a twinkle in her wild eyes

She seemed to him both powerful and delicate, like a wild thing that thrives in its place but withers when stolen away

[mrsgilmoredanes]

[wnq-quotes]

She really is such a child, and though she can be annoying, her warmth is a child’s, her sulking and suffering too.

Harriet Sohmers Zwerling, Memories of Sontag: From an Ex-Pat’s Diary

Read more at wordsnquotes

(via wordsnquotes)

[sccu-starling]

My Dearest, Lydia,

Joyeux Noël et bonnes fêtes! I am so very glad to have you in my life for another holiday. This year, I hope you will enjoy your gifts as much as I enjoy your presence in my life. I saw these slippers and immediately thought of you–the same is for the journal. I hope that I will have the opportunity to see you fill your travel journal on holidays with me. The berries and cheesecakes are for a self love night, as are the aromatherapy lotions. You deserve all of the self love nights. And days.  Merci d'être un ami. 

Véronique Dumont.

[sccu-starling]

veroniquedumont:

“This Christmas is certainly much warmer than the Christmas I am about to have back home,” Véronique commented to herself more than anything as she glanced around Greek Row, eyeing the set up of booths here and there that had little holiday themed gifts and such available for purchase. She still had to get Anastasia and Milou something, she mused before speaking aloud again, this time turning to the presence she felt at her side. “Have you finished your holiday shopping yet?” 

“Everyone except Mami and Saff.” Lydia mused idly as she perused a table full of odds and ends, grabbing a large pair of sunglasses off a nearby table and playfully putting them on Veronique’s nose. Christmas was always so stressful! She never knew what to get anyone, especially when it came to her own family- whose financial situation tended to make it so anything anyone wanted the merely purchased it for themselves. “Et toi, chérie?“

[sccu-starling]

xx-jeongjae:

He smiled softly at the sight of her, he considers her words and nods in approval. “Mandala.” He tests the word himself, looking back to the beach, “Yeah, that’s pretty fitting, isn’t it?” He didn’t understand why, but he had a feeling that his he considered it for long enough he’d understand. He was glad he was introduced tot he concept though. He lifts a brow slightly, leaning back against the railing. He laughs quietly, “See, I hate sand, but I would gladly make a snowman. Sandmen are just lame copies. Snow is superior in every way.” He shrugs before continuing, “Yeah, yeah. Take me with you, honestly. I’d love to spend time in New York.  have a ticket to head back to Korea, but I’m still debating. Long flight and all.” He shrugs, only telling half the truth. 

“But with snowmen your fingers get all red and cold.” Lydia laughed, wiggling her own fingers for emphasis. “Still, I’d have to agree with you. I have a lot of good memories making snow people with mi hermanos. We used to make them on the roof of our apartment complex, but there wasn’t enough snow so we used to run down and scrape snow off the side lot and then run it through the house, which got very messy.” Shaking her head at the memory, she shrugged lightly. “I don’t mind the heat too much, but I do like the cold better.” 

“New York City during Christmas is beautiful. I think everyone should experience it once.” Lydia commiserated. “Oh I totally agree- overseas flights are always way too long, and flying during the holidays is an actual nightmare. But aren’t you excited to see your family?”

[sccu-starling]

When you come home, you'll find a hand delivered gift basket on your doorstep with a printed note that reads: 

“Happy Holidays to you and your families from the staff at Seacrest Cove University! We’d like to thank you for your hard work this school year and look forward to seeing your return to campus after winter break has ended. Please, enjoy your time with your loved ones and have a wonderful holiday hiatus. 

On behalf of the board members, professors, and all the staff at Seacrest Cove University, please enjoy this complimentary gift basket as our way of saying we hope merry tidings are coming your way.”

Your gift basket includes: Brown & Haley’s Almond Roca, Gourmet Mini Pretzels, Guylian Artisanal Belgian Chocolates, Lindt Dark Chocolate Chili Bar, Olive Oil & Sea Salt Crostini d'Italia, Seasoned Almonds, Spanish Cuicos, White Chocolate Amaretto Wafer Cookies, Bavarian Style Caramel Apple Pecans, Gourmet White Cheddar Popcorn, Honey Roasted Peanuts, Mt. Josselyn California Mountain Reserve Red Wine, Savory Sensations Seasoned Snack Mix, Soda Ridge California Chardonnay, Tropical Island Mix, Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Bourbon Caramel Squares 

[sccu-starling]

A note from your Secret Santa: 

“Dear Miss Starling,

I hope the roll-top backpack suits both your tastes and your travelling needs. I heard you were in the gardening club too, so I hope the little terrarium might be a way to keep your beloved plants with you without troubling too much your roommate. Happy holidays.”

[beauryker-blog]

No Mistletoe || Lydia

[sccu-starling]

beauryker:

@sccu-starling

Taking Lydia out of town for their first date was the smartest move Beau could have made. No outside influence from her friends (or his, frankly), no one to ask her why she was going out with him or tell her that she was making a mistake. Beau wasn’t known for a handful of committed relationships, but a string of hookups that run up and down Greek Row and all over campus. And yet, Lydia had still agreed to go out with him. Her hopeful ignorance and bubbly behavior were tolerable around her physical appearance and the fact that she was…well, goddamn loaded. For the time being, however, he wouldn’t let her pay for a thing. His pennies scraped together from his job at the theater and a knack for thrifty spending passed off as an indifference for materials and flair, dinner in Los Angeles had been Beau’s treat and at his suggestion, Lydia had agreed to join him at the Winter festival as well. Something casual. Something else to set roots. 

He hadn’t been all that surprised to see the stout little farm animal on a cute little leash when he’d walked over from the Lambda house to High Tides to pick the girl up. Lydia was…quirky. The kind of quirky that owned a Junior Baconator as a pet. 

He’d seen the festivities all around as he walked through campus, and it was no different when they hit the sidewalk in front of her apartment complex again. Christmas music was literally in the air and his disdain for the holiday season aside, he was pleased it seemed Lydia was eating up his charm. So far. 

“Where would you like to go first, little lady? The day is yours. And Barbie’s.” 

Lydia grinned, swinging the hand holding on to Barbie’s leash lightly. She had very nearly not taken the micro mini potbelly pig along- it was supposed to be a date after all, and only their second one at that- but she brought her pet along to all the festivals. Barbie seemed to enjoy them, and Lydia enjoyed the people she tended to meet who stopped and asked her about her unusual pet.

It was another gold star for Beau in her book that he took it so easily in stride- not that he needed the brownie points. Thus far- both on their dates and over texts and phone calls- he had been nothing but a sweet, which Lydia was somewhat ashamed to admit was something of a shock. It wasn’t that she had expected him to be a bad guy, but like several other of the fraternity guys she knew, he had the kind of reputation that always made her assume that any interest had would be superficial and noncommittal. 

Bumping into Beau slightly, she smiled up at him, squinting a little past the bright sunshine. “What? But that’s no fun for you. Don’t you have anywhere you want to go? I’m pretty much okay just to wander- though I definitely would like to see the sandman competition winners, and grab some hot chocolate.” 

[sccu-starling]

jonascabrero:

Despite the uber soft nature of Lydia’s attack, Jonas’ concentration and balance weren’t exactly to par to begin with and even such a subtle strike had him toppling over, landing flat on his side as his pose broke. “Lydia, what the ffffff–Not fucking cool, dude. Pretty fucking whack, actually.” 

“Oh no, oh no!” Lydia cried as he fell, hurrying forward and holding her hands out towards him uselessly and looking at him with wide eyes. Despite the non severity of his fall, she still felt as if it had gone farther than she intended it. “Oh chiquito I’m so sorry!” She fretted, offering him a hand up. “Levántate, levántate, I didn’t mean to!”

[sccu-starling]

xx-jeongjae:

He’s leaning on the railings near the beach, bent over them, staring off into the distance as they set up for some of the events. It’s early. Jaeki just wanted to see everything be put together before he returned at night. He hears the scuff of footsteps near him, he’s not paying attention to whether they stopped or if they’re still walking, Jaeki speaks anyway, “It’s…interesting. Watching everything be put together, knowing it will be torn down, with nothing that will prove it was there.” He smirks softly, he leans back as far as he can, the only thing keeping him standing is his grip on the railing, his heels dig into the ground, “You could walk on the beach a month from now, and not even know about the sandmen, or the reindeer. The friendships, or the romances.” He sighs softly; it sounds foreign to even him.There’s no permanence. He hates holidays, he always gets sappy. He wishes the drinking age in the US was lower, “So, any special plans, or things you can suggest for the event?” He turns to the person, small smile on his lips.

Lydia turned from where she’d been leaning against the railing a small ways down from Jaeki. She’d separated from Beau for a moment, urging him to go on ahead while she stopped to wrestle a particularly annoying rock out of her shoe. Smiling quizzically at him, she followed his line of sight down towards the beach where groups of people were making masterpieces out of nothing but wet sand and driftwood. A small, somewhat dreamy smile touching her lips. “It’s like a mandala- people working so hard to make something creative and beautiful, just for the sake of creating it. It’s kind of beautiful, and a really introspective way of looking at things.” Beaming at him from behind her shades, she shrugged. “Oh nothing too interesting- going back to NYC for Christmas and New Years, I think. Which I’m looking forward to- it just doesn’t feel like the holidays for me unless it’s snowing.”

[sccu-starling]

jonascabrero:

“Do it,” Jonas started up at the familiar woman as he held the pose he was in, eyeing her suspiciously as he did so, “And I’m going to write a strongly worded letter to Lana Fitzgerald about what a dill weed you are, Starling.” 

“Oh my goodness Jonas.” Lydia demanded, planting her hands on her hips and frowning. “You know I would never do that... not more than once!” she finished with a squeak, giggling as she quickly kicked him in the behind, dancing away to avoid retaliation.

[sccu-starling]

deaconcage:

Jeremiah listened to the young woman’s obvious attempts at creating humor, lifting a brow at the other before he turned to seek out the book she was describing. “This the one?” He asked as he pulled a title down, handing the hardcover over to her. “Apologies for not knowin’ Russian, I s’pose.” 

"Ты в порядке, товарищ!” Lydia chirped, snapping off a crisp salute as she took the book from him. “That means ‘you’re fine, friend’, because of course you don’t know Russian, no one in America knows Russian- except me and Iva Zotrova, and I only know it because I’m a linguistic major. And actually it doesn’t mean ‘you’re fine, friend’ it means ‘you’re fine comrade’, because I’ve only survived my Russian class so far by making jokes about vodka and communism- which I think makes me a little bit of a bad person. Oh! I’m Lydia Starling by the way, it’s nice to meet you.”

[sccu-starling]

✉ → Beau

Beau: Fair

Beau: You wouldn't be half as impressed if you went out with someone else tonight

Beau: And I have a feeling you're gonna be too. See you at 8.

Lydia: I'll bet! See you soon! xoxo

[sccu-starling]

✉ → Beau

Beau: How many guys are taking you out??

Beau: I might start to feel a little objectified if I'm one of many in your corral of love.

Beau: LA is great. We could hit the pier afterwards too. Win your love and maybe a shitty stuffed bear.

Lydia: omg no! But better I make sure it's you than accidentally agree to go on a date with someone random, right? ;P

Lydia: I LOVE the pier! And it's so gorgeous in the evening! 😍😍😍

[sccu-starling]

deaconcage:

Deacon didn’t know if it was the fact that he’d just woken from the little power nap he hadn’t intended on taking or the girl herself that seemed so exhausting, but just the excitable tone of the other had him throbbing at the temples already. Standing slowly, he cocked a brow in her direction, prepping to leave. “What book do you need?” 

“Uh, Отцы и дети? It’s the black one with skinny white writing, right next to the huge red one with the sickle and hammer communist symbol on the spine?” Lydia explained, stepping back so she could stand on her tip toes and point towards it. “It’s weird that there’s no ladder or step stool in here, right? Like they just want us shorties to rely on the kindness of strangers?” She joked, wondering if it would be more or less annoying to apologize again at this point.

[sccu-starling]

jonascabrero:

“Am I–” Jonas grunted, his legs moving oddly behind his head as he tried to still himself. “Am I doing this shit right, or?” 

“All I can think about right now-” Lydia said as she approached, lifting her foot and gently swinging it towards him, “-is how super easy it would be to kick you right in the butt.”

[sccu-starling]

✉ → ???

Beau: Old Mel's or do you want REAL Italian?

Beau: Bc we'll have to go to LA.

Beau: Ball's in your court.

Lydia: Beau? :)

Lydia: As much as I like Old Mel's, the fact that I'm friends with most of the staff might make things a little awkward. I'm down to go to L.A, if you're sure that's alright.