#ryder carte

[exrt7]

Now she is an amateur model. Because Vien and Ryder's friend from college happened to be the editor of a fashion magazine. After some unexpected things happen. Camille got this part-time job by accident.

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Image courtesy of  umefolklore

I hope you like it

[contradictivs]

another ‘ryder being the mom of the frat’ vibes @pear1ridged @pear1ridge

[bellarkeselection]

Halstead’s Favorite Duo

Anonymous request - Can you do a Jay Halstead x reader, where they are married and she is part of the K-9 unit? Maybe they called her in or something to help chase down a suspect.

My boots hit the ground as fast as I could to keep up with my first best friend for I wish I could say my whole life. Yet I have only known this dog since I joined the K-9 unit that works with the Chicago Police Department. My German shepherd dog ran forward on the heels of the man that was running from us. The man we were after was a drug cartel that they had been hunting for months. “Ryder! Attack.” I commanded him before he launched himself through the glass store window.

The guy we were chasing tried to run to the back of the store but he tripped over a shopping cart giving Ryder the opportunity to tackle him to the ground. Stepping over the broken window glass I draw my gun from my belt pointing it at the guy. “Y/n, Ryder! Are you guys okay?”

“We’re fine, Jay. Ryder ain’t too bad at his job. Ryder, come here.” I smiled seeing my husband coming around the corner lowering his gun when he saw the situation.

Ryder snarled at the guy on the ground keeping his tail still when we were out in the field. Otherwise he would let it actually wag when he was happy. Jay bent down on a knee after putting his gun away, grabbing the guy off the floor and handcuffing him. “You’re under arrest for smuggling drugs across the border. Take him back to the station.” He handed him off to one of the other local officers.

“You did good, boy.” Dropping down on a knee in front of my dog he started moving his tail wagging it since it was just me and Jay alone with him. “So how much paperwork does this leave you with tonight. I can order take out if you want if you’ll be home later.”

He shakes his head walking back to one of the squad cars having me and Ryder following his heels like we did every morning when we all had to leave the apartment. “Hailey said she would take care of it. I actually had something else in mind.”

“Oh really. Care to share what you had in mind?” I smirked knowing that he wouldn’t give it up even if I asked the question but I did it anyway.

Jay sent me a glare. “It didn’t work on our first date and it still won’t work now.” I nudged him and he chuckled before Ryder barked signaling that he wanted into our conversation.

“That means he doesn’t want to be left out of whatever mystery thing you have planned. And you agreed to take me in every way that includes my doggy.” I responded to him.

Jay and I had gotten married a few years ago. I had just been promoted to chief of my unit. Vioet was the man to help me get it after he had seen my history with Ryder and the amount of cases we helped crack down compared to the other k-9 unit members. Jay opened the door letting my dog jump into the backseat shutting the door once he was in. We both got in the car and removed our bullet proof vests and he started the drive looking my way a few times. “Do you remember the day we met?”

“Of course I do. I got injured on an assignment and the doctors at the hospital your brother Will works at wouldn’t let Ryder inside my room. So he started losing it and breaking things. If it wasn’t for you I was sure Ryder would have bit Will’s leg.” I snorted running a hand down my face thinking back on that night.

Jay smiled, shaking his head. “Yeah but he and I have the same goal to protect you…and love you.”

“So where are we going exactly? I mean it’s kind of strange that you are asking about the day we met. We’re already married. What else could we possibly do?” I shifted in my seat bouncing up and down with the tension of waiting.

Jay didn’t stop the car for another few minutes, parking the car outside of a house that was painted a light blue on the outside and it had a gray roof. He let Ryder out of the backseat first before coming over to my side and helping me out. “The surprise is that this place is now ours.”

“Are you serious, Jay!” I gasped covering my mouth with my hands spinning around to face him since he was standing behind me.

He slipped the keys in my hands. “It’s our. I am not lying to you. I got it all set up a few weeks ago. That way we aren’t cramped in an apartment and this gives Ryder a space to run when he wants to.”

“I love you.” I smiled, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him slowly.

Ryder barks running towards the front door just as Jay wraps his arms around my waist tugging me closer to deepen the kiss until he breaks it not being able to hold in his chuckle. “I love you too…and Ryder seems to approve.”

Comments really appreciated ❤️

[heygerald]

Falling Without a Harness - Chapter 11

AU where Tom Ryder is still an asshole, just not a psychotic one. Tom Ryder is rich. Everyone knows that. When Tom decides to do something out of character, Parker has to decide what is just the habits of someone careless with their fortune, and what can be considered acts of service from someone that cares about her.

Read the story here: prev / ...

The studio set after hours was a strange place to find oneself. It was beautiful in that glamorous way that everything mundane in Hollywood was; twinkling lights strung between ugly studio buildings, extras dressed in 1800s regalia tapping on their phones as they awaited whatever scene they were in, the black blanket of the endless LA sky an empty backdrop to the megaphones and spotlights being lugged around.

It was exciting, and it was also not; there was a lot of movement but not a whole lot of doing that translated to a mute static hanging in the air.

"Is it always like this?" Parker asked from her spot in the back end of Dan's pick-up truck. It had been packed with all sorts of bits and bobs that she had never seen before, and as Jody exchanged the batteries in a flashlight, Parker prodded curiously at a baseball sized dent in one of the various helmets stacked behind her. "Not stunt work, I mean. The set in general. I figure Dan probably goes through three helmets a week."

Jody hummed, flicking the flashlight on then off before setting it aside as a warbled voice crackled across the radio on her belt. She tilted her head to listen for a brief moment before turning back to Parker.

"Studio sets are always busy. Haven't you been here before?"

"Sure, but... during normal hours," Parker noted with a glance towards the sky. "But it's almost midnight, and the parking lot was pretty full when I got here at ten."

Jody hummed flippantly, shrugging as she switched her radio to a different channel. More warbled conversation flowed for a few minutes before she decided that there was nothing important enough to require her attention.

Snapping it back onto her belt, the camerawoman kicked her feet back and forth with a delicate smile curving her lips. "Well, I suppose there's always something to be filmed. It's not just us filming on the lot, you know. We share space with a dozen other directors at any given moment. Sometimes, you're filming night scenes. Sometimes you just want to get work in when less people are around. It's just how it is."

Parker supposed that made sense. Afterall, she preferred to go grocery shopping late at night for the very purpose of having less people to avoid in the aisles.

Still.

It was odd to see a set full of life in the middle of the night. Odder still when a pair of actors drifted by on a golf cart; the pair were dressed in ragged clothes, with fake bruises painted along their cheeks, and red cuts oozing fake blood down their forearms. No one but Parker even seemed to register their presence before they disappeared down a nearby alley.

"I think this is way more fun than coming during the day," she decided a moment later. "And I'm not just saying that because I didn't have to argue with the security guards to get in."

Jody snickered. "They're actually very nice."

"To everyone but me, apparently."

"You never have a good reason to be on set, though, do you?" the Brit teased with a wiggle of her eyebrows. Parker faked offense, and Jody's hair came loose from behind her ears as she laughed. "Kidding. I'm very glad to have someone keep me company tonight while Colt's training. Although I am surprised you had time to come by at all. Colt says you've been busy lately."

"Busy-er than before. But ten times zero is still zero, you know?"

"Oh, please," Jody rolled her eyes, flashlight toggle flickering mindlessly in her hands as she tried to stave off boredom. Honestly, Parker didn't know how she managed not to fall asleep with so little to do this late at night. She was yawning and she hadn't been here since the early morning like Jody had. "Your store is splendid. You've always had clients. Now, apparently, you just have more. Busy is still busy."

"Splendid?" Parker echoed, teasing the word in a mock British accent. She quite liked it; both the sound and the funky way she had to work her tongue. "No one has ever called my store splendid before, but you're right. It is a splendid store. Andy R from Angie's List can suck it."

"He left a bad review?"

Parker waved a hand at Jody. "He comes in once a month to ask if I have any new Tolstoy books in, and when I remind him that Tolstoy died a couple hundred years back, he thinks I'm being emotional and sassy. Asshole."

"Prick," Jody said in her very real British accent.

Parker liked that too. "Andy R is a total prick. Maybe that's the tagline that I'll put on my t-shirts. Or, a few, anyways. I'd bet Melissa would be happy to wear one with me. She does not like that dude."

"You're finally getting shirts?"

"Finally."

"See?" Jody gestured to her. "You are busy."

Parker rolled her eyes with a smile. It was endearing how much Jody cared about the success of her store—always inquiring about how sales are going, and dropping by when she has some time to pick up a new book—but they were surface level compliments at best. Her store wasn't going to beat out Barnes & Nobles for awards anytime soon.

She'd be lucky to finally have her shop registering on Google Maps as a business and not as just a big question mark like it currently was.

"Not for customers to buy, anyway. I just think it's about time I got my store name on a t-shirt. Everybody has t-shirts. I mean, literally everybody. Have you ever been to a thrift store? I have found some weird stuff in the dollar bin."

Jody tipped her head back in laughter. "I have seen some odd shirts. Mostly, though, they're shirts that you are wearing."

She shrugged. "What can I say? I love a good thrift store bargain. And a gimmick. And—well, anything to do with my store. All the more reason to start printing my own shirts. I can finally rep the place, you know? Plus, I am busier now. I might even be able to print a dozen tees without going bankrupt by the end of the calendar year."

Jody peered at Parker sideways, soda bottle in hand as she swished the lash few sips around in circles. "So, things are going well, then."

Parker tilted her head left and right. Things certainly were going better, but that didn't mean she wasn't still drowning in bills and ridiculous requests from customers that were absolutely not 'always right'. Even with the increase in revenue and constant presence of teenage girls from the local high school, she was stuck spending most of her day putting out fires. She could feel herself stretching thin lately with all the extra hours her and Melissa were putting in, and at some point over the last year she had gone completely nose blind to the musty smell of her store. Not to mention the fact that she was also fairly sure that the Bath and Body Works' plug-ins spread around her store were going to give her cancer one day (if the crusty moms were to be believed). But it wasn't the time nor the place to drop all of those fears onto Jody's lap; not to mention way too late to use the braincells needed to verbalize those thoughts.

So, Parker elected to ignore all of that. Instead, she waggled her brows with a grin. "Does that mean you'll buy a shirt?"

Jody shook her head, snorting. "You really are Colt's sister."

"Well, I'd hope so," she sniffed. "The orphan-in-a-box story always seemed a little too stupid to be true. As if someone would ever give this up," she tacked on, gesturing to herself with an impish smile.

The look was betrayed by her over-sized sweatshirt and messy braids. Not to mention the tattered jeans and filthy sneakers on her feet. But if Jody was laughing at her, she didn't say, and so the two women giggled at their inside joke whilst the set continued to spur to life around them.

An actress dressed in a delicate silk dress and high heels strutted past as they laughed; her hair was done up in perfect Hollywood glamor, sparkly highlighter on her cheekbones and a delicate pink eyeshadow painting her lids. With the fur slung over her shoulders, she looked like she had just hopped out of a Marilyn Monroe biopic, and when she tossed her hair, it looked like—well—a movie. It took Parker a moment to calm down from her laughter to recognize the actress from a popular CW tv show, and as she strolled past, she couldn't help but crack her neck to get a better look.

When she turned back to Jody, the camerawoman hadn't even seemed to notice.

"This is crazy," she said, tucking her legs up underneath her as she fiddled with the straps on Dan's busted helmet. The actress was gone now, and Parker tried to shake the bizarre feeling of being stuck in The Twilight Zone from her mind. "I know you work in the film industry, but, honestly... It must be so much fun doing this sort of thing all the time."

Jody snorted. "Sure," she echoed. "Fun."

"Isn't it?"

"I mean... alright, yes, of course it is fun. It's amazing to be behind the scenes, to see how movies are made, to know how much work goes into a three minute scene without any dialogue. I mean—I'm always learning new things, so it's certainly not boring," she said. But Parker felt like there was going to be more to her answer, and so she tilted her head in interest, prompting Jody to continue. "But... a typical nine to five certainly wouldn't hurt sometimes. Times like these, when we're stuck here until god knows when just so the director can perfect a shadow in one of the scenes or something else as miniscule... well, it can certainly test your patience."

Parker glanced in the director's direction, taking note of the two assistants that trailed after him with thick binders full of colorful notes, pens tucked haphazardly about their persons. "It's not always like this though. Right?"

Jody shook her head. "No, no. Of course not. Usually our shifts are much more normal. Even if the hours vary, they usually schedule morning scenes together, evening scenes together—you know. So it's not so tedious. And we're almost never here this late just for blocking. Sadowitz is on a tighter schedule for a few things since the New York scenes have to be shot by the first of the month. He's just getting in as many last minute rehearsals as possible so when they go to New York everything is set to go right away. Understandable, of course... I just wish he wasn't such a perfectionist sometimes."

Jacob Sadowitz was the up-and-coming director leading this sci-fi film, and though he wasn't that much older than Parker, he had already earned himself a fair share of accolades for his daring action films. Particularly, the box office had been impressed with his intricate fight scenes and stunt work in his latest movies. Just last year some veteran journalist had printed an in-depth essay commending Sadowitz' dedication to the craft, touching on how much research he put into his work to make sure everything was as accurate as possible. Based on his credentials alone it was no surprise that he would be working his stunt crew till the middle of the night until they were well-oiled machines.

Still, Parker wrinkled her nose tiredly. "Isn't there a quote about that? Perfectionism being the downfall of yada, yada, yada. Want me to tell him that? Threaten to call the union if you don't get to go home soon?"

The truck shook as Jody kicked her leg at Parker with a reprimanding tut. But, she was smiling as she did it, giggling under her breath in that way of hers. "He's not that bad. This is not that bad. I mean, sometimes, the schedule is so mind-bendingly awful that it's a wonder anything gets done... but it's hardly the worst I've dealt with. At least he treats everyone well. Well, he doesn't scream at anyone, I mean."

Parker blew a raspberry. "I can't even imagine. I think I'd get arrested for my behavior if a director ever screamed at me. No idea how you don't lose your shit on the daily."

"Oh, I've come close a few times," she chuckled.

The comment surprised Parker. Not because Jody Moreno was a woman that could take care of herself—obviously, she didn't put up with bullshit, and she didn't rely on anyone to get things done. Moreso because Jody had to put up with so much that Parker couldn't quite imagine a scenario that would have to be bad enough to cause the camerawoman to lose her cool. And if being yelled at wasn't enough, what was? Leaning closer, she needled. "You're serious?"

"Of course I am."

"What happened?"

"I'm not sure I can even remember why anymore."

"So it's happened more than once?"

"Are you kidding?" Jody scoffed with a shake of her head. "The type of behavior you see on set is not something you'd ever get away with anywhere else. It happens every movie. Directors are just so..."

"Insane?"

"Hollywood," she corrected, gaze darting around to see if anyone was in hearing range of her complaints. No one was, though, and even if they were, Parker had a sneaking suspicion that the other set crew would be more likely to join in on the bitch fest than snitch about it. "I mean you wouldn't believe some of the stuff we have to put up with. The egos some of these directors have is absurd. Bad directors! Ones that shouldn't even be directing that act like they're Tarantino or Nolan. Throwing things and crying and blubbering like babies—"

"Oh, fuck off!" Parker cried, leaning even closer. "You're joking!"

Jody Moreno was not, in fact, joking. She looked scandalized just by having to recall the things she had seen. Something haunted in her eyes, but there was still a smile tugging at her mouth. Obviously, she saw the humor in it; even if it was fucked up. "I wish. I mean—grown men crying because something wasn't going their way or screaming because the sun is too bright." She made air quotes with her hands, showing that she was not joking in the slightest about this before inching towards Parker. Something twinkled in her eyes as she said, "I kid you not during my first gig ever, I had a director break down in tears because the lead actress wasn't pronouncing the word butter how he wanted her to."

"Butter?" Parker echoed incredulously. "Is there even a wrong way to say it?"

"Oh," she said, giggling. "You'd be surprised. Not to say that he was right in his little hissy fit, but her accent was so wrong. Awful, Parker. I'm telling you. The whole film—a disaster."

"Huh. Butter," she said with a giggle.

Jody giggled back. "No, it was more like boo-ter."

"Boo-ter?" she cried. "That's—no way. Butter. Butt-her. How do you even—bu-t-ter?"

The two women keeled forward in laughter at the ridiculous conversation. It was such a stupid thing for someone to cry over, but the longer they tossed the word back in forth in the most ridiculous accents they could imagine, Parker was beginning to forget how it was properly pronounced in the first place.

Was it—?

There was a scuffle of shoes, then a thump as Dan dropped his elbows onto the side of the truck bed with a wary glance towards the two women. He almost looked like he didn't want to get involved in the first place, but when the silent stare-off seemed even funnier than their previous conversation causing them to tip against the other in laughter, his curiosity seemed to outweigh his hesitation.

"Do I even want to know?" he asked.

"That depends," Parker wiped tears out of the corner of her eyes. "How do you say butter?"

Dan blinked at her. Then, slowly, he shook his head at them with a long sigh. "So, no, I don't want to know. I told your brother that leaving you two hens together would only lead to trouble. He doesn't ever listen to me, though, does he?"

"Oi!" Parker smacked him on the arm, scoffing. "Who are you calling hens?"

Dan waved a hand at her, before snatching the helmet off of her lap, and plopping it atop her head to say, "always clucking, you two. Colt's going to end up in trouble and he's not even going to know why. I'd feel sorry for him if he didn't still owe me fifty bucks. You aren't here to pay his debts, are you?"

Parker, helmet now hanging low over her eyes, adjusted it towards the back of her head with a scoff. "It's sins of the father, not sins of the little sister. What's he doing that he's going to get in trouble for, anyway?"

"Oh, no. No, no, no," Dan laughed, wagging a finger at her in as much of a patronizing manner as someone could manage after a twelve hour shift. She would have scowled if it wasn't so endearing; she always liked Dan. Mostly because he had a head on his shoulders when her brother was constantly looking for where he left his, but also because he was just as good at teasing as he was being teased. "I'm not falling for that one, Park. If you don't know, then you're not going to find out from me. Snitches get stiches, you know?"

"Whatever. He's awful at secrets, so if he is doing something stupid, I'll find out. I always do."

Dan mimicked talking with his hand. "What'd I say? Clucking hens."

"I don't cluck, I just point out all the ways he's spectacularly stupid in," she corrected with a waggle of the head. The movement seemed to jostle the oversized helmet too much, however, and it rapped her nose as it slid down her face. Parker adjusted it a second time with a huff, ignoring how Jody was snickering into her hand. "Speaking of doing spectacularly stupid things, Numbnuts doesn't need this helmet for this stunt does he? I think it's broken."

"They have straps for a reason," Dan pointed out.

The comment sounded far too much like a threat for her liking though and Parker just managed to bend out of his grasp before he could cinch the straps under her chin. She bumped into Jody, who only shook her head at the pair's antics, as her radio warbled with nonsensical chatter.

Parker side-eyed Dan. "Isn't there something you should be doing right now? Like—I don't know—working? Tying safety knots or blowing up an inflatable mat or whatever it is you do? I'm sure there's a building you could hurl yourself off of nearby if you'd rather leave the hens alone."

Dan rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "That's your brother's job, though, isn't it?"

And—oh, yeah.

Remembering the reason that she was sitting in this pick-up truck in the first place Parker planted a hand on the helmet so she could tip her head back far enough to see said brother standing about thirty feet up on a platform of sorts. It was the skeleton of a building, open staircases with haphazardly drilled in railings surrounding each new floor. It almost looked like something you would find on a construction site in lieu of a working elevator, but Colt didn't seem to mind the shoddy building from his spot at the tip-top of it where he was in deep conversation with the stunt coordinator. Jody had explained that this was the frame of whatever building he would actually be performing the stunt from; just a temporary set he could work with here before shooting the real thing, but from this point of view it just looked like a whole lot of OSHA violations to Parker.

As expected, he didn't seem to notice.

In fact, Colt seemed to be smiling an awful lot for someone about to be thrown off a building, and even though he was wearing a harness, Parker had to look away before the nervous feeling in her stomach ran off with her dinner.

"I still don't understand why he's doing this at midnight," she mumbled to no one in particular. The darkness seemed to creep in every corner, and Parker wrapped her arms around herself to stave off the chill. "Couldn't the stunt coordinator have booked this death trap during the day?"

"It's cheaper at night," Jody said. "Less people around, less unnecessary crew getting in the way."

"Plus, you know, if he does fall and crack his head open on the pavement it's a whole lot easier for an ambulance to get here without rush-hour traffic," Dan joked.

The truck physically rocked from how quickly the two women jerked their heads in his direction, and as if suddenly aware of how flat his joke had fallen with this particular audience, he threw up his palms before they could say anything.

"Shit. Sorry. I was just kidding, yeah? Stunt humor tends to be... bleak."

"Stunt humor is never funny," Jody said.

"Honestly, Dan," Parker added with the shake of her head. The helmet slid down her forehead once more, and she tossed the entire helmet behind her with a patronizing tut. "Read the room."

He sucked his teeth, grimacing at the ground. "Sorry."

"If he ends up in the hospital now it's all going to be your fault," Parker continued, digging her teeth in. She could have bleak humor too when she wanted, and Dan grimaced a second time as if he was just remembering that. "Don't stuntmen believe in jinx's? We need salt, now. You have any salt? Or, like, a rabbit's foot or—is it one crow's feather or two?"

This time, he rolled his eyes at her, looking a whole lot less apologetic about the situation. "I said sorry."

"Oh, well, I'll make sure Colt knows that when he's on a ventilator and having a machine do all his breathing for him. He'll be so touched, I'm sure."

"I said I was sorry!"

"Sorry! He's sorry! Jody, give me your radio, we need to cancel—"

Parker reached for Jody's radio at the same time that she got tired of their antics, and with a glare, Jody swatted Parker's hand away from her hip. "Honestly, you two," she tsked at them like a teacher scolding schoolchildren. And, like two schoolchildren being scolded, Parker and Dan avoided one another's gaze so they didn't bust out in laughter. "Now you have me worried!"

"Oh, he's going to be fine," Dan assured her.

"Fine," Parker echoed.

"Well," Dan hedged after a moment, and Parker was already snickering before she heard what he had to say. "Physically he'll be okay. It's all safe, he's harnessed in, the mat is made for this sort of thing. But, mentally, you know..." Dan trailed off as he glanced up towards Colt. "He'll be the same he always has been."

"Oh, stop it!" Jody chucked her empty soda bottle at him.

It bounced off his chest with a dull thud, and Parker had just tilted forward in laughter when there was a bullhorn somewhere on the far side of the set. The three tilted their heads back just in time to watch Colt lurched off the platform, arms swinging wildly as if he was falling to his death. And just when Parker's stomach clenched in concern because—what if?—he hit the mat with his own dull thud. Air started hissing out of the inflatable in seconds, and as it pooled around him, Colt's first response was to give everyone on set a thumbs-up.

"Well, there's definitely something wrong with him," Parker said after a long moment of silence, letting out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Dan was already walking away from whatever she was about to say, and needing an audience, she turned to Jody knowing the woman would sympathize. With a jerk of her thumb, she sighed. "I mean, why else would he do this for money? Honestly?"

Jody hemmed and hawed for a moment before giving in. "Because... he's an idiot?"

"Because," Parker agreed, finishing her own soda with an eyeroll as her brother traded high-fives with one of the other stuntmen, "he's an idiot."

---

...

...

...

Parker rolled her eyes, watching the little green message bubble filled with "..." blink yet again on the phone screen before her. It had been repeating this message for the last hour of her life; an hour that she was now never going to get back thanks to the idiot on the other end of the messenger app, and as her neck twitched with a painful crick from the angle she had been staring at her phone, something even more painful burned behind her eyes.

She should probably stop staring at it; could definitely do with some dinner, a nice glass of water, and maybe some Ibuprofen. Wine wouldn't hurt either. Nor would a cigarette, a nice warm shower, and a few hours lying vertical in her bed. Somewhere unplugged, where she didn't give into the temptation to glance at her phone; the very phone in her hand, that she could ever so easily tilt her wrist to see if maybe, in her spiral of misery, he had—

...

"Son of a bitch," she muttered, head thumping none-too-gently against the table.

It hurt a lot more than it should have, but it was cool, too. The scratched up wood smooth against her cheeks as she worked on evening out her breathing. Her neck felt better like this; shoulders too. Hell, it just felt good to lay her head down after the week that she had. Felt nice to let her eyes flutter shut, to let all thoughts turn off, to just breathe in, breathe out, and—

Her phone buzzed, and Parker ripped her head up off the table so quickly the room spun before her.

But whatever hope had caught in her chest fizzled out like a popped balloon upon seeing Colt's name on her screen.

The message read, "I thought we were gonna be sombrero buddies :(" with an attached picture of her brother wearing a sombrero and sunglasses, holding a heavily packed taco, a still smoking grill in the background. She recognized it immediately as the one at Dan's, before remembering that she had been invited over with some of the other boys for tacos and margaritas earlier that week. No wonder her brother looked so put out.

"Son of a bitch," she said a second time.

She meant it, too. Parker was pretty sure that tacos and spicy margaritas was the cure for every ailment in life. Or, you know, the spiritual kind anyway. They certainly didn't help when she broke her arm a few years ago; but they did lift her spirits immensely.

"What the hell is going on over there?" Tom's voice echoed from the other end of the room, and suddenly Parker was reminded that she was not alone in her misery.

She glanced up to find him staring at her with furrowed brows, a hand on the hip of his leather NASA flight suit as Betty and Sasha fiddled with the material. It was his final character testing today, along with the creation of the highly coveted look book, and while her brother wasn't needed for this sort of thing, Parker had jumped at the chance to spend some time with Tom specifically so she wouldn't spend all day thinking about work.

Son of a bitch!

She winced, waving her phone at him. "Oh, just Colt. He invited me for dinner tonight over at Dan's and I totally forgot. He's going to be pissed. He's all alone wearing his sombrero."

"Colt is going to be pissed because he doesn't have anyone to wear a sombrero with?" Tom asked in a scathing tone. She would have corrected him if it wasn't... well, accurate. She loved her brother, but sometimes he got upset over the littlest of things. Particularly when he felt like she was doing something without him. "He does know that he's an adult, doesn't he?"

"Oi, be nice. That's my brother you're talking about."

"You shit on him all the time."

"Well—" she waved a hand around flippantly, flabbergasted at even having to defend against such an accusation. "Duh! He's my brother. But you don't have that right, Ryder, so pack it in before I report you to, like, HR or whatever."

Tom rolled his eyes as Sasha tugged on the length of his right pant leg. It all looked good; professionally made, snug in all the right places, and the perfect backdrop for his bright eyes and shiny teeth. In fact, he looked even better than she thought he had looked before, and Parker was just about to ogle him as he was turned left and right by the seamstresses when her phone buzzed a second time.

She plucked it up, disappointed yet again to see that it was from her brother and not from the eBay seller.

"And what on Earth is with that?" Tom's cloying voice echoed a second time.

She pulled her attention away from her phone long enough to notice the cross furrow of his brows and the tightness of his shoulders.

"With what?" she asked, not sure where this was coming from.

He gestured to her phone, sniffing when his hairstylist teased a few strands of hair off his forehead with a comb. "You've had your nose in that thing since you got here. You have a hot date that I don't know about or something?" he snarked.

And—well.

Parker had to physically bite down on her bottom lip to stop from laughing. Not only would that further piss him off, but with the people in the room, it likely wouldn't be great for his image either. But the idea that Tom—Tom Ryder, the same man whose face was plastered all over town—would be upset that he wasn't given her undivided attention was fucking hilarious to Parker.

Honestly, men. They really were just children.

Smothering out her smile, Parker turned her phone face down against the table. "Okay, alright, I'm sorry. There's this guy over in Wrightwood that has a print shop, or inherited one or his Dad just demolished one or—I don't know," she paused to wave a hand around, earning an eyeroll from Tom. "Whatever. I'm trying to convince him to sell me a box of mystery novels from his collection. He's being unnecessarily difficult about it, though."

"Who is this guy?"

"Melissa's dad's second cousin or something. She showed me his eBay profile last week and he's been dragging me over the coals for the past couple of days about whether he'll sell to me or not. He wants an absurd up-front price that, even if I could pay, I would never pay, but he also hasn't sold anything on eBay before so I think he's getting kind of desperate."

Tom, still cross, but now slightly more interested, arched an eyebrow at her. "Why are you buying stuff off eBay?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Do you think I have a print shop hiding in my apartment? I know you haven't been there yet, but it's not that big. I think it has an occupancy limit of five."

"Five?" he echoed dumbly. To that, she did laugh, but then she glanced back at her phone and realized that she likely wasn't going to get anything good from this idiot even if he did sell to her. As was her lot in life, nothing seemed to work out her way. Knowing this, Parker let her head fall onto the table with a hollow thump, something miserable prickling in the back of her eyes. Maybe that's why he let that particular comment go without any further mocking. There was the shutter of a polaroid camera snapping before he spoke again. "Well, why are you worrying about this now?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's Sunday." She tilted her head sideways on the table to peer over at him. He wasn't mocking her, but given the team of people quite literally fixing his air and clothes for him at the moment, she doubted he understood what she was going through either. "Can't you deal with it later?"

"Like... when I'm busy working at the store?"

"You're always working at the store."

She tutted; half in humor, half about how miserable that statement about her life just was. "Well, duh. That happens when you own a teeny tiny little shop that, for some reason, seems to be actively trying to bankrupt you. I think there's a malevolent spirit the real estate agent didn't tell me about. Or, like, it's built on haunted burial grounds or something. I've broken three lightbulbs this month, and fell off a ladder yesterday just trying to fix the stockroom fan. Which, by the way, I still don't know how it broke, but something is not right with that thing. I don't think they should squeak so much. It sounds like a pig. Or... like a dying cat. It's unsettling."

Tom must have sensed something in her lackluster tone because he almost seemed concerned when he asked, "don't you have employees to do that stuff for you?"

"Uh, employee, singular. And you've met her. And, half the time, I wonder if she isn't the malevolent spirit that's out to make my life miserable," she said. Meant it, too. Just that week Melissa had insulted her style in three different slang terms that Parker had to look up on Urban Dictionary to understand. Honestly, she could handle being "old", what she couldn't handle was having to put work in just to know she was being insulted. That crossed some sort of imaginary line. "Besides, she only works a couple shifts a week, and she's more for cleaning and stocking than real, managerial stuff. Or anything that might require her getting more than two feet off the ground. I'm not paying liability insurance."

He frowned at her oddly. "Don't you have to—?"

"I mean, don't get me wrong, Melissa is great. But she can't do everything, and I can't expect her to do more than she already has as a part-time employee."

"Why don't you hire a manager then?" he asked as if that was a conclusion she hadn't drawn herself.

She might have told him to fuck off for mansplaining right then and there if Tom's question hadn't been spoken in such a earnest manner. Or, as earnest as someone like him could be. Most A-listers like him wouldn't even be giving her the time of day, let alone listening to her problems, and at the very least Parker took some comfort in the thought.

"Good idea, but I think there's about a thousand other things I need to do before I can budget for a manager. Like, I should probably pay off my car at some point. Then get liability insurance. Then get car insurance," she counted off.

Sasha and Betty laughed into their hands, both women just as amused by Parker as the first time, and with another snap of the polaroid camera, the group shifted to making sure the right picture had the right information in the tag book for future reference.

Tom took the reprieve to snag two bottles of water from the mini-fridge before he was sitting down next to her. He wasn't slumping—she didn't think Tom Ryder could slump—but from the weight of his shoulders it was obvious he had been having a long day too.

"You can't afford anyone else?" he asked in spite of that.

Parker uncapped her bottle with a sigh. She didn't even have the energy to be disgruntled by how different their lives were. What he had, he had because he earned it, and Parker made sure to remember that rather than resent that as she took a long dreg of water. "One day I can. Just... not today. I need to have a more steady revenue stream before I can start thinking about anything like that, and to get a more steady revenue stream I have to be willing to work all hours of the day. Even if it's just to haggle with some prick still living in his parent's basement for a box of Hardy Boys books. Turtles on turtles and all that."

"I have no fucking idea what that means," he said, blinking at her, and this time he was so earnest that she couldn't have doubted him even if she tried.

She shook her head with a laugh, already feeling better. "Do you feel like Mexican food after this?"

"Dan's?"

"I have an open invitation," she said. They'll be cool with it if I bring you, she meant. And from the way he pursed his lips, it was obvious that he understood that too. But, he also seemed tired sitting next to her, and Parker could feel that same sort of weariness in her own bones too. "Or... we could get pizza?"

"Pizza is all carbs."

"Mhm, you're right. We should definitely get pizza," she nodded as if he had made a really good point.

"Can you afford that?"

"Are you kidding?" Parker clutched a hand to her chest. "There's always money for pizza. That's like budgeting one-oh-one, Ryder."

He didn't make a comment about how that was probably a stupid way to spend what little money she had, and Parker didn't bring up the fact that she knew he would pay for it later anyway. He always did, even when she made a big deal about wanting to pick up the tab, Tom had yet to let her pay for anything when they were together. She supposed it was easy for him; just muscle memory at this point in his life.

But to her it meant a lot, and she always did her best to make sure he knew that.

Just at the crest of his elbow sat the photographer's polaroid camera, and while the ladies were busy taping everything down and scribbling notes in a variety of pen colors, Parker reached past Tom to grab it.

"I've never had a polaroid camera before."

"Never?"

She picked up the camera, aiming it at Tom, and without hesitating he tilted his head up, eyes down, mouth curving open just a centimeter in that way that looked so effortlessly good that she almost forgot to snap a photo.

"Son of a bitch," she said when it printed, the photo glossy and warm in her hands. "How do you do that? Is that what mewling is?"

"Don't—don't say that," he laughed at her, grabbing the camera from her hands to point it at her. Parker's response was the opposite of his, however, and when the picture printed, it revealed an awkward looking Parker, mouth half open in argument, eyes a little too squinty, hair all sorts of a mess.

"Oh my god!" she shrieked. "Give me that!"

But Tom was faster than she was, and when he tucked the picture into the pocket of his jumpsuit, laughing so heartily that the ladies glanced over at the pair with their own curious smiles, Parker could only catch her face in her hands with a furious blush.

"Tom!" she hissed, smacking him. "It's not funny!"

"You just—it's not—come on, here," he said, shaking his head at her. She was still scowling when Tom grabbed her chair and tugged it by the leg until their thighs were pressed against one another. His body radiated heat as he tossed his free arm over her shoulder, cheek against cheek, and she felt the rumble of his voice more than heard it as he directed her. "Just smile, Park, Jesus. Don't look so stiff."

She tried to shove him off her, only to fail, and as Tom laughed at her, Parker couldn't help but laugh herself.

The photos were crooked, one slightly blurry, and in neither photo were they looking at the camera. And though she still didn't look great, nowhere near as good as him, Tom looked happy in the photos as he laughed.

Parker decided right then that she could live looking like this if he looked like that.

---

Crave Cafe was just as quaint during the off season as it was during the busy summer months, and though it was surprisingly vacant for a Saturday afternoon, the cafe never actually felt empty to Parker. All the tables were dotted with cute decorations, the chairs all stuffed with hand-stitched pillows and dollar-bin cushions that added an eclectic nature to the darkly painted walls, and the jukebox in the corner never failing to fill the lapses of silence with something soothing. For so many reasons this spot had always been one of her favorite places for coffee in LA, and after a long week at work, Parker couldn't help but take a deep whiff of the cinnamon and coffee bean scent that lingered in the air.

"There you are," Harry greeted from behind the counter. He looked a little out of sorts with how empty the place was, the counter spotless and clean from wiping it down too much, and as he grinned at her arrival, Parker was more than happy to be of service to her favorite barista on this side of town. "I was wondering if you'd make it over today."

Parker ambled closer with a tut. "That's almost insulting, Harry, of course I would. It's Saturday, isn't it? What sort of person would I be if I broke tradition with no good reason?"

Harry swung a pink towel over his shoulder, grinning as he started tapping away on his kiosk screen. "The usual, then?"

"Plus, a cookie, please."

"Really living big theses days, huh, Parker?" he teased.

She bent her hip at the counter, watching as she always did as Harry started fiddling with the expensive machines lined behind the counter. She never understood which thing did what, but she did know that anything made by Harry was about to be phenomenal. As steam rushed from one of the metal prongs, she promised herself that one day she would buy a top of the line espresso and latte machine for her kitchen.

Of course, she'd had to learn how to use it, but... well, dreams were dreams for a reason.

"Yeah, well, I always had a weak will when it came to your baked goods. Is this the same recipe as last year, or did you change it up?"

Harry poured her coffee into a to-go cup, twisting the foam at the end to create the image of a leaf, before carefully sliding it towards her. Right before she could grab it, however, Harry pulled the cup back, warning, "I know I say this every time, but it is literally boiling right now, Parker. Don't drink it yet."

She laughed as if that hadn't been exactly what she was about to do. "I know," she said, smiling a little too keenly for his liking. "I won't. Promise."

He didn't seem to trust her, but eventually he gave up and slid the cup towards her side of the counter. The second he moved away she grabbed the cup, finger dipping into the foam—which, of course, was also scalding hot—and to hide the fact that she had just burnt herself, Parker licked some foam off her finger with a bland smile. "I was just... taste testing."

Harry suppressed a sigh to toss her a cold rag, and as Parker cleaned off her finger, he started making Melissa's pumpkin spice latte. "The cookie is a different recipe this time. Marin wanted to try something new, so make sure you tell her what you think. It has nutmeg and hazelnut in it. I think it's a little too much, but Sarah really likes it."

"Nutty," she joked.

"And hopefully good."

Parker waved a hand at him, testing the temperature of the cup once more, before catching Harry's stern look. She tucked her hands before her back with a glittering smile. "I'm sure it'll be amazing. If I get to eat any of it, anyway."

Parker didn't mention the fact that Melissa had a nasty habit of eating any and all pastries she brought into the store without so much as leaving a crumb for her boss to taste. She figured Harry didn't need to know all that information. Besides, on the off chance that Melissa was actually a Gremlin like Colt had theorized, she was still trying to figure out what the rules were for feeding her, and the last thing she wanted was to have Harry cut off their main source of lunch.

As if he understood all that without her having to explain, Harry shook his head at her with a laugh. "Yeah, well, you may as well scarf it down now before you head back over. I know we joke that you're my number one customer, Park, but I would have understood if you didn't have time to stop over today."

Nothing he said had any bearing on the Melissa being a Gremlin vs not debate, and Parker tilted her head at him oddly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm flattered that you would want to stop in here, but I don't know how you found time to with that whole mess going on. I couldn't even park in my own parking lot this morning, you know that? Kudos to you for finally stealing my customers, but... sheesh. I'll never understand how you pulled this one off."

Huh.

Well, that made even less sense than before and she had quite literally been debating whether her employee was a creature from an 80's fantasy horror series. Sensing that she was missing something important, Parker peered out the front window with a frown. She had noticed a lot of people milling around outside, but she had walked from the post office so she didn't have to deal with traffic, no parking involved. "I'm not—what do you mean?"

It was then that Harry seemed to sense her confusion, and suddenly the pair were sharing matching looks of confusion. "Um... didn't you come here from your shop?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. And while it wasn't unusual for Melissa to take morning shift on Saturdays lately, suddenly, there were a thousand possible scenarios flickering through her mind of all the things that could have gone wrong since Melissa opened that morning. Panic welled in her chest, and Parker tried to laugh through it, struggling to explain herself. "I crashed at Colt's place last night without my phone charger. I dropped it off to charge while I ran some errands, but I came right here to get lunch, so I didn't grab it yet. Melissa was working this morning."

Oh god.

Melissa was working this morning.

"Oh my god," Parker slapped a hand onto the counter, suddenly worried that either her shop was on fire or that her only employee had died. "She's alright, isn't she? Oh my god! I haven't checked my messages yet—!"

"Jesus, no, Parker, it's okay!" he interrupted her before she could have a full blown panic attack in his cafe. He lifted his hands to placate her, and while Parker took a deep breath, she noticed how busy the outside street seemed to be. Awkwardly laughing, he rubbed his forehead. "Nothing's wrong. Definitely not wrong."

"Oh," she said, blood slowly rushing from her head. "Good."

He blinked at her, and Parker blinked right back.

"But then why—?"

There was a ding from the far end of the counter, and Harry gestured at her to wait as he grabbed her to-go bag. She could smell their freshly toasted sandwiches across the counter, and when Harry plucked a cookie out of the display, her stomach twisted in nervous knots.

"No phone," he muttered under his breath, shaking his head at her. "Wow. That's... So, you haven't checked social media or anything today? Or talked to Melissa."

Her reply was a hesitant, "...no?"

Harry stared at her for a long moment, before shaking his head with another, surprised laugh. Like it had been startled out of him. Feeling even more confused, Parker frowned at him helplessly from her side of the counter. "Maybe you should just head over, then. Melissa could probably use the help right about now."

"Help?"

"And, uh, listen if you ever want to do some sort of deal with Crave, I'd love to talk to you about it," he added on as she numbly scrabbled for her credit card. The machine beeped as he continued, "you know, a punchcard sort of thing; buy two books gets fifty percent off coffee here, or something like that. Lots of stuff we could do, really. But we can talk about it later."

"Um... okay?" she nodded, so bewildered that she almost forgot to grab her coffees off the counter. Harry waved at her as she went, and Parker nearly smacked into the glass door as she waved back. "See you later, I guess."

The moment she stepped outside she bumped into a throng of girls standing on their phones, snapping photos. They reminded her a lot of Melissa; dressed in cute outfits, hair done up for the occasion, makeup a tad smeared beneath the eyes from grinning too much.

"Um, excuse me," she called, angling past one of the girl before running into two more identical ones. In fact, when Parker actually picked her head up to look around, she realized that the block was crawling with people. Mostly girls. Teen girls.

Mostly teen girls that seemed to be waiting in a line for—

Parker's coffee hit the sidewalk with a splat.

"Hey!" one of said girls cried at her, angrily shaking coffee stains off of her white sneakers. But Parker didn't notice much of anything she hurried down the block, bag smacking into every third person as she tried to weave through the thread of people. "At least say excuse me!"

The crowd of people got more tightly packed as the line curved, and Parker stopped square in the middle of the street to gape at the sight in front of her.

Every square inch of her store was packed with people. Girls, boys, thirty-year old blondes snapping photos of every angle and squealing delightfully when the picture came out right while their boyfriends hung out front with matching looks of boredom. People were even spilling outside from how crowded it was, and she had to physically push through to step inside.

"What in the f—?"

Parker was just about to owe a ten dollar bill to the swear jar when a familiar head of hair snapped up from the other side of the front counter.

Melissa didn't look much like Melissa. Her curls had fallen over the course of the morning, wayward tufts of frizzy hair tucked behind her ears as she worked on bagging an order. There were flecks of mascara smudged along her cheeks, her lips were lacking their normal peach glossy glaze, and as they made eye contact, she looked half dazed.

"Parker!" she hissed, trying not to sound shrill but definitely not sounding calm. "Where have you been?"

Not knowing what to say, Parker lifted her sandwich bag and latte into the air, helplessly fumbling for words. "I—I was getting us lunch. What is going on here?" she cried, angling behind the counter before someone else was the victim of her wayward coffee. "Is everyone on crack or something? What did you do?"

"What did I do?" Melissa echoed with a scandalized glare, a broken manicure jabbing in Parker's direction as the next person in line awkwardly set their books on the counter. "What did you do? Why haven't you been answering your phone? I've been calling you all morning!"

"It's been like this all morning?"

"Uh, duh!" Melissa shrieked. The noise caught the attention of some nearby customers who looked concerned by the high-pitched noise. In unison, Parker and Melissa smiled at the customers, offering one-handed waves until their attention drifted elsewhere. Stiffly, they started on the next customer's order why talking out of the side of their mouths at one another. "You need to check your phone. Like, right now, Park."

"I can't," she hissed back, still speaking through a smile. Her store had never had this many people in it before, and suddenly she was wondering if she should move liability insurance higher on her list of things. "I left it at home."

"Oh my—" Melissa grunted under her breath, still smiling, and when she finished ringing up her customer, she quickly snatched her phone from her back pocket. The next customer in line seemed annoyed that her attention was taken away, however, and as she fiddled with it, Parker worked through the girl's pile of books. "Honestly. Of all the days that you don't have your phone on you... I mean, it's the twenty-first century, Park! Always have your phone on you!"

"Okay, maybe save the lecture for later," she chirped back as she finished ringing up the order. The girl paid with a credit card, and on she went, receipt waving in hand just as someone else took her place. "Just catch me up with what the hell is going on right now, please."

Melissa's response was an exasperated sigh before she was shoving her phone into Parker's hand, and retaking her spot at the register.

At first, Parker had no idea what she was looking at.

It was a picture on Instagram. A picture of her storefront, taken from across the street, framed to look aesthetically pleasing, and with some sort of boho filter on it that actually made the place look prettier than it really was. A nice picture, definitely, but not a good explanation as to what the hell was going on.

"Why are you showing me a picture of my store? I know what it looks like. I bought it."

Another customer went out the door as two more potential customers stepped inside, and Melissa sighed so heavily Parker was pretty sure they could feel the gust of wind on the other side of her double paned front windows.

"It's not the picture that matter, dummy!" she chirped, still smiling, before she was nudging Parker with her elbow. "Just—look at it!"

Parker was about to give a very childish retort about how she was looking at it, when she actually looked at it. It had received hundreds of thousands of likes since it had been posted last night, and while she clicked on the caption, a flood of new comments were being added by the second.

"Biggest question anyone asks if how do I prepare for an audition," the caption started. "Sometimes, it's easy. Sometimes you got to get your hands dirty and do some reading to get in the mindset of the character. In honor of filming starting this week, here's a s/o to my favorite hole in the wall bookstore in LA."

There was a flurry of hashtags—all ridiculous and stupid and so innately self-centered—that before she even checked the profile, Parker had a very strong feeling about who the original poster was.

Who else had this kind of social media following? Who else could do this?

The profile pic was just as pretty as he was: tomryder

Parker scanned the post a second time. Then a third. Then a fourth. Then, when she still felt like she wasn't processing it right, she glanced up at Melissa.

"Is this...?"

"Yup," the girl said.

"It's—this is his account?"

"Uh-huh," she said again.

Parker slumped against the counter, gaze raking over the horde of customers prodding around her store like it was a damn Barnes & Nobles. No, better. Because this was officially the bookstore that inspired the Tom Ryder for his latest role. NO Barnes & Nobles had ever done that. "This is all because he—"

"It had three hundred thousands likes this morning," Melissa added, not even waiting for Parker to get around to asking about that. And while the teenager seemed like it was no big deal, when she glanced up at her boss, her eyes were sparkling and her mouth was curled at the side. Obviously, her fascination for Tom Ryder had not disappeared. "Yeah. I know."

"This means..."

"That you're officially cool now?" Melissa chirped; somehow scathing and ecstatic at the same time. "Trust me, I know. Our lives just got a whole lot better, Park. I mean—look at this! We're so the coolest people here. I can't wait until school on Monday."

Parker nodded, feeling like her entire body was buzzing, and not quite hearing anything else that Melissa was saying. She just kept seeing the post over and over in her head. She had tried so hard not to need things from Tom, and he had proven time and time again that he was more than happy to give them.

For a long while, she had suspected that doing things for others—throwing parties, picking up the tab, paying for the alcohol—was just natural to him in his life now, a way that he had adapted to Hollywood stardom.

Yeah, you're welcome. I usually get paid twenty grand for doing something like this.

But that didn't quite fit the narrative anymore, did it?

"Excuse me?" a voice called out, interrupting her thinking. Parker blinked to find a twenty-something year old girl staring at her, hands timidly picking at one another. "Um, sorry. Do you have any Frank Herbert books? I looked, but didn't see any."

"Uh... yeah," she hedged, shaking any thoughts she had away. Right now, she would work. Later, she could deal with the rest of it. "Yeah. Right this way and I can show you what we have, and if you don't see any you like, I try to get sci-fi as much as possible so I can try to have new stuff this week. I might even have some extras in the back..."

The din of noise threatened to drown Parker out as she worked with her customer, but no matter how frazzled her tired she was, every time the bell tinkled with someone new coming inside, Parker found herself smiling a little bit brighter.

[merrock]

event: Creek Fest

location: Hideaway Market

date & time: September 21-28; 10AM - 10PM

ooc duration: same times!

It's that time of year again -- Creek Fest! The tents and booths are all set up, the tractors full of hay and ready to cart you around, and we here in Merrock and at Hideaway Market are ready to welcome in fall the best way that we know how! Big to note: both the Merrock Community College and Merrock School District have decided to close on Thursday (September 26th) and Friday (September 27th) to give families more time to enjoy the event.

All of Hideaway Market is open for the week, with many of the shops and businesses offering specials and sales if you stop in. Some even have refreshments or gifts for the kids! All around the market place, you will find food and drink tents and booths and tents full of local goodies brought out by our own Merrockites. Plenty to eat and drink, and lots of shopping to be done!

For the kids, we recommend checking out the corn pit, participating in the scavenger hunt, getting their faces painted (adults are welcome, too!), jumping in on a game of corn hole, or taking a walk over to The Meadows, where a number of 'sports stations' have been set up for kids and adults alike who want to play.

For the adults (or kids looking to do something more mature), we have plenty of things for you to get involved in. You can paint or carve your own pumpkins, stuff your own scarecrows, make wreaths and flower arrangements, decorate fall themed t-shirts or paint your own ceramics! Lavender Lane has also opened their seasonal operation, where they will be selling mums, pumpkins and various other fall flowers and plants.

The tractor will be available to take people to Harmony Ranch where you can jump into the corn maze or sunflower maze, buy your dairy products and fresh produce, or visit the petting zoo and pony rides! You can also take a tractor to Sunrise Orchard to pick all of the apples that your heart can ever want.

And of course, the name sake of Creek Fest -- Black Creek's walking trails have been freshened up and marked, so you can take a hike with your honey to see the falls, or maybe get your photos taken by one of our local photographers at one of the more scenic spots. We are also selling t-shirts, mugs, bags and more 'souvenir style' gifts at the Historical Society booth, with proceeds going towards the conservation and upkeep of our beautiful creek. If you need help while wandering the grounds, stop by the Community Center tent.

UNDER THE CUT you will find all of the local Merrockites participating in Creek Fest, whether they are selling goods, or showing off a talent, as well as a list of performances through the week. Enjoy! xx

BOOTHS / BUSINESSES / DISPLAYS:

Art Sale (Ryder Anderson)

Bardales Inc.

BeadsByJay

Creekside Carpentry & Construction

Harmony Healers

Ojīchan no sushi reshipi

Taste

Newman Family Farm

Universal Rocks

Cyanotopes (Greyson McVey)

Bonne Merde

PERFORMANCES:

Saturday, September 21: country bluegrass band.

Sunday, September 22: Stelly Carter.

Monday, September 23: Chetan Gupta.

Tuesday, September 24: Jamie & Sylvia.

Wednesday, September 25: Unknown Destination.

Thursday, September 26: Cordelia Browning.

Friday, September 27: Monique O'Connor.

Saturday, September 28: local cover band.

ADMIN NOTE: if you would like your business to be represented, or your character to be involved, all that you have to do is post something to show what they're offering. This does not need to be a big, elaborate post! It can be something as simple as an eye-catching photo of a leaf with a description of what you're doing. I will reblog your post + add it to the list here. I have also left open two spots on the performances that can be filled if you are interested, but you must send an ask to claim them. Again, however you represent your performance is up to you! Thanks, guys! xx

[guardian-angle22]

This week's theme is: rec a fanwork (fic, gifset, fanart, podfic - bonus points if you do multiple mediums) that made you feel warm and fuzzy inside (the 'feel good' fanwork). Tag @welcometololaland or #fic rec friday

Thank you for the tag, @ladytessa74

I love that this week is expanding into other kinds of works! This post is going to be very fucking link heavy as a result because I got a little excited😅 I'm also going to queue up a ton of these to reblog over this weekend (cause they're all too wonderful to only reblog once anyway).

911: Lone Star

Fanart

tarlos proposal (made pre-actual proposal) by @alwaysablossom

tarlos instagram au set by @revengeofthesiths

these stunning tarlos drawings by @reyeslonestar

grace ryder by @yorit1

brian michael smith/paul strickland by @mahanonu

softball TK by @dannylarryson

tarlos coffeeshop meet cute comic by @fitzherbertssmolder

Gifsets

the 126 in color by @ayan-sukkhapisit

firefighter paul strickland by @ayan-sukkhapisit

the 126 + tarot cards by @rafael-silva

the women of the 911ls by @rafael-silva

marjan rupi kaur set by @rafael-silva

paul set by @scullyblr

stunning tk/tarlos set by @ronenrubinstein

marjan 3x9/4x9 parallel set by tailoredshirt

paul strickland + trans flag colors by @genderqueerbuck

paul strickland + true colors by @floralbuckleys

Fics

With love, your soulmate by @chaotictarlos [soulmate AU]

Pure devotion by @mi1kc0ffee [kinky PWP themed: gag]

And We'll Only Be Making It Right & Now my heart is in your hands by @noxsoulmate [friends to lovers s1/2 AU]

Showing You my Love by @ramblingdisaster73 [soft, fluffy tarlos surprise date]

The Raven Cycle

Fanart

All Adam cared about was his autonomy by @eggpy

ronan lynch: good catholic boy by @polartss

the shopping cart scene by @rosiethorns88

Fics

while we're on the subject, could we change the subject now by @toast-the-unknowing [no supernatural, neighbors AU]

Steady All The Hands by sksai [no supernatural, single father!ronan & sex worker!adam AU]

Star Wars

Fanart

Lizzo & Grogu by @fionacreates

jedi!Finn by @furiousfinnstan

come as you are (anakin) by @02png

one of the most stunning things featuring that tattooine desert you'll ever see by @procoffeinating

Gifsets

leia set by @hayden-christensen

finn + maya angelou set by @momentofmemory

[sonicasura]

Different Universes of Energy

After the multiple times of collecting energy being a goal/plot point in various Transformers media, I couldn't help but write this. A list that involves different energy sources from different fandom universes. The ones I'll be choosing are either very plentiful or have a large variety.

Marioverse

Oh yeah. We're starting with the series that has a clusterfuck of magical items. Mario practically beats everything on this little list from how many alternate power sources any Transformer can gather. Cat Shines from Lake Lapcat, Shine Sprites of Del Defino, Power Stars to Grand Stars found across the stars and the latest Power Moons scattered all over the world.

I ain't forgetting about the spinoff games either which has their own flavor for powerful collectibles. These are also the easiest to attain since there are many ways to acquire them. You can find one out in the wild, purchase from a store(Power Moons), win through competitions, etc.

Team Autobots wouldn't have much trouble following these rules. In fact, it's probably a fun break from the usual hardships as scavenging in the midst of a war is difficult. Getting coins is easy since coin blocks are common to find and some bots such as Bumblebee would find the games fun.

The Decepticons would have to follow things by the Marioverse rules though. I ain't joking either as there are many ways for inhabitants to send them packing. Powerups especially the Mini Mushroom, Mega Mushroom, Giga Catbell and Super Star.

One little Mini 'Shroom is enough to shrink Megatron to the size of a guinea pig then shove his ass into a cage. A bloke can become a giant through the Mega Mushroom or gargantuan sphinx via Giga Catbell and yeet Starscream across the kingdom. Can't forget the Super Star's invinciblity as Decepticons drop like flies thanks to pure rainbow power.

Every bit of technology in this universe is more advanced but also sometimes mystical. There's literally a vacuum cleaner capable of sucking up ghosts, go-carts that can ignore the laws of gravity, actual magic, to even stars that can grant wishes.

There's also the kingdoms who won't take invaders too kindly either. Bowser definitely gonna declare war and he's got a wide array of technology to pack a nasty punch. The Koopa King is quite a threat when you look at the spinoffs such as the RPGs. Plus he has teamed up with Mario multiple times should the need arise.

Speaking of the plumber, he definitely get involved alongside his friends. The Mario and Luigi RPGs to even Mario + Rabbids shows he can do more than just jump. Latter series literally gave him a gun which later got upgraded to dual blasters.

Best play nice or get your ass kicked by someone no bigger than your little toe.

Knackverse

Next up is the PS4 launch title series, Knack! There are two different types of energy sources that are very very abundant: relics and sunstones. Everything technological in this universe are powered by either one or both sources.

Sunstones are crystalized sunlight that can be found about everywhere. Caves, mountains, grass plains, and even in someone's backyard. They are often used to generate electricity whether through generators, electrical plants or even lamp posts.

Now relics are a bit harder to find. These can be found underground or in ancient structures so mining might be required. Relics produce relic energy which is often used to power vehicles, generators, weapons, etc.

Everything can be obtained without messing with the locals. Although either faction might have to go through a scrapheap to see how relics are used to generate power. They definitely be a bit confused for awhile as these ancient artifacts are essentially spun around akin to a hamster wheel.

Decepticons will have some very painful retaliation if they try to steal relics and sunstones from the populace. The Crystal Wars is proof that humans here act like space orcs but also still do. Ryder and Doctor Vargas literally threw hands with goblins the size of them. The same goes for the latter.

I don't think goblins would be too pleased with otherworldly invaders taking their resources either. Advancement in technology can also prove these aren't people to mess with. Airships are more common, vehicles don't drive on tires, there are tanks that can create forcefields and fire lasers.

Ancient goblin weaponry have been rebuilt. Every one remains a force to be reckoned with. Cannot forget about the people's protector: Knack. He has fought a lot of mechanical foes in various sizes(for both parties).

Decepticons will be fighting on his turf and that's a huge disadvantage on its own. Super Sunstones to grant temporary invinciblity, the Ultimate Move which can destroy barriers/forcefields, super moves that range from solar lightsabers to even a relic tornado. Knack is a crafty motherfucker and can pummel any Cybertronian who dares disturb the peace.

I'm pretty sure a relic haymaker to the faceplate will be hard to dent out.

JNDverse

Last but not least, we have Eco from the Jak and Daxter series. The closest in comparison to Cybertron's Energon from their respective origins but also diversity. Each has different unique properties depending on the color. Their origin being from a long lost civilization/creators now cascaded in mystery.

Eco is very abundant and manifests all over the world. The main source being Eco Vents which constantly spurts it out in a gaseous form. Large liquid pools can also be found but it's highly likely that its Dark Eco, the most corruptive of all types.

Crystals are another way to gather it so mining will be required. Even various wildlife drop eco upon death but not much. There are many ways to gather the stuff without stirring a fuss.

Huge advancements in technology is very common as the most common transport are hovercraft style vehicles like zoomers. Dune buggies are utilized in the deserts with some being capable of jumping large gaps or bust down fortresses from sheer firepower. Eco can also power weaponry.

Weapons powered by this natural energy can have all sorts of abilities that depends on the color. Short range shockwaves, gravity inverters, ricocheting bullets, etc. They don't lack on firepower especially if one has a Morphgun which can use all Eco types by switching cartridges.

Now the Decepticons will face retaliation by disturbing the peace but here it varies. Some cities such as Haven have too many civilians and incompetent military forces to properly protect themselves. *Looks at all the missions alongside lack of self defending NPCs in Haven*

Areas such as Spargus will retaliate immediately since EVERYONE has been trained to fight and is armed. It makes sense because most of the city's population are people exiled to the wastelands by Haven. Can't forget about the Demolition Duo.

Jak and his companion has tackled a variety of opponents including giant robots. The latter were made with Precursor metal which is very hard to break through and probably more durable than Cybertronian metal. Both had wrecked it.

Jak has a variety of Eco cartridges for his Morphgun but can also rely on his Eco Channeling abilities. He can transform into powerful forms through Light and Dark Eco. The destructive animalistic Dark Jak or the angelic time stopping Light Jak.

It's best to be wary unless you want a Dark Eco blast through the spark chamber.

That's it for now! Until next time folks, I'll see you later! Transform and Roll Out!

[wgtdaytime]

Just found out this guy existed. Shelia’s son and Deacon’s partner in crime…

It’s writing itself ✍️ resurrect his ass

[caxycreations]

WIP Excerpt Time!

Thanks for the tag, @bookish-karina!

I'll go with a sillier excerpt for this.

Starting the engine, I pulled out from the lot and headed back for the mall, settling into a space near the doors. Moss and I headed inside and, with a little searching, found David and Trace in Sugar Shack, a candy store David seemed incapable of skipping over when he came here. "Trace! They have them this time!!" He exclaimed, bouncing giddily as he pulled a bar from the shelf. Double-stuffed king-sized cream bar, one of his favorites. Chocolate coating, Kanorian egg cream inside, and almonds throughout. He put several of the bars into his basket and skipped off to one of the scoop carts, grabbing a bag and filling it with various treats. "Yep, I see that, did you leave any for anyone else?" the fox said with a smirk, walking over to keep up with David. Moss and I walked in and I grabbed a basket of our own, smiling. "Go on, pup. Grab whatever y' want, I'll pay." I said, nodding to the candy. Moss shook their head and took the basket from me, quickly rushing off to fill it with their own selection of treats. I followed behind, tallying up the cost as they went. I knew better than to think they'd let me pay for it, and the only way I'd get the chance is if I was up there before they were and had the money ready to go. "Oh my gods!!!" The exclamation turned every head in the shop, all eyes on the little grey caxy that had shouted. David was standing there holding a large box, a logo stamped on the back. He still hadn't noticed me, or Moss. I smirked, resigning myself to overpaying and just getting change back when Moss was done. Heading over to David, seeing Moss do the same out of the corner of my eye, I settled into place behind him, crossing my arms and looking over his find. It was a gummy wolf, blue raspberry flavor. Industrial sized, the ones as big as a teddy bear. The eyes were peppermints, orange and white swirls meeting in a single point in the center. Trace had noticed me, but hadn't said a word, merely offering an acknowledging glance before focusing on David's presentation, the caxy now turning the box to face Trace. "IT'S RYDER!!!" He yelled through his giggles, smiling wide. Moss, now approaching from behind Trace, nodded at David. The youngster nudged Trace, who nudged back with a grin, casually grabbing a couple of things from Moss' basket and slipping them into the inner pocket of his jacket. "Sure is, Dee. I can definitely see Ryder." Trace said with a smirk, glancing at me again as he spoke. My smirk turned to a grin and I reached forward, grabbing the box from David's hands and heading for the front counter, carrying it under my arm and pulling my wallet out. "Hey, that's-!" I heard David cut his words short, most likely realizing I had been the one to take it. I heard footsteps following, and as I set the gummy wolf down on the counter, David smacked my shoulder. "That was rude, you know!" He scolded.

And tagging @moremysteriesthantragedies @thetruearchmagos @a-scaly-troublemaker @akiwitch and @mikathewriter

[exrt7]

Halloween competition among kids. Livia and Selene went in the opposite direction of the other group. Over there is the area where the homes are connected. Livia is dressed as the Sun Witch, albeit with a witch's hat and broom. But it looks much more playful and cute. Selene is the skeleton lady, although the black dress with roses is a bit far from the real skeleton. But the simulated skull movie props on the waist and the skull pattern make it easy to notice the theme. "Theoretically speaking, the closer the houses are, the faster you can get the candy." Livia's tactics are simple and crude. "Well, I guess you're right." Selene had to admire her sister's idea.

Happy Halloween friends! ヾ(*ΦωΦ)ツ

——————————————————————-

Image courtesy of  umefolklore

I hope you like it

[fyrewalks]

"Did I go overboard," he asks, stepping back from the few bags he's piled up on the Ryder's counters. Paul cringes. It didn't seem like that much in the cart nor when he loaded the purchase into his car. Even the walk from the driveway to the kitchen hadn't set off alarm bells; it was one single trip to carry it all in.

Flashing Grace a sheepish smile, he raises one shoulder up in a half shrug. An acknowledgement that yes, maybe, he has gone a bit overboard.

"I know you just needed the thing of wipes, but..." He trails off. In store, he'd been sucked in by the cute clothes and the tiny socks. "Maybe I need to work on my impulse control." Truthfully, Paul didn't have anyone to impulsively dump toddler clothes into his cart for; he had no reason to ever have self restraint. // @leschanceux

[contradictivs]

snacking on sour gummy worms. kind of just dumps some into his palm and like, smooshes them against ryder's mouth like he's bringing them up to a barn animal's mouth. he's keeping you nourished ryder 💜

Ryder had quickly discovered the other man's affinity for sweets.

Just a couple of hours ago, they had been at the closest twenty four hour grocery store to pick up a few snacks. It was the only thing that Ryder could think to do when the little jabs of pain that shot through his chest every time he moved kept him from falling asleep. The plan was to get some snacks, stop by the section that had pain meds that would hopefully work, and maybe pick up anything else that had caught their attention. Except they had spent a good five minutes in the candy section while Kurjak dumped a concerning amount of bags of sweets into the cart.

But, in the spirit of ten PM grocery runs, Ryder did not question it all that much.

The pair had settled on the living room couch once they were back at his apartment. All the lights off aside from one in the kitchen to give a faint glow at the corner of the room — The only other source of light being the TV playing some nature documentary about the Great Barrier Reef that he had found. Neither of them had really spoken once they had settled. Ryder had found some way to sprawl out on the couch that didn't hurt too much.

He probably could have started to nod off like that. If not for the sudden sensation of something being shoved against his mouth. Eyebrows furrowed together, green hues blinking back into focus as he drew back slightly to glance toward Kurjak. "Dude," he muttered as if that would communicate anything. Was he still reaching a hand out to grab some of the gummy worms between his fingers to drop into his mouth on his own? Yeah.

[slumpcd]

[  FERRIS  WHEEL  ]:          when visiting a closed funfair in the middle of the night, the ryder and de'arra stop the ferris wheel when they’re at the very top, and get frisky beneath the stars and above the world.

the attraction between the two had always been there --- never get enough of each other. hands couldn't help but to roam her body while they got onto the ride. " i want you baby. " voice low as sloppy kisses were placed along her neck. the ferris wheel moved slowly, not many people on the ride. warms hands moved underneath her shirt to feel her skin. ryder looked up, seeing they were getting close to the top. gaze moved around the cart, seeing an emergency stop. without thinking, he pushed the bottom --- forcing the ferris wheel to stop. boyish grin takes over his features and he feels himself grow hard at the thought of having her right there and then. " i told you i want you baby. " the blond pulled her onto his lap, lips connecting with her glossed ones.

[destinyc1020]

Yeah, I have the same criticism of Greta too. I absolutely loved Little Women and Barbie, didn’t care at all for Lady Bird. And completely see the criticism for Barbie, I don’t think it was revolutionary at all but still enjoyed it immensely. But the way some people talked about it as if it was left me confused. But I think she’s miles better than Sofia. I do find it interesting how white women filmmakers are given this carte Blanche POV on womanhood and it always fails to be intersectional.

Same Anon! I never saw "Lady Bird", but I couldn't understand why it got so many award noms. 🥴 I like Saoirse though.

I did enjoy "Little Women" (I still prefer the Winona Ryder version though...sorry!!!), and of course, I enjoyed "Barbie" as well, simply because I was a HUGE Barbie player myself growing up lol 🤭

But "revolutionary"?? Ehhh....Naaah... Not to me at least lol.😅 But I saw what they were trying to do. While watching though, I just felt like it was definitely from a certain female lens, and not one made for my own (a woc), but hey...like I said, that's okay! Not every film is FOR everybody, and that's fine?? 🤷🏾‍♀️

But yea, I'm like you lol.... The way people were acting like "Barbie" was the moon landing or some type of historic event made me feel like:

"Am I missing something here??"

😅🤣

Even America's whole 10-minute monologue speech in the film had me chuckling at the end of it, while saying to myself in my head: "That's nice.....Now, imagine having all of that stigma on top of you as a woman, and you're also BLACK in society". 😏

[lmelodie]

(rolls in one day late with Timmies)

FOR THE STORY. THING. FAKE TITLES:

Shower Thoughts

Highway to Hell

Sweet Tooth

(there are a lot of songs stuck in my head rn, blame the last two on that!!)

Shower Thoughts

This could be an itemized list of random shower thoughts for any one character. And that could be interesting all on its own but it's also not a fic lol. 

This is definitely a Jack's Journal type of thing. That thing is very stream of consciousness with a bunch of random little one offs. Going through the entries in chronological order and watching him slowly lose his mind and his grib on the self imposed delusion he's been living in.

Gradually going more and more outside the lines and scribbling wherever he can in a desperate attempt to feel less alone. 

Frost patterns in actual ice and in pen are drawn on the margins as he rants about all those who have wronged him and about how he was sabotaged from the start. Lementing that he can still prove everyone wrong somehow. 

Sweet Tooth

Halloween! Lucy takes up apprenticeship with Kills for the month of October and goes around with him while on the job, steeling whole ass buckets of candy from doorsteps

And Lucy being like: man you really are just a horrible person aren't you?

Killian: I try >:)

She gets a little more of an insight on how he operates. He does actually have a heart under all the persona that loves his city of trash goblins more than anything. He pushes people around and threatens anyone in sight, but he takes care of his own. 

And might MIGHT be coming around to jack now. Maybe a little more than planned. More than he knows yet but Lucy picks up on it LOUD AND CLEAR, but saves it for another day. 

She takes home a lot of candy that day.

This could also be one for somebody's birthday, but it could also be for literally ANYONE'S birthday but I think I'd like to see Jack try and struggle to get Lucy something she would like. He doesn't know what teenagers like! Besides not listening to authority so he would try and look all over for some food thing she would like before gaining a braincell and being like:

Wait...I CAN JUST MAKE SOMETHING! FUCK!

And then he does :) he over thinks the whole thing.

Highway to Hell

Lucy, Ryder and Vic go on an adventure trying to see how far into the crystal caves they can go. Vic warns them that the workers down in the depths do NOT like strangers in their caves, but they decide to go anyway and promise to be quiet.

They do not.

Insueing chase scene commences as they fend off attacking goblins while riding an out of control mining cart through the caves. 

[lago-apartments]

Two-Bedroom Apartments in Naples

I'm sure you want the best two-bedroom apartment in Naples. Don't worry because Lago Apartments is considered the best in Naples. In this apartment home, you'll discover an extraordinary resort-inspired apartment community that you can call home. Lago Apartment offers a refreshed approach to apartment living in Southern Florida. It allows the residents to feel a unique community for all its residents where they can relax and unwind with a good book under the beautiful colored cabanas. Then, they can make new friends at hosted wine and dine events. It also becomes easy to explore the downtown, wander through the art galleries, and enjoy the food at the fine dining and elegant eateries. At Lago Apartments, you'll have a home where everything you need is included. For inquiries, call  (239) 766-6433.

Schools in Naples, FL

Naples, FL, is a top choice for families who are looking for a good school district. It's amazing to know that Collier County's public school district has an A grade on Niche and a No. 5 spot on Niche's list of "Best School Districts in Florida." With these features, you can find Naples to be the perfect location to raise your children. Naples also offers three colleges/universities: Florida Gulf Coast University, Edison State Community College, and Hodges University, making it an excellent choice for children's education. Besides, when it comes to location, Naples is indeed conveniently located near larger cities like Cape Coral and Fort Myers, and its growing economy offers exciting work opportunities. Not bad, Naples is a popular relocation spot with a rich cultural and economic landscape.

Naples Botanical Garden

The Naples Botanical Garden is a well-known botanical garden located in Naples, Florida. It's known for hosting various events like the Veterans Day Appreciation Weekend and school visits. The garden is also open daily from 9am to 5pm. I like this garden because it offers guided tours, daily tours, and cart tours for members. The Evenstad Horticulture Campus, a tropical growing operation, enhances the garden's 170 acres, develops nature-based solutions to environmental challenges, and conserves tropical and subtropical plants. The garden also hosts events like Blazes Spark New Life in Preserve, Celebrating Life and Memory: The Spirit of Día de los Muertos, and Leave Your Leaf Litter.

Naples Players Christmas Story

The Naples Players (TNP) will present A Christmas Story: The Musical for the 2024 holiday season, running from November 20 to December 22, 2024, at the newly renovated Kizzie Theater. The musical follows young Ralphie Parker's quest to get the ultimate Christmas present, featuring energetic dance numbers and unforgettable songs like "Red Ryder Carbine Action BB Gun" and "You'll Shoot Your Eye Out." The production is directed by Dawn Lebrecht Fornara and musically directed by Charles Fornara, featuring an exciting blend of local adult and youth talent, including eleven-year-old Matias Piscoya as Ralphie. The level of local talent involved in this production is truly remarkable, and the show connects the community. It's nice to attend and have fun.

Link to map

Naples Botanical Garden 4820 Bayshore Dr, Naples, FL 34112, United States Continue to Bayshore Dr 43 sec (0.1 mi) Continue on Bayshore Dr. Take Airport-Pulling Rd S/Arpt Rd S and Radio Rd to Sweetgrass Cir 11 min (4.9 mi) Drive to Sweetgrass Cir 43 sec (413 ft) Lago Apartments 10200 Sweetgrass Cir, Naples, FL 34104, United States