her heart was relentless in its desires.

lysa taylor, thirty-one creative director at reflection magazine

[lysataylor]

ELISE.

“Own, it would be awesome! Thank you for that.” She started walking slowly with her, making sure the dog was secure on her arms. “Well, I have a cat. I was about to get a dog too, but probably it would get grumpy. How about you?”

“No problem, I’m happy to do it,” Lysa nodded, offering the other a warm smile. “Oh, grumpy? Why’s that?” Looking down at the dog that was looking anything but grumpy snuggled up in the woman’s arms, she went on: “Well, technically, no. But my boyfriend’s got a dog, and uh, I think by now we’ve woken up cuddling each other enough times to call him mine too.” 

[lysataylor]

ELISE.

Elise nodded at her, smiling cutely seeing the woman interact with the puppy. “Hm, not really. Could you point the way? I’ve never been there.”

“Oh, I’m actually headed in the same direction, so I can do you one better and walk with you? This way.” Pointing out the right way, she settled into a leisurely pace beside the other woman. “I noticed you’re really good with the pup. Do you have any pets yourself?” 

[lysataylor]

RAMON.

He nods slowly and only once, turning his gaze away from her. Although, a smirk does turn up on his lips after a moment. “You smoked,” he muses, giving the shake of his head now. At her next words, he allows a chuckle to escape; if only brief. “Doesn’t bother me,” he tells her, placing the cigarette back into its pack and clearing his throat. “Supposed to be meeting Autumn for lunch, she’s late.”

“Yeah..” Lysa nodded, lips twisting into an awkward grimace. “I wasn’t a chain smoker or anything, just a cig here or there when I got too stressed out.” Still, it was nothing to be proud about. “Oh? Have the two of you already scooped out all the best places to have lunch at around here? Any recommendations?” 

[lysataylor]

CARSON.

Carson looked at the woman confused until she realized that she was still dressed in her costume from last night. A small smirk appeared on her face as she shrugged, “Sure…” Turning towards the cashier, she pointed above them at the menu, “Let me add an avocado egg bagel. Right? And whatever the All-Nighter is.” Carson nodded over to the lady beside her, “Thanks for the suggestion… I guess you could tell I needed it.” She reached into her bra for whatever cash she had leftover from the night, “I would let you pay but I practically live here so I like to help pay the rent.”

Lysa’s head tilted forward in a grateful nod, confirming her order. “God, I really hope I did good. Like thank-you-worthy good. I’ve never got one of those before, so I’m guessing blindly here, but from the name alone I’d expect it to be fatty, delicious and positively artery-clogging. A perfect hangover cure. I take it it was a fun night?” Grinning slightly, she pulled out her credit card, just as the other reached for their cash. “Nuh-uh, you’re doing me a huge favor here, so.. how about we go halfsies? I’ll get the bill and you take the tip?” 

[lysataylor]

If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to?

“Early 19th century, Georgian era England. I’d love to step into the shoes of an Austen protagonist for a week or two.” 

[lysataylor]

If money was no object, what would you do all day?

“I think I’d sleep in in the mornings. Never leave the bed before Hunt and Frodo again, unless it was my turn to get breakfast. Spend the days reading and painting. Out on the balcony, if the weather allowed. Back in the studio, if it didn’t. Afternoons would be for coffee, laughter and catching up with friends. Evenings for wandering the streets. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love what I do, so maybe I’d go back to it in a week, but for now, a stress-free existence of just floating through life sounds pretty incredible too.” 

[lysataylor]

ELISE.

“This dog was wandering alone around here, do you perhaps know the owner?”

“Oh, I’m afraid I don’t.. Can’t be a stray though, just look at that pink hoodie.” Smiling softly, she leaned down to give the pup’s head a cautious pat. “Hey, you. Are you lost?” Lysa cooed, before looking up at the other woman again. “There’s a dog park not too far away, have you tried there?”

[lysataylor]

CARSON.

Carson woke up on the floor of her foyer still in her devil costume from last night. Her friends threw her a huge costume party in honor of her twenty-fifth birthday. She only remembers bits and pieces of the night before but from what she can remember, she had a blast. Not sure how she got home, nor really caring, she threw on some shoes and made her way to the coffee shop. “Extra large coffee. Dark roast,“ she said when she got to the front of the line. “Black. It’s been a long night.”

Lysa had regretted only getting a coffee the moment she stepped aside to wait for her order, the light breakfast she’d had less than an hour ago long forgotten by both, the bump and herself. Looking sheepish, she stepped up to the register again, just as the other was putting in their order. “Uh, I feel like I’m about to make a deal with the devil here, quite literally, but would you mind also throwing in one of those avocado egg sandwich bagels they’ve got here? I’ll pay for both! And feel free to get yourself a snack or something too. I think I saw something called an All-Nighter in their menu, if that’s not too on the nose for you..?”

[lysataylor]

ETHAN.

“I’m slightly offended you didn’t ask how my and Lazy’s costume went over. Great by the way. It went over great. We were the hit of the dock.”

“Ohmygod, my bad, I can’t believe it slipped my mind. Did Lazy go as your imaginary friend Doug?” 

[lysataylor]

HWAN.

“Aaaaah…” Hwan hums with a sudden smile on his face and a firm shake of his head. “No. No, no one’s ever told me that before. At least, not compared to something like a novel! But, hmmm….if it were my novel, I don’t think you would be worried about the color of your ribbon. In fact, if you were the protagonist in my story you  would be worried about other important things! Because, of course, without question you would choose a ribbon that’s your favorite color! So after the boy ran into you, in chapters later he’d remember seeing the ribbon and that color. And when you mention it’s your favorite later on, he remembers that moment he saw you wearing it. Then, it becomes his favorite color too as he starts falling in love with you…. seeing it everywhere and in everything when he’s not with you.” Hwan laughs to himself, catching his ramblings before he became too lost in his own tale. “Maybe that’s a bit too dreamy…and predictable…”

“No, no—” Lysa shook her head, rushing to brush away the other’s doubts. “I’m all about dreamy and predictable. Tell me more. What happens next? Does something drive them apart? Is it the class difference? Familial disapproval? Miscommunication?” Propping her chin in her palm, she added, flashing him a soft smile: “And how do they find their way back to each other?” Lysa had always been a sucker for romance and the fact that she was currently all loved up in a great relationship and expecting their first child had only made it worse. 

[lysataylor]

HARLEY.

It was Sunday afternoon and the sun was shining on this unusually warm October afternoon. Now that midterms were over, Harley had every intention of taking advantage of what could easily have been the last warm day of 2020. So he had found himself on a walk. Very suddenly, the blue sky turned to dark grey….this was what Harley got for not checking the weather before he left. Thankfully, Harley could see a pavilion in the distance and ran to hide under that, the rain starting only a moment later. It was really coming down! He glanced behind him, startling a little when he realized someone else was in the pavilion with him. “This storm came out of nowhere!”

Hugging her arms close to her, Lysa nodded, taking a few steps towards the edge of the pavilion to get a better look at their surroundings. “I’d have dressed warmer if I’d known the weather was gonna turn on us like that,” she offered with a small chuckle, looking down at the colorful midi dress and a light sweater she’d donned, her proximity to the pavilion the only reason she wasn’t looking like a wet kitten right now. “Do you think it’ll thunder too?” 

[lysataylor]

OLIVIA.

“Do you ever have one of those days where you wake up angry, for absolutely no reason whatsoever, you just get out of bed mad at the world? All I want to do is crawl back into bed but then I remember how much I have to do and get even more annoyed.”

“I bet that’s what whoever coined the phrase ‘get up on the wrong side of the bed’ must’ve felt like? For me it’s anxiety rather than anger though. Like you wake up sick with this weird ominous feeling in your stomach and you can’t remember if it’s something you dreamed or if it’s just your gut feeling trying to warn you of something, if it makes sense? I’ve had people suggest I run it off before, so.. maybe that would help?” 

[lysataylor]

CHANDLER.

Chandler almost always used the self-checkout at grocery stores. Despite his enjoyment of parties and hanging out with people, he wasn’t naturally a social creature, and he hated small talk with cashiers. However, this particular store was locally owned and didn’t have any machines he could deal with place of an employee. And he had apparently chosen a very popular time to shop, as the lines had all merged into one, snaking down into the nearby deli section of the store. “Holy shit, is this really the end of the line?” He asked the person in front of him.

“I’m afraid so, yeah,” Lysa nodded, flashing the other the kind of sympathetic smile that could only be shared between two people standing in the very end of a long line. “It’s a bit like a big game of Telephone here, but I believe there was some kind of misunderstanding with a hairspray, or was it air freshener, that was supposed to be on sale but wasn’t, so now they’ve either gone to confirm it or to get the manager? I’ve got my fingers crossed for whichever one’s the fastest.” Letting out a small sigh, she looked down at the contents of her shopping basket, before picking up a bag of m&m’s. “Want to share a bag of candy while we wait?” 

[lysataylor]

HWAN.

“Neeehh, they’re calling this next full moon phase a “blue” moon, but I have to share the disappointment that it won’t really be blue…” Hwan shakes his head, body swaying as he continues. “It’s only called that because its a rare occasion when there is more than one full moon that occurs during a month. It’s also the only time we’ll have a double moon on the lunar calendar this year! How nice, eeh? For the moon to feel so sure of herself that she spoils us with her beauty twice in one month. Maybe she’s leading by example so that we all carry that same confidence with us into the rest of the seasons to come…” 

“Has anyone ever told you that you have a way of making the world sound like a classic romance novel? And I mean it in the best possible way. I’d love to live in a world narrated by you. I bet I’d be worrying about what color ribbon to wear to my next walk in case I pump into the boy I like instead of, uh, Thanksgiving plans.” 

[lysataylor]

RAMON.

“Don’t tell me you need a cig. It’s my last one.”

“Um, no, go ahead and keep it. I used to stress smoke a little back in uni and.. uh, through some other not so great times, but I haven’t touched a cigarette in years now and intend to keep it that way. Especially now. Thanks for.. offering.. though?” Lifting her phone a little higher, she added: “It’s just that the service was a little spotty inside and I’m waiting for a call. But if you want to smoke here, I can always just take a stroll around the block?” 

[lysataylor]

JAMES.

“She’s my mom. And both kind of? She has a group of women she plays Bunko with on Friday nights. I haven’t been home when they’ve played in a bit, but it used to get a bit rowdy. But she is also prone to that Zolton machine. She even keeps the slips. It’s really a close call.”

“So, why don’t you get both? Go big and bright and bold, or just save one of them for another occasion. Christmas is right around the corner, you know. Unless you don’t celebrate? Or, oh god, you’re not doing your Christmas shopping yet, are you? Not that I’m judging, just.. stressing out a little bit, maybe.” 

[lysataylor]

CARSON.

“I would literally cry if someone dared me to go home at a party,” Carson shook his head. That’s probably the worst thing someone could do to hurt his self-esteem. “Maybe sending him upstairs will do the trick? But you said it’ll wear off in a bit, right? I think he’s okay in the corner.” Carson flicked his wrist and a drink appeared in his hand, “My bad. I didn’t ask if you wanted anything.”

“Just between the two of us? Me too,” Lysa admitted, biting into her lip. She liked to think she’d lived long enough not to let something straight out of a high school mean girls’ playbook get to her, but that was just wishful thinking. Maybe in another two hundred years or so.. if she was lucky. “That works too,” she nodded, before her glancing down at the drink the other had pulled out of thin air. “Ah, I actually just finished a glass, but.. why the hell not, I’ll have another champagne. So, excuse the butchery I’m about to make of this terminology, but do you just levitate them from the bar or is there a more intricate, uh, magical mixology involved?”