SWEET

james skyler "sky" page. always sky, never james. 21. capricorn sun, pisces rising, pisces moon.

[skyskypage]

Walking through the picturesque streets of Cardinal Hill, you find Skyler ‘Sky’ Page, the 21 year old clerk at Tunes originally from Chicago, IL. Living alongside them in such a small town, you know that they're empathetic and thin skinned, but what you might not know is that they are a human, and that they’re hiding something… ― Cooper van Grootel, bisexual, male, and he/him.

full name: james skyler page - he has the same first name as his father, so has always been called sky and won't ever answer to his government official birth certificate first name.

d.o.b: january 9, 1970 // current age 21

zodiac: capricorn sun, pisces rising, pisces moon

hometown: hinsdale, dupage county, il (he claims chicago, which is a bit of a stretch)

current residence: cardinal hill, wa

species: himbo human

sexuality: bisexual

~ personality

overview:

positive traits: compassionate, creative, romantic, patient

negative traits: pessimistic, cynical, self absorbed, overly sensitive

mbti: infp

religious beliefs: agnostic. he was raised catholic and to an extent identifies with the faith but also finds himself questioning it regularly. 

description:

sky really feels his feelings. that’s it, that’s the description. 

okay but to elaborate: sky is someone who’s constantly emotional about something. he’s extremely sensitive, he can be hurt or upset by the tiniest little thing, and then he needs to find a creative avenue to let out those feelings because since he’s afraid of conflict he’ll never tell people that they bothered him and is more likely to internalise it and turn that feeling into months long resentment. not that he doesn’t get bitchy at times (he does), but he’ll drop snide little hints if you’ve upset him instead of telling you so you can not do it again. he can also be very self absorbed, focussing on his own upset without noticing the struggles of those around him, to the point where he could be described as selfish. this isn’t helped by the fact that he’s very pessimistic and cynical, which can come across as him being grumpy and finding fault in everything in the world, never content. however, sky at heart is truly a hopeless romantic. he falls in love extremely quickly (and deeply) and will absolutely devote himself to the people he really cares about whether it’s platonic or romantic love. it takes a lot for him to stop liking you, he’s very patient and he’ll let everyone in his life walk all over him forever. until they realise he’s written a song about them. LOL.

bio (tws for death, drug use, alcohol, religion)

james skyler page was born on january 9, 1970, to devoutly catholic and highly affluent parents - both of his parents are successful lawyers with generational wealth. he is the youngest of four, with three older sisters, one deceased.

growing up, it was expected of sky that he fit the mould, be the perfect little catholic schoolboy, attend prep school, and go on to study an accepted college major - just as his sisters had done before him. with eight years between him and his youngest sister, by the time he became old enough to do anything, they had done it first and perfectly. unfortunately, sky never really wanted to be “right” by his parents standards. he spent most of his teenage years bunking off school, drunk stoned or high, playing guitar and otherwise being mildly delinquent. his parents despaired of him and made that very clear, and the only person in his family he really ever connected with was his sister imogen. when she died and sky was 19, he began to find it unbearable - and by the time he hit 20, he had to get the fuck out.

~ connections / hcs

james robert page (father)

caroline murphy page (mother)

siblings: lisbeth page (35), erin page (33), and imogen page (deceased at 27)

~ connections / wanted

ANY HIT ME UP PLS THANKS!

[mightytiny]

closed starter for sky (@skyskypage) located at the cardinal hill carnival

While she was used to a petting zoo at the carnival, it never stopped her from showing up anyway. Izzy was on her way there, secretly stashing carrot sticks in her pocket to feed them without having to pay for feed. Besides, as far as she was concerned, that sort of thing wasn't good for them in excess, and the creatures would appreciate a crunchy treat over some pellets that probably tasted more like cardboard. She'd been on her way to feed some new furry friends when a familiar face made her adjust her trajectory. "Músico!" Izzy waved before thinking that it might've been considered strange, but not minding if that was the case. After their last meeting, she thought he'd be the kind of person to be alright with a random striking up of conversation. While typically Izzy avoided precisely that, he'd surprised her, and she had waved before she even realized what she was doing. "Want to come sneak some contraband into the petting zoo with me?" The girl asked once the distance between them closed, her voice low while telling him her master plan.

[skyskypage]

"Iz, hey," his grin appeared almost immediately despite Sky's attempts to stay aloof and cool. Truth was, he simply was happy to see the girl - he'd somehow ended up separated from the people he'd initially come to the carnival with, and the sight of a familiar face was a welcome one. Particularly Izzy, who somehow seemed to always radiate warmth and energy, so much so that Sky almost felt energised just by being in her presence, almost able to forget all about a certain awkward encounter he'd had with Frankie and any subsequent thought that had plagued his mind. "Contraband?" He raised an eyebrow, tilting his head to one side. "Are you planning on getting some donkeys stoned, or....?"

[mightytiny]

⋄⋄ 🌵⋄⋄

She appreciated his honesty. He didn't owe it to her, but Izzy preferred life to be simple like that. Things got complicated; everyone had an agenda, using tactics, and not many people were genuine so openly. It brought a smile of the same intent on her lips that went along with his words. "Chido," she replied before tuning into the music he put on for her. The beat took hold of her head quickly, a rhythmic nod bouncing her curls along with the song. So far, so good, she thought.

Sky wasn't a bad name; she actually kind of liked it. She'd remember it, but thought right now that her first guess fit him better. "Músico, it is then." Not that his name was up for discussion, still, Izzy didn't believe she'd use the one he provided her as much. She figured she'd return the favor and gave her own introduction, "I'm Izzy." Short, sweet, like her name. "This is pretty good. What else you got?" He'd piqued her musical interest, and to continue enjoying his first recommendation, she had already gotten started on another.

[skyskypage]

He’d almost expected the conversation to end - he often became carried away discussing music, and over time he’d learned to shut up, to give space and stop talking so that customers didn’t end up stuck in a seemingly never ending chat with him when they clearly just wanted to get the fuck out of Tunes and perhaps never return. So Sky had gone quiet, anticipating Izzy simply listening to a few songs and then either buying something or getting out. Her positive response was a pleasant and welcomed surprise to him, but he took it with visible joy, his lips raising into a genuine smile even if he didn’t want to be so obviously open and excited

“Oh, we’ve got loads,” Sky said with almost a gleeful expression. “How much time you got? And what sort of stuff are you into, other than Johnny Cash?” The man in black was a good place to start, but he supposed he couldn’t keep recommending similar artists. He himself listened to a wide variety, seeking enough change that he’d never get bored. “You wanna hear some of my favourite stuff?”

[cardinalcandace]

When Sky said that he had been fine for twenty one years, her immediate thought was "your conscious has, at least." Another theory she read into recently was called quantum immortality. When you face death, the universe splits and your conscious moves to the reality where you survive. It was unlikely, but it was for some reason a thought that crossed her mind. That from ones own perspective, they will keep going until the universe ends. Maybe beyond. Just live in some fiery end for eternity. Kind of like hell.

Obviously she wasn't going to go into her existentialism with a customer. So she simply reminded herself that right now she was here and everything was fine.

When he said he wasn't sure if his insurance covered his prescription, her face somehow fell more than it already had. "Oh."

Could he really go without?

[skyskypage]

"You look kinda worried," Sky noted, a frown to match hers quickly appearing on his features. He himself, of course, hadn’t been particularly concerned - if anything he radiated a nonchalant demeanour befitting his apparent lack of survival instincts - but it hadn’t been his intention to concern Candace, and he felt at least some level of guilt, even if he didn’t really know her. “Honestly,” he said in a tone he hoped was reassuring, “I wouldn’t worry about me. If I promised to absolutely never eat a peanut would that help?”

[vivianpearson]

"Oh yeah, definitely don't get snacks from here." Vivian said. She normally didn't say that to customers, but given that she had a stake in this snacking, she figured she could make an exception. It was much better to get snacks elsewhere, she thought. When he asked if there was anything in particular she wanted. "Definitely Doritos." She said firmly, when he asked if there were any snacks in particular that she wanted.

[skyskypage]

"Are they that bad?" He winced. He'd been eyeing the snacks up, to be fair, and had only offered to go out so he didn't continue to bother Vivian while she was at work - but if that was the situation, Sky didn't think he'd be buying snacks there any time soon, if ever. "Doritos. Got it. Bottle of wine too?" He offered nonchalantly, as if the two items went together perfectly. "Or just a couple beers?"

[bitethvhand]

❁ Location: Tunes ❁ Closed Starter for @skyskypage ❁ Muses: Sky & Frankie

Living in the local motel took its toll on Frankie; she missed having her own private space and was on a mission to get a job so that she could move into the trailer park. The search was going fairly well, so far, two places had scheduled an interview with her later this week, but she needed to cover all her bases. So when looking in the window of Tunes, she saw a lot of items that she could easily sell to someone if given the chance. Smiling to herself, she opened the door with confidence, the bell ringing to signal her arrival as she took in all the tapes and CDs that lined the walls.

While walking to the register, Frankie began the process of pulling out her resume, not paying attention to who was working. It wasn't until she handed it over and was about to talk that she noticed who was standing right in front of her, Sky. "Oh, woah, hey..." Her cheeks instantly flushed when their eyes met, and she needed to take a step back to regain her balance.

It'd been months since the two of them shared the same space, and being in such close proximity to him made her slightly dizzy. Frankie would be lying if she said she hadn't missed him. The way he looked at her art as if it was so important had always made her feel seen. Sky was one of the few people she dated who actually saw the real her, but she couldn't handle it. Frankie hated it, but she was the one to end the relationship. Shortly after that, her parents attempted to force her to marry some stranger, so she ran away as fast as she could.

"It's nice to see you." Her brows wrinkled when she realized that was all she could articulate.

[skyskypage]

He thought at first he must be seeing things, or dreaming. That was the only place Sky saw Frankie's face these days, occasionally waking up with the feeling that those brown eyes were still staring into his, although as time went on that had happened with less and less frequency. He'd thought for a time that he must be over it, now, that he'd maybe started to forget details of her features, that he'd started to see less and less good in her and that maybe, just maybe, he didn't care anymore.

But here, in the moment, Sky realised with a jolt that wasn't the case. Every freckle on her face was familiar to him, every strand of hair on her head virtually unchanged from the last time she had been in front of him, from the day she had broken it off. Did she feel the same? Did she look at him and see the same messy blonde hair that had once laid on the pillow beside hers, the same blue eyes that had stared into hers? Or had she entirely lost any trace of feelings toward him when they broke up, and now saw him as a stranger, barely worth a second glance? He didn't think he wanted to know. Neither answer would leave Sky happy, he suspected.

"It's.... nice to see you too," his voice was hesitant, slow, unsure of himself. Nice. What a stupid word, like it could ever cover any of the emotions buzzing through his brain. A terrible lie, too, no real effort there to be convincing. "Did you move?" A glance down at the resume prompted the comment - why would she be handing one in if she didn't live in the area? Did she miss him? He presumed not. It was wishful, egotistical thinking to be suggesting he'd have that much of an impact on anyone.

[blackcatxmagic]

Again Ocean felt like he'd put his foot in his mouth, but then he usually felt that way, especially talking to someone he barely knew. The feeling was less frequent when talking to people like Aris, Forest, Corey, or other friends, but it still happened with them too. So he once more apologized, "I'm sorry if I offended you. I could have said that a little differently. And it's not like you neglected the cactus, you know? You just...gave it too much. I think that shows you cared about it." Putting it this way just made the whole thing seem a little sad, and that hadn't been Ocean's intent either. Just stop, he told himself. You're only making it worse.

This man didn't seem offended though, nor did he seem to be put off by Ocean's awkwardness. Maybe he could still salvage this. "Your name is Sky?" Ocean asked, surprised. "That's my mom's name too. Do you spell yours with the E at the end? She does." Sky didn't want to hear about Ocean's mother probably, but he still told the other man, "My whole family has nature names. My mom and dad are Skye and River, my older sisters are Sunshine, Coral, and Rain, and my older brother is Forest. And I'm Ocean, like I said." Ocean sighed, feeling like he was probably boring Sky, so he pressed on, asking, "Now were you thinking of another cactus? Or maybe something else?"

[skyskypage]

"No, no, oh my god," was he giving the impression that he was offended? That hadn't been Sky's intention at all, and now he was trying to desperately backtrack, babbling in frantic awkwardness, "I'm not offended! I honestly found it funny, really-" Realising he was digging a hole he probably couldn't get out of, he finally shut up, although probably far too late to maintain any kind of cool exterior.

"Oh, is it?" That was kind of cool. He didn't meet a lot of Skys, not in his everyday life at any rate. "I love the nature names. Sounds like a pretty cool family," he noted, slightly envious. Much cooler than his, anyway. "Um, well, no. I don't have the E on the end. But technically Sky's short for Skyler, so...." He shrugged. "And it's my middle name, my first name's really James, so I guess I'm a fake. But that's my dad's name, so no one ever really called me that." And he wasn't so sure he'd like to be associated with that man right now, anyway. "My family's very boring. Compared to yours, anyway. My mom and dad are James and Caroline, and then my sisters are Lizzie, Erin... Imogen....." A slight pause before he said the final one, barely detectable, but enough that he was glad of the change of topic. "Whatever plant you recommend. I'll let you decide. You're the expert."

[wcirdo]

"Yeah, unfortunately," Paul confirmed. He could continue his night elsewhere just not here on Paul's watch. Truthfully he'd probably already oversold to Sky already so he really wasn't going to push it any further no matter how much pouting came his way. Hearing him reject the simple bowl of protein Paul glanced back at the neon clock behind him. "Well, the kitchen closes in about fifteen minutes. I could put in some fries or something," Paul offered a peanut free alternative. At least he assumed the fries were peanut free, he didn't actually know what they were fried in but he figured it wasn't peanut oil since no one had gone into anaphylactic shock on his watch yet.

[skyskypage]

”Honestly, I’m so fine,” Sky insisted, half pleadingly, as if after making a complete fool of himself he was trying to backtrack and behave less like a total nuisance. Even if by doing so he was rejecting any help which might prevent him from being pissed off his face and thus enacting the situation he was apparently now trying to avoid. “Anyway, I wouldn’t wanna order anything only fifteen minutes before kitchen shuts. I’m not that mean.”

[wcirdo]

"Oh, I do not know," he admitted feeling a little embarrassed. He didn't actually know how new the songs he was thinking of were. They were new to him at least and he'd one really listened to them on the radio and MTV. "I am not good with albums, I'm sorry," Andrei went on to apologize realizing he wasn't all that much help with the question he'd asked Sky. Andrei took a look at both cassettes, again, their art being of no use to him nor were the album titles in all honesty but he turned over Violator first and skimmed the tracklist recognizing the titles he was familiar with. He didn't even bother looking at the other tape. "It is this one," he said holding up the black and red cassette before putting it in the basket.

Andrei was ready to ask him another music question but Sky spoke up first explaining to him that they were closing soon. "I did not know, I'm sorry" Andrei said finding himself apologizing again. He hadn't kept a very good track of time while shopping and the time snuck up on him. "I am ready," he said as he took his basket up to the register so that Sky could ring him up. He started pulling out tapes from the basket and began making two piles of his selections making the split decision to narrow his choices down some. "Start with these," he began sliding a pile towards Sky. "I do not think I have enough money for all these," he went on realizing he picked out a lot more than what he'd budgeted for.

[skyskypage]

"Oh, don't be sorry," he said quickly, immediately racked with guilt at the idea that he'd made the other uncomfortable. It hadn't been Sky's intention at all, and he didn't want Andrei to feel bad whatsoever. "I honestly totally lost track of time too. I always get carried away when I'm thinking about music," he admitted slightly sheepishly. He could talk for hours about an album he liked, or spend days just recommending cassettes. He supposed it made him in equal parts a good employee for the store and also an incredible bore to be around if one wasn't musically inclined.

"I mean," he tapped a key on the till, and shrugged. "We have a fifty percent staff discount, and I can just say I'm the one getting them, so....." He left it open ended, hoping Andrei understood what he was implying. There were some good picks in the other man's pile. Sky himself would struggle to choose between them, and he didn't want to have to help and find himself torn between bands he idolised. "Um," he paused for a second as he was ringing the purchase up, teeth sinking into his lower lip, an unconscious nervous action he didn't even realise he was doing. "I know this might sound really weird but I'm about to clock off and I live basically round the corner, so did you maybe... wanna come around? Drink a couple beers and put one of those on?" He gestured vaguely to the cassettes. "I'm not a serial killer, I swear.... But like, totally fine if you don't wanna. It's kinda weird, I get it..."

[batteredbruises]

༝༝ 🖤 ༝༝

Harper wasn't convinced, and it read on her face. She didn't hide how she felt, whether she wanted to or not, emotion naturally finding her features. Besides, when Sky made claims like that, after proving the very opposite time and time again. She'd let him live in ignorant bliss for now. There would be time to harp on him later as she fixed the blemish he'd caused in record time from his last. "Sky, I wouldn't be surprised if you hit something leaving the parking lot after I just fixed it." Harper didn't think there was any use in pretending when they both knew the truth. He couldn't deny fact as it sat in her garage waiting for a fender bender band-aid. "No curb is safe from you." And that was only the first of many objects she'd suggest stay away when he was on the road.

A treat piqued her interest, watching as each item was presented, and with each her tight-lipped smile grew. "Alright, you got me." As if she hadn't already clocked in for the night to work on his car, the surprise affirmed her evening plans. Before getting to work, she treated herself to a snack after not having eaten anything since her peanut butter and jelly at lunch. Two Oreos were pulled apart so she could eat the raw cookie first and combine the rest to create a double-decker cookie. "I'm a double-stuff girl," she explained, seeing him watch her process, as if it needed any clarification. "And put that shit on and crank it." One thing about working after hours was that she got control of the music, which meant the louder, the better. Harper believed her best work came when she was a few beers in, blowing out her eardrums.

[skyskypage]

"That has never happened before," he said with a level of indignancy belying the fact that it seemed highly likely it was just a matter of time until it did, "or, it hasn't happened yet. The curbs fear the sound of Delilah," he added with a crooked smile, gesturing to the car to demonstrate who the name belonged to. "But as long as she makes it to where I need to go in mostly one piece, I consider it a success."

"Double stuff as much as you want," he said with a shrug as he wandered over to stick the record on, positioning the needle and he sat cross legged on the floor as the first song began to play, watching Harper get to work. "Just do me a favour and eat the Reese's pieces, 'cause I can't actually eat those. I just know people like them, so I thought I'd pick them up," he said with a shrug, in typical whimsical Sky fashion. He tended to grocery shop purely based on vibes, and that included buying for other people.

[blackcatxmagic]

"So you...drowned the cactus?" Ocean asked, a little surprised. Was that a thing that could happen? Could you overwater a cactus? While Ocean knew a lot about many plants, cacti were not his area of expertise. Actually, calling his knowledge of flora "expertise" was a bit generous. This was something Ocean was going to have to investigate later. For now, he wanted to try and help the customer. He smiled at the man's comment about the radio station, and Ocean said, "Maybe you just need to find the right station," laughing a little before immediately feeling mortified. What a stupid comment that had been. Sighing, Ocean said, "Sorry, that was a bad joke. Did you buy the cactus here? If not, maybe it was just like...near death already." He felt like he was bombing this, but he wanted to salvage it, so he said, "My name is Ocean by the way. I'm going to try and help you find the perfect plant."

[skyskypage]

"I guess?" He supposed, come to think of it, that was the cause of death. Although Sky preferred to put it in more gentle terms. He'd given the cactus too much love, or something like that. He actually laughed at the comment, even though Ocean immediately apologised, feeling reassured by the joke, and offered a small smile at the introduction. "I'm Sky, and that would... be good. I trust your judgement, Ocean."

[wcirdo]

Andrei had no idea he was being watched. He was too focused on picking out cassettes. He'd brought very little music over with him and none of it was his Western music. He'd gifted his collection of that stuff to a friend in Moscow before he left knowing he'd get better use of his bootlegs and copies of copies burned by friends. So he was building his music library from scratch in Cardinal Hill and that was very time consuming especially because he really didn't know what he liked. So often than not he was able to get his hands on collections of singles and rarely had full albums so he was having some difficulty pinpointing which releases contained the songs he was after wanting to now get their entire albums a give a try.

"Thank you," Andrei said as he added the stack of cassettes to the basket the man had provided for him. He glanced down at the cassettes in the basket as he was complimented and he couldn't help but let out a little laugh. "I will not get them all. I just moved here and these are very hard to get where I am from," he explained. His accent was thick and he was sure the man could take a guess at where he came from even without saying it outright.

While Andrei wasn't usually one to ask for help especially when it came to music he was pretty out of his element there and kind of overwhelmed by choice so having some guidance might be nice. "I am looking for Depeche Mode the new album," he said. He couldn't think of the name even though he'd watched a music video for Policy of Truth earlier that day on MTV and didn't even realize the album was already a year old. Truthfully his brain was still adjusting to thinking in English all the time outside of conversations with his sister and he turned his brain off when it came to music.

"I am Andrei, it is nice to meet you, Sky," he said as he introduced himself back to the man.

[skyskypage]

"I can imagine," even though he didn't necessarily want to guess out loud on the off chance he had it wrong, the accent he was hearing sounded distinctly Eastern European. Sky didn't profess to be an expert on life in the USSR, but he was at least aware of the basics from school and the odd news article he actually bothered to read, and so he assumed the other had been subject to some sort of cultural sanctions or the like. It sounded horrible, to be honest. Sky couldn't imagine having no or limited access to most music and art. But he supposed perhaps if he'd grown up without, he might not understand what he was missing.

"The new album?" He had to think for a second, racking his brain for what had come into stock. "I don't think we have any Depeche Mode from like, this year. But we've got Violator, I think that came out last year? Or Music for the Masses, but that was a couple years ago...." He leaned over Andrei, flicking through the D section for a second, blonde hair falling into his eyes, before he produced both cassettes, holding them up. "One of these? Or am I like, super behind?" He hoped not. He did try his best to keep up to date with what was coming out, so he could advise people accordingly.

"Yeah, nice to meet you too, Andrei," and Sky genuinely meant it. It was nice, meeting someone else who seemed to care so much about music. As he said it, he glanced at the clock, and made a face. "Um, fuck. So we're meant to close in like, five minutes. I'd say just stay, but my boss will kill me if I clock out real late again...."

[innocentcurse]

Patience wasn’t something that Lucien had ever had a lot of, but he had had to adapt in a lot of ways ever since acquiring an injury that caused him to lose most of the mobility in his dominant hand. It was inspiring, but at the same time, it was also very, very trying. In all honesty, Lucien had very little patience dealing with external things and other people, which didn’t at all feel like a very bright side to the situation. With that being said, however, he had been relatively patient with Sky. He wasn’t a bad person, he tried to give people the benefit of the doubt, even when their inability to work through their self-inflicted hangover threatened to get on his very last nerve…

“How ‘bout another drink? I heard that’s pretty effective.” He asked sarcastically, knowing the signs of a hangover all too well. Unfortunately, though, Lucien needed painkillers less for hangovers nowadays, and more often for his chronic pain. He disappeared as he squatted below the counter, rifling through his own backpack before he stood back up, holding the aforementioned painkillers in his hand. “Your lucky day,” he suggested, shaking them as if to usher the other over. It wasn’t that Lucien was trying to be kind; he simply thought that the other might be able to get more work done if he was in less pain.

[skyskypage]

"Effective for the hangover, less effective for working," Sky mumbled, not that he was being particularly productive anyway. And besides, he was a little too intimidated by Lucien to even say it too loudly. The other had been quiet since Sky started at Tunes, not the type to be overtly friendly, even if he wasn't necessarily rude, and it intimidated Sky. He worried that Lucien definitely wasn't his biggest fan, likely resented working with him, and the thought made him nervous, even if he knew they were just that. Thoughts. He wasn't a mind reader, couldn't confirm if he was correct, and yet he still assumed the worst.

"Thanks," he said softly as he wandered over, taking the bottle of pills and shaking two out onto his hand before swallowing them dry, holding the bottle back to Lucien. "I... really appreciate it. And sorry. For not being much use."

[cardinalcandace]

"Yeah, probably not the best course of action." Candace said, when he mentioned taking a Benadryl. "I'll fill your prescription and get a pamphlet on what to do if you go into anaphylaxis." She said, before making her way into the office. Once she returned, she had two Epi-Pens in hand and the pamphlet she promised. She set them both down on the counter. "Does your health insurance cover these?" She asked.

[skyskypage]

"I don't need a pamphlet," Sky protested, almost affronted that she even made the suggestion. "I mean, I've been fine for twenty one years. Surely that counts for something?" Although not being dead yet was a low bar to set, he was going to take it. After all, it could have worked out a lot worse, even if it was a total fluke that he hadn't had any silly peanut related accidents recently. "I don't even know... fuck. Well, I guess I could just go without....."

[vivianpearson]

"I just like films that are good. That can be in any medium or any genre." She said, with a shrug. After all, film was an art. True, sometimes there were films made with the sole purpose of making money and nobody involved seems to care about anything else. But as long as the people making it care, then there's a decent chance the film was worth watching. "Do you want me to go and get it?"

[skyskypage]

"I wish I was more open like that." And he didn't even mean it in a negative way. Sky often felt he had become too picky, to boxed in with regards to his preferences for music, or any art forms he chose to engage with. He wished he could go back to how he had been in his teens, when he would have given anything a go, not cared about whether it slotted into what he thought he liked. "Sure. I can go out and get snacks, if you want?" He suggested, wanting to be at least somewhat helpful. "Anything in particular you'd want?"

[wcirdo]

Closed starter for Sky Page ( @skyskypage ) Location: Tunes

Andrei had only been living in Cardinal Hill since April but he'd already felt like he'd seen everything this tiny town had to offer. Truthfully, Andrei found the lack of things to do more of an adjustment than the obvious cultural differences between his life back in the USSR and the one he lived currently. He never realized just how dependent on city life he was until it was absent in his life.

That was how Andrei found himself at Tunes about an hour before they closed. He'd just gotten done with his lessons at the rink and been paid so he had quite a bit of cash burning in his pocket. Having no real expenses living with his sister for the time being most of the money he made under the table working at the ice rink was spent on frivolous things and today that happened to be music.

Andrei spent the next 45 minutes checking out the various cassettes and amassed a decent pile of them in his hands not realizing just how soon the shop was set to close. Andrei noticed a man he could only assume was an employee and approached him with his questions. "Excuse me. Do you have a basket I can use?" Andrei asked having already dropped a couple of cassettes on the floor. He'd have to narrow down his selections but that'd be easier to do when the albums weren't leaping out of his grasp. "And also do you have the cassettes with no music, you know, to mix," Andrei went on having completely blanked on the term "blank cassette" to describe what he was after.

[skyskypage]

The day had been quiet, and as such Sky had spent more of it standing outside the store smoking than he had actually working. He usually appreciated a quiet day, but the customer interaction was really part of the job he enjoyed, and having no one to talk to made it drag. Still, he wasn't about to complain too much - quiet and alone was better than dealing with rude people, or annoying teenage girls seeking out Madonna or Kylie when he'd really prefer to talk about Sonic Youth. Not that he judged them for what they listened to. But it didn't exactly amount to stimulating conversation for him.

But the man currently picking up cassettes didn't exactly look like he was uninterested or just going for chart hits. Sky had been watching him for at least the last half hour, trying to be subtle about it, staring out from behind his blonde hair and occasionally picking up a CD cover to feign looking at something else. And when he requested assistance, he was maybe slightly too quick to hop out from behind the counter, proffering a basket. "Here. Let me get those for you, too..." Before even being asked he was bending down to pick up the cassettes that had fallen down, glancing briefly at the cases before he threw them into thr basket too.

"You've got some really good choices here," Sky said, evidently impressed, his blue eyes almost lighting up at the sight. "Were you looking for anything else? I kind of keep a secret stash behind the counter, stuff that just came in or is kinda rare.... Oh, blank cassettes," he nodded, understanding the sentiment even if the word itself wasn't necessarily grammatically correct. "Yeah, we've got those too. I'll go get you some. I'm Sky, by the way..."

[mightytiny]

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She sighed, trying to hide the clear disappointment in his answer. It'd been one she'd wanted to get her hands on since it came out in March. "Do you think it'll be coming back in stock?" A hopeful question searching for a hopeful answer. While normally she wouldn't be all that interested in something new, music was one of the only exceptions to that internal rule. In fact, Izzy believed quite the opposite, which was that any music should be given a chance, not limiting herself to one genre or artist. "Alright, I'm listening," the brunette started while following him the few steps to the other section, watching him flip through. She wondered if the artist would be one she recognized or something entirely fresh. While Izzy recognized the name, she couldn't pinpoint a song, but his spiel was selling her. Normally, the girl wouldn't be so easily convinced, yet this time, he was hitting all her points of interest. "A free sample? I'm never gonna say no to that," she confirmed with a smile. "Whatever you recommend. Harvest sounded good, maybe I'll recognize one from the radio." Izzy didn't mind staying a little longer, especially in the name of music. "You got a name, Músico?"

[skyskypage]

"Well," he mused as he gently pulled the record from its sleeve, careful to avoid being too rough lest he end up unable to sell it, "I'd rather you hear the whole thing and decide it's not for you than you spend money on something you don't like." It wasn't the best business model, and Sky often found himself in shit for it after another impromptu listening party, but he stuck with it, preferring to push through with what he felt was right than what his job dictated that he did. It would probably come back to bite him in the ass, someday.

The sound of acoustic guitar began to fill the store as the record started, and he sat back down behind the counter, legs swinging as he watched her, anxious for a sign of approval or disapproval as she heard the first song. "Sky," he said by way of introduction, although he laughed at the tail end of her statement, "but Músico is just fine if you wanna flatter me...."