ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴏɴ ɢʀᴏᴜɴᴅ

ᴄʜᴀʀᴍɪɴɢʀᴘɢ

[livedinlight]

( emily bader, 28, cis woman, she/her ) isn’t that JOSEPHINE "JOSIE" CALLAHAN? heard you’re working as a LIBRARIAN AT CHARMING LIBRARY and have been here in charming for YOUR WHOLE LIFE. you somehow remind me of LAUGHING A LITTLE TOO LOUD IN QUIET ROOMS, ICED COFFEE BALANCED BETWEEN BOOK STACKS, MESSY HAIR PULLED BACK WITH A PENCIL, AND WINDOWS ROLLED DOWN AT STOPLIGHTS, and i also heard you are AGAINST the crime in town. hope you’re keeping yourself safe!

───── 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 ;

josie callahan has lived in charming her whole life. she grew up here, which mostly means she’s used to the town the way it is, even when it changes. her parents were big on doing the small stuff right. returning things, showing up when you say you will, not making a mess of shared spaces. the library was always part of that. it was somewhere she could go without needing a reason. she didn’t set out to become a librarian. it just worked out that way. she liked the routine, liked being helpful without being involved. she left town for school and realized pretty quickly that she missed knowing where she was. charming made sense to her in a way other places didn’t - so she came back. working at the library means she sees everyone eventually. people passing time, people looking for something specific, people who pretend they don’t need help and then ask anyway. it also means she sees members of the sons of anarchy more than she ever expected to. they come in for computers, old records, local stuff. she treats them the same as anyone else. some of them know her name now. some of them are more careful in the library than they are anywhere else. she doesn’t love what the club represents. she does notice when they respect the space. josie is against the crime in charming. she always has been. she’s seen how it’s changed the town and made people more careful than they used to be. she hates that it’s made normal places feel tense. she thinks public spaces should stay public, full stop. at the same time, nothing here feels that simple anymore. crime isn’t just an idea. now, it’s people she recognizes. law enforcement isn’t either. officers stop by asking questions that sound casual but don’t really feel that way. josie answers what she has to and keeps the rest to herself. she’s learned how to stay polite without giving too much away. she hasn’t crossed any lines. she’s not trying to. but she gets now how people end up closer to things they never planned on being close to. how rules start to feel less solid when everyone involved feels human.

───── 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖 ;

she's easy to get along with, but josie isn’t as simple as she first comes off. she’s quick to joke her way out of awkward moments and tends to downplay her own opinions, even when they’re strong. she avoids open conflict, but she’s stubborn in quieter ways and doesn’t back down once she’s made up her mind. she’s curious about people, sometimes to her own detriment, and she has a habit of giving others the benefit of the doubt longer than she probably should.

[divinitis]

Adriano couldn't imagine a worse place to be. The longer he spent perusing the aisles of the library, scanning dusty shelves with squinting eyes and mounting frustration, the more he added to the list of places he'd rather be. Staking out a hit on top of a building. Disassembling and cleaning every single piece of vintage artillery he owned. Sharpening his knives, checking on his ammo reserve, ordering new tools and torturing someone. Hell, maybe even sitting on the torture chair himself would be less difficult than finding what he was looking for. He was too busy cursing in Italian, a string of mumbled words about this not being on his contract, when he felt someone else's presence in the aisle beside him. He didn't bother looking up until she spoke, a soft but clipped tone that offered help but suggested wariness. He turned to face a short brunette pushing a cart of books, and a smile pulled at the corner of his lips at the picture, so very cliche of the place. ''If it helps me get out of here faster, then yes, please,'' he quipped, walking slowly towards her. ''I'm looking for public records? Perhaps some birth register or a recent census.''

[livedinlight]

josie waits until he’s finished talking before she moves again, sliding the last book back into place and letting her hand linger there for a second longer than it needs to. public records. at least that’s real. she doesn’t comment on his obvious annoyance or the way he seems to fill the aisle just by standing in it. instead, she shifts the cart around and glances toward the end of the row, already thinking through where that stuff is kept.

“those aren’t kept out here,” she says, voice level as she turns the cart around and starts back the way she came. “birth registers and census records are archived. different floor.” she doesn’t rush, but she doesn’t slow down for him either, setting a pace that assumes he’ll follow if he actually wants what he asked for. the quiet settles back in around them as they move, the sound of the cart wheels soft against the floor.

she slows near the end of the aisle and looks back at him once, brief and assessing, before steering toward the elevators. “i can point you there,” josie adds, already moving again, “but if you’re in a hurry, you’ll want to keep up. that section isn’t designed for browsing.”

[livedinlight]

STARTER ── closed / josie & maria ( @accidentalss ) LOCATION ── riders' rest

most mornings follow the same rhythm, and josie likes it that way. she comes down from the apartment upstairs half-awake, keys already tucked into her bag for her library shift, letting the smell of coffee pull her the rest of the way into the day. rider’s rest is just starting to wake up, quiet but not empty, and she heads for the counter on autopilot. it’s only when she gets there that she realizes someone else is already sitting in her usual stool.

she pauses for a second, clearly offended on principle alone, before sliding onto one a few over and setting her bag at her feet. josie leans forward against the counter, eyes finding maria behind it, her expression caught somewhere between amused and mildly betrayed. “i just want it noted,” she says lightly, “that guy is sitting in my seat. i really think we need to put a 'reserved for josie' sign there."

[charmingcrime]

leo & jo @ the charming cup / @livedinlight

leo loved having multiple cups of coffee a day. unfortunately for leo, his coffee machine is a piece of shit and decided that that day was the day it inevitably met its doom. cursing under his breath, he found himself walking towards the local cafe, cursing even more when he realized it was packed.

for such a small town, it felt like everybody and their mothers were at this cafe and spotting a familiar figure, he smirked to himself as he made himself comfortable in the seat across from her, one of the only available ones in the entire cafe.

"what's up, princess?" leo asked with a smirk before he took a long gulp from his drink, already internally cursing at the thought of spending more because he's going to need another one soon.

"didn't think i'd actually see you out in the daylight and away from the prison that is that library. you don't seriously enjoy being there, do you?" he asked, shaking his head immediately. "nah, actually, you would. where there's no fucking fun, you'd be there, for sure."

[livedinlight]

josie had claimed her table out of necessity more than comfort, tucked into the corner with a mug that had already gone lukewarm while she pretended to read. the charming cup was louder than she liked it today, all overlapping conversations and clinking dishes, and she’d been considering leaving when the chair across from her shifted.

she looks up, unsurprised in a way that probably says more than she means it to.

“you know i hate when you call me that,” she says, flat but not sharp, eyes flicking briefly to his cup before settling back on his face. “and for the record, i enjoy the library. it’s quiet. people leave me alone. you wouldn’t last five minutes.” there’s a beat, then a small huff of a laugh she doesn’t quite commit to. “i do go outside sometimes," she gestures around the cafe. "this counts.”

she closes the book, fingers resting on the cover instead of opening it again. the teasing doesn’t bother her as much as it used to. what does is how easy it still sounds between them, like nothing ever went wrong.

“how many of those are you on already?” josie asks, nodding toward the coffee.

[southernbclls]

location: conti family pizzeria, located in downtown charming

status: open ! (0/5) @charmingstart

aurora had gotten a call from her grandma saying that her old man had thrown out his back and wasn't feeling the greatest. it was mid afternoon at this point and she insisted on heading over to the family business to hold down the fort until closing. thankfully, it was midweek and pretty slow at the pizzeria. while in the midst of almost completing the closing shifts duties, she heared the bell to the front door ring. "we close in like twenty, just letting you know. if you're looking for a fresh pizza or breadsticks, you're shit outta luck," she called from the back.

[livedinlight]

josie had only meant to stop in quickly, more out of habit than hunger. conti’s had always been one of those places her family defaulted to without discussion, and even after years of not coming as often, her feet still carried her there without much thought. she pushes the door open just as the bell rings, wallet already in hand, only to pause when the familiar voice calls out from the back.

“oh, no worries,” josie calls back, tone easy. “i’ll just pretend i wanted a salad the whole time.” she lingers near the counter, taking in the familiar space, the smell hitting her all at once. when aurora comes back into view, josie’s mouth quirks, half-smile, half-surprise. “hey,” she adds, softer now. “i didn’t know you were working today.”

[livedinlight]

STARTER ── closed / josie & adriano ( @divinitis ) LOCATION ── charming library

josie is midway through reshelving a cart of returns when she ends up in the same aisle as him, the quiet broken only by the familiar sound of books sliding back into place. she moves on habit more than thought, scanning call numbers, adjusting a spine here and there. it’s only after a moment that she registers him, not because he’s doing anything wrong, but because he hasn’t quite blended into the space. he’s been in the library long enough to feel present, carrying a low edge of irritation that stands out once you know how to read it. she finishes placing a book where it belongs before finally turning her head to look at him, her expression neutral, posture relaxed but alert. when she speaks, her voice is low and clipped, meant for the narrow aisle and nothing beyond it. “if you’re looking for something specific,” she says, “i can point you in the right direction.”

[emilysource]

Emily Bader For Elle's Women In Hollywood 2025

[aliceinwondercloset]