Hiding in bliss

I've got nowhere to go, I'm a stray cat on the roam, choking on a chicken bone, or a home sweet, no sweet home

[hidinginbliss]

flynnt‌:

“I don’t know.” Tommy replied honestly, unable to come up with a witty response or even a white lie on the spot. Frankly it had been pure instinct that had made him get out his phone, but he was still adamant that somehow the footage would be useful and he wouldn’t delete it, even if Magdalena did have an incredible ability to make him feel bad. Her next comment had him raising his brows, observing the way that Magda spoke far more of her thoughts with her body language than with her words. “Yeah, dude’s having a hard time.” He mumbled, unsure of how he could approach giving her some sort of comfort. Most people would be mildly entertained if he turned around and did something stupid, but he got the feeling that that wouldn’t work with Magdalena. “Are… you having a hard time?”

Magdalena just looked at the guy, trying to make out if he was saying the truth or not. Why would anyone just film something like this as a reaction? It seemed to her that this was the same as filming a car accident, or someone getting beat up. His reaction to her getting upset told her that he hadn’t meant anything by it - and she knew she was freaking out about this just a little too much. The brunette crossed her arms before her chest. Suddenly, she didn’t want to look at him anymore. She was chewing her lip as she asked her, surprised. “Why are you asking me this?” She finally looked up, shrugging off the haunting feeling and managing a smile. “I’m sorry. For coming at you like that, I mean. I’m sure you only meant well.”

[hidinginbliss]

ofdollparts‌:

With the dogs sniffing at Magda’s shoes and ankles, Henley can relax a little. She watches their tails waggle wildly, then draws her gaze up to return the other’s smile. “No, they belong to Mr. and Mrs. Talley, if you know them?” Why would she? Henley’s spine quivers around a cringe. “I work for them.” As if that’s clarification enough.

“Oh, that’s cool! Are you a dog walker, then?”

Magdalena thought for a moment, that name did ring a bell. “I think I do know them, from church?” She asked, a smile on her lips that begged to be told she was right. “This is a small town, I am always surprised when I see someone I have not met before.” She stepped forward a little, careful not to get in the way of the dogs, and extended her hand with the warmest expression. “I’m Magdalena, by the way.”

The brunette chuckled at the thought. “I wish I was one! That would be so much fun. No, I am actually a caregiver.”

[hidinginbliss]

starcrossedjude‌:

He’s a little taken aback by her laughing, Jude isn’t the type who likes being laughed at. He doesn’t take it to heart when he hears her friendly tone. He figures it’s best to be compliant than to come across as impolite. He returns her smile with a sheepish one of his own, he’s hesitant, of course, but he doesn’t want show this. 

“Oh, it isn’t? I guess I just haven’t quite gotten the lay of the land here.” He begins walking with her when she waves her hand. “Thanks for the help.”

“Oh, please don’t think I laughed at you. I didn’t mean to!” Her eyes widened when she came to the conclusion that he must have felt offended by her laugh. “I just have never been asked for directions in this place, you know? I think everybody knows it better than me.”

She decided not to give walking him there another thought, as it was natural to her. Instead, as she started walking towards their destination, Magdalena took another look at him. “Are you new in town? Sometimes it’s easy to think that you know everyone around here.”

[hidinginbliss]

The way her steps echoed in the empty church already did enough to calm Magdalena to a certain extent, as she felt a sense of home here. Wade’s church was a little like the one she used to frequent in Venezuela - it was rather small, intimate. Church-goers knew each other here, and they knew the people who preached. She felt a certain warmth embrace her as she stepped in, knowing this place was free of sin and promoted the good. It was the closest thing she had to home now, so she took refuge there, surprised no one else had come here yet to process the supposed-to-be funeral. Evil was closing in on them, Magdalena could feel it. It gripped her and squeezed her throat until she had trouble breathing, and it got worse and worse with every day that they followed the events surrounding Josie Johnson. She’d heard people seculating, trying to explain this one ‘logical’ way or another, but today she’d seen even the most sceptical faces change, questioning the things fed to them all along. It sunk in that this wasn’t natural. These were the works of an entity they had no control over.

Magdalena sat at the end of a middle row, bowed her head and folded her hands before erupting in a series of hushed, spanish prayers, drowning out her surroundings. If someone else entered the church, she didn’t hear it.

@reveritus​

[lucy-bradford]

[hidinginbliss]

starcrossedjude‌:

Well, Jude’s lost. There’s no denying it. Even in a small town, he managed to get himself to a part of the town he’s not yet familiar with. He had decided that on his day off he would walk to the grocery store rather than drive there. Better decision have been made.

The streets have gotten to a point where they all blend together. He can barely identify landmarks and he’s never had the best sense of directions. He’s been walking for about 40 minutes when he decides it’s time to set aside his pride. It’s time to find someone who knows their way around this time. 

“Um, excuse me?” The question is hesitant, as if he’s not sure about asking the question. “I’m sorry, I seem to be a little bit lost. Can you point me in the direction of Walker’s Family Market?”

Magdalena had never been asked for directions in Wade before. She thought that everyone who lived here, even if they’d just moved here, which seldom happened, just knew the town like the back of her hand, it was so small. That’s why she laughed when the stranger asked her, a friendly laugh that escaped her lips to show she was surprised. This was refreshing and better yet, it  gave her something to do. “You are lost?” She smiled warmly, to show him he wasn’t on his own anymore. “It’s actually not far from here. You have almost found your way.”

Gesturing in a direction, she waved her hand and started walking. “Come on, I’ll take you. If you don’t mind?”

[hidinginbliss]

ofdollparts‌:

A girl with the largest eyes Henley thinks she’s ever seen appears as though out of nowhere. She guides the pups easily and, just like that, Henley’s free. It gives her the liberty to wipe her beading forehead with the back of her hand, a relieved breath fluttering free. “Thank you,” she sighs, the words tumbling out of her through an embarrassed laugh.

“Oh, definitely. They’re sweethearts, but they’re… definitely eager explorers.”

Magdalena made a gesture that told the girl to forget about it. She got to pet a dog - that was thanks enough for her. She laughed, excitedly, and gave the puppy’s head a few more gentle pats. “Are they yours?” Her smile was audible in her voice as she looked up to the supposed owner. “I’m lucky my employer’s dogs are very old. They don’t explore as much anymore. Very easy to walk them.”

She straightened and ran her hands over her sunflower-yellow skirt to smooth it. It was hard, admittedly, to take her eyes off the fluff roaming around their feet.

[hidinginbliss]

sxlomon‌:

STATUS: OPEN

If anything was going to drag Wade to the Spring Celebration, it was going to be the free food. There’s already been a bunch of PTA-looking moms giving him looks when he was eating a three meals worth of food in one sitting (in that moment, he wished he had a goddamn tupperware box so he could look them straight in the eye while shoving potato salad into a box to take with him. They’d call it stealing from the community, Wade would call it being resourceful). When another church lady shoots him a side-eye, he heads outside for a smoke.

He stays out for a while, mostly on the look-out for anyone he knows that he could chat up (who is he trying to fool, few minutes more and he’d be all over the strangers, too), but when he sees Red walking into the building, Wade knows it’s gonna get interesting.

He follows the man and watches the scene half-inside, half-outside the hall. It’s chilling to watch, even for someone who’s not from around here. Wade makes sure to get well out of the way when Red leaves after his kind little gesture and only comes back inside when the clean-up is almost done and people have mostly gone back to talking and mingling. “Now, that was something,” he turns to the person next to him. “I mean, I’ve never been to shit like this ever and this is what I get to see the first time around? Wild.”

Magdalena was surprised to see Wade’s familiar face at an event like this. Usually, with neighborhood or church organized events, he didn’t often show up, yet she always kept an eye out for him. Magdalena didn’t know many people well in Wade, and he was someone she’d spent significantly more time with than most others. While things like these were usually - admittedly - boring, he’d picked just the time to pop in. 

Magdalena stood in a corner and nursed her glass of lemonade one of the church ladies hat whipped up, and thought about when was the appropriate time to leave. The thought of a book on the porch, where it was safe, was very tempting right now. “It really was something.” She muttered, “Something is going on in this town. Wade.” She turned to the man, and the sight of him spread a bright smile on her lips and she placed the hand that wasn’t holding her drink on his forearm. “I’m still glad you came. It’s sad you did not get to taste the pie I made before it was” She gestured over to the has-been dessert table, “you know. On the floor.”

[hidinginbliss]

flynnt‌:

The woman’s accent captured Tommy’s attention, though it was more the tone that he was focused on. Yeah he’d recorded it, was she mad about it? Her next words and the flustered manner in which she struggled to get them out told him that yes, she was, and now he was going to have to diffuse it. Tommy liked to push people’s buttons, but actually upsetting someone was far down on the list of ‘things he considered fun’. “Yo, I don’t know what a disfrute is but it doesn’t sound good. I wasn’t being a total asshole,” Tommy looked at his phone and then back to her. “I’m trying to figure out what happened to his wife, man. What if this is the start of something happening to him too?” It was unusual for Tommy to feel backed into a corner, but Magdalena seemed to have achieved it quite well.

Magdalena still frowned, which was very out of character for her. Maybe she let this whole thing get to her a little too much. Yet when he told her he was trying to figure out what happened, her gaze dropped to the floor, back to him, “So what do you mean to do with that video, then? How is it going to help you?”, back to the floor. She searched for something between the tiles of the floor, examining the lines carefully. “It has already happened to him.” She said quietly. Maybe she shouldn't have. Magdalena was sure there was something going on here that she desperately wanted to get away from. This town was some kind of cursed, abandoned by God a long time ago. And Red was deep in that whirl.

[hidinginbliss]

@invisiblemaddie​

Magda was as fond of the middle aged women thinking they ruled this small town, as the next person, but she placed her carefully handcrafted strawberry-rhubarb pie between the other desserts and went to stand somewhere in a corner with her glass of lemonade - she nursed that through the afternoon, yet after Red had showed up she kind of went into herself and started silently praying for the old man, thinking maybe, maybe the Lord would finally have mercy. Finally, she began frowning when she could watch her pie fly through the air to meet the ground.

Of course, Magdalena rushed over to busy her hands with cleaning it up right away, mainly so she didn’t have to watch the rest of the guests gossip about poor old Red. “Este hombre vio al diablo.” She muttered under her breath as she wiped a few smeared strawberries off the floow. It was horrible how they glossed over it, trying to make the party come to life again, with the band playing something quick as if they expected people to get up and dance to forget what happened here just a few moments ago. “These people know no decency.”

[hidinginbliss]

Magdalena was a small person, so her carrying anything was a sight to see. Her inability to buy a car (in this country) wasn’t helping either. So, she made due, balancing the two large shopping bags on the back and front baskets on her baby blue bike and pushed it alongside her from the grocery store to Rosalyn’s house. She didn’t need to make any more money than she did caring for Mr Griffiths, but when she heard Dr White needed some help getting stuff done for her, she’d decided to be a good samaritan and use her free time to help out.

Struggling to balance the bags, she looked like a kid carrying an oversized toy, the way she wrapped her arms around the paper. She tried not to look at the lawn while she hurried over to the front door and knocked, using the heel of her foot.

@rozwhite​

[hidinginbliss]

danieldepalma‌:

Daniel matched Magdalena’s smile, giving her an affirming nod. “You remembered, too. We’re even,” he teased. He chuckled, waving a hand in the air as if to say ‘no big deal.’ “I doubt the owner would’ve minded too much.”

He smiled again; he was right, it seemed like Magdalena was always happy. It as refreshing, especially in a town where everything else seemed to be going to shit, for lack of a better word. “Well, that’s very kind of you.” He placed his bags in the basket, grateful to be done balancing them. 

“To be honest, I don’t know. It’s usually only me, sometimes my sister, at dinner. I’m trying to learn how to cook so I feel like I’m winging it.” He shrugged, laughing at his predicament once again. “The sad part is: most of the time I have to order takeout anyways, because I mess something up.”

If she was honest, she felt like it was pretty easy to forget her name - so she gave him credit where it was due, but she didn’t say that to him. She was quiet, didn’t stand out, and there was little reason to remember her at all, but she didn’t mind that. After all, the less people remembered her, the better. Magdalena directed her smile towards the ground.

“Don’t mention it!” She pushed back the kickstand of her bike and cocked her head at him cheerfully. “Lead the way!"

“But cooking is all about winging it, don’t you think?” Magdalena couldn’t help but laugh at his expression; she wasn’t laughing at him, but the way he described it made her picture him accepting pizza at the door when his apartment was smelling of something burnt. “I’m sure you’re too hard on yourself. What do you like to cook?”

[hidinginbliss]

ofdollparts‌:

( @hidinginbliss )

date: april 9th time: 03:05 pm location: Wade recreation centre status: closed

There has to be a better way of handling three dogs at once. Especially three restless, yappy little things, with hyperactive noses that yank them this way and that. It’s the fifth time Henley’s legs have fallen prey to a mess of tangled leads and sniffing pups, all eagerly pulling in different directions.

“Sausage, heel, please– Bug!” The little Norfolk Terrier has fixated on an oddly shaped leaf, one that Henley assumes must smell of the most enticing pee ever, what with how Bug’s practically choking himself on his leash. 

She tries lifting a leg, but that only threatens to hoist Ruthie up with it. She’s somehow gotten the most tangled out of all of them. “Okay,” Henley says to herself, thumb at her temple, fingers rubbing back and forth over her forehead. “Okay, so… if I pull through here…”

Magdalena spotted the struggling girl from far away and had already begun walking faster before she knew it, coming to her aid as fast as she could. She laughed warmly as she offered, “Here, let me help you”, knelt down and nudged the Terrier softly into a direction that enabled her to help its owner to step over one of the tagled leads.

She knew how much of a challenge it could be, to handle multiple dogs at once, especially somewhere that smelled as good to dogs as a park. “You have some wild ones here, don’t you?”

[hidinginbliss]

wnderkinds‌:

DRIFTERS / tyler & magdalene @hidinginbliss

          “Maybe I should get a dog. Or a cat.” He flips through the catalogue of the local animal shelter, sipping at the styrofoam cup containing mediocre coffee. The DJ has been blasting 80s rock ‘n roll for the past thirty minutes or so, as if the loud guitar solos would somehow distract everyone from focusing on the earlier incident. It’s not working, judging from all the wary looks and rattled whispers being exchanged around the hall.

          “Aw, look at this guy,” he coos at the picture of a two-year-old cat, Quentin, green-eyed with black fur, then holds it up for the woman next to him to see. “You got any pets?”

Magdalena kind of clung to her glass of lemonade, glad that someone distracted her from the awkwardness of this event and the activity of looking at the rest of her so carefully hand-craftet pie on the floor. Eagerly, she looked over at the catalogue and started smiling right away. “A dog, definitely a dog.”

If she was honest though, it didn’t matter what kind of animal it was, as long as it was soft and fluffy. “Quentin.” She read. “Yes!” Excited, she turned to him and started gesturing with her hands. “Well, they are not my pets. My employers breed corgis. And I get to take care of them!”

[hidinginbliss]

elijahsmalls‌:

Date: April 12th, 2020 Time: 12:23pm Location: Wade United Methodist Church for @hidinginbliss​

Elijah never was a fan of getting up early. He always stayed up too late, and slept through this alarms. But when his mom comes to nudge him awake for Sunday morning church service, it’s never something he groans he about. Believe it or not, Elijah actually likes church. There is something about the snacks that are always out on the tables after the service and the songs that they sing that are kind of good that makes him not hate waking up for it every Sunday morning.

That, and seeing his mother interact with her friends just makes him so…happy. She didn’t get out much, or ever, really. So being able to see her chatting with her friends, even though they are probably gossiping about him, actually made him feel good. Her weeks spent in bed and her inherent depression (though she would never call it that, no) seemed like it was all worth it for the half hour that she gets to spend with them after service.

He glances over, but keeps his eye on her from the distance before approaching Magda. He taps her on the shoulder, a friendly hello they are more than accustomed to, before handing her a cookie shaped like an Easter Egg from the snack table that always had a nice spread after each service. “Morning,” he says in a voice almost cheerful. “Happy Easter.”

The moment the sun hit the panes of her bedroom’s window, Magdalena was up. She busied herself with chores or got through a few pages of her book before she had to take care of Mrs. Griffths senior. On sundays. they were giving her a bit more free time, so she could get into her best dress, put her hair up and riding her bike over to Wade United Methodist Church for sunday service. Magdalena went to church far more than just sundays, but seeing everyone come together in the church hall, listening to Reverend Mcdermott and getting friendly after service.

Magdalena wasn’t someone who went out of her way to interact with somebody - she liked to keep to herself, even though she knew the people that attended the church regularly. She stood to the side and watched the scene, content as she was, until she felt someone tapping on her shoulder. She turned around, spotting the familiar face and her gaze dropped to the cookie in Elijah’s hands. Magdalena’s brown eyes lit up with a bright, warm smile at the gesture as she took it out of his hands. “Elijah! Thank you. Happy easter to you, too. Is your mother here?”

[hidinginbliss]

danieldepalma‌:

Daniel matched her smile, gratefully surrendering his overflowing bag. “Thank you… Magdalena, right?” He remembered her from around town, for sure. Every time he’d seen her, she looked happy. Daniel laughed at the situation, “Ah, my bad. I shouldn’t have assumed it was yours.”

Following her through the parking lot, a smile pushed his lips upwards as he realized. “This is a nice ride,” he said, genuinely. “Thank you– but seriously, if it’s too much trouble, I can walk.” He realized what an inconvenience it would be to have to walk him home. Something told him she wouldn’t mind, but he wanted to be polite. “My bike isn’t nearly as cute.”

Magdalena’s eyes grew wide and she nodded, overjoyed. “Yes! You remembered?” They hadn’t met often, but in a town like Wade it was hard to miss each other. And she remembered him  and the warmth that he seemed to exude. “And you are Daniel, right? Don’t worry. I am glad you got me away from it before the owner returned.”

She shook her head, leaving no room for argumentation. “Trouble? I insist. I have nothing better to do than a walk in nice weather with a nice man.” Her warm smile remained, until she went over what she’d said in Spanish and bit her lip. Nice man. She should have never even opened her mouth. She was quick to speak again. “Thank you! It was a gift.”

Magdalena proceeded to put the bag she carried onto the rack before she strapped it on and motioned for him to put the other in the basket in the front. Then cracked another giggle. “Tell me, how many people are you planning to cook for with all of this?”

[hidinginbliss]

flynnt‌:

time: just after red’s departure location: meeting hall status: open !!

Tommy attended the annual Spring celebration for a few different reasons, one of the lesser being the fact that his mom insisted on it — “You’re never seen with this family, Tommy, and it’ll do you good to get out of that basement,” She would say, flustered that the neighbours might start discussing her business — and also because he wasn’t one to turn down company. But the main reason was because if something was to happen Tommy didn’t want to miss it, and boy did something happen.

As soon as Red had made his rather dramatic entrance, a half-laughed exclamation of ‘oh shit!’ had befallen Tommy’s lips and he had immediately whipped out his phone to record the whole thing. Josie’s disappearance and the events leading up to it had gripped Tommy’s interest and he had been running an investigation of his own, not that much of it really pieced together at this point. The only explanation he could really find was that shit was just weird, but that didn’t look good in writing. 

After the discourse and Red’s even more dramatic exit, Tommy pocketed his phone and let out another light-hearted chuckle. “Man, they should get that guy on WWE, they could call him the Mayor Fucker.” He laughed, observing the food splattered all over the floor after Red’s pretty epic table flip. “Did you see that?” He wasn’t quite aware of how stupid a question it was, but it struck up conversation nonetheless.

At Mayor Fucker, Magdalena’s head spun around and her eyes widened, just a little. She was well aware that, even if she liked to refrain from it, people around her used swear words. Still, it seemed to shock her every time. She really needed to grow up - but people needed to learn respect and compassion, too. When she looked over at the guy, she couldn’t help but, despite all, crack a smile at his display of entertainment, desperately trying to think of what WWE could stand for. Until she saw the phone, that was.

“Were you recording it?” She exclaimed, quietly, her lips pressing together to contain the spanish words bubbling in her throat. Now, her eyes were wide. Even though her expression could be read as indignant, she looked more like a chicklet fluffing their feathers. “This man is in big trouble, and you want to do and film it for your disfrute [enjoyment]. Why?”