never stop

BENJAMIN LOWELL.31 • security #TEAMCOSTELLO

[benjamin-lowell]

elisabettabiondi‌:

Ibiza. Belize. London. France. Italy. A list of the places Lisabetta would rather be than Chicago right now. Her fingers tapped against the bar as she repeated the list in her mind over and over again until she willed her next assignment into existence. 

Yes, she could just go there because she felt like it but rules were rules and she couldn’t leave the country on a whim again after what happened last time. Who knew ten pounds of coke got you frisked at the border? Oh right. She did but her unfortunate mark and that now burned aliases, literally, did not. 

God she missed Rebecca. Rebecca the spontaneous. Rebecca the let’s go to Mexico and do ever idiotic cliche in the book because it will be fun. Rebecca was wild but so was that assignment. She wondered how Johnny Boy was doing. Did he crack yet? Was he dead? His company had already gone belly up thanks to the story she had a hand in. A gloved hand that would leave no trace of her and be forever associated with someone who actually had journalistic integrity. Lisabetta missed those reckless jobs. Now she was playing coy and waiting for what she hoped would be one of the biggest payouts of her life. 

The timing just needed to be in her favor before she did anything. Roma had only turned up so much new information during the blackout that a change of scenery was in order. One of her many lodgings would have to be called home another day once the streets were back to working properly. One more night at Roma wouldn’t break the bank considering she wasn’t the one paying for it. 

“Yes and it does not look like there is an end in sight for it.” Lisabetta turns her head to face the one who had spoken as she sets down the paper she had been reading in front of her. Yes she brought a newspaper, a printed one, to the Blue Door. Lisabetta liked to hold the news in her hand and with how slow things had been she needed something to keep her hands busy. If they were left to their own devices they’d be digging into something else entirely. There is a smile on her lips as said, “How can I possibly refuse such a kind offer. I’ll have whatever it is you are having.” 

Benjamin vaguely recognized the brunette that had taken seat next to him. As security, it was his job to, at the very least, have some idea of who worked for the Costellos. And she was affiliated with the family -- exactly how? Ben couldn’t quite remember, but he figured it would come to him as the evening went on. She had a newspaper in hand, which he found somewhat admirable. Most people didn’t subscribe to a physical copy of the newspaper anymore. Everything was digital. It was more convenient for sure, but it was nice to see someone, in 2019, with the news in their hands. Ben was a little old fashioned himself, so it caught his eye for sure. 

She agreed to the drink, and Ben signaled the bartender back over. He was just having beer, whatever they had on draft. He wasn’t picky, and he hoped that she wasn’t either. A few moments went by, and their glasses were placed in front of both of them, filled almost to the brim. Ben grabbed his almost immediately, feeling the need for something that’d take the edge off. He brought the glass up to his lips, took a quick drink. He was desperate for an easy night. No work. He was seeing Lola the next day, which was definitely something to look forward to. Having a few drinks at the Blue Door seemed like the easiest way to make his evening go by faster. 

“I can’t remember your name,” Ben admitted, sincere as ever. “I’ve seen ya before, it’s just not coming to me. I just spent the last eight hours arguing with a twenty-two year old. I think my brain is done for the rest of the evening,” he admitted. Luca Costello was a fucking handful -- that was for certain. He kept insisting that Ben fuck off and give Luca space to breathe, but he obviously couldn’t do that, otherwise he’d be unemployed.

“Oh, and I’m Ben,” he added. 

[benjamin-lowell]

The city of Chicago hadn’t quite settled since the blackout. Reparations were still being made, people were still recovering. He was one of them. He’d sent Lola off to stay with his parents until things felt a little more stable. With the death of his boss, Ben knew that work was about to be more demanding and dangerous than ever before. The Costellos were officially at war, and he didn’t want Lola around for any part of that. 

The absence of his daughter was hitting Ben hard. He knew it was temporary, and definitely for the best, but it didn’t make any part of it easier. 

Ben arrived at the Blue Door, which was still somewhat under repair, and was thankful that Luca Costello was now someone else’s problem. An eight hour shift with that kid was practically unbearable when he refused to listen to what anyone else was saying. Ben needed a drink. He took a seat on the barstool, waved the bartender down for a beer. 

The person next to him looked just as exhausted as he was. 

“Long day,” Ben simply said. “Buy you a drink?”

[benjamin-lowell]

chloereys‌:

It was easy enough to stay grinning in Ben’s presence. He may have been working for the Costellos, but she’d never truly associated him with “the enemy.” Ben would always be Ben to her, mostly because she had been friends with him prior to his occupation choice. Plus, there was no way in hell she was going to cut him and Lola out of her life because of the feuding families. 

Between his staring and him slipping his hand into hers, Chloe might have thought Ben was blurring the lines of their friendship, but she chalked it up to a combination of him being drunk and not actually knowing what he was doing. But even if that was the case, it was still a nice feeling considering she had mostly dropped her love life’s existence after Wyatt. 

She nearly applauded when he finally made it to the car door, choosing to chuckle softly instead. “Always a gentleman,” she praised teasingly. Chloe rolled her eyes. “As if I’d leave you on the curb. Besides, you’re holding my hand, so I literally can’t leave you behind even if I wanted to.” 

‘Besides, you’re holding my hand, so I literally can’t leave you behind even if I wanted to.’

The realization that Ben had been holding her hand would’ve likely made him jerk his arm away immediately - had he been sober. But he wasn’t. So he squeezed her hand once, smiled sheepishly.

“I am,” he simply said. And he didn’t let go, no matter how inconvenient getting into an Uber was. Maybe he should’ve. Chloe was a friend. She was a constant. Crossing that line didn’t seem like a good idea - no matter how tempting it might’ve been when he was drunk.

All logic flew out the window, apparently.

He closed the door, greeted the Uber driver. 

“I’m still making you the best goddamn breakfast sandwich you’ve ever had when we get back to my place.”

[benjamin-lowell]

salma-carrillo‌:

“I’m surprised it didn’t take longer,” she mused. Although, then again, they had more than just Ben. She was sure that they had all hands on deck. At least, that was what her father would have done in a situation like this. She felt a pang of grief as she thought of her father, of the formidable man that he had once been. She realized that he had said more than that and she offered him a small smile. “I’m glad that it all seems okay,” she said. That didn’t mean that it would stay normal. 

She followed him, staying by his side. She realized that she was probably not the greatest company at the moment, and she needed to fix that. 

She shook her head. “Less than a year. I started working at the Venetian in early March,” she expalined. She bit her lip and then shrugged her shoulders with a laugh. “There was nothing left for me in California,” she explained. “My father passed away and I needed a change of scenery, you know? Chicago seemed as good of a place as any. But what about you? Did you grow up here?” She asked. 

Salma didn’t go into the full truth, Ben didn’t need to know why she was here, about her father. He didn’t need to know that she knew the Costello’s already…or of them, that is. She didn’t think he knew about her past. 

Benjamin was interested in Salma, purely because there was so much about her that he didn’t really know. He wasn’t sure if there was anything to know. Maybe she was just another person that ended up on the Costello payroll because the money was so damn good. That’s why he was there, after all. As she delved into the reasoning behind coming to Chicago, Ben frowned, offering Salma an apologetic look as she mentioned her father having passed away.

Both of Ben’s parents were still alive, and he spoke to them regularly. They were very involved in Lola’s life, and he couldn’t really imagine not having them around. 

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Ben told Salma, voice soft and sincere. Losing a parent was unimaginable, no matter how old you were. “I’ve been in Chicago all my life,” Ben explained. “I like it here. My parents live in the suburbs, about 45 minutes away. I didn’t go too far from ‘em. They help out with my daughter. She’s four.”

Ben continued to walk. Brew St. was closed for the evening, but there was another late night diner nearby that had some good coffee. Ben walked them in that direction. 

“You miss California?” Ben wondered. He didn’t want to unpack too much, and she was more than welcome to tell him to shut the hell up. As they neared the diner, Ben walked up to the door, opening it for Salma. 

[camilasperezold]

Ben kept Camila informed— on his trek over to the apartment, he spared no detail in describing his hankering for breakfast food. ( Apparently, it was a multi-week affair. ) Camila is an excellent listener. She hums at appropriate points, makes little exclamations, but she wonders if at this point, at this level of intoxication, if he can fully hear her.

Hold on. Don’t hang up.

Put on hold, it would seem.

Camila giggles, imagining what Ben is up to at the moment. Maybe scouring the aisles for syrup, maybe wandering about the gas station in search of other snacks.  It’s too bad they’re not there together. She’s about to make a snack request, until the realization hits her she’s heard nothing but the faint rustle of fabric this entire time— presumably from his pocket.

Camila snorts in amusement, comments aloud to nobody in particular.

“He probably forgot about me.”

Eventually, noise from the other end.

I forgot about you.

Ah. Well, it sounded like he was practically there, at least. And if there was no syrup to be had, the pair of them would make do with whatever he did bring, and whatever happened to be in Camila’s fridge. The night was still young. They would have their fun, no matter what.

Camila leans out the doorway, head craning about in search of her drunken friend.

“Bring the snacks inside! Get in here before you accidentally trip over my neighbor’s weird garden gnome.”

[benjamin-lowell]

At the sight of Camila, Ben couldn’t help but grin. Now the fun could really begin. Apparently there was a weird garden gnome present, and sure enough - a few feet away, Ben saw the creepy little thing. He flinched, unable to hide the mortified look on his face. 

“Those things are so fucking weird!” Ben exclaimed, maybe a little too loudly as he stepped foot inside of Camila’s place. Ben didn’t mean to be rude, but he walked into the kitchen without really thinking. He just wanted something to eat. Ben placed the bags on one of Camila’s counter tops. He fished through one of the bags until his hands were on a bag of Sour Patch Kids. Ben tore into the bag, picking out the blue kind. He popped a few into his mouth, chewed slowly as he looked up at Camila.

“There’s funyuns in there. And skittles. Can’t remember what else - I just grabbed what I could find,” he stated proudly. 

“Y’know, some might say I had too much to drink tonight,” Ben began, as he dug through the bag for some more candy. “But I’d say I had just enough.”

[benjamin-lowell]

miaxcostello‌:

While Mia didn’t have any kids, she did have a few thoughts on parenting. It was something that had changed when Ben and Lola had invited her into their lives, and she had gotten to feel what it was like to be part of a normal family. What it was like to be both responsible for someone else and dependent on someone else in a new way, different from how she’d felt with her own family in a while. It was not that she didn’t love her family, she did with all her heart. But being a family with a public image had shaped them, how they acted and how they were together, more than she had realized or noticed in the past. You couldn’t entirely compare your own family to someone else’s before you got to experience what that someone else’s family looked like from the inside.

“Thats good. Really? I’m sure he didn’t mind though, getting some insight into fatherhood might have been just what he needed.” She said with a small smile, also thinking that the scmuch shouldn’t be out drinking when he had just learned he was going to be a dad.. he should be home with his wife celebrating. Then again maybe this night was his second round of celebrations or something.

When he stopped, she took a side step to turn back around, her eyebrows lifting in question in response to the confusion she could read on his face. What? Her own face was asking, unsure what he was thinking. Though the following sigh and hand squeeze did indeed give her a slight preparation for the words that followed. Words that made her feel a whole lot, all at once. But then when didn’t being around him make her feel like that? ever since their break up she had been a whirlwind of emotions the second he was close to her. She shouldn’t have expected this small run in to be any different.. Shouldn’t have, and yet she had. Just for once she had been searching for that easy friendship their relationship had always contained. Of course breaking up would destroy that for a while.. and maybe it was unfair for her to hope that after some time apart they could be just friends. Now that she thought about it, being ‘just’ anything with Ben sounded real darn challenging. Because it was not as if she had broken up with him because she didn’t love him enough. She had done it because of how much she did love him.

“Vividly.” Her voice low but not low enough to hide that edge of hurt she probably wasn’t entitled to feel. Still, she didn’t let go of his hand, though she felt the need to half explain it, half offer some replacement for her hand if that was what he was after. “Your balance is a little off when drunk.. I thought I’d lend you a hand. Do you want my elbow instead? Or should I just let you stumble forward on your own?” She half asked, half suggested with a pair of raised eyebrows and what she hoped was a nonchalant tone. Whether or not he believed her initial intentions, she hoped he’d believe that it had been an act out of concern and care. And unless told otherwise, she still thought she was allowed to show that she cared.

Relieved to be given a direction, Mia steered them to the right, barely managing to keep the tempo down. The whole comment was now making her wonder whether or not she should be holding his hand at all for any reason, and that made her eager to get them to where they were going so that she could stop thinking about it altogether.

Mia was a complicated factor in Ben’s life. They’d spent a year with each other. She was a constant, someone who Ben ended up loving as the months went on. Things between them ended rather abruptly - leaving him confused and unsure of how exactly to move forward. Ben generally stayed away from relationships after the experience that he had with Lola’s mother. She was unpredictable, selfish - focused only on herself. 

Mia had been a pleasant surprise. 

Only - Lola would always be his number one priority. And she needed stability. Going back and forth with Mia wouldn’t be healthy for anyone, but especially not Lola. So he needed to be careful. Mia, as a recovering addict, needed to be careful, too. 

Mia didn’t let go of his hand. He was too inebriated to really comment on it further. Plus, she explained herself - he was drunk, and his balance wasn’t at its best - which was true. He just didn’t want things to get confusing... for either of them. 

Ben didn’t let go of her hand. His thinking definitely wasn’t the most rational that evening. 

He followed after Mia, stumbling a few steps behind her as they neared the diner. It was empty, for the most part. He held the door open, walking in after her. Ben nodded towards an empty booth - his favorite seat in the house, by the window, with a view of an old theater across the street. 

Finally, Ben slowly let go of Mia’s hand. He took a seat at the table, signaling to the empty spot in front of him. Maybe it was for the pair of them to talk. 

“What were you doing out tonight?” Ben asked. “It’s late. Were you working, or...?” Ben trailed off, eyeing the hash browns that were pictured on the menu. Fuck. They looked so good. Still, he forced himself to focus on Mia for a brief moment. “I had the night off. Was just looking for something fun to do. Ended up at a bar.”

[mjxlnir]

#this man is all eyebrows

[camilasperezold]

There’s a pause where Camila fights back laughter in response to Ben’s own, weighs the options before her with a great deal of thought. That gas station was shady.

Camila clears her throat; straightens herself up solemnly.

“Benjamin Lowell died as he lived: drunk. Acting up in gas station aisle. Desperately hunting for breakfast.”

She snickers before dropping the evening newscaster voice, opening and closing the kitchen cabinets with a reckless sort of abandon. She could already feel a sleepover of sorts brewing. It was serious business, because of course she wants a drunk Ben over— she could re-organize his Instagram. Update his tinder profile? At the very least, they could gorge on a very good breakfast spread, and he could do it somewhere where he doesn’t have to worry about tripping over into a gutter, or losing his wallet. Her place was comfy!

“I’m in my narwhal pajamas already— do you wanna just come over here?”

She hoists up a jar of chocolate chips. At the very least, she doesn’t mind using these as a topping if he can’t find any syrup— improvise, adapt, overcome.

“We can put candyyyy on the pancakes.”

[benjamin-lowell]

‘Do you just wanna come over here?’

Ben had been wandering Chicago aimlessly for a while now. It was late, and he needed to head somewhere for the rest of the evening. Going home was boring, so of course he would accept Camila’s invitation.

“I’m already on my way,” Ben announced. He wasn’t far from her place anyway. Only a block or so down. And the gas station was right there. On his walk over, Ben only stumbled once. Or maybe twice. He kept Camila on the phone, explaining in great detail how badly he’d been craving breakfast food since last weekend.

“Hold on. Don’t hang up,” Ben told Camila. He shoved the phone in his back pocket without disconnecting the call and headed inside of the gas station. He looked around the aisles a little aimlessly. Absolutely no syrup in sight. Ben frowned, slightly defeated, before he grabbed a ridiculous amount of snacks - both salty and sweet. They could be sides for their breakfast platter.

Before long, Ben had checked out, forgetting that he’d left Camila on the phone. He carried two full bags of snacks and drinks in one hand. He brought his phone back up to his ear.

“Hello. Sorry.”

At that point, Ben was practically walking up the steps to her place.

“I forgot about you. But I’m here, with snacks, and drinks. No syrup though, which sort of sucks, but I guess it’s not the worst thing to ever happen.”

[benjamin-lowell]

salma-carrillo‌:

Salma offered him a smile. “Did you have to make a lot of stops?” She asked curiously. She didn’t envy the employees of the Costellos that had to check on everyone. It seemed like such a hard job. She was glad that she had nothing to do with it.

At Ben’s offer of grabbing a coffee, she smiled. “I would like that,” she replied. She wasn’t going to get much sleep tonight anyways, and it would be nice to have some company for a change. 

“Lead the way,” she smiled.

“Yeah. I scouted most of the locations out. Everything looks normal. It’s good,” Ben said reassuringly. As long as everything stayed calm (which it likely wouldn’t), Ben had no reason to worry. He was off the clock that night, but he knew better than to shut his phone off. It’s why he’d left Lola with his parents. There was a chance the Costellos could call at any given moment, and Ben needed to answer the phone if they did. 

Ben led the way, walking in the opposite direction of the Venetian. He stayed close to Salma. He didn’t know much about her, but he was friendly with pretty much everyone on the Costello side. 

“You haven’t really been in Chicago long, have you?” He asked. If she had, Ben had failed to notice up until just recently. “What brought you this way? Or, if you don’t wanna say, you could just lie. I’ll believe you.”

He was teasing, but Ben sorta did mean it. If her past was too dark to unpack - he didn’t want to put her in an uncomfortable situation. Not after everything that had already happened that night. 

[benjamin-lowell]

violetcostello‌:

Violet watched Ben as he spoke, lips pressing together as she suppressed a smirk, “The baby mama drama did you good? I’m pretty sure you might be one of the only men to ever say that.” She playfully jabbed him in the ribs with her foot then stretched to grab the bottle off the table. She wasn’t done drinking yet.

“Bring it the fuck on, huh?” She sat up, propping herself against a pillow, legs still resting against Ben’s thighs, “Besides me being a maniac who slaughters humans for a living, you’d probably have to ask Leon about my brand of crazy. I’m sure he’ll give you a very colorful version.” For a split second, her carefree air faltered, jaw clenching as she swallowed back all the emotion that threatened to bubble forth. Fucking prick. She missed him — and fucking hell she hated it.

The thought of her marriage made her take another drink, hoping the liquor would drown it out, force it back down in the hole it’d come from. Her tongue swept over her lips and she could taste the stray whiskey. It nipped her tongue, the bitter sweetness reminding her of her anger. The alcohol also reminded her how attractive Ben was. How easy it’d be to just bury herself in a man like that for a night, to let all the stress and aggravation out on the pursuit of pleasure.

“For the record, you don’t have to keep it repressed around me. I just love crazy.” She placed the bottle back on the table, shifting her position so she could straddle him, resting her arms on each of his shoulders, “You know,” she began, her voice low, smooth, just a hint of a smile dancing on her lips, “I remember how you used to look at me.”

Leon was a touchy subject. Ben knew his place. Overstepping was not smart. Not when the split between Violet and Leon was so fresh. Before too long, Violet was taking another drink, and Ben followed suit. He downed the rest of his drink with ease, his eyes never faltering from Violet. She was easy to look at - beautiful, fluid, graceful. At least, that’s the way that Ben saw her. It wasn’t hard for Ben to imagine Violet on an assignment. If Ben were ever a target, he’d be an easy one. There was just no ignoring someone like Violet.

'I remember how you used to look at me.’

Ben smiled a little sheepishly. He forced both eyes shut, face scrunching up as he feigned embarrassment. (He was too tipsy to feel embarrassed; maybe once the liquor wore off, maybe once he was sober.)

Violet had somehow ended up in his lap, and it took Benjamin a few moments to react. His heart raced. She’d placed the whiskey on the table, and Ben wasn’t sure he could continue if not for a few more sips. He swiped the bottle, forgetting about the glass that he’d been using. He drank straight from the bottle now.

After a few large swigs, Ben held the bottle between the two of them. He rested a hand on Violet’s waist - being very cautious with his placement.

"Ah. You weren’t supposed to notice, I guess. I looked at you like I wasn’t supposed to.”

The underboss’s wife. Ben was faithful, loyal to all he respected. He’d usually tear his gaze away from Violet before he looked for too long. Even before Ben had been with Mia, he’d shown an interest in Violet. Back when he was fresh faced, just learning the ropes. It was one of his best kept secrets - one that he guarded significantly. Ben selfishly let his hand wander down her side, slightly. 

“We’re both pretty drunk. You’re drunk. I’m tipsy,” Ben clarified. He gazed at Violet, his eyes almost glancing down at her mouth. 

Ben leaned back slightly, tilted his head upward so that he was staring at the ceiling now. He didn’t say anything else - simply sat there, with Violet in his lap, wondering where the fuck this would go. He almost wanted to reach for another drink - but he could already feel the liquor starting to creep up on him. 

[benjamin-lowell]

chloereys‌:

Hearing how many shots he may have taken prior to losing count made her roll her eyes. “Okay, good to know. Gotta know what I’m working with,” she teased. 

She raised a brow at his statement. “Well I can’t wait to be proven wrong by you then.” This would either be amazing or detrimental to Ben’s health. And she’d try to remember not to be too smug if Ben happened to get hurt (not that she’d let him get that hurt). 

“Oh thank god,” she cheered. An exaggerated sigh of relief left her lips. “Because I love you and all, Ben, and I do work out, but not nearly enough to hold you up if we were walking.” She stuck her tongue out him childishly. “Just try not to fall over in the next two minutes, okay?” 

Chloe had been a friend for a few years. And yeah, she was very close with the Sinclairs, but Ben rarely discussed business with Chloe - at least, not on his end of things. She’d been around since Lola was young. Ben was a new dad, a little out of his element - but Chloe had shown him nothing but kindness.

So, whenever Ben was this drunk, logic and reasoning sorta flew out the window. And he saw how kind and beautiful Chloe was. It wasn’t that he’d never noticed - there was just no time. 

“I won’t fall. I won’t,” he insisted, looking down at her, grinning. He held eye contact for a few seconds too long. It was the liquor. Damn the liquor. 

The Uber had arrived just in time. Ben reached down, wrapped his hand around Chloe’s fingers. Sober, he probably wouldn’t have done that. He insisted on leading the way towards the car, stumbling once or twice, but managing to stay on his feet. Ben was a gentleman, through and through - nothing would ever alter that, no matter how far gone he might’ve been. He held the door open for Chloe.

“You first. That way, if I fall on my ass getting in, you can just tell the Uber to drive away without me. It’ll save you the embarrassment.”

[camilasperezold]

God, was it a change to be the sober one for once.

“I’m at home, you goose.” She pads barefoot into the kitchen, yanking open the fridge to do some light recon. It’s a decent assortment of breakfast foods.

“I dunno, like. Eggs. Some juice. Sausage?”

Camila squints, turns her head back towards her cabinets. Ben sounds fucking plastered— he was probably hungry for something substantial.

“I have shit for pancakes, but I don’t think I have any syrup…”

[benjamin-lowell]

“What the fuck? You don’t have any syrup?!”

Ben couldn’t be serious. Not with Camila. Not when he was this wasted. He quickly burst into laughter, shaking his head. The movement made him somewhat dizzy, and he extended out an arm in an attempt to steady himself.

“Well, we have options here, y’know,” Ben stated. He cleared his throat as he unveiled his well thought out plan. “So. Option one. I stop by the shady gas station that’s on the way to your place. I risk my life and go inside, but it’s possible they don’t have any syrup. Bummer. I end up at your place and we eat eggs and sausage with pancakes, but no syrup.” He paused to breathe. “Or there’s option two. You meet me at a diner in town, we eat an endless supply of breakfast food until we’re both sick. Or option three, I guess. Where you just hang up on me and pretend to fall asleep so that I leave you alone.”

He laughed into the phone, stumbling forward a few steps.

“But you gotta let me know soon because I’m very drunk, and I’m afraid I could be arrested for public intoxication at any given moment.”

[benjamin-lowell]

miaxcostello‌:

That cute look he got when surprised chafed on her heart, resulting in a momentary downcast pair of hazel eyes, though she was too worried to keep them ground based. In turn she wasn’t at all surprised at his compliance. It wasn’t rare for Ben to do what she asked.. to the point where she had asked that they didn’t see each other anymore. That too he had complied with. A part of her still wished he would have put up more of a fight, while rationally she knew why he hadn’t. Lola’s safety trumped everything, as it should for any single parent raising their kid. 

Her answering smile was small, but warm. “Probably. Did you have fun though? Cause if so regrets really are a waste of your energy.” she said with a small shrug. Of course he deserved to let loose every now and then. With how hard he worked and how amazingly he parented, being able to take a night off was nothing but well deserved. She only hoped it was for the right reasons. 

The sudden exclamation had Mia blinking a little, her eyes immediately darting around to figure out what he might have seen that would prompt whatever revelation was about to come. When that revelation turned out to concern a certain diner and a meal, it was very hard not to laugh. “Shit that better be one hell of a diner.” she teased, shaking her head a little in amusement. “Sure, I cold do with a toast and orange juice. Hell yeah pulp is gross, lets make sure they strain it.” Taking his hand, and trying really hard not to think too hard on it, Mia gently tugged him in the direction of the diner. “Left or right?” she asked, a bit unsure which way it actually was. 

Ben didn’t take many nights off to just do whatever he wanted. Lola was always the priority, no matter what. But Ben did understand that he needed to take time for himself. Lola enjoyed staying with his parents, so Ben didn’t worry much about her; she was in good hands. 

“Yeah. Had a good time. Made friends with some dude at the bar. He was mentioning how his wife was pregnant, and he’d just found out. He was out celebrating with some co-workers or something. Anyway, I ended up just rambling on about Lola.” Ben grinned. Predictable. She was everything to Ben. It was hard not to brag about her every chance that he got.

Mia took Ben’s hand. He stopped for a moment, visibly confused. He didn’t mind it necessarily, but Mia had broken up with him. He wanted to ask Mia very gently what she was doing. He knew he wouldn’t be very coherent, and he wasn’t trying to start a fight by any means - but he had to ask.

“Mia,” Ben began, sighing a little as he squeezed her hand once. “We broke up. ‘Member?” 

That was all he could say, really. He didn’t let go of her hand. It was easy to hold onto whenever he was this drunk, and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings. Walking was proving to be quite the challenge.

“Uhh, diner’s to the right!”

[benjamin-lowell]

gemramsey‌:

Gemma seriously needed to get her shit together. That sad, sympathetic look on Ben’s face was more than enough to make Gemma want to crawl under a rock. It wasn’t so much that she was embarrassed as she felt weak in this moment. Standing in front of a stranger and finally feeling the true weight of everything she’d seen that day was…not the greatest look. This life was gritty and violent and Gemma knew that, but finally seeing it? A whole other thing.

This poor guy just happened to be the unfortunately soul to stumble upon Gemma and her breakdown. 

“Understatement of the fucking century.” She let out a deep sigh, humorless chuckle escaping with it. 

Gemma shook her head, sniffling and blinking away the last traces of the tears that never fell. “Ah, well, kind of? I was supposed to be heading home, but I am apparently taking the long way?” She nodded, a small smile spreading over her lips. “Can’t fault you there. Tonight’s probably not the best night to be wandering aimlessly, huh?”

Gemma’s brows shot up, surprised. “Really? I mean, you don’t know me and you don’t owe me shit, but a ride would actually be amazing. My feet are kind of trashed.” Gemma grimaced at the thought of what her feet probably looked like. Chicago streets were unkind in more than one way. “I can give you gas money and I’d one hundred percent owe you.” 

“Definitely not the best night for that,” Ben agreed. Gas money wasn’t a concern for him. He did these things out of the kindness of his heart. Despite not knowing the woman, he knew it was the right thing to do. She was clearly a little distraught after the wedding - and, who wouldn’t be? Ben had distanced himself from the situation - he got to do that whenever it came to his job. He had to compartmentalize, otherwise he’d bring that shit home to Lola. 

And that just wasn’t an option for him.

“Well, I’m Ben. I work in security, so I’ll get you home safe,” he promised. He began to walk, leading the way towards his vehicle. It was only a few blocks down, then he’d get her off the streets. Ben felt bad, staring down at her feet on occasion, wishing he had something to offer her. 

As they neared his parked SUV, Ben pulled his phone out, just to ensure that nothing else was going on. No messages. 

“So, the wedding - were you a friend of the bride’s?” He wondered out loud. He didn’t mean to pry - and the last thing he wanted was to cause a break down at the mention of Paisley. But Ben didn’t know a thing about her, only that she was at the wedding. She was on the Sinclair side, which made him slightly weary, but overall - she didn’t seem like a threat.  

[benjamin-lowell]

salma-carrillo‌:

Salma took her wallet back from him and carefully put it into her duffel bag, making sure that it went into her bag this time. The last thing she wanted to deal with tonight was the hassle of dealing with a lost wallet. “Still, thank you so much. I don’t know what I would have done if I got home and couldn’t find it.”

It was strange to see the Venetian so dead. She didn’t think that she had ever been in there with it so quiet. It was always bustling from open to close. 

And yet…here they were. She nodded her head at his question. “Yeah, there’s no point in being here tonight,” she offered him a slightly sad smile. “What about you?”

Even though she didn’t know Paisley, and she didn’t really know Luca, she couldn’t help but feel sad. What had happened was awful. Nobody deserved to die at their wedding, especially not like that. It was just…awful. And she wasn’t even close to the family, she couldn’t imagine what they were feeling at the moment.

Ben didn’t have any real intentions of hanging out at the Venetian. Everything looked fine, so he figured he could leave. Mateo would reach out to him if he was needed. That didn’t mean that Ben didn’t want any company, either. And maybe Salma was in need of it, too.

“Yeah. This was my last stop,” he decided. The other locations were still being scouted. There was no real reason to be worried - yet. And for now, the best Ben could do was keep an eye on some of the other employees.

“Wanna go grab a coffee, or something?” He offered. Ben didn’t know much about Salma, other than she was relatively new to the business. “My treat.”

[benjamin-lowell]

camilasperez‌:

“HA.”

Camila’s laugh is a nearly a bark, rolling back on her bed as she kicks her feet up into the air with a wriggly glee. She cradles the phone between her cheek and shoulder.

“Oh, Benny. You sound drunk as hell.”

“Camila!” 

Suddenly realizing that Camila was on the other end of the line. She was the mastermind behind this phone call. Ben made a mental note to get her back (though it was likely he’d forget all about it in a few minutes).

“Wait. Where the fuck are you? We should hang out. What kind of groceries do you have at your place? I want breakfast food.” 

[benjamin-lowell]

miaxcostello‌:

Mia had spent some hours at the Venetian, simply hanging out with some of the girls and staff who she had come to know all too well. Walking home from the club it was not at all hard to spot Ben ahead of her, walking in a manner that she hadn’t seen in a long while. At first Mia debated just slipping into another street, avoiding whatever kind of run in they might end up having. But then her ex came to a stop, talking loudly on the phone, his words making it pretty clear that it was to someone he didn’t know in the slightest. Worry gripped Mia’s heart and she felt torn between acting and listening in. 

Could it really just be a dumb prank caller? 

Stepping over, Mia nudged Ben’s shoulder. “Hang up.” she said, half asking, half telling. She was probably being paranoid as hell, but no matter who it was he oughtn’t spend energy on them when he was wasted and probably in need of a bed. “You partied hard tonight huh?” she said with a small smile once she had his attention. Her heart ached.. wondering if this was him just having fun, or if this was what she had driven him to. Either way she felt responsible. Shitty. Undeserving. No you never really did deserve him.

Ben, in his inebriated state, was visibly surprised to see Mia. He raised both brows, a delayed reaction from the nudge on his shoulder. She was urging him to hang up, and as much as Ben wanted to continue arguing with the mysterious person on the other end of the line, he complied. For Mia’s sake. He ended the call, shoving his phone back in his pocket. 

‘You partied hard tonight huh?’

Ben smirked a little deviously. 

“Yeah. I’ll probably regret it in the morning,” he admitted with a sigh. Even drunk, he was pretty self aware. Hopefully he’d remember to down a few bottles of water before inevitably passing out. Maybe he’d be lucky and wake up with no hangover at all.

“Whoa!” Ben exclaimed, as if he’d just made a great discovery. “There’s a twenty-four hour diner a block down that way,” Ben said, pointing. “Wanna grab a bite? I want some scrambled eggs. And orange juice. No pulp though, that shit’s nasty.”