* the answers are out there !

------------------------ 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 .. 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘶𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘺 .. 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘢𝘺

[mackfm]

  * ic. ( madison bailey, cis female, she/her, oc ? ) oh snap! is that MACKENZIE “MACK” FORESTER ? they work over at high volume where some of the other employees have labeled them as THE MYSTIC. that’s probably because they can be a bit ( adventurous. ) but also pretty ( aloof. ) they’re 22 and they’ve been living in woodstock for 1 YEAR. it must be their shift because i totally hear JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS blasting from the record store. ( oversized flannel shirts, red string connecting one mystery to another, reading in cemeteries for pleasure, a lucky obsidian crystal, a spark of curiosity in the eyes )

  * ooc. hey y’all i’m lia ( she/her ), 21, & reside in the cst but my sleep schedule is absolutely atrocious so time means nothing to me. i’m super excited to be here ! below the cut i’ve thrown together loads of info on miss mack & i apologize in advance for it being lengthy. but i’m looking forward to writing with each & every one of you ! pls feel free to hit me up for plots whenever, i promise i will be so so excited to know everything there is to know about your muse + hear about any & all ideas you have for connections <3 @volumeupdates​ 

                𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸  +  𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵   +  𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘴  +  𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴

* 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐒 :

𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞: mackenzie ramona forester 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞(𝐬): preferably mack, despises being called kenzie 𝐝𝐨𝐛: march 13, 1977 𝐚𝐠𝐞: twenty two 𝐳𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐜: pisces sun, capricorn moon, scorpio asc 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫: cis female 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐬: she/her 𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: pansexual 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞: lafayette, la 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: a spacious attic room at her grandparent’s house in woodstock, il 𝐨𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: clerk at high volume records for just under a year 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥: high school diploma 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬: maternal grandmother - ramona forester neé whitlock ( 60 ). maternal grandfather -  garold “gary” forester ( 62 ). mother - sheila moore neé forester ( 39 ). stepdad - henry moore ( 42 ).  𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐬: adventurous, aloof, intuitive, curious, creative, independent, reserved, awkward, clumsy, fanatical, sarcastic

* 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘 :

TLDR : not from woodstock but her mother & grandparents are. she’s spent a majority of her summer breaks staying with her grandparent’s in woodstock. she’s in to ghosts & aliens & considerably supernatural things so people tend to think she’s weird. while most people are trying to get out of woodstock, she’s doing everything she can to make a beautiful life for herself there. has only been officially living in town & working at high volume for about a year.

    * mack’s mother had her pretty young, having only just gotten out of high school & moved on from her life in woodstock. her biological father was a classmate of her mother’s that didn’t stick around once he found out about mack’s conception. so she was raised by a single mother for most of her adolescence. but by the time mack started middle school, her mom got married to a nice enough fella who treated mack as if she was his own daughter. together, they raised mack in louisiana. they did their best to provide her with a good life and were successful in terms of material things & emotional support.     * but while mack’s home life was all good & dandy, her social life was tragic. very early on in her youth, mack showed interest in things that other kids would consider odd. she was a little too obsessed with horror movies that would give any sane person nightmares, told one too many ghost stories on the playground that she double dog swore were true, & once got into a physical fight with a kid that tried to disprove her theory on the existence of aliens. there was also this pesky rumor going around school that she was a part of a cult ??? please, she wished she could be involved with something as exciting as a cult. the truth is that her reality was incredibly boring, save for the adventures she took herself on hoping to prove her conspiracies to be true     * all of this is to say that her peers made a point to steer clear of her. so she found it hard to maintain friendships with people her own age and felt incredibly isolated from the “normal” kids. faking it just to try & fit in never worked out for her. she always ended up slipping up by saying something “weird”. so naturally she became very withdrawn. it was easier to not say anything to avoid judgement than to be open with everyone she met.     * the only time mack felt free of the burden of boredom & isolation was when she was with her grandparents. her stays with them in the summer began when she was just a baby - her mom needed an extra hand with taking care of mack, so she’d go stay with her parents for a few weeks at a time. then when mack got old enough to go by herself ( also known as when her mom got married & wanted alone time with her husband ) she’d be shipped off to woodstock while school was out.     * mack’s grandparents are the people who indulge her the most because they’re just as unusual as she is. they’re known in woodstock for being a kooky couple. gary is a 60 something year old goth & her grandmother is actually a self proclaimed psychic who dresses like miss frizzle from the magic school bus. they’re absolute legends.      * mack still struggled with making friends her age in woodstock though, especially as a kid. she had a fear of putting herself out there only to be rejected & mocked so she simply kept to herself summer after summer. her annual appearance in the small town was probably noticed by some though, especially locals who frequently visit the forester’s shop - they’d notice the young girl behind the counter with her head in a book & an unbothered expression on her face.     * she never quite felt at home in louisiana. there was only one place in the world where she could picture herself being genuinely content with life & that was in this little town in illinois 52 miles outside of chicago.     * so while most people are rushing to get out of woodstock, mack is itching to be an accepted member of the community. she’s decided to make her normal 3 month stay into a forever stay. it’s pretty good timing too considering her grandpa’s health is declining - although he’s in denial about it.      * mack didn’t want to be some freeloader with her grandparents, they’re already letting her stay in the attic/loft space in their house free of charge. she didn’t want to make them pay her for working at their shop when she’d happily volunteer for free. so she decided to look for employment elsewhere & where better than high volume? the energy she felt the first time she walked into the store was indescribable. she just knew she wanted in on whatever was going down there.     * one year later & she can’t say she’s mad at her decision. in fact, working at high volume is bringing out the best in her slowly but surely. the store has truly acted like her safe haven & it would be a damn shame if she were to lose that now that jerry’s gone AWOL ...

* 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘 :

   * sorta stand-offish but she’s trying, bless her heart. she really wants to come off as cool & approachable but her automatic defense is to be distant unless spoken to first. & even then she’s wary of people’s intentions due to bad experiences in the past, so she holds parts of herself back until she’s absolutely certain the other person can be trusted. does not trust easily.     * curious by nature & a sucker for a good mystery. so she’s super intrigued by jerry being missing. like yeah okay it’s normal for him to be gone for a few days without notice but hear her out - what if the russian mob got him? or he got abducted by aliens? or he ran off to mexico to change his identity & start a new life? or corporate america sent spies to kidnap him so they could finally buy out the store?     * easily excited about the things she likes. she can truly go off on one about her passions, which may be surprising to some people who only know her to be quiet - like to the point where she sorta just pops up places & it scares the shit out of you because she moves like a ninja.     * never mean for the sake of being mean but she has a fighting spirit in her that can be ignited by very simple things. like ignorance & bullying - she can’t stand either. unless you’ve triggered her asshole radar, she’ll treat you with polite indifference.     * she is considerably spontaneous though & does not flinch at the prospect of danger. if anything, she’s a thrill seeker who wants to discover new & interesting things.

* 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐍𝐒 : 

character parallels : fox mulder ( x files ), lydia deetz ( beetlejuice ), lilo ( lilo & stitch ), mystery gang ( scooby doo ), jonathan byers ( stranger things ), lindsay weir ( freaks & geeks ), abed nadir ( community ), & honestly the conspiracy believer aspect of ryan bergara but the attitude of shane madej from buzzfeed unsolved

unfortunately, this scene reminds me of mack alskdnk ( r*verdale tw )

two scenes in particular are the main lilo inspiration ( one + two )

she enjoys exploring abandoned buildings & i headcanon that she’s never been to the woodacre barn for a party but has traveled there at night to investigate because it seems like the perfect setting for some amityville horror type shit in mack’s eyes

i feel like she was the type of kid who had an imaginary friend for a lot longer than most do, like until her late pre-teens. also definitely named them casper after the friendly ghost

she doesn’t have a driver’s license so she’ll either walk or occasionally roller skate around town

the whole reading in cemeteries thing is a weekly event as it’s a part of her sunday morning routine. she also brings flowers to pay her respects even though she doesn’t personally know anyone buried there

her grandparent’s antique & curios shop is called “forget me nots”. they’ve owned & operated the store for multiple decades. most of original merchandise was from ramona & gary’s own personal collection of vintage furniture & oddities. if you’re a regular customer & ramona likes you enough, she’ll over to do a tarot reading free of charge there in house

* 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 :

first friend -- likely a friend she made in childhood one summer. maybe mack hasn’t been able to shake them & they’re still good friends ‘til this day or maybe they naturally grew apart since mack wasn’t in town all year round. but either way, befriending them would’ve meant a lot to mack & hanging out with them was easily the highlight of her summer

partner in crime -- literally. lol jk ... unless ... no but really i would love someone who is down to partake in mack’s weird schemes like ouija board nights & exploring abandoned buildings. yes it’s technically breaking & entering but they’ll only get in trouble if they get caught :-)

bicker buddy -- just some playful banter between them. gimme someone she argues with over the music playing over the speakers at work or someone that benevolently pokes holes in her conspiracy theories just to rile her up. more like arguments between an old married couple than any serious hurtful fights

work spouse -- y’know like a work wife or work husband but we’re all gender inclusive in this house, as we mf should be. they have the best time together their shared shifts & just vibe the whole time they’re together

rival -- for whatever reason they don’t get along & are in some unspoken competition to one up each other for the sake of their own ego’s. maybe it all started over something super small, so small in fact that they’ve actually forgotten the original reason behind the animosity. but will they stop now? no, absolutely not, they’re in too deep

unlikely friend -- they should not work on paper whatsoever and yet they’ve managed to forge a solid friendship despite all their differences

frenemy -- with this i was thinking something along the lines of they’re only friends inside the store but once they’re clocked out they act like they don’t even know each other for whatever reason. idk could be an interesting dynamic to play around with

ex fling -- a summer romance that never could’ve made it through the fall. it was nice while it lasted but it wasn’t meant to be a forever thing. they probably both knew that. but it might be awkward if they were under the impression that they wouldn’t be seeing mack again for awhile & then all of the sudden she moved to woodstock permanently

others : neighbors that mack can bum rides to work from or walk to work with, skeptics who don’t believe any of mack’s ghost stories or conspiracies, mentor who has taken mack under their wing over the past year, fellow conspiracy theory enthusiasts, regular patrons at her grandparent’s store, adventure buddies, fellow horror movie lovers to go to the drive-in with, bad influence, good influence, confidant, exes on good terms, exes on bad terms, crushes, will they won’t they

[mackfm]

    𝚃𝙷𝙴  𝙸𝙽𝚃𝙴𝚁𝚅𝙸𝙴𝚆 : she’s visibly anxious despite her best efforts to appear cool , calm , and collected . mack’s nerves manifest into a physical reaction - heart beat escalating in her chest , fiddling with the rings adorning nimble fingers , deep brown eyes shifting around the room to observe but not fully take in her surroundings . the singular window does very little to make the room feel less like a daunting cage . on top of that , it feels like a time sucking void . it’s as if she’s been stuck in the room , alone , forever . her mind wanders to jamie , max , trip , and the situation they’ve landed themselves in - are they okay ? what are they going to say when they’re questioned ? what if she says the wrong thing and gets them all in trouble ? weren’t they already in deep shit as is ? could things get any worse ?

    then the deputy enters the room . there’s some forced hospitality shared between the two in a way that only makes sense for a small town like woodstock . this is weird for the both of them - that much is clear . a girl like mack isn’t meant to be in questioning like this . and a deputy like him isn’t meant to have murders to investigate . the whole scenario is bizarre .

    the formal explanation he provides goes in one ear and out the other . she might’ve nodded to indicate some sort of understanding ? but she feels so out of it . this doesn’t feel real . it’s not until he presses down on the tape recorder that she’s pulled back to reality . 

    it’s meant to be an easy start , “what was your relationship with jerry gordon ? please give details .” but mack’s blanking on substantial information . “um ... he’s my boss .” it’s a habit to speak of jerry in the present tense . 

“and how long have you been working for him ?”

“a little over a year now ,” mack nods to confirm this truth .

    “did you know of any other close relationships jerry had ? friends ? a girlfriend , perhaps ?” at this she shakes her head . the god honest truth is that she didn’t know much about jerry’s personal life . maybe that’s why she was so intrigued by his disappearance - jerry himself was a mystery to mack . and she didn’t do a very good job at getting to know him while he was around . so she put in an excessive amount of effort into figuring things out about him once he was gone . “no , i didn’t know much about him outside of work .” no lies so far .

    “do you remember when he first stopped showing up to work ?” her first thought is it feels like forever ago , but it’s only been a couple months . while conducting her own investigation , she was able to pinpoint the exact date . even wrote it out on sticky note and pinned to her board . although that information was seared in her mind , the physical evidence was burned in the bonfire .

telling him the exact date feels like cheating . mack had to do a lot of hard work to gather clues - the actual police should have to do the same . “i dunno . it was a couple months ago . around the summer , i guess .” not a whole lie but not the complete truth either .

    the next question causes mack to sink down in the uncomfortable metal chair , fingers not letting up on spinning her rings around . “why didn’t you report this ?”

what was she supposed to say ? she didn’t report it because her friends all decided that they could handle things themselves ? that they didn’t trust the cops ? that she thought she could figure it all out without the proper authorities ? no way would she admit any of that , not here , not to the deputy .

“it’s not very unusual for jerry to take a break from the store every now and again .” that’s safe to admit , right ? “he’s always given us permission to keep the store running business as usual . so we were just doing our jobs . and we had everything under control ,” she forces a nonchalant shrug . “reporting jerry going awol wouldn’t have done any good .” maybe she’s not as bold with her anti - authority stance as some of her more radical co - workers . but the sentiment still stands as she tells no lies .

    the deputy lets out a small huff at her response . but what does he have to complain about ? mack’s been plenty cooperative so far and told enough truths to make her creditable . 

“did you notice anything suspicious around this time ? was there anything that made you think that you should be concerned about jerry ?”

there’s a beat of silence as mack’s brain screams YES , YES , YES . from nisa showing up right around the time jerry disappeared to the weird voicemail and the fire bomb warning in the store . of course mack was worried . she played it off as obsessive curiosity . but at some point the gears shifted and she wanted answers on jerry’s whereabouts to ease the growing concern for his wellbeing . unfortunately , she was genuinely expecting a different answer than the one she got .

“weird things happen in woodstock every day .” mack knows that better than most considering she actively goes searching for the weird and unusual . “i wouldn’t call any of it crazy suspicious ... but i started to get concerned for jerry the longer we didn’t hear from him . sure , he goes awol . but he always comes back .” she gulps , a wave of sadness hitting her all at once . mack blinks in surprise at her own emotional reaction . she wasn’t going to cry . at least not in this setting . it felt inappropriate - like any reason she had to get emotional right now was for selfish reasons . so she was quick to turn her attention down to the table they sat at , searching for something grounding in the cold metal surface . at least she’s not telling any lies .

    although she knew that the following question would come up eventually , mack can’t help but wince subtly after being asked , “his house has been broken into . do you know anything about that ?”. a cocktail of guilt and fear sits heavy in her gut and if she’s not careful she might upchuck it all up . with eyes glued down to the table and a small crease forming between her brows , mack shakes her head . and from the tone of the deputy’s voice doesn’t hold any hints of suspicion . mack gets the impression that he’s not accusing her in particular of anything - he’s genuinely grasping for straws trying to connect the dots . so she takes a chance by lying and saying , “no i don’t .” 

jamie would do the same , mack doesn’t doubt it . 

    the uncomfortability mack originally felt while sitting in the hot seat has only amplified after the previous question . she risks a glance up at the deputy and the look in her big brown eyes silently begs for this interaction to be over sooner rather than later . this felt akin to torture .

“did jerry have any enemies ? can you think of any reason someone might have wanted to hurt him ?”

now of course mack has theories about this . there’s a whole list of potential wrongens categorized in the bolded SUSPECTS section of her investigation board . but is now the time to fully divulge in one of her infamous conspiracy theories ? perhaps not . eyebrows knit together as she pretends to be baffled by the question when really she’s just stalling for time as she chooses her words carefully . “oh uh ... i dunno ... i always thought that jerry was easy enough to get along with ,” though she knows some people , even some of her co - workers , felt otherwise . “and i can’t imagine what anyone would gain from hurting jerry .” which feels true enough . murder , accidental or not , just seems like a lot more trouble than it’s worth . “but maybe , i guess , i could imagine that someone motivated by greed could feel inclined to do a crazy thing like kill a man over something stupid like money .” and she feels satisfied with leaving it at that .

    at this point , it’s apparent that the deputy wants this to be over just as much as mack does . only then does it dawn on her that he has to do this about a dozen more times in order to get even a hint of a coherent timeline . she assumes the others won’t make his job easy for him . one of the things she can confidently say about her friends from work is they liked to do things the hard way . 

she’s sat there debating with herself if she has any sympathy for this dude just trying to do his job when the last question is posed . genuine confusion etches its way across her features at the mention of jennifer gordon . a new suspect for the new and improved board mack should be coming up with ? perhaps . 

but that mystery feels like a concern for another day . right now , as she shuffles out of the investigation room and towards the police station exit , her biggest concern is what the hell is she supposed to tell her grandparents this time when they ask what she’s been up to ? she could toe the line of half lies and technical truths with ease in the face of an authority figure she has very little respect for . but her own grandparents ? they’re two of the most important people in her life . and in many ways , she’s betrayed their trust . the guilt of that sits heavy in her gut as she trudges in the opposite direction of her home and towards the one last place she feels completely comfortable in now that high volume isn’t an option - ethan’s house . 

[mackfm]

+ 𝘬𝘦𝘮.

“ christian might find it funny, you never know. “ he shrugs his shoulders a bit. he isn’t exactly talking to jamie right now to say for sure. “ but i won’t. ” kem will promise anyway. “ hey, uh, i’m sorry about your board by the way. “ 

    mack snorts and jumps on the opportunity to poke fun at christian , naturally . “he would find it funny until he finds out they won’t let him do sick kickflips and ollies in jail .” a grateful smile graces her features at his promise . but it falters at the mention of her destroyed investigation board . “oh uh , thanks . yeah it was , uh , pretty tough to part with it ...” she definitely won’t tell him about the pieces of evidence she kept despite throwing the board into the bonfire . partly ( and she won’t admit this to herself ) because she’d hate to disappoint kem of all people .

[mackfm]

+ 𝘮𝘢𝘹.

     MACK’S  RIGHT  ABOUT  THAT  —  things  aren’t  looking  too  hot.  maxine  hasn’t  had  the  time  to  process  the  fact  that  she’s  out  of  work  and  may  have  to  look  elsewhere  to  find  the  money  to  pay  rent,  or  worse:  move  home  to  her  mother.  the  reality  of  jerry  being  gone,  actually  gone  forever,  still  churns  in  her  head,  making  every  other  thought  a  fleeting  one.  «  to  be  fair,  that  is  a  lot  to  manage,  »  she  points  out,  gesturing  for  mack  to  take  a  seat  on  the  couch  while  she  wanders  into  the  kitchen,  setting  the  lasagna  down, retrieving  two  glasses  and  a  bottle  of  wine  from  the  fridge.  she  figures  they  need  it.  «  we  did  the  best  we  could,  »  max  points  out  as  she  sits  down  next  to  the  other  and  pours  a  glass.  «  and  we’re  still  gonna  do  the  best  we  can.  but  i  honestly  have  no  idea  what  happens  next.  »

    her head tilts to the side as she considers max’s point - it was in fact a lot to manage , and considering the circumstances , they handled it pretty damn well . so mack feels inclined to nod her head in agreement . “you’re not wrong . i’d say we all deserve a raise but ... well ...” it was still weird to think that their time working at high volume hit an abrupt end . admittedly , it was a bit world shattering for mack . but she hadn’t allowed herself to feel all the subsequent emotions that follow a big life change like that . so she appears relatively calm as she makes herself comfortable on the couch , all cross - legged and cozy , tucked into one corner . though she’s a little too eager to reach for the glass of wine once it’s presented to her . “well i’m holding out hope for two potential scenarios . one , a time machine gets invented soon and we use it to reverse this absolute nightmare to prevent jerry’s death and therefore completely rewriting all of our fates at the minor cost of wrecking the space time continuum . or two , someone steps up to play the role of our fearless leader and we fight the shitty authorities to get our store back .” not just their jobs but their store . part of her was still willing to fight the good fight in order to get back what was lost .

[mackfm]

+ 𝘮𝘢𝘹.

     NOW  THAT  SHE  LOOKS  BACK  ON  IT,  maxine  is  rather  embarrassed  about  how  she  had  handled  that  evening  down  at  the  police  station.  shaking  hands,  tear  -  stained  cheeks  ..  it  had  been  a  bit  much  even  for  woodstock’s  resident  sad  girl.  she  still  feels  shaky  even  though  days  have  passed,  but  it  evaporates  the  second  she  sees  mack  on  the  other  side  of  her  door.  «  oh,  that’s  nice  of  you.  thank  you,  »  max  coos  as  she  accepts  the  dish  and  moves  from  the  doorway  to  let  mack  enter.  «  you  wanna  come  in,  mack  ?  i’ve  been  worried  about  ..  well,  all  of  us,  »  she  admits,  though  her  isolated  demeanor  lately  most  likely  hasn’t  reflected  that.

    shoulders move up and down in a casual shrug . “it’s no big deal ,” mack brushes off the benevolent act as if it’s typical of her to drop off hot meals to the homes of her friends - she’s nice but not that nice . the mystic just hopes that this excuse she’s come up with to check on max doesn’t come off as suspicious . she’s genuinely concerned for the other , has been for a while now , it’s just unfortunate that they had to go through this fresh hell for her to do something about it . “that’d be nice , yeah .” she ducks her head in gratitude as she enters the home . “things aren’t looking to hot for us , huh ? we had one job: keep high volume up and running for jerry . and we couldn’t even manage that . the cops are involved now ... the store’s closed ... we’re all out of work ...” to put it simply , shit’s wack .

[mackfm]

+ 𝘬𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘭.

“ i feel like the prison time for check fraud can’t be that bad. like, i don’t even think you go to prison. that’s how not bad it is… right ? " 

   “i dunno but let’s hope that’s the case because i don’t think any of us are super willing to go to jail anytime soon . except maybe jamie or christian but please don’t tell either of them i said that .”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘤𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘯.

“don’t get cocky,” christian kept his voice dry, acutely aware of the just how smug mack’s grin was. it was a concentrated effort, the disinterested hand in his pocket and expressionless face. the milkshake was enough of a peace offering; he wouldn’t give her the satisfaction.

in spite of himself, though, christian leaned in with mack. it was no joke. he was ready to join her insane little scooby doo crew, even if it required “hushed tones” like a goddamn hardy brothers book. “‘course not, you’re too delusional to give up. when are you off? you can catch me up on your conspiracy theories, and i can tell you which ones have a half a chance at being true.”

    mack literally has to bite the inside of her cheek to replace the far too pleased grin on her face . there’s a quick head shake in response to his warning as if to say ‘of course not’ . then she goes back to pretending to be cool , calm , and collected - so basically everything she’s not . 

    it’s not the first time she’s been called delusional and it certainly wouldn’t be the last . so mack hardly blinks at the empty jab . “oh you are so going to love the one i’ve been cooking up with blair about doppelgangers .” he’s not , he’s likely going to hate every minute of it . and mack will enjoy ranting and raving about it regardless . “i’ve got another hour of my shift . think you can go bother someone else in the mean time ?”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘫𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘦.

jamie nods in agreement. as the squad’s token delinquent, he hasn’t thought much about the fact that they are technically all criminals now– not just those of them who’ve already taken part in breaking and entering, but all of them for keeping high volume afloat in jerry’s absence and failing to report him missing. if (or when, jamie’s cynical brain nags) the body in the morgue is proven to be jerry, they’ll all be in deep shit, probably. all the more reason to get a look now so they can all be better prepared. yeah, that’s totally why he’s doing this, right? “good point,” jamie replies as they turn a corner toward his street. “so, you ever seen a dead body before?”

    mack’s fingers hover over the keys of her silly little flip phone as she mulls over the best way to keep max in the loop . how the hell was she supposed to explain this ? ‘heading 2 da morgue w jamie . no worriez tho its all good ! ttyl’ ? although it accurately summed up the scenario in just a few words , it felt very bizarre . she continues to contemplate her word choice silently as she walks beside jamie . his question barely registering at first so she takes a moment to speak up . “ummm , nope . never in person , at least . i’m more interested in the spirits of dead people than their left behind flesh sacks ,” she answers a little too casually . “you ? besides in the movies ?”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺.

as marty walks around aimlessly through the aisles, almost as if they’re trying to convince themself that they came to the store to do something more than picking up cheap beer and whatever snack they saw first ( if only so they’re not drinking on an empty stomach and therefore actually being able to drink more without feeling sick ), they find themself thinking back to all of the shit that’s been going on — and the more they think, the more they want to stop thinking. thankfully, a presence that’s always welcome makes herself known and marty can’t help but feel the slightest bit of relief washing over her spine, all the way to the tips of her fingers, which curled around the neck of an unopened bottle. “hey stranger,” marty greets, unknowingly matching the same tone mack had spoken in. there’s a high chance they’re both just… utterly exhausted. maybe. “more often than i should, i guess.” more so to a few aisles over, looking at the price tags rather than what bottles they actually want to take. “you snack hunting?”

    it’s nice to pour her attention into something other than disappointing snack options . so mack opts for facing marty and allows herself to feel comforted in a way that always comes naturally when in their presence . “i can’t really blame you for that . i mean , not like there’s much else to do around here .” mack means it in a sense that this small town is lacking in entertainment . and honestly it’s the most pessimistic comment she’s ever made about woodstock in all her years . maybe it’s because she’s so drained that she’s not thinking right . or maybe the rose - tinted view she had on the small town is finally washing away after the unfortunate events of the last couple of days . “yeah , haven’t found anything that catches me eye yet though ,” she admits with a small sigh . “i am open to suggestions if you’ve got ‘em .”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘫𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘦.

jamie hesitates. telling someone else is a risky move, particularly someone like max who is primarily guided by common sense. he knows, deep down, that nobody aside from him and mack is going to think this is a genuinely good idea, and that’s why he approached her solely about it. ( if he was less of an asshole he’d admit to himself that it’s also because he just likes mack, more than he thought he would, and considers her something like a friend. but, of course, this is jamie we’re talking about ). “i guess, long as you’re ready to ignore her if she tries to stop you,” he shrugs. jamie thinks, morbidly, it’s probably a good thing anyway if someone else knows where they are, just in case. “max doesn’t seem like someone who’s super down with breaking and entering, just as a general rule.”

    it’s another decision that probably would require a smidge of more thought by anyone but mack - but she has no problem ignoring reason and common sense in pursuit of adventure . so she doesn’t hesitate to reassure jamie that she has absolutely no intention of letting anyone stop them . “yeah , ‘course , don’t worry about it ,” is her attempt at a nonchalant response . her shoulders move up and down in a shrug . “i think she understands that desperate times call for desperate measures . and the situation is as desperate as ever . plus , after the moves we’ve pulled off over the last couple of months , it’s not like any one of us are particularly morally squeaky clean , right ?”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘫𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘦.

he cracks a grin, thankful that mack seems to be treating this as just another sleuthing adventure as opposed to a symptom of some major breakdown in jamie. he supposes it’s neither of those things, really. jamie just needs to know for certain, to be able to quash that excruciating nagging of hope that tells him there’s still a possibility the dead body isn’t jerry. that he recovered after being shot and is laying low somewhere. or even better, that teddy was mistaken and it wasn’t jerry being shot at all. it’s worse, he thinks, to be unable to let go of that blind hope while he still grieves. like slowly peeling off a bandaid and hoping it just won’t hurt anymore. “pretty sure we’ll be out of luck as far as easy entry goes. we can stop at my place first, i’ve got a crowbar and some stuff that might be helpful. the rest we can figure out when we get there, sound good?”

    depending on how one looks at it , it’s either a blessing and a curse that mack in unfazed by unusual and impulsive decisions . her own thirst for adventure easily clouding her better judgement . instead of red flags flying over the fact that jamie wants to break into the morgue to check out dead bodies , mack’s more interested in the fact that he asked her to tag along . was this a budding friendship thing or an act of desperation ? she doesn’t know . and she won’t dare to ask either , secretly too afraid of being let down . “yeah , that sounds good to me ,” she nods along easily . there’s a short moment of silence before mack gasps aloud as a thought suddenly occurs . “wait , do you mind if i shoot max a text and let her know where we’re going ? i kinda sorta made a promise that if i got up to any more investigation stuff i’d let her know before anyone else .”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘤𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘯.

christian rolled his eyes at the obvious smugness on mack’s face. it took everything in him not to snatch the milkshake back and stomp out the store, and he felt all of his dignity cripple to the floor as he stayed put. “the arts and crafts are still unnecessary,” he still insisted. he crossed his arms over his chest then, like he still needed to guard himself from mack even as he relented slightly. ever so slightly. it was through literal gritted teeth that he added, “but i’d fuck bigfoot before i trust the cops to figure out what happened, and you’re one of the only people who seems to agree.” a beat. “not that bigfoot is real.”

    oh this was a major victory for mack . if she kept a diary , she’d most definitely be writing about this interaction - the day the christian tibayan , the biggest skeptic and pain in the ass that she knew coming to her with a peace offering . mack couldn’t help the grin that took over her face . it’s nice to know that someone sees value in what she’s trying to do around here . “one day i’ll get you to see the truth about bigfoot ,” she retorted playfully , though really only half joking . a small victory slurp is taken from her milkshake and boy does it feel good . “since you went through all this effort , i’ll let you know this .” there’s an attempt made to be subtle while mack glances around at any lingering co - workers or customers , glad to see them all minding their own business , before she leans in and dropped her voice to a whisper shout . “i might’ve dismantled the board per the others’ request but i didn’t get rid of all the evidence . at this point , we know more than the cops . that’s a valuable advantage . did you really think i’d give that up so easily ?”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘬𝘦𝘮.

@volumeupdates​

“ if we do end up in prison for check fraud, do you think they’ll let us all bunk together or … ? ”

    “ha ha , very funny . don’t let trip hear you talking about check fraud though . you know he will totally flip out .”

[mackfm]

  𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙨 : closed for @mvxsinc​​  !  𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 : max ( & teddy’s ) apartment  !

    the memory of max’s poor distraught disposition during their stay at the police station has been replaying in the back of mack’s mind for days now . she was selfishly too worried about herself once they all got released that she hadn’t checked in on her friend then and there . a regrettable action on her part . to make up for it , she’s come to the sinclair and wells household bearing the gift of a homemade meal . mack waits for the front door to open before offering the other a tight lipped smile . “h-hey . i , uh , brought over some dinner . don’t worry though , i didn’t cook it .” she presents the lasagna pan with a lackluster gesture . but it’s the thought that counts , right ?

[mackfm]

  𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙨 : closed for @martytsui​​  !   𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 : local 7 / 11  !

    an unamused gaze dances around the rows and rows of convenient store snacks . she’s a woman on a mission , but mack remains unable to settle on anything . nothing feels right - from the barbecue flavored corn nuts to the snowballs and twinkies . there was no appropriate apology snack to bring back home to her grandparents as her way of saying ‘hey , sorry i’ve been lying to you about pretty much everything for the last couple of months and that i lost my job . from the bottom of my heart ... my bad’ . but maybe she was just being picky . it’s only after taking another stroll down the linoleum aisles that mack’s attention is drawn towards a familiar figure . “oh , hey ,” she greets marty with only slightly forced enthusiasm . it’s nothing personal . it’s just been a shitty couple of days . “ya c’mere often ?”

[mackfm]

  𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙨 : closed for @outsldcr​​ !   𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 : ethan’s place !

    after being released from the police station at half past midnight , mack found herself in a bit of a predicament . the unfortunate truth is that she’s gotten used to hiding things from her grandparents . she’s told her fair share of tall tales at this point , leaving ramona and gary forester completely oblivious to the true struggle of being an employee at high volume records sans jerry . but this , the whole spending time in jail , felt like something she couldn’t cover up if she tried . there was no way she could look either of them in the eye and fabricate some fake excuse . not this time . not when things were so clearly above their heads . jerry wasn’t coming back and now the police were involved whether they liked it or not . if it wasn’t obvious enough already , shit was getting a little too real .

    so instead of her feet carrying her home in the middle of the night , the mystic finds herself drawn to the home of the one and only person who can be of any comfort . someone who she trusts completely not to judge - ethan . and before she knows it , mack’s traveled across town to stand in front of the outsider’s front door . a shaky hand attempts to knock but only manages a gentle tap the first time around . she manages to gather enough strength to try again , louder this time . and it isn’t until the door is swung open and she’s standing directly before her best friend that the weight of the entire situation finally comes crashing down . it takes no time for tears to build up along her waterline . her voice remains trapped behind a sob that has yet to escape through parted lips . mack stands there trying to collect herself for a moment too long , frozen in place . finally , another shaky hand comes up to catch the first couple of teardrops shed and mack finds her voice . “i-i’m sorry , ethan , i-i i couldn’t go home . not now , a-after everything . i’m so s-sorry .”

[mackfm]

+ 𝘤𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘯.

“it’s not your birthday? let me just—” christian feigned taking back the milkshake, then shook his head. “kidding. it’s a peace offering.” the words slid easily off christian’s tongue. he knew the question would come up, and he came prepared. “look, if we follow everyone else’s plan, we’re fucked. we can’t trust the cops to do shit, and we’re basically inviting them to find out we’ve been signing our checks for three months. i meant what i said at the meeting, we gotta get ahead of them before they get us. even if it means using your red string.”

    mack’s smile only grew at christian’s antics . she held the milkshake closer to her chest  while chuckling , “no takesies backsies .” while appreciation was swirling within her , curiosity reigned supreme . but before she could pick his brain the skater boy beat her to the punch . despite his explanation , she was left minorly confused . “wait ... so you’re saying that my little first grader arts and craft project is actually valuable to you ? and , maybe just maybe , you don’t think i should completely chunk it ?” mack figured she already knew the answer but she really wants to hear him say it . definitely pushing her luck with a smirk that could appear smug if you squint .