#naomi ayodele thread; 1

[everettellington]

WHO: Rhett Ellington & @naomiayodele WHAT: Rhett is trying to make his way to another area and accidentally photo bombs you. WHEN: Snowflake Gala - January 2025 WHERE: From Brush to Canvas WHY: sparked a random idea.

"Oh shit, sorry." He cursed, the glass that had immediately been pressed against his leg nearly dropped as he tried to scurry away, eyes landing on the pair he was just passing. He didn't know for sure, but, given the angle of the phone it appeared as if the other had been in the middle of posing for a photo and Rhett had just photo bombed. "Were you taking a photo?" he questioned, eyes focused on the others again. "You probably got some blurry tall guy in the back of it."

[everettellington]

“Sometimes it blows my mind that there are people out there that do things like social media and editing for a living.” He commented, eyes focusing on the other as he spoke. “I don’t blame you for hiring someone else that can do it.” He commented. “I don’t have the talent for that so anything you see me post that looks good was probably done by someone else.” He laughed, eyes focused on the other. He let the subject change, and when she asked about his photo at the fire station, he nodded. “That’s me.” He smiled. “I worked there for years. Since my early twenties.” He commented. “Retired now, but. “Let me hear about your dad. I probably know him. especially if he’s into football and fixing things too.”

"It's not for everyone." She laughed a little. Editing in general was so time consuming. She tried to do it in the beginning for the bakery. "I tried to do social media myself for my bakery, but I ended up hiring someone that was much better with getting that done." She trusted them to bring her vision each month to life. "Social media has changed so much from when Instagram first started." It was crazy just how much the younger generation was sucked into using filters. "I will make sure you least get 10%." She nodded with a soft smile. "Oh please, you are far from old." "Rhett..Rhett. Pretty sure I seen your picture at the fire station right?." She had been to the station plenty over the years just to hang out or volunteer to cook in her youth. Walking those halls felt like a life time ago. "Or I am getting that wrong? Promise not stalking... the name just seems familiar. my dad used to be a firefighter now he just enjoys watching football and building stuff."

[everettellington]

"I've never fully understood how all those editing things - they're all apps right? - work. I mean, I understand the point but." he shrugged, letting his eyes avert from the phone in her hand to her. "It really is neat though, even if it was an accident." he laughed. "I wouldn't say that though. If you decide to sell it or use it for advertising or whatever, you don't even have to give me a profit, but at least tell them it was my idea." he playfully winked. Her compliment made him nod, shrugging again. "I've taken a few of them in my days." he admitted. "I'm not a professional, but, it helps that my daughter is big into camera angles and all of that." he admitted, his smile only widening whenever he talked of his daughter. "I'd love to, sure. As long as you don't mind an old man in your photo." he smiled. "I'm Rhett. It's nice to meet you, Naomi."

“Okay, you might have a point there.” She unfortunately only wanted to come back as ghost if she could still help people. She smiled softly when he mentioned that the effect was cool. “It definitely beats anything you have to add playing with effects for social media.” She agreed. She knew that with the lighting inside the tent, it might be wonky so she had a clip on light attached to her phone just in case. After her photo was taken, her head tilted to examine his work. “Look at you, this is great! Thank you, now it’s only right we get an actual photo together. If you don’t mind, I’m Naomi by the way.”

[everettellington]

"Oh I would without a doubt be that guy that haunts people." Rhett laughed, tossing the other a look to indicate that he had a list of people to haunt. Which was only partially true. He wasn't one that held grudges really and loved most people he'd met throughout the years. "I honestly just think it would be fun to mess with people." a shrug, eyes averting to her phone, eyeballing the photo that he'd photo bombed. "Oh that's actually a really cool effect. Looks neat." he smiled, returning his gaze to her. When she said he didn't have to do that he nodded. "I know, but what if you wish you'd gotten it later?" he laughed, eyes focused on her again as she stood in a pose. "That's perfect. The lighting there makes your dress the appropriate color." he snapped the photo. "Let me know what you think."

"I mean hey long it isn't haunting you, being on the other side kind of sounds cool or maybe it's just my years of watching Charmed." She shrugged her shoulders. It sounded so nerdy to admit she believed in the afterlife , ghosts and all of that. She was just convinced it wasn't just them as humans and animals on earth. "Sure, here you go." She turned up the brightness on her phone and let him see. "Oh please, you don't look old. You look good." Naomi waved her at him. "You don't have to do that, but okay. To be honest, I post more about my business than selfies." She laughed. She understood social media helped tremendously but she was serious about her artistry as a baker. "Thank you though." Standing up, she found a spot to stand that was not in the way of others and fixed her hair. "Okay, is this alright?"

[everettellington]

Nodding slowly at the other's words, Rhett nodded. "That's good." he smiled, letting his smile widen when she said it was giving ghost, which then made him chuckle. "I've always wondered what it was like to be a ghost" he admitted, eyes fixated on her for a moment before he laughed again. "Can I see? I gotta make sure I don't look old." he playfully winked. "And in result if you want I can take a photo of you? I'm not sure if you wanted full body but that dress is really pretty so I think you'll appreciate having it documented later if you're anything like my daughter."

Closing the cap back on her lipstick, Naomi checked her reflection in her compact mirror. She grinned to make sure there was no lipstick stains on her teeth - or anything at all stuck between them. Taking a few photos, she didn't go through them right away. Instead, she took another and jumped when she heard a voice behind her. "I was." She answered, opening her photos application on her phone. "Maybe, it shouldn't be that bad." She hit the last photo and all you see behind her was a blurry figure walking past. "It's giving ghost, but it's okay."