un día a la vez ⋆.˚✮

independent original character for hbo max's the pitt.

[pmtcrn]

# PMTCRN , a private + selective portrayal penned by sammy ( 25, she / her , PST ) of andrea arellano torres — an emergency department nurse from HBO's the pitt. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. read guidelines before interacting.

∣∣∣ GOOGLE DRIVE. PROMPTS. CHARACTER STUDY. HEADCANONS. STARTERS.

A STUDY IN . . . grief that settles into your bones and learning how to live in spite of it , inherited resilience , the quiet loneliness of being the eldest daughter , & the so-called ❝ american dream ❞.

[pmtcrn]

the eyes do NOT lie !!!

[pittcaptain]

his attention turns back to her when she laughs softly. resting his chin against his arm as he listens to her. laughing quietly himself as she wonders about a cop out, but he doesn't interrupt her. only pulling his attention from her to thank the bartender and sliding a drink towards her. it was the least that he could do after even minorly insinuating that she shouldn't be here.

"sounds like a perfectly good reason to be here." sipping at the drink that he'd ordered, he glances at her once more before checking his watch. "all my responsibilities ended a few hours ago." he wasn't Jack, there was no way that he was going to extend his responsibilities past working hours.

watching her for a moment, he shifts once more. twisting in the seat to fully face her. "are you going to sit, or just leave me hanging?" he didn't mind either way. drinking with your boss wasn't something that most people would consider their 'ideal' night.

it was likely some sort of breach as far as HR was considered. he'd done worse things.

[pmtcrn]

she accepted the drink with a quiet laugh, wrapping her fingers around the glass before lifting it slightly in thanks. "this is exactly the kind of enabling i was looking for tonight." she took a sip, letting the drink settle some of the exhaustion she'd been carrying around all day.

andrea glanced at the empty stool beside him as soon as he extended the invitation. technically . . . he wasn't her boss. yes, chief of the emergency department. but she reported to the nursing director. there wasn't actually a rule against having a drink with robby after work. at least none that she was aware of. it beat sitting alone and ultimately ruminating because that's what she always did.

"leave you hanging ? " she repeated, a faint smile appearing. "that doesn't sound very much like me." the answer came easier than she'd intended. she slid onto the stool. the movement was casual. settling in, she turned slightly toward him, one elbow coming to rest against the bar. "besides," she added, lifting her glass towards her lips "if i'm the only one trying to avoid my responsibilities, i might as well do it with company. a little less depressing that way." brown eyes flicked toward him briefly. "now i'm curious." a small smile tugged at her mouth. "what's you're go-to order here when you're trying to pretend you had a normal day ? "

[sympatheticdominance]

i'm glad you think this is funny.

the pitt

He's not laughing. Nope. Serious face only, on this man. Definitely no tightening of his jaw as he looks at her so that his giggling doesn't start. Or continue. Nope! Robby is nothing but a professional. ".... would you like a hand?"

[pmtcrn]

the transfer itself had gone fine. the patient was settled. monitors were back on. nobody had fallen. nobody had coded. a success, by emergency department standards. then andrea had bent down to adjust the footrest on the stretcher before it got rolled out. and heard it. rrrrip. she froze immediately. for one terrible, hopeful second, she convinced herself it had come from somewhere else. the stretcher. the linens. the universe. anything but her. then the unmistakable feeling of a cool draft against the back of her thigh informed her otherwise. drea immediately planted herself in the far corner nearest the supply cabinet and refused to move which, understandably, caught robby's attention.

she groaned and dropped her head briefly. she was currently trapped. if she move, there's a very real chance half the emergency department was going to learn what color underwear andrea put on this morning. which was not information she intended to share. she sighed dramatically, glancing down at the jacket he was wearing. then back at him. then at the jacket again. " . . . how attached are you to that ? " her brown eyes narrowed. "or alternatively, i need you to walk behind me all the way to the scrub dispenser machine. like a very large, medically licensed privacy screen." her dignity was hanging on by a thread. much like her scrub pants.

[drhalepitt]

She can hear Andrea on the other side and her head smacks the tent , as she sighed relief that someone had answered . ❝ Yeah , yeah it's me . ❞ She's sat now , criss-cross on her bed , trying to make sure she savors every word , because it feels like connection again . A grounding she didn't have no matter how much she loves her unit . They're her friends , but this is family .

❝ I'd say sorry for interrupting what hopefully was a good dream , but I'm not , ❞ the giggle escapes her lips , and she has to clamp her mouth shut with her palm . It's such a rush of emotion that overwhelms her and she's so afraid to speak , the tears are prickling in the corner of her eyes .

She misses her too and doesn't shy away from telling her , ❝ I miss you so much , I wish I was there . ❞ The tears fall down her cheeks , but it helps to hear that she's missed . There's someone out there thinking of her too , like how she thinks of them . ❝ It feels weird not being in the hospital . I think of you guys all the time and what you're doing . Elia's watch is set to your time zone . ❞

Inhaling she sits there for a few moments , ❝ It's not as bad as I thought it would be . I can't really talk about what we're doing , but it's not bad . I still hate the sand , i'm dry like a lizard , Drea . I swear and I'm coming back with a tan and crepe skin . I can't have that . ❞

[pmtcrn]

the sound of igraine's voice hit andrea with enough force that for a second she couldn't do anything except close her eyes. "and even if you were sorry about it, you know i'd tell you not to be anyways." she chuckled softly. there it was. that familiar feeling she'd been missing. the easy comfort of talking to her best friend. the way everything seemed to settle back into place for a minute.

her thumb traced absent circles against the edge of her phone as she listened to igraine's words. the reassurance helped. more than she'd probably admit out loud. not because she'd been imagining the worst, but because not knowing was sometimes harder. "good," she said softly. "i'm glad it's not as bad as you thought. — i'm still gonna worry. as is my right." the complaint about the sand finally made her laugh. "the moment you're back, i'm taking your ass to the spa. just think of it this way: you're just exfoliating over there right now. maybe over-exfoliating but exfoliating nonetheless. i'm gonna get you the nicest cocoa butter body lotion and your skin is gonna be soft as fuck. it's a process." the teasing faded around the edges after a moment. just enough for the sincerity underneath to show through. "i'm really glad you called. it feels a little more normal hearing your voice."

[pittnights]

Ally reaches for Andrea's hand and squeezes, offering a bit of comfort before she puts gloves on and grabs all the little pieces of equipment she needs, putting the butterfly needle, a rubber tourniquet and two small collection tubes in a little tray. "I promise this will be quick and easy. I'm even using a butterfly needle so it's tiny. You shouldn't even feel it."

She rolls back to Andrea on the stool she's sat on and places the tourniquet on Andrea's arm, tapping the vein to see if it's viable. "You've got great veins. It'll be easy." She gets the butterfly needle ready, and as she does so, she starts to sing.

"~Pink Pony Club, I'm gonna keep on dancing at the Pink Pony Club, I'm gonna keep on dancing down in West Hollywood..." As she sings, she slides the needle in, eyes glancing up at Andrea, and connects the first collection tube. "Come on, you know the words."

[pmtcrn]

andrea accepted the squeeze of her hand immediately, holding onto it for a second longer than she normally would have. her eyes followed the tray as ally assembled everything, immediately landing on the butterfly needle. god, this was so embarrassing. and she couldn't help but feel like a hypocrite. she performs iv insertions all the time. and she's damn good at it too. she has given patients the same speech more times than she can count. yet when it's her turn to be the patient, she turns into the biggest baby. when the medical professional was a stranger, drea did her absolute best to not be difficult. this was ally though. there was a level of trust that allowed her to let her walls down a bit and show how much of a wimp she could be.

the tourniquet went on and she immediately turned her attention up at the ceiling, "i'm sorry about this. i literally don't know why i become such a nerv— " the singing cut her off. then came the familiar pinch. not terrible. not nearly as terrible as she'd been anticipating. still, she wrinkled her nose and kept her gaze firmly averted. at the mention of the song, andrea groaned softly. "no." a beat. "absolutely not." then another beat before she quietly muttered, ". . . i'm gonna keep on dancing at the pink pony club, pink pony club."

[pmtcrn]

A blue whales butthole can stretch approximately 3 1/2 feet, making it the second largest asshole on the planet next to your ex.

"HOLY SHIT ! i had no clue where you were going with that. thank you though. very true, very true. — seriously, fuck that guy. i'm sorta glad you didn't meet me back then. i was . . . kinda pathetic. never again though."

[drhalepitt]

She hoped she'd be half the doctor that Jack or Robby were , and so she took it as a compliment that Andrea thought the ED was lucky now to have her . ❝ You're welcome , I mean it . I don't think we'd get out of half of of the shit shows get into without people like you and Dylan . ❞

Igraine sets her glass down , head tilted at her ask . It's not that they'd never shared a meal , but she hadn't ever been invited by anyone before to sit down to a family meal . ❝ Uh , yeah absolutely ! I would really love that and to meet your little brother's so I can brag to them about how amazing their big sister is , ❞ the grin that settles over Igraine's face cannot be contained . No amount of honing her expression can dampen how wide her grin has become . ❝ That sounds really delicious , cochinita pibil , ❞ the word is foreign on her tongue , but she knows some spanish from being in the army .

❝ Unless you're the lady from the titanic and you get to eighty four years old and drop the whole ass hope diamond in the sea , ❞ Igraine smirked . ❝ But yeah , I think I just want to do something good . I don't know I think it's weird but my goal in life is just to have a family . I didn't have one growing up , or a good one . ❞

It's not that she's traditional , far from it , she doesn't have a dream of a white picket fence . She just wants a family. ❝ I feel too sober for this , ❞ she giggled .

[pmtcrn]

andrea's smile immediately widened at that. "oh, enrique is going to love you." the certainty in her voice came without hesitation. igraine had met her sister paulina already on a night out that ended with both of them waking up terribly hungover and sporting poorly drawn penises on their faces. it was a compliment, really. she liked igraine enough to feel comfortable playing a childish prank on her. pau wasn't nearly as openly affectionate as andrea or enrique. she wasn't cold — far from it. she just expressed affection differently. less hugs, more relentless teasing. less sentimental speeches, more showing up when it mattered and acting like it wasn't a big deal. if paulina liked you, she'd make fun of you, include you in plans without asking, and somehow make you feel like family while pretending she couldn't care less.

enrique, on the other hand, had never met a person he couldn't love. he was easily the most affectionate of the three siblings. the first to hug someone, the first to check in. he collected people the way some people collected hobbies. friends, neighbors, coworkers, strangers he'd spoken to for five minutes. somehow they all ended up under his wing eventually. where pau showed love through comfortable familiarity, kiki gave it away freely and without embarrassment.

the titanic comment nearly made her choke on her drink. she dropped her head, laughing. "eighty-four years of being a good person and then you decide to personally traumatize an entire team of marine archaeologists." the laughter faded gradually as Igraine continued and drea's gaze softened. she understood that feeling better than she sometimes liked to admit. wanting a family wasn't the same thing as wanting a perfect life. it wasn't about the house or the wedding or any of the things people usually attached to the idea. it was about belonging somewhere. about having people. about knowing that no matter how badly life went sideways, there would still be someone waiting on the other side of it. "i don't think that's weird at all," she said quietly. not because she was trying to make her feel better, but because she genuinely didn't. "i think that's actually a pretty good goal." her fingers curled around her glass. "a lot of people spend their whole lives chasing things that don't really matter to them because they're supposed to. careers. titles. money. whatever." a small shrug. "if what matters to you is having people you love and who love you back, that's a hell of a lot more honest." for a moment, andrea looked at her and smiled. "yep. too sober for this. lets drink a little more. i wore a low cut top for a reason. i'll lure the next man that'll pay for our drinks.

[pittnights]

The room quickly started to smell of coffee and Ally took a deep breath in. "Ah, yes. Life blood, come to me." She took the mug once the Keurig finished and poured a bit of sugar and milk into it before stirring and tasting. "Ah, perfect." She laughed and nodded at Andrea's observation, taking another sip. "For real, though. He is so lucky. He needs to understand how lucky."

"Ooo, getting trampled is a good one. I think there's a CSI episode about that. Mozzarella sticks? Oh my god," she grimaced. "Imagine the cheese getting stuck in your throat, the pull never ending? And you feel it going down but it won't stop pulling and that's how you die? Gross, I hate it. Mm, that is true. I don't think Black Fridays are the same as they used to be. Me..." She did stop to think for a moment. "Maybe tripping on the parking spot things. You know, the stupid long bricks they put in front of parking spaces. Trip over one of those, crack my head, boom. It would be quick, at least. Hopefully."

[pmtcrn]

"the thought of a never ending cheese pull in my throat does not sit well with me. it also sounds kinda phallic now that i'm saying it out loud. — gross." her brows furrowed for a moment before nodding in agreement at ally's idea. "oh, yeah ! the amount of times i almost ate shit with those is endless. i think it'd be a quick death, just gotta make sure you fall just right though." andrea crossed her arms over her chest as she pondered on these dark hypotheticals. "you wanna know what scares me ? rhabdomyolysis. i'm paranoid about that happening to me. i love going out on runs and i've always wanted to do a marathon, but i'm like convinced it's gonna happen to me if i do."

[pmtcrn]

angel baby sleepy head

[drhalepitt]

Igraine leaned back, resting her weight against Andrea when she spoke . ❝ It does sound fake , but gosh is the flower beautiful . Soft oranges and pinks and it just is the right gradient that looks good enough to eat , ❞ she recalled the last time she had seen it when she had come home . During her recovery she had spent a lot of time in Pittsburgh before going to medical school . She had found it and broke down crying in the exhibit . Something about how delicate it looked , and what a rare bloom it was had gotten to her that day . She blamed the pain medicine .

❝ I will find something , it's not magical , but the people are good sometimes to us . I made friends with some of the locals last time , had dinner at their houses which was a cool experience . The markets or shuks , i think they're called are vast and seem endless . I've never had fresher goat too or lamb . ❞

Igraine needed to lighten the mood when she laughed and took another sip of her drink . ❝ You can tell me all about everyone , when I call you to facetime and I can even take you around base maybe . Ill introduce you to my unit - I have neglected them since working at the hospital . ❞

[pmtcrn]

"well, when we go to the botanical garden you'll have to show me it. the way you're hyping it up has me intrigued." a grin tugged on the corner of her lips as she raised a playful brow at her friend. andrea wouldn't admit it now, but she was already planning on frequenting the garden during igraine's deployment. whenever missing her friend would get to be too much, because it would, at least she could go see the strawberry sundaes. it'd be like having a piece of igraine back here at home.

her shoulder leaned more comfortably into igraine's as she continued describing the markets and the local families she'd met before. drea listened with the easy attentiveness she always seemed to reserve for the people she loved most, letting the details paint pictures in her head. there would be stories for her to share as soon as she came back home and andrea would be more than ready to listen to them. she could already picture it: sitting across from her months from now with coffee between them while igraine talked for hours and andrea listened, interrupting only to ask questions or demand more details. the thought eased something in her chest. because it meant there would be a coming back. a future version of this conversation where deployment was already over and they were just swapping stories again.

and maybe that was why andrea found herself smiling as she listened. not because she liked the idea of igraine leaving. but because she liked imagining all the things she'd have to tell her when she got home. "you call me and i'll immediately give you the weekly report." she started counting on her fingers. "robby's latest bad decision. what new spanish lingo i've taught jack. what new shit gloria is bothering us about. which intern accidentally embarrassed themselves. everything." she laughed, then settled a little quieter against her friend. "and yeah," she admitted more softly. "i wanna meet them." the unit. the people she'd be spending these next months with. "gotta know who's got my best friend's back over there."

[codeblued]

Perhaps her new resolution should be to learn a base level of Spanish, having seen a few Spanish speaking patients come through the doors in the short time since she'd been here. It wouldn't do any harm -- Her conversant French rarely got so much use these days and she could probably use it to boost her skills in another language.

Leading Andrea back into the room, they were both greeted by the warm smile of Mrs Herrera, an expectant gaze upon the elderly woman's face. "All right, Mrs Herrera," Sylvie started. "I've brought Andrea to help out."

As soon as Andrea began talking, the other woman's relief was evident, her own words rapidly tumbling from her lips in a way that they could not with Sylvie. She could make out certain words but nothing solid enough to form a diagnosis, glancing towards Andrea with a questioning expression.

[pmtcrn]

her smile widened immediately as mrs. herrera launched into rapid-fire spanish. "sí, sí, tranquila, yes, yes calm down" she soothed gently, pulling up a stool beside the bed. "la doctora está tratando de ayudar. solo necesitamos asegurarnos de que entendemos todo correctamente. the doctor is trying to help. we just need to make sure that we understand everything correctly." mrs. herrera nodded emphatically and continued, speaking with her hands as much as her words. andrea listened patiently, occasionally asking a follow-up question or clarifying a timeline. by the end of it, she looked far less concerned than she had when she'd first walked in.

"okay," andrea said finally, turning back toward sylvie. "she's had the abdominal pain for about three days. started as kind of a dull ache, but it's gotten worse since yesterday." her eyes flicked briefly back to mrs. herrera before continuing. "mostly lower abdomen. no chest pain. no shortness of breath." another quick exchange in spanish. andrea nodded. "she's also had some nausea and hasn't really wanted to eat much. no vomiting. and she says the pain got bad enough this morning that her daughter finally convinced her to come in." mrs. herrera added something else from the bed, which earned an immediate laugh from andrea. "and apparently she told her daughter she was being dramatic. twice. so basically she's been trying very hard not to be here." her expression softened slightly. "but she's more comfortable now that she knows we're understanding her." then she looked back at sylvie. "anything specific you want me to ask while I'm here?"

[mythshire]

※.·:·.※ 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐑𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐂𝐊 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐌𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐖 ··· a collection of chosen bonds, found family, & unconditional belonging roleplay sentence starters. genre: platonic love, hurt and comfort, loyalty.

• You know you don't have to keep checking on me, right? I'm fine. • How are you? Wait, did I ask that already? • I don't know what I'd do without you. I mean that. • Oh, God. I thought something happened to you. Don't scare me like that. • You're not alone in this. You know that, right? • We're family. That's what we do. We show up. • Make yourself at home, okay? This is your place too now. • Get out of here with that. You're not a burden. Don't ever say that again. • Is there anything you need? Food? A blanket? Someone to just sit with you? • So, what's next for us? • I have to admit there's a small part of me that's terrified you'll wake up one day and realize you don't need me anymore... that you'll leave. • It's just... I've never had this before. People who stay. • Why are you still here? I mean, you could go anywhere. Be with anyone. • I know I'm not easy to deal with. But thank you. For staying anyway. • [Name], I don't know what I'm doing half the time, okay? But I know I'm not doing it without you. • I don't really know where else I'd want to be, except right here. • You're the best thing that ever happened to me, you know that? • I really think you saved my life. Not dramatically. Just... by being here. • Hey. Bad dream? Come here. I've got you. • You don't owe me anything. This is what family does • Stop apologizing. You're allowed to need help. • I made your favorite. Thought you could use some comfort food today. • You look exhausted. When's the last time you actually slept? • I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me, remember? • We've been through worse. We'll get through this too. • You don't have to be strong all the time. Not with me. • I brought you something. It's stupid, but it made me think of you. • Come on. Let's get you home. • You matter to me. More than you know. • I've got your back. Always have, always will. • You're shaking. Here, take my jacket. • I know you're scared. It's okay to be scared. • You did good today. Really good. • I'm proud of you. I don't say that enough. • Stop pushing me away. I'm not leaving. • You think I'd let you face this alone? Not a chance. • I'll stay up with you. I don't mind. • You're safe here. I promise. • Tell me what you need. Anything. • You don't have to pretend with me. • I trust you. Completely. • You've got this. And if you don't, we've got this. • I'd do anything for you. You know that, right? • You're not too much. You're never too much. • This is your home now. For as long as you want it. • I'll fight for you if you can't fight for yourself right now. • You make me want to be better. A better person. • I chose you. I keep choosing you. Every day. • You're allowed to fall apart. I'll hold the pieces until you're ready.

[drhalepitt]

Three Weeks Into Deployment [ Open Starter ]

Igraine had off the next day , and so she played the waiting game , sat inside her bottom bunk , curtains drawn as she slouched against the pillows she had put behind her , waiting for the appropriate time to try and call . Texts were nice , left her feeling okay with how things were , but she missed her family and friends . It wasn't easy being seven hours ahead of all of them , even if they worked night shift . So into the late hours of the night and early hours of the morning she watched her phone until she thought someone would answer .

She propped the phone against her shoulder , fidgeting with the blankets she did have . The dial tone was all she heard until voicemail .

❝ Hey , I just wanted to hear your voice , but I know you're busy . Um , just send me a text later , ❞ she rushed out . ❝ Things are fine here . It's not urgent . Actually don't worry about it . I'll try again next week . ❞

No sooner had the phone dropped onto the bed , she felt the vibration of it , hands scrambled to pick it up , quickly tapping accept with her thumb and putting it to her ear . She sighed in relief letting out a soft , ❝ Hey .❞

deployment starter » mutuals only

[pmtcrn]

there's a groggy inhale on the other end before andrea manages, "—hello ? " her voice is thick with sleep, words slow to catch up as she blinks herself awake into the dim light of her room. sheets rustle as she fumbles for the phone, pressing it closer like she's afraid it might disappear if she doesn't hold on tight enough. " . . . igraine ? " she murmurs, softer now, recognition settling in all at once. there's a pause, then a quiet, almost disbelieving huff of breath. "hey. hey, you."

she shifts, pushing herself up against the headboard, one hand dragging over her face to shake off the last of sleep. "sorry, i was drooling all over my pillow," she adds faintly, a sleepy smile threading through her voice. another pause, heavier this time, full of everything she hadn’t gotten to say. "i've been missing you. a lot." a small, breathy laugh follows. "the hospital's weird without you." her voice dips, warmth and ache blending together. "i uh . . . keep thinking i'll run into you at some point during my shift or when i'm on my way out, and then i remember we're on completely different clocks. tt sucks." a beat passes before she adds, more gently, "i'm really glad you called." she lets the silence sit for a second, then, softer: "talk to me. how are you holding up ? "

[hesjustcarter]

The day had been agonizing. Perhaps Carter shouldn’t have taken his entire shift off, because otherwise, maybe he wouldn’t have been given the chance to fixate and second guess every little decision under the sun. Dress shirt or casual? Tie or bare throat? Cologne or au naturale? His hyperfixating was a little insane, he knew, but this was also his first true re-emergence into the dating pool since his accident, and he presently felt as if he didn’t have a life vest or a single floatation device. He knew Andrea liked him, but what if this was when she finally got wise?

Relax, you idiot, he irritably thought. This is a date, not a marriage proposal.

After this not-so-rousing pep talk, he’d decided on a pull-over on top of his dress shirt, no tie, and just a little bit of cologne — something that made an effort, but without seeming desperate. Hopefully that was the last of the evening’s decisions…

—

There was never anything more awkward than waiting for someone in public. Carter kept shifting around. He paced from one end of the restaurant entryway to the other, pretending to look at his phone anytime someone walked by, before ultimately dropping the charade in favor of pacing even harder.

It’s fine, it’s fine, she’s not even late yet, relax, she’s going to show up.

Soon proving him correct, Carter grinded to a halt once he saw a familiar face beaming at him amidst her approach, his pulse hop-skipping as he swallowed. Andrea’s palm smoothed across his shirt, and he resisted the urge to touch her, to take her hand, and somewhere amidst his open gawking he realized she’d paid him a compliment.

“Oh…nice,” he stammered. “As in, you look it. Tonight. Er…always.”

Good God, he was off to an excellent start.

Flushing, he laughed. “Sorry… I may’ve had the day off, but I had a bit of a wild morning, and I think it’s scrambled my brain. I got locked out of my apartment before I had the chance to even pick out an outfit for tonight, so I had to crawl in through my window via the fire escape. I’m amazed no one called the cops.”

Expression softening, the warmth in his face traveled down to settle inside his chest. “You look beautiful.” Was that too much? “If you’ve got all the beauty and the brains, what do I even have to bring to the table here?”

Chuckling, he held out his arm to her. “I hope you don’t mind, but I already got us a table. I figured you’d want one of the ones directly over-looking the water, so…” He pointed upward. “I ended up buying out the top floor. That way, if I make a complete ass of myself, you'll be the only one to witness it... And maybe a bunch of gossipy wait staff.”

[pmtcrn]

andrea was already smiling before he'd even finished speaking. the stammering. the self-deprecating commentary. the way he somehow managed to compliment her while simultaneously short-circuiting. it was ridiculous and unfortunately for her, kind of adorable.

a laugh escaped her as she slipped her arm through his. "you climbed through a fire escape ? " she repeated. "i would've paid money to see that. my day off wasn't much of a relaxing one either if it helps you feel better. i basically helped my sister and roommates run errands because they're currently unable to do so themselves without blowing a majority of their money on things they don't need."

his compliment that followed softened her smile immediately. her eyes lingered on him for a second longer than necessary after that. beautiful. the word settled somewhere warm in her chest before she could stop it. andrea ducked her head briefly, suddenly finding the sidewalk very interesting. "you bring your dad jokes to the table. that's something," she murmured, though the faint color creeping into her cheeks completely undermined any attempt at nonchalance.

then came the table. she followed the direction of his pointing finger toward the upper level of the restaurant. a nice table by the water was a nice touch. thoughtful. then the rest of the sentence caught up to her. andrea blinked. once. twice. her head slowly turned back toward him. "you . . . what ? " there was a beat of silence as she studied his face, clearly trying to determine whether this was another one of his jokes. the longer she looked, the more her expression shifted. because he wasn't joking. "oh my god, you're serious." a laugh escaped her glossed lips. "carter." another laugh. "you rented out an entire floor for our first date ? " her brows shot upward as she stared at him. the question sounded incredulous, but the warmth in her expression gave away the fact that she wasn't upset in the slightest. if anything, she looked a little overwhelmed. a little touched. and maybe a little impressed. andrea squeezed his arm. no one had ever done something like that for her. "you know," she said, looking up at him with a crooked smile, "most people just buy flowers. this is . . . incredibly sweet." her smile widened. "you didn't have to go through all that trouble."

[pmtcrn]

the passenger window rolled down just long enough for andrea's sister to lean across the center console. "don't do anything i wouldn't do ! " andrea groaned immediately, "that list is way too short." paulina laughed, earning herself a pointed look. the car pulled away with one last honk, disappearing down the street while the brunette stood there for a moment watching it go. the timing was perfect. not early, not late. exactly on time . . . which was a miracle considering she had spent the majority of her day off helping her sister and her roommates do a costco run. yes . . . a costco run took a majority of her day. those twenty-four year-olds had no idea what the hell they were doing.

the evening air was warm as she turned toward the restaurant, the sky painted in streaks of gold and pale orange. sunset hadn't quite arrived yet, but it was getting close. the windows overlooking the river reflected the fading light, and beyond them, the bridge stretched acros the water like something out of a postcard.

adjusting the strap of her purse, she made way toward the entrance, pausing briefly when she spotted a familiar figure nearby. a smile appeared before she could stop it. there he is. the nervousness she'd been feeling since the date was set remained. "carter." his name came out softer than she intended. andrea stepped closer, her gaze sweeping over him before returning to his face. "funny bumping into you here," she teased before reaching out automatically, smoothing an imaginary wrinkle from the front of his shirt. for a second her hand lingered there. then she cleared her throat and stepped back with a sheepish smile. "you look nice."

@hesjustcarter

[pmtcrn]

" . . . you need stitches," she sighed, brown eyes glancing down at the other's wound. "i know you won't go to the hospital. so sit down and let me see what i can do. — please."

@eldestmonster liked for a starter