thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

"I'd hate to have one, period. Imagine going through life without the joy of inhaling a Reese's." Celeste was laughing as she said it, keeping the vibe light and easy even as they tiptoed into more serious conversational topics.

"I get that though, especially with a kid involved." Never a road she'd gone down with anyone she'd dated. Celeste never even thought about kids for herself. "How's your relationship with her by the way? Since she's obviously the priority? Because I think that'd be an important foundation before any of the next steps?" As she asked it, Cel led the way to an empty booth and slid into one side, waiting for her friend to get settled as well before she let out another long sigh. "Okay, okay. Tyler, like I said. He's an artist at the tattoo shop in town. We've been hanging out a lot. Went to New Years together, and I like him, but...I dunno where we are right now. Don't know if we're hanging out cuz we're friends or if he feels anything the same like I do."

"I'd hate to have a peanut allergy in this place." Peanut crumbs and shells everywhere. What did one expect from a dive bar? Salted peanuts made people thirsty.

The question leaves Layla to shrug. "We've been taking things pretty slowly, for obvious reasons." That reason being his late death not being that long ago, and Kaede also having a daughter. "I've been so preoccupied making sure I'm not accidently rushing him I haven't exactly thought about the future. I want us to last, but any big moves like moving in, that's not something we've even touched yet."

"I'll buy you two if you give me more details than a commonly used first name."

— @thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

Celeste really only came here because she'd heard something about BOGO drink specials and she really wanted a few drinks that she for once didn't have to serve herself. So she was all too happy to sip on her third cocktail of the night and silently judge everyone who thought they were Whitney Houston after a couple of tequila shots.

"Oh there's no way in hell I'm getting up there." She replied, snorting into her glass as she took a sip. "I can't carry a tune to save my life. But, if I absolutely had to...probably Bohemian Rhapsody? I'd barely have to get through the first verse solo before the entire place would do the work for me and sing along. Solid deal."

who: anyone! ( @aurorabaystarter ) where: melodies karaoke bar

Blue eyes widened as the beginning notes of Total Eclipse of the Heart begins to play through the speakers.

"Oh my god," Melody shakes her head, stifling a laugh. "Not again, I don't think I can take another round of this." While it was a different girl than last time, she'd seen this scene before she didn't like the ending.

Turning to her neighbor with pleading eyes, she looked at them like they were her last hope. "Please tell me you have something better lined up for your turn, I am actually begging."

[thecelestexzhao]

"Pretty sure you could throw a rock and find a place to get a drink in this town." Celeste mused, looking over at the man in the produce aisle next to her. "But I will say as someone who works over at the Reef bar in town, it's not bad. Just gotta mentally prepare yourself for the occasional rowdy pool game. Or a drunken asshole who thinks he can hit a bullseye. I make it a point not to water down any drinks I pour though, so..."

open for: @aurorabaystarter

where: utp / choose ur own adventure!

"Where's the best place around here to get a drink?"

[thecelestexzhao]

"Way to make me less stressed over it all, thanks Nira." Celeste's voice was practically deadpanned, lips pursed as she gave her friend a look. But just the same, she knew the warning had merit--and also just the same, she didn't want to screw things up before anything even happened, because against her better judgement, Cel liked Tyler, and she wanted to see what could maybe come from...all this.

She went quiet as she listened to her friend's advice then, biting her lip before she gave a little shrug. "I guess part of me is worried about just..fucking it up. Making things awkward, you know? He's my friend, someone I spend time with. If I put my feelings out there and it is in my head and not reciprocated...then what? Awkwardness all around, potentially ending the friendship altogether." Celeste let her ramblings die off with a sigh as she plucked another french fry up and chewed on it, lost in thought again, because even if that thought was scary, she couldn't live in this limbo forever. "I guess I can like...put some feelers out there." She finally conceded, eating another small handful before nodding over to Nira. "Anyways, how about you? Anyone potentially barking up your tree?"

"You would be amazed at how much people can screw up even in the talking stage. I'm the resident fuck up, so I should know," she teases, her self-deprecation knowing no bounds.

If there is one thing Nira excels at, it's listening. Not one for talking themselves, it came with the territory of once working at a tattoo shop. The museum is a certain kind of quiet she ultimately craves, but it's also nice to just... be. Nira's interested in hearing out Celeste, leaving their typical cynicism at the door.

"Oh -- Tyler? I knew him in passing, yeah, but not well enough to pass judgement," she adds, tone neutral. "I mean, I know it sounds redundant, but is asking him that bad? The worst he could say is that he isn't interested, but I don't know if he would. I'm not an expert by any means, but the spark sounds like it's there."

@thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

Lessons in everything... Maybe. It was a decent way to think about it at least, even if in the moment it'd been nothing but betrayal and heartbreak. She absently picked at the fries laid out between them, listening to the sound of the waves and the party in the distance, but as Tyler spoke again, it definitely caught her attention. "You..." Her lips parted in shock, eyes widening just ever so slightly. She knew there was a lot in Tyler's past she didn't know about (and vice versa) but...prison? That definitely through her for a loop--and also explained the long gap between relationships. "Can I...ask why?" It's not like he was some serial killer (right?), so what could land him in prison for so long?

Celeste continued to stay quiet and to listen, to give him the chance to get things off his chest, and finally when he finished she just let out a breath, "I'm sorry you went through that. And...yeah. Like you said..lessons in everything?" She offered it with a little smile, and near-unconsciously, Cel found herself shifted a bit closer, her hand resting on top of his in the sand for a moment before she got ahold of herself and swallowed, trying to right her thoughts. "We uh...we should get going. Finish the bottle on the walk back?"

Of course, someone that hasn't had a serious relationship for almost a decade is a huge red flag. Not for lack of trying, but being on probation and then moving to Aurora Bay, it just didn't seem like it was necessary to try and make a relationship thrive with someone who wasn't serious, it also just didn't fit the timeline. There's a chunk of information, almost seven years lost in time and space that he is currently refusing to acknowledge since it's just such a bummer.

Ty listens intently, eyes gazing off into the distance as the bonfire grows, taking a small swig from the bottle before perching it in the sand between them as she speaks. He nods, indication that he is in fact listening, trying to picture these relationships in his head. There is a sentiment there he can relate too— bound to go it alone. Growing up most of his childhood without a real name then into a family that he could barely integrate into just to be forgotten about in a concrete block in his twenties; he gets it. A hum escapes his throat as he ponders the statement, elbow resting on a knee he brought up to prop himself onto, glancing down at her and studying her face in the evening light.

"Maybe. Or maybe you're just growing, right? It's shitty for someone to betray your trust, for sure," Another feeling he knows all too well. "But, they say there's a lesson in everything, yeah? I, uh," He pauses, glancing back at the bonfire then back to Celeste. His tongue finds the sharp point of his canines, before clearing his throat and finally speaking."I, uhm, I was in prison, for almost a decade." He starts, breaking eye contact again to stare out into the dark, his nerves getting the better of him. "And, I swore when I got out I was going to marry my last girlfriend, she was the only one to come and see me until she just stopped." He chews on his lower lip, nodding, slowly returning a relaxed expression and gaze to Celeste. "And it sucked, but I think as much as it was a betrayal, I wouldn't have grown up the way I needed to, especially when I got out."

[thecelestexzhao]

Celeste kept an easy grin on her face, clearly in a good mood. "You have a pretty rad job. The museum is one of my favorite places--which is why it's sad that I got lost in the first place." She admitted, shaking her head as she leaned against the bar, waiting for his order. When it never came though, Cel tilted her head slightly, a raised brow following soon after. No drink? In...a bar? God he wasn't about to hit on her, was he...? "Uhh..okay. Sure. Shoot."

Wyatt looked up, a hint of a smile dancing on his lips. “I thought I recognized you. Glad I could help you out.” He nodded thoughtfully, eyes meeting hers with a knowing gaze. “I have to say, you’re definitely making this whole ‘hero’ thing a little more enjoyable," he leaned in, voice low, "How about we skip the drinks and you can help me out with something? It's nothing much, I promise."

[thecelestexzhao]

"No peanuts, I promise." Celeste assured her, even giving her friend a playful little mock-salute as they walked the few blocks to the pizzeria. "That's good! I'm happy for you guys, really." Layla and Kaede had become really good friends to her. Practically almost like the only family she had since she saw them more than anyone else. It was nice too, having them in her corner. It was nice to have that familial vibe. "Are you thinking of...any next steps? Moving in together, or?" Some people heard wedding bells within weeks or months of dating after all, whereas some never made a change until a decade in. She wondered where these two landed on that scale.

And then when it shifted to her, Celeste scrunched up her nose and let out a heavy sigh, "Okay, okay." She agreed, nodding to the door up ahead, "Order the first pitcher of beer and I'll tell you everything about...Tyler. His name is Tyler."

"Great. Because all I've eaten today is barnuts, if I have to see another peanut today I might lose my mind." In a rush this afternoon after Layla had slept in, she'd left her prepared early dinner in the fridge. By the time she'd got to work there was already too much to do she'd just put aside the desire for a meal until they'd finished. "Can't complain, we've been having good steady progress for a while, but I feel lately we've reached a really good spot between us. So I'm just happy with how things are." Not something she was used to feelings. Always looking ahead for the better times. "What about you and the guys whose identity you've been dangling over my head like a carrot — fess up!"

— @thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

As Tyler took the bottle of wine, Celeste toed off her sandals and settled into the cool night sand, happy to swap bites of food for swigs of the drink between them as they watched the (somewhat) organized chaos. When he started speaking though she looked over, biting her lip as she listened to him talk about his last relationship and how long ago it was.

And then the question came back to her and she suddenly felt her throat too dry to swallow.

"Me? Nah. I thought my last two were serious, but.." She trailed off, absently digging her toes into the sand, staring down at it instead of meeting his eyes. "About two years ago, I met a guy and we clicked but when it started getting serious, he up and left town. And then after that, I met someone else, and he was nice and all but....he was also loaded. Like obnoxiously so. And at first what was just supposedly nice gestures of taking me to his expensive mansion and buying me things quickly started to feel like...pity almost? Like I was just some poor thing in need of all the glitz and glam and...insane drop everything and lets fly to Hawaii life he lived." Celeste shook her head as she said it, rolling her eyes before grabbing for the bottle again. "And then the first guy came back last summer...just long enough to apologize, and confuse me, and make me start to trust him again and then leave for good."

Celeste took one last long drink before passing the bottle back and then leaned back, resting her elbows in the sand as she looked up at the starry night, glancing over to Tyler beside her--the man who had taken up so many of her thoughts but...probably only saw her as a friend. And maybe it was for the best- given her shitty track record and his not having been in a relationship in years. Her mother's voice was in her head again then, the jilted woman telling her time and time again that men would always leave her. "Maybe I'm just bound to go it alone."

It's odd, their conversations going from brief elevator exchanges to conversations ending late into the night. Ty isn't a talker, at least not in this language, but he likes talking to Celeste. Amongst the few in his circle he holds normal conversation with, she's made her way to the inner ring, a new, deep appreciation for her time forming along the way. It gives him anxiety thinking about the things that could go wrong, after all to quote his sister, girls don't like him.

Though maybe times can change.

He cleans up as fast as he can while still making sure nothings gross or there's a mess left for any of his fellow artists in the morning. The final click of the door as they left behind the dark shop and headed for their 'grocery list' and then down to the beach. Laughter and easy talk as they watched the fire burn bright against the beach, outlining all those partaking in a warm halo. Tyler thanks her before taking a drink of his own, setting it down to nab a fry and mull over her question. "Mmmm..." He clicks his tongue and shakes his head. "Not really... My last serious relationship I was twenty, almost twenty one? I had a couple shitty, early, college break ups, but like, I was also eighteen and a piece of shit so I'm sure they feel the same." He laughs and looks over at her. "What about you?"

[thecelestexzhao]

closed - @kearncys

where - the reef bar

It took her a second before Celeste realized where she recognized the guy from who was now sitting at the bar and she headed over, sliding a coaster in front of him and putting an easy smile on her lips, "Hey. You're the guy who saved my ass the other week when I took a wrong turn and got incredibly lost in the museum." She told him as a greeting, motioning behind herself all the while. "First drink's on me. Least I can do."

[thecelestexzhao]

🌳 a happy text. (Layla)

Celeste: Some dude came into the bar last night and deadass left a $200 tip! Celeste: want to be irresponsible adults with me and blow it all on whatever we want? 😎

[thecelestexzhao]

"Does Come On Eileen count?" Celeste asked with a little smirk before she took a sip of her beer. Any day she could be out and drinking a beer she didn't have to pour herself was a good day in her opinion. "Cause like, I know they're English, and fuck the English with Ireland right? But isn't the man dude's family Irish? And the band is like...Celtic-y? Also definitely curious now what happened with that Johnny song.."

open for: @aurorabaystarter

where + when: four leaf, st. patrick's day

"They'll take any requests you have as long as it's Irish," Santiago explains over the sound of the band who were currently playing a live rendition of Mandinka by Sinéad O'Connor, "Except Johnny Jump Up. We're not doing that again. Not this year."

[thecelestexzhao]

Celeste was all too happy to have a meet-up with a friend that wasn't in the bar that'd practically become her second home, and when she spotted Buddy in the cafe she waved to him, grinning in response. "It only took..what, three months into the year? Look at us." She teased as she motioned for him to take a seat with her.

"Uhh, yeah. Absolutely. Especially if I'm getting a free pass to outwardly judge you." She leaned back in her seat as she said it, arms crossed and expectant expression on her face. "And then after you don't judge me as I get an obscenely sweet order, because I keep eyeing this vanilla cherry latte with honey and a cinnamon crumb cake muffin. I'll let you pick the first games to play though."

closed for: @thecelestexzhao

where: well played game cafe

"Look at that," Buddy says as a means of greeting after he spotted Celeste and made his way over to join her at the table she was at to sit with her at it, "We actually made it out of The Reef, props to us."

He knew he was as flakey as they got when it came to keeping up with plans -- even when he had made them -- so it felt like an accomplishment to actually see one through.

"You want to see a terrible card trick that you should definitely judge me for but has had an almost one hundred percent success rate for me?"

[thecelestexzhao]

Celeste tried to school her expression as best she could when Tyler agreed to hanging out that night, but internally she was grinning. More than that, she felt butterflies fluttering all around, her insides swooping. She liked him--and it was as exhilarating as it was terrifying, given that the last couple times she chanced it and let someone in, they'd hurt her. They'd left her. They always did. But Celeste tried not to let that thought mar everything, tried not to let her mother's bitter voice fill her head that they always leave.

"Yeah. I can stick around."

And with that Celeste claimed his stool for herself, sitting on it and watching him as he moved around his space, so at ease with what he was doing. Soon enough though he was all done and the shop was locked up for the night and Celeste took her spot by his side, stopping with him first at the liquor store to buy a bottle of wine they could just pass between them and then some food before heading off to the beach, the bonfire 'party' in full swing with music and people all around. Spotting an empty space far enough away that they wouldn't be bothered, Celeste led the way to the sand and plopped down, taking a swig of wine before offering him the bottle to swap for the bag with chicken fingers and fries. "Anyone in your past warrant their shit being burned?"

Their fingers don't even touch, not even a graze, but he swears he can feel the electricity but it's probably just in his head. In fact, he's sure it is, because while he knows he's likable, it's been made very clear in previous history it's more for the thrill of him versus actual feelings.

Even so, he chooses to believe this is different.

"Oooh shit, that's right." Ty laughs, forgetting about that ridiculous event. There's a relief in his voice now, selfishly happy that she doesn't have plans but that her plans could now include him and now someone else. Not sharing her attention with bar patrons of their friends, just the two of them. "Yeah, I would be down for that. I would love to come." He smiles back, starting to toss the materials in the trash and clean up. "Let me close down, uhm, I can meet you there or you can hangout here if you want? Keep me company?" He offers, figuring if nothing else he can milk her time for a little bit longer.

@thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

Celeste had been cleaning up the bartop while it was blissfully empty, and as she heard the comment she looked over and snorted. "I beat you last weekend Griff. Or do you not remember?" She quipped back teasingly before shaking her head. "And I'm the only one on duty tonight, so sadly I need to raincheck. Feel free to leave me a nice big tip though just the same."

OPEN STARTER: / @aurorabaystarter

LOCATION: the reef bar

with a clean, decisive clunk, the eight ball dropped. his opponent swore under their breath as griffin straightened, rolling his shoulders like he hadn’t just effortlessly pocketed half the table. the money hit the green without argument but he didn’t bother collecting it, just let it sit there, ready for the next round. lifting his whiskey, the man took the last sip, the familiar burn settling warm as he placed the empty glass on the counter “who’s next?” asked, some might say it felt like half an invitation, half a dare “you” the word came sharp, griffin’s gaze finding them at the edge of the crowd “wanna play? next drink’s on me if ya can keep up”

[thecelestexzhao]

Celeste's lips pursed as she let out a sigh through her nose, shaking her head all the while, "There's not much for him to screw up yet since we aren't really..anything? I dunno.." She suddenly wished she had a drink stronger than just a beer. What was her relationship with Tyler, if it was a relationship at all?

"He's...nice. Quiet but not in an annoying way, more in the comfortable way? Like he's easy to be around, without even having to talk. And when we do talk, it's also just as easy. As comfortable. I don't feel like I have to pretend to be anything I'm not around him. Nor do I feel inferior or anything." Which had been a big hangup in her last 'relationship' since she oftentimes felt like a charity case. "I really like him. But I'm not sure if it's all in my head and he's just being friendly, or...if he feels it too." Popping another fry into her mouth as she said it, Celeste washed it down with another big drink from her glass, hesitating before looking up to her friend again. "And...well, you may know him." She told her, biting her lip. "Tyler? From...from the tattoo shop."

"Give you shit? No. Give him shit if he screws up? No hesitation."

Although Nira has always had a hard stance on relationships from her own hangups, she's not about to get on Celeste's case. Putting down her club soda, a beat passes before a knowing brow raises her way. "Tell me about him."

@thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

"Thank god, cause I really I want pizza." She replied with a laugh as they headed out of the bar and into the cool night air, taking the short walk to the pizzeria. "So, before we get into my mess. Anything new with you? How're things with our fearless leader?"

It was nice to finally spend time with Celeste outside of the work environment. While Layla enjoyed manning the bar with her, she now had the opportunity to chat the night away and not worry about focusing on patrons. Plus, Celeste had dangled the carrot of some juicy conversation. "Oh, Pizza for sure. I've been craving cheese all day."

— @thecelestexzhao

[thecelestexzhao]

closed - @nirawu

where - the pub

"So." She started with hardly any casualness. Celeste was on her second drink of the night and had taken a much needed sip before plucking up one of the fries in the basket between them, "Are you gonna give me shit if I tell you I'm stupid and maybe allowed myself to have feelings for a man again?"