THE brunette lets out a short giggle as she took a sip of her wine. he looked miserable and yet she was enjoying the wedding - not because she thought it was cute or loved love. she couldn’t complain when there was an open bar. “this.” she tilts her sixth wine glass, her eyes pacing from the glass to his face, “has mine this night so fun.” she smiled, taking another sip before turning herself towards him, we can make some fun.” she suggested, a brow arched as she began to speak, “shots? want to go pants the dj? join in the cha cha slide? come on, anything you consider enjoyment.”
“MAYBE THAT’S MY PROBLEM.” his eyes hold an intense gaze with her wine glass. how much has she consumed by now? he’s not keeping count, but he knows he has some catching up to do. “maybe i just haven’t had enough liquid courage to get my spark going yet.” a smirk as he finishes the rest of whatever concoction the bartender made him last. “shots are my obvious choice. i’d have to be high off something serious to get on anyone’s dancefloor and do the cha cha slide, i’m pretty sure no one wants to see that dj get pantsed, maybe if he was five years younger and had any ounce of real musical taste but...”
“HOW FUCKING CRAZY WOULD IT BE IF MAPLEVIEW WENT VIRAL FOR THIS HOT ASS MESS OF A PUBLICITY STUNT?” there’s not an ounce of sobriety in his system at this point. all of the blunt opinions he’s been hoarding throughout the wedding suddenly spring to the forefront of his mind, dying to be spoken until he has no choice but to give in. “seriously though, i saw at least ten different people recording the chicken dance segment no one asked for. i’ll be surprised if it doesn’t end up on twitter by the end of the night if it hasn’t already.” ( @ophliasfm )
“THAT GROOMSMEN OVER THERE KEEPS GIVING YOU THE EYES.” nikolai can’t contain his expansive grin, the observation really tickles him. “don’t look back yet, but he totally wants to take you in the bathroom for a wedding hookup.” if he wasn’t so drunk, nikolai probably would’ve kept the observation to himself but the effects of his fourth drink from the bar are weighing heavy on him, and suddenly he no longer feels as miserable as he did at the start of the wedding. ( @savannahraes )
“YOU GOT A LIGHT?” a simple enough question, the smirk on his face a result of the many alcoholic beverages he’s been chugging since the opening of the bar and also a natural resting state of his face. “more importantly though...” he lets his words linger a moment, he’s up to no good. “on a scale of one to ten, how likely is it that someone notices if i light up right here?” it’s the alcohol talking, fueling his need to stir up chaos of some sort. he’s bored and craving a high but also drunk enough to where he’s wondering if he could actually get away with it. “i mean, everyone’s already drunk out of their fucking minds, and i know i’m not the only one who feels like they might explode if they don’t get a puff in soon.” ( @penabrams )
IT WAS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE NIKOLAI’S PATIENCE WITH THE WEDDING RAN OUT. just barely making it on time, he sat in the back for the ceremony ( which proved to be as boring as he’d envisioned ) and he’d eaten at least three plates at the reception, back and forth between the food and bar, avoiding eye contact and any personal interactions. if it weren’t for his dad, he would be at home enjoying bong rips and his old records, the desire to leave getting stronger the more time he spent attending. “i can’t believe i’m actually at mayor levi’s fucking wedding.” alcohol induced giggles floating from his lips. “did you think he’d ever get remarried? i sure as hell didn’t. i thought for sure there wasn’t anyone crazy enough in this world to agree to a life sentence with his terrible taste in music and public gatherings.” ( @alanacs )
BARS AND BROODING. the two being right on brand for nikolai, no exceptions made for mayor levi and his wedding. honestly, he’s surprised he’s survived it for as long as he has. his initial plans were to skip the reception, but then he would have no motivation or real reason to show up at all. at least three drinks in, the filter he’s forced himself to uphold starts to wither away for every ounce of alcohol he consumes. there’s a long, dragged out sigh before he decides to say what he’s been thinking for the past hour and a half. “are you honestly enjoying this shit? because i’m not. i’ve actually never felt this miserable in my life.” clearly an exaggeration, the alcohol amplifying his already dramatic way with words. ( @zoeycohen )
“It was a shit show,” she laughed, taking a swig of her beer. “Makes for a good story, though, I suppose,” she trailed off. “Sometimes,” she nodded. “I’ve been to New York only about a dozen times.” She smiled at the other, noticing that he was giving her his full attention. “So how do you like Mapleview compared to New York?” She looked over at him. “Oh, I should tell you my name, right? I’m Raven. And you are…?” A small smirk turned her lips.
NIKOLAI CAN’T HELP BUT REMINISCE ABOUT HIS OLD LIFE IN NEW YORK. it was the complete opposite of the life he’s made for himself here in mapleview, one of restlessness and never ending chaos. mapleview is a whole different world, peaceful and sometimes too quiet for his liking. there’s a sick subconscious need for the chaos to continue, a part of him that can’t live without it, even though he’s aware that this life is better for him. “it’s safe to say that i get homesick sometimes.” there’s no guilt in his answer. “m’sure you enjoy london a lot better than this place. i know i would.” he lets his beer rest by his side as the alcohol travels through his blood, giving him a stronger sense of euphoria as it settles in. “i’m nik.” is all he offers up, the smallest smile occupying. “when’d you move here, raven?”
“New York. Ah, see, born and raised in London, moved at the age of 12 and have done a lot of camping since,” she murmured in her London accent, despite that she didn’t have a strong accent anymore for the most part. However, Raven sometimes caught herself slipping out a bit of an English accent but at other times she would slip out a Southern accent. “Rain… a lot of rain… we got completely rained out, it was unexpected, and my paintings were ruined, imagine wet paint–can paint be wet? yeah, well it was–everywhere. It’s very sad. An occasion to get out in nature and focus turned into a disaster. None of the campfire would light. My family and I were greeted by some bears up in Montana. But nothing too exciting. They avoided us, we avoided them,” she told him with a shrug. “Where in New York? My aunt and uncle reside in Queens.” She took a swig of her drink.
NIKOLAI’S DARK THICK BROWS ARCH THE MOMENT SHE PEAKS HIS INTEREST. he’s never met anyone who was born outside of the united states. hell, he’s never met anyone outside of new york and mapleview. what a sad reality, he thinks to himself. he notices the slight fluctuation in her accents, it’s intriguing enough to make him listen to her every word. “sounds like a shit show.” a sly smile forever growing on his lips. “the bronx.” he responds simply. “you ever go and visit?”
“it’s so funny meeting my old teachers at the health center,” says adrien. “i talked about a prophylactic salpingooophorectomy to my old language teacher and she looked so shocked when she realized i used to be the kid who apparently couldn’t spell ‘fascinating’ when i was ten.” he shrugged. adrien was always smarter than people assumed, just lazy. “try saying that five times fast, though. prophylactic salpingooophorectomy.” || @mapleviewstarters
NIKOLAI TRIES TO HOLD BACK THE GROAN THAT’S FIGHTING TO BE RELEASED, TRIGGERED BY THE USE OF MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY HE HAS NO REAL INTEREST IN LEARNING. “being a firefighter and all, i know some basic terminology but dude, what the fuck is a salping-ectomy-whatever the hell you just said?”
Raven skipped over to the other and smiled, taking a seat next to them. “Sure. Thank you.” She chuckled. “Not a fan of campfire songs? What about camping? We went camping so much when I was little… I have some horror stories, but most of the experiences were good ones,” she began to ramble but didn’t let herself continue on, waiting for the other’s reply.
NIKOLAI HADN’T GROWN UP WITH MUCH OF A CHILDHOOD. the streets of new york were a dangerous place. survival was always the goal getting in the way of him ever having a normal experience. “i grew up in new york love, not many places to camp ‘round there.” there’s a faint sigh of relief as he feels the alcohol start to settle in. “tell me one of these horror stories you’re mentioning. i’d rather hear those than the peachy versions.” the smirk that seems to forever remain on his lips grows wider. “i’m a little twisted like that.”
rory laughs at the boy’s comment. she usually didn’t drink much, much less beer, but she believed that a change every now and then was good for the soul. “i’ll accept.” she grabs the beer from nikolai’s hand. “i take it you’re not a big manilow fan, huh? can’t say that i blame you.” she takes a sip from the heineken.
NIKOLAI WASN’T SURE HOW THE OTHER WOULD TAKE HER COMMENT, BEING THE MAYOR’S DAUGHTER AND ALL. he’s pleased to see she has a sense of humor, not taking it too personal. “m’not a fan of any song that gets played on repeat, or horribly sung for that matter.” another chuckle as he feels his blood getting hot, a pleasurable side effect of the many beers he’s consumed in the past forty minutes or so. “tell me, am i the only one with mosquito bites that will probably last for another week?”
“Sure. I better catch up then.” Pax teases with a soft laugh, taking the offered beer. “If I never hear copacabana again in my life, it’ll still be too soon. Someone should’ve stolen the mayor’s guitar while he was asleep.”
NIKOLAI ISN’T AMAZING AT SOCIALIZING. the truth is, he sometimes finds it rather difficult. when you have to grow up fast and solely to survive, making friends is the last thing on your mind, he never had the luxury. he figures alcohol is the easiest way for him to make a connection, though probably not the healthiest way. “someone should have smashed that shit. i never want to go to another town event, pretty sure that man is batshit crazy.”
TAKING A SWIG OF HIS BEER — NIKOLAI LOCKS EYES WITH HIS TARGET OF CONVERSATION. “this is my fourth.” the curly-haired boy is referring to the heineken he’s clutching in his right hand. “want one?” a friendly gesture is somewhat rare for nikolai but he’s been trying. “anything to erase that fucking campfire song out of my head.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to try it?” Isaac asked, pointing to any random barrier one could find on a regular old street. “A little impromptu parkour. A little relay race? I bet you can’t make that jump.” Isaac suggested this for no other reason than he was itching to see if he himself could do this. That, and he wanted to see if anyone else was willing to take him up on a dare.
“I’M PRETTY FUCKING SURE.” nikolai grumbles. he feels like he’s being dared by a small child or prepubescent teen. something he’s certainly in no mood to entertain at the moment. “what the fuck is parkour, anyways?”
『 aron piper. twenty three. cismale. he/him. 』 oh heavens, is that NIKOLAI SCHMIDT from CHESTNUT DRIVE i see roaming around mapleview? minnie may’s always calling them -ABRASIVE & -PESSIMISTIC. i happen to think they’re not that bad! they’re a pretty cool FIREFIGHTER and every time i’ve seen them, they’ve always been +ECCENTRIC & +FREE SPIRITED. i hope i see them around again! 『 mack. 20. gmt. she/her. 』
coming from virtually nothing in the city of new york, it was no surprise to his peers when nikolai turned to a street gang to survive what life had become. born to a young teen mom who was scared, alone, and also not living in the best part of town, her grandparents coaxed her into giving her first born up, for a better life or whatever lie she needed to tell herself to go through with transaction. that’s how he’ll forever see it, like a drug deal. she handed him over and that was that. he’s never met her, nor does he want to...anymore. nikolai gave that up after his ninth birthday party, the theme was ninja turtles and of course she was a no show. he couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact she truly wanted no contact with him whatsoever. when he finally accepted that his life in the foster care system was the luck the universe dealt him, it was like a switch flipped.
the sweet, caring, curly headed boy who once had a twinkle of hope in his eye was gone. his bubbly naive outlook on life was ruined and he shut himself off emotionally for his biggest fear is getting attached to someone, needing them, and then being abandoned again. because of this, he joined a street gang at a very young age as a way to fill the void he has concerning family and belonging. don’t get me wrong, nikolai was a sweet kid but, he had to survive somehow and his baby face wasn’t doing him much good in the popularity department. he was an easy target, emotional, and vulnerable. weak. Rafael, the leader of the gang took him under his wing of some sort, protected him, fed him, gave him a place to sleep when he didn’t feel like being cramped in his foster parents home while they foster more kids than they’re supposed to at one time. in return? all nikolai had to do is sell a little weed, what’s the harm in that? it’s not like he’s a murderer. that’s how he sugarcoated it so he could live with himself. anything else the gang was involved in? that was none of his business and as long as he continued to mind it, he thought he’d be safe.
all of that changed when his best friend was murdered and died in his arms due to gang violence. nikolai spiraled farther down the wrong path and like a miracle, his biological father tracked him down and reached out to him. at this time, nikolai was sixteen and had never thought much about who his father was. his mother had given him up, he assumed his father had down the same. since he was still in the foster care system, it took time but eventually nikolai ended up being reunited with his father in mapleview and now resides in chestnut drive as a firefighter.
he can come off as emotionally distant and isn’t the best with making friends. part of him still lives like he’s in survival mode because he witnessed his best friend’s murder and often looks over his shoulder expecting the killer to find him and make for certain he will never tell. he can be paranoid, introverted, but also is very eccentric and authentically himself when he does express his personality (he is bisexual though that’s not something he advertises, it’s sort of just like ‘if you know you know, if you don’t then it isn’t your business to know’ he’s very private in general and doesn’t just offer up intimate details of his life, but he doesn’t go out of his way to necessarily hide his sexuality, he just doesn’t think it’s something that has to be spoken on). somewhere deep down is still that little boy with hopes and dreams and if you dig deep enough, you may be able to have a breakthrough with him.
he’s calmed down from his chaotic, disruptive past life and has built somewhat of a healthy relationship with his father since being in mapleview. new york city is a lot different than the small town but he’s grown to like it (though he would never admit that to himself) and has become a firefighter to satisfy his need for a good thrill and risk of safety that he’s used to from the gang life.
