“Think they’ll notice if I take a couple of these for the road?” Trevor nodded to a tray full of edibles, not knowing when he’d get another chance at Ahadi weed. At least not for free. “Like a party favor, right, except..,” he frowned as he felt the sides of his bike shorts, “Shit. I don’t have pockets.”
“ I honestly don’t think anyone is keeping count of this stuff. “ Melrose mused before taking one of the edibles off the tray. “ I wont stop you if you were trying to take the party home. I’d consider the same if I had thought if the idea. “ She added before looking at his costume. “ Grab them as you head out? Or too obvious?”
‘Isn’t it quite unfortunate that it’s always one or the other when it comes to those choices?” Keegan told the young woman with a shake of his head. “Because you go the sexy route, the ensemble nine times out of ten is cheaply constructed. You go scary, you run the chance of literally scaring people away from you. And original is never a bad choice, just one that takes a lot of time.” Keegan twisted the lips as she brought up a great question. “That’s a great question, actually.”
“ It really shouldn’t have to be one or the other should it?” Melrose questioned as she glanced over to Keegan. “ There is nothing worse then a poorly made costume or one that just looks like it’s made out of swimsuit material. And the pride of actually having a scary costume does get lost after a while. I think you made my decision a lot harder, but I do appreciate the clarity it gave” Melrose added before smiling a bit at the idea of a combination costume. “ I guess it would have to be something horror related but is also cute? That really is where thing’s get too complex”
“Does anyone ever get stuck on whether or not to go sexy, scary or original when it comes to Halloween ?” Melrose replied while going through her phone to look for ideas for the holiday. She always settled on one option and often regretted it. “ There could always be a combination of the three, but what on Earth is that result?”
“What is that? You said you want to stay in and cuddle up and watch Hocus Pocus? Mm yeah, I totally agree,” Athena joked, slowly pushing herself up from the couch with a grown. “Fine, but only if they’re cheese fries and if I can smoke a biggass J before we head inside. But let me get my wallet just in case you conveniently forget yours,” she teased before pulling a hoodie on and going in search of her sneakers. “Do you want me to drive?”
“ Do not get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with cuddling and watch holiday classics, but never on an empty stomach” Ramsay joked shaking her head . “ Cheese fries are always an option. I wont forget to pay. I have it on me when I offer free food. I deliver on free food Athena” Ramsay replied shaking her head. “ Yeah sure, I might honestly get distracted and take us somewhere else if I drive. “
“Okay, okay!” Grace laughed as she sat up. She placed her hands on Ramsay’s shoulders and shook her gently. “If I say yes will you take it down a notch? Seriously, how many adderall did you take this morning? Don’t tell me you woke up with this much energy.” She laughed. “Seriously, babe. You had me at you’re buying. Let’s get out of here.”
“ I love you, but you know and I both know I cannot live a life of subtlety. “ Ramsay replied with a smirk as she looked over the Grace, She did laugh however at the other woman’s comment though, taking zero offense to it. “ I did in fact wake up like this. It was boring this last week and I think my attention span had enough of it. “ She added before another smile appeared on her face. “ I knew that would work. Who doesn’t want free food?”
“ Do you know what would be amazing right now? Burgers? Fries? Literally anything other than sitting around today. “ Ramsay replied with a smile as she looked over to her friend. “ It’s a beautiful day and I promise you I’ll pay for the food or even drinks later? Honestly I just want to go out, please humor me”
“ Can someone explain to me how the fuck I have so many random people in my contacts? Is that what viruses do now? Add you to group chats with total strangers?” nathan scrolled through his phone looking at name after name that he didn’t recognize. “you know what .. this actually might be error user. i probably added them when i was cross faded. you might’ve just caught me slippin.” he gave an embarrassed smile. “you do the same thing too right?”
“ I think that sort of thing only works when it comes to syncing your contacts on social media. I don’t think it works the other way around. Maybe you’re just popular?” Billie replied with a slight shrug to her shoulders as she glanced over. “ I don’t add contacts to my phone when I’m not sober, I usually tend to buy thing’s and then get surprised when they show up on my doorstep. It’s not all bad though, It’s like I got a gift for myself”
Melrose was disappointed in herself that she got eliminated so early. It wasn’t the narrative she wanted for herself and she needed the money to finally pull away from her families support. She didn’t want to rely on them forever, but it was going to be an uphill battle unless she got lucky and luck was not on her side at all. It was why she had been frustrated for a while. She didn’t think that sitting around and waiting for her feeling’s to pass her by was a good use of her time however and she was two drinks in and ready for more. It was just better to forget thing’s for the night and find her sense of excitement again. “The next rounds on me, okay?”
notes: Melrose is out to reinvent herself again.
This is bullshit.
Melrose replied as she stared at what was supposed to be her next challenge. She wanted to go as far as she could and needed the money considering she was trying not to live off her parents for the rest of her life but was it worth being buried alive like some horror film?
The box seemed smaller than normal, right?
Was dirt going to leak in and fill up the coffin that was not structurally sound?
Was she too sober for this shit?
Oy the last one the former model student knew to be certain and she really wished she had smoked or something before making this choice. Dumb decisions were best make when you were under the influence of something other than the harsh light of reality. She looked over to Stradlin; grateful that she had a timekeeper she could trust, but this one might end up being too damn much.
“Unless I sound like I’m about to die, leave me in there. “ Melrose started with a sure look on her face. She knew she was probably going to panic but she didn’t want her own brain to screw her over. This wasn’t just about the money. Sure, Melrose genuinely needed the money but it was almost to prove she was still that person on some level she once was.
She had been the perfect student. At the top of everything she set her mind to and someone who always managed to get ahead. She was someone of privilege who did well and lived in many ways in a gilded cage. She hated that life so much so she changed things. She gave up her old life for friends who liked her for herself and it made her happy not to feel so much damn pressure to seem so perfect.
But it wasn’t perfect either
Being seen as the person she once was opened doors to her that were now closed. How could she feel like such a has been at such a young age? There was the pain of being seen one way but did it matter if now you were on the other side and started to feel irrelevant?
No, this wasn’t just for the money
This was to prove herself to herself. It was to get back the spark in life that made her believe she could do anything and dammit she was doing this no matter how utterly freaked out she was. She had to see this through one way or another. She could do anything. She hates her life once before so she started over. She felt like now she had flatlined? Let’s make something matter again. It was the only way to step out on the other side and prove so much to herself.
She wasn’t miss perfect
She wasn’t some poser
She wasn’t plateauing.
She was in charge of her life and always had been and now she was in charge or this outcome.
She let out a sigh before gathering what nerve she had left and laid down flat in the coffin resting on the grave. Melrose closed her eyes and let out another breath as the sound of dirt began to be thrown over the lid.
Seated with her legs crossed on a park bench, Cecily made observations in her journal with each person that passed, or conversation she overheard, or even how the sun felt every time it crept back out from under the clouds. For example, why would someone run in a hoodie in the middle of July? Actually, scratch that, why would someone run for pleasure at all? As she pondered that, she felt her pen dying out as she scribbled, only looking up when it seemed it’d finally given out. Shoot… “Hi, sorry,” she stopped someone passing by. “You wouldn’t happen to have a pen, would you?”
Melrose knew the easiest way for her to combat a hangover was to try and exercise in out of her, which was why she found herself fighting against the sun on a summer day. It was better than staying drunk or laying in bed all day, especially when she wanted to grab lunch later from somewhere other than her fridge. She stopped to catch her breath and grab a drink of water only pausing further when she heard someone address her. “ Yeah. I mean its in my car but it’s literally just right there. “ the redhead gestured toward the parking lot close by and her red car within eyesight. “ Do you wanna give me a second to grab it?”
A few years ago Melrose would not have been in this position. If anything she would be watching in the safety of the gilded cage she had once found her self in. Always an observer and never the risk taker. That all changed when something broke inside of the monotony of her life and the redhead decided she had to turn her life around by any means necessary.
Risky behavior soon followed. And since that change, jumping off the edge of something quite high was in her wheelhouse. It wasn’t partying or being high a good portion of the time; it was a huge step beyond that and that felt exciting. In many ways it was something that made her feel life even though the risks involved could mean certain death. At the very least it was one step further away from Melrose Vincent model student and daughter to Melrose Vincent master of her own destiny. She preferred that sound to anything else. That and she needed the money. By breaking away from a lot of her parents own paths meant she was trying to be self sufficient now. It was easier said than done and any chance to win money to help her on her journey, Melrose was willing to take the risk. She was clearly starting to not be the golden child in her parents eyes anymore and she needed to find her own way soon. This could be something to make a difference.
It wasn’t that she had a death wish by any means but she just wanted to experience life to the fullest. The only downside was Melrose was lacking direction since doing a complete 180 and she was feeling a little lost. She knew who she was and who she wanted to be, but no one just decides to live their desired life without doing the work. And Melrose was willing to put in the work.
The redhead looked around and noticed that many of the faces seemed as if they were the obvious choice is to take part in such a risky challenge however there were others people from her old social circles that she hadn’t expected to have that same fire in them that she now cherished in herself. This was going to be harder than she thought. People who seemed the least likely to be here probably had the most to gain.
The diverse faces proved that everyone had their reason for taking part. She could walk up to every person who was doing this and each person had a valid and important reason. That didn’t deter her though. She was always the type that functioned well with the pressure. And while the perfect image of the model student as gone, she still had a drive to get something she wanted no matter what. The red head fixed her bathing suit, just to make sure she didn’t show more than she had anticipated upon taking the jump. Melrose had her work cut out for herself that didn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things she was not in charge of the results she was not in charge of whether or not she made it out in one piece. All she could do was close her eyes take a deep breath and hope for the best.
By the time her number had come up Melrose had felt a push of adrenaline. She didn’t know how far she would get, but everything in this world was worth a shot. Every risk was worth taking. And soon her feet hit the ground running as she ran toward the edge and jumped, everything seemed in slow motion and silent and then it all felt dark.
“Country to popular belief, no I’m not the Stork.” Odessa teased, as she was carrying bags filled to the brim with all things baby and baby shower adjacent. “I’m just a really nice daughter in law that’s helping her husband’s fathers with their baby shower. A really nice daughter in law that can actually use a hand or two.” She said with a playful huff.
“Who is calling you the stork?” Melrose replied shaking her head with a smile. “ I’ll take one of the bags from you if you want? “ She then asked again, noticing just how full the bags were. She hated standing around and seeing people potentially struggle when she could help. “ That’s definitely really nice to do. I’m sure they’ll appreciate it”
“I mean all credit to someone who wears a ballgown because it’s going to be hot as balls outside and..I would be suffocating. The robe is bad enough, honestly,” he added as he adjusted his collar as if he was sweating. I wonder if they have fans you can sew into the robe…”
“It’s grad, I would like to think someone would want to go all out. “ Melrose smiled shaking her head at the idea. “ Also fair. It’s been really warm lately and those graduation robes are way more hot than they look. You mean like how people who wear character costumes at theme parks have? I’m sure it’s possible. The question is do they sell those thing’s separately”
“Ok now this is weird,” Jasper said as he stared out at the great lawn on campus where chairs were already being set up for graduation, the graduation robes he had just purchased underneath his arm along with the stoles and chords he’d be wearing. “Is it still ok to just wear like..shorts and a tshirt under your robe?”
“I think that depends on people’s personal aesthetic. I don’t think anyone will mind as long as you’re happy. Same for someone who decides to wear a ballgown. I think it however big or casual someone wants to go would be fine. “
“I am never letting anyone set me up again,” Egan said with a groan, “Last night, I swear comes in one of the blind date horror stories. I should submit it to Buzzfeed,”
“Bad blind dates are the worst. You never want to be rude, but you also are looking for any way to get out of it” Melrose mused. “ What happened?”
“ If you stay for another drink, I promise I’ll pay for it” Billie replied as she glanced over to her companion. She wasn’t out to party specifically, she just didn’t feel like going home yet since it was still early out. There was no point to just pack it in on a such a nice night. “ Or maybe the next couple?” She teased as she relaxed in her seat for a moment.
