closed for: antonio ( @saltandstatic )
he hadn’t told anyone who he was coming to meet tonight. all he had done was arrange for dylan to be with marla for the evening, made sure there were no loose ends pulling him in another direction, and then headed out toward the buoy like it was just another stop in a long list of obligations that never really stayed simple for long. by the time he arrived, the place was already deep into its evening rhythm, music spilling over the deck, laughter and conversation blending into one steady hum, the ocean just beyond it all rolling in like it had nothing to do with any of it. darryl found a quieter edge of the bar and settled in there, a beer set in front of him, untouched for the first few minutes as he just watched the room.
it wasn’t until he felt the shift in movement that he spotted who he’d been here for in the first place. as antonio approached, darryl stood steady as ever. “glad ye could make it,” he said evenly and calmly. he held the moment just long enough for it to settle between them, no rush to fill the space, no need to overwork what was already understood about the weight of what brought them here. then, after a minute had passed, he eased back into his seat again, posture still composed, gaze steady on antonio as the noise of the buoy carried on around them.
he let out a quiet breath through his nose, eyes flicking briefly down toward the table before returning to antonio. “josephina,” he said after a beat, voice lower now, more measured than before. there was no attempt to soften what couldn’t be softened. “i am sorry for your loss.” he let the words sit there rather than follow them up right away, giving them space instead of crowding them. they were genuine, though whether or not antonio took that way was entirely up to him.












