“NO SHIT ?” she asks, grin now splitting her cheeks. she's using all of her self control to stop herself from squealing and jumping up and down, if only so that she doesn't spoil her own plan. “okay, so, the proposal needs to be extravagant, obviously. we both know noé deserves TOP NOTCH ONLY ! i'm thinking a destination proposal with an even more extravagant wedding, but we'll get there after she says yes.” as if everything is already set in stone, but as always, once beatriz gets herself started there's no stopping her. “as for baby names, i've always thought BEATRIZ was just absolutely beautiful, don't you ?” eyelashes bat toward him for a few seconds, before continuing. “if you're not feeling it though, which i don't see why you wouldn't, nina and cora are close seconds. boy names aren't really my thing, sorry.”
꩜ he should've known even playing around about the dumb idea would've been a mistake . but he had no other plans for the day , he could entertain her thoughts and have fun with it . “ why aren't you writing any of it down ? take this seriously , please . ” the pleading almost sounded believable . and maybe it would have , had it not come from caio himself . “ the wedding has to be in brazil , that's non negotiable . i'll rent out a small island . fuck it , i'll buy an island , name it noémia . ” since extravagance was what they were searching for . “ not really , no . but i'll keep it in mind for baby number five , if we ever get there and it's somehow a girl . i'll see what i can do about the no boys thing too , but that's up to fate . anything else before i start buying plane tickets to the bahamas for our honeymoon ? ”
she has her knees tucked up on the chair, to the point her chin is resting on them, when caio walks in. she takes the cup with a pleasant ❛ thank you! ❜ and wraps her fingers around it, looking up at him from beneath her eyelashes with an amused smile. ❛ i was figuring out how to get my new favourite couple back together, actually. speaking of… what shirt size are you? ❜ she reaches out and pinches the bottom of the one he was wearing playfully, giving it a small tug, hoping to avoid answering the question honestly – she didn't think caio needed to hear about her hours-long valentine's themed crying session. ❛ something for cleo, i hope… ❜ her eyes gaze upon the screen briefly, teeth finding her lip as she rolls the idea over in her mind, looking back at him with a sudden sparkle. ❛ do you want to hear it? ❜
꩜ gaze followed the movement of her hand as she tugged on his shirt , but quickly travelled back up to answer her question . “ large , what's the relevance of it ? ” was she going to buy him clothes now ? “ about those plans , cancel them . turns out i have to ask you to marry me soon . now , i can't give you many details so you're still surprised when i do propose ― kind of need the tears for the professional photos i'm having taken of the moment ― but expect extravagance and a big fat diamond . you can thank your cousin for that , she orchestrated the entire thing . even the names of our first kids . they're gonna be so cute , little nora and cora . ” he was almost sure those were not the names beatriz had said , but he had no time to search his memory for accuracy on nonsense . the man pulled up a chair and place it next to his future bride's , nodding his head at her next question . “ obviously . ”
as someone who regularly acts on a whim herself , vada should’ve been okay with him shamelessly plopping down across from her , and yet she could barely resist the urge to shoot another ‘ what the fuck ’ in his face. her expression practically says it anyway. " wow , i didn’t know this place has a one - on - one quality control with its customers now. that shit’s crazy. " she leans back in her seat with arms crossed , eyes still fixated on the stranger. " well , you’re the quality control guy. couldn’t you tell what it was ? " lips pursed in thought , feigning disappointment. " i mean , it tastes fine to me — must be your crusty old palate. some people get picky with age , i hear. it's a fuckin' hazelnut latte. "
꩜ “ mhm , they― we have incredible customer service . write a yelp review , i'll take tips too . large bills , preferably . ” she would need to be a special kind of aloof to believe he worked there , and he hoped she wasn't . although having conversations with people who had trouble picking up on social cues was very entertaining . so maybe he hoped she was . “ that's more of a sommelier's job , i just make sure they're not disgusting . ” another shrug . “ then it is a matter of bad taste . ” then he was already back up to go order their drinks and food . “ so are you alone by choice or is this inviting personality of yours to blame ? ”
nesrin had been in a world of her own while she waited for caio. which was made obvious as she jumped a little when she heard his voice. she grew confused, though, as he continued, " summer fragrances are my favourite, though. is it really that bad? i thought the reminder of brighter days might've been nice. " she loved her perfumes. she enjoyed discovering them and forming her own collections. she felt a little disappointed that ciao didn't seem to enjoy it. she'd thought hard about what to wear before she'd headed out. " oh - " she went to protest but instead, allowed him to make his own mistakes since she wasn't quick enough. " i wasn't sure how long you'd be.. " she explained. " that's alright. at least you showed up, right? "
꩜ “ it's in the same vicinity as wearing furr coats in july . no one can really stop you from doing it , but you're still in the wrong . ” or maybe hed just been indoctrinated to thinking wearing the wrong fragrance was an unforgivable crime . the difference there was that , for someone with his surname , it might as well have been . for her , not so much . yet , there he was , acting like the law applied to the woman just as well as it did to him . “ i'll help you categorise them later . ” he gave her a confused look , eyebrows shooting up . “ did you question whether i would or not ? ” he wasn't one to back down on his word without a forewarning . he said he'd be there . he was there . late or not .
"It flatters me that you think I know what the hell bergamot is, let alone what scents are made for different seasons. You're lucky I put anything on after leaving the gym besides soap and deodorant." Wes didn't have a chance to properly answer before Caio was sipping at the drink waiting on the table, and his nose crinkled up in bemusement. "I hate to burst your bubble dude, but I'm gonna. That drink was already here when I sat down, but it was the only table open." Wes failed to contain a deep laugh as he pushed out the chair across from him with his foot in invitation. "For the shitty driver and backwash coffee, drink's on me."
꩜ “ so no body glitter ? on carnival week too , colour me disappointed . ” not that he expected the other to know about brazilian holidays and the body glitter culture around it , but it didn't stop him from acting offended by it nonetheless . “ and i understand why they left it here . ” it tasted like nothing anyone should ever ingest . “ good thing i have health insurance . ” because he'd never be able to afford a hospital bill for stomach aches . “ throw in a muffin as well , traffic arguments open my appetite .”
“i'm so glad you decided to gather with me today," she grins, using her best business professional voice. she'd binged two seasons of shark tank the night before, preparing herself for the ( admittedly ) insane proposal she was about to pitch to caio. “i know you're probably wondering why i called this little shindig in the first place,” she's stalling now, hands waving between them as she adjusts herself in her seat. “i'll cut to the chase. what if instead of going ex - chasing, you and noémia just RAN OFF INTO THE SUNSET TOGETHER ?”
꩜ he'd been told he had a staring problem before . countless times too . but it was hard not to stare blankly at someone when they come into your house unannounced , speak as if they had something important to say , and then all that comes out of their lips is nonsense . “ you know what , that convinced me . now you have to help me plan the proposal . and , oh , pick out a ring ! ” he'd learned years prior to fight absurdities with bigger absurdities . “ do you have baby name suggestions too ? because i'm all ears and want at least three . ”
it all happened way too fast for vada to even keep up , leaving her momentarily stunned , hazel eyes wide as he rambles on. " first of all , what the fuck ? " is the only response she could manage — for the record , she’s not even waiting on someone here , nor does she know who this guy is. " second of all , what the fuck ? " because once is not enough , and while vada usually lets her intrusive thoughts win , this has to be another level of not giving a fuck. either that , or he’s just painfully oblivious. " you always come up to people and taste test their fuckin’ coffee or something ? " she asks , words dripping with sarcasm despite the curiosity.
the twice confirmed surprised expression only worked to help caio realise she was not the person he was there to meet . which still didn't stop him from pulling up a chair and sitting down nonetheless . “ yes , it's called quality control . and that is godawful . ” he offered a smirk . “ clearly i mistook you for someone i know . now , what is it that i just drank so i can replace it ? do you want a croissant too ? doesn't matter , i do , so you'll get one as well . ” and then he simply sat there staring at her , waiting for the coffee order .
theodora found it incredibly rare to find someone whose brain moved as fast ( or, in caio's case, faster ) as hers does, but it's always fun when she does. “bergawhat ?” before she can answer his coffee question, he's already helping himself, and before she can address his first comment, he's onto the next. “okay, yeah, the tea was mine. as for the perfume, i honestly don't know what i've got on.” the truth was, she'd closed her eyes and stuck her hand into her drawer of fragrances, picking the bottle that just felt right and spraying it on. “you also don't have to apologize for being late." she had also ran late as well, having just gotten here a few minutes earlier. “but you do have to sit. the standing is a little … UNSETTLING.”
“ bergamot . it's a citrus fruit , like an orange , lemon , tangerine . used a lot in fragrances , gives a fresh summery feel . no good for eating though . ” he'd assumed the tea was , in fact , hers so the confirmation only had him shrugging . he'd ask for another one when getting up to order his own drink , but then she confessed to not knowing what she wore and he stopped. “ so you just … put whatever on ? ” a crime . a real one . “ no . that's not how it works . there are categories : day , night , winter , summer , signature― fuck , i sound like my mother . ” that realisation alone was enough to make him shut the fuck up , he would rather go silent than start sounding like he belonged in the position he'd spent years fleeing . “ white musk and iris , they suit your personality . it's what your signature scent needs to have . ” then he started going through his brain to find something with those notes . “ bella blanca , oscar de la renta . do you want something to eat ? ”
she hates that he's right , bottle of parade constantly rotating in her collection began to feel like more of a necessity than just a splurge , and who was she to deprive herself of the joy that was one of her favorite smells . " you're so annoying , literally the one day i'm not wearing commodity , " posture relaxes in her chair , arms folded across her chest in defeat . " anything can be a winter scent if you wear it from december to march , " she says , eyes quickly becoming alight when credit card is slid across the table in her direction . " it's exactly what it sounds like , i think your hair might be getting too long and cutting off the circulation to your brain , " hand reaches to grab the card before he has a chance to take it back , rising from her seat , she gives caio's arm a gentle shove before making her way to the pastry case full of treats . it's not too long after that she returns , another earl grey in one hand and a latte in the other that's set down in front of him before she crosses over to take her seat . " before you get grouchy , its just a latte . i didn't get you anything fun , since, you know , you hate joy , " ⸺ " any plans today or are you still just wandering around town like a lost puppy ? "
“ you're right , nothing could remind you more of the feel of snowflakes falling than the smell of orange trees . ” if the sarcasm was somehow lost in his voice , it could be easily found in his facial features that had an almost mockering smirk playing on his lips . “ admit it : everything's seasonal . otherwise you'd be drinking a mango smoothie right now , not tea with cinammon bubbles or whatever . ” he knew it was foam . “ cinnamon . do you have a perfume with cinnamon on it ? wear it ! ” but she likely wouldn't just to be petty . and he didn't blame her , considering most things he did and said to ava had the sole purpose of annoying the shit out of the red head . speaking of … “ you're just jealous my hair's healthier than yours . we do make haircare products too , by the way . i'll get you some , with cinnamon . good for hair growth too . ” and it wasn't even a lie . he waited for her to return with the drink and his card , tasting it and accepting that that would be what he'd be drinking for the next few minutes . “ aw , you know me so well . the latter , but maybe i'll tag along in whatever it is you're doing . ”
hasn't even had a chance to say hello yet and she's already being berated , barely given a moment's breath to catch up on the sentences that fly from his mouth so quickly she can't help but wonder if he even thinks before he speaks . though that's a question she gathers a quick answer to , " wait ⸺ " word croaks out of her mouth too late , hard to resist the urge to whack caio across the arm when he helps himself to a sip of her drink ⸺ so , she doesn't . " first of all , it's not bergamot , it's mandarin and honey and i will wear it whenever i feel like smelling like an orange tree , thank you very much , " she huffs , reaching to take a sip from her drink but stopping herself when she remembers that he'd taken it upon himself to contaminate . " i think the only idiot that lives in this town is you . . . and now you're an idiot that owes me another tea , " she says , ripping a piece of muffin from the top and popping into her mouth . " earl grey latte , and since you were late i think you should spring for cinnamon foam too . "
at the retort , he leaned in closer and took a deep breath . “ it's parade by céline , isn't it ? the orange tree smell is neroli . and bergamot . good perfume . ” he started , smirk creeping up into his features . “ for august . ” of course the smell of certain fragrances change when in contact with natural body oil , sweat and other products like moisturiser , so he could be wrong , but he'd spent his entire life running through perfume fabrics ( against his will , he'd much rather be at the beach ) . he liked to think he had a good sense of smell on him . “ you should try oud . sophisticated , wintery . ” the man pulled his wallet out of the back pocket of his trousers before sitting down across from her , taking his card out of it and sliding it towards her . “ i'm not even going to ask what in all of the existing fucks is cinnamon foam . have at it . get me something too ? just , not that . ”
“ so how did you spend the lover's holiday ? throwing heart-shaped confetti at people in the streets ? preaching the word of aphrodite like a jehovah's witness ? if you didn't serenade at least one person , i'll be disappointed . ” he placed the extra cup of hot chocolate he'd brought in front of her , almost like he hadn't bought it specifically for her ― he did ― but she was welcome to take it if she wanted . it wasn't a rare occurrence that he'd visit her at work . people were normally quiet and concentrated in recording studios , he enjoyed the peace it provided . and he had a lot of free time . “ what are you working on ? ”
starter: caio ( @philokalias )
location: somewhere down electric avenue
"Hey, have you ever considered meditation?" Mateo's been pushing it for the past three minutes and, unfortunately, shows no signs of stopping. "Or maybe, like, putting yourself in time out?" Maybe he's just too relaxed, finds too much joy in the way Caio's nostrils are always flaring, just waiting for the steam to start spilling out of his ears. He sips his coffee to hide his grin, though there's really no point — it's a permanent fixture on his face around his friend. "Maybe you should pick up a hobby, like carpentry or something. You know, instead of hissing at strangers like a feral cat."
“ no , but i have considered throwing you in front of a moving train at least five times today . ” he did have a therapist , but both he and the woman knew he never did his homework and the entire reason he even attended their sessions was so he could complain even more than he already did . it was what she was paid for anyway , listening to his shit . “ do i look like jesus to you ? ” maybe it was the hair . but carpentry ? “ i have hobbies . not my fault you injure yourself for a living and can never join . ”
“ you need to stop wearing summer fragrances during winter , there's absolutely no reason for my nostrils to be catching bergamot scents in february . ” was the first thing he said after arriving a good few minutes late to the place , a mental note to give them a proper warm perfume later being made . “ this mine ? ” he asked , already picking up the cup from the table and taking a big sip . “ nope . ” the taste was nothing like anything he'd ever order , so he immediately put it back down . “ and i would've been here on time if some idiot hadn't crossed a red light and pissed me off . but , you know , better late in this life than early to the next . ”
i spend almost all of my time feeling like I'm falling even further behind , and i know i'm so good at seeming like i'm not on the edge of a knife . i feel like everything i do is a lie , and all the words just further pull the wool over eyes . i know i'm no good at being who i am away from the light . i'm the pretender, what can i tell ya ? and i'm an imposter , but hell is a mender . i'm the pretender , what can i tell ya ? designed to deceive . so tell me who you want me to be .
𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝗌
𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞 : caio coxito granado salles . 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡 : january 8th , 1993 . 𝐚𝐠𝐞 : 33 . 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 / 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 : rio de janeiro , brazil . 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 : cis man . 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐬 : he + him . 𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 : 178cm / 5'10" ft . 𝐦𝐛𝐭𝐢 : entp ( the debater ) . 𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 : heterosexual + heteromantic . 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐬 : single . 𝐨𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 : running from responsibility like it's an olympic sport . 𝐝𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞 : master in business administration from harvard .
𝗁𝗂𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗒
it's always those with too much that have the most to complain . with this man , it is no different . conceived by two heirs of different empires , it was no surprise that caio grew up living a live he didn't feel was his own . it also surprised no one when his parents divorced when he was merely three , too in love with their careers to show any kind of affection for each other . it didn't affect the boy as much as most would assume at first ; the adults barely had any time for themselves , what makes you think they viewed him as anything other than the next to bear the weight of their responsibilities ? but then his father decided to move out of the country , taking his business elsewhere and that was when things started going south , because he became an asset the two had fight to for in the divorce settlement . in the end , he stayed with his mother in brazil , spending summers with his father in the united states .
childhood was nothing extraordinary , neither was most of his adolescence , at least not until college years approached and the pressure started being applied with more frequency . business and economics had been the decided path for caio before he learned what a college course was and , at the time , he didn't bother arguing . he was seventeen , it would be useless . strings were pulled , his academics and incredible grades were flaunted , and harvard business school welcomed him soon enough . with every new class , the man was more and more convinced he wanted nothing to do with any of it , the frustration and lack of power over his own life shaped his now explosive and a temper shorter than a one year old , because the future held something worse .
and soon as college was done , the tug a war began : his mother expected him to go back to brazil and learn every aspect of the centuries old perfumary business , his father wanted him to stay in boston and start on working on banking straight away , he wanted to disappear . at first , feeling trapped and like those were his only two options , he chose to go back home and lean on his mother's side ; he could try to work more with the less management side of the perfume house , it seemed a lot more enjoyable than any position in a goddamn bank . it wasn't that he hated the companies , he simply disliked the lack of freedom that came with them . it was going well until his mother started pushing harder for him to attend board meetings instead of visiting the fabrics smelling different fragrances all day and giving his opinion on bottle designs . that's when he decided to take a step back and move back to massachusetts .
his father was thrilled , expecting that meant he'd be jumping ships and moving to the banking part of it . and he tried , but didn't last two whole years without exploding and cussing out everyone in sight before telling the old man it simply wasn't for him . none of it was . of course , mother thought it meant he'd return yet again ― he'd never exploded like that working with her aftert all ― but it didn't . he chose to stay jobless instead , living off family fortunes and finally free of responsibility he hadn't chosen to bear .
𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗌𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅𝗂𝗍𝗒
essentially a piece of shit . he does every now and again manage to pull a sense of humour out of his ass , but most of the time you'll see a scowl and receive short answers filled with sarcasm and lack of warmth . thinks a sad childhood justifies his lack of human decency . if you want to see this man throw hands , just pick on someone who doesn't have a way to defend themselves and watch how his eyes turn to lava . hypocritical trust fund baby with an eat the rich mentality , will jump ships if the revolution happens even if he knows every relative of his is getting offed , and him too eventually . not a morning person , phone on do not disturb the entire time so if you think of calling him with an emergency at two in the morning , you might as well not .
𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗌𝗂𝖻𝗅𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗇𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌
why would you wanna put your character through the hell that is dealing with this guy??? protect them omg. anything? i have no specific ideas right now.
to him, the stars seemed like so many musical notes affixed to the sky, just waiting for somebody to unfasten them. someday the sky would be emptied, but by then the earth would be a constellation of musical scores.
𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗸𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝘀 . a dependent , private & multimuse roleplaying blog associated with ciderpointhq . dni .
