I lost a flip-flop

Reese. 22. expert pancake maker

[itsjasonhan-blog-blog]

“Oh, c’mon, Thor, you know I hate heights.”

[pyrobarbie-blog]

“You know, somehow I don’t think that’s going to make him change his mind.”

[themacyray]

No, it’s fine. It’s fine… totally not even bothered that they’re out of my favorite cookies. Not like it’s a Girl Scout staple or anything.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Wait, you know a Girl Scout? Where is she? 

[elijahxgraham]

Mmm, maybe. But I could always shower… with some help of course.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Fine, but only because you’d probably find a way to drown on your own.

[elijahxgraham]

I am very patriotic when beer and fireworks are involved! You want me to go home to… sleep? That’s not a way to end a fireworks show!

[pyrobarbie-blog]

It is when you smell like a brewery.

[elijahxgraham]

I was born ready. And free. Because this is ‘murica! 

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Psh-- alright, honey. Didn’t know you were this... patriotic. We’re gonna go home after the fireworks though, okay? I think you could use the sleep.

[cunningraham-blog]

Everyone’s welcome to seconds and thirds, just remember that after last year’s incident with the Crystalmont High football team, hot dog eating contests amongst yourselves are prohibited. 

[pyrobarbie-blog]

But what if, hypothetically, there’s like a really high bet riding on an impromptu eating contest?

[elijahxgraham]

No, I don’t know how many beers I’ve had but this is ‘murica, and Bill Pullman didn’t defeat the aliens so you could comment on my beer intake!

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Okay babe, I was just wondering.

You ready for the show? I heard they’re going to start the fireworks soon.

[elijahxgraham]

It’s fine. I’ll handle it. I was hoping we could take the trailer out with cap next weekend but it’s not a big deal. I think a website is more productive than business cards. People here already know about the Inn. You want to branch out to a broader audience. Ask Andrew, he might have a website for himself already.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Maybe I want to go with you anyway. I feel like we don’t see enough of each other. During the day at least. Hm, that’s true. Maybe I should hire someone to do it. I don’t want to do it myself and wind up with a wonky website that keeps people away.

[elijahxgraham]

Wrong sized hitch, and a very stubborn attitude. 

How was work? Andrew has business cards, did you know that? Do you even have business cards?

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Stubborn is right. We’ll get the right part soon, babe. I’ll even go with you to buy it if you want.

Work was work. I made mini pancakes today, it was pretty awesome. I wonder if it would work for waffles too. Oh yeah, he has them on his desk in one of those card holders, too. Really professional, that guy. I never really thought I needed a business card. I never go out of town. We don’t even have them for the Inn itself. Maybe we should, though. 

[elijahxgraham]

I’m in no rush, love. It’s not like I was planning on hauling anything. I mean I was going to pull the trailer out of storage and clean it but it can wait.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Agreed, cleaning can always wait.

How did you end up breaking it, though?

[elijahxgraham]

No, I just broke the hitch. The truck is perfectly fine as long as I don’t want to haul anything for a while.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Oh, okay. So it’s fixable, then. Maybe we can go to the body shop this weekend and see what they can do? Or probably tomorrow since everyone is going to have Friday and Saturday off.

[elijahxgraham]

Well, I didn’t think I was actually capable of breaking my truck, but I did. Great.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

How broke is broken? Should I call AAA?

[lovejaelynn-blog]

So you were the heir. Well, that’s honorable. Though Legacy doesn’t have the same ring in this century does it? Still, something to be proud of. Do you like it?

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Well it’s not bad, but... if I don’t do it, my dad will sell the place, so. It’s really my only option if I want to keep that piece of my mom alive. Which sounds stupid, I know. She’s dead. She’s not coming back, even if I make her pancakes every morning and run the inn just the way she did. But-- I didn’t really spend enough time with her when I was younger. I didn’t appreciate her as much as I should have. And now, this is all I have left of her.

[theriotjack-blog]

“You’re young. I think you’ve got time to explore what you can do outside of her legacy. Because that’s definitely alright for you to do. You could hire a manager or…don’t really know what your exact role is, but you get it…and give yourself time off.” Jack frowned in thought, crossing his arms as he leaned back against the booth. She hadn’t explicitly asked for advice, but might as well offer up whatever came to mind. Better than just commiserating. Least, that was how he saw it. “Could go out of town or just do whatever the fuck you felt like.”

He chewed on his lip, wondering how to approach what was bubbling at the edge of his mind. Didn’t know just how much Reese knew about his life. Didn’t usually share. But…if she was questioning things…might as well offer it up. “Had a son that I pressured into going into my line of business. Uh, publishing.” Printing press, really, but no need to freak Reese out if she wasn’t in the know. “Didn’t exactly help our relationship. Kinda was one of the things that led to our estrangement. Not the biggest, but…sure as hell didn’t help.”

Jack gave a sad smile, physically shrugging it off. “By no means do I want to speak for your mother, but she’d…maybe not want you to resent her. Even if it’s just that you’re working somewhere you’re not completely sure is meant to be your life’s path. And even if that doesn’t mean you’d resent her. ‘Cause I sure as hell don’t want to speak for you either. But…” He sighed. “Not letting my son explore what he was meant to do in life was a mistake. One of my biggest regrets. Even after all these years.”

“This is not a milkshake conversation,” Jack laughed. “Need a fuckin’ beer.”

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Reese swirled a fry in her now-melting milkshake, watching the fry get soggier while she listened to Jack. Her shoulders hunched forward with guilt while he told her it wouldn’t be a sin to branch out from the inn. She thought that maybe it would sound better coming out of someone else’s mouth rather than rattling around in her own mind, but it still made her feel... heavy.

Her head popped up at the mention of a son. Jack? With a kid? How old could his kid be if he was pressuring him to pursue the same career? Wasn’t Jack a solder before he was a counselor? Her eyes widened as she sat up a bit straighter. She frowned when Jack mentioned them being estranged, but given how little Jack had spoken about him before, she had a feeling they weren’t as close anymore. “I’m sorry about your son,” she said carefully, not wanting Jack to regret his decision to tell her. She wondered if she would have resented her mother if she was still alive. “Thanks, Jack. That’s... something to think about.” Reese smiled softly as she reached for his hand to give it a small squeeze. “But you’re definitely right, this is so not a milkshake conversation,” she said with a small laugh before taking her hand back. 

“So how are the newlyweds doing? Enjoy your elopement?” Reese arched a brow in accusation. Though she was a bit hurt to hear she hadn’t been invited to the main event, she could understand why they did it. “I don’t blame you for doing it like that though, if I every got married I would probably do something similar, just something small to make sure that my friends are there. Knowing Eli though, he would want a huge wedding. Not that I’m marrying Eli. Or planning to. I just--” Reese shoved a spoonful of melting milkshake in her mouth to offset the blush she could tell was starting to spread. “These are great,” she choked out after she managed to force down the mouthful of cold milkshake.

[holdenaxel-blog]

It’s like nothing has changed since I left..

[holdenaxel-blog]

If only I could, right? 

So uh.. how’s things been? How’s Dad?

[pyrobarbie-blog]

If only.

He’s, you know, Dad. Still out of commission because of his back, still making horrible jokes. You know you could have just called him. Or me.

[holdenaxel-blog]

It’s like nothing has changed since I left..

[holdenaxel-blog]

It was a spur of the moment decision. Surprise! 

It’s nice to see you again, too.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

Surprise is right. Yeah it’s... great to see you. Almost thought you just disappeared off the face of the Earth. Great to know you didn’t.

[holdenaxel-blog]

It’s like nothing has changed since I left..

Surely didn’t miss this town.

[pyrobarbie-blog]

I’m pretty sure it’s impossible to actually miss this place. Speaking of, thanks for the heads up? Why didn’t you call that you were coming back into town, or even text? What’s up with that?