Watch What Happens

Edwin Cooper, 24 year-old journalist stuck as the Editor-in-Chief of Coeur d'Coeur Courier and existing almost entirely on coffee. I live for stories.

[shadesofryanibbotsons-blog]

Oh, it’s almost April already? 

…I hate April Fools. 

[edwin-cooper]

I sense an interesting backstory here.

[justsamanthadavis-deactivated20]

"Stephen King.. is he a little too dark for my taste?" 

[justsamanthadavis-deactivated20]

[edwin-cooper]

Depends. Are you one for really creepy stories and well-written psychotic characters that do scary things like hobble their favorite author or light their prom on fire?

[robin-simmonss]

[edwin-cooper]

...Are you okay? Is there anything I can do to help you not look so terrifyingly angry?

[elliecassidy-blog]

Yep, that’s me. Now, you could either have met me in a very mundane fashion or I could have defaced private property somehow, so if it’s the latter, please accept my sincerest apologies.

[edwin-cooper]

Hey, we all do stupid things. For example, when I was in high school and of dubious sobriety I tried to climb the gate outside the White House and nearly got shot down by the Secret Service.

I'm Edwin Cooper, by the way. Editor-in-Chief of this town's newspaper and severely underpaid. It's tragic.

[shadesofryanibbotsons-blog]

The most important? Mum, is that you?

I, um, don’t go out much. The months sometimes blur past for me, I haven’t noticed. It’s March?!

[edwin-cooper]

Yes, it's me, sweetie, visiting you in the body of a twenty-four-year-old underpaid journalist purely to tell you absurdly motivational things!

Okay, my friend, it's time for you to invest in a calendar and pencil me in for at least two Saturday nights a month, because sunlight is good for the skin and people are good for the soul. Also I don't like watching scary movies alone and I have a backlog of ones I need to watch.

[fjcjessica]

That is kind of creepy though, I’d still be having a break in, but I guess it’s okay if he actually says that it’s beautiful in there; because it looks like a mess.

Shit, if my Nutella is gone; I swear to God world war III is coming, and that’s not even a joke.

[edwin-cooper]

Isn't messy really in right now, though? I mean, I don't even comb my hair any more and I get compliments on it, so maybe that applies to interior decorating as well.

Ah! Take mine, then! Please! For the sake of all humanity! 

[justsamanthadavis-deactivated20]

After what seemed like a terrible start to the morning, Olivia found herself in the presence of someone who could make her laugh when such a morning seemed disastrous. It was refreshing for her, especially considering  she had absolutely nothing on her feet, and a pair of broken heels in her hand. “Well, I either hire a personal assistant to carry that for me, so they end up with the back problems, and not me,” She glanced up at Edwin with a teasing smile, “Or, I just have a spare set of heels in my car, which unfortunately I don’t have right now.” Opening the car door, she pulled out a pair of flip flops that she eventually slipped on her feet, and placed the broken heels inside the car. Better than nothing. Closing the door, she returned her attention back to the towering guy standing before her. She raised her gaze to his forehead, her features feigning a sympathetic look. “You poor thing, now that would really suck. That, or maybe it’s just that the doorways in Coeur d’Coeurs are too low.” She nudged his side with a smile. “You’re a journalist? Now that is an interesting life you have, sir.” Laughter filled the air as it escaped her lips, smiling up at him with amused blue hues. “I think I can handle it. I mean, at least rom-coms always have a happy ending, right?” 

[edwin-cooper]

"Mm... I'm not sure having a person assistant just to carry around an extra pair of shoes is the most economically sound option, but, hey, what do I know? I've never had a broken shoe crisis before." Edwin shrugged and laughed teasingly, patiently waiting for Olivia to dig out replacement footwear from her car. It wasn't unusual for him to suddenly find himself unsure as to whether or not he was flirting or if he was just being friendly - or both - but since moving to Coeur d'Coeurs such incidents had become far and few between, a fact he chalked up to the significantly larger quantity of gossipy senior citizens residing here than any of the other places he'd lived. Still, though, it was nice to know the charismatic, personable part of him hadn't completely withered away during his college years. "Actually, I'm pretty sure it is just Coeur d'Coeurs, because the average door height is three inches taller than me." Edwin snorted and nudged her back, opening the door to the café as he did so. "Yeah, interesting is definitely what I would use to describe being editor-in-chief of Coeur d'Coeur's newspaper. Sometimes, on particularly wild weeks, we have to use two columns for the police blotter." He laughed along with her, glad at least one of them found his dead-end journalism career funny. "I wouldn't know, because I definitely don't watch them on Sunday nights alone with a carton of ice cream and cry at the endings. I am a strong, masculine man who watches football and participates in other manly pursuits, like reviewing flower shows and actively avoiding the only strip club in town." Edwin grinned and waved her into the coffee shop, meeting her smiling blue eyes as he did so. "Okay, tell me your order and then go find us a table, because I despise drinking coffee standing and tables promote conversation."

[shadesofryanibbotsons-blog]

Because if anyone has power over one individual, it would always be our mothers. But how dare that groundhog let anyone down. You’re important enough, I’m… sorta important enough. Everyone is.

Oh, yeah, it’s still been pretty chilly lately. Haven’t noticed that much.

[edwin-cooper]

You literally just managed to be inspirational, self-deprecating, indignant, and speak a universal truth in about thirty seconds - I'd say that makes you the most important person to ever exist.

You haven't noticed the below freezing temperatures in March? Are you part penguin or something?

[angelinesinger-blog]

Maybe? My childhood was spent with styling my barbies and watching Disney movies. None of that… stuff.

You know, maybe being so jealous of a famous groundhog is what keeps you from being more famous than him.

[edwin-cooper]

Hmph. That sounds boring. Except Disney movies; Disney movies are fun. What was your favorite?

Whoa, are you a psychologist or something? Because that was really deep and profound and I want to sign a confidentiality clause before it gets out that I may be the tiniest bit jealous of a glorified rodent.

[fjcjessica]

I do really hope that it was one of those shows, instead of a real break in.

That’s not like completely true     You can report it all the time, but there’s a higher possibilty that they’ll catch the ones that did it if it’s reported within 48 hours than more. But you’re right though, I should check it out, yeah.

[edwin-cooper]

Well, there's only one way to tell: go into your bedroom and see if a man in a sweater vest pops out right before you start crying at how beautiful it looks.

Ah, well, I tried. Kind of. But get on that! Make sure you have all the essentials - valuable stuff, socks, and the secret Nutella stash everyone has but no one talks about.

[justsamanthadavis-deactivated20]

You know, after this incident I will be. Yes, that’s right! Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. I need to remember that. 

Damn, that’s a shame. I mean, not that you need heels or anything — you have height, something I’m lacking and extremely jealous of! [She contemplates his offer for a moment, glancing down at her watch. She then looks back up at him with a bright smile.] Well, I do have an hour until work starts, so I’m in. Can’t be more of a disaster than this situation, right? [She grins.]

[edwin-cooper]

No, no, I was joking! Carrying around a pair of shoes with you is a terrible idea; shoes are big and gross and kinda weird to just have with you at all times unless you're wearing them. Unless you want to, I guess, in which case go for it but don't blame me for any back problems you may have later in life.

Eh, don't be too jealous about it - my forehead and the top of the doorframe are really, really good friends in the worst possible way. [He winces and rubs his forehead before smiling back.] I wouldn't be too sure... I'm an extremely attractive journalist, which makes me sound like a quirky heart-breaker in a rom-com. And weird shit goes down when people live in a rom-com. [He laughs.]

[violet-pratt]

[A deadpan expression and a tip of her mouth into a witty smile.] Call Phil.

[edwin-cooper]

I tried that; his PR department said they had no comment available. Maybe you have his cell?

[virginiawaters-blog]

They’re only little fires. Like end-of-school-year bonfires that sort of overflow, or dropping a firecracker by mistake. 

[edwin-cooper]

You drop firecrackers by mistake? I've genuinely never been more terrified of a single person.

Actually, that's a lie; the elderly in this town are ruthless. But my point still stands.

[elliecassidy-blog]

Sustained. Though, I gotta say I prefer a worn book over a newspaper.

[edwin-cooper]

Ah, well, we can't all love the same kind of paper.

You're Max, right? I feel like we met earlier this year, for some reason.

[virginiawaters-blog]

Of course not!

Well…. not me, personally. Most of the time. It just sort of happens sometimes, y’know?

[edwin-cooper]

No, I don't know.

How do fires just happen? Are you some sort of arsonist? Because boy, you're talking to the wrong man if you are.

[virginiawaters-blog]

My default answer would be the fire department, but I’m really not sure how they could help you.

[edwin-cooper]

I, ah...

Why is your default answer the fire department? Do you set a lot of things on fire?

[fjcjessica]

It’s both interesting and enjoyable. I like it, honestly they did me a favor     Decorating my place all at once.

I haven’t really checked, still in that little shock zone.

[edwin-cooper]

You're sure it wasn't just one of those twenty-four-hour renovation shows, then?

You probably should check, then - the police really only can do something about it if you report a theft within a day of it happening.