LOCATION: summer kickoff event, somewhere quiet looking out at the water.
FOR: bri taylor.
ANGEL HAD HEARD WHAT happened -- of course they had. dario had always been good to them. it had been him who helped them get their feet underneath her when they first joined the jackals, so to hear of his passing broke their heart. even if they knew everyone processed loss differently, angel had lost the only people in their life that truly made them feel like they mattered after a lifetime of feeling unseen. ever since then they had processed things like this with a certain... numbness outside a handful of tears shed in private. and yet, it still didn't stop them from trying their best to be there for the others who they know are going through the same thing. " hey... uh... bri, right? " they ask, arms crossed over their chest as they lean against the nearby wood fence. " i hope this doesn't sound, like, out of pocket. but... dario was a buddy of mine. good people. if y'ever need anythin'... i know he's got a lot'a people whos doors would be open t'you. including mine. " they flash her a gentle smile. " 'm angel. probably helps if take the whole random stranger part out of it. "
Despite the length of time she’s had to accept the news and his absence, Bri couldn’t help but feel anger when his name was brought up. He had promised things to her. Promised to always be at her side. To care and love her in ways she’s never felt before. There’d been a time where the promises felt unnecessary and she easily brushed them off with a sassy roll of her eyes, or an amused shake of her head. But now? She seethed at his sheer audacity. To leave this world, leaving her all alone and filled with emotions she had never thought possible when Dario was concerned. Though she clearly heard the female beside her, Bri simply stared at her face. Not a thought present as she pondered over her own heart ache and the emptiness in her chest cavity. It only took her an additional moment to swallow her sob and address her companion. She extended an awkward hand out, “ Bri - but you knew that, huh? ” she said with a humorless chuckle, “ Um… thanks. I don’t - I mean… thanks. ” Bri wasn’t sure how to respond or where the conversation would lead that wouldn’t leave her feeling even less enthused. “ I’m alive, so I guess I can’t be doing too bad, right? ”
"Excuse me?" Christian flinches, half-expecting a kick. The alternative proves only marginally more appalling. An uncomfortable realisation follows: she had not, in fact, been approaching him for an autograph. He finds himself unexpectedly annoyed and strangely embarrassed by the mistake. "You shouldn’t put your feet where people sit. Not only is it unhygienic, but it is also remarkably inconsiderate of you."
“ As opposed to sitting with birds shit? ” Bri motioned to the dried white muck adorning the bench and raised a brow, “ Give me a break, dude. You’re reaching for something to grab onto and failing miserably. ” Bri didn’t bother to stop what she was doing and finished tying her laces before straightening up to get a better look at the duffus. Certainly, he couldn’t be anything but. “ What the hell was that outburst even about, anyway? Are you rich or something? ” He dressed well, not that she’d say it, but Bri did notice the shine to his shoes.
starter: jia & bri taylor [ @briclassified ]
setting: addicted to the bean ; end of bri's shift
It had been so long since Jia had been sending money to the hospital to pay for Nova’s bills, that she sometimes forgot to check in on Bri to see how the mother was doing. She bought herself some caramel latte, with an extra caramel pump and a cinnamon roll to go with it while waiting for Bri to finish her shift. By the time the brunette’s apron was finally down, Jia had already finished eating her baked good, so, she grabbed her to-go cup and followed Bri outside.
❝ Hey, gorgeous! Can I walk you home? ❞
She jumped. Her head turned so fast that she felt herself catch a wind in her neck. With a pulsing ache in her neck and shoulders, Bri told herself that she was somewhere safe. That nothing bad was happening - a mantra she’s perfected over the weeks following her attack. Some days the threat of her panic was present that it made working impossible. That day, however, had been less mile and if she hadn’t been so focused on getting home, Jia’s approach wouldn’t have garnered such a reaction. Embarrassed, Briadmnis nose wrinkled but she forced a smile either way. “ Hey, ” It wasn’t as though she hadn’t already seen and waved at her friend already inside. “ Sure. I mean, are you sure? It’s a bit ways away. ” She bit her lip, then motioned for her to follow - resuming her leave. “ How was your latte? ”
The second Wilder heard the news, he was out of bed. He had promised to watch Camilia for the night so Paloma could have a break. He wrapped up his baby and went to work hunting down his daughter. It didn't take him long to show up at Bri's house and demand the girl from the sitter. He explained that Bri had been hurt and that he was Nova's father. It took convincing and letting the sitter come with them to the hospital to get him to this point, sitting at her bed side.
Nova straddled his knee and was asleep with her head buried in his chest, his arm hung protectively around the small girl while his other hung down off the chair and rocked Cami in her carrier. And who said he wasn't a good person? He wasn't sure how long it had been. Well into the next day, maybe even the evening. But he stayed, caring for his daughters like he had a purpose in life again. He watched as Bri's eyes fluttered open and he didn't dare move, not wanting to take either kid. "Hey, hey." He said softly. "You are okay. Hello beautiful." He held a somber smile to her face, unsure of if she knew the outcome of that horrible night yet or not.
Beautiful. The words cycled through her brain like there was more to them than its simplest greeting. Bri didn’t have much time to process how she felt physically as everything in the room stole her attention. Confusion settled once her gaze found the infant in the room. Everything else, Bri could have explained in various assortments of situations, but the infant child in the room? Her head shifted through questions that her mind was too overwhelmed to properly inquire. “ Who- ” was that child, “ what- ” was he doing there, “ where’s…?” Dario. Dario. Dario. There was something she had to remember. Something involving Dario. Where was he? Briadmnis opened her mouth once more to speak, but found her tongue to dry and throat too raw and sore. Instead she stared at him a while before glancing at her surroundings. Images flashed back and she panicked, sending the machine attached to her into utter chaos. Her chest began to rise and fall in uneven labored breaths that only added to the ache in her body. Pain shot up her torso and she brought her arms closer to keep herself whole while attempting to gather herself and stop the noise in the room. “ What happened? ” she managed to ask, “ Am I-? ” Dead? That couldn’t be so. Dario had been there. He’d have to have saved her. “ How are you here? ”
It was the kind of day that dario always secretly loved most. no noise, no expectations, no pressure against his ribs for once. just bri beside him, nova’s laughter from earlier still lingering somewhere in his head like a song he didn’t want to end. he couldn’t wait to get back home to her again, even if he already knew she’d probably be upset with him for stretching the outing a little longer than promised. the truth was, dario had been doing a lot of thinking lately when it came to bri and nova. he’d spoken to bash about it, and somehow that conversation had only made the feeling harder to ignore. he just didn’t know how today any of it without accidentally ruining everything between them.
he didn’t want bri to feel cornered or trapped, because all he’d ever wanted was to give her somewhere safe to land with nova. and honestly…why not with him? bri stayed over as it was already, the spare room had slowly become nova’s room without either of them really acknowledging it, and at this point, offering bri a key to his place felt less like a question and more like admitting what they already were to him. his family. dario glanced down at their intertwined hands for a second, smiling to himself before looking back ahead at the winding path in front of them. “what do you think?” he asked after a beat, voice low and warm beneath the quiet rustling of the trees against the gentle breeze. “you think nova’ll forgive me for stealing her mom for a little longer?”
BRI –
There was nothing unnerving about the comfort that came with Dario’s presence. Even when her daughter was nowhere near. Typically, and most commonly upon her return, being away from Nova was gut-wrenching and harrowing. Daunting even, mainly with all the craziness that’d been happening around the town. But Dario took all of that away. All the stress, and the endless fear that pooled on her abdomen, dissipated. Then as they were, fingers locked without a care in the world, Bri felt overcome with ease. Grounded in the little heaven that he radiated. “ Yeah? ” she asked, snapping out of her trance and shifting her gaze to meet his. “ Oh, I mean, you know she’ll let you get away with murder if you simply ask. ” Bri replied with a grin.
It had been so from the start. Nova didn’t get to come around a lot of people, but with Dario being one of the very few that consistently showed up and offered nothing but his genuine kindness and love, it didn’t surprise her when her daughter refused to let go. He’s mine. She remembered Nova say one night he had to leave. Refusing to understand that Dario had a full life outside of their little family to go back to. “ I’ll give her a call, if you’d like. ” she said, already pulling her phone out. “ Wait – why? Did you want to go somewhere else? ”
DARIO –
Dario’s smile softened almost instantly at Bri’s comment about Nova.” I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he murmured with a quiet laugh under his breath, shaking his head slightly. Somewhere along the way, they’d both become his too. His own little family. His thumb brushed lightly against the back of Bri’s hand when she reached for her phone, and for a second he almost stopped her.But instead the corner of his mouth tugged upward faintly before his gaze drifted ahead along the path. “I just wanted more time with you, I guess,” he admitted quieter this time. “I’ve been kind of doing a lot of thinking about that, Bri,” but a sudden burst of laughter cut him off, loud enough to steal his attention as a group of kids sprinted across the grass nearby in a chaotic game of tag, yelling and laughing without a care in the world. Dario watched them for a second, then looked back at Bri with a softer smile. “You know what? Yeah,” he said gently, nodding toward the phone in her free hand. “Give Nova a ring. Just in case she’s worrying.” Then his gaze shifted toward a nearby fruit cup stand and he smiled a little to himself. He was going to get that and then he’d ask Bri. “I’ll go grab us one of those fruit cups for the walk. What kind do you want? I’ll get two, actually. Take one home to Nova.”
BRI –
She couldn't help but roll her eyes at his response, but the smile that stretched across her face easily did her in. Though she had no intentions of returning to the valley to take up so much of Dario’s time, Bri was glad that he gave it so freely. That he didn’t make her feel like she was unwanted in his space, even if at times it absolutely confused her. She didn’t like to think too much into it and accepted his generosity without fear. Out of everyone she had given access to her life, he’s been the only one worthy beyond comprehension. “ More time? What am I a machine? ” she quipped, “ Think you can just wind me up and I’ll recharge? ” Her jokes came as a natural response to hide the feelings he evoked. But just as easily as the feelings came, she felt a need to swash them and keep them from sprouting. Their friendship meant too much to her. Crossing that line, even if he never came to know, felt like a betrayal to what they were. “ Thinking about what? ” she asked, suspension drawing her eyebrows together. Don’t piss me off, she’d been about to say, when the lot rushed past them - distracting her train of thought. “ Sounds good. I’ll be over by that bench. ” she replied, motioning with her phone to the far off seat, “ Anything is good with me, so long as it has strawberries and mango! ” Nova loved mangoes.
DARIO –
Dario let out a soft laugh at that, glancing over at her with that familiar warmth that always seemed to surface around Bri whether he meant for it or not. “A machine?” he repeated, brows lifting slightly in amusement. “Damn. Here I was just trying to say I enjoy your company.” He shook his head, grin pulling at the corner of his mouth before his expression eased into something quieter, more honest. “But no,” he admitted after a second, thumb brushing lightly against the back of her hand again. “I just…like being around you, Bri. More than anybody else.” The confession came easier than it should have, slipping out beneath the trees and the world around them before he could second guess it. “Look,” he started, reaching out suddenly to pull her gently toward him, one hand settling against her waist as he leaned down to kiss her the way he sometimes did, when he would be unable to help himself from blurring the lines they had promised to keep. When he pulled back, his forehead hovered near hers for a brief second before he exhaled a quiet laugh. “You’re probably not gonna like what I wanna say,” he admitted softly. “ Try not to be too mad.” There was that signature crooked grin again, warm and impossible not to hold back as he finally stepped back, nodding once toward the fruit stand. “Strawberries and mangoes,” he said lightly. “Coming up.”
BRI –
Bri took in an involuntarily sharp breath and glanced down at their intertwined hands, not missing the tender circles he drew over her hand. She couldn’t respond, caught between grinning like a fucking idiot - which possibly was her most genuine reaction, seeing as her chest did a double flip - and shutting the moment down with another cheeky comment. But then his lips found hers and the mental turmoils washed away. “ Then don’t say it. ” she offered, closing her eyes as their foreheads met. Change wasn’t what she was looking for. There was already too much going on in her life, and though she knew he meant nothing but the best, she wasn’t sure piling him on top wouldn’t make her tumble. She could hear the words already, even if he’d yet to speak them. Bri opened her eyes, offering him a smile despite her thoughts - blinded by the joy behind his grin. “ Go. ” she urged him, pulling away and immediately dialing the nanny.
The conversation didn’t last very long. She got to talk to her baby, knowing there was no way Nova would fall asleep when she knew Bri was on her way, and then quickly checked with the babysitter. “ Are you sure you can stay a bit longer? ” she asked, “ It shouldn’t be more than half - maybe an hour? At most. ”
Wondering what was taking Dario so long, and perhaps if she should go help him grab one of the cups, she turned and bumped straight into a hooded figure. Before words could make it out of her lips she felt the cold pinch of a blade penetrating her side. Confused, in a haze, and hypnotized by the abruptness of it all her eyes widened and she felt her vision start to glaze. Pain hadn’t fully settled before another assault took place. “ Wait-! ” Bri uttered, having found her voice just as the agonizing pain took hold and she screamed bloody murder. Screamed for it to stop, for someone to intervene, for time to stand still, and her pain to subside. “ Please… ” she felt herself implore, but consciousness evaded her.
She probably should've given the key back by now, but if she did, how else could she come over unannounced and be a bother? Smiling as she wanders to the other's bedroom and using her knuckle to tap on the door's frame, "You miss me yet?"
She was startled, phone flying off her hand and landing - thankfully - face down on the rug adorning her bed. “ You bitch! ” she greeted her, and pushed off the bed to pull in for a hug. “ Life has been tragic, but do-able. Where’ve you been? ” Bri reached for her cellphone, tucking it into her back pocket.
as brie asked me about her and dario's dynamic, she finds herself pausing before making a response. it was, well, complicated to say the least. savannah wasn't quite sure what to consider it .... she was just happy he was back in her life in general. letting out a bit of an awkward laugh, she shrugged her shoulders. "does it really matter?" the blonde questioned. "i'm just glad that we're ... more closer than before."
“ Oh but you see, it matters. It matters to me quite a lot. Right, cause last time you came around and then disappeared without a fucking word- ” she had to stop herself, knowing that if she didn’t she might say something she would later regret, or that would inevitably make Dario upset. Bri didn’t hold her tongue very often, but she also wasn’t going to simply stand by and watch him get hurt. “ He’s smiling and laughing, and enjoying life. I will do anything in my power to keep him from getting hurt. Again.” Bri chose to leave it there, and offered a smile despite the silent threat in her words. “ It was nice to see you, Savannah, but I should get going. Wouldn’t want Nova to miss her physical therapy. Why don’t you stop by the coffee shop? We can have a drink; on me. ”
Head down, face covered. No one seems to notice him, and yet--
"No, no, please--" A dismissive hand wave towards the first person who makes eye contact. Immediately, Christian thinks he is about to be swarmed by fans. "Do not make a scene. I am not in the mood." For signatures, to be recognised. "I have had the most exhausting day you could possibly imagine, so please."
Bri stood back, a bit unsure if he was playing some kind of joke or if he genuinely had no sense of reality. “ Are you dumb? ” she asked, eyebrows furrowing so close they kissed. In her life she’s never ran into someone so incredibly abrupt that her approaching to tie her shoes on a public bench caused a stir. “ Please, what? ” Bri brought her foot onto the seat, “ Last I checked you didn’t own the bench, but if I am mistaken - take it up with the city. ”
“ Has anyone ever told you– ” she began, rounding the table in order to steal the empty seat beside the red head, “ –you’re fucking gorgeous. ” She hadn’t been there long enough to get drunk, but smoking a fat joint with strangers outside of the casino probably wasn’t her smartest choice that night. Bri wasn’t even sure what she was there besides just needing a place to explore that didn’t land her in some stranger’s bed. Sure, her choices could be better, there were more casual hang out spots around the town, but she didn’t want to be where the boring people were. The redhead seemed exciting from a mile away. “ Enjoying the night? ”
"did you have any certain books you liked as a kid then?" savannah questioned. god, small talk was never her strong suit. small talk when it came to someone she hadn't talked in to a hot minute either? it was pretty much like torture. sprinkle in her ex being brought up in the conversation, just the worst. "i mean ... we've been talking, hanging out with one another. it's been nice catching up, but yeah." she wasn't sure how to quite answer the question, if she was being honest.
She paused in an attempt to come up with any book that she genuinely cared about but came up with nothing. “ No. ” she replied, while putting the book she held back on the shelf, “ I wasn’t much of a reader back then. ” Bri spent most of her time playing outside either with other kids from the foster home or neighborhood delinquents. Anything that kept her away from the house and ‘parents’ she rotated every few months. Reading seemed pretty useless to her then. “ Hanging out… ” she commented, letting the word sit on her tongue for a while as she moved closer to the aisle entrance where she had a better view of her daughter. “ What does that entail? ”
"you're trying to tell me you've never had a twilight phase, bri? you're not team edward either? savannah replied, raising a brow of curiousity. she always had a liking for the more .... weird, eccentric side of reading and fanfiction. surely bri would understand and not judge too hard, right? "um, think they are called conventions or whatever? but no, can't say i've been," she let out a bit of an awkward laugh. "what happened between him and i?" she spoke in a bit of a lower voice now. "it's .... sorta hard to explain. we're better now though."
Bri laughed, shaking her head in response. “ No, I fear I was too consumed in The Story of O - Edward never made it to my dreams. ” Reading wasn’t something she focused much on, with most of her books coming from novels stolen from the local Goodwill and Savers. The twilight books were far too expensive for a girl with no home and by the time she could afford them, they held no interest to her. “ Could have sworn they went by something else. ” But perhaps she was thinking of the comic book ones. She shrugged and let the topic rest. “ Are you now? ” Bri asked, eyebrows finding purpose halfway to her hairline. That was news. “ Interested in indulging an old friend? ”
"guess i've always been more into the supernatural and fantasy stuff - vampires, werewolves, fairies, what not," savannah raddled off a few topics that she found herself gravitating towards when it came to steamy romances. "i wouldn't say i am consumed by it entirely. it's a big part of my life, yes, but i take pride in my work," she added on, eyes scanning the selves once more. pausing, she turned to look over at bri. "if you're referring to certain people, like dario, no. i haven't been hiding from him or anyone else."
She had to pause at that one. Turning to Savannah as if she had three heads instead of one. “ Vampires and fairies make you hot and bothered? ” had she spoken a different language? Bri could have sworn she asked for a kink. Unless… “ Please don’t tell me you go to those conventions where people dress up and play pretend? What are those called? ” Turning her attention to a book popping out of the shelf, Briadmnis picked it up and turned to read the back description. Bri shrugged and commented, “ Could have fooled me. ” a smirk not too far from her lips, “ What happened there? Since you brought him up, and what not. ”
"hmmm, perhps i do - but i might need some assistance with finding a trope i could vibe with. you seem like just the right person to choose for me," savannah remarked before she was being whisked away to the romance section by bri. being completly overwhelmed by the sheer selection, the blonde finds herself zoning out for a moment as she glances at everything. "i've been .... around. just trying to get through my second year of residency. you're working at addicted to the bean, right?"
“ You’re talking gibberish to me there, love. ” she said, wondering if she just meant the genre or a certain book. “ What are you into? – Beyond work and whatever other form of torture you like to endure. Tell me what kink makes your toes curl and mouth salivate. ” She almost offered some of her own likes, but figured scarring Savanna so soon after their reencounter was a bit much for the blonde. Briadmnis's eyebrows shut up with interest, and honestly she was more nosy than not, so she kept digging. “ Consumed by a hospital seems like not much of a life. ” was her response, ignoring the mention of her job as clearly Savannah already knew where she’d been. “ So what’ve you been hiding from? Or is it a whom? ”
It wasn't the first time Wilder had heard that, and she would be true. He didn't have a filter, nothing he said was ever thought about first, he just kinda let the words fall from his mouth without any care for how they would land. "Listen Bri, I don't have all the time in the world. Once my pants get here I gotta go back to work. What's going on? You are starting to worry me" While his words might not have felt it, his tone was soft and edging on the side of compassion. But he could tell she was putting whatever she had to say off. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? Is someone bothering you" He question what it could possibly be as he stood up and opened the medicine cabinate and pulled out a pack of gum. "You got anyone I can call to come get you?"
“ Right. ” she said, stomach hollow enough to disappear if she didn’t have so much at stake already, “ Of course. Yeah - right. You’re a busy man. I get that. ” She nodded her head, not acknowledging her words but amping herself up as well as she could. It was now or never. “ No, it’s um… a bit more complicated than that. ” Though she knew he waited, Bri didn’t know how to say the words. You got me pregnant - seemed much easier to think. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes as she wished to be anywhere but there. Wished she had been sufficient enough to get the help her daughter needed without having to come and beg him for aid. “ You asked me what I’d been up to since we last – ” she blanked, but forced herself to at least face him as she whispered the words, “ We have a daughter... and she's not doing too well. ”
" were they? " admittedly, she didn't keep up too much with the details. wasn't just the deaths enough? " i dunno, could be a coincidence, could not be. i guess we'll know if they do it again. " she takes a sip of her mocha as she takes only a second to think on the words. " mob? interesting. something tells me though if there is a mob, the cops are never gonna find the evidence. unless the mob is incompetent. " but that didn't seem very likely considering mafia organizations she heard is very, as the word implies, organized. " or the cops are involved. ooh, what a scandalous yet oh so obvious plot twist. " the caffeine was clearly helping her mouth go faster than her brain but that's what happens when you have more than one delicious mocha. they're addicting, way. too. addicting.
Bri nodded her head enthusiastically. She was pretty sure of it, though she hadn’t been in town in a while, that detail was a bit hard to miss. “ Do you really think that if there’s a mob in this town the police don’t already know about it? And if it’s anything like the movies– ” They probably worked for the family too. Whomever they were. Briadmnis didn’t really have trust for the legal system. For people who came from the places that she did, and those who struggled even more, the system was nothing more than a joke. Much like Dani had mentioned, they’d probably not find a single evidence even if they did come across something worthwhile. But like her, her friend seemed to also be tracking, “ Exactly what I’m thinking! Cause what else makes sense, really? ” Her words carried throughout the empty place, making her laugh. “ This is all just a fucking mess. Hopefully it’s over before more people get hurt. ” She shuttered at the thought of someone she knew ending up on the news next. “ You're staying safe though, yeah? ”
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