A L I B I .

" first we feel, then we FALL "

[atticusjfc]

estheriisms‌:

a small scoff came from her lips. she’d never been good at showing or even admitting her feelings, especially when it came to guilt and remorse. “you act like it was some secret plan of mine, get us involved in everything and then turn on you,” her voice barked as she crossed her arms tighter almost hugging herself at this point. she paused for a moment taking a shaking breath. the words kid on the way still rung in her head, she had known and maybe that’s what stung the most. she had been the one to take away his future. if anyone she ever knew deserved happiness and a good normal life it was atticus. “i did sell you out,” she finally breathed eyes narrowing in on him softly, “and i am sorry atticus, so god damn sorry” her voice was still soft as her eyes studied his face. “it’s not excuse, but those fucking treeville cops,” her voice was shaking ever so slightly at that point, “so, is that what you wanted to hear?”

“FOR ALL I KNOW IT WAS, esther. i had three long years to try and figure out why.. how you could do something like this to me of all people.” it’d never occurred to him to give anyone else up. not her, not anyone. so why, why had that even crossed her mind? why did that seem like the best solution? god, that hurt. he felt like a fool. a large part of him wondered how well he truly knew the woman that stood before him now. “those fucking cops? no, they’re not to blame here. it’s on you. this is all on you.” he was quick to let her know, shaking his head slowly. “you ruined everything for me.”

[atticusjfc]

rubyxbradshaw‌:

“Oh, I’ll show you!” Ruby said brightly, undaunted by his gruff demeanor. She pulled out her phone and searched for the video. She held the screen out toward him. “It’s really short,” she temporized. “It’ll just take a few seconds, I promise! And it’s adorable.”

“GREAT,” atticus huffed out, giving her a small nod. his eyes fixated on the screen as she placed it before him, nodding once more as she prefaced him with the link. well, at least it wouldn’t last long. atticus didn’t want to like it. he really didn’t wan to like it. by the end of the video, though, there was a smile spread wide across his lips. “dammit, that is adorable.”

[atticusjfc]

harperxtownsend‌:

“I am… I don’t want to say “drunk” because that sounds like an exaggeration. But I’m also not tipsy.” She rambled, taking another sip with furrowed brows. “Like I’m not going to dance on a bar, because I’d break my neck, but I don’t think I should be driving. I do feel like dancing though. Dance with me?” Her eyes lit up as she reached forward and smiled at them. “I love this song. Plus the night is young, so… why not?”

“YOU STILL HAVE COMMON SENSE, then. so you’re definitely not drunk. i’d say you’re just --” atticus paused as soon as she reached towards him and he heard her request, shaking his head slowly. “yeah, no. you go ahead. i’d really rather not.”

[atticusjfc]

viviantrons‌:

The night breeze was almost calling for a cigarette to be smoked. A call Vivian didn’t waste any time answering. The only reason she got up and walked away was that she knew Dimitri would be okay by Naomi and Chris’ side until she returned. She was walking past the crowds of people when she felt a body collide against hers. “Fuck.” The paranoia for the night had a hand moving to her ponytail ( where a knife had been hidden ).  She didn’t need it, that much she knew when her eyes landed on Atticus. A soft huff slipping past her lips as she moved her hands from his grip to dust herself off. “And they continue to let just about anyone into these things. I shouldn’t be surprised.”

A SCOFF slipped past atticus’ lips at her words. he would have been a fool to expect a thanks of any kind. he knew that. he wasn’t expecting an insult right off the bat, though. “mhm,” he hummed in confirmation. “even idiots that wear heels to the beach, would you believe that?”

[atticusjfc]

estheriisms‌:

instead of fighting, not that should could against his tight grip, esther allowed herself to be pulled by atticus, both moving further and further away from the party. she stumbled a few steps as they both came to a halting stop. immediately she crossed her arms tightly across her chest, more in attempt to protect herself from the coming conversation. “what to you want at? an apology? me to admit my undying guilt?” her eyebrow arched up, “if so, i’m sorry, ok? i’m a fucking cold bitch and fucked you over, i’m sorry. are those the words you’re looking for?“ she didn’t know why she was getting mad, it was atticus’ right to be raising his voice, fighting with her. 

ATTICUS COULDN’T BELIEVE THE AUDACITY. for her to stand before him now with seemingly no remorse at all. as if he’d been in the wrong this whole time. god forbid that he’d found her, right? he shook his head in disbelief at her words, seemingly at a loss. a part of them had hoped for both of their sakes that they wouldn’t cross paths. surely it wouldn’t bring any good. another part of him wanted to let her know exactly how he’d felt, though. the larger part of him, perhaps. “why did you do that to me?” he questioned, shaking his head slowly. “how could you do that to me when you’re the one that dragged us into all of that shit? when you knew that i had a fucking kid on the way, esther.” atticus was unaware of how much his voice raised with each word that left his lips, his eyes not straying from her. “you sold me out.”

[atticusjfc]

rubyxbradshaw‌:

“Have you ever seen that video of these penguins walking along on the ice? And then one of them, like, slips and falls down, and the rest of them go, Waaah! I was just standing in line waiting to get some food and the line was moving forward, and the guy in front turns with his food, trips over his own feet, and falls over. Food everywhere. I felt so bad for him. Anyway, it made me think of that video. If you haven’t seen it, please let me show it to you – it’s so funny and cute!” 

ATTICUS TURNED TO RUBY when she spoke up, his eyes immediately furrowing in confusion. yeah, she’d lost him from the jump. he could understand the correlation between the penguin and the man, as ridiculous as that sounded alone, but he’d never seen the original video. “i have no clue what you’re talking about,” he huffed out monotonously, raising the cup in his hands to his lips to take a large sip from it. 

[atticusjfc]

estheriisms‌:

of course, esther had been around treeville when the news of atticus’ release had spread. she had been checking around corners and holding her breath at each event since that day. it was insane of her to think that she could avoid him forever, especially with treeville being such a small town. but, she was a professional so she had done well in the past year and a had managed to go without seeing him. still not seeing him didn’t stop the undeniable guilt the wrecked through her. she had betrayed her best friend, at the end of day that was that. it was the one party she had let her guard down, there was a big crowd around the bonefire he wouldn’t possibly see her. but, when she saw the familiar face that haunted her dreams coming toward her and her hand reaching out to pull her. “and if i don’t want to?” she found her snarky attitude being a knee jerk reaction to his seething words as she pulled her arm back from him shaking him off abrubtly. 

ATTICUS COULDN’T BELIEVE she even had the nerve to protest. she’d sold him out for a shorter sentence. the least she could do was talk to him -- at the very least. “i don’t care about what you want.” he threw back at her, his hands moving to her biceps to begin moving her away from everyone. he’d throw her over his shoulder if he had to. 

[atticusjfc]

CLOSED EVENT STARTER || @estheriisms​

IT HAD BEEN A YEAR AND A HALF since he’d found himself back in treeville. of course the one night that he would try to be social, the one night he would try to do something other than wallow in his own self pity -- he would run into her. when he first saw her, all he could do was stare. it took mere moment, though, for the anger that had been brewing to sink in. when that washed over him entirely, he was making his way over to her quickly. when he reached her, he took her arm, harshly at that, pulling her to him. “we need to talk,” he seethed, his eyes never moving from her. that was an understatement. 

[atticusjfc]

CLOSED EVENT STARTER || @viviantrons

JUST AS SOON AS ATTICUS ARRIVED, he’d regretted it. he could have been tucked away in his apartment, more than content in his own company but no, his moral compass dragged him out and to the beach. being surrounded by smiling faces and hopes for the new year -- well, it was sooner before later that a frown found a home on his features. he’d made a mistake. he abruptly turned to leave, only to run smack into someone. not just anyone. vivian. instinctively, he reached out to grab her waist to ensure that she wouldn’t fall. he’d do that for anyone, not just her. he sighed, letting go as soon as she was steady on her own two feet. “fuck.”

[atticusjfc]

atticus preston attends event #7 - new years eve party on dimian beach. 

[atticusjfc]

nadia-donovan‌:

“Good, get cleaned up. And you might wanna wash your face, you’ve got some dirt on it.” She said pointing on her own forehead, letting him know where there was a black smudge on it. “Beside, i thought it would be good to get to know the guy who i’m trusting to sell my care and what better way than over drinks.”

ATTICUS GAVE HER A NOD since he didn’t find that hard to believe in the slightest. “yeah. give me ten minutes,” he breathed out. with that, he turned back towards the garage and made his way inside towards the offices where he quickly cleaned himself up to make himself appear more presentable. when that was one, he grabbed his things and emerged out to nadia. “we should take my car. so yours can stay here,” he suggested, nodding towards the nearby truck. 

[atticusjfc]

lydiahtml‌:

“well, you’re going to have to drink fast. faster than me. actually, i’m thinking shots.” leading them down the sidewalk towards a bar they both liked (a rare thing for two people from completely different worlds), lydia mused on it for a second, liking the idea of shots better and better by the second. fastest way to get drunk, seemed good enough for her. “statistically, i do have the advantage because i’m a woman, and smaller than you, but i’m also australian—“ and not even close to a stranger to the mind bending liquid—“so i feel like it’s going to be a close race.”

“GREAT,” atticus murmured, although his tone said anything but. deep down he was appreciative for lydia and her company, but in atticus’ eyes everything was bad now. everything had been bad since the day he’d been arrested. “i can down ‘em faster than you. i bet you.” he was quick to assure her, arching a brow as they walked alongside each other. “who knows where we’ll end up, then.”

[atticusjfc]

illydiahtml‌:

“good.” a satisfied smile followed the words, both at his admittance and the feeling of things well settling into place. no confusion here, this relationship, she knew exactly the purpose. and she loved the purpose, namely getting blasted and not being able to judge each other. “ah, you’ve finally learned how to speak australian, that absolutely means that i am getting beyond pissed tonight. who’s excited?”

ATTICUS SHOOK HIS HEAD slowly at her words, letting a sigh of defeat emit from his lips. “oh, no. i just know how this goes.” he assured her. he couldn’t blame her. between the two of them, it was always a toss up as to who would end up in worse shape. “beyond pissed,” he repeated thoughtfully. “what happens if i beat you to it? ever consider that?”

[atticusjfc]

nadia-donovan‌:

“If I didn’t want to do that, i wouldn’t have offered. What’s wrong? Afraid of a woman buying you a drink or something?” she said with a light scoff.”It’s the least I could do for you selling my car.” She added. “Besides, it’s a drink, not like i’m trying to get with you.” she said crossing her arms.”

ATTICUS LET A HUFF of defeat emit from his lips. “what? no.” he was quick to respond at her words with a shake of his head. “i haven’t sold it yet,” he reminded her, beginning to rub his hands off on his pants. he didn’t think there would be a way out of this one. at least he’d get a free drink or two out of it. “yeah, alright. i’ll go with you.”

[atticusjfc]

lydiahtml‌:

“that would imply that I don’t always give you hell, and i would be very offended by that implication.” she said haughtily, a bit of a smirk tossed his way. “but don’t worry, i’m pretty sure i’m going to be too busy drinking to really mess with you.” rolling her eyes at his last words, lydia nevertheless nodded, agreeing to it. “i’m buying the first round, let’s go with that.”

“OH, you do. don’t worry. it’s not even up for discussion,” he huffed out, pushing his hair from his face. he desperately needed a haircut, he was quickly growing tired of it. “i’m really hoping this isn’t translating to, ‘atticus, i can’t wait to get drunk of my ass’ -- which, let me remind you, if that happens you’ll be my problem.” he sighed at her words before nodding, nonetheless agreeing. for now, anyway.

[atticusjfc]

nadia-donovan‌:

Nadia took the card, looking over it before her eyes flickered up to meet his. “Thanks.” She said. This conversation had gone pretty well so far even knowing herself she’d make it turn bad somehow. “I should at least get you a drink for doing this. Or something to eat if you’re hungry.” She offered. 

ATTICUS GAVE HER A QUICK NOD before he started to turn towards the car, wanting to assess what shape it was really in. it was when his back was turned to her that he froze at her words. his gaze shifted from the car that was a few steps away to the skyline above them, shaking his head slowly. “yeah, i don’t think you wanna do that. you should go with a friend or somethin’.”

[atticusjfc]

sarahmcntgomery‌:

sarah smiled, a smile that- though not perhaps as bright as it had once been, still seemed to radiate the odd warmth that she felt in this moment.

“good. i- i really do want to make this work, atty. for you to be a part of her life.” assuming that you’re ready for it, she amended silently.

if you had told sarah this morning that she was ever going to be discussing letting atticus preston back into their lives, she would have…. well, she wouldn’t have laughed- but she certainly wouldn’t have believed it. only hours ago, she had thought that he didn’t want to know them. only this morning, she had feared that the love that she had shared with him had been nothing more than an intricate con. but it seemed that the rug had been pulled out from the reality that she had thought she knew, and suddenly he was here and real and trying. it almost felt too strange to be real.

“here’s my number,” she said, grabbing a loose pen from her purse to scribble it onto a receipt. “i, uh- i had to change it… after everything.” she had been unable to bear the reporters calling, trying to get her to say something dramatic enough to splash on a headline. “maybe we can get coffee sometime soon, talk about this some more.” she might have stayed forever, just so that she could continue to believe that all of this was real, but she had to pick lily up from daycare. the world continued turning, even when it felt like her own had been flipped onto it’s axis.

“and one more thing,” sarah said, a little grin just turning up the corners of her lips. “you might consider taking a shower. you look like hell.”

SHE WANTED TO MAKE THIS WORK. that was music to his ears. if she wanted to make it work and he did too, it was bound to all work out, right? it just had to. however, atticus knew better than anyone that the universe worked in strange ways. the last thing he wanted was to jinx them, either of them. he’d be dammed if more bad came their way. so he nodded, “i understand.” he whispered, pushing a hand through his hair. “i want that, too.” 

atticus watched as she pulled out a piece of paper to write down her number, wanting to question if she was sure she wanted to do so but then again, why ruin it for himself? she was trusting him in doing him this small kindness now. he wanted to prove to her that she wouldn’t regret it. “i know.” of course he knew she’d changed it. her number had been the only one he’d called when he was locked up. the first number he called when he’d gotten out. it didn’t take much to put two and two together to find out she’d changed her number. he’d just thought it was his fault. “right, yeah. i think that’d be good,” he murmured gently, taking the small piece of paper and carefully tucking it into his pocket. 

he lifted his head to look up at her when she spoke up again, frowning slightly at her words. she was right. he made a mental note to go get a haircut after work. god knew he needed one. “i’ve been to hell and back,” he huffed out before moving to stand on his feet. “i’ll uh, i’ll call you. so you have my number.”