#dario threads.

[echosnoir]

𝕊𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕄𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕠 𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕤𝕖𝕥

featuring: ( @briclassified )

sour mango sunset title inspo from ( @fracturedlcve )

“the sunset faded and blended from pink to peace to mango in a smoothie in the sky. for as long as she doesn’t love me, i will love her.”

dario watched bri walk away with that same crooked grin still lingering on his mouth, walking backwards towards the fruit stand for a second, before turning away to look ahead at the fruit stand. without really thinking twice about it, he pulls out his phone to text bash. he had a feeling that asking bri to move in with him wasn't going to be easy, but he wouldn't let it go without giving it a good fight at least. all he wanted was for bri to know she had a stable place, a little bigger, nothing fancy but it had heart. in a way, it was already their home in his mind. he had even looked into how to create one of those electircal chairs that moved around the walls to help nova, but it was going to take some time because dario had zero idea where to even begin. he wasn't going to ask for anything more, all he wanted was for her to take the key.

his thumb moved before he could second guess himself, typing quickly before courage had the chance to leave him again. (📱bash: i’m gonna do it, man. i’m gonna ask her to move in with me. and if she says no, i’m gonna ask her again next month. and the months following.) he stared at the message for half a second before hitting send and tucking his phone away. the fruit stand vendor greeted him then, pulling him back into the moment. “afternoon,” the older man smiled warmly. “hey,” dario answered easily, slipping his phone away. “can i get two fruit cups? strawberry and mango. extra mango if you got it.” the man chuckled while reaching for the fruit. “got a lady waiting on you?” and dario...well, dario couldn't help the soft chuckle. “nah,” he admitted softly. “i'm waitin' on her.” and he knew that would always be true. in one way or another, he'd be waiting on her. for anything she needs. after all, her and nova became his family from the moment bri allowed him the honor of letting him help them whenever they needed.

then the scream came. sharp enough to split the world open. dario froze instantly, the smile disappearing from his face before his mind could even catch up to why his chest suddenly felt hollowed out. all the noise of the park dulled beneath the sound of it. he turned automatically toward the commotion and saw bri collapse. everything inside him stopped. “bri?” the name barely left him before he was already moving. he shoved past people hard enough to stumble them sideways, breath tearing through his chest as panic flooded every vein in his body so violently it bordered on nausea. nothing existed beyond the sight of her on the ground and the hooded figure standing over her. “BRI!” his voice cracked apart with it. the fruit cups hit the pavement somewhere behind him, forgotten instantly.

dario didn’t think when he reached them. there was no room left for thought. only instinct. only something primal and desperate ripping through him at the sight of her bleeding on the ground. he slammed into the hooded figure full force, shoulder driving into them hard enough to send both bodies crashing sideways. fists tangled into fabric immediately, dario forcing them backward with pure adrenaline fueling every movement. “get the fuck away from her!” the attacker recovered fast, faster than dario expected, and suddenly the fight became ugly. fists, elbows, shoves, pure survival. dario landed a punch hard enough to split skin across the figure’s mouth. another directly to the ribs. they stumbled backward and he took the opening immediately, dropping toward bri so fast he nearly fell beside her. “i’m here,” he breathed, voice breaking apart as his shaking hands hovered over her bloodied frame, terrified to touch the wrong place. there was so much blood. too much blood. “i got you. bri, i’ll keep you safe." like he promised he would. he would always keep her safe. and he honestly didn't know if she could hear him or not, but he wanted her to know he came back. he wanted her to know she wasn’t alone and she would be making it home to nova. that he would not let this be her last day on this fucking earth. nova was going to get to see her mom again, and dario, even if she couldn’t hear him, he needed to say it.

and suddenly there was movement that was too fast. dario turned just in time to catch the flash of the blade before pain exploded through him. at first it wasn’t even pain. just force. pressure. something violently wrong punching through his body hard enough to steal the air from his lungs completely. his breath hitched in confusion as the attacker ripped the knife free. then came the agony. it was like white-hot barb wire and catastrophic. dario staggered back instinctively, one hand flying to his abdomen as warmth immediately flooded through his fingers. his knees almost buckled right there, but adrenaline forced him upright long enough to swing again. he hit the attacker once. then twice. enough to force them backward before another shove sent him crashing hard against the pavement. suddenly his head rang violently against concrete. everything sounded distant then and like he was suddenly underwater. the hooded figure hesitated only a second before disappearing into the chaos.

dario tried to get back up. he truly did. his arm shook violently beneath him as he pushed against the ground, teeth gritted through a wet sound somewhere between a cough and a groan. blood spilled from his mouth before he could stop it. “fuck…” the word barely formed. his body wasn’t listening anymore. he collapsed back beside bri, chest rising in weak, uneven pulls that hurt worse every second. one trembling hand still searched blindly for her until his fingertips brushed fabric. there you are. relief hit him so sharply it almost hurt more than the wound itself. but his vision blurred badly now, darkening around the edges while the world slowly pulled away from him piece by piece. and all dario could think about—through the blood, through the pain, through the growing coldness crawling through his limbs—was how he wasn’t going home. not to bri. not to nova. he wasn’t going to get to ask her. he wasn’t going to hear nova laugh again or carry her half asleep to bed or watch her graduate or have those awkward teenage years talks or watch bri roll her eyes at him over coffee in the mornings. he wasn’t going to tell bash that despite every year spent angry and hurting and missing him, he had still always been the best big brother dario could’ve asked for. another cough tore through him, more blood spilling past his lips as his breathing faltered weaker and weaker. but he had strength for one more thing…one more final fight in and it boiled down to, “bri,..” he rasped softly “…i love you.” then nothing but shallow breaths followed. slower now. his eyes drifted shut for only a second, and suddenly the pavement beneath him was gone.

warm light replaced it instead. golden, soft, and endless all mixed into one. dario blinked slowly and found himself standing in line beside the ferris wheel again. the sky burned orange above the water, carnival lights glowing against the deepening sunset while somewhere nearby children laughed like nothing bad had ever existed here at all. the air smelled sweet, warm and safe. bash stood beside him exactly the way he remembered, solid and familiar and real enough to make dario’s chest ache. he looked over quietly, confusion flickering weakly across his face before something softer replaced it. understanding maybe. acceptance. “bash,…” he started faintly, though his voice trialed off. bash smiled sadly. “it's okay, hermanito.” dario let out the smallest laugh at that, watery and exhausted and strangely young sounding. bash nodded toward the ferris wheel. “i’ll make sure it stops at the top.” and something inside dario loosened then. all the pain he's ever felt. all the fear. all the fight draining out of him gently instead of all at once. “thanks, bash,” he replies softly as the cart opened for him, stepping inside. “i always did like the sunsets from up there.” and then the wheel ascended him from the earth below to the warmest sunset he'd ever seen.

[madeofechoes]

📲: MADMAN DOXIE (MADDOX)

dario: good morning, d-man. dario: is it morning there? it’s like 9pm here. dario: what’s good, man? been a while since i have checked in on your grumpy ass. how is…life? dario: also check it out. dinner of champs right here.

@cmenrps

[echosnoir]

closed for: savannah ( @savsgreco )

dario stood just outside of the salty splatoon, the cool night air doing little to settle the restless feeling sitting heavy in his chest. a half-finished beer hung loosely in his hand as his thoughts drifted somewhere he didn’t want them to, back to bash, to everything left unsaid, everything that never got the chance to be fixed. all because he had to be stubborn. his jaw tightened, grip on the bottle shifting before he even really registered it, and then...crack. glass shattered against the wall beside him, sharp and sudden, the sound cutting through the quiet as a sting followed almost immediately. “shit,” he hissed under his breath, more annoyed than anything as he looked down at the small cut across his hand, flexing his fingers like that might undo it.

he exhaled slowly, shaking his head at himself before glancing up, and that’s when he saw her. sav. of course. something in his expression softened despite himself, even now, even like this, a half-smile pulling at his lips like it was instinct. “oh, hey,” he greeted, voice a little rougher than usual but still warm because it was her. he shifted his weight, injured hand dropping slightly out of view like it wasn’t worth mentioning. “how are you?”

[echosnoir]

closed for: anyone your heart desires ( @deadlyalibis )

dario had fully committed to the song somewhere around the second chorus, one hand wrapped around the microphone while the other pointed dramatically at the crowd like he was performing for an arena instead of a half-packed karaoke bar with people probably too drunk to even know what he was singing in all honesty. by the time a hard day’s night came to an end, he was laughing breathlessly, giving an exaggerated bow before handing the mic back over to the host. “thank you, thank you, i’ll be here all night,” he joked, still grinning as he made his way back toward the table. sliding into the seat beside them, he grabbed his drink and took a sip before nudging their shoulder lightly. “be honest,” he said, eyes narrowing playfully, “was that performance life changing, or should i retire now? don't worry. either way, i'm getting us a round of shots. how's tequila sound?”

[echosnoir]

close for: any muse your heart desires ( @fracturedlcve )

since bash’s arrest, dario hadn’t been doing too good. he slipped back into old habits faster than he’d like to admit—drinks stacking up at the end of every shift, patience running thinner by the day, and that restless feeling under his skin that never quite let him settle. he hated how easily it all came back, like nothing he’d built had really stuck. the bar felt smaller lately, louder too, every conversation grating on him just enough to make him want to snap. so instead of risking it, he wiped his hands on a rag, muttered something about needing air, and pushed his way out the back door into the cool night, fishing a cigarette from his pocket like it was the only thing that might quiet his head for a minute.

he had just gotten it lit when he caught sight of someone familiar near the entrance, and he paused, exhaling a slow stream of smoke before calling out, “hey, sorry,” he said, as he lifted a hand slightly. “you heading in? can you give me five? it’s just me, but i need a smoke real quick.”

[echosnoir]

closed for: any muse your heart desires ( @deadlyalibis )

dario had only meant to stop for one drink. he hadn’t gone to his usual spot, avoiding familiar faces on purpose, but at some point the bar blurred into every other one he’d been in lately. he wasn’t a mess, not really, but his head wasn’t exactly clear either. one drink turned into two, then a few more, and by the time he decided to call it, everything felt just slightly better. making his way toward the door, he wasn’t paying enough attention, and his shoulder bumped into someone, hard enough to stop him short. his hand came up instinctively, reaching out to steady them without thinking, guilt hitting him just as quickly as the contact.

“i’m sorry,” he murmured, a little quieter than the room around them, like he meant it more than just a passing apology. “i didn’t see you there.” he huffed a small breath through his nose, already knowing how stupid that sounded, but it was the truth. his eyes flicked over them quickly, checking for damage like that would somehow fix it. “you okay? i didn’t spill your drink or mess up your outfit, did i?” he added, lingering there a second longer than necessary, hand hovering like he wasn’t sure if he should pull away yet.

[echosnoir]

closed for bash ( @burningvalhalla )

dario had claimed a spot at the bar not too long ago, drink in hand, deciding to give sav a bit of her own time to mingle. it felt wrong to be here, if dario were entirely honest. he was doing everything in his power to be the perfect date for savannah, from pulling out all the stops to sticking by her side as much as possible, but he couldn't shake the feeling he got tonight. daisy was dead, miles was dead, how many more were going to meet that same fate? his people were dropping like flies, and he felt powerless to help against it. all he could do was show face for his people, keep an eye on the ones who matter, and make sure sav had a perfect evening.

he had just placed another drink order, figuring he'd have one more before going to meet sav again. he didn’t need to look to know who was approaching—he felt it before anything else, that familiar shift that had his jaw tightening before he could stop it. bash. for a second, he considered leaving, slipping back into the crowd like it would be easier that way, because it kind of was. but he didn’t. instead, he stayed right where he was, letting out a low, quiet sigh under his breath as he brought the new drink up for a sip. even when bash came to stand beside him, dario didn’t turn, didn’t acknowledge him—just stared straight ahead like the space next to him was still empty, trying to fight back another frustrated sigh.

[echosnoir]

closed for noel ( @riftraffs )

addicted to the bean had always been one of those spots people gravitated toward without really thinking about it. the kind of place that felt easy to settle into, even when it was packed wall to wall. today just happened to be one of those days. every table was claimed, the low hum of conversation mixing with the hiss of espresso machines and the occasional laugh cutting through it all. dario had managed to snag a small table tucked off to the side, more out of luck than anything, a half-finished drink in front of him and his phone loosely gripped in one hand. he wasn’t really paying attention to it, though—his gaze drifting up every so often, seeing if he could spot any potential recruits in the crowd.

it wasn’t until he noticed someone lingering nearby, that seemed to be searching for an empty seat, that he finally spoke up. “you can stop looking,” he said, a hint of amusement tugging at it as he gestured to the empty chair across from him. “if that's what you're doing. i'm pretty sure every table’s been claimed for the next three hours.” a faint smirk pulled at his mouth as he leaned back slightly, giving them just enough space to decide. “if you’re looking for a spot, you’re welcome to join me. place is more packed than usual today, ain’t it?”