[sparkling-lux]

Jessica Chastain for Damiani (Renato Campora)

[apcthetics]

closed starter for BIANCA ( @cherrywcves ) location : 🌃

*˖ ⊹ ────────  "  shoot,  "  caleb  mutters  under  his  breath  as  the  cups  he's  been  stacking  on  the  unsteady  pop  up  table  start  to  wobble.  what  happens  next  feels  like  it's  in  slow  motion───  the  (  rather  large,  considering  he  had  been  standing  there  alone  for  a  while  building  it  )  tower  of  plastic  goes  toppling  over.  he  makes  an  effort  to  catch  them  but  it's  fruitless,  and  by  the  end  he's  left  standing  there  with  a  handful  of  cups  in  his  arms  and  the  rest  on  the  brick  around  his  feet.  perfect  timing  for  someone  to  walk  over,  he  thinks  bitterly  as  a  second  pair  of  shoes  appear  in  his  line  of  sight.  stiffly,  and  without  looking  up  from  the  ground,  caleb  holds  one  of  the  cups  out  towards  them.  "  i,  um,  i  meant  to  do  that.  "  

[cherrywcves]

｡*˚:✧｡ the timing is almost comical, she is talking back over her shoulder, puffing away on her vape pen as she goes to grab one of the cups that had not been incorporated into caleb's tower. that seems to be the perfect moment for plastic cups to tumble to the ground with a clatter. it's in her nature to help, hardwired into their being. "here, lemme give you a hand" she accepts the cup but she's already bending down to gather up the cups "you meant to do this? so should i just" she holds her hands up "like, just leave it? i'm sure we could get seba to pick it all up

[mel-graph]

Aslıhan Malbora 250X400 AVATARS ⸻ GALLERY (more avatars, short links) ⸻ Please like or reblog if you use. Thanks ♥

[apcthetics]

closed starter for ANDRE ( @cherrywcves ) location : 🌃

*˖ ⊹ ────────  "  ───...i  didn't  know  your  cousin  knew  carmen.  "  in  the  lull  of  silence  that  overcame  him  and  andre,  elijah  thought  he  felt  eyes  burrowing  into  the  back  of  his  head.  his  hand  darts  up  in  an  eager  wave  when  he  meets  carmen's  gaze,  unfazed  when  the  familiar  woman  across  the  warmly  lit  rooftop  turns  away  instead  of  acknowledging  his  hello.  his  fingers  drop  back  to  rest  against  the  cool  can  he's  holding,  but  he  turns  back  to clarify to  andre  with  a  triumphant  smile.  "  she's  the  one  in  my  art  forgeries  class  ? who's  obsessed  with  me ? "  

[cherrywcves]

｡*˚:✧｡ he's got warmer reactions from strangers on the street, and that was saying something, considering new yorkers have never been praised for their warmth or hospitality. but it seemed to do the trick for elijah—though he couldn't say much. his gaze settled on wren and carmen, eyebrows furrowing in his cousin's direction, almost as if silently asking, "what the hell was that about?" she had to have been just as confused. he took a sip from his drink, his gaze settling back on his friend. "that's the carmen from your class? oh, god help you, man. obsessed? oh yeah i could tell, she kept on looking over here"

[cherrywcves]

｡*˚:✧｡ "no, but seriously, how am I supposed to be looking at the stars when you're right there?" the smile on her face vanished in an instant as her gaze darted, catching a glimpse of someone familiar. no, it couldn't be. what would he be doing here? she quickly brushed it off, turning her attention back to their conversation with a forced nonchalance. "sorry, I thought I saw someone." she can't help but look back out on the crowd, who was that talking to andre? all she can see is the back of his head "who is that talking to your cou- no! what is he doing here?" (@apcthetics)

[cherrywcves]

[apcthetics]

closed starter for DILAN ( @cherrywcves ) location : shithead apartment baybee

*˖ ⊹ ────────  "  okay,  "  nestled  in  among  bags  of  groceries  that  haven't  yet  been  put  away,  kas  scribbles  something  along  the  bottom  of  the  paper  he's  hunched  over.  the  edges  of  the  scrap  paper  he  pulled  off  the  fridge  are  smeared  with  charcoal  fingerprints,  a  testament  to  the  casual  energy  of  the  sketch.  sitting  up  and  admiring  his  comedic  genius  for  a  second,  he  snatches  one  of  the  forks  poking  out  of  the  partially  mutilated  rotisserie  chicken  sitting  on  the  cold  kitchen  tiles  between  them,  holding  up  the  paper  for  dilan's  viewing  pleasure.

kas  didn't  really  expect  the  11pm  rotisserie  chicken  to  be  such  a  good  idea,  but  here  he  was,  peeling  away  a  piece  of  it  to  pop  into  his  mouth,  any  other  evening  plans  of  actually  getting  work  or  laundry  done  abandoned  for  what  dilan  called  '  girl  dinner.  '

"  what  do  you  think  ?  "  in  the  form  of  a  wanted  poster  he's  done  a  half-hearted  sketch  of  his  roommate,  mug-shot  style,  surrounded  by  a  border.  along  the  bottom  in  his  terrible  handwriting  reads  '  beware:  little  corn  shucking  freak.  '  clearly  pleased  with  his  work,  he  chews  triumphantly.

"  i  thought  we  could  put  it  up  on  the  front  door,  "  he  suggests,  raising  an  eyebrow,  "  you  know,  like  how  people  have  those  beware  of  dog  signs  on  their  fences  ?  let everybody know what they're getting into. "  

[cherrywcves]

bunched up white socks kicked back and forth gently through the air, chin sat in the palm of her hand. she is picking at a piece of the meat with her fork, not a thought thrown towards her roommate as he begins scribbling away on a piece of paper that had been pulled from the fridge. his spontaneous creativity was as predictable as the sunrise. dilan had grown accustomed to these impromptu bursts of artistic expression. putting it down to an artsy kid thing. yet, deep down, she knew it was more than a generality— it was simply a kasper thing. but dilan always found herself stood in front of the fridge looking over the ones stuck there while she drank from the carton of orange juice or had her bedtime treat of a pickle. she would even find herself adding the ones left lying around to the fridge to join the others.

she is in the middle of chewing, lost in her own world when kasper's voice had her drawn back to reality for her opinion. it was a rare moment—dilan, not the go-to person for artistic opinions, was being sought after for her viewpoint. she was already in the middle of throwing out a "looks good" before her eyes even land on the sketch. "wait.." once realization hit "she looks kind of hot and like she enjoys to shuck corn a normal amount" of course she is acting like she can't make out what the writing says. she is squinting at the words scrawled beneath the drawing of her "is that what it says?" she knew rightly, even in poor writing it read very clearly "beware: hot girl shucking corn" she's still squinting, nodding approvingly "i've always thought of myself as a muse. i think this is just going to make our neighbours love me even more"

[apcthetics]

closed  starter  for  GINA  (  @cherrywcves  ) location  :  gina's  kitchen,  morning  😈 time  skip  from  the  aura  thread  😌

*˖ ⊹ ────────  should  he  have  woken  her  up  ?

kal  can't  figure  out  of  it  was  rude  to  leave  gina  alone  in  her  room,  but  he  needed  to  keep  himself  busy.  as  much  as  he  wanted  to  stay  wrapped  under  the  warm  quilt,  the  feeling  of  gina's  hair  tickling  his  face,  watching  the  orange-tinted  sunlight  filter  through  the  windows  and  dance  across  her  sleeping  features,  his  thoughts  are  always  so  loud,  so  overbearing,  that  he  had  to  find  something  to  keep  himself  preoccupied.

his  fingers  dig  into  the  peel  of  the  orange  he's  holding,  pulling  it  apart  as  eggs  sizzle  in  a  frying  pan.  quietly,  he  mutters  to  himself  like  he's  working  on  a  problem  ;  like  he's  having  a  conversation  with  someone  who  isn't  there.  the  smell  of  fruit  overwhelms  the  kitchen,  and  it's  like  he's  stepped  back  inside  a  memory.  he  feels  like  he  transported  back  four  years,  before  everything  fell  apart,  before  he  fucked  everything  up.

he  didn't.  this  was  real  life, not another nightmare──  he  pinched  himself  when  he  woke  up,  just  to  be  sure.  what  if  it  was  a  mistake  ?  what  if  when  gina  woke  up  she  regretted  it  ?  of  course,  that  line  of  logic  doesn't  make  any  sense,  considering  it  was  gina  who  invited  him  upstairs, gina who was just as eager to pull him towards her room,  but  he  finds  it  difficult  to  quiet  the  personal  critic inside his mind,  no  matter  how  much  he  argues  with  them.

spinning  around,  he  moves  to  put  the  orange  on  the  plate,  and  startles  when  he  sees  the  form  of  her  standing  in  the  doorway.  instantly  his  eyes  widen,  guilty,  as  if  he'd  been  caught  doing  anything  but  making  her  breakfast  in  a  kitchen  where  he  still  remembered  what  was  in  every  drawer.

"  hi  !──  i  mean──  good  morning  ?  i  mean──  i'm  sorry  i  didn't  wake  you  up──  or  maybe  i  did  !  i  hope  i  wasn't  too  loud──  you  looked  so  peaceful  while  you  were  sleeping  i  didn't  want  to  disturb  you──  "

kal  fumbles  over  his  words,  stringing  them  together  into  anxious  sentences  that  don't  make  any  sense  until  finally  he  clamps  his  teeth  shut.  he  takes  a  deep  breath  and  sighs  it  out,  pinching  the  bridge  of  his  nose,  squeezing  his  eyes  shut.  "  can  we  start  that  over again  ?  "  when  he  speaks  again  it's  quieter,  and  kal  opens  his  eyes  to  let  them  sheepishly  meet  gina's.  he  ducks  his  head  down  in  embarrassment,  fidgeting  with  the  orange  peel.  "  i  had  a  plan  of  what  i  was  going  to  say  and  it  was  supposed  to  be  way,  um...  better  ?  than  whatever  that  was.  i swear. " 

[cherrywcves]

sound asleep, entering into this hazy dream-like state between sleep and awake as she reached out to the other side of the bed, just to be met with the emptiness she had grown far too used to. the way her stomach dropped, she was awake now and shooting up in the bed, sheet pulled up close to her chest as she looked around for any sign of him, proof that last night wasn't just some sort of dream she had been yearning for too long now. the rational part of her brain knew that kal was not the type, he would have never just spent the night like this and ran for the hills in the morning. he would never. but could she blame him for getting into his own head, she had been the one to initiate. he could have panicked.

she rubs away the sleep from her eyes, and the sheet is thrown aside as she slides from between them. bare feet make contact with the plush rug that her bed rested upon, she takes a moment to let the sun warm her skin through the window, arms stretching above her head. she reached down to pluck a sweater from the floor, pulling it over her head, the comforting weight of fabric falling over her frame. just then, the subtle symphony of movement emanated from the kitchen, accompanied by the aroma of something cooking. a renewed sense of hope surged within her as she followed the scent, arriving at the doorway where she finally found him.

"good morning" she breathed out with a smile. she is waving off his apologies for even the thought of waking her which only caused the smile on her face to grow even more "i was just wondering where you had gone. but here you are, you know, you're the guest i should be the one cooking you breakfast" crossing the floor toward him, she noticed his head ducked in embarrassment. unable to resist, she gently reached out, coaxing his chin back up with a tender touch "it's perfect, kal. you're here and you're making me breakfast. there's nothing better than that. how about i make you some tea, hmm? something to settle those nerves" she added, brushing a curl away from his face, having fallen when his head had bowed.

[apcthetics]

*˖ ⊹ ────────  it  wasn't  his  fault,  elijah  insisted  innocently.  carmen  started  it  ;  she  got  only  a  few  percentage  higher  than  him  on  their  first  quiz,  and  he  had  to  study  twice  as  hard  for  the  next  one,  and  the  one  after  that,  and  every  consecutive  one  that  carmen  beat  him  at.  it  has  nothing  to  do  with  wanting  her  attention.  it's  about  that  little  red  number  in  the  top  corner  of  the  page.

and  this  group  project  certainly  wasn't  about  getting  the  opportunity  to  hang  out  alone,  separate  from  their  overlapping  columbia  social  circles  or  the  rows  of  mindless  lecture-hall  desks.  it  was  strictly  business.  their  collective  grade  depended  on  it. he  couldn't  just  leave  her  to  her  own  devices. what if she messes it up for them both ? ( something elijah doesn't believe is really possible, but he can't relish control that easily. what if she gets bored ? )

all  the  theatrics  are  simply  just  for  his  own  amusement.  he  doesn't  even  care  if  she  laughs.

as  a  grin  widens  across  his  face,  elijah  clasps  his  hands  behind  his  back.  he  leans  forward  slightly,  leaning  into  the  toes  of  his  shoes.  "  i  love  it  when  you  say  nice  things  to  me,  "  he  sighs  dreamily,  "  i'm  blushing,  really.  keep  going.  "  he  gestures  between  them,  leaning  against  the  arm  of  his  chair  as  he  waits.

despite  her  protests,  he  continues,  "  seriously,  they've  got  the  best  turkey  club  in  the  whole  of  manhattan.  maybe  the  whole  city,  but  i  don't  want  to  discredit  that  one  place  right  on  the  corner  when  you  get  off  the  staten  island  ferry.  "  pulling  his  gloves  over  his  hands,  he  motions  for  carmen  to  go  ahead  of  him.  "  it's  not  my  fault  you're  not  human  and  run  off  the  blood  of  the  innocent  or  whatever.  i  have  a  foolproof  method  of  banging  out  these  projects  and  the  first  step  involves  food.  real  food.  " 

[cherrywcves]

as her frustration grew, paired with the attention they were attracting from a nearby table, her gaze settled on the neighbouring table. perhaps it was frustration misdirected onto the wrong person, but she wasn't all that appreciative of the looks they were sending their way. "maybe you should try focusing a little harder, we're whispering." as she moved past elijah, there was no time to waste. without hesitation, she grabbed a fistful of his shirt, silently urging him to follow as she navigated through the labyrinth of bookshelves and tables scattered throughout. the hushed hum of students engrossed in their work surrounded them, a stark reminder of the productive atmosphere they should have been partaking in.

there was nothing wrong with a turkey club, it's probably what she would have ordered had elijah not suggested it. yes, she was feeling a little petty for no good reason at all. "well, i wanted a chopped cheese. it's superior to the turkey club." was it ever that deep? mo, of course, it wasn't, but there was something about elijah that always brought out stubbornness in her like no other. she couldn't help but wonder how students nearby would react, puzzled looks on their faces, as they watched one student drag another through the library by his shirt, both seemingly engrossed in a debate about sandwiches.

"nice one. seems hunger makes you really whiny. i've got my own method – it involves sitting down and doing the work." she felt the pangs of hunger too, but carmen wasn't about to reveal that to elijah. skipping breakfast most days, she simply valued the extra time in bed.

[masongooning]

MASON GOODING via Youtube Live

[malboraslihan]

ASLIHAN MALBORA in #darmaduman | 9. BOLUM    

[tay-swifts]

JENNA ORTEGA Vanity Fair’s 2024 Hollywood Issue Unites 11 Spectacular Stars (Feb 21, 2024)

[the-diamond-collection]

Jenna Ortega

[wcitingroom]

status / open location / a cafe somewhere !

               "   i   can't   believe   it's   still   here.   "   her   voice   was   soft   as   she   peered   up   at   her   first   act   of   vandalism:   a   mural   splattered   in   tints   of   reds,   pinks,   and   yellows   circling   an   abstract   design   of   a   brain.   dramatic   as   it   was,   it   was   how   she   felt   at   the   time   of   her   diagnosis.   like   her   body   was   betraying   her.   it   still   was,   but   there   wasn't   a   sadness   in   her   when   she   looked   at   it.   the   girl   she   was   when   she   drew   that   wasn't   the   girl   she   was   now.   even   though   there   were   parts   of   her   eren   missed,   she   didn't   miss   the   anger.   "   could   definitely   use   more   than   a   little   practice   on   my   line   work,   no   ?   "   she   asked   with   a   soft   laugh.   "   i   think   i   was   trying   real   hard   to   be   edgy,   like   bad   art   can   be   good.   aren't   we   glad   i   grew   out   of   that   ?   "   

[cherrywcves]

"it's you though, isn't it?" her arm is linked through the other woman's, giving it a gentle squeeze as her gaze moves to take in her friend's work. "and we all have to start somewhere, but i still think it's beautiful, and every time i pass it i'll be reminded of you" her roots as a teacher subtly shine through; to her, there's no such thing as bad art, just different perspectives waiting to be discovered. she stood for another moment in silence, really taking it all in. in this moment, honey is immersed in the artistic language, unaware of the personal journey hidden within the canvas. the swirling colours and abstract patterns evoke a range of emotions within her, each stroke seeming to tell a unique story. little does she know that the mural mirrors the internal struggles her friend is facing, a silent expression of a battle unknown. a thoughtful pause lingered before honey broke the quiet, suggesting, "how about we take our drinks on our own little tour of your work?"

[cherrywcves]

[apcthetics]

*˖ ⊹ ────────  he  takes  great  satisfaction  in  catching  her  off  guard,  stretching  his  arms  over  his  head  with  a  smug  expression.

when his hands fall back into his lap, he  pretends  as  though  he's  seriously  considering  her  question.  "  proportionally  my  head  is  the  exact  size  it's  supposed  to  be.  "  he's  purposefully  missing  the  point  of  her  question,  as if he's trying to annoy her. "  if  it  was  any  bigger  or  smaller  i'd  look  goofy  as  shit.  which  i  don't.  i  just  look  handsome.  "

with  all  of  his  books  haphazardly  shoved  into  his  bag,  elijah  jumps  to  his  feet  and  slings  the  strap  over  his  shoulder.  he's  impatient  for  her  to  pack  up  and  shifts  his  weight  leg  to  leg.  elijah  can  feel  the  burning  gaze  of  that  lingering  student,  but  he  doesn't  pay  it  much  mind.  why  should  he  ?  they're  leaving.  besides,  if  they  didn't  want  to  hear  the  hushed  argument  taking  place  between  him  and  his  reluctant  school  partner ( rightfully so, not that elijah could see that ),  maybe  they  should  just  move.

elijah  scoffs.  "  your  grade  suffering  because  of  me  ?  "  he  decries  quietly,  muttering  under  his  breath,  "  more  like  your  grade  will  suffer  because  you  won't  admit  that  my  ideas  are,  in  fact,  genius.  these  sandwiches  will  change  your  life,  hernandez,  i  swear  it  on  my  madre,  "  elijah  brings  his  hand  up  to  touch  his  chest  in  earnest,  though  he  continues  to  fidget  as  he  waits  for  her.  "  and  then  you'll  be  saying,  oh  elijah,  "  he  pretends  to  swoon,  "  you  really  are  so  smart  and  so  wonderful.  why  haven't  i  seen  it  until  now  ?  " 

[cherrywcves]

carmen was a talker, which hasn't always been the case. when she was a baby, nearing that milestone when she should have been talking there still hadn't been a peep. it worried everyone around her that something could be wrong, her abuela would fuss over her only to be met by her grandfather's reassurance "mi amor, deja de preocuparte. una vez que comienza, nunca parará." small utterances grew into sentences, and the once silent observer became the lively storyteller of the family. but, elijah could have given her a run for her money, now what was someone who knew how to talk. carmen would argue that at least what she had to speak about held substance. which others would argue was not the case most of the time at least.

a blank stare as he rambled on about the size of his head and how handsome he was. which had her turning her nose up at him. there was at least truth behind it, he was handsome. but that truth was a whole lot easier to bury under the annoyance that the two inflicted on one another. he had this sort of boyish charm that managed to catch her off guard from time to time, a cheeky smile offered to her at the most inconvenient of times. "a lot of words to just say you look goofy, maybe we could save both of our precious time next time and just skip that whole monologue"

"i really am just so smart and wonderful. i don't know how you haven't seen it until now either, i'd blame it on your lack of observational skills and a number of other things but i don't have the time" selective hearing, or perhaps, a weaponized form of it. either way it was childish "just stop talking, it's bad enough that you're interrupting me. not everyone has to be bothered with your yapping."

[apcthetics]

*˖ ⊹ ────────  the  sound  of  joshua  fiddling  with  the  steamer  basket  and  babbling  about  scooby  doo  is  background  noise  ;  kas  is  used  to  his  neurosis,  how  he  can  never  sit  still.  there  are  very  obvious  genetic  comparisons  that  can  be  made  between  joshua  and  jason.  brothers,  kas  supposes.  he's  never  had  one,  and  he's  nothing  like  his  sisters,  but  on  a  baseline  level  he  understands  that's  how  it's  supposed  to  work.  whatever  is  wrong  with  joshua  is  probably  wrong  with  jason  too,  and  whatever  is  wrong  with  them  is  probably  also  wrong  with  their  father, though  kas  has  never  met  him.

dilan,  though  ?  he  couldn't  tell  you  what  her  excuse  was for being so strange ( it's likely that neither of them could explain his odd behaviours either, though kas would claim he was the most normal member of society of the three of them. then he'd make some excuse about being an artist. )

he  makes  a  face  as  she  grabs  the  pasta  away,  showing  it  off  with  the  cat,  as  if  these  were  somehow  connected  events.  "  if  you  left  your  door  unlocked  and  jason  got  into  your  shit,  that's  on  you.  "  he  declares,  hands  coming  up  in  surrender  and  shoulders  moving  towards  his  ears  in  a  casual  shrug.  "  i  didn't  have  anything  to  do  with  it.  "

it's  a  lie,  since  he  definitely  knew  jason  had  the  little  trinket.  but,  expectedly,  he  wasn't  about  to  defend  dilan  against  his  real  best  friend.  reaching  out,  kas  snatches  the  bowl  of  takeout  pasta  away  from  her.  "  i  was  being  polite  to  our  guests,  "  he  insists and gestures towards the table where joshua sits,  though  his  claim  is  immediately  disproved  when  he  turns  to  their friend, not at all being the ' polite ' host he was claiming to be.

"  most  people,  actually.  i  think  the  question  you  should  be  asking  is  :  "  kas  opens  the  fridge  door  and  tosses  the  pasta  he  isn't  allowed  to  have  and  joshua  is  against  back  into  the  fridge.  "  who  has  beef  with  different  pasta  shapes  ?  they're  the  same  thing, dude.  also──  the  bowtie  ones  are  the  worst  ones.  "  / @cherrywcves

[cherrywcves]

her attention is drawn towards joshua "he is not my boyf-" pasta was snapped away from her grasp, fist clenched tightly around the trinket, in fear that was next on his agenda with his grabby hands. to her it wasn't much to ask that her things remained untouched, that she could come home and her pasta would still be sitting in the fridge or a doll head stayed where it was meant to be on the wall. dilan is a hypocrite though. "i don't even want it anyway, i poisoned it. i knew this was going to happen" responded callously "enjoy the poison, i guess" her frustration seeping through her words.

she had been that little weird girl in her neighbourhood, the one that combined leaves and sticks together in dirty puddle water. she still felt like that girl sometimes, the girl who brought home bugs and little creatures to care for. she was taller now, she found herself angrier at the world for the things it had taken from her—a collection of scars and missed opportunities. simultaneously, she harbored anger at herself for the losses she felt responsible for, a silent battle that played out in the recesses of her mind.

arms flexing under her weight, she pushed herself up to sit on the countertop. the cool surface provided a momentary respite, and the back of her head came to rest against the door of the press. eyes rolled up towards the ceiling as the two continued to speak. being polite to their guests is mentioned, which has her eyebrows furrowing "well don't" she interjected, pulling one leg in towards her chest, the heel of her foot coming to rest against the edge of the counter "and my jar of pickles in the fridge is off limits too, so don't even think about it" eyes squint in joshua's direction "they're like the best shapes. freaks. spaghetti is the worst"

@bcnztruck