicous anyway. "How are you? Enjoying the parade?"

[themagdalenaotiende]

Magdalena Otiende's outfit, Blue Harbor Pride 2024 🏳️‍🌈

[themagdalenaotiende]

> The Parade, Pride Event. For @dantekidd

Since moving to town, Magda hadn't had much of an opportunity to explore how it was as a community. She also didn't know what to expect from its Pride celebrations, but despite only being in the crowd for not long, her expectations had well and truly been exceeded.

The energy was infectious, and by the time the Mic Drop! karaoke truck rounded the corner, the people on the float belting away and encouraging the crowd to join in, Magda was all but giddy. "Oh I love this song!" She announced to the young man beside her.

[thephoebeyates]

Quin's humor was infectious, and Phoebe smiled cheekily at her comment. She tried not to share too many personal details of what she and Foster got up to in the bedroom, but there were a few boats that had sailed already when it came that specific nugget of advice... "Oh, just little short stories and that, mainly romances." As she became more confident in fine-tuning her craft, Phoebe found herself less embarrassed to admit what type of writing interested her.

When asked what she wanted to know, Phoebe leaned slightly closer. "Oh, everything." She answered with a wiggle of her eyebrow. "C'mon, my boyfriend is all the way over there so I think we can get through some very embarrassing Eli stories by the time I meet up with him..."

End.

The woman's word choice intrigued Quin. What was it like, to have passions to explore? She'd only ever found hers at the bottom of a pill bottle or a stout German beer. "Well, you know what they say, uh... use a condom," Quin offered with a cheeky grin. Nothing to investigate here, nope, certainly not a decades-old fear that Quin was broken deep down inside! "Huh!" Quin said, hands on her hips. She didn't have any pre-conceived notions about the woman, but writer kind of... seemed to fit the bill. "What kinda stuff do you write? I've been tossing around the idea of a memoir and all...." She was sort of joking.

Phoebe's excitement loosed a bubble of laughter from deep within Quin's stomach. She must've really liked Eli. Or she wanted some dirt. Playing into the dramatics of it all, Quin lifted a hand to her chest and clutched her heart, "The good old days? Jeee-sus, I'm not eighty." Quin laughed, loud and raspy, "Well, it's hard to imagine myself with someone so... male." C'est la vie. Quin pushed her sunglasses down to the bridge of her nose, looking closely at Phoebe. "So? Whaddaya wanna know?"

[thephoebeyates]

> Dante Kidd performance, Pride Event. For @imogenbello

Despite the drama between Lincoln and Dante, Phoebe still wanted to support the latter from a musician's perspective, enjoying their studio time together and wanting to see how his songs translated from the recording booth to live in front of an audience. She had found a good spot not too close to the stage, but near enough to see her friend properly, holding the ground as Foster went to get more drinks. From her vantage point, she noticed Imogen, beckoning her over.

"Imogen, come join us!" She had been so excited to find out her friend from the online forums she scoured back in the day was here in Blue Harbor, and lamented how busy she had been to arrange for the two women to meet up properly. No time like the present, she figured. "You look so good! Enjoying yourself? Here with anyone? You're more than welcome to stick with us for the remainer of the evening!"

[archived-thecjwelford]

> The Labyrinth Stall, Pride Event. For @fivest4rs (Aspen)

He had been sent out to get refreshments for his group, so of course instead of thinking the obvious choice — water — CJ had spent the last ten minutes at the cocktail stall ordering the most wild sounding drinks, trying to think of a logical way to carry them all over.

If only he were an octopus...

"Yo!" He called, recognizing Aspen as she walked by. She was probably like, an enemy or something since she was like Foster's minion, but hey, she had hands. "I'd like, loe you forever dude, if you helped me carry these? Please?"

[archived-thecjwelford]

If CJ were a more observant person, he’d have been able to clock onto the obvious, mutual dislike between Lainey and Seb. To be able to get a hold of it before it exploded and caused a mess. And within it all, maybe he would have found some sympathy for Phoebe in her similar situation with Foster and Seb too. But alas, he didn’t pay attention to any of it because, as far as he was concerned, he loved both Seb and Lainey, and they loved him, so it’d only be natural for the two to love each other. If not now, then soon, at least. 

“Hmnm, I think I always knew I’d be coming home.” There was a time, in his first couple of years when jet setting across the globe with Gerry — Lainey occasionally in tow — where CJ doubted he’d truly step foot back in Blue Harbor again. Then his mom died, and everything changed. Lainey though, well, he was surprised about her return. “I’m glad you’re back, even though you won’t tell me why.” 

Everything felt easier with CJ, like she could just keep spinning in his arms and forget that the real world existed awhile. That was his charm, how he was so all-encompassing that nothing else mattered. It had scared her when they were eighteen, and Lainey knew she'd done the right thing but letting him go-- but part of her knew she'd stay in his orbit, and he in hers.

She had to actively fight off an eyeroll at the mention of Sebastian, who was-- surprise, surprise-- still acting like an asshole. "That's nice of him." She knew exactly what Seb's problem was, and it only inspired Lainey to tug on CJ's neck and sing along with him. When her throat was sore, Lainey rested her head on CJ's shoulder, laughing, "Did you ever think we'd both be back here?" she asked, wistfully.