Nicholas Andrew Cook

[nicholasandrewcook]

mikael-valentine​:

Despite it being another night all alone, Mikael figured he could treat himself to a decent home cooked meal.  The man had venison in the freezer that he killed several weeks ago; all he needed was a few fresh vegetables to pair it with for the dish.  The Valentine strolled through the area, debating on getting a few other things for the week.  Gazing along the fresh vegetables a sudden stir caused his attention to turn next to him to see someone struggling with their bag and their items spread out on the ground.

Without hesitation, Mikael began gathering a few of the items to assist the other man.  “You know you’re not supposed to overfill the bags right?”  He questioned as he held onto a few of the things.  Seeing his hands full, he offered a smile.  “Do you need help taking all of this out?  It appears you got your hands full.”

“In my defense, the guy at the vegtable stall filled it for me but i think this will be the last time i forget to bring my reusables” he smiled at the man “that would be great actually, i was about to buy some meat to go with this meal, so if you have somewhhere to rush to i don’t want to keep you. Hoping this stall has some more bags or i may be juggling it to my car” He chuckled.

He hadn’t seen Mikael since he left Asteria after school, but he was happy to see another familiar face. “How you been  Mikael? it’s been a hell of a few years since i last saw you, you’re looking good man.”

[world-of-ryan]

[world-of-ryan]

[nicholasandrewcook]

Where: Asteria General Who: Vasilisa @vasilisaxvolkova

Nick had been pondering going to see how she was since he found out what happened, but wasn’t sure how she would take him visiting they had barely seen each other since they arrived back in town only in the forest, and at his party. They weren’t close anymore, he didn’t even have her phone number, but he couldn’t help but worry. He had been putting it off for a couple days now, relying on word of mouth on how she was but there wasn’t that much, and it wasn’t like he could ask Cam now he had left town again.

Nick had dropped his mum off at an appointment in the hospital. He decided instead of sitting in the cafe and waiting for the hour consultation to be over, he’d head to the desk and find out where her room was, if only to see how she was himself, he had been truly imagining the worst. He went to the small florist outside the main doors picking up a bunch of little purple flowers.

He made his way to the room, the nurse at the desk said she was stable but still being observed which was a good sign he assumed. He made his was to the door he was told was hers and stepped inside not wanting to be too loud incase she was asleep he didn’t want to wake her up if that were the case he would leave the flowers and go.

He was a little taken aback by how she looked people had mentioned concussion, which hadn’t suprised him,, but the discription he had heard of the crash had prepared him for more. She did look really hurt, her small frame looking so fragile lay in the bed. He wasn’t sure but by the looks of her if she was in a full snooze or just resting, so he went to place the flowers on the bed side quitely. Before standing up straight to leave her to rest.

[nicholasandrewcook]

ethan-woods​:

“I wasn’t talking about a six pack of beer.” Ethan’s natural inclination was to tease. He couldn’t count the amount of times he got in trouble as a kid for having a smart mouth. Some habits were hard to break. “The only light I have on me is my shining personality.” He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small lighter. “Oh, and I guess I have this lighter too.” He tossed it to Nick. “In case my Grindr date wanted to smoke weed. Nothing beats a high fuck.”

"How did you know it was the 10 inch i was confessing to having?" He said with a laugh, before stepping forward to accept the light lighting the cigarette he really hated the habit but stress had really been getting to him lately. "well now that i don't doubt you seem to have an engaging persoality if you're like this all the time." He definitely found the guy amusing and was happy to laugh along "well here's hoping that's part the reason he isn't here yet and its not something like him standing you up" he smiled at the guy. " want some company while you wait or will he assume you've given up waiting and settled for me?"

[nicholasandrewcook]

emmivalentine​:

Emmi was on summer break and while she wasn’t interning with Oisin again until the following semester in a few months, she was volunteering at his rescue shelter so they still saw each other every week. But, she had much more time on her hands now and whatever she didn’t spend with Brayden was spent exploring the town or with family or Phee. The swear she heard nearby startled a giggle out of her as she approached to help.

“Here, I got it.” She was crouching down and picking up all the stray veggies she could salvage, dropping them into one of the reusable bags she had brought with her. “Here you go, drop the rest of yours inside and take it. It’s yours now.” Emmi smiled brightly at him. “How’re you? Nick, right?” She vaguely remembered him, he was an older man and she was sure he knew at least some of her brothers. “Enjoying the nice breeze this morning?” She was kind and didn’t fret even a second before offering.

Nick looked up at the young Valentine with a big smile “Thanks” He chuckled at his own stupidty, “You’re too nice” He placed placed the veggies in his arms into the bag and grabbed the last few by his feet. “Do you go around rescuing people from their own stupidy often” He laughed as he stood up the bag now in his hands. He smiled as she questioned his name with a slight nod “Yeah Nick, you’re Emmi aren’t you? I rememebr you from way back when” He smiled “Though you we just a little kid back then” He chuckled. He had known her brothers though the years it was hard to live in Asteria and not be aware of the Valentines.

“I’m doing good, just grabbing some ingredients to cook for my parents later, promised I’d take that one task off them today and head over to theirs since i have a day off work.” He looked at her array of reusable bags “How about you? Clearly coming more prepared than me. Getting food for the week or something special? I should know better too having lived in England when they stopped providing any free bags to shoppers.” He had a load of bags on his boat out of habit now but since he hadn’t offered to go shopping until after heading to the hospital that morning, and his boat being further away from his parents then the market he hadn’t thought to go back for them. “Hows things for you Emmi? Caught up with Dylan a while ago seems a lot of your family are doing good for themselves now, unsuprisingly.”

[nicholasandrewcook]

petervalentine​:

He glanced back at the man and nodded, turning his attention back to his daughter.  “Yeah, I try to keep an eye on her as best I can but she is surprisingly fast for having such short little legs.”  Peter joked, reaching for his bottle of water and taking a sip after he spoke.  He spent a lot of time with Maddie at this park, her energy level was unreal and the backyard could only entertain her for so long before she needed to run around with her little friends. “Doin’ my best, man.  Being a dad is a lot more work than I thought it was gonna be.”

“That’s kids though right, more enery then you can imagine at later ages, i swear i keep up with fitness but i still wonder if i can keep up with some kids in regards to how long they spend running around without a single struggle.” He let out a light chuckle, He listened to the other man with a smile, it was something he really wanted in the future to have a little one or two, “I guess they take up more time then you first expect,” He said with a grin, “But all worth it right?”

[yvessainttyler]

Hollis crosses the room slowly but both surely and unsurely. “Sorry to bother you… I’ve just been watching you struggle with that for, like, ten minutes. You sure you don’t need help?”

@asteriastarters

[nicholasandrewcook]

Nick had promised to sort some fencing repairs for his dad and was currently at the hardware store trying to load on enough fencing pieces onto the flat trolly he had picked up, he had managed a couple times to get things balance but every time he started moving one started to slide off and he had to stop again to rebalance everything. He was just in the middle of trying to rebalance when he heard the young woman offer help, He looked up and smiled “You know what that would be great actually, thank you.” He looked at the stack trying to think how the two of them could keep it stable and get it to the check out without more slipping “Maybe if one of us holds them stable and the other pushes?” He questoned slightly.

[katxrhodesarchive]

nicholasandrewcook​:

“You’re too right. I guess I can’t help but hope for the former, even if for some people it is one of those things they look back on and feel shit for a period of time, the mind can be shit to you sometimes.” He smiled at the woman, “Now that is bound to make you smile, all i have is  dog, no nieces or nephews either but it must be great to have a little one to keep you entertained with the fun they come up with.” He said, he loved kids when he did get the chance to be around friends little ones but it wasn’t often.

“It certainly can be, but then again it also keeps ahold of our greatest memories so I’m willing to compromise with that,” she shrugged, chuckling softly. Kat nodded at what he said, “You’re not wrong about that, there’s never a dull moment when it comes to them.” Her phone buzzed and she looked down at the notification, “speaking of, my daughter actually needs picked up. It was nice to speak to you though… see you around,” she smiled at him as she stood up, quickly making her way down the path in the direction she had originally come. 

[nicholasandrewcook]

End

[petervalentine]

location; the park across from the library with; open @asteriastarters​

Peter sat at one of the picnic tables in the park with his lunch, working on some case files as his daughter Madelyn played with a friend.  He kept an eye on her and her little friend as he worked, smiling at the way her little blonde pigtails bounced as she ran across the grass.  “Not too far, Maddie!”  He called out, reminding her to stay close where he could see her.  He heard the footsteps behind him and turned his head to the other person with a smile.  “Does it make me sound like a helicopter parent if I tell her she can’t run past those trees?”  Peter smiled, letting his eyes move back to watch his child.

[nicholasandrewcook]

Nick was making his way through the park slowly on his way back from grabbing some coffee in the downtown area, an asortment of books in this bag that he had picked up at the library before weighing down the satchel over his shoulder. He watched as a man close by called after a little girl apparently named Maddie, assumedly his child or maybe just someone he was minding. Nick shook his head with a light smile, nice to see someone watching the child closely. The mans next words confirmed she was his and he let out a light laugh “Not at all it just shows you love her and want to make sure nothing happened. Some parents don’t watch as closely sometimes, I’d say it just makes you a good father”

[nicholasandrewcook]

ethan-woods​:

Location: Downtown

Open: To Anybody

Ethan sat comfortably in the bar patio, absentmindedly playing Runescape on his phone. He had been there for a few minutes, and he would intermittently take a sip out of his Vodka tonic as he waited. Suddenly, he looked up from his phone when he saw the other person approaching him. “Well… You’re definitely not my Grindr date. And— yes, I’m using the word date loosely. But unless you’re packing a six pack and a ten inch, you ain’t the one.” He smirked, looking insufferably smug as usual. “So, what do you want now?”

Nick had made his way into the garden of the bar glass of whisky in his hand, as he slipped his hand into his pocket annoyed to find he hadn’t remembered to bring a lighter, he didn’t often smoke but when he was stressed he ended up having a couple to calm himself, recently he had been leaning on it more then normal, something he knew was wrong when he would need his lungs in good condition for any dives but it was only really one or two a week. Sighing he made his way over to a guy who was sipping on a drink nearby. He was a little suprised at the comment he was greeted by and let out a light chuckle “I mean yes to one of those" He said amused “I was actually going to ask if you had a light on you.”

[nicholasandrewcook]

Location: Farmers Market Who: Open @asteriastarters​

Nick had been to his parents that morning after driving them to and from the hospital for his mothers Chemo session, it had become something they were making almost a routine since he had returned to town, he would take them to the hospital for the session, go do some work in the cafe area while his dad sat with her, and then he would take them back home and then come back in the evening for dinner.

He had promised to cook for them today and seeing as he wasn’t needed at the lab today, he had made his way to the farmers market that was open in the downtown area to get some fresh ingredients to make a shepards pie for them all. He was stood near the stalls waiting to be served when the paper bag with some veg he had already bought, broke and all his purchases fell to the floor some of it rolling in the area around him. “Shit” He mumbled as he crouched down to start grabbing things up even though he didn’t have anywhere to put them now. 

[vasilisaxvolkovaarchive-deactiv]

nicholasandrewcook​:

He looked away as she mentioned not being remembered for the right reasons, he knew he wasn’t someone who would be a pleasant memory for he and felt even worse for his slip that could have come off flirty he had no right to behave like that with her ever again. He nodded without looking back at her not wanting food and simply mumbled a gentle “Good” 

He let out a light chuckle as she mentions peoples behaviours after being under the influence. “Yeah I could see some silliness but hopefully not tonight” He smiled nodding at her wanting to stay oblivious to the bad, “Yeah much better to associate the water here with cool wrecks and interesting marine life.” He smiled taking another sip of the whisky as she handed it back to him. “Sounds like a great place to do some digs.” He nodded. 

“I couldn’t see myself living on the land for a while now,.I like being able to head out and get work done without the fuss of hiring a boat, plus nothing nicer then anchoring somewhere in open water to take time to think on things.” He took a breath his eyes going to a frame on his makeshift desk in front of them, a picture of his parents smiling in it “I can’t see myself leaving while moms still ill” He said slowly, before smiling at her, he didn’t know how things would go for his mother but if it took years, then he wouldn’t accept any job elsewhere for years, he had a good job and a few universities interested in guest talks with him.

Vasilisa wished more than anything in the world, that things could go back to how they once were. But she wasn’t sure if they ever could. So much time had passed and she was scared to even bring any of it up. She was terrified she’d crumble like she had before. 

“I wouldn’t be surprised if something does happen… I’m sure there’s a lifeguard here somewhere,” she joked, a little smile moving over her face. She licked the remnants of whisky from her lips as she thought of the small lake in her home town in Russia… what it looked like when the rogue soldiers came. She was sure nothing was scarier than what the five year old Vasilisa saw there. She still had nightmares. “Yeah it was; one of my most successful digs in Europe actually.” 

She nodded along with what he was saying, finding it was best to be silent when there wasn’t much to say. One thing that could be said about Vasilisa was that she had no issue with silence. While Mom’s still ill. The words shot through her like ice and she whipped her head to face him, looking for any sign she had misheard him. Nick’s mom had been one of the only people, save for her parents, who knew she had left Asteria. She didn’t know what was wrong with her but she felt a tightness in her chest and she knew then she couldn’t say bring herself to ask. Coward, her inside voice told her. It wasn’t wrong. “I should go and check if anyone needs some help up there… I’m slacking,” she made a half attempted joke before moving to her feet and out the door, but not before turning to glance at him, “Happy Birthday Nick.” She let the door click closed as she made her way up the stairs to the deck. 

[nicholasandrewcook]

End

[nicholasandrewcook]

roman-cohen​:

Lazy Afternoon

Where: Downtown 

With: Anyone

Roman had just gotten done doing a deal in Kings Park. Some of his best customers were the wealthiest people in North Carolina. He was a trusted source because people knew that he would keep his mouth shut. People knew Roman as the typical timid and shy boy and he wanted to keep it that way. At least to the public eye. Roman had decided to grab a cup of coffee from one of the local coffee shops near his college campus. He ran his fingers through his dark curls as he waited impatiently in line for his daily dose of caffeine buzz. Roman finally got in front of the line and began to take his order. He ordered his usual which was just a tall iced coffee with splenda and a splash of almond milk. “Yeah and I’ll pay for the next order as well.” Roman usually wasn’t this generous, but he felt the need to do his kind act for the year. Karma and what not. Plus he had gotten good tips that morning. 

Nick had been sat in the coffee shop with his laptop sorting out a presentation for his next guest lecture to include some recent research to intruige the students, when he quickly headed back over to the counter to order another cup to keep him going. There was a bit of a queue but he wasn’t too bothered by it, he simply took out his phone and decided to go through some emails while he waited, unable to not be productive in some way when he was in the zone. Nick smiled at the young man in front of him in the line at his offer “You’re very kind.” He responded, “You’re also lucky i’m an americano man, and not someone who like a frappe with every topping and syrup known to man or i would be breaking the bank.” It wasn’t often he would see someone of college age doing somethng so generous, mostly because they were quite tight on cash given all their bills and partying in some cases.

[blacklist-redemption]

Ryan Eggold by Photographer David Zimand.

[nicholasandrewcook]

katxrhodes​:

“Yes, or it will be one of those moments when you cringe every time you think about it… it can go either way,” she replied, wiping away a tear of laughter. “Oh I do get to laugh a lot; I have two kids so there’s no shortage of laughter for me, so no need to feel sad for me.” She took a sip of her coffee, relaxing a little in the bench.

“You’re too right. I guess I can’t help but hope for the former, even if for some people it is one of those things they look back on and feel shit for a period of time, the mind can be shit to you sometimes.” He smiled at the woman, “Now that is bound to make you smile, all i have is  dog, no nieces or nephews either but it must be great to have a little one to keep you entertained with the fun they come up with.” He said, he loved kids when he did get the chance to be around friends little ones but it wasn’t often.

[nicholasandrewcook]

miarhodes​:

“Fair enough.” Mia smiled. “I’ve spent the last ten years in New York, so for me, this it hot.” She leaned back, enjoying the sun’s rays as they hit her face. Sunbathing was no big deal, but exerting any physical energy while it was this warm and humid was a no go for Mia. “Oh, just a beach day I suppose. I’m back with my parents for a bit, so just getting away for a few hours. What about you?” She asked, continuing the small talk. 

Nick let out a chuckle “Now that makes sense definitely colder winters there and certainly somewhere i don’t expect anyone spends a day at the beach often” He smiled Nick tented his legs leaning his forearms on his knees as he looked at the water “That makes sense, oh how is that going? I see my parents a lot since getting back but I don’t know how I would handle living there right now, as much as nice home-cooked meals from mom is a good treat. I forgot how great it is here” He smiled taking in the calm view.