matthew 🚒

Twenty- Seven, Firefighter, Southern Native, Downtown Rockford

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

the ransom sweep | aria & matt

There was a never ending buzzing slowly seeping its way into Matt’s light sleep. He groaned into the pillow his face was currently buried in as the realization set in that it was his phone ringing beside his head. Groggily he flipped over his eyes peeling up at a ceiling that didn’t belong to his bedroom but rather to his living room. The buzzing had stopped for a moment and he was grateful as he tried to recollect his thoughts from the previous evening - well rather the early morning of the current day. He didn’t have too long to piece things together though as his phone buzzed off again. This time he reached for it, only to feel his masquerade mask first and having to toss it out of the way to grab his ringing phone. The station number displayed on the front, and when he pushed it to his ear the voice on the other line informed him they were short handed with others out on a call and they needed him in as soon as possible. When he ended the call, exiting with a simple grunt he finally caught a glimpse at the time. It was a little later than seven and normally the man wouldn’t have complained, but his eyes had closed only a couple hours earlier after a night at the masquerade party. He had probably overdone it with the alcohol but to his defense he hadn’t planned on being called in.

Slowly, he made his way off the couch - still trying to remember why he had been on it in the first place. With pillow in tow he lightly padded to his bedroom. The door opened silently and his bed held his couch sleeping explain action. Blonde hair was sprawled across the remaining pillows and as he spotted her small frame the night came rushing back to him. It had started with a conversation mingled with drinks. And ended in him offering up his bed for safe keeping of the blonde - whose identity he still had not determined. By the time they had reached his apartment it was in the early hours of the morning. Small chats had turned into long yawns and heavy eyes and their evening ended in sleep.

Matt moved slowly through the room, inching towards the bed to see if her mask had finally fallen off. Her soft breathing made his pulse race as he mentally scolded himself for not paying more attention to which bits of his bedroom floor made noise with weight pushed upon them. His mission was unsuccessful though as when he was able to clearly view her, the mask still clung to her features. He was half tempted to reach out but another buzz from his phone reminded him of why he was even awake in the first place. It didn’t take him long to grab a set of clothes and push into the bathroom. He decided to shower at the station for fear of waking her and creeped out of the apartment just as quietly as he had entered the bedroom, hopefully not leaving a lingering noise for her to wake too.

[dj-and-zeke]

“Both.” Aria answered with a confirming nod. Her eyes didn’t stray from him as he set his glass to the side. She was too busy looking at him to notice the quickly thinning crowd of the previously bustling event. A giggle left her lips at his joke, it not being cheesy enough to earn an eye roll. “We’re making leaps and bounds, mister. Next you’ll be learning how I take my pizza and what I dip my fries in. A truly deep level of food intimacy.” She nodded with a grin. “I would eat cream cheese icing off of anything.” She nearly moaned to emphasize her point. Another laugh sounded at his question, her free hand going to cover her face. “You can’t expose me like that! I thought we were friend, mask man. You can’t be airing out my dirty laundry like that.” She joked, coming up with as many appropriate saying as she could. The blonde, leaned over to set her glass on the floor like he had earlier, getting it out of her hands. Her fingers still needed something to do, so she ran them over the fabric of her dress, rubbing the slightly rough material between her thumb and index. “Good.” She stated in the most stern tone she could muster, giving him a single nod. It only took half a beat for a smile to spread across her face after the words left her mouth. Her smile mirrored his, her eyes too busy concentrating on his lips to think up an intelligent response to his comment. His next words caught her attention tough, an eyebrow raising in question, something probably covered by her mask. Had it been anyone else she would have scoffed and called them out on the line, but he seemed genuine. Whether it was the alcohol in her system or her lack of other options or her desperation to find someone the least bit trustworthy, she found herself considering it. She dropped her gaze from his for a moment, letting her eyes survey the crowd that was now primarily servers cleaning up the venue. Her lips pressed into a thin line as she tried to think through the hazy fog that had long settled in her brain over the course of the night. “Can we go now?” She found herself asking, glancing back over at him. 

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“Well, on the Harry Potter stance - the sixth one. I could watch that one on repeat and never get tired of it,” he began, not allowing himself to dive into his usual nerdy rant about the film sparring the girl before him. “All time favorite?” he repeated his head tilting back in a bought of thought, “I can never pick. I watch too many movies to pick a favorite.” The man moved to rest his elbow on the back of the bench, his palm resting on the back of his neck, “Are we moving too fast? We didn’t lay out all the rules of this relationship quite yet,” Matt laughed along with her at their light conversation. Another hidden raised brow appeared on his face and he moved to adjust the mask slightly, “I just call it how I see it! But, anything else you tell me I’ll keep in secrecy okay?” His eyes were lingering on her too long - he knew it, but hoped she didn’t. But, he couldn’t get over the comfort he felt in her movements. He watched her empty glass rest against the floor a sign that maybe they were through with liquid courage for the evening, though he could have used some as he waited for her answer. He was half expecting a palm to the cheek in a full force slap, though he meant all good intentions he was certain the girl had run into far too many men asking to take her home before - and not in the innocence he meant. His heart pounded with her answer, a small stutter arising from him before he could formulate words, “Yeah, of course.” He found his legs and stood, extending out a hand to her to help her up and lead them outside. 

[dj-and-zeke]

Aria shifted so she was facing him fully, her feet up on the bench, pulled close to her body that she wouldn’t bother the male sitting across from her. She pulled her knees up to tuck them under her chin, her dress having enough fabric to keep her modest. The girl had been told she had a habit of making herself at home on more than one occasion. She was starting to realize that was true, but didn’t necessarily consider it a bad thing. When home didn’t feel like home, it was nice to find in other places, even if only briefly. “What’s your favorite movie?” She asked with her chin perched on the tops of her knees, studying his face as he spoke. “Oh, yellow cake with any kind of icing is my favorite.” She stated confidently, giving a single nod. “I could eat my body weight in cream cheese frosting though.” She tacked on, licking her lips as if the taste would be there waiting for her. “I’d be worried about it melting on me. You’d have to eat it to keep it from melting, but then you’d be chocolate house-less.” She explained with a laugh that was brought about by his own. Aria had never really romanticized someones voice, but his laugh had something about it that just made her want to hear it again and again. If she was the reason behind the sound, that was even better. Her shoulders lifted in a shrug at his next question, not entirely sure of the answer. She was probably supposed to go back with Xander, but she wasn’t even she if he was still around. Calling her manager, Maggie, didn’t seem like the most fun idea either and she needed to know her address to get an uber, so she was a little stuck. “Don’t point out my alcohol consumption and you won’t hear worse from me.” She teased, scrunching up her nose at him. “I think that was it. I mean, I’m here and ready to love him down, but he’s still hung up on his ex. Typical.” She joked, letting more laughs slip past her lips as his was contagious. “Yeah? Well, I’d scoot over to let you on the door if we were floating in freezing water, so you’ve got much better judgement than he does.” 

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

Blue eyes watched the small frame before him effortlessly move to make herself comfortable. For some reason he reveled in her comfort. It sent a relaxing wave through his body, almost like he was talking to an old friend instead of a masked stranger. Then again, his relaxation could have easily been blamed on his beverage choices for the evening, though his mind was still clear of any drunken fog. “Of all time? Or of the Harry Potters? Because that’s the true life question,” he laughed. The man took a moment to make himself comfortable, swinging around to place his half full glass on the floor next to the bench before he moved back to their conversation. “Look at us, pure strangers and sharing our cupcake orders, this is a pretty big step,” he joked with a wink that he hoped was visible behind the mask that was now becoming bothersome. “Oh, I agree with you there. Cream cheese icing was a gift given to us from above.” The man tried to visual their speech, a laugh forming as he came across a though, “Is that really why you can’t remember your address? You live in a chocolate house and you’ve eaten it? That’s nothing to be ashamed of!” All joking aside the dark haired male had become concerned about the girl before him. He had too been the victim of one too many drinks but had thankfully had a friend or two around to get him home, and he worried she didn’t. He tossed up his hands in defeat, “No more comments about alcohol, got it.” Matt had lost count of the amount of times his cheeks had changed color during their conversation, but whatever the tally was - another could be added to it. “Yeah? See, Leo totally missed out,” he smiled out. His teeth returned to his lower lip as he tried to caution himself o his latest thought, but had failed at keeping it to himself. “Listen, if your chocolate house can’t be found tonight, you can stay the night with me. I’m not too far from here, and well it would make me feel better knowing you’re not wandering around looking for your place…”

[dj-and-zeke]

“It takes a lot to offend me.” Aria explained, lifting her shoulders as if to help the thought roll easily off and down her back. She opened her mouth to answer his question, but paused knowing what flood gates she was possibly opening. It was nice having a normal conversation, so bringing up what she’d been doing with her life since before she even knew how to speak didn’t seem extremely appealing at the moment. “Why are we still talking about me. We should talk about you. Are you a book person?” She asked, flipping the conversation around. The blonde laughed when he mentioned going into a chocolate coma. “I mean, it sounds more appealing than most ways to go.” She pointed out with a grin. “Would you live in a chocolate house if you could?” She asked with a raised eyebrow, though her probably couldn’t see it. This mask was getting on her last fucking nerve, but she was glad it was still there, keeping them strangers for the time being. She waved a dismissive hand at his frown. “I’m just new to town. I haven’t really needed my address for anything, so I don’t know it by heart yet.” She explained. Her eyes rolled at his comment, not sure if he’d meant it as a joke or not. “Thanks, mom.” She teased, finding her statement rather ironic. “Leonardo DiCaprio.” She stated matter of factly. “I asked him to come with me tonight and he said he had prior engagements. How rude, right?” She joked, smiling over at him. 

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

Matt wasn’t sure her words were good things, and he toyed with how to respond to it. Playful banter was usually his go to, but for some reason he felt something stronger than that towards her word. Granted, he had only spoken to the girl for a short time, but his impression of her so far hadn’t led him to think she’d be someone who had to build up to offensive comments or words. Then again, he knew nothing other than what was displayed before him in a glittered gown and mask. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he mused, though he knew he wouldn’t. Offending people was never his choice of fun. Her quick change of topic made him raise a covered brow, but once again he didn’t push it, “I can be a book person sometimes, though I prefer movies. Never book to movies though, unless we’re counting Harry Potter,” he explained lightly, his wrist circulating his glass in a small motion. “You never told me your type of cupcake, darlin’” he challenged first, before he answered, “Oh no, I couldn’t be trusted to live in a chocolate house. One day I’d have a roof and the next I wouldn’t.” Another laugh fell from him - he had lost track how many had come out through their conversation but he had enjoyed it. “But, how are you going to get home then?” His eyes rolled playfully, a grin on his lips, “Ouch, the mom title? Not the worst I’ve gotten but still!” He took a brief moment to look beyond her, noticing the thinning out crowd behind her and he wondered how late it actually was. “Prior engagements? Was he going after that girl who wouldn’t share the door in frozen water with him again? Some guys just don’t give up,” he laughed. He stayed silent for a moment, his eyes sinking down to his lap as he toyed with the words in his head, “Well, it’s his loss. But, I can’t say I’m not happy about reaping the benefits.”

[dj-and-zeke]

Aria laughed, dropping her hand that had been making circles around the rim of her glass to his leg, giving it some variation of a squeeze or pat. “I’m just messing with you.” She confirmed, flashing him a lopsided grin. “I’m not much of a reader though. I mean, aside from things I have to, which is a lot of reading as is, but I’ve never been huge on reading. Not one of those who could read a whole book in a matter of hours or anything.” She shrugged, peeling her hand off of him and forgetting to mumble an apology for the touch. “Useless information about movies or music, though. That’s right up my alley.” She rambled with a nod. “And what’s your favorite kind of cupcake?” The blonde asked, pushing her mask up her face a little. She let a laugh slip past her lips, coming off rather bitter to match her eye roll. “She thought it was.” Aria mumbled, going to take a much needed sip of her martini, only to remember she was out. A huff fell from her lips as the bottom one poked out in the slightest bit of a pout, but she didn’t make a move to change the situation. “Well, not exactly. I know how to get there, but I don’t really know where there is.” She explained. Another eye roll took place when he mentioned her date, someone she hadn’t seen in quite a while and knew she’d be getting in trouble for that. “What makes you think I’ve got a date?” She found herself asking, glancing over the man in front of her. 

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

Her touch soared through him, yet he was comforted by the movement. Her words were just a confirmation of her joke, and he offered her a small laugh with a shake of his head, “Good, don’t want to cause any offense.” He tried to place what she had previously done that would require a lot of reading that covered the topic of useless information of movies or music, but he couldn’t put a finger on it. He was half tempted to ask, let his curiosity show for a moment. “What did you do that made you read a lot then?” Matt asked, his head tilting in question. “Oh anything chocolate,” he admitted, “I could go into a chocolate coma and die happily, isn’t that pathetic?” he laughed, moving to take a small sip of the lager still filling his glass. He tried not to overthink her huff and wondering if it was truly towards the glass that she went to sip. “Well, that’s not good,” he frowned lightly, “Maybe one too many martinis are to blame?” He wasn’t sure how to respond to her last question, a nervousness running through him for some reason, “Who wouldn’t want you as a date?” 

[amelia-holloway-archive]

“That would be horrible if all he can handle space but not a ferris wheel. They aren’t, I get employee of the month every time. Food will alway be my first love, I can proudly say that I can eat a whole extra large pizza by myself on the regular; I debated putting that on my resume but that ‘frowned upon.’ If you ever kill someone, just give me a call. I got excited for a second, I’ve always wanted to meet a real-life Olivia Pope. Have you ever kept a kitty? Because that’s something I would do.”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“Everyone has their fears, maybe he’s afraid of the way they always sound like they are gonna break down, that would do it for me. What are the employee of the month perks? This sounds awesome, you’ll have to get me in. Frowned upon more like ‘people are really jealous’. Killing isn’t in my nature, but I’ve seen that show ‘Snapped’ so I mean, I’m not going to take that lightly. Now, I feel like I’m letting you down! Cats actually hate me, so I’m not sure why I’m always the one to get those calls. I’ve never met a cat that doesn’t scratch the crap out of me.”

[chlo-miller]

Another laugh fell from her lips at his reference and she shook her head. “Not even close,” she admitted. “I was good but she’s out of this world. Now I know why I never made it to the Olympics.” As a little girl, Chloe had always dreamed of representing her country in the world’s biggest games but as she grew older, those dreams had changed. Despite dedicating herself to the sport, she simply didn’t have the gift that Simone, Gabby, Shawn and Nastia did. It was almost like they weren’t human.

As she pulled her lips from him, Chloe’s brain raced a mile a minute as she tried to formulate an apology but the words wouldn’t come out. What if he had a significant other? She would feel so guilty for doing what she did if that were the case. Before she knew it, the warmth of his lips were back against her own and it pushed any of those guilty thoughts from her mind. Instead, she let her lush lashes fall shut and allowed herself to get lost in him. Her neatly manicured digits came up to caress his jawline as she moved back onto her toes without breaking their kiss.

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

He laughed, his head shaking. He had caught quite a lot of the Olympics this time around and the gymnastics had been pretty much out of this world, like the golden girl had claimed. “I still bet you could have been right by her side, maybe not in these shoes, but you could have still gotten a gold!” He paused for a moment, taking in what he said and he hummed out, “Actually, maybe silver because I’m sure you’re really great but it is Simone.” 

Matt was almost too taken back by his actions. It wasn’t anything like him to kiss someone he knew nothing about. He wasn’t even quite sure what her name was. But, there was something therapeutic about it - like he didn’t have to worry about anything other than what the current moment brought. His arms instinctively tightened around her as her lips reciprocated. He was the next to pull, the changing of the song once again pulling him from the bliss. “I’m sorry too,” he breathed, a small laugh falling from him, “I mean, not really, but that seems like the proper thing to say.”  

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

sylvia & matt

[sylviarodakrp]

Sylvia laughed as the man listed all the movies he liked “We should watch all the toy story movies together. I love toy story” she said honestly and smiled at him. She rambled the same way when she talked about something she was passionate about “I havent seen the giver. Is it good?” She asked tilting her head as she continued to sway with him. At his question Sylvia sighed and looked down “I’m not this amazing girl that you think I am.. I’m really.. broken? I got hurt really badly. And to cope, I decided to have no emotions at all, and just have sex with people.” She admitted feeling a large lump in her throat. This was the first time she had admitted it out loud to anyone. “I got cheated on, after being in a relationship for 4 years. It really hurt.”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“Toy Story is pretty much my go to movie,” he began, “It’s probably pathetic, but talking toys? I mean c’mon!” The man had a strong liking for childhood movies, they kept their messages simple and usually breathed a bit of positivity into the world. “It is! Much better than the old one!” Though he doubted she saw it, considering he had some years on her. He listened closely to her words, a frown appearing on his lips, “Everyone makes mistakes, Sylvia, but they shouldn’t define you,” he started, “People cope with things in totally different ways. I run from things, and someone is always going to have something to say about the way you cope with things. But, at the end of the day, the opinion of other people never matters. It’s how you feel about yourself. If it’s something you want to change, you can do it. But, if you’re happier that way, then let yourself be happy that way. It’s your life, no one else’s.”

[florencebaxter]

“It’s the first idea we’ve ever hatched, so I’d say it’s the best, yeah,” Florence laughed. She dipped a hand into her purse and took a quiche out, then proffered it towards her new friend. “A gold one, I hope-” she popped the quiche into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully for a moment- “and one for you too, of course. This was a true partnership. Oh, they’d have lost the lipstick, without a second thought, too.”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“Touché,” the man continued with a nod of his head, all in between chews of his newly handed quiche. “Of course it’s gold!” he found himself exclaiming, “This was gold quality right here, like we could probably be the new Bonnie and Clyde and just steal quiche instead of money, which is totally more valuable despite what other people would say.” The man laughed, making sure his quiche was gone before he lifted his mask, “The real name is Matt, but Paulette works well for me!”

[itskennedyreynolds]

“That’s fair, these masks do make it difficult but I guess that’s the point,” she laughed. “That’s really sweet. To be honest I never thought of myself as that kind of person.”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“I’m slowly realizing how unsafe this entire event might be, I mean we could all be speaking to strangers, if someone goes kidnapped, will you be my alibi?” He laughed out, referring back to bits of their conversation. “Well, you should! Being memorable is always something people crave. They’ll even take it when they are being remembered for something bad, but I don’t think you’d have to worry about that much, you don’t seem too evil.”

[dj-and-zeke]

“Do I not come across as the bookish type?” Aria questioned in mock offense. “Does this cupcake place have a name or can I just ask anyone off the street to point me in the direction of the good cupcake place and they’ll know what I’m talking about?” She asked with a grin. A laugh slipped past her lips at his question, her head nodding to answer. “Oh, yeah, definitely. We’re calendar people.” She laughed, scrunching up her nose. “No, but really. My mom was a playboy centerfold, so I guess that counts?” She offered with another laugh, knowing the alcohol in her system making her giggle more than usual. “Well, you know, that should be the reason, but it’s just because I don’t really remember it.”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“Oh, no! That’s not what I meant, I’m sure you’re into books. Right?” He nervously tried to cover, though he was sure the girl wasn’t actually offended, but rather liked to see him sweat. Matt laughed, his eyes widening with delight, “I feel like you could probably do that, everyone knows about it. But, I think it’s called Halo Cupcakes or something.” He watched her closely as she spoke, no longer even attempting to hide the seemingly permanent grin on his lips, “Was she now? That’s...interesting?” he tried, his voice lightening with the word. Again, his brows furrowed and though they were covered he was sure the viewable bits of his face were able to show his confusion, “You don’t remember where you live?” he began, “Does your date know?”

[rockford-xo]

Did a stranger just question my taste? What kind of town is this?

I believe he did… Quick both of you fight without your shirts on! Make this interesting! 

[det-hendrixxx-blog]

I believe that stranger was making fun of all the petty gossip, but yeah I also insulted your precious eggy pie.

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

That’s not cool, man. There’s a lot more than just egg to a quiche. 

[peyton-sinclair]

“Even if it’s quiche.” She answered turning his words into a statement and looking over his smirk as if it would give her some form of clue as to who he was once the masks were off. “Not so much that, it’s very much a work obligation for me to be here.” The sentiment was both for the party and being in Rockford, she didn’t want to be in either at the moment. She started to follow him a step behind him until he turned around forcing her body to crash into him with a slight thump. Her eyes had to look up to meet his glance. “You seem dead set on this quiche idea and I wouldn’t want to deprive you of that, and I’m not a big fan of fried cheese balls”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“Work obligation?” he started, a smile forming to his lips as he thought of his next words, “Your work is requiring you to come out and have some fun? You must work too hard.” He let his eyes look behind him to make sure she was following behind, but when he was cut off he stopped short, merging her into him and he offered her an apologetic smile. His face contorted under his mask as he took a small step back from the brunette, “Wait, wait, wait. Did you just say you’re not a big fan of fried cheese balls?” he hushed out. “How can you not like friend cheese balls?!”

[bakingolivertwist]

“One of the bakers, yeah. There’s another girl that I work with and we each do about half, really,” he explained. “A torte is a cake with a lot of thin layers with filling of some sort between them. They’re tedious but the end result is always worth it.”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“That’s true talent though, baking is hard work. I can cook decently, but put me in front of some baking ingredients I’m totally lost,” he admitted. “So, you could make like a chocolate cake with thin layers of chocolate pudding in between?!”

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

sylvia & matt

[sylviarodakrp]

“I don’t know, Im pretty good about not spilling things.. But you’re right. I might stick to my sweats and t shirts” She said chuckling softly “What is your favorite movie?” She asked looking up at the man, her finger tips playing with his hair slightly-mindlessly.  Sylvia admired the man, he was passionate, and his face light up often about different topics, movies, his home, something sylvia admired. She wondered if she lit up that way about anything in her life. “Honest, not kind. You barely know me. Half the time this town thinks I’m the local Harlot” She said with a half-joking wink. 

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

“That sounds way more comfortable anyway,” the man added with a light chuckle. His head tilted up as he pondered her question. “See, I don’t know if I have a favorite,” he began, “I know it sounds dumb but I could probably watch like the entire Harry Potter series on repeat without a problem. Or Toy Story. Or there’s The Giver on Netflix and I’ve watched that at least four times.” The man realized he was rambling and let out a shy laugh, “See, I can’t pick. Chances are if I haven’t already given it a go and hated it, I’ll watch it.” His covered brows furrowed towards her words, “Well, depending on the person honest and kind can easily go hand and hand. But, why would they think that about you? You don’t seem that way to me.”

[profginnycho]

You know, I’ve never really understood quiche—like isn’t it sort of like a pie, just with meat and veggies? And a ton of cheese?

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

Yes! And it’s the ton of cheese part that really gets ya going. Especially cause there’s usually like three different kinds in it! It’s like cheese heaven. 

[dj-and-zeke]

“And what are some things you suggest to check out?” She asked, letting her eyes follow his hand as it was extended to show off the ball. “That’s not the first time I’ve heard good things about cupcakes around here.” She mused letting a smile form on her lips. Aria laughed as his head fell back in laughter. “I’ve got an eye of that sort of thing. Runs in my family, I suppose. Besides, you look great in a suit, why not an American flag bathing suit?” She pointed out with a lift of her shoulders. “Oh, yeah? Sweet. If you’ve got a pen I can write it down for you…possibly.” She laughed, shifting some so she could readjust her legs that had fallen asleep up under her. 

[matthewlandonmurphy-blog]

The man feigned thought towards her question, letting his eyes roll up to the ceiling for a moment in thought. “There’s a bar that’s pretty good, a bookstore - I don’t know how you feel about books being entertaining though,” he laughed, “But if anything it’s the cupcake place you want to try.” Matt was sure a shad of flush came over his cheeks and he was glad that the mask had aided in covering some up. “Well you’re too kind. What’s your family do? Are you the big name behind male calendars?” He found himself letting out a laugh as he moved to work through his pockets, “Possibly? Not big on giving a masked stranger your address?”