#cherry: discourse.

[tearfest]

ㅤㅤ" —would you ever kill someone for me, @sturmboe? " a better question would probably be has he already killed for her? " like— for science. "

[tearfest]

open to: anyone 21+. plot: exes that were each other's first real relationship and are now civil but most definitely still in love type beat. could absolutely be unrequited and one-sided on her end, though!

ㅤㅤit had been weeks, months even, since the two had split and gone their separate ways. she knew that she should've taken her friends advice, that she should've cut off all contact for her own sake. but cutting them off wasn't as easy as everyone had tried to make it sound. besides — she still had things that belonged to them at her apartment. what better excuse would she get to see them?

ㅤㅤ" look— i... i know this hasn't been easy for, well, for either of us. but. but can we kiss? i mean, will you kiss me? just— just one last time. to see if— if there's anything still there... "

[tearfest]

ㅤㅤ" so, @daemonry. " small hands found their shoulders, using her loose but firm hold to lower them to sit. she imagined them making a joke about her finally being taller than him, and it made her frown for a second before she shook it off, replacing it with a smile. " you know what i'm about to ask you. " she'd been pestering him with it all week. " will you feature in a dance for work? you only have to stand there and look good. you're even sat for most of the choreography. please? "

[tearfest]

ㅤㅤbreaking down in the middle of fuck knows where was totally cherry's luck. her phone had been shut off once she'd hit the road, actively avoiding the missed calls her boyfriend — no, her ex — would inevitably blow her phone up with. it's a good job she'd had cd's in the glove compartment, a mix she'd listen to at rehearsals that'd felt upbeat enough to distract her from what it was she was running away from. she couldn't even bring herself to turn it back on to call for help. and so she just stood roadside, slumped against the trunk of her car, hazard lights flashing as her head turned at the sound of a nearing, and then slowing, engine. was her luck finally about to change? oh, it was just a motorbike. hardly a roadside recovery truck.

@ofpurplecrowns, based on.

[tearfest]

ㅤㅤ" do you not use the incline setting on your treadmill? come on, @sturmboe... we've hiked mountains before and still fucked at the top. oh, i've got a job interview, by the way. " more like a job offer from a long-term regular of the club, a sweet widow looking for someone to tutor his daughter in dance. not the kind she did at work, but the classical ballet she'd been trained in before life had rendered those skills almost obsolete. " will you take me? "

[tearfest]

ㅤㅤcherry's night had been rough, to say the least. she usually enjoyed her job, getting paid to taunt men with what they wanted but couldn't have; and she usually knew what to expect, getting an equal amount of regulars and tourists in the club. and the security was plentiful, enough to keep some level of peace in sin city, but — once in a blue moon — something went awry. hence why she was sat at the mirror of her vanity, far too busy wiping away at the blood that'd spilt form her nose whilst her makeup hid the freshly bruised skin just below prettily made-up eyes.

ㅤㅤshe barely paid attention to the sound of the dressing room door opening, assuming it was one of the girls, still dabbing the tissue at her bloodied nose. features illuminated in the mirror when she caught takashi in the reflection, quick to brush the bunched up and bloodied tissues into the trash can by her table as her body spun around to face him — hoping that her careless cleaning would suffice. " kash, baby! " heels clinked as she got to her feet, arms quick to lift and wrap around her boyfriend's broad shoulders in a pretty good attempt at distracting him from what he might've seen. " you're early. " or was she late? she'd lost track of time... she kissed him on the cheek before pulling away, arms still twined as she beamed up at him; unaware of the carelessly cleaned stain that'd dripped down her face and onto her bosom. " i was just about to get changed. i think i'd freeze on the spot if i left in just this. let me grab my coat. " more distractions in the form of silly small talk, peeling herself away from him to turn on her heels, skimpily clad frame fumbling around to grab her long, ankle-length parka.

closed starter for @sturmboe.

[tearfest]

ㅤㅤshe'd slipped away for a cigarette, sitting out on the apartment's fire escape with nothing but the moon and stars for company. it was what she usually did whenever they argued, leaving them to stew in the tension she'd helped create. she was good at making messes, but cleaning them through anything other than acts of service wasn't exactly her forte, always having been a woman of actions rather than words.

ㅤㅤbut she couldn't stay out here all night. it would only make things worse. besides, she was only wearing a zip-up over her pyjama shorts and vest. she sighed with her last toxic exhale, stubbing the amber glow out against the rim of an empty, dirty plant pot that had become her ashtray before tossing it in amongst the graveyard. the window creaked when she lifted it high enough to slip inside, awkwardly quiet as she shuffled inside, discarding her slippers on her way to walk up behind them. she hesitated briefly before tapping their shoulder to get their attention, arms snaking around their middle as her cheek rests against their shoulder. " you're not still mad, are you? "

closed starter for @justsurvival, based on this.