sorry not sorry...

We all strive for it, don't we? We all long to be perfect. But not everyone is brave enough to do what you have to in order to reach it. But me? Darling I'm tough as nails and I did what I had to do.

[selenebxchanon]

“You’re right,” Selene chirped, unphased by Hazel’s derision. “I’m much prettier than her. Not to mention, I make Serena look like the Virgin Mary. I practically gave her virginity back to her, gift wrapped and tied with a bow and she still hasn’t sent me a thank you card. That skank.”

She clipped her wallet closed with a pointed snap and turned to her sandwich, losing interest quickly in the lack luster spar. Nick really had spoiled her. “Like I said, bill me,” she said. “But if your memory can’t serve you right, I guess you’re not getting a replacement.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel let out a dramatic sigh, accompanied by an eyeroll. “My memory will serve me fine, I just needed a bit of help remembering the name of someone who’s never meant anything to me.” She said bitterly, gathering her things. Even the god awful traffic outside had to be less annoying than Selene Buchanon. She let the sunglasses drop with a decided clank and straightened her dress. “I’ll be going now, sorry I wasn’t around long enough for you to owe me even more money.” And with those words she blew a small kiss, strolling out  of the doors.

[claudc-blog1]

Dylan had the urge for a cup of coffee before heading to work, causing him to enter the crowded cafe. As he passed no table in particular, he heard a comment and looked at whose mouth it had come from. “Trust me, I’m not trying to sit with you.” He replied to the blonde. “I’m just trying to get some coffee. I hope whoever’s sitting in it isn’t invisible though.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Spotting a familiar looking boy, Dylan she believed his name was, she sighed to herself. Partly in annoyance at the voice and partly in relief that he didn’t want to sit down. As a friend of Sebastian’s she had no interest in socializing. However, she looked over at the seat next to her with wide eyes then back to Dylan in shock. “You mean you can’t see him?!” She gasped, a look of absolute devastation on her face as she hoped to continue the act, preferably enough to scare him off.

[thequeenofconstance-blog]

“Perfect, I always knew I could count on you,” Blair grinned. “Shall we consider a guest list for this little get-together?” She knew that invitations was a little bit over-the-top to go out with a few old friends, but nobody did over-the-top better than Blair Waldorf.

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

She could hardly keep from beaming with pride. Being in the good graces of Blair was one of her biggest accomplishments and definitely something she took very seriously. “Of course, you always can!” She assured her before nodding. “Yes that sounds good, I’m not sure if you’ve seen Pen or Isabel recently, but they’d be a lovely addition - if that’s okay with you of course.” 

[vimiller]

At Hazel’s words, Jenny had to hold back a laugh. “It’s not exactly like you were the minion welcoming committee,” she pointed out, brows raised and arms crossed over her chest. She had to refrain from pointing out the fact that she had been good enough for Blair, so she should easily be good enough for Hazel, too. But some people still took her crowning moment as personal insult, and bringing up sensitive material when trying to get something from someone was never a good idea. When Hazel chose to move her bag, Jenny gave her a smile before taking the now vacant seat. Sipping on her latte, she looked around the shop and nodded in agreement, “If the hipsters start moving into the UES next,” she said as a man with an oversized scarf and knock-off Ray-Bans passed them, “We’re all screwed.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel couldn’t help but narrow her eyes. “It was never and will never be my job to be welcoming to anyone.” But at those words she let the subject drop, preferring not to dwell on the past for fear of getting frown lines. The mere idea of these absolute posers, pretending as if they didn’t have a care in the world when in reality they no doubt spent ages perfecting their man buns and perfectly tousled appearance, invading her sanctuary made her skin crawl. The thought unbearable. “God help the soul who tries infiltrating the Upper East Side. I swear these imbeciles think it’s easy.” She looked over at Jenny, not sure if she was quite in the mood for small talk but she figured it would be better than silence between the two and deafening background noise. “So what brings you here?” 

[manhattanmedusa-blog]

“I know it’s taken,” Octavia began, a formation of words lining up on her tongue as fingers grasped purposely placed items and a sharp smile directed her lip into a false sence of understanding. “By me.” Bronzed legs slipped together, one over the other as she showcased the results of a mid-week trip to Milan. The Persian coffee which caressed her senses, sat idly in her hands as she turned her head towards Hazel. “I understand not wanting a urchin to sit next to you. But for me it’s just rude.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

She heard a rather familiar voice, that of Octavia Bass and watched as the girl touched her things. Hazel couldn’t help but admire the audacity of the girl - few others reached her own level of self assurance and she had no right to deny the seat to someone as impressive as the girl. She nodded in agreement and took her things to set them in front of her. “That is undeniable. Imagine me next to an urchin. Forget it.” She was even able to crack a smile. “I’m suffering a dreadful hangover, so I do have an excuse I suppose. Please, join me. Perhaps I won’t regret coming to such a crowded place if I have dignified company.”

[selenebxchanon]

“I’m not the one taking up two seats in a full coffee shop,” Selene retorted. “If you’re going to be a bitch bright and early, you should to be prepared to pay the price.”

Although she didn’t exactly remember the name of Blair’s least interesting third nipple, the haughty attitude was unmistakable and potentially contagious from what she gathered from her time at Constance.  She had her wallet out already, prepared to shell out the cash to immediately cut their confrontation short until the girl purposefully mangled her name.

“Why don’t you bill me?” she said, her smile sharpening into something mean. “You know my name, right? Serena Van Der Woodsen– Need me to spell it?”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

“I’m not the one who had her head so far “Oh that’s where that name came from! What is it again? Serafina? Selena? Don’t tell me I’ll get there... Oh right! Selene isn’t it?” She pretended to be embarrassed when really she’d known the girls name all along - she was Hazel Williams, minion of Blair Waldorf. She had to know who everyone was. “Sorry, it’s a bit of an off day for me but I appreciate the attempt at what I’m assuming was humor because surely you would never pass for Serena Van Der Woodsen.” 

[selenebxchanon]

It hadn’t occurred to Selene that she had planted her hind flanks on something until Hazel mentioned it and even then her expression only changed from bewildered to slightly less bewildered when a mass was yanked out from under her. She stared at the other girl for a minute, eyes shifting to the sunglasses only briefly before recognizing the contempt. She caught herself in the midst of an apology, her gaping mouth closing instead in a grimace.

“Sorry, I’ve got things to do. You know, adult stuff,” she replied. “You shouldn’t park a wide load in a small space but I’ll pay for your Prada since I’m sure it must’ve been hard to thrift for.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

The smirk that so often rested upon Hazel’s lips returned at the girl’s idiotic choice of confrontation. “If the wide load you’re referring to is your ass then yeah you’re right and that sounds like your problem.” She took a sip of her coffee, trying to ignore the little munchkins stomping on the inside of her skull. “And if you must know, Serena, the heir of an oil company bought these for me. I hardly think you’d expect me to buy my own things so nice try, but the sunglasses are $400.” 

[vimiller]

Latte in hand, Jenny made her way through the overly crowded coffee shop, hoping to find a seat before they all filled up. Scanning the small, but quaint cafe, her eyes landed on a familiar blonde. Though she hadn’t seen the girl in years, she broke through the people in the crowd and walked towards her in time to see her occupy the empty seat with her belongings. With a sigh and a roll of her blue eyes, Jenny cocked her head to the side, “Really Hazel?” she asked, “I thought all of the animosity was behind us. We’re not still in high school,” she pointed out, hand held firmly on her hip.

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel wasn’t particularly in the mood to socialize with anyone, let alone Jenny Humphrey -  darling sister of Dan Humphrey. “High school is far past over, I know but I have a headache and you have never been all that nice to me so why would I just happily let you sit next to me?” She snapped, taking a deep breath and longing for greasy food. With a sigh she moved her purse and nodded to the seat. “Take it if you must.” She rolled her eyes and leaned an elbow on the table. “I didn’t expect all these people to be here. It’s irritatingly loud.” 

[selenebxchanon]

Like most natural disasters, Selene paid little mind to what other people’s plans and motivations were before she collided into them with all of the grace of a tornado. She had her phone tucked against her shoulder as she narrowly avoided ramming her hip into the table before promptly dropping down onto Hazel’s things with a punctuated crunch. Juggling a panini and a tray of coffee in her hands, she impressively managed to bark over the phone for another minute before setting everything down with an accomplished exhale and looked to the girl beside her.

“I’m sorry,” she said with a polite smile. “Did you say something?”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

“Oh Christ.” Hazel mumbled to herself as she saw who it was. Selene Buchanon - Penelope was never a fan of her and by extension neither was Hazel. “I said that seat was taken. By all of my things which, by the way, you just crushed.” She tugged on the strap of her purse to get it back and started digging through it. “If anything is broken you’re paying for it.” Nothing but a pair of sunglasses (very expensive mind you) was broken so she dangled it in front of the girl’s face. “Maybe if you’d taken your head out of your phone my Prada sunglasses wouldn’t have paid the price.” 

[beguiledbyblood-blog]

“ No its not,” Chuck smirked, seating himself at the black lacquer wood table besides an old friend of his. Eyes placed upon a terra-cotta plant across the room, holding a fainted coquelicot, matching the bright-red stitching in his Valentino suit. “ Did you miss me, Williams? It’s been too long.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Casting her eyes up she finally saw who it was and her reaction was less than positive. “Who made you boss of the coffee shop seats?” She grumbled, running a hand through her hair. “What makes you think I would miss you, Bass?” Her voice held a bitter tone and she couldn’t be sure if it was from the pounding headache or having her morning interrupted by Chuck.

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel rubbed her forehead, nursing a hangover one could only have after having dinner with the Williams. She remembered now more than ever why she’d gotten her own place as soon as she could and the reason started with M and ended with other. She took a sip of her coffee, all too aware of the large amount of people in the cafe. At the sight of a figure near her table she purposefully filled the seat next to her with her belongings praying that the person didn’t get any funny ideas like thinking that they could sit next to her. “That seat is taken.” She stated, not bothering to look up at the person.

[thequeenofconstance-blog]

“Now that’s what I like to hear,” Blair said with a muted smile. “How does next Saturday sound? We can invite some mutual friends of ours.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel clapped her hands together once and nodded. “I like to hear it too! That sounds like a plan! I can take care of the invites if you’d like!” 

[thequeenofconstance-blog]

A smile grew on Blair’s face as she listened to Hazel’s anecdote. The use of “hashtags” in daily conversation Blair was not fond of, but otherwise the gossip was good and interesting– Not particularly deep or secret, but it was a step in the right direction and Blair knew she had to build momentum. Oh, how her minions had grown up. Mother would be proud. “I couldn’t agree more,” she said finally. “In fact, I would love to stir up some drama very soon. Maybe visit some of our favorite spots in the city and see what goes from there?”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel’s heart practically sped twice as fast at the thought of causing some drama with her long adored Queen. Besides, not that she ever would but who was she to decline such an invite? “As always, Blair - I would follow you to war, so lead the way and I’m sure we’ll find some lives to ruin.” 

[ninthvibration]

Soul mate, a cliche term in their world but the only one that truly captured her connection to the blonde. They were soul mates in the most platonic sense, two people cut from the same cloth and Penelope truly hadn’t realized how much she missed her spit fire best friend until she was standing right in front of her. With the help of Hazel’s tug, the brunette was back on to her feet and engulfing the other in the briefest of hugs before pulling away to truly bask in the shower of compliments being thrown her way. 

“Well gee, Hazel. I feel about as happy as a bride hearing her husband’s vows for the first time. Truly, And of course I respect you as a person, it’s because I know you’re actually a goddess." The compliment was closely followed by a playful wink. Her mood completely lifted as she bent to gather her purse from the sidewalk, tossing it over her shoulder while her arm linked itself with Hazel’s."Your pure existence makes the world better and you know what? I like you so much that I’m going to pay for this margarita meal because clearly you deserve to be spoiled.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

Hazel laughed and couldn’t help but agree. “Well my Darling we may as well just get married then don’t you think?” She said teasingly. She curtsied and placed a hand over her heart. “You really are the only one who gets me I’m telling you. Grace had that party and I’m not exaggerating when I say I was the hottest one there.” Hazel hadn’t preferred a modest lifestyle for a while - not since she transformed. She saw no use in it anymore. Not when everyone was telling her how beautiful she always was. 

She fluffed up her hair and grinned widely. “Oh God, Pen. You’re killing me with compliments.” She looked down at where there arms crossed and smiled at the normalcy of the feeling. “Only if you let me pay the tip.” She said, nudging the girls shoulder. She let out a heavy sigh and pouted. “You know what? I do. I do deserve to be spoiled. But as much as I love talking about me, how was your trip?” 

[love-personal]

[ninthvibration]

It was only after the familiar voice of her partner in crime drifted over the sound of the otherwise busy New York street that Penelope looked up. An immediate smile slipping on to her features, finally, a face that did not make her angrier. "I’d be happier to to see you if you were carrying a pitcher of margaritas.“

It was technically far too early to be drinking but since when did either of them care about the rules society set for them? Childishly, the brunette reached out her arms in a silent gesture for Hazel to help her up. "Why’d you stop though? Please, continue to tell me how much seeing my beautiful face makes you feel happy.”

[thehazelwilliams-blog]

“I don’t carry it on me you know but I would always be down for a margarita meal later on.” Hazel winked at her best friend, looking around at the people on the street in hopes that the whole world knew that the pair was together again. “But I certainly hope my lack of alcohol doesn’t take away from how much you’ve missed me.” She teased, taking the girls hands in her own immediately. 

“Well seeing as you’re really the only one who properly respects me as a person-” Sure it was a bit overdramatic but she could hardly stand most of the others around here so it wasn’t that much of a stretch. “Seeing your gorgeous face again has not only made my day better but my life better. Truly I feel whole once more, at peace... my aura has chilled.” She gushed with a big smile. “Do I get a turn?”

[dailydccu]

[chinaofrps-deactivated20180604]

Margot Robbie photographed by Carlos Serrao for V Magazine.